birth date	June 09, 1963
birth place	Owensboro, Kentucky, U.S.
birth name	John Christopher Depp II
spouse	Lori Anne Allison (1983–1986)
partner	Sherilyn Fenn (1985–1988)Winona Ryder (1989–1993)Kate Moss (1994–1998)Vanessa Paradis (1998–present)
children	Lily-Rose Melody Depp (born 1999)John Christopher "Jack" Depp III (born 2002)
years active	1984–present
occupation	Actor, screenwriter, director, producer, musician }}

John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series ''21 Jump Street'', becoming a teen idol. Turning to film, he played the title character of ''Edward Scissorhands'' (1990), and later found box office success in films such as ''Sleepy Hollow'' (1999), ''Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'' (2005), ''Rango'' (2011), and the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' film series (2003–present). He has collaborated with director and friend Tim Burton in seven films, their most recent collaboration being ''Alice in Wonderland'' (2010).

Depp has gained acclaim for his portrayals of people such as Edward D. Wood, Jr., in ''Ed Wood'', Joseph D. Pistone in ''Donnie Brasco'', Hunter S. Thompson in ''Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas'', George Jung in ''Blow'', and the bank robber John Dillinger in Michael Mann's ''Public Enemies''. Films featuring Depp have grossed over $3.1 billion at the United States box office and over $7.6 billion worldwide. He has been nominated for top awards many times, winning the Best Actor Awards from the Golden Globes for ''Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'' and from the Screen Actors Guild for ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl''. He also has garnered a sex symbol status in American cinema, being twice named as the Sexiest man alive by People magazine in 2003 and 2009.

Early life

Childhood

Depp was born in Owensboro, Kentucky, the son of John Christopher Depp, Sr., a civil engineer, and his wife, the former Betty Sue Wells, a waitress. He has one brother, Daniel, who is a novelist, and two sisters, Christie (now his personal manager) and Debbie. The Depp family in the United States began with a French Huguenot immigrant, Pierre Deppe or Dieppe, who settled in Virginia around 1700, part of a refugee colony situated above the falls on the James River. The actor has also surmised that he is part Native American, saying in 2011, "I guess I have some Native American [in me] somewhere down the line. My great-grandmother was quite a bit of Native American, she grew up Cherokee or maybe Creek Indian. Makes sense in terms of coming from Kentucky, which is rife with Cherokee and Creek." More recently a hereditary connection between Depp and Queen Elizabeth II was discovered possibly making him her twentieth cousin.

The family moved frequently during Depp's childhood, and he and his siblings lived in more than 20 different locations, settling in Miramar, Florida, in 1970. In 1978, Depp's parents divorced. His mother married, as her second husband, Robert Palmer (died 2000), whom Depp called "an inspiration to me". He engaged in self-harm as a child, due to the stress of dealing with family problems. He has seven or eight self-inflicted scars. In a 1993 interview, he explained his self-injury by saying, "My body is a journal in a way. It's like what sailors used to do, where every tattoo meant something, a specific time in your life when you make a mark on yourself, whether you do it yourself with a knife or with a professional tattoo artist".

1980s

With the gift of a guitar from his mother when he was twelve, Depp began playing in various garage bands. His first band was in honor of his girlfriend, Meredith. A year after his parents' divorce, Depp dropped out of high school to become a rock musician. He attempted to go back to school two weeks later, but the principal told him to follow his dream of being a musician. He played with The Kids, a band that enjoyed modest local success. The Kids set out together for Los Angeles in pursuit of a record deal, changing their name to Six Gun Method, but the group split up before signing a record deal. Depp subsequently collaborated with the band Rock City Angels and co-wrote their song "Mary", which appeared on Rock City Angels' debut for Geffen Records titled ''Young Man's Blues''.

On December 24, 1983, Depp married Lori Anne Allison, a makeup artist and sister of his band's bass player and singer. During Depp's marriage, his wife worked as a makeup artist, while he worked a variety of odd jobs, including a telemarketer for pens. His wife introduced him to actor Nicolas Cage, who advised Depp to pursue an acting career. Depp and his wife divorced in 1985. Depp later dated and was engaged to actress Sherilyn Fenn (whom he met on the set of the 1985 short film ''Dummies''). Both Fenn and Depp auditioned for the 1986 film ''Thrashin''' and they were both cast, with Depp being chosen by the film's director to star as the lead, which would have been Depp's second major role. Depp was later turned down by the film's producer, who rejected the director's decision.

Career

Television

Depp starred in a lead role on the Fox television series, ''21 Jump Street'', which premiered in 1987. Depp accepted this role to work with actor Frederic Forrest, who inspired him. Depp's long time friend Sal Jenco joined the cast as a semi-co-star as the janitor named Blowfish. The series' success turned Depp into a popular teen idol during the late 1980s. He felt "forced into the role of product." Depp decided to appear only in films that he felt were right for him.

Film roles

Depp's first major role was in the 1984 classic horror film ''A Nightmare on Elm Street'', playing the boyfriend of the heroine, Nancy Thompson (played by Heather Langenkamp) and one of Freddy Krueger's victims. Depp was the first choice and was cast to star in the 1986 American skater drama film ''Thrashin''', chosen and cast by the director but ultimately rejected by the film's producer. In 1986, he appeared in a secondary role as a Vietnamese-speaking private in Oliver Stone's ''Platoon''. In 1990, he undertook the quirky title role of the Tim Burton film, ''Edward Scissorhands''. The film's success began his long association with Burton.

Depp, a fan and long-time friend of writer Hunter S. Thompson, played a version of Thompson (named Raoul Duke) in 1998's ''Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas'', based on the writer's pseudobiographical novel of the same name. Depp accompanied Thompson as his road manager on one of the author's last book tours. In 2006, Depp contributed a foreword to ''Gonzo: Photographs by Hunter S. Thompson'', a posthumous biography published by ammobooks.com. In 2008, he narrated the documentary film ''Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson''. Depp paid for most of Thompson's memorial event, complete with fireworks and the shooting of Thompson's ashes by a cannon, in Aspen, Colorado, where Thompson lived. He returned to Thompson's work with a film adaptation of the novel ''The Rum Diary'', released in 2011.

Critics have described Depp's roles as characters who are "iconic loners." Depp has noted this period of his career was full of "studio defined failures" and films that were "box office poison," but he thought the studios never understood the films and did not do a good job of marketing. Depp has chosen roles which he found interesting, rather than those he thought would succeed at the box office. The 2003 Walt Disney Pictures film ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl'' was a major success, in which Depp's performance as the suave pirate Captain Jack Sparrow was highly praised. Studio bosses were more ambivalent at first, but the character became popular with the movie-going public. According to a survey taken by Fandango, Depp was a major draw for audiences. The film's director, Gore Verbinski, has said that Depp's character closely resembles the actor's personality, but Depp said he modeled the character after Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards. Depp was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for the role.

In 2004, he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor, for playing Scottish author J. M. Barrie in the film ''Finding Neverland''. Depp next starred as Willy Wonka in the 2005 film ''Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'', a major success at the box office and earning him a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy.

Depp returned to the role of Jack Sparrow for the sequel ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'', which opened on July 7, 2006 and grossed $135.5 million in the first three days of its U.S. release, breaking a box office record of the highest weekend tally. The next sequel to ''Pirates of the Caribbean'', ''At World's End'', was released May 24, 2007. Depp has said that Sparrow is "definitely a big part of me", and he wants to play the role in further sequels. Depp voiced Sparrow in the video game, ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow''. Johnny Depp's swashbuckling sword talents as developed for the character of Jack Sparrow, were highlighted in the documentary film ''Reclaiming the Blade''. Within the film, Swordmaster Bob Anderson shared his experiences working with Depp on the choreography for ''The Curse of the Black Pearl''. Anderson described in the film Depp's ability as an actor to pick up the sword to be "about as good as you can get."

Depp and Gore Verbinski were executive producers of the album ''Rogues Gallery, Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs and Chanteys.'' Depp played the title role of Sweeney Todd in Tim Burton's film adaptation of the musical, for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. Depp thanked the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and praised Tim Burton for his "unwavering trust and support."

Depp played the former Heath Ledger character in the 2009 film, ''The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus'' along with Jude Law and Colin Farrell. All three actors gave their salaries from the film to Ledger's daughter, Matilda. He portrayed the Mad Hatter in Burton's ''Alice in Wonderland'', and the titular character in ''Rango''.

Future roles

Depp will appear in a film version of writer Hunter S. Thompson's book, ''The Rum Diary'', portraying the main character, Paul Kemp. In 2007, Depp accepted Warner Bros.' proposal to make a film of the gothic soap opera ''Dark Shadows'', a series that aired on ABC from 1966 to 1971. He had been a fan as a child. Depp and Graham King will produce the movie with David Kennedy, who ran Dan Curtis Productions inc. until Curtis died in 2006. Depp will also produce ''Hugo'', based on the novel ''The Invention of Hugo Cabret'', film a documentary about Keith Richards, and have a cameo appearance in ''Jack & Jill''. Depp will make a cameo appearance in a film adaptation of ''21 Jump Street'', the show he starred in during the late 1980s. Depp will star in and produce an adaptation of the comic book ''Rex Mundi''. Depp will collaborate with ''Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'' director Rob Marshall again to create a remake of ''The Thin Man''. Depp also showed interest in starring in the next ''Sin City'' films, with Robert Rodriguez wanting him to star as Wallace. Depp was going to star as Tonto in an upcoming ''Lone Ranger'' film, but the project has currently been shelved due to budgetary concerns as well as a lack-lustre response to a recently-released Western-genre film (''Cowboys & Aliens''). Depp plans to star as Carl Kolchak in the project ''Night Stalker'', and has bought rights to the comic book ''The Vault''.

Collaboration with Tim Burton

Depp has collaborated with director and close friend Tim Burton in seven films, beginning with ''Edward Scissorhands'' (1990), opposite Winona Ryder and Vincent Price. His next role with Burton was in the 1994 film, ''Ed Wood''. Depp later said that "within 10 minutes of hearing about the project, I was committed." At the time, the actor was depressed about films and filmmaking. This part gave him a "chance to stretch out and have some fun"; he said working with Landau "rejuvenated my love for acting".

