''A-list'' is a term that alludes to major movie stars, and/or the most bankable in the Hollywood film industry.

The A-list is part of a larger guide called ''The Hot List'' that has become an industry-standard guide in Hollywood. James Ulmer has also developed a ''Hot List of directors''.

Ulmer Scale

Developed in 1997 by entertainment journalist James Ulmer, the Ulmer Scale is a 100-point rating that aims to quantify a star's value to a film production. The scale predicts value in terms of getting a movie financed and in production based solely on an actor's attachment to the project; score is based on their historical box office success, versatility, professional demeanor, and ability and willingness to travel and promote movies.

Ulmer's Top 10 list in 2009 (in order of 'bankable' value): #Will Smith #Johnny Depp #Brad Pitt #Tom Hanks #George Clooney #Will Ferrell #Reese Witherspoon #Nicolas Cage #Leonardo DiCaprio #Russell Crowe

The top 10 list in 2006 included: #Tom Hanks #Tom Cruise #Jim Carrey #George Clooney #Russell Crowe #Johnny Depp #Nicole Kidman #Jude Law #Brad Pitt #Julia Roberts

Popular usage

In popular usage outside the movie industry, an "A-list celebrity" simply refers to any person with an admired or desirable social status. In recent times, the term has given rise to any person, regardless of profession, in the limelight. Even socialites with popular press coverage have been termed as "A-list" celebrities. Similarly, less popular persons and current teen idols are referred to as "B-list." The lowest ranking on the Ulmer Scale is a "C-list." An article on Entertainment Weekly describes a C-list celebrity as "that guy (or sometimes that girl), the easy-to-remember but hard-to-name character actor."

Though the term "D-list" does not exist on the Ulmer Scale, it is often used to describe persons whose celebrity is so obscure that they are generally only known for appearances as so-called celebrities on panel game shows and reality television. The term is often exaggerated to successive letters of the alphabet, for example "Z-list", for comic effect. Kathy Griffin, a comedian who became widely known for her frequent appearances on such programs, uses the term in a tongue-in-cheek manner for her TV series ''Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List''. Some celebrities who begin their careers in this way eventually rise in fame to upper levels of the B-list or, depending on the definition, even the A-list; examples include the members of the Kardashian family and Paris Hilton.

See also

Bankable star

Celebrity

Movie star

Superstar

References

External links

Category:Cinema of the United States Category:Celebrity

Name	Neil Patrick Harris
Birth date	June 15, 1973
Birth place	Albuquerque, New Mexico, US
Years active	1988–present
Occupation	Actor, musician, director, magician
Partner	David Burtka(2004–present; 2 children) }}

Neil Patrick Harris (born June 15, 1973) is an American actor, singer, director and magician.

Prominent roles of his career include the title role in ''Doogie Howser, M.D.'', Colonel Carl Jenkins in ''Starship Troopers'', the womanizing Barney Stinson in ''How I Met Your Mother'', a fictionalized version of himself in the ''Harold & Kumar'' series, Patrick Winslow in ''The Smurfs'', and the title role in Joss Whedon's musical web series ''Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog''.

He hosted the 63rd Tony Awards on June 7, 2009, and the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards on September 20, 2009. On March 7, 2010, he made a surprise appearance at the 82nd Academy Awards, delivering the opening musical number, and on August 21, 2010 he won two Emmy Awards at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards ceremony. On December 11, 2010, Harris hosted ''Spike's'' ''Video Game Awards'', before hosting the 65th Tony Awards on June 12, 2011.

He was named as one of ''TIME'' magazine's 100 most influential people in 2010.

In June 2010, it was announced that Harris would receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2011.

Early life

Harris was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and grew up in Ruidoso, New Mexico. His parents, Sheila and Ron, ran a restaurant. He attended La Cueva High School in Albuquerque and was active in school plays and musicals there. Harris was an honors student, and graduated with honors in 1991.

Career

Harris began his career as a child actor, and was discovered by playwright Mark Medoff at a Drama Camp in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Medoff cast him in his 1988 film ''Clara's Heart'', a drama with Whoopi Goldberg based on the novel of the same name by Joseph Olshan, that won him a Golden Globe nomination. In 1988, he also starred in ''Purple People Eater'', a children's fantasy. The following year, he won the lead in ''Doogie Howser, M.D.'', for which he was again nominated for a Golden Globe. After ''Doogie Howser'''s four-season run ended in 1993, Harris played a number of guest roles on television series such as ''Murder She Wrote'', before taking his first film role as an adult in 1995 in the little-seen shocker ''Animal Room''. Since then, his film work has included supporting roles in ''The Next Best Thing'', ''Undercover Brother'', and ''Starship Troopers''. He also plays a fictionalized version of himself in the ''Harold and Kumar'' stoner comedy films (''Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle'' and ''Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay'').

