Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium''. The fibre is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal.

The plant is a shrub native to tropical and subtropical regions around the world, including the Americas, Africa, and India. The greatest diversity of wild cotton species is found in Mexico, followed by Australia and Africa. Cotton was independently domesticated in the Old and New Worlds. The English name derives from the Arabic ''(al) qutn'' قُطْن, which began to be used circa 1400 AD.

The fiber most often is spun into yarn or thread and used to make a soft, breathable textile. The use of cotton for fabric is known to date to prehistoric times; fragments of cotton fabric dated from 5000 BC have been excavated in Mexico and Pakistan. Although cultivated since antiquity, it was the invention of the cotton gin that so lowered the cost of production that led to its widespread use, and it is the most widely used natural fiber cloth in clothing today.

Current estimates for world production are about 25 million tonnes annually, accounting for 2.5% of the world's arable land. China is the world's largest producer of cotton, but most of this is used domestically. The United States has been the largest exporter for many years.

Types of cotton

There are four commercially-grown species of cotton, all domesticated in antiquity:

''Gossypium hirsutum'' – upland cotton, native to Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean and southern Florida, (90% of world production)

''Gossypium barbadense'' – known as Creole, Egyptian, Pima or sea island cotton, native to tropical South America (8% of world production)

''Gossypium arboreum'' – tree cotton, native to India and Pakistan (less than 2%)

''Gossypium herbaceum'' – Levant cotton, native to southern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula (less than 2%)

The two New World cotton species account for the vast majority of modern cotton production, but the two Old World species were widely used before the 1900s. While cotton fibers occur naturally in colors of white, brown, and green, fears of contaminating the genetics of white cotton has led many cotton-growing locations to ban growing of colored cotton varieties which remain a specialty product.

History

Cotton fabrics discovered in a cave near Tehuacán, Mexico have been dated to around 5800 BC, although it is difficult to know for certain due to fiber decay. Other sources date the domestication of cotton in Mexico to approximately 5000 to 3000 BC.

Cotton was first cultivated in the Old World 7,000 years ago (5th–4th millennia BC), by the inhabitants of the Indus Valley Civilization, which covered a huge swath of the northwestern part of the South Asia, comprising today parts of eastern Pakistan and northwestern India. The Indus cotton industry was well developed and some methods used in cotton spinning and fabrication continued to be used until the modern industrialization of India. Well before the Common Era, the use of cotton textiles had spread from India to the Mediterranean and beyond.

Greeks and the Arabs were not familiar with cotton until the Wars of Alexander the Great, as his contemporary Megasthenes told Seleucus I Nicator of "there being trees on which wool grows" in "Indica".

According to the ''Columbia Encyclopedia'', sixth edition:

In Iran (Persia), the history of cotton dates back to the Achaemenid era (5th century BC); however, there are few sources about the planting of cotton in pre-Islamic Iran. The planting of cotton was common in Merv, Ray and Pars of Iran. In the poems of Persian poets, especially Ferdowsi's Shahname, there are references to cotton ("panbe" in Persian). Marco Polo (13th century) refers to the major products of Persia, including cotton. John Chardin, a French traveler of 17th century, who had visited the Safavid Persia, has approved the vast cotton farms of Persia.

During the Han dynasty, cotton was grown by non chinese peoples in the southern Chinese province of Yunnan.

In Peru, cultivation of the indigenous cotton species ''Gossypium barbadense'' was the backbone of the development of coastal cultures, such as the Norte Chico, Moche and Nazca. Cotton was grown upriver, made into nets and traded with fishing villages along the coast for large supplies of fish. The Spanish who came to Mexico and Peru in the early 16th century found the people growing cotton and wearing clothing made of it.

During the late medieval period, cotton became known as an imported fiber in northern Europe, without any knowledge of how it was derived, other than that it was a plant; noting its similarities to wool, people in the region could only imagine that cotton must be produced by plant-borne sheep. John Mandeville, writing in 1350, stated as fact the now-preposterous belief: "There grew there [India] a wonderful tree which bore tiny lambs on the endes of its branches. These branches were so pliable that they bent down to allow the lambs to feed when they are hungrie ." (See Vegetable Lamb of Tartary.) This aspect is retained in the name for cotton in many European languages, such as German ''Baumwolle'', which translates as "tree wool" (''Baum'' means "tree"; ''Wolle'' means "wool"). By the end of the 16th century, cotton was cultivated throughout the warmer regions in Asia and the Americas.

India's cotton-processing sector gradually declined during British expansion in India and the establishment of colonial rule during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. This was largely due to aggressive colonialist mercantile policies of the British East India Company, which made cotton processing and manufacturing workshops in India uncompetitive. Indian markets were increasingly forced to supply only raw cotton and were forced, by British-imposed law, to purchase manufactured textiles from Britain.

Industrial Revolution in Britain

The advent of the Industrial Revolution in Britain provided a great boost to cotton manufacture, as textiles emerged as Britain's leading export. In 1738, Lewis Paul and John Wyatt, of Birmingham, England, patented the roller spinning machine, and the flyer-and-bobbin system for drawing cotton to a more even thickness using two sets of rollers that traveled at different speeds. Later, the invention of the spinning jenny in 1764 and Richard Arkwright's spinning frame (based on the roller spinning machine) in 1769 enabled British weavers to produce cotton yarn and cloth at much higher rates. From the late 18th century onwards, the British city of Manchester acquired the nickname ''"Cottonopolis"'' due to the cotton industry's omnipresence within the city, and Manchester's role as the heart of the global cotton trade. Production capacity in Britain and the United States was improved by the invention of the cotton gin by the American Eli Whitney in 1793. Improving technology and increasing control of world markets allowed British traders to develop a commercial chain in which raw cotton fibers were (at first) purchased from colonial plantations, processed into cotton cloth in the mills of Lancashire, and then exported on British ships to captive colonial markets in West Africa, India, and China (via Shanghai and Hong Kong).

By the 1840s, India was no longer capable of supplying the vast quantities of cotton fibers needed by mechanized British factories, while shipping bulky, low-price cotton from India to Britain was time-consuming and expensive. This, coupled with the emergence of American cotton as a superior type (due to the longer, stronger fibers of the two domesticated native American species, ''Gossypium hirsutum'' and ''Gossypium barbadense''), encouraged British traders to purchase cotton from plantations in the United States and the Caribbean. By the mid-19th century, "King Cotton" had become the backbone of the southern American economy. In the United States, cultivating and harvesting cotton became the leading occupation of slaves.

During the American Civil War, American cotton exports slumped due to a Union blockade on Southern ports, also because of a strategic decision by the Confederate government to cut exports, hoping to force Britain to recognize the Confederacy or enter the war, prompting the main purchasers of cotton, Britain and France to turn to Egyptian cotton. British and French traders invested heavily in cotton plantations and the Egyptian government of Viceroy Isma'il took out substantial loans from European bankers and stock exchanges. After the American Civil War ended in 1865, British and French traders abandoned Egyptian cotton and returned to cheap American exports, sending Egypt into a deficit spiral that led to the country declaring bankruptcy in 1876, a key factor behind Egypt's annexation by the British Empire in 1882.

During this time, cotton cultivation in the British Empire, especially India, greatly increased to replace the lost production of the American South. Through tariffs and other restrictions, the British government discouraged the production of cotton cloth in India; rather, the raw fiber was sent to England for processing. The Indian Mahatma Gandhi described the process:

#English people buy Indian cotton in the field, picked by Indian labor at seven cents a day, through an optional monopoly. #This cotton is shipped on British ships, a three-week journey across the Indian Ocean, down the Red Sea, across the Mediterranean, through Gibraltar, across the Bay of Biscay and the Atlantic Ocean to London. One hundred per cent profit on this freight is regarded as small. #The cotton is turned into cloth in Lancashire. You pay shilling wages instead of Indian pennies to your workers. The English worker not only has the advantage of better wages, but the steel companies of England get the profit of building the factories and machines. Wages; profits; all these are spent in England. #The finished product is sent back to India at European shipping rates, once again on British ships. The captains, officers, sailors of these ships, whose wages must be paid, are English. The only Indians who profit are a few lascars who do the dirty work on the boats for a few cents a day. #The cloth is finally sold back to the kings and landlords of India who got the money to buy this expensive cloth out of the poor peasants of India who worked at seven cents a day. (Fisher 1932 pp 154–156)

In the United States, Southern cotton provided capital for the continuing development of the North. The cotton produced by enslaved African Americans not only helped the South, but also enriched Northern merchants. Much of the Southern cotton was transshipped through the northern ports.

Cotton remained a key crop in the Southern economy after emancipation and the end of the Civil War in 1865. Across the South, sharecropping evolved, in which free black farmers and landless white farmers worked on white-owned cotton plantations of the wealthy in return for a share of the profits. Cotton plantations required vast labor forces to hand-pick cotton, and it was not until the 1950s that reliable harvesting machinery was introduced into the South (prior to this, cotton-harvesting machinery had been too clumsy to pick cotton without shredding the fibers). During the early 20th century, employment in the cotton industry fell, as machines began to replace laborers, and the South's rural labor force dwindled during the First and Second World Wars. Today, cotton remains a major export of the southern United States, and a majority of the world's annual cotton crop is of the long-staple American variety.

Tangüis cotton

In 1901, Peru's cotton industry suffered because of a fungus plague caused by a plant disease known as "cotton wilt" or, more correctly, "fusarium wilt", caused by the fungus ''Fusarium vasinfectum''. The plant disease, which spread throughout Peru, entered plant's roots and worked its way up the stem until the plant was completely dried up. Fermín Tangüis, a Puerto Rican agriculturist who lived in Peru, studied some species of the plant that were affected by the disease to a lesser extent and experimented in germination with the seeds of various cotton plants. In 1911, after 10 years of experimenting and failures, Tangüis was able to develop a seed which produced a superior cotton plant resistant to the disease. The seeds produced a plant that had a 40% longer (between 29 mm and 33 mm) and thicker fiber that did not break easily and required little water. The Tangüis cotton, as it became known, is the variety which is preferred by the Peruvian national textile industry. It constituted 75% of all the Peruvian cotton production, both for domestic use and apparel exports. The Tangüis cotton crop was estimated at 225,000 bales that year.