Depp did not work with Burton again until 2005 in ''Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'', in which he played Willy Wonka. Depp modeled the character's hair on Anna Wintour. The film was a box office success and received positive critical reception. Gene Wilder, who played Willy Wonka in the 1971 film, initially criticized this version. ''Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'' was released in July, followed by ''Corpse Bride'', for which Depp voiced the character Victor Van Dort, in September.

''Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'' (2007) followed, bringing Depp his second major award win, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy as well as his third nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. Burton first gave him an original cast recording of the 1979 stage musical in 2000. Although not a fan of the musical genre, Depp grew to like the tale's treatment. He cited Peter Lorre in ''Mad Love'' (1935) as his main influence for the role, and practiced the songs his character would perform while filming ''Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End''. Although he had performed in musical groups, Depp was initially unsure that he would be able to sustain Stephen Sondheim's lyrics. Depp recorded demos and worked with Bruce Witkin to shape his vocals without a qualified voice coach. In the ''DVD Reviews'' section, ''Entertainment Weekly'''s Chris Nashawaty gave the film an A minus, stating, "Depp's soaring voice makes you wonder what other tricks he's been hiding... Watching Depp's barber wield his razors... it's hard not to be reminded of ''Edward Scissorhands'' frantically shaping hedges into animal topiaries 18 years ago... and all of the twisted beauty we would've missed out on had [Burton and Depp] never met." In his introduction to ''Burton on Burton'', a book of interviews with the director, Depp called Burton "...a brother, a friend,...and [a] brave soul". The next Depp-Burton collaboration was ''Alice in Wonderland'' (2010). Depp played the Mad Hatter alongside Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway and Alan Rickman.

Production company

In 2004, Depp formed his production company Infinitum Nihil to develop projects where he will serve as actor and/or producer. Depp is the founder and CEO, while his sister, Christi Dembrowski, serves as president. The company's first production came in 2011 with ''The Rum Diary'', adapted from the novel of the same name by Hunter S. Thompson. The film is written and directed by Bruce Robinson. Also in 2011, ''Hugo'', directed by Martin Scorsese, was released. In 2012, they will release ''Dark Shadows'', directed by Tim Burton.

Other interests

Music

As a guitar player, Depp has played slide guitar on the Oasis song "Fade In-Out" (from ''Be Here Now,'' 1997), as well as on "Fade Away (Warchild Version)" (b-side of the "Don't Go Away" single). He also played acoustic guitar in the movie ''Chocolat'' and on the soundtrack to ''Once Upon a Time in Mexico.'' He is a friend of The Pogues' Shane MacGowan, and performed on MacGowan's first solo album. He was also a member of P, a group featuring Butthole Surfers singer Gibby Haynes, Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea and Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones. He has appeared in Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' music video "Into the Great Wide Open". He made a cameo as the Mad Hatter in the music video for Avril Lavigne's "Alice" in 2010.

Winemaker and restaurateur

Depp and Paradis grow grapes and have wine making facilities in their vineyard in Plan-de-la-Tour north of Saint-Tropez. He is known for a fondness of French wines: among Depp's favorites are the Bordeaux wines Château Calon-Ségur, Château Cheval Blanc and Château Pétrus, and the Burgundy wine Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. Interviewed in ''Madame Figaro'', he stated, "With those wines, you reach nirvana". Along with Sean Penn, John Malkovich and Mick Hucknall, Depp co-owned the Parisian restaurant-bar Man Ray, located near the Champs-Élysées.

Personal life

Family and relationships

Depp was engaged to actress Winona Ryder for three years beginning in July 1990. They met at the ''Great Balls of Fire!'' premiere in June 1989; two months later they began dating. The relationship was highly publicized and received much scrutiny by the media and tabloid press.

Since 1998, following a four year relationship with British supermodel Kate Moss, Depp has had a relationship with Vanessa Paradis, a French actress and singer whom he met while filming ''The Ninth Gate''.

The couple have two children. Daughter Lily-Rose Melody Depp was born May 27, 1999, and son John "Jack" Christopher Depp III was born April 9, 2002. To thank Great Ormond Street Hospital, Depp visited the hospital in November 2007 dressed in his Captain Jack Sparrow outfit and spent 4 hours reading stories to the children. In 2008 he donated £1 million (about $2 million) to the hospital.

Although Depp has not remarried, he has stated that having children has given him "real foundation, a real strong place to stand in life, in work, in everything." "You can't plan the kind of deep love that results in children. Fatherhood was not a conscious decision. It was part of the wonderful ride I was on. It was destiny; kismet. All the math finally worked." The family divides its time between their home in Meudon, located in the suburbs of Paris, Los Angeles, an island he bought in The Bahamas, and their villa in Le Plan-de-la-Tour, a small town 20 km from Saint-Tropez, in the south of France. Depp also acquired a vineyard estate in the Plan-de-la-Tour area in 2007.

Legal issues

In 1994, Depp was arrested and questioned by police for allegedly causing serious damage to a New York City hotel suite.

He was arrested again in 1999 for brawling with paparazzi outside a restaurant while dining in London with Paradis.

Tattoos

Depp has around 13 tattoos, many of them signifying important persons or events in his life. They include a Native American in profile and a ribbon reading "Wino Forever" (originally "Winona Forever", altered after his breakup with Winona Ryder) on his right biceps, "Lily-Rose" (his daughter's name) over his heart, "Betty Sue" (his mother's name) on his left biceps, and a sparrow flying over water with the word "Jack" (his son's name; the sparrow is flying towards him rather than away from him as it is in ''Pirates of the Caribbean'') on his right forearm.

Unannounced appearance on set

On October 8, 2010, Depp made an unannounced appearance at a London Primary School near where he was filming scenes for ''Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides''. He turned up dressed as his character Jack Sparrow after receiving a letter from a pupil asking for his help with a class mutiny.

Controversy

Comments on U.S.

In 2003, Depp's comments about the United States appeared in Germany's ''Stern'' magazine: "America is dumb, is something like a dumb puppy that has big teeth — that can bite and hurt you, aggressive." Although he later asserted that the magazine misquoted him and the quotation was taken out of context, Stern stood by its story, as did CNN.com in its coverage of the interview. CNN added his remark that he would like his children "to see America as a toy, a broken toy. Investigate it a little, check it out, get this feeling and then get out." The July 17, 2006 edition of ''Newsweek'' reprinted the "dumb puppy" quotation, verbatim, in the context of a Letter to the Magazine. Depp has also disagreed with subsequent media reports that he says paint him as a "European wannabe", saying that he likes the anonymity of living in France and his simpler life there.

Awards and nominations

Some of the awards that Depp has won include honors from the London Film Critics Circle (1996), Russian Guild of Film Critics (1998), Screen Actors Guild Awards (2004) and a Golden Globe for Best Actor. At the 2008 MTV Movie Awards, he won the award for "Best Villain" for his portrayal of Sweeney Todd and "Best Comedic Performance" for Jack Sparrow. Depp has been nominated for three Academy Awards, in 2004 for ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl'', in 2005 for ''Finding Neverland'', and in 2008 for ''Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street''. Depp won his first Golden Globe for his portrayal of Sweeney Todd in 2008.

Filmography

+
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes	! Budget	! Gross
1984	''''			$1.8 million	$25,504,513
1985	''Private Resort''	Jack Marshall		N/A	$331,816
1986		Specialist Gator Lerner		$6 million	$138,530,565
1990	''Cry-Baby''	Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker		$12 million	$8,266,343
1990	''Edward Scissorhands''	Edward Scissorhands	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy	$20 million	$86,024,005
1991	''Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare''	Teen on TV	Cameo (as Oprah Noodlemantra)	$11 million	$34,872,033
1993	''What's Eating Gilbert Grape''	Gilbert Grape		$11 million	$10,032,765
1993	''Benny & Joon''	Sam	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy	N/A	$23,261,580
1993	''Arizona Dream''	Axel Blackmar		N/A	$112,547
1994		Edward D. Wood, Jr.	London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor also for ''Don Juan DeMarco''Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy	$18 million	$5,887,457
1995		Gene Watson		N/A	$8,175,346
1995	''Dead Man''	William Blake		$9 million	$1,037,847
1995	''Don Juan DeMarco''	Don Juan/John R. DeMarco		$25 million	$68,792,531
1996		Himself		N/A	N/A
1997		Donnie Brasco/Joseph D. Pistone		$35 million	$124,909,762
1997	''''	Raphael	Nominated—Best Actor Award (Cannes Film Festival)	N/A	N/A
1998		Raoul Duke	playing Hunter S. Thompson	$18.5 million	$10,680,275
1998	''L.A. Without a Map''	Himself/William Blake	Cameo	N/A	N/A
1999		Ichabod Crane	Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or ComedyNominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor	$70 million	$206,071,502
1999	''''	Spencer Armacost		$75 million	$19,598,588
1999	''''	Dean Corso		$38 million	$58,401,898
2000		Roux	Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture	$25 million	$152,699,946
2000		Lt. Victor, Bon Bon		N/A	$8,527,517
2001		Frederick Abberline	Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor	$35 million	$74,558,115
2000	''''	Cesar	(Limited release)		$1,790,840
2001		George Jung		$53 million	$83,282,296
2003	''Once Upon a Time in Mexico''	Sheldon Sands	Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture	$29 million	$98,185,582
2003	''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl''		Empire Award for Best ActorIrish Film Award for Best International ActorScreen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading RoleNominated—Academy Award for Best ActorNominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading RoleNominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best ActorNominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best ActorNominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or ComedyNominated—Online Film Critics Society Award for Best ActorNominated—Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best ActorNominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or ComedyNominated—Saturn Award for Best ActorNominated—Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor	$140 million	$654,264,015
2004		L'inconnu	Cameo	N/A	$6,204,504
2004	''Finding Neverland''	J. M. Barrie		$25 million	$118,676,606
2004	''Secret Window''	Mort Rainey		$40 million	$92,913,171
2004	''''	John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester		$20 million	$10,852,064
2005		Willy Wonka	Sony Ericsson Empire Awards	$150 million	$474,968,763
2005	''[[Corpse Bride''			$40 million	$117,195,061
2006	''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest''	Captain Jack Sparrow	Sony Ericsson Empire Awards	$225 million	$1,066,179,725
2007	''[[Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End''	Captain Jack Sparrow	Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Male Movie StarMTV Movie Award for Best Comedic PerformanceRembrandt Award for Best International ActorNominated—National Movie Award for Best Performance by a MaleNominated—Teen Choice Award for Best Action Adventure Actor	$300 million	$963,420,425
2007		Sweeney Todd/Benjamin Barker		$50 million	$152,523,164
2009		John Dillinger	Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama	$100 million	$214,104,620
2009	''''	Tony (1st transformation)	Shared role with Colin Farrell and Jude Law after the death of Heath Ledger	$30 million	$61,808,775
2010		Mad Hatter	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or ComedyNominated—MTV Movie Award for Global SuperstarNominated—National Movie Award for Best PerformanceNominated—Teen Choice Award for Best Fantasy Actor	$200 million	$1,024,299,904
2010	''''	Frank Tupelo/Alexander Pearce		$100 million	$278,346,189
2011		Rango	Voice acting	$135 million	$242,605,737
2011	''[[Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides''	Captain Jack Sparrow		$250 million	$1,032,828,392
2011	''''	Paul Kemp	post-production	$65 million
2011			Cameopost-production
2012			Cameopost-production
2012		Barnabas Collins	filming