From 1999 to 2000, Harris starred with Tony Shalhoub in the sitcom ''Stark Raving Mad'', which lasted 22 episodes. He has taken lead roles in a number of made-for-television features, including ''Snowbound: The Jim and Jennifer Stolpa Story'' in 1994, ''My Ántonia'' in 1995, ''The Christmas Wish'' in 1998, ''Joan of Arc'' in 1999, ''The Wedding Dress'' in 2001, and ''The Christmas Blessing'' in 2005, as well as series guest roles.

Harris has worked on Broadway in both musical and dramatic roles. He played Tobias Ragg in 2001 concert performances of ''Sweeney Todd''. In 2002, he performed on Broadway beside Anne Heche in ''Proof''. In 2003, he took the role of the Emcee in ''Cabaret,'' alongside Deborah Gibson and Tom Bosley. As a result of his critically acclaimed performance in ''Cabaret'', Harris was named the top-drawing headliner in the role of the Emcee by GuestStarCasting.com, topping fellow celeb stars John Stamos and Alan Cumming.

In 2004, he performed a dual role of the Balladeer and Lee Harvey Oswald on Broadway in the controversial musical revival of Stephen Sondheim's ''Assassins''. He also sang the role of Charles (first played by Anthony Perkins) on the Nonesuch recording of Sondheim's ''Evening Primrose''. He has also portrayed Mark Cohen in the touring company of the musical ''RENT'', a character who he mockingly reprised on the January 10, 2009, episode of ''Saturday Night Live'', which he hosted. Since fall of 2005, Harris has played Barney Stinson, a serial womanizer, in the CBS ensemble sitcom ''How I Met Your Mother''. The Stinson role earned him 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series nominations.

In 2007, Harris worked with Mike Nelson on an audio commentary for RiffTrax. The two riffed on the film ''Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory''. Harris is a big fan of the cult TV series Nelson worked on, ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' and was interviewed for a 1992 Comedy Central special hosted by Penn Jillette, who did voiceovers for Comedy Central's programming at that time, about the series and its fans, ''This Is MST3K''. In 2008, Harris took the title role in Joss Whedon's musical web series, ''Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog'', alongside Nathan Fillion and Felicia Day. The first episode of the series debuted July 15, 2008. In 2008, Harris also guest-starred on ''Sesame Street'' as the Sesame Street Fairy Shoe Person. On April 26, 2009, Harris hosted the 7th Annual TV Land Awards.

After a highly successful preview at the San Diego Comic-Con, a musical episode of ''Batman: The Brave and the Bold'', featuring Harris as the villainous Music Meister, premiered on October 23, 2009, on Cartoon Network. As a character who could make anyone do his bidding by singing, he spent most of the episode singing several original songs.

Harris starred in the movie ''Beastly'' alongside Alex Pettyfer and Vanessa Hudgens. He played a blind tutor named Will. The film was originally set for release on July 30, 2010, but was pushed back to March 4, 2011.

He also plays the lead in the upcoming indie comedy ''The Best and the Brightest'' as a carefree father who uproots his family from Delaware to move to New York City's Upper East Side.

Harris appeared as a guest judge on Season 9 of ''American Idol'' in August 2009 auditions taped in Dallas, Texas.

English stage producer Cameron Mackintosh has voiced interest in producing a Broadway revival of the musical ''Barnum'' (which originally starred Michael Crawford and Jim Dale) with Harris in the title role.

Harris provided his voice for the role of the adult Dick Grayson (Nightwing) for the animated film ''Batman: Under the Red Hood''. It was released July 27, 2010.

Harris also voiced the beagle Lou in the film ''Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore'' that was released July 30, 2010.

He directed a production of the rock musical ''Rent''. The stage production ran from August 6 – 8, 2010 at the Hollywood Bowl. Harris cast his ''Beastly'' co-star Vanessa Hudgens as Mimi.

Harris won an Emmy for his performance as Bryan Ryan in the television series ''Glee'' in the episode titled "Dream On."

On November 8, 2010, it was revealed that Harris had provided his voice to the Disney California Adventure attraction California Screamin'.

Harris performed the lead role of Bobby, in Stephen Sondheim's ''Company'' from April 7–9, 2011 with the New York Philharmonic in concert opposite Patti LuPone and others.

