The Wayback Machine - http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/be_
Monday, 07 May 2012
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Beyoncé - Best Thing I Never Had
The Dark Knight Rises - Official Trailer #3 [HD]
Prometheus International Launch Trailer
Hot Problems (official single) - Double Take
A Frog Sitting on a Bench Like a Human
Miley Cyrus - Can't Be Tamed
Beyoncé - Dance For You
Coldplay - Paradise
Steppenwolf - Born To Be Wild
Wonder Girls (원더걸스) - Be My Baby
Happy Tree Friends - Remains To Be Seen

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Beyoncé - Best Thing I Never Had
  • Order:
  • Published: 07 Jul 2011
  • Duration: 4:15
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: beyonceVEVO
Music video by Beyoncé performing Best Thing I Never Had
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/Beyoncé - Best Thing I Never Had
The Dark Knight Rises - Official Trailer #3 [HD]
  • Order:
  • Published: 01 May 2012
  • Duration: 2:20
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: WarnerBrosPictures
www.thedarkknightrises.com www.facebook.com "The Dark Knight Rises" in theaters July 20. Warner Bros. Pictures' and Legendary Pictures' "The Dark Knight Rises" is the epic conclusion to filmmaker Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy. Leading an all-star international cast, Oscar(R) winner Christian Bale ("The Fighter") again plays the dual role of Bruce Wayne/Batman. The film also stars Anne Hathaway, as Selina Kyle; Tom Hardy, as Bane; Oscar(R) winner Marion Cotillard ("La Vie en Rose"), as Miranda Tate; and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, as John Blake. Returning to the main cast, Oscar(R) winner Michael Caine ("The Cider House Rules") plays Alfred; Gary Oldman is Commissioner Gordon; and Oscar(R) winner Morgan Freeman ("Million Dollar Baby") reprises the role of Lucius Fox.
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/The Dark Knight Rises - Official Trailer #3 [HD]
Prometheus International Launch Trailer
  • Order:
  • Published: 28 Apr 2012
  • Duration: 2:55
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: PrometheusMovieUK
Ridley Scott, director of "Alien" and "Blade Runner," returns to the genre he helped define. With PROMETHEUS, he creates a groundbreaking mythology, in which a team of explorers discover a clue to the origins of mankind on Earth, leading them on a thrilling journey to the darkest corners of the universe. There, they must fight a terrifying battle to save the future of the human race.
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/Prometheus International Launch Trailer
Hot Problems (official single) - Double Take
  • Order:
  • Published: 12 Apr 2012
  • Duration: 3:04
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: OldBaileyProductions
Old Bailey Productions did not create any of the audio or lyrics for this video. Get the song on iTunes: itunes.apple.com
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/Hot Problems (official single) - Double Take
A Frog Sitting on a Bench Like a Human
  • Order:
  • Published: 23 Apr 2012
  • Duration: 0:43
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: RoltonB
What a Wonderful World www.youtube.com Hello My Baby, Hello My Honey, Hello My Ragtime Gal www.youtube.com Never seen nothing like this before. The video was shot entirely fortuitously. The frog is OK. There is no nails, no glue, animal abuse, etc. Later, he jumped off the bench and galloped away to the water. More information: Bullfrog en.wikipedia.org Bullfrogs back: madmikesamerica.com www.leaps.ms
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/A Frog Sitting on a Bench Like a Human
Miley Cyrus - Can't Be Tamed
  • Order:
  • Published: 05 May 2010
  • Duration: 3:50
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: MileyCyrusVEVO
The official music video from Miley Cyrus performing "Can't Be Tamed." © 2010 Hollywood Records, Inc.
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/Miley Cyrus - Can't Be Tamed
  • Order:
  • Published: 19 Apr 2012
  • Duration: 4:39
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: FreeMarketAmerica
The environmental agenda has been infected by extremism—it's become an economic suicide pact. And we're here to challenge it. On Earth Day, visit freemarketamerica.org
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/"If I wanted America to fail"
Beyoncé - Dance For You
  • Order:
  • Published: 22 Nov 2011
  • Duration: 5:15
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: beyonceVEVO
Music video by Beyoncé performing Dance For You. (C) 2011 Sony Music Entertainment
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/Beyoncé - Dance For You
Coldplay - Paradise
  • Order:
  • Published: 19 Oct 2011
  • Duration: 4:21
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: ColdplayVEVO
Click here to buy Mylo Xyloto links.emi.com This video was directed by Mat Whitecross in 2011 and was filmed in South Africa and London Music video by Coldplay performing Paradise. (C) 2011 EMI Records Ltd This label copy information is the subject of copyright protection. All rights reserved.(C) 2011 EMI Records Ltd
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/Coldplay - Paradise
Steppenwolf - Born To Be Wild
  • Order:
  • Published: 09 Aug 2007
  • Duration: 3:27
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: IzwergShkiv
Easy Rider soundtrack
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/Steppenwolf - Born To Be Wild
Wonder Girls (원더걸스) - Be My Baby
  • Order:
  • Published: 06 Nov 2011
  • Duration: 3:33
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: wondergirls
Wonder Girls' 2nd Album Title Song "Be My Baby" Copyrightⓒ 2011. JYP Entertainment. All Rights Reserved ▣ Wonder Girls 2nd Album Site wondergirls.jype.com ▣ Wonder Girls FACEBOOK http ▣ Wonder Girls Homepage www.wondergirlsworld.com
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/Wonder Girls (원더걸스) - Be My Baby
Happy Tree Friends - Remains To Be Seen
  • Order:
  • Published: 28 Feb 2007
  • Duration: 3:42
  • Updated: 03 May 2012
Author: MondoMedia
Watch the latest episodes at happytreefriends.com HTF on Facebook bit.ly HTF on Twitter: bit.ly
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/Happy Tree Friends - Remains To Be Seen
Prototype Quadrotor with Machine Gun!
  • Order:
  • Published: 23 Apr 2012
  • Duration: 5:12
  • Updated: 02 May 2012
Author: FPSRussia
CLICK TO TWEET: clicktotweet.com FPSRussia Shirts: fpsrussia.spreadshirt.com Twitter: twitter.com FaceBook: www.facebook.com Explosive Targets: redtargets.com
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/Prototype Quadrotor with Machine Gun!
[PV] Ms.OOJA - Be...
  • Order:
  • Published: 27 Feb 2012
  • Duration: 5:03
  • Updated: 02 May 2012
Author: wt1201
TBS系金曜ドラマ「恋愛ニート~忘れた恋のはじめ方~」主題歌 着うたフル®配信スタート! ♪レコチョクから購入⇒recochoku.com iTunes Store⇒itunes.apple.com
http://web.archive.org./web/20120507075551/http://wn.com/[PV] Ms.OOJA - Be...
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  • Beyoncé - Best Thing I Never Had...4:15
  • The Dark Knight Rises - Official Trailer #3 [HD]...2:20
  • Prometheus International Launch Trailer...2:55
  • Hot Problems (official single) - Double Take...3:04
  • A Frog Sitting on a Bench Like a Human...0:43
  • Miley Cyrus - Can't Be Tamed...3:50
  • "If I wanted America to fail"...4:39
  • Beyoncé - Dance For You...5:15
  • Coldplay - Paradise...4:21
  • Steppenwolf - Born To Be Wild...3:27
  • Wonder Girls (원더걸스) - Be My Baby...3:33
  • Happy Tree Friends - Remains To Be Seen...3:42
  • Prototype Quadrotor with Machine Gun!...5:12
  • [PV] Ms.OOJA - Be......5:03
Music video by Beyoncé performing Best Thing I Never Had
4:15
Be­y­oncé - Best Thing I Never Had
2:20
The Dark Knight Rises - Of­fi­cial Trail­er #3 [HD]
2:55
Prometheus In­ter­na­tion­al Launch Trail­er
3:04
Hot Prob­lems (of­fi­cial sin­gle) - Dou­ble Take
0:43
A Frog Sit­ting on a Bench Like a Human
3:50
Miley Cyrus - Can't Be Tamed
4:39
"If I want­ed Amer­i­ca to fail"
5:15
Be­y­oncé - Dance For You
4:21
Cold­play - Par­adise
3:27
Step­pen­wolf - Born To Be Wild
3:33
Won­der Girls (원더걸스) - Be My Baby
3:42
Happy Tree Friends - Re­mains To Be Seen
5:12
Pro­to­type Quadro­tor with Ma­chine Gun!
5:03
[PV] Ms.​OOJA - Be...
4:20
Black Eyed Peas - Imma Be
4:12
Nick­el­back - Gotta Be Some­body
1:46
A DRA­MAT­IC SUR­PRISE ON A QUIET SQUARE
6:03
Tena­cious D - To Be The Best
6:00
Ronettes - Be My baby
4:51
Be­y­oncé - Run The World (Girls)
10:21
Black Eyed Peas - Imma Be Rock­ing That Body
4:08
Mary J. Blige - Be With­out You


  • Pattaya Floating Market is flocked by tourists for local items which prices are expected to be haggled.
    WN / RTayco
  • Ali Larijani, Speaker of Iran's parliament and his country's former chief nuclear negotiator, speaks during a news conference in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, May 11, 2010. Iran says Brazil and Turkey have offered a new joint proposal for a nuclear fuel deal. Tuesday's remarks by Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast come as Tehran seeks to stave off new U.N. sanctions for its defiance of Security Council demands that it curb nuclear activities that could be used to make weapons.
    AP / Mustafa Ozer, Pool
  • Looking north from the footbridge the diverging outbound tracks can be seen. The old goods shed and goods yard area are visible to the right.
    Creative Commons / John Dalton
  • The site of the former Domino Sugar refinery may be redeveloped for residential use. A Williamsburg landmark, The Kings County Savings Institution was chartered on April 10, 1860.
    Creative Commons / Beyond My Ken
  • The Wailing Wall in the ruins of the Jerusalem Temple, E. Berninger, Gartenlaube 1879. The writings of various travelers in the Holy Land, especially in the 18th and 19th centuries, tell of how the Wall and its environs continued to be a place of devotion for the Jews.
    Creative Commons / Leipzig
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • Secretary-General Ban Ki moon visits a Drug Alternative Development Project (UNODC and Government) in Kyauk Ka Char (Hopong township, Shan State) , Myanmar. April 30 2012 -Upon landing, the Secretary-General and Mrs. Ban will be greeted by local ethnic/village leaders, and by other officials from Naypyitaw who will be part of an advance team. -The delegation will travel by car for 3-4 mins to a constructed meeting location outdoor. -Pol. Col. Tin Maung Maung, Joint Secretary of the Central Commi
    UN / Mark Garten
  • The old Eastwood Brickworks site, now being developed into a housing estatein Eastwood, New South Wales
    Creative Commons / JROBBO
  • Final sections of northbound lanes of St. Anthony Falls (35W) Bridge were put in place July 5, 2008. The seven foot gap will be closed by poured concrete. View is approximately to the north. The crane, named
    Creative Commons / SEWilco
  • Pinochet's supporters gather outside the Military Academy as they try to see the casket with the remains of former military ruler Gen. Augusto Pinochet in Santiago, Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2006. Pinochet, who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990 after a military coup, died Sunday from heart complications at the age of 91. Pinochet's casket was carried slowly atop a gun carriage to a waiting helicopter to be taken to an undisclosed cemetery for cremation.
    AP / Aliosha Marquez
  • Pokkinen Bridge is a concrete slab beam bridge in Oulu. It was completed in 1924. It can nowadays only be used by public transport vehicles.
    Public Domain / Estormiz
  • The President, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil being receiving by the Foreign Minister of South Africa, Ms. Maite Nkoana Mashabane, on her arrival, at Waterkloof Air Force Base, Pretoria in South Africa on May 01, 2012.
    PIB of India
  • Haukipudas church is being repaired in summer 2009.
    Public Domain / Estormiz
  • An apartment building in Leveri neighbourhood in Oulu is waiting to be demolished.
    Public Domain / Estormiz
  • Apartment building in Leveri neighbourhood in Oulu being demolished.
    Public Domain / Estormiz
  • Apartment buildings being demolished in Hollihaka neighbourhood in Oulu.
    Public Domain / Estormiz
  • Apartment buildings being demolished in Hollihaka neighbourhood in Oulu.
    Public Domain / Estormiz
  • Apartment buildings being demolished in Hollihaka neighbourhood in Oulu.
    Public Domain / Estormiz
  • The official of “COMPASS”( the mega IT fair ) during press meet On Monday 30th April 2012The mega I T fair will be held on 4th to 7th May 2012 at Milanmela ground( from left Neeraj Agarwal, Pavan Jajoda, B.Hari, Rajiv Poddar, Gopal Pansari,)
    WN / Bhaskar Mallick
  • B. Hari (presdent of COMPASS) is addressing during press meet onOn Monday 30th April 2012 forThe Mega I T fair will be held on 4th to 7th May 2012 at Milanmela ground
    WN / Bhaskar Mallick
photo: AP / Misha Japaridze
Russian Prime Minister and chairman of United Russia ruling party Vladimir Putin addresses the tenth United Russia Party Congress in Moscow, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2008. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin promised Thursday the country would emerge stronger from a world economic crisis he said was triggered by U.S. recklessnes
Daily Press
07 May 2012
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Vladimir Putin will be sworn in as Russia's president at a glittering ceremony on Monday, hours after clashes between police and protesters laid bare the deep divisions over his...