+ Producer
! Year	! Title	Notes
2011		post-production
2011		post-production
2012		filming

+ Director
! Year	! Title	Notes
1992		short film
1997	''The Brave''
2012	''Keith Richards Documentary''	filming

+ Writer
! Year	! Title
1997	''The Brave''

+ Documentary
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
1999		Jack Kerouac
2002	''Lost in La Mancha''	Himself	Uncredited role
2006	''Deep Sea 3D''	Narrator
2007		Himself
2008	''Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson''	Narrator
2010	''When You're Strange''	Narrator

+ Music
! Year	! Title	Songs
2000		"Minor Swing","They're Red Hot","Caravan"
2003	''Once Upon a Time in Mexico''	"Sands' Theme"
2007		"No Place Like London","My Friends","Pirelli's Miracle Elixir","Pretty Women","Epiphany","A Little Priest","Johanna (Act II)","By The Sea","The Judge's Return","Final Scene (Part 1)","Final Scene (Part 2)"

+ Television
Year	! Production	! Role	Notes
1985		Lionel Viland	Episode: "Beasts of Prey"
1986		Donnie Fleischer	TV film
1987–1991	''21 Jump Street''	Officer Thomas "Tom" Hanson, Jr.	TV series (57 episodes)
1987		Rob Cameron	Episode: "Unfinished Business"
1999	''The Vicar of Dibley''	Himself	Episode: "Celebrity Party"
2000	''The Fast Show''	Himself	Episode: "The Last Ever Fast Show"
2004	''King of the Hill''	Yogi Victor (voice)
2009	''SpongeBob SquarePants''	Jack Kahuna Laguna (voice)	Episode: "SpongeBob vs. The Big One"

References

Bibliography

External links

Category:1963 births Category:20th-century actors Category:21st-century actors Category:Actors from Florida Category:Actors from Kentucky Category:American expatriates in France Category:American film actors Category:American film directors Category:American film producers Category:American people of French descent Category:American television actors Category:American voice actors Category:Best Musical or Comedy Actor Golden Globe (film) winners Category:Living people Category:People from Owensboro, Kentucky Category:People of Huguenot descent

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name	Graham Norton
birth name	Graham William Walker
birth date	April 04, 1963
birth place	Clondalkin, Dublin, Ireland
medium	Television, radio, stand-up
nationality	Irish
active	1992–present
genre	Observational comedy
subject	Everyday life, pop culture, current events, celebrities, sex
awards
notable work	''So Graham Norton''''V Graham Norton''''The Graham Norton Effect''''Graham Norton's Bigger Picture''''The Graham Norton Show'' }}

Graham William Walker, known by his stage name Graham Norton, (born 4 April 1963) is an Irish actor, comedian, television presenter and columnist. He is the host of comedy chat programme ''The Graham Norton Show'' on BBC One in the UK. ''Hot Press'' has described him as "the 21st century's answer to Terry Wogan", with both men sharing an Irish background and the common link of being a BBC Radio 2 presenter and the BBC television commentator of the Eurovision Song Contest.

Early life and career

Norton was born in Clondalkin, a suburb of Dublin, but grew up in Bandon, County Cork, Ireland. He was educated at Bandon Grammar School, in County Cork and then University College Cork but did not complete his studies.

In 1992 his stand-up comedy drag act in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe as a tea-towel clad Mother Teresa of Calcutta made the press when Scottish Television's religious affairs department mistakenly thought he represented the real Mother Teresa.

His first appearances in broadcasting were in his spot as a regular comedian and panellist on the BBC Radio 4 show ''Loose Ends'', when the show ran on Saturday mornings, in the early 1990s. His rise to fame began as one of the early successes of Channel 5, when he won an award for his performance as the stand-in host of a late-night TV talk show usually presented by Jack Docherty. This was followed by a comic quiz show on Channel 5 called ''Bring Me the Head of Light Entertainment'', which was not well received as a programme, but did further enhance Norton's individual reputation as a comic and TV host. In 1996, Norton co-hosted the late-night quiz show ''Carnal Knowledge'' on ITV with Maria McErlane.

In 1996, Norton played the part of Father Noel Furlong in three episodes ("Hell", "Flight Into Terror", "The Mainland") of the Channel 4 series ''Father Ted''. Father Noel Furlong was often seen taking charge of a small youth folk-group.

Channel 4

After this early success, Norton moved to Channel 4 to host his own chat shows including ''So Graham Norton'' and ''V Graham Norton''. As a performer who is not only openly gay, but also camp and flamboyant, it was here that Norton's act was fully honed as a cheeky, innuendo-laden joker.

In 2003, he was the subject of controversy when, on his show on Channel 4, he made a comedic reference to the recent death of Bee Gees singer Maurice Gibb. The Independent Television Commission investigated after complaints about this insensitivity were forwarded to it and eventually Channel 4 had to make two apologies: one in the form of a caption slide before the show, another from Norton in person.

Also in 2003, he was listed in ''The Observer'' as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy (though Norton is Irish, the bulk of his television career has been in the UK).

In the summer of 2004, Norton moved across the Atlantic to start a new venture in American television. ''The Graham Norton Effect'' debuted on 24 June 2004 on Comedy Central, and was also broadcast in the UK on BBC Three. In the midst of controversy surrounding Janet Jackson's Super Bowl performance, Norton was wary of moving into the market.

BBC

In 2005, Norton moved to the BBC and began hosting the Saturday evening reality TV series ''Strictly Dance Fever'' on BBC One, as well as a new comedy chat show, ''Graham Norton's Bigger Picture''. He also read stories some nights on the BBC children's channel CBeebies as part of ''Bedtime Hour''.

In 2006, Norton hosted the BBC One series ''How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?'' in which Andrew Lloyd Webber tried to find a lead actress for his West End version of ''The Sound of Music''. Norton has subsequently presented the 3 follow-up series: ''Any Dream Will Do'' in 2007, in which a group of males competed to win the role of Joseph in the West End production of ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat''; ''I'd Do Anything'' in 2008, in which Andrew Lloyd Webber seeks to find the part of Nancy and Oliver for Sir Cameron Mackintosh's production of Lionel Bart's ''Oliver!''; and ''Over the Rainbow'' in 2010, following a similar format to find a new Dorothy for a ''Wizard of Oz'' West end Production.

Norton hosted various other shows for the BBC during this time, including ''When Will I Be Famous?'' (2007), ''The One and Only'' (2008) and ''Totally Saturday'' (2009). Since 2007, Norton has also been a regular host of The British Academy Television Awards. On 7 July 2007, Norton presented at Live Earth and undertook a trip to Ethiopia with the Born Free Foundation to highlight the plight of the Ethiopian wolf – the rarest canid in the world. In the same year, he was the subject of an episode of the BBC1 genealogy documentary ''Who Do You Think You Are?''.

Norton's chat show, ''The Graham Norton Show'', began on 22 February 2007 on BBC Two. Although in a format that he had not been involved in for 4 years, it is very similar to his previous Channel 4 shows. On 6 October 2009, the show moved to BBC One, in a new one-hour format.

In May 2010, he stood in for Chris Evans' breakfast show on BBC Radio 2. Later that month, it was confirmed that he would be replacing Jonathan Ross's Saturday morning slot on the same station.

In December 2011, the panel show ''Would You Rather...? with Graham Norton'' premiered on BBC America in the time slot immediately following ''The Graham Norton Show''. Recorded in New York, it is one of BBC America's earliest efforts at producing original programming, and is also the first panel game the channel has shown, either of British or American origin.

In January 2012, he called on listeners to his Radio 2 show to help find his car hours after it was stolen. He called it "The Great Car Hunt" and told listeners to “Keep your eyes out for it. It was filthy by the way."

Eurovision

Norton hosted the first annual ''Eurovision Dance Contest'' alongside Claudia Winkleman which was held on 1 September 2007 in London, England. The format was based on the BBC's ''Strictly Come Dancing'' and the EBU's ''Eurovision Song Contest''. Norton and Winkleman also hosted the 2008 Contest in Glasgow, Scotland.

In October 2008, it was confirmed by the BBC that Norton would replace Terry Wogan as the BBC's presenter for the UK heats of the ''Eurovision Song Contest'', in a show to be called ''Your Country Needs You''.

On 5 December 2008 it was announced that Norton would also take over from Wogan as the presenter of the main Eurovision Song Contest. The 54th Eurovision Song Contest was held in the Olimpiyskiy (Olympic) Stadium, Moscow on 16 May 2009.

Norton's jokes during his debut received some positive reviews from the British media. ''The Guardian'' noted his comments on Iceland's entry, which finished in second place, had "rooted around in a cupboard and found an old bridesmaid dress from 1987" and the Armenian singers, who finished in tenth place, were sporting traditional dress, "which would be true if you come from the village where Liberace is the mayor."

His comment “The bad news is you’re about to watch Albania. She’s only 17 so please bear that in mind. Where was her mother? Why didn’t she step in and say no?” which was made just before Albanian singer Kejsi Tola was set to take the stage dubbed an insult by many, sent ripples of outrage through not only Albania, but also the Albanian population in Britain.He then announced that Albania should get no points and that he didn't care what anybody else thought. There was a petition circling the net calling for a formal apology from Norton. The petition, which called his comment “very rude and insulting,” had drawn over 1,000 signatures.He never responded.