Harris hosted the 65th Annual Tony Awards on June 12, 2011. This was the second time he hosted the ceremony.

Harris will make his directorial debut in the upcoming movie ''Aaron and Sarah'', starring Josh Hutcherson and Emma Roberts. The movie is set to be released in 2013.

Personal life

Harris is openly gay, confirming this in November 2006 by saying "...I am happy to dispel any rumors or misconceptions and am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest and feel most fortunate to be working with wonderful people in the business I love."

Harris attended the Emmy awards in September 2007 with his partner David Burtka, later confirming the relationship, which began in 2004, in an interview on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''. On August 14, 2010, Harris announced that he and Burtka were expecting twins via a surrogate mother. Fraternal twins Gideon Scott, a boy, and Harper Grace, a girl, were born on October 12, 2010.

Following the passage of the Marriage Equality Act in New York on June 24, 2011, Harris and Burtka announced their engagement via Twitter, stating that they had proposed to each other five years ago but kept the engagement secret until same-sex marriage became legal.

Harris is a fan of magic and is a magician similar to his character on ''How I Met Your Mother''. He serves on the Board of Directors of Hollywood's Magic Castle. Harris won the Tannen's Magic Louis Award in 2006 and hosted the 2008 World Magic Awards on October 11, 2008. Additionally, Harris was the celebrity guest of honor for ''Top Chef Masters'', which took place at the Magic Castle, and included Burtka as a fellow guest. Harris also performed magic in his Emmy-winning performance on ''Glee''.

Discography

Cast recordings

Year	Album title	! Notes
2000	Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (musical)>Sweeney Todd: Live in Concert''	2000 New York Concert Cast
2001	Evening Primrose (musical)>Evening Primrose''
2004	Assassins (musical)>Assassins''
2006	''Wall to Wall: Stephen Sondheim''
2008	Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (soundtrack)>Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog''
2009	Batman: The Brave and the Bold#Soundtrack>Batman: The Brave and the Bold – Mayhem of the Music Meister''

Singles

Year

Single

Peak chart positions

Sales

Album

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"Nothing Suits Me Like a Suit"

''How I Met Your Mother'' season 5

''Glee: The Music, Volume 3 Showstoppers''

Filmography

+ Film
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
1988	''Clara's Heart''	David Hart
1988		Danny Harland	TV movie
1988		Billy Johnson
1989	''Cold Sassy Tree''	Will Tweedy/Narrator	TV movie
1989		Lonnie Tibbits	TV movie
1991	''Stranger in the Family''	Steve Thompson	TV Movie
1993	''For Our Children: The Concert''	Himself (Presenter)	TV movie
1993	''''	Brian Hannigan	TV movie
1994	''Snowbound: The Jim and Jennifer Stolpa Story''	Jim Stolpa	TV movie
1995	''''	Edward Broder	TV movie
1995	''Animal Room''	Arnold Mosk
1995	''Not Our Son''	Paul Kenneth Keller	TV movie
1995	''My Antonia''	Jimmy Burden	TV movie
1995	''Legacy of Sin: The William Coit Story''	William Coit	TV movie
1997		Carl Jenkins
1998	''''	Roger Martin
1998	''''	Will Martin	TV movie
1999		The Dauphin	TV movie
2000	''''	David
2001	''''	Travis Cleveland	TV movie
2001	''Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Concert''	Tobias Ragg	TV movie
2002	''''	Benjamin
2002	''Undercover Brother''	Lance
2004	''Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle''	Neil Patrick Harris
2005	''''	Nathan Andrews	TV movie
2008	''Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay''	Neil Patrick Harris
2008	''Beyond All Boundaries''	1st Lt. David Hettema	Voice only
2008	''Justice League: The New Frontier''	Barry Allen/The Flash	Voice only
2009		Steve	Voice only
2010	''Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore''	Lou the Beagle	Voice only
2010	''''	Jeff	Post-production
2010	''Batman: Under the Red Hood''	Dick Grayson/Nightwing	Voice only
2011	''''	Neil Patrick Harris	Filming
2011	''''	Patrick Winslow
2011		Will Fratalli
2011		Himself	Cameo