photo: WN / Yolanda Leyba
Pregnancy
The Daily Telegraph
07 May 2012
A new charity, OC Support, has been launched to raise awareness of the disorder obstetric cholestasis, which can be fatal to unborn babies. Alice Tuson's son Thomas was safely induced at just under 38...

photo: WN / Aaron Gilbert
Gaga loves being alone
Newstrack India
06 May 2012
Los Angeles, May 6 (IANS) Singer Lady Gaga says she began to cherish her loneliness when she was 20, but admits it eventually led her to cocaine addiction. "I began to cherish my loneliness. I...


Sydney Morning Herald AAP A Senate committee has agreed to publicly release a report by Fair Work Australia into the alleged misuse of...(size: 0.7Kb)
Newstrack India Johannesburg, May 7 (ANI): If you only require a cellphone for making calls, then you don't necessarily need a touch screen, according to a new study. Indeed, touch screens are not strictly essential for a number of popular activities - be it surfing the web, taking pictures or listening to music....(size: 4.6Kb)
The Hindu In the wake of a Supreme Court order prohibiting usage of sun films on windows and windshields of cars, the police will begin penalising errant vehicle owners from May 20. A senior traffic police official said that vehicle owners in the city have been given time till May 19 to get rid of sun films...(size: 2.4Kb)
Newstrack India Melbourne, May 7 (ANI): A promising young woman hockey player from Western Australia has died after being hit by a ball during a game. Lizzie Watkins, 24, died of fatal...(size: 1.1Kb)
York Press MORE than £132,000 of cash seized from rogue traders is to be used to help run council crackdowns on crime in York. The money is the share of the proceeds of crime City of York Council is allowed to keep under Home...(size: 1.4Kb)
Sacramento Bee Effie Yeaw Nature Center in Carmichael will host a display of prize-winning nature photography during weekends in May. The contest, sponsored by California...(size: 1.1Kb)
National Public Radio As many as 40,000 gorgeously plumed birds known as the Gurney's pitta thrive in the lowland rainforests of economically backward Myanmar. Across the border, Thailand's last five pairs are guarded around the clock against snakes and human predators. The bird's status is among many reasons Myanmar is...(size: 10.1Kb)
Berita Jakarta The National Exam (UN) which began today (5/7) is attended by 155,026 students of elementary school (SD) or equivalent in Jakarta. The students are expected to graduate with the best possible score and the graduation rate can be the same as last year which reached 100 percent. Jakarta...(size: 3.9Kb)
Syracuse Post a comment (You may use HTML tags for style)...(size: 0.7Kb)
more news on: Be
Coordinates34°03′″N118°15′″N
native name
conventional long nameKingdom of Belgium
common nameBelgium
image coatGreater Coat of Arms of Belgium.svg
symbol typeCoat of arms
national mottoEendracht maakt macht(Dutch)''L'union fait la force''(French)''Einigkeit macht stark''(German)"Strength through Unity" (lit. "Unity makes Strength")
map caption
national anthemThe "Brabançonne"instrumental version:
File:The Brabanconne.ogg
official languagesDutchFrenchGerman
demonymBelgian
ethnic groupssee Demographics
capitalBrussels
latnsN
longewE
largest settlement typemetropolitan area
largest settlementBrussels
government typeFederal parliamentary democracy and Constitutional monarchy
leader title1King
leader title2Prime Minister
leader name1Albert II
leader name2Yves Leterme
legislatureFederal Parliament
upper houseSenate
lower houseChamber of Representatives
area km230,528
area sq mi11,787
area rank139th
area magnitude1 E10
percent water6.4
population estimate11,007,020
population estimate year2011
population estimate rank76th
population census10,296,350
population census year2001
population density km2354.7
population density rank33rd
population density sq mi918.6
gdp ppp year2010
gdp ppp$394.346 billion
gdp ppp per capita$36,100
gdp nominal year2010
gdp nominal$465.676 billion
gdp nominal per capita$42,630
gini28
gini year2005
gini categorylow
hdi year2010
hdi 0.867
hdi rank18th
hdi categoryvery high
sovereignty typeIndependence
established event1Declared
established date14 October 1830
established event2Recognised
established date219 April 1839
accessioneudate25 March 1957
euseats24
currencyEuro ()1
currency codeEUR
time zoneCET
utc offset+1
time zone dstCEST
utc offset dst+2
drives onright
cctld.be2
calling code32
footnote1Before 1999: Belgian franc (BEF).
footnote2The .eu domain is also used, as it is shared with other European Union member states. }}

Belgium ( ), officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, as well as those of several other major international organisations such as NATO. Belgium covers an area of , and it has a population of about 11 million people. Straddling the cultural boundary between Germanic and Latin Europe, Belgium is home to two main linguistic groups, the Dutch-speakers, mostly Flemish, and the French-speakers, mostly Walloons, plus a small group of German-speakers. Belgium's two largest regions are the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders in the north and the French-speaking southern region of Wallonia. The Brussels-Capital Region, officially bilingual, is a mostly French-speaking enclave within the Flemish Region. A small German-speaking Community exists in eastern Wallonia. Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political and cultural conflicts are reflected in the political history and a complex system of government.

Historically, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg were known as the Low Countries, which used to cover a somewhat larger area than the current Benelux group of states. The region was called Belgica in Latin because of the Roman province Gallia Belgica which covered more or less the same area. From the end of the Middle Ages until the 17th century, it was a prosperous centre of commerce and culture. From the 16th century until the Belgian Revolution in 1830, when Belgium seceded from the Netherlands, many battles between European powers were fought in the area of Belgium, causing it to be dubbed the battleground of Europe, a reputation strengthened by both World Wars.

Upon its independence, Belgium participated in the Industrial Revolution and, during the course of the 20th century, possessed a number of colonies in Africa. The second half of the 20th century was marked by the rise of communal conflicts between the Flemings and the Francophones fuelled by cultural differences on the one hand and an asymmetrical economic evolution of Flanders and Wallonia on the other hand. These still-active conflicts have caused far-reaching reforms of the formerly unitary Belgian state into a federal state which might lead to a partition of the country.

History

The name 'Belgium' is derived from ''Gallia Belgica'', a Roman province in the northernmost part of Gaul that, before Roman invasion in 100 BC, was inhabited by the ''Belgae'', a mix of Celtic and Germanic peoples. A gradual immigration by Germanic Frankish tribes during the 5th century brought the area under the rule of the Merovingian kings. A gradual shift of power during the 8th century led the kingdom of the Franks to evolve into the Carolingian Empire. The Treaty of Verdun in 843 divided the region into Middle and Western Francia and therefore into a set of more or less independent fiefdoms which, during the Middle Ages, were vassals either of the King of France or of the Holy Roman Emperor.

Many of these fiefdoms were united in the Burgundian Netherlands of the 14th and 15th centuries. Emperor Charles V extended the personal union of the Seventeen Provinces in the 1540s, making it far more than a personal union by the Pragmatic Sanction of 1549 and increased his influence over the Prince-Bishopric of Liège. The Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) divided the Low Countries into the northern United Provinces (''Belgica Foederata'' in Latin, the "Federated Netherlands") and the Southern Netherlands (''Belgica Regia'', the "Royal Netherlands"). The latter were ruled successively by the Spanish and the Austrian Habsburgs and comprised most of modern Belgium. This was the theatre of most Franco-Spanish and Franco-Austrian wars during the 17th and 18th centuries. Following the campaigns of 1794 in the French Revolutionary Wars, the Low Countries—including territories that were never nominally under Habsburg rule, such as the Prince-Bishopric of Liège—were annexed by the French First Republic, ending Austrian rule in the region. The reunification of the Low Countries as the United Kingdom of the Netherlands occurred at the dissolution of the First French Empire in 1815.

The 1830 Belgian Revolution led to the establishment of a Catholic and bourgeois, officially French-speaking and neutral, independent Belgium under a provisional government and a national congress. Since the installation of Leopold I as king on 1831 (which now celebrated as Belgium's National Day), Belgium has been a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy, with a laicist constitution based on the Napoleonic code. Although the franchise was initially restricted, universal suffrage for men was introduced after the general strike of 1893 (with plural voting until 1919) and for women in 1949.

The main political parties of the 19th century were the Catholic Party and the Liberal Party, with the Belgian Labour Party emerging towards the end of the century. French was originally the single official language adopted by the nobility and the bourgeoisie. It progressively lost its overall importance as Dutch became recognised as well. This recognition became official in 1898 and in 1967 a Dutch version of the Constitution was legally accepted.

The Berlin Conference of 1885 ceded control of the Congo Free State to King Leopold II as his private possession. From around 1900 there was growing international concern for the extreme and savage treatment of the Congolese population under Leopold II, for whom the Congo was primarily a source of revenue from ivory and rubber production. In 1908 this outcry led the Belgian state to assume responsibility for the government of the colony, henceforth called the Belgian Congo. Germany invaded Belgium in 1914 as part of the Schlieffen Plan and much of the Western Front fighting of World War I occurred in western parts of the country. The opening months of the war were known as the Rape of Belgium due to German atrocities. Belgium took over the German colonies of Ruanda-Urundi (modern day Rwanda and Burundi) during the war, and they were mandated to Belgium in 1924 by the League of Nations. In the aftermath of the First World War, the Prussian districts of Eupen and Malmedy were annexed by Belgium in 1925, thereby causing the presence of a German-speaking minority.