In 2011, he snarked that if Jedward's entry into the competition that year won, the twins would never sleep again. In the end, they were eighth. Earlier in that year's televote, he joked "Quick, someone take a picture", when The British entry that year went temporarily in the lead early on after high votes from Russia(4), Bulgaria(12) and Italy(10). In the end, the song dropped down the 11th, earning 100 points. Very annoyed, Norton claimed 'We were better than Jedward'.

Other

In July 2000 Graham was one of three judges of the Miss Lesbian Beauty Contest 2000 held at The Talk of London, Dury Lane. The contest was won by 42 year old Carol Hutchins who wowed the audience with her sit-down comedy routine from a wheelchair. Graham described Carol as a "very bright, funny lady."

Graham Norton played Mr. Puckov in the 2006 American comedy spoof film ''Another Gay Movie''. In 2007, Norton played Taylor in the romantic comedy film ''I Could Never Be Your Woman''.

Norton was involved in a high-publicity advertising campaign for the UK National Lottery as an animated unicorn, the stooge to a character based on Lady Luck (played by Fay Ripley). He has also advertised McVitie's biscuits.

In 2007, Norton featured in Girls Aloud and Sugababes' Comic Relief video for the single "Walk This Way."

In January 2009, Norton made his West End stage debut in a revival of ''La Cage Aux Folles'' at the Playhouse Theatre.

Since 2009, Norton has been the host of the comedy game-show ''Most Popular'' on US cable television channel WE tv.

Norton currently writes an advice column in ''The Daily Telegraph'' newspaper. In October 2010, these columns were made into a book entitled ''Ask Graham'', published by John Blake Publishing.

Personal life

Norton has stated that he felt "out of place" growing up in Ireland; his family are Protestant yet the Republic of Ireland is overwhelmingly Catholic. Norton took part in the TV programme, ''Who Do You Think You Are?'', to trace his ancestry. It was discovered that his family were originally planters sent over from England to take over Irish land. Some members of his family had fought for the British Monarchy during the Irish Rebellion of 1798 and taken part in a massacre of Catholics in Carnew Castle. Another member of his family was later killed in battle by the United Irishmen. Norton said he was comforted to find out that his family had resided in Ireland for generations.

In 1989 while living in London, Norton was mugged, beaten and stabbed by a group of attackers on the street. He says he lost half his blood and nearly died, and he was hospitalised for two and a half weeks.

Norton is openly gay.

Norton suffers from vitiligo, a skin disorder in which patches of depigmented skin occur.

Norton caused controversy on 7 October 2006, when he described ecstasy as "fantastic."

Immediately after hosting the BAFTAs in 2009, he said he returned home only to fall down his stairs and break two ribs. Some sources claimed that he presented the next Graham Norton Show on crutches, but this is not true, although he did make a comment about it, related to ''Pushing Daisies'', by saying "in ''Pushing Daisies'' people die in all sorts of bizarre ways... someone else was killed by a man dressed as a crash-test dummy, and some idiot almost died when he got drunk and fell down the stairs after presenting the BAFTAs. As if that could happen in real life!"

TV appearances

Main presenting credits

''Carnal Knowledge'' (TV series, co-presenter) (1996, 27 one hour shows)

''Bring Me the Head of Light Entertainment''

''So Graham Norton'' (1998–2002)

''V Graham Norton'' (2002–2003)

''NY Graham Norton'' (2004)

''The Graham Norton Effect'' (2004–2005)

''Graham Norton's Bigger Picture'' (2005–2006)

''Strictly Dance Fever'' (2005–2006)

BBC/Andrew Lloyd Webber musical theater talent searches (2006–present)

* ''How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?'' (2006)

* ''Any Dream Will Do'' (2007)

* ''I'd Do Anything'' (2008)

* ''Over the Rainbow'' (2010)

''The Big Finish'' (2006–)

''When Will I Be Famous?'' (2007)

''The Graham Norton Show'' (2007–present)

''The British Academy Television Awards'' (2007)

''Live Earth'' (2007)

''Eurovision Dance Contest'' (2007)

''The One and Only'' (2008)

''Eurovision Dance Contest'' (2008)

''Eurovision: Your Country Needs You'' (2009–present)

''Eurovision Song Contest'' (UK commentator, 2009–present)

''Totally Saturday'' (2009)

''Most Popular'' (2009–present)

''Would You Rather...? with Graham Norton'' (BBC America, 2011–present)

Other television credits

''Rex the Runt'': A Crap Day Out ''Absolutely Fabulous'': Gay ''Who Do You Think You Are? (British TV series)

!Year!!Title!!Character!!Broadcaster
1996–98	''Father Ted'':	* Hell	* Flight into Terror	* The Mainland	Father Noel Furlong	Channel 4
rowspan=3	2001	|	The Plants voice	BBC
''Rex the Runt'': Patio	Osvalde Halitosis voice
''The Kumars at No. 42''	Himself
2002	|	Himself	BBC
rowspan=4	2007	Who Do You Think You Are?'' ||	Himself	BBC
''Saving Planet Earth''	*Saving Wolves	Himself	BBC
''Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List''
''Robbie the Reindeer'' in Close Encounters of the Herd Kind	Computer voice

Radio

''Just a Minute''

Sitting in for Steve Wright August 2009 BBC Radio 2

Sitting in for Chris Evans May /July 2010 BBC Radio 2

On 2 October 2010, he began his weekly BBC Radio 2 Saturday show taking over from Jonathan Ross. The show airs from 10.00am-1.00pm and combines a mixture of music, chat and celebrity guests.

2011/12 Radio 2 Saturday mornings

Filmography

''Stargay'' ''Another Gay Movie'' ''I Could Never Be Your Woman''

!Year!!Title!!Character!!Production
1999	|	Graham Solex	Canal+
2006	|	Mr. Puckov	Luna Pictures
2007	|	Taylor	The Weinstein Company

Stand-Up videos

''Live At The Roundhouse'' (19 November 2001)

Awards

1999 : Gaytime Award for ''Gay Entertainer of the Year''

2000, 2001, 2002 : BAFTA Award for Best Entertainment Performance - ''So Graham Norton''

2001 : RTS Television Award for Best Presenter - ''So Graham Norton''

2001 : TRIC Award TV Personality of the Year

2011 : BAFTA Award for Best Entertainment Performance - ''The Graham Norton Show''

References

External links

Category:1963 births Category:Living people Category:Alumni of University College Cork Category:BBC Radio 2 presenters Category:Gay actors Category:Irish columnists Category:Irish expatriates in the United Kingdom Category:Irish male comedians Category:Irish people of English descent Category:Irish television talk show hosts Category:LGBT comedians from Ireland Category:LGBT people from Ireland Category:LGBT radio personalities from Ireland Category:LGBT television personalities from Ireland Category:People from County Cork Category:People from Dublin (city) Category:Survivors of stabbing Category:United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest

cy:Graham Norton de:Graham Norton es:Graham Norton fy:Graham Norton ga:Graham Norton nl:Graham Norton no:Graham Norton pl:Graham Norton ro:Graham Norton sv:Graham Norton

name	Carey Mulligan
birth name	Carey Hannah Mulligan
birth date	May 28, 1985
birth place	Westminster, London, England
occupation	Actress
years active	2005–present }}

Carey Hannah Mulligan (born 28 May 1985) is an English actress. She made her film debut as Kitty Bennet in ''Pride & Prejudice'' (2005). She had roles in numerous British programmes and, in 2007, made her Broadway debut in ''The Seagull'' to critical acclaim. In 2009, she gained widespread recognition for playing the lead role of Jenny in ''An Education'', winning a BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Additionally, Mulligan was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award for her performance. She appeared in the dramatic films ''The Greatest'' and ''Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps'', as well as ''Never Let Me Go'', all in 2010.

Early life

Mulligan was born in Westminster, London, England. Her father, Stephen, was originally from Liverpool, and her mother, Nano (née Booth), a college lecturer, came from Llandeilo in West Wales. Her great-grandfather emigrated from Ireland. Mulligan has one sibling; an elder brother. At the age of 3, she moved with her family from England to Germany after her father accepted the job of managing the European arm of Intercontinental Hotels. Due to her father's job, her family lived in expensive hotels for 8 years. She was "quite shy" during her childhood and a tomboy until the age of 15. She was also "quite straight-laced" and very academic until age 14, having then become more interested in acting.

Her interest in acting sparked from watching her brother perform in a school production of ''The King and I'' (she would later participate in plays at her school) and attending Broadway plays as a teen. Before acting professionally, she had once secretly applied to and been rejected by three drama schools specified on her UCAS application form. After failing an audition, the rejections made her question whether to pursue an acting career and go through what she called a "confusing time". Aside from rejection, she had also questioned being an actress due to her parents' disapproval of pursuing a job in entertainment. They insisted she attend university and believed Mulligan's desire would wear off. Around this time, she had a brief job as a barmaid at a local pub. She later said that those negative experiences had a positive effect on her because it made her know how much she wanted to act.

Career

In 2004, at the age of 18, Mulligan began her acting career by winning the role of Kitty Bennett in ''Pride & Prejudice'', the 2005 period piece film adaptation of the Jane Austen novel. She received the role with help from her school's headmistress, after Mulligan had written to her explaining that she did not want to go to university and asking for help in getting in touch with actor Julian Fellowes, who had spoken at Mulligan's school. After she met Fellowes, he introduced her to a casting agent who was looking to cast an unknown in the film. Later that year, she appeared in a recurring role in the BAFTA award-winning BBC adaption of Charles Dickens' ''Bleak House'', as orphan Ada Clare and onstage in ''The Hypochondriac''. Among her 2007 projects were ''My Boy Jack'', starring Daniel Radcliffe that features her in a supporting role. Mulligan identified with her role Elsie, who vociferously opposes her brother going to war. She earned a Constellation Award for playing the main character Sally Sparrow in an episode of ''Doctor Who''. She rounded out 2007 by appearing in an acclaimed revival of ''The Seagull'', in which she played Nina to Kristin Scott Thomas' Arkadina and Chiwetel Ejiofor's Trigorin. ''The Daily Telegraph'' said her performance was "quite extraordinarily radiating'" and ''The Observer'' called her "almost unbearably affecting." While in the middle of the production, she had to have an appendectomy, preventing her from being able to perform for a week. For her debut Broadway performance in the 2008 American transfer of ''The Seagull'', she was nominated for a Drama Desk Award, but lost to Angela Lansbury.

