Name	Bette Midler
Background	solo_singer
Alias	The Divine Miss M
Birth date	December 01, 1945
Origin	Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. Territory
Genre	Vocal, pop, adult contemporary, comedy
Occupation	Singer, actress, comedian, author, producer
Instrument	Vocals-mezzo soprano, ukulele
Years active	1965–present
Label	Atlantic (1972–1997)Warner Bros. (1998–2001)Columbia (2002–present)
Associated acts	Barry Manilow
Spouse	Martin von Haselberg (1984–present)
Children	Sophie von Haselberg (b. 1986)
Website	bettemidler.com }}

Bette Midler (born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as ''The Rose'', ''Ruthless People'', ''Beaches'', and ''For The Boys''. During her more than forty-year career, Midler has been nominated for two Academy Awards, and won three Grammy Awards, four Golden Globes, three Emmy Awards, and a special Tony Award. She has sold over 30 million albums worldwide. Her voice type is categorized as deep mezzo soprano.

Early life and family

Midler was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her parents moved from Paterson, New Jersey to Honolulu before she was born, and hers was one of the few Jewish families in a mostly Asian neighborhood. Her mother, Ruth (née Schindel), was a seamstress and housewife, and her father, Fred Midler, worked at a Navy base in Hawaii as a painter. She was named after actress Bette Davis, though Davis pronounced her first name in two syllables, and Midler uses one, . She was raised in Aiea and attended Radford High School, in Honolulu. She was voted "Most Talkative" in the 1961 school Hoss Election, and in her Senior Year (Class of 1963), "Most Dramatic". Midler majored in drama at the University of Hawaii, but left after three semesters. She earned money in the 1966 film ''Hawaii'' as an extra, playing an uncredited seasick passenger named Miss David Buff.

Midler married Martin von Haselberg on December 16, 1984, about six weeks after their first meeting. Their daughter, Sophie Frederica Alohilani Von Haselberg, was born on November 14, 1986.

Career

Theater work

In the summer of 1965, Midler relocated to New York City, using the money from her work in the film ''Hawaii''. She landed her first professional onstage role in Tom Eyen's Off-Off-Broadway plays in 1965, ''Miss Nefertiti Regrets'' and ''Cinderella Revisited,'' a children's play by day and an adult show by night. From 1966 to 1969, she played the role of Tzeitel in ''Fiddler on the Roof'' on Broadway. After ''Fiddler'', she joined the original cast of ''Salvation'' in 1969.

In the summer of 1970, Midler began singing in the Continental Baths, a gay bathhouse in the city. During this time, she became close to her piano accompanist, Barry Manilow, who produced her first album in 1972, ''The Divine Miss M.'' It was during her time at the Continental Baths that she built up a core following. In the late 1990s, during the release of her album ''Bathhouse Betty'', Midler commented on her time performing there, "Despite the way things turned out [with the AIDS crisis], I'm still proud of those days. I feel like I was at the forefront of the gay liberation movement, and I hope I did my part to help it move forward. So, I kind of wear the label of 'Bathhouse Betty' with pride".

In 1971, Midler starred in the first professional production of The Who's rock opera ''Tommy'', with director Richard Pearlman and the Seattle Opera. It was during the run of ''Tommy'' that Midler first appeared on ''The Tonight Show.''

1972–1980: ''The Divine Miss M'' and success

Midler released her debut album, ''The Divine Miss M'', on Atlantic Records, in December 1972. It reached Billboard's Top 10 and became a million-selling Platinum-certified album, earning Midler the 1973 Grammy Award for Best New Artist. It featured three hit singles, with "Do You Want To Dance?", "Friends", and "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy", which became Midler's first No. 1 Adult Contemporary hit. "Bugle Boy" became a very successful rock cover of the classic swing tune originally introduced and popularized in 1941 by the famous Andrews Sisters, of whom Midler has repeatedly referenced as her idols and inspiration, as far back as her first appearances on The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson. Midler told Carson in an interview that she always wanted to move like the sisters, and Patty Andrews once remembered, "When I first heard the introduction on the radio, I thought it was our old record. When Bette opened at the Amphitheater in Los Angeles, Maxene and I went backstage to see her. Her first words were, 'What else did you record?'" During another one of Midler's concerts, Maxene went on stage and presented her with an honorary bugle. Bette recorded other Andrews Sisters hits, including "In the Mood" and "Lullaby of Broadway."

Her self-titled follow-up album was released at the end of 1973. It reached Billboard's Top 10 and eventually sold close to a million copies in the United States alone. Midler returned to recording with the 1976 and 1977 albums, ''Songs for the New Depression'' and ''Broken Blossom''.