The country was again invaded by Germany in 1940 and was occupied until its liberation by the Allies in 1944. After World War II, a general strike forced king Leopold III, who many saw as collaborating with the Germans during the war, to abdicate in 1951. The Belgian Congo gained independence in 1960 during the Congo Crisis; Ruanda-Urundi followed with its independence two years later. Belgium joined NATO as a founding member and formed the Benelux group of nations with the Netherlands and Luxembourg. Belgium became one of the six founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951 and of the European Atomic Energy Community and European Economic Community, established in 1957. The latter is now the European Union, for which Belgium hosts major administrations and institutions, including the European Commission, the Council of the European Union and the extraordinary and committee sessions of the European Parliament.

Politics

Belgium is a constitutional, popular monarchy and a parliamentary democracy. The bicameral federal parliament is composed of a Senate and a Chamber of Representatives. The former is made up of 40 directly elected politicians and 21 representatives appointed by the 3 Community parliaments, 10 co-opted senators and the children of the king, as Senators by Right who in practice do not cast their vote. The Chamber's 150 representatives are elected under a proportional voting system from 11 electoral districts. Belgium has compulsory voting and thus holds one of the highest rates of voter turnout in the world.

The King (currently Albert II) is the head of state, though with limited prerogatives. He appoints ministers, including a Prime Minister, that have the confidence of the Chamber of Representatives to form the federal government. The numbers of Dutch- and French-speaking ministers are equal as prescribed by the constitution (the Prime Minister not being counted). The judicial system is based on civil law and originates from the Napoleonic code. The Court of Cassation is the court of last resort, with the Court of Appeal one level below.

Belgium's political institutions are complex; most political power is organised around the need to represent the main cultural communities. Since around 1970, the significant national Belgian political parties have split into distinct components that mainly represent the political and linguistic interests of these communities. The major parties in each Community, though close to the political centre, belong to three main groups: the right-wing Liberals, the socially conservative Christian Democrats and the socialists forming the left wing. Further notable parties came into being well after the middle of last century, mainly around linguistic, nationalist, or environmental themes and recently smaller ones of some specific liberal nature.

A string of Christian Democrat coalition governments from 1958 was broken in 1999 after the first dioxin crisis, a major food contamination scandal. A 'rainbow coalition' emerged from six parties: the Flemish and the French-speaking Liberals, Social Democrats, Greens. Later, a 'purple coalition' of Liberals and Social Democrats formed after the Greens lost most of their seats in the 2003 election. The government led by Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt from 1999 to 2007 achieved a balanced budget, some tax reforms, a labour-market reform, scheduled nuclear phase-out and instigated legislation allowing more stringent war crime and more lenient soft drug usage prosecution. Restrictions on withholding euthanasia were reduced and same-sex marriage legalized. The government promoted active diplomacy in Africa and opposed the invasion of Iraq.

Verhofstadt's coalition fared badly in the June 2007 elections. For more than a year, the country experienced a political crisis. This crisis was such that many observers speculated on a possible partition of Belgium. From 2007 until 2008 the temporary Verhofstadt III Government was in office. This coalition of the Flemish and Francophone Christian Democrats, the Flemish and Francophone Liberals together with the Francophone Social Democrats was an interim government until 2008. On that day a new government, led by Flemish Christian Democrat Yves Leterme, the actual winner of the federal elections of , was sworn in by the king. On 2008 Leterme announced the resignation of the cabinet to the king, as no progress in constitutional reforms had been made. In December 2008 he once more offered his resignation to the king after a crisis surrounding the sale of Fortis to BNP Paribas. At this juncture, his resignation was accepted and Flemish Christian Democrat Herman Van Rompuy was sworn in as Prime Minister on 2008.

After Herman Van Rompuy was designated the first permanent President of the European Council on 2009, he offered the resignation of his government to King Albert II on 2009. A few hours later, the new government under Prime Minister Yves Leterme was sworn in. On 2010, Leterme again offered the resignation of his cabinet to the king after one of the coalition partners, the OpenVLD, withdrew from the government, and on 2010 King Albert officially accepted the resignation. The Parliamentary elections in Belgium on 2010 saw the Flemish nationalist N-VA become the largest party in Flanders, and the Socialist Party PS the largest party in Wallonia. Belgium has since then been governed by Leterme's caretaker government awaiting the end of the currently deadlocked negotiations for formation of a new government. By 30 March 2011 this set a new world record for the elapsed time without an official government, previously held by war-torn Iraq. As this time increases to more than a year, the general understanding that the incumbent will merely continue existing and perform only urgent business becomes increasingly questioned.

Communities and Regions

[[File:Communities of Belgium.svg|thumb|Communities:          Flemish & French Community / bilingual language area ]]

Following a usage which can be traced back to the Burgundian and Habsburgian courts, in the 19th century it was necessary to speak French to belong to the governing upper class, and those who could only speak Dutch were effectively second-class citizens. Late that century, and continuing into the 20th century, Flemish movements evolved to counter this situation. While the Walloons and most Brusselers adopted French as their first language, the Flemings refused to do so and succeeded progressively in imposing Dutch as Flanders' official language. Following World War II, Belgian politics became increasingly dominated by the autonomy of its two main language communities. Intercommunal tensions rose and the constitution was amended in order to minimise the conflict potentials.

Based on the four language areas defined in 1962–63 (the Dutch, bilingual, French and German language areas), consecutive revisions of the country's constitution in 1970, 1980, 1988 and 1993 established a unique federal state with segregated political power into three levels: # The federal government, based in Brussels. # The three language communities: #* the Flemish Community (Dutch-speaking); #* the French Community (French-speaking); #* the German-speaking Community. # The three regions: #* the Flemish Region, subdivided into five provinces; #* the Walloon Region, subdivided into five provinces; #* the Brussels-Capital Region.

The constitutional language areas determine the official languages in their municipalities, as well as the geographical limits of the empowered institutions for specific matters. Although this would allow for seven parliaments and governments, when the Communities and Regions were created in 1980, Flemish politicians decided to merge both. Thus the Flemings just have one single institutional body of parliament and government is empowered for all except federal and specific municipal matters.

The overlapping boundaries of the Regions and Communities have created two notable peculiarities: the territory of the Brussels-Capital Region (which came into existence nearly a decade after the other regions) is included in both the Flemish and French Communities, and the territory of the German-speaking Community lies wholly within the Walloon Region. Conflicts jurisdiction between the bodies are resolved by the Constitutional Court of Belgium. The structure is intended as a compromise to allow different cultures to live together peacefully.

The Federal State's authority includes justice, defence, federal police, social security, nuclear energy, monetary policy and public debt, and other aspects of public finances. State-owned companies include the Belgian Post Group and Belgian Railways. The Federal Government is responsible for the obligations of Belgium and its federalized institutions towards the European Union and NATO. It controls substantial parts of public health, home affairs and foreign affairs. The budget—without the debt—controlled by the federal government amounts to about 50% of the national fiscal income. The federal government employs around 12% of the civil servants.

Communities exercise their authority only within linguistically determined geographical boundaries, originally oriented towards the individuals of a Community's language: culture (including audiovisual media), education and the use of the relevant language. Extensions to personal matters less directly connected with language comprise health policy (curative and preventive medicine) and assistance to individuals (protection of youth, social welfare, aid to families, immigrant assistance services, and so on.).

Regions have authority in fields that can be broadly associated with their territory. These include economy, employment, agriculture, water policy, housing, public works, energy, transport, the environment, town and country planning, nature conservation, credit and foreign trade. They supervise the provinces, municipalities and intercommunal utility companies.

In several fields, the different levels each have their own say on specifics. With education, for instance, the autonomy of the Communities neither includes decisions about the compulsory aspect nor allows for setting minimum requirements for awarding qualifications, which remain federal matters. Each level of government can be involved in scientific research and international relations associated with its powers. The treaty-making power of the Regions' and Communities' Governments is the broadest of all the Federating units of all the Federations all over the world.

Geography

Belgium shares borders with France (), Germany (), Luxembourg () and the Netherlands (). Its total area, including surface water area, is 33,990 square kilometres; land area alone is 30,528 km2. It lies between latitudes 49° and 53° N, and longitudes 2° and 7° E.

Belgium has three main geographical regions: the coastal plain in the north-west and the central plateau both belong to the Anglo-Belgian Basin; the Ardennes uplands in the south-east are part of the Hercynian orogenic belt. The Paris Basin reaches a small fourth area at Belgium's southernmost tip, Belgian Lorraine.

The coastal plain consists mainly of sand dunes and polders. Further inland lies a smooth, slowly rising landscape irrigated by numerous waterways, with fertile valleys and the northeastern sandy plain of the Campine (''Kempen''). The thickly forested hills and plateaus of the Ardennes are more rugged and rocky with caves and small gorges. Extending westward into France, this area is eastwardly connected to the Eifel in Germany by the High Fens plateau, on which the Signal de Botrange forms the country's highest point at .

The climate is maritime temperate with significant precipitation in all seasons (Köppen climate classification: ''Cfb''), as is the case with all areas adjacent to the North Sea, including The Netherlands and much of the United Kingdom. The average temperature is lowest in January at and highest in July at . The average precipitation per month varies between for February or April, to for July. Averages for the years 2000 to 2006 show daily temperature minimums of and maximums of and monthly rainfall of ; these are about 1 °C and nearly 10 millimetres above last century's normal values, respectively.

Phytogeographically, Belgium is shared between the Atlantic European and Central European provinces of the Circumboreal Region within the Boreal Kingdom. According to the World Wide Fund for Nature, the territory of Belgium belongs to the ecoregion of Atlantic mixed forests. Because of its high population density, its location in the centre of Western Europe and inadequate political effort, Belgium faces serious environmental problems. A 2003 report suggested Belgian natural waters (rivers and groundwater) to have the lowest water quality of the 122 countries studied. In the 2006 pilot Environmental Performance Index, Belgium scored 75.9% for overall environmental performance and was ranked lowest of the EU member countries, though it was only 39th of 133 countries.

Economy

Belgium's strongly globalized economy and its transportation infrastructure are integrated with the rest of Europe. Its location at the heart of a highly industrialized region helped make it the world's 15th largest trading nation in 2007. The economy is characterized by a highly productive work force, high GNP and high exports per capita. Belgium's main imports are raw materials, machinery and equipment, chemicals, raw diamonds, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, transportation equipment, oil products. Its main exports are machinery and equipment, chemicals, finished diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs.

The Belgian economy is heavily service-oriented and shows a dual nature: a dynamic Flemish economy and a Walloon economy that lags behind. One of the founding members of the European Union, Belgium strongly supports an open economy and the extension of the powers of EU institutions to integrate member economies. Since 1922, through the Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union, Belgium and Luxembourg have been a single trade market with customs and currency union.

Belgium was the first continental European country to undergo the Industrial Revolution, in the early 19th century. Liège and Charleroi rapidly developed mining and steelmaking, which flourished until the mid-20th century in the SambreMeuse valley, the sillon industriel and made Belgium one of the top three most industrialized nations in the world from 1830 to 1910. However, by the 1840s the textile industry of Flanders was in severe crisis, and the region experienced famine from 1846 to 1850.

After World War II, Ghent and Antwerp experienced a rapid expansion of the chemical and petroleum industries. The 1973 and 1979 oil crises sent the economy into a recession; it was particularly prolonged in Wallonia, where the steel industry had become less competitive and experienced serious decline. In the 1980s and 1990s, the economic centre of the country continued to shift northwards and is now concentrated in the populous Flemish Diamond area.