At 22, she was cast in her first leading role as 16 year old Jenny in the coming-of-age 2009 release drama ''An Education'', which got rave reviews and commissioned $26 million against a $7.5 million budget at the box office. She received critical acclaim for her performance, as the press began referring to her as an "It girl". Lisa Schwarzbaum of ''Entertainment Weekly'' and Todd McCarthy of ''Variety'' both compared her performance to that of Audrey Hepburn. ''Rolling Stone'''s Peter Travers described her as having given a "sensational, starmaking performance," while Claudia Puig of ''USA Today'' felt that Mulligan had one of the year's best performances, and Toby Young of ''The Times'' felt she anchored the film. Writing in ''The Guardian'', Peter Bradshaw concluded that she gave a "wonderful performance." For her work, she garnered Golden Globe, Academy Award and Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations, as well as receiving a British Academy Film Award. Mulligan was a recipient of the Shooting Stars Award from the 2009 Berlin International Film Festival and received an BAFTA Rising Star Award nomination, which is voted on by the British public.

She next starred in ''The Greatest'' (2010) as the pregnant girlfriend of a boy who dies; her involvement with the project helped it "tremendously", according to the director. It opened to mostly indifferent reviews, with Ty Burr of the ''Boston Globe'' criticising it for being "grueling and gently contrived", but was more positive in his assessment of Mulligan. After being selected to join The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, she won a British Independent Award for ''Never Let Me Go'', an adaption of the 2005 Kazuo Ishiguro novel, which she starred in and narrated and was released in September 2010 - competing against her other project, the Oliver Stone-directed film ''Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps''. The latter, a sequel to the 1987 movie, is about a new story of greed and power. Screened out of competition at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival, it was her first major studio project. She also provided vocals for the song "Write About Love" by Belle & Sebastian. Mulligan returned to stage in Atlantic Theatre Company's off-Broadway play ''Through a Glass, Darkly'' from May 13 to July 3, 2011, acting as the central character, a mentally unstable woman, to glowing praise from reviewers.

Script adjustments were made to accommodate Mulligan as Irene, who was originally written as a Latina woman in her late 20s, in the 2011 neo-noir thriller movie ''Drive''. Mulligan began filming Steve McQueen's sex-addiction drama ''Shame'' alongside Michael Fassbender in New York in January 2011. Both films will be shown at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival, with the former also been screened at Cannes and the latter at the Venice Film Festival. She will also star opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in the 2012 film adaption of ''The Great Gatsby'' playing the role of the superficial Daisy Buchanan. Other upcoming projects for her include the lead roles in an adaptation of ''My Fair Lady'' and ''On Chesil Beach'' as well as a part in the science fiction project titled, ''Outback'', developed by GK Films.

Personal life

Mulligan dated ''Money Never Sleeps'' co-star Shia LaBeouf from August 2009 to October 2010. She is now reported to be engaged to Mumford & Sons' lead singer Marcus Mumford.

She attended Catholic school, though now she considers herself simply spiritual. Her religious schooling made the already skeptical Mulligan feel that Catholicism was too strict. Mulligan took part in the Safe Project by being photographed by Nick Haddow in the places they feel the safest, for a series to be auctioned off to raise awareness of sex trafficking. She donated the Vionnet gown she wore at the 2010 BAFTAs to the Curiosity Shop, which sells its donations from celebrities and fashion associates to help raise money for Oxfam.

Filmography

+ Film and television roles
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2005		Kitty Bennet
2005		Ada Clare	15 episodes
2006	''''	Emily Pritchard	6 episodes
2006-2007		Emily Harrogate	2 episodes
2006	''Agatha Christie Marple: The Sittaford Mystery''	Violet Willett
2007	''And When Did You Last See Your Father?''	Rachel
2007		Sister Bridgid	2 episodes
2007	''Doctor Who''	Sally Sparrow
2007		Elsie Kipling
2007		Isabella Thorpe
2009		Carole
2009	''An Education''	Jenny
2009		Cassie Willis
2009	''''	Rose
2010		Kathy	British Independent Film Awards>British Independent Film Award for Best ActressPalm Springs International Film Festival	Palm Springs International Film Festival for Breakthrough Performance Award Women in Film and Television Award for Best PerformanceNominated—Saturn Award for Best ActressNominated—Detroit Film Critics Society Award for Best ActressNominated—Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress in a Leading RoleNominated—San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress
2010	''Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps''	Winnie Gekko
2011		Irene
2011		Sissy
2012	''''	Daisy Buchanan	Pre-production

+ Stage roles
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2005	''''	Daisy
2007	''''	Nina	Royal Court Theatre
2008	''''	Nina
2011	''Through a Glass Darkly''		Atlantic Theater Company

References

External links

Category:1985 births Category:BAFTA winners (people) Category:British film actors Category:British people of Irish descent Category:British radio actors Category:British stage actors Category:British television actors Category:British voice actors Category:English people of Irish descent Category:English people of Welsh descent Category:Living people Category:Actors from London Category:British expatriates in the United States Category:People educated at Woldingham School

de:Carey Mulligan es:Carey Mulligan fa:کری مولیگان fr:Carey Mulligan id:Carey Mulligan it:Carey Mulligan he:קארי מאליגן jv:Carey Mulligan hu:Carey Mulligan nl:Carey Mulligan ja:キャリー・マリガン no:Carey Mulligan pl:Carey Mulligan pt:Carey Mulligan ru:Маллиган, Кэри fi:Carey Mulligan sv:Carey Mulligan tr:Carey Mulligan uk:Кері Малліган vi:Carey Mulligan zh-yue:Carey Mulligan zh:凱莉·穆里根

influences	Billy Connolly, Lee Evans
name	Ed Byrne
birth date	April 16, 1972
birth place	Swords, Dublin, Ireland
occupation	comedian, actor
spouse	Claire Walker (2008-)
nationality	Irish }}

Ed Byrne (born 16 April 1972) is a Perrier Award-nominated, Irish stand up comedian, voice over artist and actor. He has presented television shows ''Uncut! Best Unseen Ads'' and ''Just for Laughs'', and is a regular guest on various television panel games. As an actor he played the title character in the ITV2 adaptation of the pantomime ''Aladdin''.

Career

Stand-up comedy

Byrne was nominated for the prestigious Perrier Comedy Award at the 1998 Edinburgh Festival Fringe. In 2006 he toured the UK, recording a DVD in Leeds, entitled ''Pedantic and Whimsical'', which was largely a "greatest hits" set of his material to date. He has also appeared in ''Father Ted'', and performed voice-over work in the Carphone Warehouse adverts. In February 2007 Byrne appeared on a comedians' special edition of ''The Weakest Link''. Byrne has performed six sell-out shows at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and three sell-out UK tours. He has also developed huge success on the international circuit where he has performed to capacity audiences in Canada, France, Australia, New Zealand and the United States. He has since garnered a raft of major broadcast credits, including five US appearances on ''Late Night With Conan O'Brien'' (NBC). In July 2007, Byrne made his debut at the Newbury Comedy Festival, having participated in the Cat Laughs Comedy Festival in Kilkenny shortly before. He recorded a live DVD ''Different Class'' at The King's Theatre, Glasgow, on 23 March 2009, which was released on the 23 November of that year.

Television work

One of Byrne's first TV appearances was on the ITV show Blind Date. He also appeared in ''Father Ted'' as a teenager mocking Father Ted and two other priests on a phone chat line, in the episode "A Christmassy Ted". Byrne has presented television shows ''Uncut! Best Unseen Ads'' and ''Just for Laughs'', and is a regular guest on ''The Panel'', ''HeadJam'', ''Mock the Week'' and ''Never Mind The Buzzcocks''. He has appeared on ''Have I Got News for You'', ''The Bubble'', ''The Unbelievable Truth'' and ''We Need Answers''. He has also appeared four times on ''The Graham Norton Show'' alongside Martin Sheen, Sarah Ferguson, Will Young, Robert Downey Jr, Helen Mirren and Emily Blunt. Byrne featured in a series of comedy shorts on the MSN Video Channel in which he discusses some of his pet hates, including occasional smokers and his girlfriend's snoring. Byrne appeared in the second part of the BBC2 programme ''Three Men Go to Scotland'' on 30 December 2010, hitching a ride on a yacht in order to reach the Cuillin mountains on Skye for his Munro bagging attempt - climbing every mountain in Scotland over . Ed has made an appearance on the BBC program Saturday Kitchen A feature of the show is the guest chooses two foods Heaven & Hell. Ed was lucky and was given his food heaven choice of Sticky Ribs.

Acting

In 2001 Byrne was the main character in an RTÉ-produced sitcom entitled ''The Cassidys''. It was cancelled after one series. In 2005 he starred in the movie, ''Zemanovaload''. The movie is about John Davies (played by Byrne) who suffers from multiple obsessive compulsive disorders. When his current model girlfriend leaves him, he decides to replace her with the most attractive woman on the planet, Czech model Veronika Zemanova. The film follows his attempts to curb his old obsessions in order to meet his latest obsession - Veronika. Byrne plays the part of Irish radio presenter Dylan Dale in the British feature film version of Tony Hawks' book ''Round Ireland with a Fridge'' which was released in September 2010 and on DVD on November 8, 2010. In 2010, Byrne played Rob in the BBC television pilot ''Reunited''.

Personal life

Byrne lives in Essex and studied horticulture at the University of Strathclyde.

On 15 September 2010, Byrne, along with 54 other public figures, signed an open letter published in ''The Guardian'', stating their opposition to Pope Benedict XVI's state visit to the UK.

