name	Lifetime
logofile	Lifetime logo.svg
logosize	190px
slogan	Connect. Play. Share.
launch	February 1, 1984
picture format	480i (SDTV)1080i (HDTV)
owner	A&E; Television Networks(Hearst Corporation (42.5%)Disney-ABC Television Group (42.5%) NBCUniversal (15%))
headquarters	New York City
country	United States
broadcast area	United States
sister names	Lifetime Movie NetworkLifetime Real WomenA&E; NetworkThe Biography ChannelHistoryHistory International
former names	Daytime (1982-1984)Cable Health Network (1982-1984)
web	http://www.mylifetime.com
adsl serv 1	Verizon FiOS
adsl chan 1	Channel 140 (SD) Channel 640 (HD)
adsl serv 2	AT&T; U-verse
adsl chan 2	Channel 360 (SD) Channel 1360 (HD)
sat serv 1	DirecTV
sat chan 1	Channel 252 (SD/HD)
sat serv 2	Dish Network
sat chan 2	Channel 108 (SD/HD)
cable serv 1	Available on most cable systems
cable chan 1	Check local listings

Lifetime Television, often referred to as Lifetime TV, or most commonly, Lifetime, is an American cable television specialty channel devoted to movies, sitcoms and dramas, all of which are either geared toward women or feature women in lead roles. The cable network is owned by A&E; Television Networks. Lifetime's main competitors as "women's channels" are the Oxygen and WE tv, although both of those services have substantially lower ratings than the spin-off Lifetime Movie Network, much less than Lifetime itself.

History

Lifetime was established as the result of a merger of Hearst's Daytime network, established in March 1982 as a four hour per day service with women's programming and Viacom's Cable Health Network, established in June 1982 as a 24-hour service that carried health and wellness programming.

The service originally aired women's daytime programming Monday through Saturdays, and offered the Lifetime Medical Television service on Sundays from November 1983 to June 1993 carrying programming for health professionals. Lifetime was a property of Lifetime Entertainment Services, which owned a number of media ventures. Viacom remained as co-owner with ABC/Capital Cities and Hearst until 1994.

In April 2004, Lifetime launched ''Lifetime Radio for Women'', a daily nationally syndicated four-hour morning block mixing adult contemporary music, live caller interaction, celebrity guests and lively discussions about the topics relating to women. In partnership with Jones Radio Networks, the service airs Monday to Friday from 5 to 9 AM or 6 to 10 AM, depending on the market.

Around 2005, Lifetime dropped its signature tagline ''Television for Women'' (used since 1995). The cable network launched a new look and tagline on July 16, 2006 with the launch of the (now-defunct) original series ''Angela's Eyes'', using a new logo and promotions with the tagline ''My story is on Lifetime''. In 2008 a brand new logo appeared with a brand new tagline: ''Connect. Play. Share.''

On March 31, 2005, Betty Cohen, previously an executive at Turner Broadcasting Services, was named CEO of Lifetime Entertainment Services according to the Walt Disney Company.

On August 27, 2009, A&E; Television Networks, the owner of A&E; Network, History and others, acquired Lifetime Entertainment Services. Though the channel is owned by another subsidiary company operated as a joint venture, Lifetime and its cable networks remain under the co-ownership of The Walt Disney Company and Hearst Corporation, though NBC Universal became partial owner of the Lifetime channels as well since NBCU already was a part owner of A&E; Television Networks.

Nancy Dubuc became Lifetime's president and general manager in April 2010.

Programming

Among the most popular shows currently on the channel are ''Will & Grace'', ''Desperate Housewives'', ''How I Met Your Mother'', ''The New Adventures of Old Christine'', ''Reba'', ''Project Runway'' and ''Grey's Anatomy''. The cable network also airs original television programming such as ''Army Wives'' and ''Drop Dead Diva''.

In addition, Lifetime airs many movies targeted to women — original and other networks' made for television films and some feature films, both on the main network (and largely airing on weekends) and on Lifetime Movie Network (launched in 1998).

Aside from women's programming, the network used to air several game shows in prime time, including ''Supermarket Sweep'', ''Shop 'Til You Drop'' and ''Debt''. Lifetime also produced one original game show (''Who Knows You Best?'', starring Gina St. John), with a format based on ''The Newlywed Game''. It was canceled after one season.

In popular culture

Because of the obvious feminine slant to the network's programming, Lifetime is often jokingly referred to as ''The Estrogen Channel'', or "Wifetime" and many criticize the network's over-reliance on formulaic made for TV movies, including the "women in jeopardy" or "woman scorned" theme common on films produced by the network, archived product which aired on the major networks in the 1980s and 1990s, and outside producers airing their work on the network. Other comedy programs have satirized Lifetime's sometimes sentimental programming. ''Family Guy'' once parodied their slogan, making it ''Lifetime: Television for Idiots'', and in another episode showed one of the main characters watching a Lifetime-like film which oversimplified those themes starring Valerie Bertinelli called ''Men are Terrible and Will Hurt You Because This is Lifetime''.

Network slogans

''Television for Women'' (1995–2006)

''My story is on Lifetime'' (2006–2008)

''Connect. Play. Share.'' (2008–present)

References

External links

Category:American television networks Category:Television channels and stations established in 1984 Category:Joint ventures Category:Women's interest channels

fr:Lifetime Entertainment it:Lifetime (rete televisiva) ru:Lifetime

Name	Katharine McPhee
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Katharine Hope McPhee
Birth date	March 25, 1984
Origin	Los Angeles
Years active	2006–present
Occupation	Singer, actress, model, song-writer
Genre	Pop, R&B;
Label	RCA (2006–08)Verve Forecast (2009–11)Columbia (2011–present)
Associated acts	Andrea Bocelli, David Foster
Website	www.katharinemcphee.com }}

Katharine Hope McPhee (born March 25, 1984) is an American pop singer, songwriter, actress, model, and television personality. She gained fame as a contestant on the fifth season of the Fox reality show ''American Idol'' in 2006, eventually finishing as the runner-up.