By the end of the 1980s, Belgian macroeconomic policies had resulted in a cumulative government debt of about 120% of GDP. As of 2006, the budget was balanced and public debt was equal to 90.30% of GDP. In 2005 and 2006, real GDP growth rates of 1.5% and 3.0%, respectively, were slightly above the average for the Euro area. Unemployment rates of 8.4% in 2005 and 8.2% in 2006 were close to the area average. By , this had grown to 8.5% compared to an average rate of 9.6% for the European Union as a whole (EU 27). From 1832 until 2002, Belgium's currency was the Belgian franc. Belgium switched to the euro in 2002, with the first sets of euro coins being minted in 1999. The standard Belgian euro coins designated for circulation show the portrait of King Albert II.

Despite a 18% decrease observed from 1970 to 1999, Belgium still had in 1999 the highest rail network density within the European Union with 113.8 km/1 000 km2. Due to the large population density in Belgium, this number corresponds to the quite low amount of 3.40% kilometers per capita in comparison to the mean EU value of 4.06%. On the other hand, the same period of time, 1970–1999, has seen a huge growth (+56%) of the motorway network. In 1999, the density of km motorways per 1000 km2 and 1000 inhabitants amounted to 55.1 and 16.5 respectively and were significantly superior to the EU's means of 13.7 and 15.9. Belgium however experiences one of the most congested traffic in Europe. Commuters to the cities of Brussels and Antwerp spent 2010 respectively 65 and 64 hours a year in traffic jams. Like in most small european countries, more than 80% of the airways traffic is handled by a single airport, the Brussels Airport. The ports of Antwerp and Zeebrugge share more than 80% of Belgian maritime traffic, Antwerp being the second European harbour with a gross weight of goods handled of 115 988 000 t in 2000 after a growth of 10.9% over the preceeding five years.

Military

The Belgian Armed Forces have about 46,000 active troops. This number corresponded in 2009 to a yearly defence budget of $6 billion (11th in the EU) or 1.24% of GDP (19th in the EU). They are organised into one unified structure which consists of four main components: Land Component, or the Army; Air Component, or the Air Force; Naval Component, or the Navy; Medical Component. The operational commands of the four components are subordinate to the Staff Department for Operations and Training of the Ministry of Defence, which is headed by the Assistant Chief of Staff Operations and Training, and to the Chief of Defence.

The effects of World War II made collective security a priority for Belgian foreign policy. In March 1948 Belgium signed the Treaty of Brussels, and then joined NATO in 1948. However the integration of the armed forces into NATO did not begin until after the Korean War.

Science and technology

Contributions to the development of science and technology have appeared throughout the country's history. The 16th century Early Modern flourishing of Western Europe included cartographer Gerardus Mercator, anatomist Andreas Vesalius, herbalist Rembert Dodoens and mathematician Simon Stevin among the most influential scientists.

Chemist Ernest Solvay and engineer Zenobe Gramme (École Industrielle de Liège) gave their names to the Solvay process and the Gramme dynamo, respectively, in the 1860s. Bakelite was developed in 1907–1909 by Leo Baekeland. Ernest Solvay also acted as a major philantropist and gave its name to the Solvay Institute of Sociology, the Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management and the International Solvay Institutes for Physics and Chemistry which are now part of the Université Libre de Bruxelles. In 1911, he started a series of conferences, the Solvay Conferences on Physics and Chemistry, which have had a deep impact on the evolution of quantum physics and chemistry. A major contribution to fundamental science was also due to a Belgian, Georges Lemaître (Catholic University of Leuven), who is credited with proposing the Big Bang theory of the origin of the universe in 1927.

Three Nobel Prizes in Physiology or Medicine were awarded to Belgians: Jules Bordet (Université Libre de Bruxelles) in 1919, Corneille Heymans (University of Ghent) in 1938 and Albert Claude (Université Libre de Bruxelles) together with Christian De Duve (Université Catholique de Louvain) in 1974. Ilya Prigogine (Université Libre de Bruxelles) was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1977.

Demographics

In the beginning of 2007 nearly 92% of the population had Belgian citizenship, and other European Union member citizens account for around 6%. The prevalent foreign nationals were Italian (171,918), French (125,061), Dutch (116,970), Moroccan (80,579), Spanish (42,765), Turkish (39,419) and German (37,621). Immigrants since 1945 and their descendents are estimated by 2008 to have formed 22% of the total population. Of these 'New Belgians', 1,313,000 (56%) are of European ancestry and the 950,000 others originated from the rest of the world.

Almost all of the Belgian population is urban—97% in 2004. The population density of Belgium is 342 per square kilometre (886 per square mile). The most densely inhabited area is Flanders, and in particular the Flemish Diamond, outlined by the AntwerpLeuvenBrusselsGhent agglomerations.

The Ardennes have the lowest density. As of 2006, the Flemish Region had a population of about 6,078,600, with Antwerp (457,749), Ghent (230,951) and Bruges (117,251) its most populous cities; Wallonia had 3,413,978, with Charleroi (201,373), Liège (185,574) and Namur (107,178) its most populous. Brussels houses 1,018,804 in the Capital Region's 19 municipalities, two of which have over 100,000 residents.

Languages

Belgium has three official languages, which are in order of native speaker population in Belgium: Dutch, French and German. A number of non-official minority languages are spoken as well. As no census exists, there are no official statistical data regarding the distribution or usage of Belgium's three official languages or their dialects. However, various criteria, including the language(s) of parents, of education, or the second-language status of foreign born, may provide suggested figures. An estimated 59% of the Belgian population speaks Dutch (often colloquially referred to as "Flemish"), and French is spoken by 40% of the population.

Total Dutch speakers are 6.23 million, concentrated in the northern Flanders region, while French speakers comprise 3.32 million in Wallonia and an estimated 0.87 million or 85% of the officially bilingual Brussels-Capital Region. The German-speaking Community is made up of 73,000 people in the east of the Walloon Region; around 10,000 German and 60,000 Belgian nationals are speakers of German. Roughly 23,000 more German speakers live in municipalities near the official Community.

Both Belgian Dutch and Belgian French have minor differences in vocabulary and semantic nuances from the varieties spoken respectively in the Netherlands and France. Many Flemish people still speak dialects of Dutch in their local environment. Walloon, once the main regional language of Wallonia, is now only understood and spoken occasionally, mostly by elderly people. Wallonia's dialects, along with those of Picard, are not used in public life.

Education

Education is compulsory from six to 18 years of age for Belgians. Among OECD countries in 2002, Belgium had the third-highest proportion of 18–21 year-olds enrolled in postsecondary education, at 42%. Though an estimated 98% of the adult population is literate, concern is rising over functional illiteracy. The Programme for International Student Assessment, coordinated by the OECD, currently ranks Belgium's education as the 19th best in the world, being significantly higher than the OECD average. Education being organised separately by each, the Flemish Community scores noticeably above the French and German-speaking Communities.

Mirroring the dual structure of the 19th-century Belgian political landscape, characterized by the Liberal and the Catholic parties, the educational system is segregated within a secular and a religious segment. The secular branch of schooling is controlled by the communities, the provinces, or the municipalities, while religious, mainly Catholic branch education, is organised by religious authorities, although subsidized and supervised by the communities.

Religion

Since the country's independence, Roman Catholicism, counterbalanced by strong freethought movements, has had an important role in Belgium's politics. However Belgium is largely a secular country as the ''laicist'' constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the government generally respects this right in practice. During the reigns of Albert I and Baudouin, the monarchy had a reputation of deeply rooted Catholicism. Roman Catholicism has traditionally been Belgium's majority religion; being especially strong in Flanders. However, by 2009 Sunday church attendance was 5 % for Belgium in total ; 3 % in Brussels , and 5.4% in Flanders. Church attendance in 2009 in Belgium is roughly half of the sunday church attandance in 1998 (11.2% for the total of Belgium in 1998). Despite the 6 % drop in Sunday church attendance in Belgium from 11 % to 5 % over this nine-year period, Catholicism nevertheless remains an important force in society.

Symbolically and materially, the Roman Catholic Church remains in a favourable position. Belgium's concept of "recognised religions" set a path for Islam to follow to acquire the treatment of Jewish and Protestant religions. While other minority religions, such as Hinduism, do not yet have such status, Buddhism took the first steps toward legal recognition in 2007. According to the ''2001 Survey and Study of Religion'', about 47% of the population identify themselves as belonging to the Catholic Church, while Islam is the second-largest religion at 3.5%. A 2006 inquiry in Flanders, considered to be a more religious region than Wallonia, showed that 55% considered themselves religious and that 36% believed that God created the world.

A 2008 estimation shows that 6% of the Belgian population, about 628,751, is Muslim (98% Sunni). Muslims constitute 25.5% of the population of Brussels, 4.0% of Wallonia and 3.9% of Flanders. The majority of Belgian Muslims live in the major cities, such as Antwerp, Brussels and Charleroi. The largest group of immigrants in Belgium are Moroccans, with 264,974 people. The Turks are the third-largest group, and the second-largest Muslim ethnic group, numbering 159,336.

According to the Eurobarometer Poll in 2005, 43% of Belgian citizens responded that "they believe there is a God", whereas 29% answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force" and 27% that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, God, or life force".

Health

The Belgians are known to enjoy good health. Their life expectancy numbered 79.5 years in 2004. Since 1960, life expectancy has, in line with the European average, grown by two months per year. Death is in Belgium mainly due to heart and vascular disorders, neoplasms, disorders of the respiratory system and unnatural causes of death (accidents, suicide). Non-natural causes of death and cancer are the most common causes of death for females up to age 24 and males up to age 44.

Health care is of high quality and is financed through both social security contributions and taxation. Health insurance is compulsory. However health care is delivered by a mostly private system of independent medical practitioners and hospitals. Most of the time each provided service is directly paid by the patient and reimbursed later on by health insurance companies. Belgian health care system is supervised and financed by the federal government, the three Communities and the three Regions, i.e. six distinct Ministries (the Flemish Community and Region have merged).

Culture

Despite its political and linguistic divisions, the region corresponding to today's Belgium has seen the flourishing of major artistic movements that have had tremendous influence on European art and culture. Nowadays, to a certain extent, cultural life is concentrated within each language Community, and a variety of barriers have made a shared cultural sphere less pronounced. Since the 1970s, there are no bilingual universities in the country except the Royal Military Academy and the Antwerp Maritime Academy, no common media and no single large cultural or scientific organisation in which both main communities are represented. The forces that once held the Belgians together—Roman Catholicism and economic and political opposition to the Dutch—are no longer strong.

Fine arts

Contributions to painting and architecture have been especially rich. The Mosan art, the Early Netherlandish, the Flemish Renaissance and Baroque painting and major examples of Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architecture are milestones in the history of art. While the 15th century's art in the Low Countries is dominated by the religious paintings of Jan van Eyck and Rogier van der Weyden, the 16th century is characterized by a broader panel of styles such as Peter Breughel's landscape paintings and Lambert Lombard's representation of the antique. Though the Baroque style of Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck flourished in the early 17th century in the Southern Netherlands, it gradually declined thereafter.

During the 19th and 20th centuries many original romantic, expressionist and surrealist Belgian painters emerged, including James Ensor and other artists belonging to the Les XX group, Constant Permeke, Paul Delvaux and René Magritte. The avant-garde CoBrA movement appeared in the 1950s, while the sculptor Panamarenko remains a remarkable figure in contemporary art. The multidisciplinary artist Jan Fabre and the painter Luc Tuymans are other internationally renowned figures on the contemporary art scene. Belgian contributions to architecture also continued into the 19th and 20th centuries, including the work of Victor Horta and Henry van de Velde, who were major initiators of the Art Nouveau style.