Books

''Sit-Down Comedy'' (contributor to anthology, ed Malcolm Hardee & John Fleming) Ebury Press/Random House, 2003. ISBN 0091889243; ISBN 978-0091889241

Stand-Up DVDs

!Title	!Released	!Notes
''Pedantic and Whimsical''	21 August 2006	Live at Leeds City Varieties
''Different Class''	23 November 2009
''Crowd Pleaser''	28 November 2011	Live at Newcastle City Hall

References

External links

Official website

Chortle page, including upcoming tour dates

Ed Byrne profile on Spoonfed.co.uk

Ed Byrne live at UCL Bloomsbury, May 2008, review from suchsmallportions.com

Profile, from Comedy Laid Bare

Ed Byrne at the Edinburgh Comedy Festival 2008

Category:1972 births Category:Living people Category:Irish comedians Category:Irish stand-up comedians Category:People from Swords, Dublin Category:Alumni of the University of Strathclyde Category:Irish expatriates in the United Kingdom Category:Irish atheists

fr:Ed Byrne sv:Ed Byrne

name	David Letterman
pseudonym	Earl Hofert
birth date	April 12, 1947
birth place	Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
medium	Stand-up, talk show
nationality	American
genre	Observational comedy, surreal humor, deadpan
subject	Self-deprecation, everyday life
influences	Steve Allen, Johnny Carson, Jack Paar, Paul Dixon
influenced	Jimmy Kimmel, Jim Gaffigan, Jon Stewart, Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Fallon
website	CBS.com/latenight/lateshow
active	1974–present
domesticpartner	Regina Lasko (1986-2009)
spouse	Michelle Cook (1969–1977)Regina Lasko (2009–present)
Religion	Lutheran
notable work	Host of ''Late Night with David Letterman'' (NBC)Host of ''Late Show with David Letterman'' (CBS)
signature	David Letterman Autograph.svg

}} David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host and comedian. He hosts the late night television talk show, ''Late Show with David Letterman'', broadcast on CBS. Letterman has been a fixture on late night television since the 1982 debut of ''Late Night with David Letterman'' on NBC. Letterman recently surpassed friend and mentor Johnny Carson for having the longest late-night hosting career in the United States.

Letterman is also a television and film producer. His company Worldwide Pants produces his show as well as its network follow-up ''The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson''. Worldwide Pants has also produced several prime-time comedies, the most successful of which was ''Everybody Loves Raymond'', currently in syndication.

In 1996, David Letterman was ranked #45 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time.

Early life and career

Letterman was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. His father, Harry Joseph Letterman (April 1915 – February 1973), was a florist of British descent; his mother Dorothy Letterman (''née'' Hofert, now Dorothy Mengering), a Presbyterian church secretary of German descent, is an occasional figure on the show, usually at holidays and birthdays.

Letterman lived on the north side of Indianapolis (Broad Ripple area), not far from Speedway, IN, and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and he enjoyed collecting model cars, including racers. In 2000, he told an interviewer for ''Esquire'' that, while growing up, he admired his father's ability to tell jokes and be the life of the party. Harry Joseph Letterman survived a heart attack at age 36, when David was a young boy. The fear of losing his father was constantly with Letterman as he grew up. The elder Letterman died of a second heart attack at age 57.

Letterman attended his hometown's Broad Ripple High School at the same time as Marilyn Tucker Quayle (wife of the former Vice President) and worked as a stock boy at the local Atlas supermarket. According to the ''Ball State Daily News'', he originally had wanted to attend Indiana University, but his grades weren't good enough, so he decided to attend Ball State University, in Muncie, Indiana. He is a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity, and he graduated from what was then the Department of Radio and Television, in 1969. A self-described average student, Letterman endowed a scholarship for what he called "C students" at Ball State.

Though he registered for the draft and passed his physical after graduating from college, he was not drafted for service in Vietnam due to receiving a draft lottery number of 352 (out of 365).

Letterman began his broadcasting career as an announcer and newscaster at the college's student-run radio station—WBST—a 10-watt campus station which now is part of Indiana Public Radio. He was fired for treating classical music with irreverence.

Letterman then became involved with the founding of another campus station—WAGO-AM 570 (now WWHI, 91.3).

Letterman credits Paul Dixon—host of the ''Paul Dixon Show'', a Cincinnati-based talk show also shown in Indianapolis while Letterman was growing up—for inspiring his choice of career: :"I was just out of college [in 1969], and I really didn't know what I wanted to do. And then all of a sudden I saw him doing it [on TV]. And I thought: That's really what I want to do!"

Weatherman

Letterman began his career as a radio talk show host on WNTS (AM), and on Indianapolis television station WLWI (now called WTHR) as a local anchor and weatherman. He received some attention for his unpredictable on-air behavior, which included congratulating a tropical storm for being upgraded to a hurricane and predicting hail stones "the size of canned hams." He would also occasionally report the weather and the day's very high and low temps for fictitious cities ("Eight inches of snow in Bingree and surrounding areas.") while on another occasion saying that a state border had been erased. ("From space you can see the border between Indiana and Ohio has been erased. I'm not in favor of this.") He also starred in a local kiddie show, made wisecracks as host of a late night TV show called "Freeze-Dried Movies" (he once acted out a scene from "Godzilla" using plastic dinosaurs), and hosted a talk show that aired early on Saturday mornings called "Clover Power," in which he interviewed 4-H members about their projects.

In 1971, Letterman appeared as a pit road reporter for ABC Sports' tape-delayed coverage of the Indianapolis 500. David is initially introduced as Chris Economaki in his job as a corner reporter. He interviews Mario Andretti who has just crashed out of the race and asks him a question about traffic on the course.

Move to Los Angeles

In 1975, encouraged by his then-wife Michelle and several of his Sigma Chi fraternity brothers, Letterman moved to Los Angeles, California, with hope of becoming a comedy writer. He started off by writing material for comedian Jimmie Walker. He also began performing stand-up comedy at The Comedy Store, a proving ground for unknown comics.

Letterman appeared in the summer of 1977 on the short-lived ''Starland Vocal Band Show''. He has since joked about how fortunate he was that nobody would ever see his performance on the program (due to its low ratings).

Letterman had a stint as a cast member on Mary Tyler Moore's variety show, ''Mary''; a guest appearance on ''Mork & Mindy'' (as a parody of EST leader Werner Erhard); and appearances on game shows such as ''The $20,000 Pyramid'', ''The Gong Show'', ''Password Plus'' and ''Liar's Club''. He also hosted a 1977 pilot for a game show entitled ''The Riddlers'' that was never picked up. He was also screen tested for the lead role in ''Airplane!'', a role that eventually went to Robert Hays.

His dry, sarcastic humor caught the attention of scouts for ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'', and Letterman was soon a regular guest on the show. Letterman became a favorite of Carson's and was a regular guest host for the show beginning in 1978. Letterman credits Carson as the person who influenced his career the most.

NBC

Morning show

On June 23, 1980, Letterman was given his own morning comedy show on NBC, ''The David Letterman Show''. It was originally 90 minutes long, but was shortened to 60 minutes in August 1980. The show was a critical success, winning two Emmy Awards, but was a ratings disappointment and was canceled in October 1980.

''Late Night with David Letterman''

NBC kept Letterman under contract to try him in a different time slot. ''Late Night with David Letterman'' debuted February 1, 1982; the first guest on the first show was Bill Murray. Murray also guested on January 31, 2012 - 30 years later. The show ran Monday through Thursday at 12:30 a.m. Eastern Time, immediately following ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (a Friday night broadcast was added in June 1987. It was seen as being edgy and unpredictable, and soon developed a cult following (particularly among college students). Letterman's reputation as an acerbic interviewer was borne out in verbal sparring matches with Cher (who even called him an asshole on the show), Shirley MacLaine, Charles Grodin, and Madonna. The show also featured comedy segments and running characters, in a style heavily influenced by the 1950s and '60s programs of Steve Allen. Although Ernie Kovacs is often cited as an influence on the show, Letterman has denied this.

The show often featured quirky, genre-mocking regular features, including "Stupid Pet Tricks", dropping various objects off the roof of a five-story building, demonstrations of unorthodox clothing (such as suits made of Alka-Seltzer, Velcro and suet), a recurring Top 10 list, the Monkey-Cam (and the Audience Cam), and a facetious letter-answering segment. The Top 10 list, several "Film[s] by My Dog Bob" in which a camera was mounted on Letterman's own dog (often with comic results), Stupid Human Tricks, Small Town News, and Stupid Pet Tricks (which had its origins on Letterman's morning show) all eventually moved with Letterman to CBS.

Other memorable moments included Letterman using a bullhorn to interrupt a live interview on ''The Today Show'', announcing that he was the NBC president while not wearing any pants; interrupting Al Roker on WNBC-TV's broadcast of ''Live at Five'' by walking into their studio (which occupied the same floor of 30 Rockefeller Plaza as Letterman's studio); and staging "elevator races", complete with commentary by NBC Sports' Bob Costas. In one infamous appearance, in 1982, Andy Kaufman (who was already wearing a neck brace) appeared to be slapped and knocked to the ground by professional wrestler Jerry Lawler (though Lawler and Kaufman's friend Bob Zmuda later revealed that the event was staged.) In another memorable exchange, sex expert Dr. Ruth Westheimer included cucumbers in a list of handy sex objects that women could find at home. The following night, guest Ted Koppel asked Letterman "May I insert something here?" and Dave responded "OK, as long as it's not a cucumber."

''Late Show with David Letterman''

In 1992, Johnny Carson retired, and many fans believed that Letterman would become host of ''The Tonight Show''. When NBC instead gave the job to Jay Leno, Letterman departed NBC to host his own late-night show on CBS, opposite ''The Tonight Show'' at 11:30 p.m., called the ''Late Show with David Letterman''. The new show debuted on August 30, 1993 and was taped at the historic Ed Sullivan Theater, where Ed Sullivan taped his eponymous variety series from 1948 to 1971. For Letterman's arrival, CBS spent $8 million in renovations. In addition to that cost, CBS also signed Letterman to a lucrative three-year, $14 million/year contract, doubling his ''Late Night'' salary. The total cost for everything (renovations, negotiation right paid to NBC, signing Letterman, announcer Bill Wendell, Shaffer, the writers and the band) was over $140 million.

But while the expectation was that Letterman would retain his unique style and sense of humor with the move, ''Late Show'' was not an exact replica of his old NBC program. Recognizing the more formal mood (and wider audience) of his new time slot and studio, Letterman eschewed his trademark blazer with khaki pants and white sneakers wardrobe combination in favor of expensive shoes, tailored suits and light-colored socks. The monologue was lengthened and Paul Shaffer and the "World's Most Dangerous Band" followed Letterman to CBS, but they added a brass section and were rebranded the "CBS Orchestra" as a short monologue and a small band were mandated by Carson while Letterman occupied the 12:30 slot. Additionally, because of intellectual property disagreements, Letterman was unable to import many of his ''Late Night'' segments verbatim, but he sidestepped this problem by simply renaming them (the "Top Ten List" became the "Late Show Top Ten", "Viewer Mail" became the "CBS Mailbag", etc.)