Her self-titled debut album was released on RCA Records on January 30, 2007 and debuted at #2 on the ''Billboard'' 200; it has sold 381,000 copies to date. The album's first single, "Over It", was a Pop Top 30 hit and was certified gold in 2008.

Her second album, ''Unbroken'', was released on Verve Forecast Records on January 5, 2010 and debuted at #27 on the ''Billboard'' 200. The album featured the single "Had It All", which peaked at #22 on the Billboard AC chart. It has sold 45,000 copies to date. Her third album, the holiday-themed ''Christmas Is the Time to Say I Love You'', was released on October 12, 2010. The album debuted at #11 on the ''Billboard'' Top Holiday Albums chart while the single "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" peaked at #16 on the Billboard AC chart. The album has sold 23,000 copies to date.

McPhee has also established an acting career, for example co-starring in ''The House Bunny'' in 2008 as the hippie sorority sister Harmony, and co-starring in the upcoming NBC series ''Smash''.

Early life

Born in Los Angeles, California, McPhee moved with her family to Sherman Oaks at age 12. McPhee has been singing since the age of two. Her mother, Patricia Burch McPhee (stage name Peisha Arten), a vocal coach and accomplished cabaret singer, recognized her daughter's musical talent and decided to train her. Her father, Daniel McPhee, is a television producer. McPhee has an older sister, Adriana. McPhee is of Irish, Scottish, and German descent. McPhee attended Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, where she performed in school plays and musicals. She graduated in 2002. She attended Boston Conservatory for three semesters, majoring in musical theater. She left college on the advice of her manager and returned to Los Angeles to try out for television pilots.

McPhee has struggled with eating disorders in the past. She told ''People'' magazine that at age 13 she began starving herself and exercising compulsively, and she became bulimic at age 17. McPhee gained weight in college due to her binging. After seven years of illness, she finally entered a three-month rehabilitation program after successfully passing her ''American Idol'' audition; her rehab stint ended just before the ''Idol'' semifinals started in February 2006. During her run on ''American Idol'', she lost due to eating better as part of her treatment. Now, as she told ''Teen Vogue'' in May 2007, "I eat whatever I crave—I'm just really careful about portions." McPhee and her sister appeared on debut of ''The Dr. Keith Ablow Show'' on September 18, 2006, to discuss her struggles with bulimia and her childhood fear of her father. On the show, McPhee stated that she was misdiagnosed with a learning disability during her middle school years but was finally correctly diagnosed with a vision problem that caused her to have trouble reading in class. McPhee claimed she was known as the "pretty, but stupid" girl in school because she had trouble reading.

''American Idol''

McPhee was persuaded by now-husband Nick Cokas and her parents to try out for the television series competition, ''American Idol''. She auditioned in San Francisco and sang "God Bless the Child", originally performed by Billie Holiday.

After the first round of Hollywood week, she sang "I'll Never Love This Way Again" by Dionne Warwick which earned favorable comments from the judges. During the second round, she performed in a group, singing "I Can't Help Myself" by The Four Tops, forgetting the words, but the judges decided to advance the entire group. During the third round, she sang a capella of "My Funny Valentine" and advanced to the top 40. She was mad when fellow group member Crystal Stark didn't make the top 24. When she was told that she would be advancing, she kissed all three judges on the lips.

McPhee's run on ''American Idol'' led to the use of the term "McPheever". The inclusion of producer David Foster and singer Andrea Bocelli as guest mentors for Top 6 Week turned out to be a fortuitous introduction for McPhee, as she has worked on various music projects with both men post-''Idol''.

In May 2006, McPhee visited her alma mater Notre Dame High School for her hometown celebration. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa visited the school and proclaimed the day Katharine McPhee Day.

Performances and results (during voting weeks)

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Music career

2006: Post–''Idol''

On June 6, 2006, Sony BMG and 19 Entertainment announced that McPhee had signed to ''American Idol'' series creator Simon Fuller's 19 Recordings Limited and Sony BMG's RCA Records.

McPhee performed at the ''J.C. Penney Jam: Concert for America's Kids'' in June 2006, soloing with "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and performing a duet with Andrea Bocelli on "Somos Novios". The concert was telecast on CBS August 22, 2006 and J.C. Penney sold an exclusive CD/DVD of the concert.

McPhee's ''Idol'' single, "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/My Destiny" was released on June 27, 2006 by RCA Records. "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and "My Destiny" peaked at #60. 32 weeks after its release, ''Somewhere Over the Rainbow/My Destiny'' had climbed to #4 on the Billboard Hot Singles Sales charts. It was the second highest best-selling single of 2006 after Taylor Hicks' "Do I Make You Proud". "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/My Destiny" remained on the chart for more than 58 weeks.

In July, McPhee missed the first three weeks of the American Idol Tour due to laryngitis and bronchitis. She joined the tour beginning with the July 28 show in Washington, D.C., singing only two songs "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" instead of the usual 4 on doctor's orders to conserve her voice. At the August 1 concert in Charlotte, North Carolina, McPhee suffered a hairline fracture of her foot when she tripped backstage and was fitted with a walking boot cast. Once she recovered from the foot injury, she added "Think" to her concert set.

McPhee recorded a duet with Andrea Bocelli on "Can't Help Falling In Love" for his ''Under the Desert Sky'' album, which was released as a CD/DVD package on November 7, 2006.