The vocal music of the Franco-Flemish School developed in the southern part of the Low Countries and was an important contribution to Renaissance culture. In the 19th and 20th centuries, there was an emergence of major violinists, such as Henri Vieuxtemps, Eugène Ysaÿe and Arthur Grumiaux, while Adolphe Sax invented the saxophone in 1846. The composer César Franck was born in Liège in 1822. Contemporary music in Belgium is also of repute. Jazz musician Toots Thielemans and singer Jacques Brel have achieved global fame. In rock/pop music, Telex, Front 242, K's Choice, Hooverphonic, Zap Mama, Soulwax and dEUS are well known. In the heavy metal scene, bands like Machiavel, Channel Zero and Enthroned have a worldwide fan-base.

Belgium has produced several well-known authors, including the poet Emile Verhaeren and novelists Hendrik Conscience, Georges Simenon, Suzanne Lilar and Amélie Nothomb. The poet and playwright Maurice Maeterlinck won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1911. ''The Adventures of Tintin'' by Hergé is the best known of Franco-Belgian comics, but many other major authors, including Peyo (''The Smurfs''), André Franquin (''Gaston Lagaffe''), Edgar P. Jacobs and Willy Vandersteen brought the Belgian cartoon strip industry a worldwide fame.

Belgian cinema has brought a number of mainly Flemish novels to life on-screen. Other Belgian directors include André Delvaux, Stijn Coninx, Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne; well-known actors include Jan Decleir and Marie Gillain; and successful films include ''Man Bites Dog'' and ''The Alzheimer Affair''. In the 1980s, Antwerp's Royal Academy of Fine Arts produced important fashion trendsetters, known as the Antwerp Six.

Folklore

Folklore plays a major role in Belgium's cultural life: the country has a comparatively high number of processions, cavalcades, parades, 'ommegangs' and 'ducasses', 'kermesse' and other local festivals, nearly always with an originally religious or mythological background. The Carnival of Binche with its famous Gilles and the 'Processional Giants and Dragons' of Ath, Brussels, Dendermonde, Mechelen and Mons are recognised by UNESCO as Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Other examples are the Carnival of Aalst; the still very religious processions of the Holy Blood in Bruges, Virga Jesse Basilica in Hasselt and Basilica of Our Lady of Hanswijk in Mechelen; festival in Liège; and the Walloon festival in Namur. Originated in 1832 and revived in the 1960s, the Gentse Feesten have become a modern tradition. A major non-official holiday is the Saint Nicholas Day, a festivity for children and, in Liège, for students.

Cuisine

Many highly ranked Belgian restaurants can be found in the most influential restaurant guides, such as the Michelin Guide. Belgium is famous for beer, chocolate, waffles and french fries. Contrary to their name, french fries also originated in Belgium. The national dishes are "steak and fries with salad", and "mussels with fries".

Brands of Belgian chocolate and pralines, like Côte d'Or, Guylian, Neuhaus, Leonidas, Corné and Galler are famous, as well as independent producers such as Burie and Del Rey in Antwerp and Mary's in Brussels. Belgium produces over 500 varieties of beer. The Trappist beer of the Abbey of Westvleteren has repeatedly been rated the world's best beer. The biggest brewer in the world by volume is Anheuser-Busch InBev, based in Leuven.

Sports

Since the 1970s, sports clubs and federations are organised separately within each language community. However Association football is one of the most popular sports in both parts of Belgium, together with cycling, tennis, swimming and judo. With five victories in the Tour de France and numerous other cycling records, Belgian Eddy Merckx is regarded as one of the greatest cyclists of all time. His hour speed record (set in 1972) stood for 12 years. Jean-Marie Pfaff, a former Belgian goalkeeper, is considered one of the greatest in the history of football. Belgium and The Netherlands previously hosted the UEFA European Football Championship in 2000. Belgium hosted the 1972 European Football Championships.

Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin both were Player of the Year in the Women's Tennis Association as they were ranked the number one female tennis player. The Spa-Francorchamps motor-racing circuit hosts the Formula One World Championship Belgian Grand Prix. The Belgian driver, Jacky Ickx, won eight Grands Prix and six 24 Hours of Le Mans and finished twice as runner-up in the Formula One World Championship. Belgium also has a strong reputation in motocross. Sporting events annually held in Belgium include the Memorial Van Damme athletics competition, the Belgian Grand Prix Formula One, and a number of classic cycle races such as the Tour of Flanders and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. The 1920 Summer Olympics were held in Antwerp.

See also

  • Energy in Belgium
  • Foreign relations of Belgium
  • }}

    Notes

    References

    ;Online sources

    (mentioning other original sources) Retrieved on 2007. —Reflections on nations and nation-state developments regarding Belgium

    ;Bibliography [Also editions [1913], London, ; (1921) D. Unwin and Co., New York also published (1921) as ''Belgium from the Roman invasion to the present day'', The Story of the nations, 67, T. Fisher Unwin, London, ] Ib. e-book (2004) NetLibrary, Boulder, Colorado, United States, ISBN 0-8204-7283-2 [Also print edition (ISBNDB.com 2004-06-30) or (Peterlang.com 2005), ISBN 0-8204-7647-1] Facsimile reprint of a 1902 edition by the author, London Facsimile reprint of a 1909 edition by the author, London (Several editions in English, incl. (1997) 7th ed.)

    External links

    ; Government
  • Official site of Belgian monarchy
  • Official site of the Belgian federal government
  • Chief of State and Cabinet Members
  • ;General information

  • Belgium entry at ''Encyclopædia Britannica''
  • Belgium at ''UCB Libraries GovPubs''
  • Belgium information from the United States Department of State
  • Portals to the World from the United States Library of Congress
  • FAO Country Profiles: Belgium
  • Statistical Profile of Belgium at the Association of Religion Data Archives
  • ; Tourism

  • Official Site of the Belgian Tourist Office in the Americas and GlobeScope
  • ; Other
  • Belgium, entry on the Catholic Encyclopedia 1913, republished on Wikisource
  • Belgium, entry on the Public Diplomacy wiki monitored by the USC Center on Public Diplomacy
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    Coordinates34°03′″N118°15′″N
    nameMiley Cyrus
    backgroundsolo_singer
    full nameMiley Ray Cyrus
    birth nameDestiny Hope Cyrus
    birth dateNovember 23, 1992
    birth place
    genrePop, pop rock, country pop, dance
    occupationActress, author, entrepreneur, fashion designer, singer-songwriter, musician, dancer
    instrumentVocals, guitar, piano
    years active2001–present
    labelWalt Disney, Hollywood
    associated actsHannah Montana, Disney's Friends for Change, Billy Ray Cyrus
    url 100pxSignature of Miley Cyrus.
    notable instruments}}
    Miley Ray Cyrus (born Destiny Hope Cyrus; November 23, 1992) is an American actress and pop singer-songwriter. She achieved wide fame for her role as Miley Stewart/Hannah Montana on the Disney Channel sitcom ''Hannah Montana''. Cyrus recorded music for the soundtracks, ''Hannah Montana'' (2006) and ''Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus'' (2007), released by Walt Disney Records. With the success of the ''Hannah Montana'' franchise she established herself as a teen idol. In 2007, Cyrus signed to Hollywood Records to pursue a solo career. She embarked upon the Best of Both Worlds Tour the same year, in which she performed as both herself and in character as Hannah Montana. The tour was eventually turned into a high-grossing concert film entitled ''Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert'' (2008). In July 2008, Cyrus released her first solo album, ''Breakout'' (2008), which was commercially successful.

    She began her foray into film by providing the voice of "Penny" in the animated film ''Bolt'' (2008). Cyrus earned a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song for her performance of ''Bolt''s theme song, "I Thought I Lost You". She also reprised her role as Miley Stewart/Hannah Montana in ''Hannah Montana: The Movie'' (2009). The ''Hannah Montana: The Movie'' soundtrack introduced her to new audiences within country and adult contemporary markets.

    She began to cultivate an adult image in 2009 with the release of ''The Time of Our Lives'' (2009), an extended play which presented a more mainstream pop sound, and by filming ''The Last Song'' (2010), a coming-of-age drama film. The former included Cyrus's best-selling single, "Party in the U.S.A." (2009). A studio album titled ''Can't Be Tamed'' was released in 2010 and presents a new dance-pop sound. The music video and lyrics of the album's lead single, "Can't Be Tamed", portrays a more sexualized image for the entertainer. Cyrus ranked number thirteen on ''Forbes'' 2010 Celebrity 100. In April 2011, Cyrus was named the 64th hottest woman in the world on ''Maxim'''s Hot 100. In May 2011, Cyrus was also named the 89th sexiest woman in the world on FHM's 100 Sexiest Women in the world.

    Early life

    Cyrus was born on November 23, 1992 in Nashville, Tennessee to Letitia Jean "Tish" (née Finley) and country singer Billy Ray Cyrus. Her parents named her Destiny Hope because they believed that she would accomplish great things with her life. They gave her the nickname "Smiley", which was later shortened to "Miley", because she smiled so often as a baby. Cyrus suffers from a mild heart condition causing tachycardia which, though not dangerous, is often bothersome.

    Against the wishes of her father's record company, Cyrus's parents secretly married a year after Cyrus's birth on December 28, 1993. Tish had two children from a previous relationship: Trace and Brandi. Billy Ray adopted Trace and Brandi when they were young. She has a half-brother, Christopher Cody, Billy Ray's son from a brief relationship, born the same year as Miley; he grew up with his mother in South Carolina. Tish and Billy Ray had two more children, Braison and Noah. Cyrus's godmother is entertainer Dolly Parton. Cyrus was very close to her paternal grandfather, Democratic politician Ronald Ray Cyrus. Cyrus has paid her grandfather several tributes since his death in 2006, including eventually changing her middle name to "Ray". According to Cyrus's father, "A lot of people say Miley changed her name to Miley Ray because of Billy Ray, but that's not true. She did that in honor of my dad, because the two of them just loved each other to pieces."

    Cyrus grew up on a farm in Franklin, Tennessee, approximately an hour away from Nashville, and attended Heritage Elementary School. She was raised Christian and was baptized in a Southern Baptist church prior to moving to Hollywood in 2005. She attended church regularly while growing up and wore a purity ring. Several of Cyrus's siblings also eventually entered the entertainment business: Trace became a vocalist and guitarist for the electronic pop band Metro Station, Noah became an actress, and Brandi became a guitarist.

    Career

    2001–05: Career beginnings

    In 2001, when Cyrus was eight, she and her family moved to Toronto, Canada while her father filmed the television series ''Doc''. Cyrus said watching her father film the show inspired her to pursue acting. After Billy Ray took her to see a 2001 Mirvish production of ''Mamma Mia!'' at the Royal Alexandra Theatre, Cyrus grabbed his arm and told him, "This is what I want to do, daddy. I want to be an actress." She began taking singing and acting classes at the Armstrong Acting Studio in Toronto. In her first role, Cyrus played a girl named Kylie on ''Doc''. In 2003, Cyrus was credited under her birth name for her role as "Young Ruthie" in Tim Burton's ''Big Fish''.

    At age 11, Cyrus learned about the casting for what became ''Hannah Montana'', a Disney Channel children's television series about a school girl with a secret double life as a teen pop star. Cyrus sent in a tape auditioning for the show's best friend role, but received a call asking her to audition for the lead, "Chloe Stewart". After sending in a new tape and flying to Hollywood for further auditions, Cyrus was told that she was too young and too small for the part. However, her persistence and ability to sing in addition to act led the show's producers to invite her back for further auditions. Cyrus eventually received the lead, renamed "Miley Stewart" after herself, at the age of twelve. During this time, she also auditioned with Taylor Lautner for the feature film ''The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D'' and it came down to her and another actress, but Cyrus started doing ''Hannah Montana'' instead.