+Television
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
1989	''Hallmark Hall of Fame''	Lonnie Tibbetts	Episode: "Home Fires Burning"
1989	''B.L. Stryker''	Buder Campbell	Episode: "Blues for Buder"
1989–1993	''Doogie Howser, M.D.''	Douglas 'Doogie' Howser	97 Episodes
1991	''''	Himself as [[Bart Simpson">Young Artist Award
1991		The 'Charming' Derek Slade	Episode: "Blossom – A Rockumentary"
1991	''''	Himself as [[Bart Simpson	Episode: "Bart the Murderer"
1992	''Roseanne''	Dr. Doogie Howser	Episode: "Less Is More"
1992	''Captain Planet and the Planeteers''	Todd Andrews	Episode: "A Formula for Hate"
1993		Mike Hammond	Episode: "Return of the Evil Leaper – October 8, 1956"
1993	''Murder, She Wrote''	Tommy Remsen	Episode: "Lone Witness"
1992–1995	''Capitol Critters''	Max	13 Episodes
1996	''''	Howie Morrison	Episode: "From Within"
1997	''Homicide: Life on the Street''	Alan Schack	Episode: "Valentine's Day"
1999–2000		Henry McNeeley	22 Episodes
2000	''Will & Grace''	Bill	Episode: "Girls, Interrupted"
2001	''Static Shock''	Johnny Morrow	Voice Only Episode: "Replay"
2001	''Son of the Beach''	Loverboy	Episode: "Queefer Madness"
2001	''''	Moyo	Episode: "Tarzan and the Challenger"
2001		Joe Baxter	Episode: "Replacements"
2002	''Touched by an Angel''	Jonas	Episode: "The Princeless Bride"
2002	''Justice League''	Ray Thompson	Episode: "Legends: Part 1" Episode: "Legends: Part 2"
2003		Peter Corman	Episode: "Monster's Brawl"
2003	''Spider-Man: The New Animated Series''	Peter Parker / Spider-Man	13 Episodes
2004	''Law & Order: Criminal Intent''	John Tagman	Episode: "Want"
2005	''Numb3rs''	Ethan Burdick	Episode: "Prime Suspect"
2005	''Jack & Bobby''	Prof. Preston Phelps	Episode: "Querida Grace"
2005–present	''How I Met Your Mother''	Barney Stinson	Main RoleNominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – TV Series (2009–2010)Nominated—People's Choice Award for Favorite Scene Stealing Star (2008)Nominated—Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (2007–2010)Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – TV Series (2009)Nominated—Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Actor: Comedy (2007–2008)Nominated—Television Critics Association Award for Achievement in Comedy (2009)
2006	''Me, Eloise''	Unknown	Voice only Episode: "Eloise Goes to School"
2007–2009	''Family Guy''	Barney Stinson	Episode: "No Chris Left Behind" Episode: "Peter's Progress"
2008	''Sesame Street''	The Fairy Shoeperson	Episode: "Telly's New Shoes"
2008	''Anytime with Bob Kushell''	Himself	Guest star
2008	''Million Dollar Password''	Himself	Guest Star
2009	''Batman: The Brave and the Bold''	The Music Meister	Episode: "Mayhem of the Music Meister!"
2009	''Robot Chicken''	Various	Episode: "President Hu Forbids It" Episode: "The Ramblings of Maurice"
2009	''Carrie Underwood: An All-Star Holiday Special''	Ace	Voice only
2009	''Yes Virginia''	Dr. Philip O'Hanlon	Voice only
2010		Bryan Ryan	Episode: "Dream On (Glee)"Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
2010	''''	Dr. Blowhole
2011	''Adventure Time with Finn and Jake''	Prince Gumball	Episode: "Adventure Time with Fionna and Cake"

+ Theater
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
1997		Mark Cohen	2nd National Tour-LA, San Diego
1998	''Romeo and Juliet''	Romeo Montague	Old Globe Theatre, San Diego
2001		Tobias Ragg	San Francisco Symphony Orchestra concert version
2002		Hal	Broadway
2003		Emcee	Broadway
2004	''''	Young Anton/Burt Sarris
2004		Lee Harvey Oswald/The Balladeer	Broadway
2005	''Tick, Tick... BOOM!''	Jon	Menier Chocolate Factory, London
2006	''All My Sons''	Chris Keller	Geffen Playhouse, Los Angeles
2006	''Amadeus''	Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart	Hollywood Bowl
2010			Director
2011		Robert	New York Philharmonic Concert Version

+ Web television
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2008	''Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog''	Dr. Horrible (Billy)
2008	''Prop 8: The Musical''	A Very Smart Fellow

+ Video games
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2008	''Saints Row 2''	Veteran Child	voice over
2009	''Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard''	Wallace "Wally" Wellesley	voice over
2010	''Rock of the Dead''	Unnamed character	voice over
2010	''Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions''	Peter Parker / Amazing Spider-Man	voice over