2007–2008: ''Katharine McPhee''

McPhee's self-titled debut album, ''Katharine McPhee'' was released on January 30, 2007 and sold 116,000 copies its first week, debuting at #2 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart.

The first single from the album was "Over It", which was officially released on the same day as the album and peaked at #29 on the Billboard Hot 100. The second single, "Love Story", was released on May 22, 2007, but failed to crack the Billboard Hot 100.

During the 2007 Christmas holiday season, McPhee released a Christmas single "O Come All Ye Faithful".

On January 11, 2008, it was reported by Billboard.com that McPhee had been released from her contract with RCA Records, through speculation that the label was dissatisfied with lack of overall sales of her debut album. A spokesperson for the label stated, "She is going to record her next album on her own."

McPhee appeared on Idol judge Randy Jackson's album ''Randy Jackson's Music Club, Vol. 1'', which was released on March 11, 2008. McPhee recorded a duet of "Real Love" with fellow ''American Idol 5'' contestant Elliott Yamin. "Real Love" was released as a second single due to the high popularity of the song on Itunes.

On March 12, 2008, McPhee returned to the ''American Idol'' stage during the Top 12 results night of the seventh season of the competition. She performed the Beatles song "Something", with producer David Foster, on piano. After the performance, Foster indicated that he and McPhee were collaborating on her second studio album (though it ended up that he was not part of the finished product).

McPhee took part in the David Foster tribute concert ''Hit Man: David Foster & Friends'', which was filmed by PBS, in May 2008. She soloed on "Somewhere" and performed a duet of "The Prayer" with Andrea Bocelli. A CD/DVD of the concert was released in November 2008. The show was shown several times on PBS starting in December 2008 under their "Great Performances" title.

David Foster recorded a new song entitled, "I Will Be There With You" for Japan Airlines (JAL), with McPhee on vocals. Starting about June 2008, it was used to promote the introduction of new aircraft to JAL's US flights.

On July 16, 2008, McPhee released a cover of the song "I Know What Boys Like", featuring the other cast members of the movie ''The House Bunny''.

McPhee recorded a cover of the song "Connected", an English version of the Mexican group RBD's song Tenerte y Quererte from their 2004 album Rebelde, for the Mattel movie ''Barbie and the Diamond Castle''. McPhee's version of the song was produced by Room For Two and a music video was also recorded to be featured on the movie's DVD. The video and song are available on the movie's website. The soundtrack CD and movie DVD and Blu-ray were released for sale in September 2008.

McPhee took part in the concert ''Chris Botti: Live In Boston'', which was filmed by PBS, in September 2008. She sang "I've Got You Under My Skin" accompanied by Chris Botti on trumpet. The concert was shown several times on PBS starting in January 2009. The CD/DVD and Blu-ray were released March 31, 2009.

McPhee recorded the song "Let Your Heart Sing" for the soundtrack CD of the Disney movie ''Tinker Bell''. The movie DVD and the soundtrack CD were released in October 2008.

2009–2010: ''Unbroken''

It was announced on January 27, 2009 that McPhee signed a new record deal with Verve Forecast Records (part of the Verve Music Group under Universal Music Group). "The album she is working on will show many new sides to her talents as an interpreter and a songwriter, and show everyone just how special she is," Verve Music Group president/CEO Bruce Resnikoff says.

For her second effort, titled ''Unbroken'', McPhee worked with producer John Alagia. The BMI song repertoire indicates that she worked with a large range of writers including Richard Marx, Troy Verges, Alex James, and Barry Dean.

The first single from the album, "Had It All" was released to McPhee's myspace page and made available for purchase on iTunes on August 25, 2009. The single was released to AC and Hot AC radio on September 21. The official music video for the song premiered on Vevo on October 13, 2009. The song is also a track on the ''Now That's What I Call Music, Vol 32'' compilation CD that was released November 3, 2009.

A Christmas single "I'll Be Home for Christmas" was released November 17, 2009 for purchase on iTunes and to AC radio.

''Unbroken'' was released January 5, 2010 and debuted at #27 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, selling 15,000 copies its first week.

McPhee took part in the United Negro College Fund's "An Evening of Stars" concert that was a tribute to singer/songwriter Lionel Richie. McPhee sang ''You Are''. The concert was filmed September 12, 2009 and broadcast nationwide in syndication and on BET the weekend of January 23–24, 2010. A 2-disc DVD of the concert is available through a donation to the United Negro College Fund.

On February 1, 2010, McPhee joined over 75 other musicians for a remake of "We Are the World", retitled "We Are the World 25 for Haiti", which marked the 25th anniversary of the iconic song and for which proceeds will go to Haitian earthquake relief. McPhee was part of the group chorus.

During the week of February 8, 2010, in the pre-taped Hollywood Week portion of Season 9 of American Idol, contestant Didi Benami was shown singing "Terrified", a song on the ''Unbroken'' album and written by Idol judge Kara DioGuardi. As a result of the exposure on Idol, digital downloads of the song (the album version featuring Jason Reeves) rose nearly 10,000% from the week before, selling about 20,000 copies for the week, for a total of 22,000 sold at that point.

On May 4, 2010, a new version of the ''Unbroken'' song "Terrified" featuring actor Zachary Levi (the original album version featured singer Jason Reeves) premiered on ''Entertainment Weekly'''s website and was made available for purchase on iTunes. The accompanying music video premiered on May 7, 2010 on the music video website Vevo.

On May 5, 2010, a Billboard list of the most successful American Idol contestants, based on album and single sales and radio play, ranked McPhee at number 16, ahead of fellow runners-up Bo Bice, Blake Lewis, Diana DeGarmo, and Justin Guarini, as well as season 5 champion Taylor Hicks, but behind fellow season 5 contestants Elliott Yamin, Kellie Pickler, and Chris Daughtry.