    As Cyrus's career took off, Tish Cyrus made several critical decisions regarding her daughter's representation. She signed Cyrus with Mitchell Gossett, director of the youth division at Cunningham Escott Slevin Doherty. Gossett, who specializes in creating child stars, had arranged for Cyrus's auditions for Hannah Montana and is credited with "discovering" her. For Cyrus's music career, Tish followed the advice of Dolly Parton, Cyrus's godmother and a singer herself, and signed Cyrus with Jason Morey of Morey Management Group. "Dolly said the Moreys are people you can trust around your daughter," Tish Cyrus recalls, "and she said they have good morals, which is not always the case in this business." According to trade magazine ''The Hollywood Reporter'', Parton's advice was "the best advice [Tish] could [have gotten] on who should rep her daughter." Tish also recruited Billy Ray's business manager to manage her daughter's finances. Tish herself continues to co-manage or produce many of Cyrus's career decisions. For her education, Cyrus enrolled at Options for Youth Charter Schools and studied with a private tutor on the set of her television show.

    2006–07: ''Hannah Montana'' and ''Hannah Montana 2: Meet Miley Cyrus''

    ''Hannah Montana'' became an instant hit and propelled Cyrus to teen idol status, according to ''The Daily Telegraph''. The series premiered on March 26, 2006 to the largest audience ever for a Disney Channel show and soon became one of the highest-rated series on basic cable, elevating Cyrus's wealth and fame along with it. ''Time'' magazine reports that Cyrus's "phenom[enal]" success is due partially to her talent and partially to "Disney learning to use its vast, multimedia holdings" and market Cyrus and ''Hannah Montana'' appropriately. Cyrus eventually became the first artist to have deals in television, film, consumer products, and music within The Walt Disney Company.

    Cyrus's first single was "The Best of Both Worlds", the theme song to ''Hannah Montana'', which was released on March 28, 2006. "The Best of Both Worlds" is credited to "Hannah Montana", the pop star Cyrus portrays on the series by the same name. As with other songs credited to Montana, Cyrus typically dressed as the character when performing the song live. Cyrus's first release under her own name was a cover of James Baskett's "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah", released on April 4, 2006 on the fourth edition of ''DisneyMania''. Dressed as Hannah Montana, Cyrus opened for The Cheetah Girls on twenty dates of their The Party's Just Begun Tour, beginning on September 15, 2006. On October 24 of same year, Walt Disney Records released the first ''Hannah Montana'' soundtrack. Of the nine tracks on the soundtrack performed by Cyrus, eight were credited to "Hannah Montana" and one, a duet with her father titled "I Learned from You", was credited to Cyrus as herself. The album peaked at number one on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 chart.

    The second season of ''Hannah Montana'' premiered on April 23, 2007, and ran until October 12, 2008. Cyrus signed a four-album deal with Disney-owned Hollywood Records and, on June 26, 2007, released a double-disc album. The first disc was the soundtrack to the second season of ''Hannah Montana'', while the second, titled ''Meet Miley Cyrus'', was Cyrus's debut album credited to her own name. The double-disc album peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200 and was later certified three times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). ''Meet Miley Cyrus'' generated "See You Again", Cyrus's first single to be released under her own name and her first top ten hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In Fall 2007, Cyrus launched her first tour, the Best of Both Worlds Tour, to promote ''Meet Miley Cyrus'' and the ''Hannah Montana'' soundtracks. With the Jonas Brothers, Aly & AJ, and Everlife as her opening acts, Cyrus toured from October 17, 2007 to January 31, 2008 with stops in the U.S. and Canada. Tickets sold out in minutes and were scalped for up to $2,500 and an average of $214, well above their $26–$65 face value. A Ticketmaster official commented, "Hell hath no fury like the parent of a child throwing a tantrum. People who have been in this business for a long time are watching what's happening, and they say there hasn't been a demand of this level or intensity since The Beatles or Elvis."

    2008–09: ''Breakout'', transitions and film career launch

    After the end of the ''Best of Both Worlds Tour'' in January 2008, Walt Disney Pictures released ''Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert'', a 3D concert film of the tour, on February 1, 2008 for what was expected to be a one-week run. The film earned over $31 million at the box-office and an average of $42,000 per theater, twice the expected total, convincing Disney executives to extend the release for an indefinite run. "We don't want to turn away kids from the theaters who couldn't get into the concerts," said Chuck Viane, Disney's chief of distribution. The film's soundtrack was released by Walt Disney Records/Hollywood Records on March 11, 2008 and peaked at number three on the Billboard 200.

    On July 22, 2008, Cyrus released her second studio album under her own name, entitled ''Breakout''. Cyrus said ''Breakout'' was inspired by "what's been going on in my life in the past year." Cyrus co-wrote eight out of twelve songs on the album. "Songwriting is what I really want to do with my life forever, [...] I just hope this record showcases that, more than anything, I'm a writer." The album debuted at #1 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 chart and its lead single, "7 Things", peaked at number 9 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. She hosted the 2008 CMT Music Awards with her father in April and the 2008 Teen Choice Awards by herself in August. Cyrus provided the voice of Penny in the 2008 computer-animated film ''Bolt'', which was released on November 21, 2008 to critical acclaim. Cyrus also co-wrote and recorded the song "I Thought I Lost You" as a duet with John Travolta for the film, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination. In September 2009, she participated in the charity single "Just Stand Up!" in support of the anti-cancer campaign ''Stand Up to Cancer'' and in the City of Hope Benefit Concert in support of cancer research and training programs. She also became involved in Disney's Friends for Change, an environmentalist group, for which she recorded the charity single "Send It On" along with several other Disney Channel stars.

    Cyrus had already begun transitioning to a more grown-up image in late 2008, when her representatives negotiated a deal for novelist Nicholas Sparks to write the screenplay and novel basis for a film that would serve as a star vehicle for Cyrus by introducing her to audiences older than the young fans she had gained through ''Hannah Montana''. Sparks and co-writer Jeff Van Wie developed ''The Last Song''. It was important to Cyrus that she not be type cast as a singer: "I didn't want to be a singer in another film. I don't want to do that anymore. You have no idea how many musicals show up on my door. I want to do something a little more serious." In March 2009, Cyrus published ''Miles to Go'', a memoir co-written by Hilary Liftin chronicling her life through age sixteen. Cyrus starred as Miley Stewart/Hannah Montana in ''Hannah Montana: The Movie'', released April 10, 2009. Both the film and its soundtrack, which contained twelve songs performed by Cyrus, achieved commercial success. The soundtrack's lead single, "The Climb", became a Top 40 hit in twelve countries and introduced Cyrus to listeners outside her typical teen pop audience. Cyrus had considered ending ''Hannah Montana'' after its third season, which finished production on June 5, 2009, but Disney retained and exercised its option for a fourth season.

    Production on ''The Last Song'' lasted from June 15, 2009 to August 18, 2009. In between, Cyrus launched the third ''Hannah Montana'' soundtrack, recorded the extended play ''The Time of Our Lives'', and released the EP's lead single, "Party in the U.S.A." Cyrus said ''The Time of Our Lives'' "is a transitioning album. [...] really to introduce people to what I want my next record to sound like and with time I will be able to do that a little more." "Party in the U.S.A." debuted at number two on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for her best-ever ranking on the chart. ''The Time of Our Lives'' was released in conjunction with a clothing line co-designed by Cyrus and Max Azria for Walmart.

    From September 14, 2009 to December 29, 2010, Cyrus toured on her Wonder World Tour to promote ''Breakout'' and ''The Time of Our Lives''. On December 7, 2009, Cyrus performed for Queen Elizabeth II and numerous other members of the British Royal Family at the Royal Variety Performance in Blackpool, North West England.

    2010–present: ''Can't Be Tamed'', focus on film career and fourth studio album

    Production on the fourth and final season of ''Hannah Montana'' began on January 18, 2010. In the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Cyrus appeared on the charity singles "We Are the World: 25 for Haiti" and "Everybody Hurts". Her third studio album, ''Can't Be Tamed'', was released on June 21, 2010. The album's first single is the title track, "Can't Be Tamed". The single was released for sale on May 18, 2010 and entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at number eight. Cyrus's costumes and dances while promoting ''Can't Be Tamed'' were also considerably more provocative than previous performances, arousing media criticism. After releasing the album, Cyrus intends to take a break from the music industry in order to focus on her film career. She commented, "I've not taken, like, acting lessons or anything, but it doesn't mean I don't need to because I'm sure I do [...] I'm probably going to go book an acting coach." Cyrus has also decided to opt out of college for the same reason, saying "I'm a firm believer that you can go back at any age you want, because my Grandma went back to college at 62 [...] For right now, I really want to focus on my career. I've worked hard to get to where I am now, and I want to enjoy it while it lasts."

    Cyrus starred in ''The Last Song'', which was released on March 31, 2010, and received generally poor reviews, as did Cyrus's performance. Nonetheless, the film was commercially successful, grossing more than $88 million at the worldwide box office. According to box-office analyst Exhibitor Relations, the film marked "a successful transition to adult roles for Miley Cyrus." The fourth and final season of ''Hannah Montana'' began airing on Disney Channel on July 11, 2010 and was ended on January 16, 2011. Cyrus filmed two more films, ''LOL: Laughing Out Loud'' and ''So Undercover'' in 2010. In ''LOL'', a remake of a 2008 French teen comedy, Cyrus plays "a daughter who is involved with all the wrong kids, doing drugs, failing school, but [...whose] mother has her on this perfect pedestal" and says "[She] just fell in love with the story." Miley's character loses her virginity, smokes cannabis, gets wasted and kisses two girlfriends on the lips. She will also star in ''So Undercover'', an action comedy film. Cyrus will play the part of "a tough, street-smart private eye hired by the FBI to go undercover in a college sorority." She learned street fighting for the role.

    Despite her earlier announcement that she'd be focusing more on acting in the future, in February 2011, Cyrus confirmed she had no films lineup and was going to go on tour. On April 29, 2011, Cyrus embarked on her international Gypsy Heart Tour in South America and ended the tour on July 2, 2011 in Australia. Cyrus hosted ''Saturday Night Live'' on March 5, 2011, where she performed in several sketches. She also sang a brief song about her several controversies, such as the bong incident, the photo of her friend and she eating a Twizzler, and the "pole dance" on a hotel pole at the Teen Choice Awards, stating "I'm sorry that I'm not perfect." In March 2011, father Billy Ray Cyrus confirmed on talk show, ''The View'', that Miley had been in talks with producer Dr. Luke on a new album. In July 2011, it was announced that she would record her fourth studio album and she has no plans to sign onto any other film projects. However, it was reported on August 2, 2011 by Contact Music that Cyrus has signed on to star in a comedy in which she plays a woman who broke a promise to God.

    Earnings

    In 2008, Cyrus earned $25 million, up from her earnings of $18 million in 2007, and was ranked number 35 on ''Forbes'' magazine's "Celebrity 100" list. ''Parade'' magazine reported she was the richest teenage celebrity and that her franchise would be worth approximately $1 billion by the end of the year. In 2009, ''Forbes'' ranked her #29 on the ''Celebrity 100'' and reported she had earned a total of $25 million. Then Cyrus got ranked number thirteen on ''Forbes'' 2010 Celebrity 100 ranking $48 million. From the $48 million she made between June 2009 to June 2010 made her the no. 4 highest earners under 30 and the youngest on the list. between June 2010 and June 2011, Cyrus earned $54 million.