Cultivation

Successful cultivation of cotton requires a long frost-free period, plenty of sunshine, and a moderate rainfall, usually from 600 to 1200 mm (24 to 48 inches). Soils usually need to be fairly heavy, although the level of nutrients does not need to be exceptional. In general, these conditions are met within the seasonally dry tropics and subtropics in the Northern and Southern hemispheres, but a large proportion of the cotton grown today is cultivated in areas with less rainfall that obtain the water from irrigation. Production of the crop for a given year usually starts soon after harvesting the preceding autumn. Planting time in spring in the Northern hemisphere varies from the beginning of February to the beginning of June. The area of the United States known as the South Plains is the largest contiguous cotton-growing region in the world. While dryland (non-irrigated) cotton is successfully grown in this region, consistent yields are only produced with heavy reliance on irrigation water drawn from the Ogallala Aquifer. Since cotton is somewhat salt and drought tolerant, this makes it an attractive crop for arid and semiarid regions. As water resources get tighter around the world, economies that rely on it face difficulties and conflict, as well as potential environmental problems. For example, improper cropping and irrigation practices have led to desertification in areas of Uzbekistan, where cotton is a major export. In the days of the Soviet Union, the Aral Sea was tapped for agricultural irrigation, largely of cotton, and now salination is widespread.

Cotton can also be cultivated to have colors other than the yellowish off-white typical of modern commercial cotton fibers. Naturally colored cotton can come in red, green, and several shades of brown.

Genetic modification

Genetically modified (GM) cotton was developed to reduce the heavy reliance on pesticides. The bacterium ''Bacillus thuringiensis'' (Bt) naturally produces a chemical harmful only to a small fraction of insects, most notably the larvae of moths and butterflies, beetles, and flies, and harmless to other forms of life. The gene coding for Bt toxin has been inserted into cotton, causing cotton to produce this natural insecticide in its tissues. In many regions, the main pests in commercial cotton are lepidopteran larvae, which are killed by the Bt protein in the toransgenic cotton they eat. This eliminates the need to use large amounts of broad-spectrum insecticides to kill lepidopteran pests (some of which have developed pyrethroid resistance). This spares natural insect predators in the farm ecology and further contributes to noninsecticide pest management.

Bt cotton is ineffective against many cotton pests, however, such as plant bugs, stink bugs, and aphids; depending on circumstances it may still be desirable to use insecticides against these. A 2006 study done by Cornell researchers, the Center for Chinese Agricultural Policy and the Chinese Academy of Science on Bt cotton farming in China found that after seven years these secondary pests that were normally controlled by pesticide had increased, necessitating the use of pesticides at similar levels to non-Bt cotton and causing less profit for farmers because of the extra expense of GM seeds. However a more recent 2009 study by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Stanford University and Rutgers University refutes this. They concluded that the GM cotton effectively controlled bollworm. The secondary pests were mostly miridae (plant bugs) whose increase was related to local temperature and rainfall and only continued to increase in half the villages studied. Moreover, the increase in insecticide use for the control of these secondary insects was far smaller than the reduction in total insecticide use due to Bt cotton adoption. The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) said that, worldwide, GM cotton was planted on an area of 16 million hectares in 2009. This was 49% of the worldwide total area planted in cotton. The U.S. cotton crop was 93% GM in 2010 and the Chinese cotton crop was 68% GM in 2009.

The initial introduction of GM cotton proved to be a success in Australia - the yields were equivalent to the no transgenic varieties and the crop used much less pesticide to produce (85% reduction). The subsequent introduction of a second variety of GM cotton led to increases in GM cotton production until 95% of the Australian cotton crop was GM in 2009.

Cotton has mainly been genetically modified for resistance to glyphosate (marketed as Roundup in North America) a broad-spectrum herbicide sold by Monsanto, the same company that sells the Bt cotton seeds to agricultors. Agricultors buy every year Bt Cotton seeds as GM plants are not fertile. Thus Monsanto controls the market of cotton selling on the one hand the GM seeds and on the other hand the herbicide that goes with it. Researchs have shown that Roundup had a harmful effect on cell cycle regulation (dysfunction characteristic of cancers): "In fact just one droplet is needed to affect the process of cell division. To be precise, this means that to use the herbicide safely not only you must wear coveralls and a mask but also ensure that there is nobody at 500 m around ".

GM cotton acreage in India continues to grow at a rapid rate, increasing from 50,000 hectares in 2002 to 8.4 million hectares in 2009. The total cotton area in India was 9.6 million hectares (the largest in the world or, about 35% of world cotton area), so GM cotton was grown on 87% of the cotton area in 2009. This makes India the country with the largest area of GM cotton in the world, surpassing China (3.7 million hectares in 2009). The major reasons for this increase is a combination of increased farm income ($225/ha) and a reduction in pesticide use to control the cotton bollworm.

Cotton has gossypol, a toxin that makes it inedible. However, scientists have silenced the gene that produces the toxin, making it a potential food crop.

Organic production

Organic cotton is generally understood as cotton, from plants not genetically modified, that is certified to be grown without the use of any synthetic agricultural chemicals, such as fertilizers or pesticides. Its production also promotes and enhances biodiversity and biological cycles. United States cotton plantations are required to enforce the National Organic Program (NOP). This institution determines the allowed practices for pest control, growing, fertilizing, and handling of organic crops. As of 2007, 265,517 bales of organic cotton were produced in 24 countries, and worldwide production was growing at a rate of more than 50% per year.

Pests and weeds

The cotton industry relies heavily on chemicals, such as herbicides, fertilizers and insecticides, although a very small number of farmers are moving toward an organic model of production, and organic cotton products are now available for purchase at limited locations. These are popular for baby clothes and diapers. Under most definitions, organic products do not use genetic engineering.

Historically, in North America, one of the most economically destructive pests in cotton production has been the boll weevil. Due to the US Department of Agriculture's highly successful Boll Weevil Eradication Program (BWEP), this pest has been eliminated from cotton in most of the United States. This program, along with the introduction of genetically engineered Bt cotton (which contains a bacterial gene that codes for a plant-produced protein that is toxic to a number of pests such as cotton bollworm and pink bollworm), has allowed a reduction in the use of synthetic insecticides.

Other significant global pests of cotton include the pink bollworm, ''Pectinophora gossypiella''; the chili thrips, ''Scirtothrips dorsalis''; the cotton seed bug, ''Oxycarenus hyalinipennis''; the tarnish plant bug, ''Lygus lineolaris''; and the fall armyworm, ''Spodoptera frugiperda''.

Harvesting

Most cotton in the United States, Europe, and Australia is harvested mechanically, either by a cotton picker, a machine that removes the cotton from the boll without damaging the cotton plant, or by a cotton stripper, which strips the entire boll off the plant. Cotton strippers are used in regions where it is too windy to grow picker varieties of cotton, and usually after application of a chemical defoliant or the natural defoliation that occurs after a freeze. Cotton is a perennial crop in the tropics, and without defoliation or freezing, the plant will continue to grow.

Cotton continues to be picked by hand in developing countries.

Competition from synthetic fibers

The era of manufactured fibers began with the development of rayon in France in the 1890s. Rayon is derived from a natural cellulose and cannot be considered synthetic, but requires extensive processing in a manufacturing process, and led the less expensive replacement of more naturally derived materials. A succession of new synthetic fibers were introduced by the chemicals industry in the following decades. Acetate in fiber form was developed in 1924. Nylon, the first fiber synthesized entirely from petrochemicals, was introduced as a sewing thread by DuPont in 1936, followed by DuPont's acrylic in 1944. Some garments were created from fabrics based on these fibers, such as women's hosiery from nylon, but it was not until the introduction of polyester into the fiber marketplace in the early 1950s that the market for cotton came under threat. The rapid uptake of polyester garments in the 1960s caused economic hardship in cotton-exporting economies, especially in Central American countries, such as Nicaragua, where cotton production had boomed tenfold between 1950 and 1965 with the advent of cheap chemical pesticides. Cotton production recovered in the 1970s, but crashed to pre-1960 levels in the early 1990s.

Beginning as a self-help program in the mid-1960s, the Cotton Research and Promotion Program (CRPP) was organized by U.S. cotton producers in response to cotton's steady decline in market share. At that time, producers voted to set up a per-bale assessment system to fund the program, with built-in safeguards to protect their investments. With the passage of the Cotton Research and Promotion Act of 1966, the program joined forces and began battling synthetic competitors and re-establishing markets for cotton. Today, the success of this program has made cotton the best-selling fiber in the U.S. and one of the best-selling fibers in the world.

Administered by the Cotton Board and conducted by Cotton Incorporated, the CRPP works to greatly increase the demand for and profitability of cotton through various research and promotion activities. It is funded by U.S. cotton producers and importers.

Uses

Cotton is used to make a number of textile products. These include terrycloth for highly absorbent bath towels and robes; denim for blue jeans; chambray, popularly used in the manufacture of blue work shirts (from which we get the term "blue-collar"); and corduroy, seersucker, and cotton twill. Socks, underwear, and most T-shirts are made from cotton. Bed sheets often are made from cotton. Cotton also is used to make yarn used in crochet and knitting. Fabric also can be made from recycled or recovered cotton that otherwise would be thrown away during the spinning, weaving, or cutting process. While many fabrics are made completely of cotton, some materials blend cotton with other fibers, including rayon and synthetic fibers such as polyester. It can either be used in knitted or woven fabrics, as it can be blended with elastine to make a stretchier thread for knitted fabrics, and apparel such as stretch jeans.

In addition to the textile industry, cotton is used in fishing nets, coffee filters, tents, gunpowder (see nitrocellulose), cotton paper, and in bookbinding. The first Chinese paper was made of cotton fiber. Fire hoses were once made of cotton.

The cottonseed which remains after the cotton is ginned is used to produce cottonseed oil, which, after refining, can be consumed by humans like any other vegetable oil. The cottonseed meal that is left generally is fed to ruminant livestock; the gossypol remaining in the meal is toxic to monogastric animals. Cottonseed hulls can be added to dairy cattle rations for roughage. During the American slavery period, cotton root bark was used in folk remedies as an abortifacient, that is, to induce a miscarriage.