A music video for the song "Say Goodbye" from Unbroken was released on Vevo on October 4, 2010.

2010–present: ''Christmas Is the Time to Say I Love You'', New deal with Columbia Records

McPhee released a Christmas album titled ''Christmas Is the Time to Say I Love You'' on October 12, 2010. The album debuted at #11 on the ''Billboard'' Top Holiday Albums chart and sold 1,000 copies in its first week.

Country singer Chelsea Field's song "Love's Never Leavin'", a song that McPhee cowrote with singer-songwriter Richard Marx and producer Trey Bruce, was made available for purchase on iTunes on November 9, 2010, with 100% of the proceeds to benefit the Tammany Humane Society in Covington, LA.

One of the Christmas album's songs "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" was released to radio in November 2010 and peaked at #16 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary Chart.

A music video for the song "It's Not Christmas Without You" from McPhee's Christmas album was premiered on Vevo on December 10, 2010.

On June 9, 2011, it was announced that McPhee had signed a new record deal with Columbia Records (part of the Columbia/Epic Label Group under Sony Music Entertainment), in conjunction with Columbia teaming with NBC to distribute the music for NBC's TV series ''Smash''.

In July 2011, Forbes reported that McPhee was #10 on their list of the 10 Top-Earning American Idols (she was tied with David Archuleta and David Cook), earning $1 million (pre-tax estimates before subtracting manager and agent fees) for music and acting endeavors for the period May 2010 to May 2011.

Acting career

2005–2008: Small roles, guest roles, and ''The House Bunny''

McPhee was cast (during the time she had dropped out of college and was auditioning in Los Angeles) in a mall-based MTV soap opera pilot, ''You Are Here'', playing the older sister of a more popular younger sister. MTV never aired the pilot and did not pick up the series.

McPhee had a small role as Paramount Girl in the 2007 musical film ''Crazy'', based on the life of Hank Garland. McPhee filmed the role in early 2005, before she auditioned for ''American Idol''.

In early 2007, McPhee guest-starred in the web series, ''lonelygirl15'' as an unnamed character in the episode "Truth Or Dare".

McPhee made a cameo appearance as herself on the ABC show ''Ugly Betty'' in the episode "I'm Coming Out". The episode was broadcast Feb 1, 2007.

McPhee made her studio acting debut in the comedy ''The House Bunny'' (working title ''I Know What Boys Like''), co-starring as one of the few members of a misfit sorority. The movie starred Anna Faris as a Playboy Bunny who took the girls under her wing. It was directed by Fred Wolf for Columbia Pictures and produced by Adam Sandler's Happy Madison Productions. The film was released in August 2008 and also co-starred Emma Stone and Rumer Willis.

2009–2010: Guest roles and ''The Pink House'' TV pilot

McPhee guest starred on the CBS show ''CSI: NY'' in the episode "Prey" as a singer and stalker victim who murdered her stalker. The episode was broadcast April 8, 2009.

McPhee joined forces with fellow actresses Alyson Hannigan, Jaime King, Minka Kelly and Emily Deschanel in a video slumber party made available in October 2009 and featured on FunnyorDie.com and other Internet platforms in a comedic take to promote regular breast cancer screenings for the organization Stand Up To Cancer.

McPhee guest starred on the NBC comedy ''Community'' in the episode "Basic Genealogy" as Chevy Chase's character's ex-stepdaughter and potential love interest for Joel McHale's character. The episode was broadcast March 11, 2010.

McPhee made a TV pilot for a new comedy series for NBC called ''The Pink House''. McPhee played Emily, a down-to-earth Midwestern girl new to Manhattan Beach, Los Angeles. The pilot was shot as a possible pickup for the Fall 2010 season and was produced by Conan O'Brien's production company, with O'Brien as executive producer. Shooting took place April 9, 2010. The pilot was not picked up by NBC.

In May 2010 McPhee was featured on MTV's new show ''When I Was 17'' (the episode premiered on May 22 and was repeated throughout the week). The show is a documentary about how life has changed since people were seventeen. Jonas Brother Kevin Jonas and Poison vocalist Bret Michaels were also featured on the episode.

2011–present: ''Smash'' and movie roles

On July 31, 2010, McPhee tweeted to her fans that she had been in upstate New York working on the feature film ''Peace, Love, and Misunderstanding'' which stars Jane Fonda. At this time, there are no details on what role she's playing (though it's likely a small one since she's not currently listed on the cast list on IMDB). McPhee appears to have completed filming her part after about a week according to a follow-up tweet, though filming continued through the end of August. The movie is set to come out in 2011.

McPhee will co-star in director David Ellis' shark thriller indie film ''Shark Night 3D'', which filmed in Shreveport, Louisiana for about eight weeks from early September to the end of October 2010. The movie is about a group of college friends who spend a weekend at a lake house, only to find dangerous sharks lurking beneath the surface. The film stars Sara Paxton. The budget is $28 million, and it is scheduled to be released September 2, 2011.

In 2009, McPhee was cast in a lead role in the independent romantic-comedy ''You May Not Kiss the Bride''. The budget was set at $6 million. The movie filmed for 5 weeks in March and April 2009 in Oahu, Hawaii. McPhee played the role of Masha, alongside Dave Annable. The film debuted at the 14th Annual Sonoma International Film Festival that was held April 6–10, 2011 The film is set to debut September 2, 2011 in one theater in Hawaii in a very limited initial US release and then open overseas in Russia, Romania, Hungary, Canada, and Latin America.