    From working on Hannah Montana, Cyrus got paid $15,000 per episode she did on the hit show, making her the 6th highest paid child star on television behind fellow Disney stars Dylan and Cole Sprouse and Keke Palmer with $20,000 for their shows. Also, she is behind friend and Disney star Selena Gomez that makes $25,000 per episode of her show, Nick star Miranda Cosgrove with $180,000 per episode of her show, and one time co-star Angus T. Jones that got paid $250,000 for each episode of his show. Though she had not got paid as much as other Disney stars,when she was 17 she was named #19 on the "Top 20 World's Richest Female Singers Of All Time" list with over $100 million in 5 years active throughout her career, which made her the youngest female artist on the list. In 2011, she was named #1 on the "Top 10 Richest Teens in Hollywood" with $120 million.

    Personal life and image

    In an interview, friend and actor Tyler Posey stated that he and Cyrus met on the set of the show Doc, and that they shared their first kiss on the show. He then stated that he and Cyrus dated for two years and then broke up when they were 11.

    Cyrus told ''Seventeen'' magazine that she and Nick Jonas had dated for two years and "were in love", but were "fighting a lot" by the end. After the break-up, Cyrus says that she initially "rebell[ed] against everything Nick wanted me to be. And then I was like, I've got to be by myself for now, and just figure out who I really am."

    In February 2008, Cyrus and her friend opened a YouTube account and began posting videos of what they called ''The Miley and Mandy Show.'' The show, described as a "YouTube hit," is said to be filmed for fun by Cyrus and Jiroux and to be entirely their work, with Cyrus and Jiroux editing the footage together.

    With Cyrus's increased success came increased media attention. In a May 2008 interview with ''The Los Angeles Times'', Francois Navarre, the proprietor of the X17 photo agency, said Cyrus's market value had picked up considerably after the ''Vanity Fair'' photo controversy: "She's started to sell more. [...] It used to be $300, and now it's $2,000 for a picture." Estimates for a picture of the then-15 year old's first kiss ranged from $30,000 to $150,000. Navarre noted that Cyrus rarely behaved against her wholesome image or went out without a parent and stated, "She has people waiting for the moment she starts to be less traditional. [...] It's natural. Any teenager. But it's going to come very fast. [...] As soon as her mom lets her go out by herself. It's going to start to be interesting." ''Time'' magazine included her on the 2008 ''Time'' 100, the magazine's list of the 100 most influential people in the world. Her write-up was written by former child star Donny Osmond, who warned, "As an idol to tweens the world over, singer-actress Miley Cyrus, 15, is riding a huge tidal wave at the pinnacle of her career; this is as it should be. I hope she enjoys it. [...] Within three to five years, Miley will have to face adulthood. [...] As she does, she'll want to change her image, and that change will be met with adversity."

    Cyrus celebrated her 16th birthday at Disneyland with a charity fundraiser for Youth Service America, a youth volunteer service organization.

    At the end of 2009, ''Billboard'' magazine ranked Cyrus the fourth best-selling female artist and the fifth best-selling singer overall.

    In June 2009, Cyrus ended her nine-month relationship with model Justin Gaston shortly before flying to Georgia to film ''The Last Song''. While filming later that month, Cyrus began dating her co-star in ''The Last Song'', Australian actor Liam Hemsworth. She later called him her "first serious boyfriend". In August 2010, it was confirmed that her relationship with Hemsworth had ended. Cyrus and Hemsworth were seen together a month later, and were reportedly back together. It was announced in early November that the couple had split again. On March 31, 2011, Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth have reportedly rekindled their relationship. On June 20, Cyrus confirmed in a interview on the DirtTv in Australia that she and Hemsworth are still rocking and still are together.

    On October 26, 2010, less than a month before Cyrus's eighteenth birthday, her father Billy Ray Cyrus filed for divorce from her mother in Tennessee, citing irreconcilable differences. In a statement made to ''People'' the next day announcing the split, the couple said, "As you can imagine, this is a very difficult time for our family... We are trying to work through some personal matters. We appreciate your thoughts and prayers." However, on March 18, 2011, Cyrus's father announced on ''The View'' that he had dropped the divorce.

    Cyrus is the youngest recording artist ever with four #1 albums in less than 3 years.

    In June 2011, Cyrus was named by the Rolling Stones magazine a queen of pop, she was named #8 based on album sales selling 2.027 million copies. also, she was named #7 based on digital tracks selling 14.763 million digital copies, #5 based on youtube views with 784,667,358 views, #12 based on radio airplay with 216 airplay's, #11 based on Billboard hot 100 appearances with 164.2 points, and #9 based on social networking with 14.9 million Facebook likes, and 1.4 million Twitter followers. lastly, she was named #6 based off the gross of her tours with 66.5 million dollars in grossing, #14 based off award wins, in this case the Teen Choice Awards did not count and only mainstream-awards counted such as the Grammy Awards and awards like that in the music category, #14 based on album reviews. out of all the rankings for the categories, she was name on the official "Queen of Pop" list at #8 behind Beyonce, Katy Perry, best friend Taylor Swift, her inspiration Britney Spears and many more. She also beat out Carrie Underwood, Nicki Minaj, Adele, Christina Aguilera, and many more.

    Controversies

    In December 2007, a brief controversy emerged when photos Cyrus had posted on her private MySpace account, depicting her and a female friend sharing a piece of licorice and "almost kissing", were spread across the internet, prompting rumors of lesbianism. Cyrus comments, "For me, I was like, That's two girls—it's not a big deal. But they got spread around. Like someone copied and pasted and said, Omigod, look at this, and blah blah blah."

    In April 2008, several provocative images of Cyrus in her underwear and swimsuit were leaked onto the web by a teenager who hacked Cyrus's Gmail account. Cyrus described the images as "silly, inappropriate shots" and stated, "I am going to make mistakes and I am not perfect. I never intended for any of this to happen and I am truly sorry if I have disappointed anyone." On April 25, 2008, the televised entertainment program ''Entertainment Tonight'' reported that Cyrus, then 15, had posed topless for a photoshoot taken by photographer Annie Leibovitz for ''Vanity Fair.'' On April 29, 2008, ''The New York Times'' clarified that though the pictures left an impression that she was bare-breasted, Cyrus was wrapped in a bedsheet and was actually not topless. Some parents expressed outrage at the nature of the photograph, which a Disney spokesperson described as "a situation [that] was created to deliberately manipulate a 15-year-old in order to sell magazines." Gary Marsh, president of entertainment for Disney Channel Worldwide, was quoted by ''Portfolio'' magazine to have said, “For Miley Cyrus to be a 'good girl' is now a business decision for her. Parents have invested in her a godliness. If she violates that trust, she won't get it back." In response to the Internet circulation of the photo and ensuing media attention, Cyrus released a statement of apology on April 27, 2008: "I took part in a photo shoot that was supposed to be 'artistic' and now, seeing the photographs and reading the story, I feel so embarrassed. I never intended for any of this to happen and I apologize to my fans who I care so deeply about." Leibovitz also released a statement: "I'm sorry that my portrait of Miley has been misinterpreted. The photograph is a simple, classic portrait, shot with very little makeup, and I think it is very beautiful."

    In May 2008, Gossett, Cyrus's longtime acting agent, left Cunningham Escott Slevin Doherty for United Talent Agency, partially with the hope of "giving Cyrus the major-agency backing that would support a widening career", according to ''The Hollywood Reporter''. About a year later in June 2009, Cyrus left both Gossett and UTA, which had recently negotiated her deals for ''The Last Song'' and the fourth season of ''Hannah Montana'', and joined the Creative Artists Agency, which had already represented her for music. Nikki Finke, who broke the news, reported, "Is this fair to UTA? Of course not. But I hear the decision was made by Miley's mother Trish Cyrus".

    Cyrus's performance of "Party in the U.S.A." at the 2009 Teen Choice Awards incited a media uproar, with some viewers criticizing Cyrus's provocative outfit and inclusion of a brief pole dance as inappropriate for her age, then sixteen, and for her young fans. Conversely, ''Newsday'' reported that her sexualization "has been coming for some time." Ian Drew, senior editor of ''US Weekly'', said, "She already has this risque image, so it really wasn't much of a stretch. That's how Britney [Spears] took off. She was the good girl gone bad, and it looks to be working for Miley as well." Cyrus was also criticized that year for dating Gaston, five years her senior, and for a photo displaying Cyrus and friends making "slant-eyed" expressions, which the Organization of Chinese Americans claimed was offensive to the Asian community. Cyrus apologized for the photo on her website, defending her actions and saying, "In NO way was I making fun of any ethnicity! I was simply making a goofy face."

    Later in 2010, TMZ released a video of Cyrus, then 16, giving Adam Shankman, producer of ''The Last Song'', a lap dance at the film's wrap party. Cyrus's father defended her actions, saying Miley was just "having fun" and that "it's what people her age do". Later that year in December, TMZ released a video of Cyrus, which took place five days after her 18th birthday at her Los Angeles home, in which she is seen smoking from a bong. She claimed she was smoking the psychoactive plant ''salvia divinorum'', although this has not been confirmed by anybody but Cyrus herself. Salvia is legal in the state of California, and Cyrus was of legal age at the time the video was shot. Cyrus's father expressed his sadness regarding the matter on Twitter, saying, "Sorry guys. I had no idea. Just saw this stuff for the first time myself. I'm so sad. There is much beyond my control right now".

    Filmography

    + Films ! Year ! Title ! Role Notes
    2003 ''Big Fish'' Young Ruthie Film debut
    2007 ''High School Musical 2'' Girl at pool Cameo
    2008 ''Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert'' 3D Concert film
    2008 Penny Voice-over Role
    2009 ''Hannah Montana: The Movie'' Based on TV series
    2010 '''' Veronica "Ronnie" Miller Film adaption of book
    2010 ''Sex and the City 2'' Herself Cameo
    2011 Herself Cameo
    2011 ''So Undercover'' Molly Release: October 28, 2011
    2011 ''LOL: Laughing Out Loud'' Lola Remake of French film
    Late 2012 ''Not Afraid'' Katy Harrison ''Filming''

    + Television ! Year ! Title ! Role Notes
    2001–2003 Kylie Recurring role
    2006–2011 ''Hannah Montana'' Lead role
    2006-2008 ''Disney Channel Games'' Herself / Hannah Montana Contestant, special performer
    2006 ''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody'' Miley Stewart / Hannah Montana "That's So Suite Life of Hannah Montana" (Season 2, Episode 20)
    2006–2008 ''Disney 365'' Herself In 9 episodes, 2006–2008.
    2007 '''' Celebrity Star (voice) "Frog Prince" (Season 2, Episode 5)
    2007–2008 '''' Yata (voice) Recurring role
    2008 ''E! True Hollywood Story'' Herself TV special Documentary
    2009 '''' Miley Stewart / Hannah Montana
    2011 ''Saturday Night Live'' Herself Host, March 5 episode.
    2011 Herself Back-to-school special.