Popularity

The main competitor of ''The Late Show'' is NBC's ''The Tonight Show'', which was hosted by Jay Leno for nearly 16 years, but from June 1, 2009, to January 22, 2010, was hosted by Conan O'Brien. In 1993 and 1994, ''The Late Show'' consistently gained higher ratings than ''Tonight''. But in 1995, ratings dipped and Leno's show consistently beat Letterman's in the ratings from the time that Hugh Grant came on Leno's show after Grant's arrest for soliciting a prostitute. ; Leno typically attracted about 5 million nightly viewers between 1999 and 2009. ''The Late Show'' lost nearly half its audience during its competition with Leno, attracting 7.1 million viewers nightly in its 1993–94 season and about 3.8 million per night as of Leno's departure in 2009. In the final months of his first stint as host of ''The Tonight Show'', Leno beat Letterman in the ratings by a 1.3 million viewer margin (5.2 million to 3.9 million), and ''Nightline'' and ''The Late Show'' were virtually tied. Once O'Brien took over ''Tonight'', however, Letterman closed the gap in the ratings. O'Brien initially drove the median age of ''Tonight Show'' viewers from 55 to 45, with most older viewers opting to watch ''The Late Show'' instead.

Following Leno's return to ''The Tonight Show'', however, Leno has regained his lead.

Letterman's shows have garnered both critical and industry praise, receiving 67 Emmy Award nominations, winning 12 times in his first 20 years in late night television. From 1993–2009, Letterman ranked higher than Leno in the annual Harris Poll of ''Nation's Favorite TV Personality'' 12 times. For example, in 2003 and 2004 Letterman ranked second in that poll, behind only Oprah Winfrey, a year that Leno was ranked fifth. Leno was higher than Letterman on that poll three times during the same period, in 1998, 2007, and 2008.

Hosting the Academy Awards

On March 27, 1995, Letterman acted as the host for the 67th Academy Awards ceremony. Critics blasted Letterman for what they deemed a poor hosting of the Oscars, noting that his irreverent style undermined the traditional importance and glamor of the event. In a joke about their unusual names (inspired by a similar joke by Woody Allen), he started off by introducing Uma Thurman to Oprah Winfrey, and then both of them to Keanu Reeves: "Oprah...Uma. Uma...Oprah," "Have you kids met Keanu?" This and many of his other jokes fell flat. Although Letterman attracted the highest ratings to the annual telecast since 1983, many felt that the bad publicity garnered by Letterman's hosting caused a decline in the ''Late Show'''s ratings.

Letterman recycled the apparent debacle into a long-running gag. On his first show after the Oscars, he joked, "Looking back, I had no idea that thing was being televised." He lampooned his stint two years later, during Billy Crystal's opening Oscar skit, which also parodied the plane-crashing scenes from that year's chief nominated film, ''The English Patient''.

For years afterward, Letterman recounted his hosting the Oscars, although the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences continued to hold Letterman in high regard and they had invited him to host the Oscars again. On September 7, 2010, he made an appearance on the premiere of the 14th season of ''The View'', and confirmed that he had been considered for hosting again.

Heart surgery hiatus

On January 14, 2000, a routine check-up revealed that an artery in Letterman's heart was severely obstructed. He was rushed to emergency surgery for a quintuple bypass.

During the initial weeks of his recovery, reruns of the ''Late Show'' were shown and introduced by friends of Letterman including Drew Barrymore, including Dr. O. Wayne Isom and physician Louis Aronne, who frequently appears on the show. In a show of emotion, Letterman was nearly in tears as he thanked the health care team with the words "These are the people who saved my life!" The episode earned an Emmy nomination. For a number of episodes, Letterman continued to crack jokes about his bypass, including saying, "Bypass surgery: it's when doctors surgically create new blood flow to your heart. A bypass is what happened to me when I didn't get ''The Tonight Show!'' It's a whole different thing." In a later running gag he lobbied his home state of Indiana to rename the freeway circling Indianapolis (I-465) "The David Letterman Bypass." He also featured a montage of faux news coverage of his bypass surgery, which included a clip of Dave's heart for sale on the Home Shopping Network. Letterman became friends with his doctors and nurses. In 2008, a ''Rolling Stone'' interview stated "he hosted a doctor and nurse who'd helped perform the emergency quintuple-bypass heart surgery that saved his life in 2000. 'These are people who were complete strangers when they opened my chest,' he says. 'And now, eight years later, they're among my best friends.' "

Additionally, Letterman invited the band Foo Fighters to play "Everlong", introducing them as "my favorite band, playing my favorite song." During a later Foo Fighters appearance, Letterman said that Foo Fighters had been in the middle of a South American tour which they canceled to come play on his comeback episode.

Letterman again handed over the reins of the show to several guest hosts (including Bill Cosby, Brad Garrett, Elvis Costello, John McEnroe, Vince Vaughn, Will Ferrell, Bonnie Hunt, Luke Wilson and bandleader Paul Shaffer) in February 2003, when he was diagnosed with a severe case of shingles. Later that year, Letterman made regular use of guest hosts—including Tom Arnold and Kelsey Grammer—for new shows broadcast on Fridays. In March 2007, Adam Sandler—who had been scheduled to be the lead guest—served as a guest host while Letterman was ill with a stomach virus.

Re-signing with CBS

In March 2002, as Letterman's contract with CBS neared expiration, ABC offered him the time slot for long-running news program ''Nightline'' with Ted Koppel. Letterman was interested as he believed he could never match Leno's ratings at CBS due to Letterman's complaint of weaker lead-ins from the network's late local news programs, but was reluctant to replace Koppel. Letterman addressed his decision to re-sign on the air, stating that he was content at CBS and that he had great respect for Koppel.

On December 4, 2006, CBS revealed that Letterman signed a new contract to host ''The Late Show with David Letterman'' through the fall of 2010. "I'm thrilled to be continuing on at CBS," said Letterman. "At my age you really don't want to have to learn a new commute." Letterman further joked about the subject by pulling up his right pants leg, revealing a tattoo, presumably temporary, of the ABC logo.

"Thirteen years ago, David Letterman put CBS late night on the map and in the process became one of the defining icons of our network," said Leslie Moonves, president and CEO of CBS Corporation. "His presence on our air is an ongoing source of pride, and the creativity and imagination that the ''Late Show'' puts forth every night is an ongoing display of the highest quality entertainment. We are truly honored that one of the most revered and talented entertainers of our time will continue to call CBS 'home.'"

According to a 2007 article in ''Forbes'' magazine, Letterman earned $40 million a year. A 2009 article in ''The New York Times'', however, said his salary was estimated at $32 million per year. In June 2009, Letterman's Worldwide Pants and CBS reached agreement to continue the ''Late Show'' until at least August 2012. The previous contract had been set to expire in 2010, and the two-year extension is shorter than the typical three-year contract period negotiated in the past. Worldwide Pants agreed to lower its fee for the show, though it had remained a "solid moneymaker for CBS" under the previous contract.

On the February 3, 2011, edition of the ''Late Show'', during an interview with Howard Stern, Letterman said he would continue to do his talk show for "maybe two years, I think."

2007–2008 writers' strike

The Late Show went off air for eight weeks during the months of November and December because of the Writers Guild of America strike. Letterman's production company—Worldwide Pants—was the first company to make an individual agreement with the WGA, thus allowing his show to come back on air on January 2, 2008. On his first episode since being off air, he surprised the viewing audience with his newly grown beard, which signified solidarity with the strike. His beard was shaved off during the show on January 7, 2008.

Letterman and Carson

In spite of Johnny Carson's clear intention to pass his title to Letterman, NBC selected Jay Leno to host ''The Tonight Show'' after Carson's departure. Letterman maintained a close relationship with Carson through his break with NBC. Three years after he left for CBS, HBO produced a made-for-television movie called ''The Late Shift'', based on a book by ''New York Times'' reporter Bill Carter, chronicling the battle between Letterman and Leno for the coveted ''Tonight Show'' hosting spot. Letterman would mock the film for months afterward, specifically on how the actor playing him, John Michael Higgins, did not resemble him in the least.

Carson later made a few cameo appearances as a guest on Letterman's show. Carson's final television appearance came May 13, 1994, on a ''Late Show'' episode taped in Los Angeles, when he made a surprise appearance during a 'Top 10 list' segment. The audience went wild as Letterman stood up and proudly invited Carson to sit at his desk. The applause was so protracted that Carson was unable to say anything, and he finally returned backstage as the applause continued (it was later explained that Carson had laryngitis, though Carson can be heard talking to Letterman during his appearance).

In early 2005, it was revealed that Carson still kept up with current events and late-night TV right up to his death that year, and that he occasionally sent jokes to Letterman, who used these jokes in his monologue; according to CBS senior vice president Peter Lassally (a onetime producer for both men), Carson got "a big kick out of it." Letterman would do a characteristic Johnny Carson golf swing after delivering one of Carson's jokes. In a tribute to Carson, all of the opening monologue jokes during the first show following Carson's death were written by Carson.

Lassally also claimed that Carson had always believed Letterman, not Leno, to be his "rightful successor." Letterman also frequently employs some of Carson's trademark bits on his show, including "Carnac the Magnificent" (with Paul Shaffer as Carnac), "Stump the Band" and the "Week in Review."

Letterman and Oprah Winfrey

On September 10, 2007, Letterman made his first appearance on ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'' at Madison Square Garden in New York City. He shared pictures of his son and live-in girlfriend. The so-called feud between Letterman and Winfrey apparently ended in 2005 when Winfrey appeared on CBS's ''Late Show with David Letterman'' on December 2, in an event Letterman jokingly referred to as "the Super Bowl of Love". Winfrey had previously appeared on Letterman's show when he was hosting NBC's ''Late Night'' on May 2, 1989.

Winfrey and Letterman also appeared together in a Late Show promo that aired during CBS's coverage of Super Bowl XLI in February 2007, with the two sitting next to each other on the couch watching the game. Since the game was played between the Indianapolis Colts and Chicago Bears, the Indianapolis-born Letterman wears a Peyton Manning jersey, while Winfrey—who tapes her show in Chicago—is in a Brian Urlacher jersey. Three years later, during CBS's coverage of Super Bowl XLIV, the two appeared again, this time with Winfrey sitting on a couch between Letterman and Jay Leno. The appearance was Letterman's idea: Leno flew to New York City in an NBC corporate jet, sneaking into the Ed Sullivan Theater during the ''Late Show'''s February 4 taping wearing a disguise, meeting Winfrey and Letterman at a living room set created in the theater's balcony where they taped their promo.