On April 28, 2011, McPhee tweeted that she had just recorded a voiceover for an episode of the Fox animated series ''Family Guy'', playing the voice of Mother Maggie. No word yet on when the episode airs.

It was announced on February 13, 2011 that McPhee had landed a co-starring role in the NBC TV pilot ''Smash'', also starring Debra Messing, Megan Hilty, Anjelica Houston, Christian Borle, and Brian d'Arcy James. On May 11, 2011, it was reported that NBC had picked up ''Smash'' as a series. The series, set as a musical drama, follows a group of characters who come together to put on a Broadway musical inspired by Marilyn Monroe. Steven Spielberg will be an executive producer. The idea was originally developed at Showtime by NBC Entertainment president Robert Greenblatt. NBC will debut the series mid-season of the 2011–12 television season. The show will make its series premiere on February 6, 2012.

Other ventures

Theater

In March 2005, McPhee starred as Annie Oakley in a Los Angeles-based production of the musical ''Annie Get Your Gun''. McPhee was nominated for an L.A. Stage Ovation Award in the category of "Lead Actress in a Musical".

On February 22, 2010, McPhee appeared in the production of ''110 Stories'', directed by Mark Freiburger at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles. She co-starred alongside Ed Asner, Diane Venora, Gail O'Grady, John Hawkes, Malcolm-Jamal Warner and many others. The play was a benefit to help the victims of the recent Haiti earthquake. Proceeds went to the Red Cross of Greater Los Angeles.

Major product endorsements

McPhee signed a two-year endorsement deal in 2006 with Sexy Hair Concepts to become their first celebrity spokesperson for their hair-care product line.

In 2008, McPhee signed a two-year endorsement deal with Neutrogena to become the new spokesperson for their anti-acne skin-care product line. In March 2008, she filmed her first commercial, which began airing on television in May 2008 and on Neutrogena's skinid.com website.

Beauty lists

In mid-2007, McPhee was named one of the year's 100 Most Beautiful People by ''People''; she was photographed without wearing make-up. She was also voted #2 on FHM's 100 Sexiest Women in The World of 2007 and #47 on ''Maxim's'' Hot 100 Women of 2007. At the end of 2007, AOL readers placed her as the Number 1 Sexiest ''American Idol'' contestant ever. In 2008 she was voted #38 on FHM’s 100 Sexiest Women in The World and #43 on AskMen.com’s Top 99. In 2009 she was voted number #64 on AskMen.com’s Top 99.

Personal life

On February 2, 2008, the then 23-year-old McPhee married 42-year-old Nick Cokas at Beverly Hills Presbyterian Church.

Philanthropy

In 2006, McPhee founded a charity called McPhee Outreach. The purpose of the charity is to team up with other foundations or organizations and help in any way possible.

The foundation teamed up with The Lollipop Theater Network to provide music outreach (called "Rhythm of Hope") to sick children in Southern California hospitals.

McPhee Outreach teamed up with Global Compassion Services to build a preschool in the poor West African nation of Burkina Faso to help combat that nation's high illiteracy rate.

McPhee is currently a member of the Entertainment Council of the US hunger-relief charity Feeding America (formerly known as America's Second Harvest). Members, who are from various areas of the entertainment world, actively mobilize the public in support of Feeding America via media relations opportunities.

McPhee appeared on the Jan 19, 2010 episode of the NBC reality show The Biggest Loser (its ninth season) in the show's Pound for Pound Challenge segment (an initiative to challenge viewers to get healthy while helping to fight hunger in their own communities). McPhee was shown volunteering at a Los Angeles food bank and meeting with children at a Boys and Girls Club and talking about the importance of helping to fight hunger in America. She was also shown singing part of her song Lifetime from her album Unbroken.

In the summer of 2010, McPhee partnered with Feeding America and ConAgra Foods Foundation to help launch the Hunger-Free Summer Initiative, which aimed to help children at risk of hunger during the summer months. Throughout the month of July, McPhee traveled around the country to various Feeding America food banks to raise awareness.

On December 15, 2010, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital released a video on their website for their Thanks and Giving Campaign that featured McPhee interacting with sick children at the hospital with her song "Lifetime" playing over the soundtrack.

Discography

2007: ''Katharine McPhee''

2010: ''Unbroken''

2010: ''Christmas Is the Time to Say I Love You''

Filmography

Film

''The House Bunny'' ''Peace, Love, & Misunderstanding''

Year	! Film	! Role	! Notes
rowspan="1"	2007	Crazy (2007 film)>Crazy''	Paramount Girl
2008	|	Harmony	Supporting role
rowspan="3"	2011	|	TBA	Cameo; post-production
''Shark Night 3D''	Beth
''You May Not Kiss the Bride''	Masha

Television

''CSI: NY'' ''Community (TV series) ''Smash (TV series) ''Family Guy''

Year	! Film	! Role	! Notes
rowspan="2"	2007	''lonelygirl15''	Random Girl
''Ugly Betty''
2009	|	Odessa Shaw / Dana Melton	Prey (CSI: NY episode)>Prey"
rowspan="1"	2010	Community'' ||	Amber	List of Community episodes>Basic Genealogy"
rowspan="1"	2012	Smash'' ||	Karen Cartwright	Television series; lead role; In production
TBA	|	Mother Maggie	Television series; guest role, voice-only; post-production

Awards

Fox Reality Awards 2006, Favorite Hottie

VH1 2006 Big Awards, Big It Girl

Young Hollywood Awards 2007, Exciting New Vocalist

Nominations

Ovation Awards 2005, "Lead Actress in a Musical", for ''Annie Get Your Gun'' stage production