    Discography

    Studio albums

  • ''Meet Miley Cyrus'' (2007)
  • ''Breakout'' (2008)
  • ''Can't Be Tamed'' (2010)
  • Extended plays

  • ''The Time of Our Lives'' (2009)
  • Tours

  • Best of Both Worlds Tour (2007–08)
  • Wonder World Tour (2009)
  • Gypsy Heart Tour (2011)
  • Awards and nominations

  • List of awards and nominations received by Miley Cyrus
  • References

    Further reading

    External links

  • Miley Cyrus at MTV
  • }} |- |- |- |- |- |-

    Category:1992 births Category:Actors from Tennessee Category:American child actors Category:American child singers Category:American female singers Category:American film actors Category:21st-century actors Category:American pop singers Category:American singer-songwriters Category:American television actors Category:American voice actors Category:Bubblegum pop Category:Fascination Records artists Category:Hollywood Records artists Category:Living people Category:American pop singer-songwriters Category:Child rock musicians Category:Musicians from Tennessee Category:People from Franklin, Tennessee Category:People from Nashville, Tennessee Category:Southern Baptists

    als:Miley Cyrus ar:مايلي سايرس gn:Miley Cyrus az:Mayli Sayrus bn:মাইলি সাইরাস bcl:Miley Cyrus bg:Майли Сайръс ca:Miley Cyrus cs:Miley Cyrusová cy:Miley Cyrus da:Miley Cyrus de:Miley Cyrus et:Miley Cyrus el:Μάιλι Σάιρους es:Miley Cyrus eo:Miley Cyrus eu:Miley Cyrus fa:مایلی سایرس fr:Miley Cyrus gl:Miley Cyrus gu:માઇલી સાઇરસ ko:마일리 사이러스 hy:Մայլի Սայրուս hi:माईली सायरस hr:Miley Cyrus ilo:Miley Cyrus id:Miley Cyrus is:Miley Cyrus it:Miley Cyrus he:מיילי סיירוס jv:Miley Cyrus ka:მაილი საირუსი lv:Mailija Sairusa lt:Miley Cyrus hu:Miley Cyrus mk:Мајли Сајрус mt:Miley Cyrus ms:Miley Cyrus mn:Майли Сайрус nl:Miley Cyrus ja:マイリー・サイラス no:Miley Cyrus nn:Miley Cyrus pl:Miley Cyrus pt:Miley Cyrus ksh:Miley Ray Cyrus ro:Miley Cyrus ru:Сайрус, Майли sq:Miley Cyrus simple:Miley Cyrus sk:Miley Cyrusová sl:Miley Cyrus sr:Мајли Сајрус sh:Miley Cyrus fi:Miley Cyrus sv:Miley Cyrus tl:Miley Cyrus ta:மைலே சைரஸ் th:ไมลีย์ ไซรัส tr:Miley Cyrus uk:Майлі Сайрус vi:Miley Cyrus war:Miley Cyrus yi:מיילי סיירוס zh:麥莉·希拉

    This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.



    Demetri Martin (born May 25, 1973) is an American comedian, actor, artist, musician, writer and humorist. Martin is best known for his work as a stand-up comedian, contributor on ''The Daily Show'' and for his Comedy Central show ''Important Things with Demetri Martin''.

    Early life

    Demetri Martin was born to a Greek American family in New York City, New York, and grew up in Toms River, New Jersey. He is the son of Lillian, a nutritionist, and Dean C. Martin, now deceased, a Greek Orthodox priest. Martin graduated from Yale University in 1995. Although he was accepted into Harvard Law School, he went to New York University School of Law after he received a full scholarship.

    Career

    In 2001, Martin caught his first big break in stand-up comedy when he appeared on Comedy Central's stand-up showcase ''Premium Blend''. At the 2003 Edinburgh Festival Fringe he won the Perrier award with his show ''If I...''. The show was turned into a British television special in 2004. From 2003 to 2004, Martin wrote for ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien''. In 2004, Martin had his own ''Comedy Central Presents'' stand-up special. His special was divided into three parts. In the first, he performed in traditional stand-up comedy fashion. In the second segment, he used humorous drawings as visual aids, which would serve either as the punchline or a background. During the third segment, he played a guitar and put on a pseudo-play where he would strum his guitar while alternating between playing harmonica and talking; some of his comedian friends dressed as fairies and dragons acted according to the story he was telling, detailing the magical land where his jokes came from. Martin's mother and grandmother also appeared.

    Since late 2005, he has been credited as a contributor on ''The Daily Show'', on which he has appeared as the named "Senior Youth Correspondent" and on which he hosts a segment called "Trendspotting". He has used this segment to talk about so-called hip trends among youth such as hookahs, wine, guerilla marketing and Xbox 360. A piece about social networking featured his profile on MySpace. On March 22, 2007, Demetri made another appearance on ''The Daily Show'', talking about the Viacom lawsuit against Google and YouTube.

    He has recorded a comedy CD/DVD titled ''These Are Jokes'', which was released on September 26, 2006. This album also features ''Saturday Night Live'' member Will Forte and stand-up comedian Leo Allen.

    Martin returned to ''The Daily Show'' on March 22, 2006, as the new Youth Correspondent, calling his segment "Professional Important News with Demetri Martin". In 2007, he starred in a Fountains of Wayne music video for "Someone to Love" as Seth Shapiro, a character in the song. He also starred in the video for the new Travis single "Selfish Jean", in which he wears multiple t-shirts with lyrics written on them.

    On September 2, 2007, Martin appeared on the season finale of the HBO series ''Flight of the Conchords''. He appeared as a keytar player named Demetri.

    He also had a part in the movie ''The Rocker'' (2008) starring Rainn Wilson. Martin played the part of the videographer when the band in the movie was making their first music video.

    In 2009, he hosted and starred in his own television show called Important Things With Demetri Martin on Comedy Central. Later in June, it was announced his show had been renewed for a second season. The second season premiered, again on Comedy Central, on February 4, 2010. Martin has stated that ''Important Things'' will not return for a third season.

    Prior to completing work on his second season, Martin starred in the comedy-drama film ''Taking Woodstock'' (2009), directed by Ang Lee, which premiered at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival. In the film Martin plays Elliot Tiber, a closeted gay artist who has given up his ambitions in the city to move upstate and help his old-world Jewish family run their Catskill Mountains motel. The film is based on the book written by Tiber.

    On April 25, 2011, Martin released his first book, titled ''This Is a Book by Demetri Martin''.

    Martin was slated to portray Paul DePodesta as Oakland Athletics assistant GM to Billy Beane in the 2011 movie ''Moneyball'', however was dropped and Jonah Hill took his place in the movie.

    Plans

    Martin sold his movie concept ''Will'' to DreamWorks; he is expected to play a key supporting role. He will play the lead in the film ''Moon People'', a pitch that he sold to Columbia Pictures.

    Martin also signed a blind script deal with CBS in October 2010 to produce, write, and star in his own television series.

    After CBS was shown the pilot for the series, they decided not to air it.

    On August 11, 2011, Fox ordered a presentation of a new animated show they might air.

    ''If I''

    ''If I'' is a Perrier Comedy Award-winning comedy one-man show written and performed by Demetri Martin at the 2003 Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It was also aired on British television as a special. The show is an autobiographical examination of Martin's life, as seen through various definitions of the word "if."

    The title of the special comes from a lengthy palindromic poem that Martin wrote; the words "if I" are at the center of the poem.

    Comedic style

    Martin is known for being an unconventional stand-up comic. He uses one-liners and drawings on a "large pad", as well as accompanying his jokes with music on either guitar, harmonica, piano, keyboard, glockenspiel, toy bells, ukulele, or tambourine, sometimes all at once. He has cited comedian Steven Wright as an important influence (both use deadpan one-liners in their acts) and he is also a fan of Bill Cosby.

    Personal life

    According to a July 2011 interview on the WTF with Marc Maron podcast, Demetri had a short-lived marriage to a girl he knew from high school. They began dating after high school and got married when he was in NYU Law School and she was attending NYU Medical School. He was aged 25 and in the end of his marriage when his stand-up career began.

    He is extremely allergic to nuts and peanuts.

    Martin moved to Santa Monica, California in 2009.

    Filmography

  • ''Invite Them Up'' (2005)
  • ''These Are Jokes'' (2006)
  • ''Demetri Martin. Person.'' (2007)
  • ''Important Things with Demetri Martin (2009-2010)
  • Filmography and television work

    ''If I'' ''12:21'' ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' "''Someone to Love (Fountains of Wayne song) ''Flight of the Conchords (TV series) ''The Rocker (film) ''Paper Heart'' ''Post Grad'' ''Taking Woodstock'' ''Important Things with Demetri Martin'' ''Take Me Home Tonight (film) ''Contagion (film) ''Conan (TV series)
    Year ! Title ! Role Notes
    2002 ''Analyze That'' Personal Assistant
    2003 | Himself British television special, also writer
    2004 | Himself short film, also writer
    2004 |Himself 1 episode, series writer
    2007 Someone to Love''" || Seth Shapiro ''Fountains of Wayne'' music video
    2007 Flight of the Conchords'' || Demetri Season 1, Episode 12
    2008 The Rocker'' || Kip (a music video producer)
    2009 | Himself
    2009 | Ad Exec
    2009 | Elliot Tiber
    2009–2010 | Himself / Various writer, series creator, executive producer, and composer
    2011 Take Me Home Tonight'' || Carlos
    2011 Contagion'' || Dr. David Eisenberg
    2011 Conan'' ||Himself guest

    Written works

    ''This Is a Book'', April 2011, .

    Awards and nominations

    Award
    Perrier Comedy AwardEmmy Awards Shared with Mike Sweeney (writer)Writers Guild of America Award Shared with Mike Sweeney (writer)Barry Award (for comedy)
    Year | For Category Result Other notes
    2003 | ''If I'' Won At the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
    2004 | ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program Nominated Mike Sweeney (head writer), Chris Albers, Jose Arroyo, Andy Blitz, Kevin Dorff, Daniel J. Goor, Michael Gordon, Brian Kiley, Michael Koman, Brian McCann, Guy Nicolucci, Conan O'Brien, Allison Silverman, Robert Smigel, Brian Stack, Andrew Weinberg
    2005 | ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' Comedy/Variety (Including Talk) - Series Won Mike Sweeney (head writer), Chris Albers, Jose Arroyo, Andy Blitz, Kevin Dorff, Daniel J. Goor, Michael Gordon, Brian Kiley, Michael Koman, Brian McCann, Guy Nicolucci, Conan O'Brien, Allison Silverman, Robert Smigel, Brian Stack, Andrew Weinberg
    2006 Barry Award || ''Dr. Earnest Parrot Presents Demetri Martin'' Won Award for best show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival

    References

    External links

  • Interview from November, 2006, in Onion AV Club
  • Interview from October 2006, in The DePaulia
  • Article, in ''The Scotsman''
  • Article, in ''Gelf Magazine''
  • Interview by Brian M. Palmer
  • MP3 Audio Interview on ''The Sound of Young America'' public radio show and podcast
  • Interview Believer Mag
  • New Jersey Monthly Magazine
  • Fresh Air, NPR.org
  • Category:1973 births Category:Actors from New Jersey Category:Actors from New York City Category:American comedians Category:American comedy musicians Category:American comedy writers Category:American film actors Category:American humorists Category:American people of Greek descent Category:American stand-up comedians Category:American television actors Category:American television writers Category:Living people Category:New York University alumni Category:Writers from New Jersey Category:Writers from New York City Category:Writers Guild of America Award winners Category:Yale University alumni Category:The Daily Show correspondents and contributors

    cs:Demetri Martin da:Demetri Martin de:Demetri Martin fr:Demetri Martin gl:Demetri Martin it:Demetri Martin ru:Мартин, Деметри simple:Demitri Martin fi:Demetri Martin sv:Demetri Martin

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