Response to Internet death threat

On August 17, 2011, it was reported that a Muslim militant had posted a death threat against Letterman on a website frequented by Al-Qaeda supporters, calling on American Muslims to kill Letterman for making a joke about the death of an Al-Qaeda leader killed in a drone strike in Pakistan in June 2011. In his show on August 22, Letterman joked about the threat, saying "State Department authorities are looking into this. They're not taking this lightly. They’re looking into it. They're questioning, they're interrogating, there's an electronic trail — but everybody knows it's Leno."

Appearances in other media

Letterman appeared in issue 239 of the Marvel comic book ''The Avengers'', in which the title characters are guests on ''Late Night''. A parody of Letterman, named "David Endochrine," is gassed to death along with his bandleader named "Paul" and their audience in Frank Miller's ''The Dark Knight Returns''.

Letterman appeared in the pilot episode of the short-lived 1986 series "Coach Toast", and he appears with a bag over his head as a guest on Bonnie Hunt's ca. 1993 sitcom ''The Building''. He also appears in The Simpsons, as himself in a couch gag when The Simpsons find themselves (and the couch) in "Late Night with David Letterman." He had a cameo in the feature film ''Cabin Boy'', with Chris Elliott, who worked as a writer on Letterman's show. In this and other appearances, Letterman is listed in the credits as "Earl Hofert", the name of Letterman's maternal grandfather. He also appeared as himself in the Howard Stern biopic Private Parts as well as the 1999 Andy Kaufman biopic ''Man on the Moon'', in a few episodes of Garry Shandling's 1990s TV series ''The Larry Sanders Show'' and in "The Abstinence", a 1996 episode of the sitcom ''Seinfeld''. Letterman also made an uncredited appearance in the first episode of the third season of the sitcom The Nanny.

Letterman provided vocals for the Warren Zevon song "Hit Somebody" from ''My Ride's Here'', and provided the voice for Butt-head's father in the 1996 animated film ''Beavis and Butt-head Do America''.

In 2010, a documentary ''Dying to Do Letterman'' was released directed by Joke Fincioen and Biagio Messina featuring Steve Mazan, a stand up comic, who has cancer and wants to appear on the Letterman Show. The film won Best Documentary and Jury Awards at the Cinequest Film Festival. Steve Mazan published a same-titled book (full title, ''Dying to Do Letterman: Turning Someday into Today'' about his own saga.

Other projects

Worldwide Pants

Letterman started his own production company—Worldwide Pants Incorporated—which produced his show and several others, including ''Everybody Loves Raymond'', ''The Late Late Show'', and several critically acclaimed, but short-lived television series for Bonnie Hunt. Worldwide Pants also produced the dramedy program ''Ed'', which aired on NBC from 2000–2004. It was Letterman's first association with NBC since he left the network in 1993. During ''Ed's'' run, the star, Tom Cavanagh, appeared as a guest on ''The Late Show'' several times.

In 2005, Worldwide Pants produced its first feature film, ''Strangers with Candy'', which was a prequel to the Comedy Central TV series of the same title. In 2007, Worldwide Pants produced the ABC comedy series, ''Knights of Prosperity''.

Worldwide Pants made significant news in December 2007 when it was announced that Letterman's company had independently negotiated its own contract with the Writers Guild of America, East, thus allowing Letterman, Craig Ferguson, and their writers to return to work, while the union continued its strike against production companies, networks and studios who had not reached an agreement.

Record company

In late April 2010, several music industry websites reported that Letterman started a record label named Clear Entertainment/C.E. Music and signed his first artist, Runner Runner. Lucy Walsh announced on her MySpace page that she has been signed by Letterman and Clear Entertainment/C.E. Music and is working on her album.

Rahal Letterman Racing

Rahal Letterman Racing (RLR) is an auto racing team that currently races in the American Le Mans Series, and part-time in the Indy Racing League. It is co-owned by 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal and Letterman himself, and is based in Hilliard, Ohio. The team won the 2004 Indianapolis 500 with driver Buddy Rice. Letterman was a pit reporter for ABC in the 1971 Indianapolis 500.

American Foundation for Courtesy and Grooming

American Foundation for Courtesy and Grooming is Letterman's private foundation. Through it, Letterman has donated millions of dollars to charities and other non-profits in Indiana and Montana, celebrity-affiliated organizations such as Paul Newman's Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, universities such as Ball State, and other organizations such as the American Cancer Society, Salvation Army, and Doctors Without Borders.

Personal life

Marriages and long-term relationships

In 1969, Letterman married Michelle Cook; the marriage ended by divorce in 1977. He also had a long-term relationship with former head writer and producer on ''Late Night'', Merrill Markoe. Markoe was the mind behind several ''Late Night'' staples, such as "Stupid Pet/Human Tricks".

Letterman has a son, Harry Joseph Letterman (born on November 3, 2003), with Regina Lasko. Harry is named after Letterman's father. In 2005, police discovered a plot to kidnap Harry Letterman and ransom him for $5 million. Kelly Frank, a house painter who had worked for Letterman, was charged in the conspiracy.

Letterman and Lasko, who had been together since 1986, wed on March 19, 2009, during a quiet courthouse civil ceremony in Choteau, Montana, where he purchased a ranch in 1999. Letterman announced the marriage during the taping of his March 23 show, shortly after congratulating Bruce Willis for getting married the previous week. Letterman told the audience he nearly missed the ceremony because his truck became stuck in mud two miles from their house. The family resides in North Salem, New York, on a estate.

Stalking incident

Beginning in May 1988, Letterman was stalked by Margaret Mary Ray, a woman suffering from schizophrenia. She once stole his Porsche, repeatedly broke into his house, and camped out on his tennis court. Her exploits drew national attention, and Letterman occasionally joked about her behavior in his show, although never mentioning her name. After she committed suicide in 1998, Letterman told the ''New York Times'' that he had had great compassion for her, and publicly expressed sympathy.

Extortion attempt and revelation of affairs

On his October 1, 2009, show, Letterman announced that he had been the victim of an extortion attempt by someone threatening to reveal that he had had sex with several of his female employees, confirming the relationships. He stated that three weeks earlier (on September 9, 2009) someone had left a package in his car with material he said he would write into a screenplay and a book if Letterman did not pay him $2 million. Letterman said that he contacted the Manhattan District Attorney's office, ultimately cooperating with them to conduct a sting operation involving giving the man a phony check. Subsequently, Robert J. "Joe" Halderman, a producer of the CBS true crime journalism series ''48 Hours'', was arrested after trying to deposit the check. He was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury and pleaded not guilty to a charge of attempted grand larceny on October 2, 2009. Eventually, on March 9, 2010, he pleaded guilty to this same felony and served a 6-month jail sentence, followed by probation and community service.

A central figure in the case and one of the women Letterman had had a sexual relationship with was his longtime personal assistant Stephanie Birkitt who often appeared with him in his show. She had also worked for ''48 Hours''. Until a month prior to the revelations she had shared a residence with Halderman, who allegedly had copied her personal diary and used it, along with private emails, in the blackmail package.

On October 3, 2009, a former CBS employee, Holly Hester, announced that she and Letterman had engaged in a year-long "secret" affair in the early 1990s while she was his intern and a student at New York University.

In the days following the initial announcement of the affairs and the arrest, several prominent women, including Kathie Lee Gifford, co-host of NBC's ''Today Show'', and NBC news anchor Ann Curry questioned whether Letterman's affairs with subordinates created an unfair working environment. A spokesman for Worldwide Pants said that the company's sexual harassment policy did not prohibit sexual relationships between managers and employees. According to business news reporter Eve Tahmincioglu, "CBS suppliers are supposed to follow the company's business conduct policies" and the CBS 2008 Business Conduct Statement states that "If a consenting romantic or sexual relationship between a supervisor and a direct or indirect subordinate should develop, CBS requires the supervisor to disclose this information to his or her Company's Human Resources Department..."

On October 5, 2009, Letterman devoted a segment of his show to a public apology to his wife and staff. Three days later, Worldwide Pants announced that Birkitt had been placed on a "paid leave of absence" from the ''Late Show''. On October 15, CBS News announced that the company's Chief Investigative Correspondent, Armen Keteyian, had been assigned to conduct an "in-depth investigation" into Halderman's blackmail of Letterman.

Awards and honors

Awards

In his capacities as either a writer, producer, performer, or as part of a writing team, Letterman is among the most nominated people in Emmy Award history with 52 nominations, winning two Daytime Emmys and five Primetime Emmys since 1981. His nomination record is second only to producer Jac Venza, who holds the record for the most Emmy nominations for an individual (57). Letterman has been nominated every year since 1984, when he first appeared on late night television as the host of ''Late Night with David Letterman.'' Additionally, he has won four American Comedy Awards. Letterman was the first recipient of the Johnny Carson Award for Comedic Excellence at The Comedy Awards in 2011.

David Letterman Communication and Media Building

On September 7, 2007, Letterman visited his alma mater, Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, for the dedication of a communications facility named in his honor for his dedication to the university throughout his career as a comedian. The $21 million, David Letterman Communication and Media Building opened for the 2007 fall semester. It features state-of-the-art recording equipment and facilities. Thousands of Ball State students, faculty, and local residents welcomed Letterman back to Indiana. Letterman's emotional speech touched on his struggles as a college student and his late father, and also included the "top ten good things about having your name on a building", finishing with, "if reasonable people can put my name on a $21 million building, anything is possible."

At the same time, Letterman also received a Sagamore of the Wabash award given by Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels, which recognizes distinguished service to the state of Indiana.

References

External links

David Letterman's Feb. 24, 1978 appearance on ''90 Minutes Live''

Official ''Late Show'' biography

1999 article on Letterman from Salon.com

Tape of Letterman announcing affairs/extortion attempt on Late Show

Category:1947 births Category:Living people Category:American entertainment industry businesspeople Category:American television talk show hosts Category:Ball State University alumni Category:Daytime Emmy Award winners Category:Emmy Award winners Category:Indianapolis, Indiana television anchors Category:IndyCar Series team owners Category:People from Indianapolis, Indiana Category:Weather presenters

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