Cotton linters are fine, silky fibers which adhere to the seeds of the cotton plant after ginning. These curly fibers typically are less than 1/8 in (3 mm) long. The term also may apply to the longer textile fiber staple lint as well as the shorter fuzzy fibers from some upland species. Linters are traditionally used in the manufacture of paper and as a raw material in the manufacture of cellulose. In the UK, linters are referred to as "cotton wool". This can also be a refined product (''absorbent cotton'' in U.S. usage) which has medical, cosmetic and many other practical uses. The first medical use of cotton wool was by Dr. Joseph Sampson Gamgee at the Queen's Hospital (later the General Hospital) in Birmingham, England.

Shiny cotton is a processed version of the fiber that can be made into cloth resembling satin for shirts and suits. However, it is hydrophobic (does not absorb water easily), which makes it unfit for use in bath and dish towels (although examples of these made from shiny cotton are seen).

The name Egyptian cotton is broadly associated with quality products, however only a small percentage of Egyptian cotton production is actually of superior quality. Most products bearing the name are not made with the finest cottons from Egypt.

International trade

The largest producers of cotton, currently (2009), are China and India, with annual production of about 34 million bales and 24 million bales, respectively; most of this production is consumed by their respective textile industries. The largest exporters of raw cotton are the United States, with sales of $4.9 billion, and Africa, with sales of $2.1 billion. The total international trade is estimated to be $12 billion. Africa's share of the cotton trade has doubled since 1980. Neither area has a significant domestic textile industry, textile manufacturing having moved to developing nations in Eastern and South Asia such as India and China. In Africa, cotton is grown by numerous small holders. Dunavant Enterprises, based in Memphis, Tennessee, is the leading cotton broker in Africa, with hundreds of purchasing agents. It operates cotton gins in Uganda, Mozambique, and Zambia. In Zambia, it often offers loans for seed and expenses to the 180,000 small farmers who grow cotton for it, as well as advice on farming methods. Cargill also purchases cotton in Africa for export.

The 25,000 cotton growers in the United States of America are heavily subsidized at the rate of $2 billion per year. The future of these subsidies is uncertain and has led to anticipatory expansion of cotton brokers' operations in Africa. Dunavant expanded in Africa by buying out local operations. This is only possible in former British colonies and Mozambique; former French colonies continue to maintain tight monopolies, inherited from their former colonialist masters, on cotton purchases at low fixed prices.

Leading producer countries

{| style="float:right;" class="wikitable" ! colspan=2| Top ten cotton producers—2011(480-pound bales) |- | || style="text-align:right;"| 33.0 million bales |- | || style="text-align:right;"| 27.0 million bales |- | || style="text-align:right;"| 18.0 million bales |- | || style="text-align:right;"| 10.3 million bales |- | || style="text-align:right;"| 9.3 million bales |- | || style="text-align:right;"| 4.6 million bales |- | || style="text-align:right;"| 4.2 million bales |- | || style="text-align:right;"| 2.8 million bales |- | || style="text-align:right;"| 1.6 million bales |- | || style="text-align:right;"| 1.4 million bales |- |colspan=2 style="font-size:90%;"|''Source: |} The five leading exporters of cotton in 2011 are (1) the United States, (2) India, (3) Brazil, (4) Australia, and (5) Uzbekistan. The largest nonproducing importers are Korea, Taiwan, Russia, Hong Kong and Japan.

In India, the states of Maharashtra (26.63%), Gujarat (17.96%) and Andhra Pradesh (13.75%) and also Madhya Pradesh are the leading cotton producing states, these states have a predominantly tropical wet and dry climate.

In Pakistan, cotton is grown predominantly in the provinces of Punjab and Sindh. The leading city in cotton production is the Punjabi city of Faisalabad which is also leading in textiles within Pakistan. The Punjab has a tropical wet and dry climate throughout the year therefore enhancing the growth of cotton.

In the United States, the state of Texas led in total production as of 2004, while the state of California had the highest yield per acre.

Fair trade

Cotton is an enormously important commodity throughout the world. However, many farmers in developing countries receive a low price for their produce, or find it difficult to compete with developed countries.

This has led to an international dispute (see United States – Brazil cotton dispute):

On 27 September 2002, Brazil requested consultations with the US regarding prohibited and actionable subsidies provided to US producers, users and/or exporters of upland cotton, as well as legislation, regulations, statutory instruments and amendments thereto providing such subsidies (including export credits), grants, and any other assistance to the US producers, users and exporters of upland cotton.

On 8 September 2004, the Panel Report recommended that the United States "withdraw" export credit guarantees and payments to domestic users and exporters, and "take appropriate steps to remove the adverse effects or withdraw" the mandatory price-contingent subsidy measures.

In addition to concerns over subsidies, the cotton industries of some countries are criticized for employing child labor and damaging workers' health by exposure to pesticides used in production. The Environmental Justice Foundation has campaigned against the prevalent use of forced child and adult labor in cotton production in Uzbekistan, the world's third largest cotton exporter. The international production and trade situation has led to "fair trade" cotton clothing and footwear, joining a rapidly growing market for organic clothing, fair fashion or "ethical fashion". The fair trade system was initiated in 2005 with producers from Cameroon, Mali and Senegal.

Trade

Cotton is bought and sold by investors and price speculators as a tradable commodity on 2 different stock exchanges in the United States of America .

Cotton futures contracts are traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) under the ticker symbol TT. They are delivered every year in March, May, July, October, and December. Cotton #2 futures contracts are traded on the New York Board of Trade (NYBOT) under the ticker symbol CT. They are delivered every year in March, May, July, October, and December.

Critical temperatures

Favorable travel temperature range: below 25°C (77°F)

Optimum travel temperature: 21°C (70°F)

Glow temperature: 205°C (401°F)

Fire point: 210°C (410°F)

Autoignition temperature: 407°C (765°F)

Autoignition temperature (for oily cotton): 120°C (248°F)

Cotton dries out, becomes hard and brittle and loses all elasticity at temperatures above 25°C (77°F). Extended exposure to light causes similar problems.

A temperature range of 25°C (77°F) to 35°C (95°F) is the optimal range for mold development. At temperatures below 0°C (32°F), rotting of wet cotton stops. Damaged cotton is sometimes stored at these temperatures to prevent further deterioration.

British standard yarn measures

1 thread = 55 inches (about 137 cm)

1 skein or rap = 80 threads (120 yards or about 109 m)

1 hank = 7 skeins (840 yards or about 768 m)

1 spindle = 18 hanks (15,120 yards or about 13.826 km)

Fiber properties

Property	!Evaluation
Shape	Fairly uniform in width, 12-20 micrometers; length varies from 1 cm to 6 cm (½ to 2½ inches); typical length is 2.2 cm to 3.3 cm (⅞ to 1¼ inches).
Luster	high
Tenacity (strength) Dry Wet	3.0–5.0 g/d 3.3–6.0 g/d
Resiliency	low
Density	1.54–1.56 g/cm³
Moisture absorption raw: conditioned saturation mercerized: conditioned saturation	8.5%15–25%8.5–10.3%15-27%+
Dimensional stability	good
Resistance to acidsalkaliorganic solventssunlightmicroorganismsinsects	damage, weaken fibersresistant; no harmful effectshigh resistance to mostProlonged exposure weakens fibers.Mildew and rot-producing bacteria damage fibers.Silverfish damage fibers.
Thermal reactions to heatto flame	Decomposes after prolonged exposure to temperatures of 150˚C or over. Burns readily.

The chemical composition of cotton is as follows:

cellulose 91.00%

water 7.85%

protoplasm, pectins 0.55%

waxes, fatty substances 0.40%

mineral salts 0.20%

Cotton genome

A public genome sequencing effort of cotton was initiated in 2007 by a consortium of public researchers. They agreed on a strategy to sequence the genome of cultivated, tetraploid cotton. "Tetraploid" means that cultivated cotton actually has two separate genomes within its nucleus, referred to as the A and D genomes. The sequencing consortium first agreed to sequence the D-genome relative of cultivated cotton (''G. raimondii'', a wild Central American cotton species) because of its small size and limited number of repetitive elements. It is nearly one-third the number of bases of tetraploid cotton (AD), and each chromosome is only present once. The A genome of ''G. arboreum'' would be sequenced next. Its genome is roughly twice the size of ''G. raimondii'''s. Part of the difference in size between the two genomes is the amplification of ''retrotransposons'' (GORGE). Once both diploid genomes are assembled, then research could begin sequencing the actual genomes of cultivated cotton varieties. This strategy is out of necessity; if one were to sequence the tetraploid genome without model diploid genomes, the euchromatic DNA sequences of the AD genomes would co-assemble and the repetitive elements of AD genomes would assembly independently into A and D sequences respectively. Then there would be no way to untangle the mess of AD sequences without comparing them to their diploid counterparts.

The public sector effort continues with the goal to create a high-quality, draft genome sequence from reads generated by all sources. The public-sector effort has generated Sanger reads of BACs, fosmids, and plasmids as well as 454 reads. These later types of reads will be instrumental in assembling an initial draft of the D genome. In 2010, two companies (Monsanto and Illumina), completed enough Illumina sequencing to cover the D genome of ''G. raimondii'' about 50x. They announced that they would donate their raw reads to the public. This public relations effort gave them some recognition for sequencing the cotton genome. Once the D genome is assembled from all of this raw material, it will undoubtedly assist in the assembly of the AD genomes of cultivated varieties of cotton, but a lot of hard work remains.

See also

BBCH-scale (cotton)

Cash crop

China Cotton Association (CCA)

Cotton gin

Cotton manufacturing

Cotton mill

The Cotton Museum

''Gossypium''

International Cotton Advisory Committee

International Year of Natural Fibres

Java cotton (kapok)

Madapolam

Mercerized cotton

Mobile Cotton Exchange

New Orleans Cotton Exchange

New York Cotton Exchange

Organic cotton

Sea Island Cotton

Wool

References

Fisher, F.B., 1932 ''That Strange Little Brown Man Gandhi'', New York: Ray Long & Richard Smith, Inc.,

USDA - Cotton Trade

Faragher, J.M., 2006 ''Out Of Many'', New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

Further reading

Adas, Michael (January 2001). ''Agricultural and Pastoral Societies in Ancient and Classical History''. Temple University Press. ISBN 1566398320.