Teen Choice Award 2006 and 2007, Choice Breakout Female Artist

References

External links

Official website

Interview: Katharine McPhee, February 1, 2007

Katharine McPhee interview at AOL

Katharine McPhee on American Idol at AmericanIdolWatch.com

Katharine McPhee Goes From Classics To Pop, CBS News

Category:1984 births Category:American female singers Category:American film actors Category:American Idol participants Category:American pop singers Category:American television actors Category:Boston Conservatory alumni Category:Idol series runners-up Category:Musicians from California Category:American musicians of German descent Category:American musicians of Irish descent Category:American musicians of Scottish descent Category:Living people Category:People from the San Fernando Valley Category:Verve Forecast Records artists

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name	Fred Rogers
birth name	Fred McFeely Rogers
birth date	March 20, 1928
birth place	Latrobe, Pennsylvania, U.S.
death date	February 27, 2003
death place	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
death cause	Stomach cancer
religion	Presbyterian Church(ordained in 1963)
other names	Mister RogersMr. Rogers
spouse	Sara Joanne Byrd (1952–2003)
occupation	Educator, minister, songwriter, television host
years active	1951–2002 }}

Fred McFeely Rogers (March 20, 1928 – February 27, 2003) was an American educator, Presbyterian minister, songwriter, and television host. Rogers was most famous for creating and hosting ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' (1968–2001), that featured his gentle, soft-spoken personality and directness to his audiences.

Initially educated to be a minister, Rogers was displeased with the way television addressed children and made an effort to change this when he began to write for and perform on local Pittsburgh area shows dedicated to youth. The Public Broadcasting System developed his own nationally aired show in 1968 and over the course of three decades on television, he became an indelible American icon of children's entertainment and education, as well as a symbol of compassion, patience, and morality. He was also known for his advocacy of various public causes. He testified to the U.S. Supreme Court on time shifting; and he gave a now-famous speech before the U.S. Senate, advocating government funding for children's television.

Rogers was honored extensively for his life work in children's education. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States' highest civilian honor, a Peabody Award for his career, and was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame. Two resolutions recognizing his work were unanimously passed by U.S. Congress, one of his trademark sweaters was acquired and is on display at the Smithsonian Institution, and several buildings and works of art in Pennsylvania are dedicated to his memory.

Personal life

Fred McFeely Rogers was born in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, 40 miles (65 km) southeast of Pittsburgh, to James and Nancy Rogers; he had one sister, Elaine Rogers Crozier. Early in his life, he spent much of his free time with his maternal grandfather, Fred McFeely, who would later move to Florida, and had an interest in music. He would often sing along as his mother would play the piano and, at age five, began to play the piano as well.

Rogers graduated from Latrobe High School (1946). He studied at Dartmouth College (1946–48) in Hanover, New Hampshire, and transferred to Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida, where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Music Composition (1951).

At Rollins, Rogers met Sara Joanne Byrd, an Oakland, Florida, native; and they married on June 9, 1952. They had two sons, James (b. 1959) and John (b. 1961), and three grandsons, the third (Ian McFeely Rogers) born twelve days after Rogers' death. In 1963, Rogers graduated from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and was ordained a minister in the Presbyterian Church. During the course of his career, he garnered forty honorary degrees. Rogers was red-green color blind, swam every morning, was a vegetarian, and neither smoked nor drank.

Rogers had an apartment in New York City and a summer home on Nantucket island in Massachusetts.

Television career

Early work

Fred Rogers had a life-changing moment when he first saw television in his parents' home. He entered seminary after college; but, after his first experience as a viewer, he wanted to explore the potential of the medium. In an interview with CNN in his later years, Rogers stated, "I went into television because I hated it so, and I thought there was some way of using this fabulous instrument to be of nurture to those who would watch and listen."

He thus applied for a job at NBC in New York City in 1951 and was hired because of his Music degree. Rogers spent three years working on the production staffs for such music-centered programming as ''NBC Opera Theater''. He also worked on Gabby Hayes' show for children. Ultimately, Rogers decided that commercial television's reliance on advertisement and merchandising undermined its ability to educate or enrich young audiences, so he quit NBC.

In 1954, he began working at WQED, a Pittsburgh public television station, as a puppeteer on a local children's show ''The Children's Corner''. For the next seven years, he worked with host Josie Carey in unscripted live TV, developing many of the puppets, characters, and music used in his later work, such as King Friday XIII, and Curious X the Owl.

Rogers began wearing his famous sneakers when he found them to be quieter than his work shoes as he moved about behind the set. He was also the voices of King Friday XIII and Queen Sara Saturday (named after his wife), rulers of the neighborhood, as well as X the Owl, Henrietta Pussycat, Daniel Striped Tiger, Lady Elaine Fairchild, and Larry Horse. The show won a Sylvania Award for best children's show, and was briefly broadcast nationally on NBC.

During these eight years, he would leave the WQED studios during his lunch breaks to study theology at the nearby Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. Rogers, however, was not interested in preaching; and, after his ordination, he was specifically charged to continue his work with Children's Television. He had also done work at the University of Pittsburgh's program in Child Development and Child Care.

In 1963, Rogers moved to Toronto, where he was contracted by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) to develop a 15-minute children's television program: ''Misterogers'', which would be his debut in front of the camera. The show was a hit with children but lasted for only three seasons. Many of his famous set pieces—Trolley, Eiffel Tower, the 'tree', and 'castle'—were created by CBC designers. While in Canada, Rogers brought his friend and understudy Ernie Coombs, who would go on to create ''Mr. Dressup'', a very successful and long-running children's show in Canada, and similar in many ways to ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood''. ''Mr. Dressup'' also used some of the songs that would be featured on Rogers' later program.