+ Theme parks
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2010–present	''California Screamin'''	Victorian Carnival Character	safety spiels and launch countdown

Awards

+ List of awards and nominations
! Year	! Award	! Category	! Result	! Title
1989	Young Artist Award	Best Young Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama	Nominated	''Clara's Heart''
1989	Golden Globe Award	Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture	Nominated	''Clara's Heart''
1990	Young Artist Awards	Best Young Actor Starring in a Television Series	Won	''Doogie Howser, M.D.''
1991	Young Artist Awards	Best Young Actor Starring in a Television Series	Won	''Doogie Howser, M.D.''
1992	Young Artist Awards	Best Young Actor Starring in a Television Series	Won	''Doogie Howser, M.D.''
1992	Golden Globe Award	Best Performance by an Actor in a TV-Series – Comedy/Musical	Nominated	''Doogie Howser, M.D.''
2007	Teen Choice Awards	Choice TV Actor: Comedy	Nominated	''How I Met Your Mother''
2007	Emmy Award	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series	Nominated	''How I Met Your Mother''
2008		Favorite Scene Stealing Star	Nominated	''How I Met Your Mother''
2008	Emmy Award	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series	Nominated	''How I Met Your Mother''
2009	Golden Globe Award	Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television	Nominated	''How I Met Your Mother''
2009	Emmy Award	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series	Nominated	''How I Met Your Mother''
2009	Bravo A-List Awards	A-List Male Actor	Won
2009	Streamy Awards	Best Male Actor in a Comedy Web Series	Won	''Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog''
2010	Golden Globe Award	Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television	Nominated	''How I Met Your Mother''
2009–2010	Golden Icon Award	Best Performance by an Actor in a Comedy Television Series	Won	''How I Met Your Mother''
2010	Emmy Award	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series	Nominated	''How I Met Your Mother''
2010	Emmy Award	Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series	Won
2010	Emmy Award	Outstanding Special Class Program	Won
2010	Spike Video Game Awards	Best Performance by a Human Male	Won	''Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions''
2011	People's Choice Awards	Favourite TV Comedy Actor	Won	''How I Met Your Mother''

References

External links

Neil Patrick Harris at Internet Off-Broadway Database

}}

Category:1973 births Category:Living people Category:Actors from New Mexico Category:American child actors Category:American film actors Category:American magicians Category:American musical theatre actors Category:American television actors Category:American voice actors Category:Emmy Award winners Category:Gay actors Category:La Cueva High School alumni Category:LGBT people from the United States Category:LGBT television personalities Category:LGBT parents Category:People from Albuquerque, New Mexico Category:People from Lincoln County, New Mexico

ca:Neil Patrick Harris cs:Neil Patrick Harris da:Neil Patrick Harris de:Neil Patrick Harris et:Neil Patrick Harris es:Neil Patrick Harris fa:نیل پاتریک هریس fr:Neil Patrick Harris gl:Neil Patrick Harris ko:닐 패트릭 해리스 hr:Neil Patrick Harris is:Neil Patrick Harris it:Neil Patrick Harris he:ניל פטריק האריס hu:Neil Patrick Harris nl:Neil Patrick Harris ja:ニール・パトリック・ハリス no:Neil Patrick Harris nn:Neil Patrick Harris uz:Neil Patrick Harris pl:Neil Patrick Harris pt:Neil Patrick Harris ru:Харрис, Нил Патрик simple:Neil Patrick Harris fi:Neil Patrick Harris sv:Neil Patrick Harris tr:Neil Patrick Harris uk:Ніл Патрік Харріс zh:尼爾·柏德烈·夏里斯

Patrick Burnet Harris is a retired Church of England bishop who served in two episcopal positions.

He was born on 30 September 1934 and educated at St Albans School and Keble College, Oxford. He was ordained in 1961 and his first post was as a curate at St Ebbes' Oxford after which he became a missionary in South America. He became the Archdeacon of Salta in 1969 before being ordained to the episcopate four years later as Bishop of Northern Argentina. After seven years he returned to England as firstly as Rector of Kirkheaton and then Secretary of the Partnership for World Mission where he remained until 1988 when he was appointed Bishop of Southwell, a post he held for 11 years. In retirement he continues to serve as an assistant bishop in the Diocese of Gloucester.

References

Category:1934 births Category:People educated at St Albans School, Hertfordshire Category:Alumni of Keble College, Oxford Category:Anglican priests Category:Anglican archdeacons in South America Category:20th-century Anglican bishops Category:Bishops of Northern Argentina Category:Bishops of Southwell Category:Living people