Ensminger, Audrey H. and Konlande, James E. ''Foods and Nutrition Encyclopedia, Second Edition''. Published by CRC Press, 1993. ISBN 0849389801, 9780849389801

Environmental Justice Foundation, February 2010, Slave Nation - A report exposing the continued use of state-sponsored forced child labour in the cotton fields of Uzbekistan ISBN 1904523218

Moseley, W.G. and L.C. Gray (eds). (2008). Hanging by a Thread: Cotton, Globalization and Poverty in Africa. Athens, OH: Ohio University Press and Nordic Africa Press. ISBN 978-0-89680-260-5.

Stein, Burton (1998). ''A History of India''. Blackwell Publishing. ISBN 0631205462.

External links

Facts and figures of Cotton Trade 2007 on PBS.org

Glossary of cotton terms

Naturally colored cotton

Plant Cultures - History and botany of cotton

Spinning the web - Cotton in the UK's Industrial Revolution

UNCTAD Information on Cotton

Cotton production in the U.S. South (entry in the New Georgia Encyclopedia)

2006 Report from International Cotton Advisory Committee

USDA AMS - Market News Reports - Cotton Reports

International Cotton Association

National Cotton Council News and Current Events

National Council of Textile Organizations

Moseley, W.G. 2004. “Cotton’s Not King: Farm Subsidies and Africa.” International Herald Tribune, July 20, pg. 8.

Category:Biodegradable materials Category:Cellulose Category:Arabic loanwords Category:Crops

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name	Lauren Conrad
birth name	Lauren Katharine Conrad
birth date	February 01, 1986
birth place	Laguna Beach, California, U.S.
other names	L.C.
occupation	Television personality, fashion designer, author
years active	2004–present
siblings	Breanna Conrad, Brandon Conrad
website	}}

Lauren Katherine Conrad (born February 1, 1986) is an American television personality, celebutante, fashion designer, and author. She came to prominence with her starring roles on the MTV reality series ''Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County'' and its spin-off series, ''The Hills'', which at one point followed her personal and professional life as she pursued a career in the fashion industry.

Conrad has written three books in her ''L.A. Candy'' trilogy with a spin-off trilogy in the works, and has two fashion lines; LC by Lauren Conrad and Paper Crown. She, her hairstylist, and her makeup artist run a beauty website, The Beauty Department.

Early life

Conrad was born in Laguna Beach, California to parents Jim and Kathy. She is the oldest of three children. Her younger siblings are Breanna and Brandon. In 2004, Conrad appeared on ''MTV Cribs'', giving a tour of her Laguna Beach home.

Career

2004–2009: ''Laguna Beach'' and ''The Hills''

During Conrad's senior year of high school, she appeared in the MTV reality series ''Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County'' in which she agreed to have her life taped. Upon graduation in 2004, she attended the Academy of Art University in San Francisco for one semester along with her friend, Heidi Montag. During the second season of ''Laguna Beach'', she returned home and began taking classes at a local community college before subsequently transferring to the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising. thumb|125px|left|Conrad at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards. After the success of ''Laguna Beach'', MTV developed ''The Hills'', a spin-off series. The series originally documented the personal and professional lives of Lauren and her friends (Heidi Montag, Audrina Patridge, and Whitney Port) while living in Los Angeles, California. The first season premiered on MTV on May 31, 2006. At the time, Conrad was an intern at ''Teen Vogue'' while living with then-housemate Heidi Montag.

The series was later renewed for a second season, which was filmed from late summer 2006 through February 2007 and premiered on January 15, 2007. During that time, Conrad and Montag's friendship deteriorated, as Heidi was increasingly spending her time with her new boyfriend, Spencer Pratt. By February 2007, Audrina Patridge became Conrad's roommate after Montag moved into a separate apartment with Pratt. Filming for the third season of ''The Hills'' began in mid-summer 2007 and lasted through March 2008. The premiere episode of season 3 aired on August 13, 2007. During that time, Conrad was able to revive her position at ''Teen Vogue'' and was offered a trip to Paris alongside Whitney Port. By March 2008, Port had already left ''Teen Vogue'' for fashion PR firm People's Revolution, and after asking Conrad to assist at an event, Kelly Cutrone invited her to work for her company.

Filming for the fourth season of ''The Hills'' began in mid-summer 2008 and lasted through November 2008. The premiere episode of Season 4 aired on August 18, 2008. Filming for Season 5 began in January 2009, and the premiere episode aired April 6, 2009. Conrad confirmed that the fifth season would be her last. She made her final appearance in the series on May 31, 2009. The program continued without her, with former ''Laguna Beach'' castmate Kristin Cavallari being hired as Conrad's replacement. In March 2010, it was announced that the sixth season of ''The Hills'' would be the last. There was much speculation that Conrad would make a guest appearance for the series finale. The series ended on July 13, 2010, after airing six seasons and 102 episodes. She did not appear in the finale, but later said that she filmed an alternate ending of the series with Brody Jenner.

2007–2009: Fashion and retail endeavors

Conrad landed an internship at ''Teen Vogue'' while filming season one of ''The Hills''. Conrad and her reality show appearances have been credited with improving sales of ''Teen Vogue''. It was reported in March 2007 that since the second season of ''The Hills'' began airing in mid-January, newsstand sales for the magazine increased by double digits over 2006 sales. According to Lisa Love, the West Coast editor of ''Vogue'' who evaluated Conrad for the internship position, Conrad had to interview successfully in order to get the job, "regardless of what the cameras wanted". In January 2007, Conrad was named the first official spokesperson of "mark.", a line created by Avon and marketed toward young women. She was featured in the brand’s magalog and in the "mark." online community. Conrad was replaced by Ashley Greene in June 2010.

In 2007, Conrad appeared as a satirical version of herself in the comedy ''Epic Movie''. In 2008, Conrad made a cameo appearance in an episode of ''Greek''. In May 2009, Conrad appeared as a cartoon and ironic version of herself in an episode of ''Family Guy''. Conrad had previously done voice work for the show in the episode Prick Up Your Ears in a spoof of ''Laguna Beach''. Conrad's first fashion line, The Lauren Conrad Collection, debuted at the Mercedes-Benz LA Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios in March 2008. In March 2009, Conrad announced that she would be taking a break from the fashion line. As a result, 2009's spring and summer lines were canceled. She earns an estimated $1.5 million annually for her television appearances, fashion line, and product endorsements. In fall 2009, Conrad launched LC by Lauren Conrad in Kohl's stores nationwide. Conrad appeared as a guest judge during Cycle 13 of ''America's Next Top Model''. In August 2009, Conrad appeared on an episode of the tenth anniversary edition of ''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire'', playing for her charity: m.powerment by mark. She was asked one question for $50,000 and answered correctly after using her "Ask the Audience" lifeline. In 2010, she guest starred on ''Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List''.

2009–present: Books and current endeavors

Conrad released her first novel, ''L.A. Candy'', on June 16, 2009. Inspired by her personal life, the book focuses on a young woman who moves to Los Angeles and becomes the star of a reality show. It was a ''New York Times'' bestseller. The second novel, ''Sweet Little Lies'', was released on February 16, 2010. The final novel, ''Sugar and Spice'', was released on October 5, 2010, along with another book, ''Style'', which is about her experiences in and her knowledge of the fashion industry as well as being a style guide. In 2011, Conrad made another three-book deal with publisher HarperCollins. The books, titled ''The Fame Game'', will be a spin-off series of the ''L.A. Candy'' trilogy and will follow character Madison Parker.

Conrad launched a production company, Blue Eyed Productions, in early 2009. It has purchased the rights to turn ''L.A. Candy'' into a movie, in which Conrad would serve as an executive producer. The movie would be based on all three books.

On September 24, 2010, Conrad announced during an ''On Air with Ryan Seacrest'' interview that she would star in an upcoming MTV reality series. The show would focus on her fashion career rather than focusing on her personal life, which she says "will be something very different" from ''The Hills''. The series began filming in mid-October 2010.

However, after MTV had viewed the pilot, the network decided to not pick up the series. MTV's head of programming, David Janollari, said, "She did do a pilot. There were talks about whether we could somehow manage to put together a special based on that footage but that's also a big question mark based on her interest in that and the finances. We decided not to go ahead with the show," later adding, "We love her! We would love her on our network! It was a great attempt but it just didn't feel like a perfect fit for us now." Conrad released a statement of her own, reading, "We sold a show to MTV, filmed it and are really proud of the final result. MTV felt the subject matter was too high brow for their audience and offered me the opportunity to change the show by incorporating more of my personal life. We agreed going into the project that this show would be an aspirational one, focusing on my career and my goals and not my personal relationships. We delivered the show that we sold and are sorry MTV didn't feel their viewers were savvy enough to appreciate it."

Conrad is working on launching a new fashion line, Paper Crown, and is scheduled to be in stores by fall 2011. The line is her third collection after The Lauren Conrad Collection and LC by Lauren Conrad. Her now defunct reality show would have focused on the creation and launch of the line.

In April 2011, Conrad, along with her hairstylist Kristin Ess and her makeup artist Amy Nadine, launched a beauty website called The Beauty Department. The site offers beauty advice and tips as well as how-tos and tutorials.

Filmography

Television

! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2004-2005	''Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County''		Narrator (season 1) and main cast member (seasons 1-2)
2006-2009	''The Hills''	Narrator and main cast member (seasons 1-5)
		Cameo appearance
	Cameo appearance
		Guest appearance
	Guest appearance
	Celebrity Guest Contestant
''America's Next Top Model''	Guest Judge
''Family Guy''	Cartoon appearance, We Love You, Conrad episode
2010	''Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List''	Guest appearance

Film

! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2007	''Epic Movie''		Cameo appearance
2011	''BFF & Baby''	Guest appearance

Published works

''L.A. Candy'' (2009)

''Sweet Little Lies'' (2010)

''Sugar and Spice'' (2010)

''Lauren Conrad Style'' (2010)

Awards

Year	Award	Result	Category	Series
		rowspan="4"

References

External links

Official website

The Beauty Department

Category:1986 births Category:Actors from California Category:American fashion designers Category:American television personalities Category:American voice actors Category:MTV television characters Category:Living people Category:Participants in American reality television series Category:People from Laguna Beach, California Category:People from Los Angeles, California

ar:لورين كونراد da:Lauren Conrad de:Lauren Conrad es:Lauren Conrad fr:Lauren Conrad ko:로렌 콘라드 id:Lauren Conrad it:Lauren Conrad hu:Lauren Conrad nl:Lauren Conrad ja:ローレン・コンラッド no:Lauren Conrad pl:Lauren Conrad pt:Lauren Conrad ru:Конрад, Лорен simple:Lauren Conrad fi:Lauren Conrad sv:Lauren Conrad

name	Jonathan Ross
birth name	Jonathan Stephen Ross
birth date	November 17, 1960
birth place	Camden, London, England
nationality	British
occupation	Broadcaster, film critic
years active	1987–present
spouse
children	2 daughters, 1 son
parents	Martha Ross }}

Jonathan Stephen Ross, OBE (born 17 November 1960) is an English television and radio presenter, best known for presenting the BBC One chat show ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'' from 2001 until he left the BBC in 2010. Ross began hosting a new chat show on ITV1 starting 3 September 2011. Ross also hosted his own radio show on BBC Radio 2, and acted as a film critic and presenter of the ''Film'' programme. Other regular roles have included being a regular panellist on the comedy sports quiz ''They Think It's All Over'' from 1999 to 2006, and presenting the annual British Comedy Awards from 1991 to 2007, and 2009 onwards.