In 1966, Rogers acquired the rights to his program from the CBC and moved the show to WQED in Pittsburgh, where he had worked on ''The Children's Corner''. He developed the new show for the Eastern Educational Network. Stations that carried the program were limited but did include educational stations in Boston, Washington, D.C., and New York City.

After returning to Pittsburgh, Rogers attended and participated in activities at the Sixth Presbyterian church in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, a More Light congregation which he attended until his death.

Distribution of ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' began on February 19, 1968. The following year, the show moved to PBS (Public Broadcasting Service). In 1971, Rogers formed Family Communications, Inc. (FCI), and the company established offices in the WQED building in Pittsburgh. Initially, the company served solely as the production arm of ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'', but now develops and produces an array of children's programming and educational materials.

''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood''

''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' began airing in 1968 and ran for 895 episodes; the last set of new episodes was taped in December 2000 and began airing in August 2001. At its peak, in 1985, 8% of U.S households tuned in to the show.

Each episode began the same way: Mister Rogers is seen coming home, singing his theme song "Won't You Be My Neighbor?", and changing into sneakers and a zippered cardigan sweater.

In a typical episode, Rogers might have an earnest conversation with his television audience, interact with live guests, take a field trip to such places as a bakery or a music store, or watch a short film.

Typical video subjects included demonstrations of how such inanimate objects as bulldozers and crayons work or are manufactured.

Each episode included a trip to Rogers' "Neighborhood of Make-Believe" featuring a trolley with its own chiming theme song, a castle, and the kingdom's citizens, including King Friday XIII. The subjects discussed in the Neighborhood of Make-Believe often allowed further development of themes discussed in Mister Rogers' "real" neighborhood.

Mister Rogers often fed his fish during episodes. They were originally named Fennel and Frieda.

Typically, each week's episode explored a major theme, such as going to school for the first time.

Originally, most episodes ended with a song entitled "Tomorrow", and Friday episodes looked forward to the week ahead with an adapted version of "It's Such a Good Feeling." In later seasons, all episodes ended with "Feeling."

Visually, the presentation of the show was very simple, and it did not feature the animation or fast pace of other children's shows, which Rogers thought of as "bombardment". Rogers also believed in not acting out a different persona on camera compared to how he acted off camera, stating that "One of the greatest gifts you can give anybody is the gift of your honest self. I also believe that kids can spot a phony a mile away." Rogers composed almost all of the music on the program. He wanted to teach children to love themselves and others, and he addressed common childhood fears with comforting songs and skits. For example, one of his famous songs explains how a child cannot be pulled down the bathtub drain because he or she will not fit. He even once took a trip to the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh to show children that a hospital is not a place to fear. During the Gulf War (1990–91), he assured his audience that all children in the neighborhood would be well cared for and asked parents to promise to take care of their own children. The message was aired again by PBS during the media storm that preceded the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Other television work

In 1994, Rogers created another one-time special for PBS called ''Fred Rogers' Heroes'' which consisted of documentary portraits of four real-life people whose work helped make their communities better. Rogers, uncharacteristically dressed in a suit and tie, hosted in wraparound segments which did not use the "Neighborhood" set.

For a time Rogers produced specials for parents as a precursor to the subject of the week on the Neighborhood called "Mister Rogers Talks To Parents About ''[topic]''". Rogers didn't host those specials though as other people like Joan Lunden, who hosted the Conflict special, and other news announcers played MC duties in front of a gallery of parents while Rogers answered questions from them. These specials were made to prep the parents for any questions the children might ask after watching the episodes on that topic of the week.

The only time Rogers appeared on television as someone other than himself was in 1996, when he played a preacher on one episode of ''Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman.''

In the mid-1980s, the Burger King fast-food chain lampooned Rogers' image with an actor called "Mr. Rodney", imitating Rogers' television character. Rogers found the character's pitching fast food as confusing to children, and called a press conference in which he stated that he did not endorse the company's use of his character or likeness (Rogers did no commercial endorsements of any kind throughout his career, though he acted as a pitchman for several non-profit organizations dedicated to learning over the years). The chain publicly apologized for the ''faux pas'', and pulled the ads. By contrast, Fred Rogers found Eddie Murphy's parody of his show on ''Saturday Night Live'', "Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood," amusing and affectionate, which was also initially broadcast at a time of night when his own child audience was not likely to see it.

Emmys for programming

''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' won four Emmy awards, and Rogers received one for lifetime achievement.

During the 1997 Daytime Emmys, the Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Rogers. The following is an excerpt from ''Esquire's'' coverage of the gala, written by Tom Junod:

Advocacy

PBS funding

In 1969, Rogers appeared before the United States Senate Subcommittee on Communications. His goal was to support funding for PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, in response to significant proposed cuts. In about six minutes of testimony, Rogers spoke of the need for social and emotional education that public television provided. He passionately argued that alternative television programming like his ''Neighborhood'' helped encourage children to become happy and productive citizens, sometimes opposing less positive messages in media and in popular culture. He even recited the lyrics to one of his songs.

The chairman of the subcommittee, John O. Pastore, was not previously familiar with Rogers' work, and was sometimes described as impatient. However, he reported that the testimony had given him goosebumps, and declared, "I think it's wonderful. Looks like you just earned the $20 million." The subsequent congressional appropriation, for 1971, increased PBS funding from $9 million to $22 million.

VCR

During the controversy surrounding the introduction of the household VCR, Rogers was involved in supporting the manufacturers of VCRs in court. His 1979 testimony in the case ''Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc.'' noted that he did not object to home recording of his television programs, for instance, by families in order to watch together at a later time. This testimony contrasted with the views of others in the television industry who objected to home recording or believed that devices to facilitate it should be taxed or regulated.