Ross began his television career as a programme researcher, before débuting as a television presenter for ''The Last Resort with Jonathan Ross'' on Channel 4 in 1987. Over the next decade he had several radio and television roles, many through his own production company, Channel X. In 1995 he sold his stake in Channel X, and embarked on a career with the BBC. In 1999, Ross took over presenting the ''Film'' programme from Barry Norman, and also began presenting his own radio show, while two years later he began hosting ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross''. For the chat show, Ross won three British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards for Best Entertainment Performance, in 2004, 2006 and 2007. By 2006 Ross was believed to be the BBC's highest paid star. In 2005, Ross was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to broadcasting. Ross has been involved in controversies throughout his broadcasting career. As a result, in 2008 he wrote a semi-autobiographical work titled ''Why Do I Say These Things?'', detailing some of his life experiences.

Ross has been married to the author, journalist and broadcaster Jane Goldman since 1988; they have three children. Ross and Goldman have together established the television production company Hotsauce TV. Ross is known as an avid fan and collector of comic books and memorabilia, and has written his own comic book, ''Turf''. Ross is known for his distinctive voice, flamboyant style of dress, and his light-hearted banter. He is also known for his characteristic difficulty in pronouncing the sound 'r'.

Personal

Ross was born in Camden, London, England on 17 November 1960, a son of British actress and radio presenter Martha Ross. He grew up in Leytonstone and is the brother of journalist, television editor, and media personality Paul Ross; TV producer/actor Miles Ross; TV producer Simon Ross, and music industry professional Adam Ross. He was educated at Norlington School for Boys, a comprehensive school at the same time as his elder brother Paul, and at Leyton County High School for Boys, a comprehensive school. He also attended Southampton College of Art, now known as Southampton Solent University. He then studied Modern European History at the School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES), University of London.

Ross married author/journalist/broadcaster Jane Goldman, nine years his junior, in 1988, when Goldman was 18. They have since had three children: Betty Kitten (named after Bettie Page), Harvey Kirby (named after Jack Kirby, a comic book creator whom Ross especially admires), and Honey Kinney. The family lives in Hampstead Garden Suburb.

Ross and others have used his rhotacism for comic effect and he is sometimes known as "Wossy," including on his Twitter feed (@wossy).

Ross is known for owning exotic pets. He is a big music fan and the first band he saw live was punk rockers X-Ray Spex at Islington's Hope and Anchor pub in North London. He is a big fan of David Bowie, Roxy Music and Bryan Ferry, Queen (he was in the audience for Queen at Wembley), British punk rock, Spandau Ballet, Sparks, ''Star Trek'', ''Doctor Who'' (his favourite Doctor was Jon Pertwee), and comic books. Ross has even co-owned a comic shop in London with Paul Gambaccini and released ''Turf'', his first comic book, in 2010, with American artist Tommy Lee Edwards. He was also the visual inspiration for the main character in the comic book ''Saviour''. Ross is also greatly interested in Japan, presenting a BBC-TV series on many different aspects of Japanese culture, ''Japanorama'', for three series between 2002–07. He was a regular at London's ''Blitz'' club during the early 1980s (famous for the Blitz Kids). He is a fan and friend of the singers Morrissey and George Michael.

He is a close friend of comedian Ricky Gervais and bought him a kitten after Gervais' previous cat, Colin, had died. The cat's name is Ollie and was presented to him on an episode of Ross' talk show ''Friday Night With Jonathan Ross''. He was one of the special celebrity guests in the final episode of Gervais's second season of ''Extras'', in which Gervais's character, Andy Millman, and Ross were shown to be the best of friends after a fictional appearance on ''Friday Night With Jonathan Ross''.

He is also a friend of author Neil Gaiman, and he and his wife appear in Gaiman's short story "The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch", collected in ''Fragile Things''.

In 2005, Ross was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Birthday Honours for services to broadcasting. He celebrated the news by playing "God Save the Queen" by the Sex Pistols on his Radio 2 show.

When talking to Colin Farrell on ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'' on 19 February 2010, Ross claimed not to have consumed alcohol for ten years.

Ross has attended a fund raiser for the James Randi Educational Foundation called ''The Amazing Meeting'' in London in 2009 and 2010. Interviewed by Rebecca Watson, Ross described himself as a big fan of James Randi and the other speakers – who were mainly prominent sceptics – and said that he and his wife had come to have a sceptical view of the world. Ross has been supportive of Simon Singh's efforts to defend an accusation of libel by the British Chiropractic Association and Ross has posed for the ''Geek Calendar 2011'', a fund raiser for the libel reform in the UK.

At a book signing event in Central London in September 2010, Ross stated that as a youngster he went to school in Leyton (Leyton Senior High School) and supports Leyton Orient F.C.

On 6 June 2011, it was announced that Ross' beloved pug Mr Pickle had been killed in an accident on board a train while Ross was filming a new travelogue show for ITV. Mr Pickle was well known to both viewers and listeners of Ross' TV and radio shows.

Career

Child actor

Following the acting lead of his mother, who appeared as an extra on television shows such as ''East Enders'', Ross appeared in television ads as a child actor. His first, for the breakfast cereal Kellogg's Rice Krispies, gave him his television debut in 1970, when he was 10 years old. He also appeared in an ad for the laundry detergent Persil.

Early career

Ross began his adult career as a researcher on the Channel 4 show ''Loose Talk''. After leaving this, he worked on various other shows before beginning another research job on ''Soul Train'', which became ''Solid Soul''. It is believed his first appearance on television was as an extra in the 1981 ''It Ain't Half Hot, Mum'' episode, ''The Last Roll Call''.

Channel X: 1987–95

Whilst on ''Solid Soul'', he met fellow researcher Alan Marke, and the two devised what would prove to be a breakthrough hit for Ross in 1987, ''The Last Resort with Jonathan Ross''.

The pair based their concept on the successful American show ''Late Night with David Letterman'', and formed a new production company called Channel X, to produce a pilot. Ross was not originally slated as the show's host, but with little time to find one Jonathan Ross stepped in and made his television debut on the show in January 1987.

While the series was initially a co-production with Colin Calendar, ownership transferred to Marke and Ross, meaning that the latter retained a great deal of control as well as being presenter. The show proved popular for both Ross and for Channel 4, making him one of the major personalities on the channel.

A year later, his documentary series ''The Incredibly Strange Film Show'' introduced many to the works of cult filmmakers like Sam Raimi and Jackie Chan.

In 1989, he co-presented the biennial BBC charity telethon ''Comic Relief'', the same year he launched ''One Hour with Jonathan Ross'' a short lived chat show on Channel 4, most notable for the game show segment "Knock down ginger" which introduced comedians such as Vic Reeves, Bob Mortimer, Paul Whitehouse and Charlie Higson to television.

In 1991, he presented the annual ''British Comedy Awards'' on ITV. He has presented the event each year since, but in 2008 announced he would be stepping down from the role following his suspension from the BBC. In 1992 he presented an interview with Madonna about her ''Erotica'' album and ''Sex Book'' promotion.

In 1993, he was the narrator for ''FIA Formula One 1993 Season Review'' video.

Ross has appeared in numerous television entertainment programmes on several channels throughout the 1990s and 2000s. He was a regular panellist on the sports quiz ''They Think It's All Over'', and hosted the panel game ''It's Only TV...But I Like It''. Other projects include the BBC joke-quiz ''Gagtag'', the Channel 4 variety show ''Saturday Zoo'', new-acts showcase ''The Big Big Talent Show'', and the ITV programme ''Fantastic Facts''.

In 1995 he left Channel X, despite its profitable nature. He was quoted in a 1998 article as stating:

Television 1995–2006

In 1995 he presented ''Mondo Rosso'', a programme about old ''cult'' films. He took over presenting of the Film programme, the BBC's long-running cinema review series, in 1999 after Barry Norman left the show. Ross himself has made a number of cameo appearances in films, playing himself in the Spice Girls' film ''Spice World'' (1997) and voicing the character of Doris in the UK version of ''Shrek 2'' (2004). He also played himself in ''Only Fools and Horses'', presenting ''Goldrush'', a fictional television quiz on which the main character, Del, was a contestant. In 2001 he voiced characters in two episodes of the animated comedy series ''Rex the Runt''. In the 30 October episode of ''Film 2006'', Ross also claimed that he had appeared as an extra in the 1981 film 'The Rise and Fall of Idi Amin', as an Israeli soldier raiding Entebbe Airport. He also appeared on the first pilot show for ''Shooting Stars'', acting as a team captain.

BBC Radio: 1999–2010

Ross began presenting a Saturday morning show on BBC Radio 2 in 1999. He has also presented radio shows for BBC Radio 1 and Virgin Radio (having previously worked on Richard Branson's earlier venture, ''Radio Radio''), as well as the now-defunct commercial radio network service ''The Superstation'', where his producer was Chris Evans.

From 23 May 2009, Ross' BBC Radio 2 show was pre-recorded 24 hours before broadcast. This decision was made to make the show more watertight and, according to the press, to make sure any of Ross's off-the-cuff comments might be edited out.

Ross' show on Radio 2 last aired on 17 July 2010 when his contract at the BBC ended.

''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'': 2001–10

On 2 November 2001, Ross began presenting his chat show ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross''.

In 2005, Ross anchored the BBC television coverage of the Live 8 concerts. Later that year he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Birthday Honours for services to broadcasting. He celebrated the news by playing "God Save the Queen" by The Sex Pistols (which was banned by the BBC when released in 1977) on his BBC Radio 2 Saturday morning show. On 21 June 2006 Ross was made a Fellow of University College London, where he studied.

In early 2006, Ross announced that after eight years he was quitting his regular panellist seat on the sport/comedy quiz show ''They Think It's All Over'', stating:

However, after Ross' departure, only two more episodes of the show were made before it was cancelled.

In January 2006 he presented ''Jonathan Ross' Asian Invasion'', broadcast on BBC Four. The three-part documentary followed Ross as he explored the film industry in Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea, interviewing directors and showcasing clips. His interest in Asian culture and his self confessed love for anime and video games led him to making three series of BBC Three show ''Japanorama'', as well as producing another series for the same channel called ''Adam and Joe Go Tokyo'', starring Adam Buxton and Joe Cornish. He produced the latter programme through his own production company Hot Sauce.

In June 2006, a bidding war was sparked between BBC and other broadcasters for Ross' services. Although other broadcasters were unsuccessful in poaching Ross, it is believed that their bids were higher than the BBC during negotiations. ITV, who bid for Ross, poached chat host Michael Parkinson around the same time. Ross became the highest paid television personality in Britain, when a new BBC contract secured his services until 2010, for a reported £18 million (£6 million per year).

On 25 June 2006, he performed at the Children's Party at the Palace for the Queen's 80th birthday. In August 2006, Ross was enlisted to ask the first question since the transition from beta for the Yahoo Answers in UK and Ireland. On 16 March 2007, Ross hosted Comic Relief 2007 alongside Fearne Cotton and Lenny Henry. On 7 July 2007 Ross presented at the Live Earth concert.

Starting on 10 September 2007 he presented the BBC Four series ''Comics Britannia'', about the history of the British comic. This forms the core of a Comics Britannia season, which includes another documentary, ''In Search of Steve Ditko'', by Ross.

In May 2008, Ross won the Sony Gold Award "Music Radio Personality of the Year".

On 3 August 2008, on BBC1, he hosted ''Jonathan Ross Salutes Dad's Army''.

In 2010, Ross took part in ''Channel 4's Comedy Gala'', a benefit show held in aid of Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, filmed live at the O2 Arena in London on 30 March.

On 7 April 2010, Ross' first comic book was published. Turf was written by Jonathan himself and drawn by artist Tommy Lee Edwards. In 2011, Ross wrote an introduction for ''The Steve Ditko Omnibus Vol. 1'', a collection of work by the American comics artist featured in Ross' 2007 documentary.

In one of his last appearances on the show, Ross was bundled on repeatedly by Gary Lineker, Ross Noble, Damon Albarn, Jamie Hewlett & Tinie Tempah, after a performance of Gorillaz' iconic song "Clint Eastwood" & "On Melancholy Hill".

Leaving the BBC (2010)

On 7 January 2010, Ross confirmed that he would leave the BBC in July 2010, having decided not to renegotiate his contract. This would see him leave all his regular BBC roles, namely his Friday night chat show, Radio 2 show and a film review programme, although he would be continuing with some specials, such as Comic Relief and the BAFTA Awards.

Explaining the decision, Ross said:

Although I have had a wonderful time working for the BBC, and am very proud of the shows I have made while there, over the last two weeks I have decided not to re-negotiate when my current contract comes to an end. While there, I have worked with some of the nicest and most talented people in the industry and had the opportunity to interview some of the biggest stars in the world, and am grateful to the BBC for such a marvellous experience. I would like to make it perfectly clear that no negotiations ever took place and that my decision is not financially motivated

The decision came a day after it was announced that Graham Norton had signed a two year deal with the BBC, and the BBC's media correspondent Torin Douglas speculated Norton would be a ready-made replacement for Ross's chat show role, while Mark Kermode of BBC Radio 5 Live was a potential successor in the film review role, but that "replacing Ross on radio will be harder". Ross last appeared on the film programme in Episode 10 of ''Film 2010 with Jonathan Ross'' aired on 17 March 2010. After Kermode publicly ruled himself out on 26 March, Claudia Winkleman was announced 30 March 2010 as his replacement as host of ''the Film programme'', who was to host Film 2010 from September 2010.

Ross's final ''Friday Night'' chat show episode aired on 16 July 2010, with David Beckham, Jackie Chan, Mickey Rourke and Roxy Music as guests. Ross ended the show with an affectionate tribute to his guests and to the audience, while mentioning that he had promised his friend Morrissey that he would remain composed and "wouldn't cry". His final Radio 2 show was broadcast the following day. Patrick Kielty initially took over Ross' Radio 2 slot from 24 July 2010 after which Graham Norton took over permanently.

2010 onwards (ITV and Cinemoi)

On 14 December 2010, Jonathan Ross announced his creative partnership with CineMoi, the UK's first and only independent French film channel. His deal with the company gives him a multi-faceted role as presenter, producer, creative director and shareholder in the company. A life long cinephile Ross has a unique perspective on French film and hopes to encourage 'first-timers' to explore a world of film that differs slightly from that of the regular Hollywood fare.

On 19 December 2010, Ross presented a three hour Channel 4 list show, ''100 Greatest Toys'', with the broadcaster describing Ross as a "huge toy enthusiast with a private collection that would rival any museum's."

In 2011, he presented ''Penn & Teller: Fool Us'' on ITV, a collaboration with magicians Penn & Teller.

Ross's new chat show ''The Jonathan Ross Show'' began on 3 September 2011 on ITV1, drawing an audience of 4.3m viewers, compared to the 4.6m for his finale on the BBC show. The first series will run for thirteen weeks. Speaking about the new show, Ross said: "I am thrilled and excited that after a short break I will be rolling up my sleeves and creating a brand new show for ITV1."

Controversies

BBC contract

In April 2006, Ross, along with other BBC personalities, had details of his fees leaked to the tabloid press. It was claimed at the time, by a then unidentified BBC mole, that Ross earned £530,000 (equivalent to £10,000 per show) per year for hosting his Radio 2 show. While refusing to comment specifically on the leak in line with the BBC policy on the matter, Ross did hint during his radio show that the figure was exaggerated; in addition to this, any pay highlighted as being 'his' would actually be split between himself and his producer/co-presenter on the show, Andy Davies.

David Cameron interview

In June 2006, when Conservative Party leader David Cameron appeared on ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'', Ross began a line of questioning relating to Conservative ex-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, culminating in the question "Did you or did you not have a wank thinking of Margaret Thatcher?". Ross was defended by the BBC publicly, but repeat showings of the interview have been banned.

Heather Mills comment

In 2006, Ross was criticised when he made a joke against Heather Mills, soon after she and Paul McCartney announced they were to divorce. He branded Mills, who only has one leg, a "fucking liar" and that he "wouldn't be surprised if we found out she's actually got two legs".

"1,000 journalists" comment

On 5 December 2007, Ross joked at the ''British Comedy Awards'' that his salary meant that he was "apparently worth 1,000 BBC journalists". His quip came shortly after the BBC had announced plans for more than 2,000 jobs cuts, and was condemned as "obscene" by the general secretary of the National Union of Journalists. Ross has denied this saying that he was commenting on a piece that was written in a newspaper about his salary being that of 1,000 journalists:

"You know where that came from? The newspapers. After the fee was announced, they said, 'The BBC says he's worth 1,000 journalists', so on the Comedy Awards I made a joke that began, 'Apparently I'm worth 1,000 journalists according to the newspapers.' Every time it's quoted, is the word 'apparently' ever used? Which does change the meaning somewhat."

The Russell Brand Show and Andrew Sachs

Following a guest appearance by Ross on ''The Russell Brand Show'' broadcast on 18 October 2008, Ross was suspended for 12 weeks without pay by the BBC on 29 October, after a series of answer phone messages were left for 79-year-old actor Andrew Sachs regarding Sachs' granddaughter Georgina Baillie, by Russell Brand and Ross, which were broadcast on the pre-recorded show. After little initial interest, a media story about the calls generated a high number of complaints. Brand resigned from the BBC, while Ross was suspended without pay. BBC director general Mark Thompson stated that Ross should take the disciplinary action as a "final warning". The BBC was later fined £150,000 by Britain's broadcast regulator for airing the calls.

On 21 November 2008, the BBC Trust said that the phone calls were a "deplorable intrusion with no editorial justification". The trust gave its backing to Ross's 12 week suspension but recommended that no further action be taken against him. He returned to work in January, and the first episode of a new series of ''Friday Night With Jonathan Ross'' with guests Tom Cruise, Stephen Fry and Lee Evans, and music from Franz Ferdinand, was broadcast on 23 January 2009.

Gwyneth Paltrow interview

The BBC Trust ruled that Ross’ interview with Gwyneth Paltrow, broadcast on 2 May 2008, breached editorial guidelines. They ruled that bad language in an episode of Ross's pre-recorded BBC1 chat show, ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'', in which the presenter told Hollywood actress Gwyneth Paltrow he "would fuck her" was "gratuitous and unnecessarily offensive". The trust said it disagreed with the judgement made by BBC management that the episode should be broadcast uncensored, adding that the comment was made in an "overly sexual way" and that it had upheld a number of complaints made about the edition of ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross''. The trust reminded BBC staff that "the casual gratuitous use of the most offensive language is not acceptable on the BBC in accordance with the BBC's existing guidelines and practices", adding that "this particularly applies in entertainment programmes".

''Hannah Montana'' comment

On 13 May 2009, Ross was accused of homophobia after a comment he made on his radio show. In which he said,

If your son asks for a ''Hannah Montana'' MP3 player, then you might want to already think about putting him down for adoption in later life, when they settle down with their partner.

An incorrect version of this quote was also circulated, in which Ross was accused of saying:

If your son asks for a Hannah Montana MP3 player, you might want to already think about putting him down for adoption before he brings his … erm … partner home.

Ofcom received 61 complaints following the comment. A representative from the BBC defended Ross saying the comment was made "purely in jest" and that "Jonathan is not homophobic in any sense and never meant for his comments to be taken seriously." On 7 July 2009, Ofcom ruled that Ross did not breach the broadcasting code. They wrote in their opinion that "the comment was clearly presented as a joke intended to make light of the reactions that some parents may have if their child chooses a toy that is very widely recognised to be designed and marketed for the opposite sex" and that the nature of the joke and tone and manner in which it was presented "made clear that it was not intended to be hostile or pejorative towards the gay community in general." Stonewall criticised the ruling; saying "the fact that a comment is light-hearted does not absolve it from perpetuating the stereotypes that lead to homophobic bullying."