The Supreme Court considered the testimony of Rogers in its decision that held that the Betamax video recorder did not infringe copyright. The Court stated that his views were a notable piece of evidence "that many [television] producers are willing to allow private time-shifting to continue" and even quoted his testimony in a footnote:

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Death, awards, and memorials

Rogers was diagnosed with stomach cancer in December 2002, not long after his retirement. He underwent surgery on January 6, 2003, which was unsuccessful. A week earlier, he served as grand marshal of the Tournament of Roses Parade, with Art Linkletter and Bill Cosby.

Rogers died on February 27, 2003 at his home with his wife by his side, less than a month before he would have turned 75. His death was such a significant event in Pittsburgh that the front page of the ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'' published the next day devoted its coverage to him. The Reverend William P. Barker presided over a public memorial in Pittsburgh. More than 2,700 people attended the memorial at Heinz Hall, including former ''Good Morning America'' host David Hartman, Teresa Heinz Kerry, philanthropist Elsie Hillman, PBS President Pat Mitchell, ''Arthur'' creator Marc Brown, and ''The Very Hungry Caterpillar'' author-illustrator Eric Carle. Speakers remembered Rogers' love of children, devotion to his religion, enthusiasm for music, and quirks. Teresa Heinz Kerry said of Rogers, "He never condescended, just invited us into his conversation. He spoke to us as the people we were, not as the people others wished we were." Rogers is interred at Unity Cemetery in Latrobe.

On New Years Day of 2004, Michael Keaton hosted the PBS TV special "Mr. Rogers: America's Favorite Neighbor". It was released on DVD September 28 that year. Keaton was a former stagehand on the show before he quit to become an actor. To mark what would have been his 80th birthday, Rogers' production company sponsored several events to memorialize him, including "Won't You Wear a Sweater Day", during which fans and neighbors were asked to wear their favorite sweaters in celebration.

The television industry honored Rogers with a George Foster Peabody Award "in recognition of 25 years of beautiful days in the neighborhood" in 1987, the same year he was initiated as an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity, the national fraternity for men of music. Rogers was a National Patron of Delta Omicron, an international professional music fraternity. He was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1999. One of Rogers' iconic sweaters was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution, which displays it as a "Treasure of American History". In 2002 Rogers received the PNC Commonwealth Award in Mass Communications.

He was furthermore awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002, for his contributions to children's education, justified by President George W. Bush, who said, "Fred Rogers has proven that television can soothe the soul and nurture the spirit and teach the very young". A year later, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed Resolution 16 to commemorate the life of Fred Rogers. It read, in part, "Through his spirituality and placid nature, Mr. Rogers was able to reach out to our nation's children and encourage each of them to understand the important role they play in their communities and as part of their families. More importantly, he did not shy away from dealing with difficult issues of death and divorce but rather encouraged children to express their emotions in a healthy, constructive manner, often providing a simple answer to life's hardships."

Following Rogers' death, the U.S. House of Representatives in 2003 unanimously passed Resolution 111 honoring Rogers for "his legendary service to the improvement of the lives of children, his steadfast commitment to demonstrating the power of compassion, and his dedication to spreading kindness through example."

The same year the U.S. Presbyterian Church approved an overture "to observe a memorial time for the Reverend Fred M. Rogers" at its General Assembly. The rationale for the recognition of Rogers reads, "The Reverend Fred Rogers, a member of the Presbytery of Pittsburgh, as host of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood since 1968, had a profound effect on the lives of millions of people across the country through his ministry to children and families. Mister Rogers promoted and supported Christian values in the public media with his demonstration of unconditional love. His ability to communicate with children and to help them understand and deal with difficult questions in their lives will be greatly missed."

Several buildings, monuments, and works of art are dedicated to Rogers' memory, including a mural sponsored by the Pittsburgh-based Sprout Fund in 2006, "Interpretations of Oakland," by John Laidacker that featured Mr. Rogers. Saint Vincent College in (Latrobe, Pennsylvania) completed construction of The Fred M. Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children's Media in 2008. The Fred Rogers Memorial Statue on the North Shore near Heinz Field in Pittsburgh was created by Robert Berks and dedicated in 2009.

The asteroid 26858 Misterrogers is named after Rogers. This naming, by the International Astronomical Union, was announced on May 2, 2003 by the director of the Henry Buhl Jr. Planetarium & Observatory at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh. The science center worked with Rogers' Family Communications, Inc. to produce a planetarium show for preschoolers called "The Sky Above Mister Rogers' Neighborhood", which plays at planetariums across the United States.

False rumors

A false rumor claims that Fred Rogers was once a U.S. Marine sniper in the Vietnam War. The rumor appeared on the Internet in 1994 and re-emerged several times over the next ten years, most notably after his death in 2003. However, Rogers never served in any branch of the military. Beginning in 1963, Rogers developed the ''Misterogers'' program for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. In 1966, he moved back to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the U.S. where he produced ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' through the height of U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. Related claims that Rogers had a number of military tattoos are also entirely false.

See also

Colcom Foundation

Notes

References

External links

PBS Kids: Official Site

The Fred M. Rogers Center

Fred Rogers' Company

Category:1928 births Category:2003 deaths Category:People from Latrobe, Pennsylvania Category:American Presbyterian clergy Category:Actors from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Category:American puppeteers Category:American television actors Category:American television personalities Category:American vegetarians Category:Christian vegetarians Category:Cancer deaths in Pennsylvania Category:Christianity in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Category:Dartmouth College alumni Category:Daytime Emmy Award winners Category:Deaths from stomach cancer Category:PBS people Category:Peabody Award winners Category:Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Category:Rollins College alumni

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