Video games

''Fable III''

Year	! Video game	! Role	! Notes
2007	''Halo 3''	UNSC Marine
2010	|	Barry Hatch

Honours and Awards

2006, made a Fellow of University College, London (UCL), into which his alma mater, SSEES, had been absorbed.

2012, Special Recognition award at the National Television Awards.

References

Further reading

''Jonathan Ross: The Biography'', Neil Simpson, John Blake Publishing Ltd (31 July 2007), ISBN 184454432X

''Why Do I Say These Things?'', Jonathan Ross, Bantam Press (16 October 2008), ISBN 0593060822

External links

''The Jonathan Ross Show'' on itv.com

Interactive video talk by Jonathan Ross on Ealing studios for the British Film Institute

Category:1960 births Category:Living people Category:20th-century actors Category:20th-century writers Category:21st-century actors Category:21st-century writers Category:Alumni of Southampton Solent University Category:Alumni of the UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies Category:BAFTA winners (people) Category:English film actors Category:English film critics Category:English radio DJs Category:English television actors Category:English television presenters Category:English television producers Category:English television talk show hosts Category:English television writers Category:English voice actors Category:Friday Night with Jonathan Ross Category:Officers of the Order of the British Empire Category:People from Camden Town Category:People from Leytonstone

cy:Jonathan Ross de:Jonathan Ross (Moderator) es:Jonathan Ross fr:Jonathan Ross nl:Jonathan Ross pl:Jonathan Ross pt:Jonathan Ross simple:Jonathan Ross sv:Jonathan Ross

name	Holly Willoughby
birthname	Holly Marie Willoughby
birth date	February 10, 1981
birth place	Brighton, East Sussex, England
spouse
yearsactive	2000–present
nationality	British
ethnicity	English
employer	ITV
occupation	TV Presenter, model
television	Presenting:
children
website	OffficialHollyWilloughby.com }}

Holly Marie Willoughby (born 10 February 1981) is an English television presenter and model, known for her work in presenting children's TV and entertainment shows. In her early career she modelled underwear and went on to present ''CD:UK''. In 2006, she won a BAFTA and was chosen to present ''Dancing on Ice'', a highly popular UK celebrity talent show, shown on ITV1 which drew in an average of 8.9m million viewers in the 2010 series. In July 2009, she was selected as a replacement for Fern Britton on ''This Morning''. She began presenting on ''This Morning'' on 14 September 2009, alongside Phillip Schofield.

Early life

The younger of two daughters of the manager of a double-glazing company and an air stewardess, Willoughby was educated at the independent Burgess Hill School For Girls in the town of Burgess Hill in West Sussex. She went on to attend The College of Richard Collyer in Horsham.

In 1995, at the age of 14, Willoughby was spotted by talent scouts at The Clothes Show Live exhibition. Storm Model Management signed her up. She appeared in teen magazines for girls such as ''Mizz'', ''Just Seventeen'' and ''More!''. From 1998, at the age of 17, she started modelling underwear for various clients including Pretty Polly. She appeared in various adverts and posters.

Media career

Children's TV

In 2000, Willoughby won an audition for a show on CITV featuring S Club 7 called ''S Club TV''. In this show actors represented an alternative S Club. She also acted in a show called ''S Club 7: Artistic Differences''. She played a character called Zoe alongside the regular members of the band. and after these shows, she worked as a receptionist for a while and then as a runner for the defunct shopping channel ''Auction World TV''.

She also took on menial jobs and started an Open University course in psychotherapy. Then eventually she found work as assistant manager during which time she persuaded a friend to make a show reel of her. This show reel secured her an agent who then contacted the BBC. Later in 2000, she presented a factual entertainment programme for children called ''Xchange''. She went on to host several other children's shows for CBBC: ''X-perimental'', and ''CBBC at the Fame Academy'' (CBBC's version of the BBC-TV talent show ''Fame Academy'').

Her breakthrough as a children's entertainer came when she re-joined CITV in 2004 to co-present their flagship entertainment show ''Ministry of Mayhem'' which was aired on Saturday mornings. It was on this programme that she met her future husband Dan Baldwin, one of the show's producers. In 2006, the show's title was changed to ''Holly & Stephen's Saturday Showdown'' in order to reflect the popularity of its co-presenters, Willoughby and Stephen Mulhern. During the final episode of the show (1 July 2006), Willoughby accidentally revealed one of her breasts during a particularly energetic routine. CITV received a small number of complaints, though the wider audience merely wrote the occurrence off as unfortunate. In 2005 Holly presented ''Feel the Fear'', a children's entertainment programme in which the presenters are set unnerving challenges. She has also had a number of minor appearances on other children's programmes and programmes relating to children. She co-presented the final of the children's version of ''Stars in Their Eyes'' in 2004. The programmes listed below were broadcast on CITV in 2000

''S Club TV'' (2000)

''S Club 7: Artistic Differences'' (2000)

The programmes listed below were broadcast on CBBC between 2000 and 2004

''Xchange'' (2000–2004)

''CBBC at the Fame Academy'' (2002–2003)

''X-perimental'' (2003)

The programmes listed below were broadcast on CITV between 2004 and 2006

''Ministry of Mayhem aka Holly & Stephen's Saturday Showdown'' (2004–2006)

''Stars in Their Eyes Kids'' (2004)

''Feel the Fear'' (2005)

''Tricky TV'' (2006)

Mainstream TV

Willoughby presented ''CD:UK'' for a short while in the spring of 2005, she replaced Cat Deeley before Myleene Klass became the regular presenter. Her major breakthrough as a mainstream family entertainer came when she was chosen to co-present the flagship ITV talent show ''Dancing on Ice'', alongside Phillip Schofield, in 2006. In this show, celebrities from the UK are partnered with professional dancers to learn ice-dancing routines which are then judged by a panel of experts and voted on by the public. She continues to co-host the show. She was criticised for her choice of costume in January 2008.

She has presented a number of other ITV programmes, especially spin-off show such as ''Celebrity Wrestling: Bring It On'', ''Greased Lightnin'' and most recently, ''The Xtra Factor''. She has also presented shows exploring celebrity gossip such as ''Lip Service'' and the comedy show ''Celebrity Juice''. In 2007, she took over from Davina McCall as the presenter of ''Streetmate'', a dating game show in the UK. She presented sections of ''The National Television Awards'' in 2007 and 2008.

She co-presents ''Holly & Fearne Go Dating'' alongside Fearne Cotton. In this show the two hosts, who are presented as best friends, attempt to find dates for single people that they meet in various situations in in UK. She has also presented ''Here Come the Boys'', a show celebrating the achievements of popular UK male singers of the past 50 years.

Willoughby has co-presented ''ITV'''s morning show ''This Morning'' with Phillip Schofield since September 2009 after she took over the role from Fern Britton.

Credits

All programmes listed below are broadcast by ITV (ITV1 and ITV2 channels)

''United Kingdom in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2004'' (2004)

''CD:UK'' (2005)

''Celebrity Wrestling: Bring It On'' (2005)

''Dancing on Ice'' (2006–present)

''Lip Service'' (2006)

''The Westlife Show: Live'' (December 2007)

''Greased Lightnin (2007)

''Streetmate'' (2007)

''Holly & Fearne Go Dating'' (2007)

''The Xtra Factor'' (2008–2009) 66 episodes

''Celebrity Juice'' (2008–present)

''The National Television Awards'' (2007 and 2008)

''Here Come the Boys'' (2008)

''This Morning '' (2009–present)

''Cheryl Cole's Night In '' (2009)

''James Corden's World Cup Live '' (25 June 2010)

''Magic Numbers '' (17 July 2010)

''Agatha Christie's Marple '' (30 August 2010)

Guest appearances

Contestant ''Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway'' (29 September 2007)

Contestant ''All Star Family Fortunes'' (3 November 2007)

Guest presenter ''This Morning'' (5 December 2008)

Contestant ''All Star Mr and Mrs'' (2 January 2010)

Contestant ''Chris Moyles' Quiz Night'' (29 November 2010)

Other activities

In early 2008, Willoughby had a 3-minute long shower in a cubicle in front of the public fountain in the middle of Trafalgar Square in London as part of the ''Be Water Wise'' campaign, demonstrating the water that the UK wastes as a nation. The event led up to World Water Day on 22 March 2008.

Bibliography

Willoughby and Fearne Cotton have written an advice book entitled ''The Best Friends' Guide to Life'' published in October 2010

Awards

In 2006, Willoughby won a BAFTA in recognition of her abilities as a children’s TV presenter.

She has also appeared in FHM's 100 Sexiest Women poll every year since 2005, ranking at #51 in 2010, #74 in 2009 and #100 in 2008.

Personal life

Holly Willoughby is dyslexic. Her sister, Kelly, also works in the television industry.

She is related by marriage to actress Tamzin Outhwaite, and is close friends with fellow TV presenter Fearne Cotton.

At the age of 25, she became engaged to Dan Baldwin, a producer on ''Ministry of Mayhem'', and on the same day they moved into a flat in South London. Willoughby announced their engagement live on ''Saturday Showdown'', on 6 May 2006. The wedding took place on 4 August 2007 at Amberley Castle, West Sussex. Willoughby gave birth to her first child, a boy named Harry James Baldwin, weighing 7 lb 4oz, on 11 May 2009. It was announced on ''This Morning'' on 1 November 2010 that Willoughby and Baldwin are expecting their second child, a girl, due in May 2011, Phillip Schofield announced via his Twitter on 12 April 2011, that Willoughby did not go into work on This Morning as she had gone into labour. Phillip later confirmed that Holly in fact was in labour, and would probably give birth soon.

On Thursday the 14th of April Holly posted on Twitter that baby Belle Baldwin was born at 17:10, weighing 5 lbs 2oz.

References

External links

Holly Willoughby on Facebook

Holly Willoughby at The X Factor

Holly Willoughby at This Morning

ITV Celebrity Playlist for Holly Willoughby

{{Incumbent succession box | before=Fern Britton | title=Host of This Morningwith Phillip Schofield | start=2009 | after= }}

Category:1981 births Category:Dancing on Ice participants Category:English television presenters Category:The X Factor hosts Category:Living people Category:Old Collyerians Category:People from Brighton Category:Alumni of the Open University Category:The X Factor (UK) Category:People educated at Burgess Hill School

de:Holly Willoughby

name	Lightnin' Hopkins
background	solo_singer
birth name	Sam John Hopkins
born	March 15, 1912Centreville, Texas, U.S.
died	January 30, 1982Houston, Texas, U.S.
instrument	Guitar
genre	Electric blues, country blues
occupation	Guitarist, singer-songwriter
years active	1946–1981
label	Alladin, Modern/RPM, Gold Star, Sittin' in With/Jax, Mercury, Decca, Herald, Folkways, World Pacific, Vee-Jay, Arhoolie, Bluesville, Fire, Candid, Imperial, Prestige, Verve, Jewel
notable instruments	}}

Sam John Hopkins (March 15, 1912 – January 30, 1982), better known as Lightnin’ Hopkins, was an American country blues singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional pianist, from Houston, Texas. ''Rolling Stone'' magazine included Hopkins at number 71 on their list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time.

Life

Born Sam John Hopkins in Centerville, Texas, Hopkins' childhood was immersed in the sounds of the blues and he developed a deeper appreciation at the age of 8 when he met Blind Lemon Jefferson at a church picnic in Buffalo, Texas. That day, Hopkins felt the blues was "in him" and went on to learn from his older (somewhat distant) cousin, country blues singer Alger "Texas" Alexander. (Hopkins had another cousin, Texas electric blues guitarist, Frankie Lee Sims with whom he later recorded.) Hopkins began accompanying Blind Lemon Jefferson on guitar in informal church gatherings. Jefferson supposedly never let anyone play with him except for young Hopkins, who learned much from and was influenced greatly by Blind Lemon Jefferson thanks to these gatherings. In the mid 1930s, Hopkins was sent to Houston County Prison Farm for an unknown offense. In the late 1930s Hopkins moved to Houston with Alexander in an unsuccessful attempt to break into the music scene there. By the early 1940s he was back in Centerville working as a farm hand.

Hopkins took a second shot at Houston in 1946. While singing on Dowling St. in Houston's Third Ward (which would become his home base) he was discovered by Lola Anne Cullum from the Los Angeles based record label, Aladdin Records. She convinced Hopkins to travel to L.A. where he accompanied pianist Wilson Smith. The duo recorded twelve tracks in their first sessions in 1946. An Aladdin Records executive decided the pair needed more dynamism in their names and dubbed Hopkins "Lightnin'" and Wilson "Thunder".

Hopkins recorded more sides for Aladdin in 1947 but soon grew homesick. He returned to Houston and began recording for the Gold Star Records label. During the late 40s and 1950s Hopkins rarely performed outside Texas. However, he recorded prolifically. Occasionally traveling to the Mid-West and Eastern United States for recording sessions and concert appearances. It has been estimated that he recorded between 800 and 1000 songs during his career. He performed regularly at clubs in and around Houston, particularly in Dowling St. where he had first been discovered. He recorded his hits "T-Model Blues" and "Tim Moore's Farm" at SugarHill Recording Studios in Houston. By the mid to late 1950s his prodigious output of quality recordings had gained him a following among African Americans and blues music aficionados.

In 1959 Hopkins was contacted by folklorist Mack McCormick who hoped to bring him to the attention of the broader musical audience which was caught up in the folk revival. McCormack presented Hopkins to integrated audiences first in Houston and then in California. Hopkins debuted at Carnegie Hall on October 14, 1960 appearing alongside Joan Baez and Pete Seeger performing the spiritual ''Oh, Mary Don’t You Weep.'' In 1960, he signed to Tradition Records. Solid recordings followed including his masterpiece song "Mojo Hand" in 1960.

By the early 1960s Lightnin' Hopkins reputation as one of the most compelling blues performers was cemented. He had finally earned the success and recognition which were overdue. In 1968, Hopkins recorded the album ''Free Form Patterns'' backed by the rhythm section of psychedelic rock band the 13th Floor Elevators. Through the 1960s and into the 1970s Hopkins released one or sometimes two albums a year and toured, playing at major folk festivals and at folk clubs and on college campuses in the U.S. and internationally. He travelled widely in the United States, and overcame his fear of flying to join the 1964 American Folk Blues Festival; visit Germany and the Netherlands 13 years later; and play a six-city tour of Japan in 1978.

Filmmaker Les Blank captured the Texas troubadour's informal lifestyle most vividly in his acclaimed 1967 documentary, ''The Blues Accordin' to Lightnin' Hopkins''.

Houston's poet-in-residence for 35 years, Hopkins recorded more albums than any other bluesman.

Hopkins died of esophageal cancer in Houston January 30, 1982 at the age of 69. His New York Times obituary named him as "one of the great country blues and perhaps the greatest single influence on rock guitar players."

A statue of Hopkins sits in Crockett, Texas.

Style

Hopkins' style was born from spending many hours playing informally without a backing band. His distinctive fingerstyle playing often included playing, in effect, bass, rhythm, lead, percussion, and vocals, all at the same time. He played both "alternating" and "monotonic" bass styles incorporating imaginative, often chromatic turnarounds and single note lead lines. Tapping or slapping the body of his guitar added rhythmic accompaniment.

Much of Hopkins' music follows the standard 12-bar blues template but his phrasing was very free and loose. Many of his songs were in the talking blues style, but he was a powerful and confident singer. Lyrically his songs chronicled the problems of life in the segregated south, bad luck in love and other usual subjects of the blues idiom. He did however deal with these subjects with humor and good nature. Many of his songs are filled with double entendres and he was known for his humorous introductions.

Some of his songs were of warning and sour prediction like ''Fast Life Woman'':

:''"You may see a fast life woman sittin' round a whiskey joint, :''Yes, you know, she'll be sittin' there smilin', :'' 'Cause she knows some man gonna buy her half a pint, :''Take it easy, fast life woman, 'cause you ain't gon' live always...''"

Influence

Lightnin' is number 71 on Rolling Stone Magazine's list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.

Discography

1959 - ''Lightnin' Hopkins Strums the Blues'' (Score)

1959 - ''Lightnin' Hopkins'' (Folkways)

1959 - ''Lightnin' and the Blues'' (Herald)

1960 - ''Country Blues'' (Tradition Records)

1960 - ''Last Night Blues'' (Bluesville Records)

1960 - ''Mojo Hand'' (Fire Records)

1960 - ''Lightnin' '' (Bluesville)

1961 - ''Autobiography in Blues'' (Tradition)

1961 - ''Blues in My Bottle'' (Bluesville)

1962 - ''Walkin' This Road By Myself'' (Bluesville)

1962 - ''Lightnin' and Co.'' (Bluesville)

1962 - ''Lightnin' Strikes'' (Vee-Jay Records)

1963 - ''Blues Hoot'' (Vee-Jay Records; live at The Ash Grove 1961 w/ Sonny Terry, Brownie McGhee, and Big Joe Williams)

1963 - ''Smokes Like Lightnin' '' (Bluesville)

1963 - ''Goin' Away'' (Bluesville)

1964 - ''Down Home Blues'' (Bluesville)

1965 - ''Hootin' the Blues'' (Bluesville)

1965 - ''Lightnin' Strikes'' (Tradition)

1965 - ''The Roots of Lightnin' Hopkins'' (Verve Folkways)

1966 - ''Soul Blues'' (Bluesville)

1967 - ''My Life in the Blues'' (Bluesville)

1967 - ''Original Folk Blues'' (Kent Records)

1967 - ''Lightnin'!'' (Arhoolie Records)

1968 - ''Freeform Patterns'' (International Artists)

1969 - ''California Mudslide (and Earthquake)''

1991 - ''Swarthmore Concert Live, 1964''

1991 - ''Sittin' in with Lightnin' Hopkins''(Mainstream Records)

1991 - ''The Hopkins Bros.'' (Arhoolie Records, with his brothers Joel and John Henry)

1992 - ''Lonesome Life'' (Home Cooking/Collectables)

1992 - ''It's a Sin to Be Rich'' (Gitanes Jazz Productions)

1993 - ''Mojo Hand: The Lightnin' Hopkins Anthology'' (Rhino Records)

1995 - ''Po' Lightning''

1999 - ''The Very Best of Lightnin' Hopkins''

Films

''The Blues Accordin' to Lightnin' Hopkins'' (1969). Directed by Les Blank and Skip Gerson (Flower Films & Video).

''The Sun's Gonna Shine'' (1969). Directed by Les Blank with Skip Gerson (Flower Films & Video)

''Sounder'' (1972). Directed by Martin Ritt, offers Hopkins singing 'Jesus Will You Come By Here.'

, a film documentary on Hopkins was in production with Fastcut Films of Houston, entitled 'Where Lightnin' Strikes.'

Books

''Lightnin’ Hopkins: Blues Guitar Legend'' by Dan Bowden

''Deep Down Hard Blues: Tribute to Lightnin'' by Sarah Ann West

''Lightnin' Hopkins: His Life and Blues'' by Alan Govenar (Chicago Review Press)

Quotation

– Robert "Mack" McCormick

See also

List of blues musicians

Texas blues

Six Strings Down

References

''The Encyclopedia of Folk, Country & Western Music'' by Irwin Stambler and Grellun Landon, second edition. St. Martin's Press 1983. ISBN 0-312-24818-0

Liner notes to CD ''Country Blues'' Ryko/Tradition Records

External links

Blues Foundation Hall of Fame Induction, 1980

''Houston Chronicle'' story about dedication of Lightnin' Hopkins statue

Hopkins feature on Big Road Blues

Campstreetcafe.com - accessed December 25 2007

Activeguitar.com - accessed December 25 2007

"Where Lightnin Strikes" Documentary Film

New York Times obituary

Category:1912 births Category:1982 deaths Category:African American musicians Category:American blues guitarists Category:American blues musicians Category:Country blues singers Category:Blues Hall of Fame inductees Category:Blues revival musicians Category:Texas blues musicians Category:Musicians from Houston, Texas Category:Modern Records artists Category:RPM Records artists Category:Imperial Records artists Category:Jewel Records artists Category:Fire Records artists Category:Deaths from cancer Category:Cancer deaths in Texas

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