In 1974, she received a Special Tony Award for her contribution to Broadway, with ''Clams on the Half Shell Revue'' playing at the Minskoff Theater. From 1975–1978, she also provided the voice of Woody the Spoon on the PBS educational series ''Vegetable Soup''. In 1977, Midler's first television special, ''Ol' Red Hair is Back'', premiered, featuring guest stars Dustin Hoffman and Emmett Kelly. It went on to win the ''Emmy Award'' for Outstanding Special — Comedy-Variety or Music.

In 1979, Midler made her first motion picture, starring in the 1960s-era rock and roll tragedy ''The Rose'', as a drug-addicted rock star modeled after Janis Joplin. That year, she also released her fifth studio album, ''Thighs and Whispers''. Midler's first foray into disco was a commercial and critical failure and went on to be her all-time lowest charting album, peaking at No. 65 on the ''Billboard'' album chart. Soon afterward, she began a world concert tour, with one of her shows in Pasadena being filmed and released as the concert film ''Divine Madness'' (1980).

In 1979, she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for ''The Rose'', a role for which she won the Golden Globe for Best Actress (Comedy or Musical). The film's acclaimed soundtrack album sold over two million copies in the United States alone, earning a Double Platinum certification. The single version of the song held the No. 1 position on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart for five consecutive weeks and reached No. 3 on Billboard's Hot 100. It earned Midler her first Gold single and won the Grammy award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female.

1981–89: ''Wind Beneath My Wings'' and ''Beaches''

In 1981, Midler worked on the troubled comedy project ''Jinxed!''. However, during production, there was friction with co-star Ken Wahl and the film's director, Don Siegel. Released in 1982, the film was a major flop. Midler did not appear in any other films until 1986. During those four years, she concentrated on her music career and in 1983, released the album ''No Frills'', produced by Chuck Plotkin, who was best known for his work with Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen. The album included three single releases: the ballad "All I Need To Know", a cover of Detroit native Marshall Crenshaw's "You're My Favorite Waste of Time" – which Midler fell in love with after flipping his 45 of "Someday Someway" – and Midler's take on the Rolling Stones cover "Beast of Burden". The rock and New Wave album became Midler's third lowest charting album in the U.S.

Midler performed on USA for Africa's 1985 fund-raising single "We Are the World", and participated at the Live Aid event at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. Also in 1985, she signed a multi-picture deal with Touchstone Pictures. She was subsequently cast by director Paul Mazursky in ''Down and Out in Beverly Hills'', beginning a successful comedic acting career. She followed that role with ''Ruthless People'' (1986), ''Outrageous Fortune'' (1987), and ''Big Business'' (1988). Later in 1988, Midler lent her voice to the animated character Georgette, a snobbish poodle, in Disney's ''Oliver & Company'', and had a hit with the tearjerker ''Beaches,'' co-starring Barbara Hershey. The accompanying soundtrack remains Midler's all-time biggest selling disc, reaching No. 2 on ''Billboard''s album chart and with U.S. sales of four million copies. It featured her biggest hit, "Wind Beneath My Wings", which went to No. 1 on ''Billboard''s Hot 100, achieved Platinum status, and won Midler her third Grammy Award – for Record of the Year – at the 1990 telecast.

1990–2000: Chart comeback

In 1990, Midler's single "From A Distance" topped the charts and achieved platinum status. The next year, Midler co-starred with Woody Allen in ''Scenes from a Mall'', again for Mazursky. She earned another Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for 1991's ''For the Boys,'' directed by Mark Rydell, who also directed ''The Rose''. For the latter, she was awarded another Golden Globe for Best Actress (Comedy or Musical). She turned down the lead role in 1992's ''Sister Act,'' which instead went to Whoopi Goldberg. In 1993, she starred with Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy in the movie, ''Hocus Pocus'', as Winifred "Winnie" Sanderson, the head witch of the Sanderson Sisters.

Midler's other films include ''Stella'' (1990), ''The First Wives Club'' (1996), and ''The Stepford Wives'' (2004). Her television work includes an Emmy-nominated version of the stage musical ''Gypsy'' and a guest appearance as herself in Fran Drescher's ''The Nanny.'' In 1997, Midler, along with her co-stars from ''The First Wives Club'', Goldie Hawn, and Diane Keaton, was a recipient of the Women in Film Crystal Award, which honors "outstanding women who, through their endurance and the excellence of their work, have helped to expand the role of women within the entertainment industry".

Midler won an Emmy Award in 1992 for her performance on the next-to-last episode of ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' in May 1992, during which she sang an emotion-laden "One for My Baby (and One More for the Road)" to Johnny Carson. That night, Midler began singing "Here's That Rainy Day", Carson's favorite song; Carson joined in a few lyrics later. She appeared on ''Seinfeld'' in the episode "The Understudy", which was the season finale of that show's sixth season in 1995.

Her 1997 HBO special ''Diva Las Vegas'' earned her a third Emmy Award, for Outstanding Performance in a Variety or Music Program.

In 1995 and 1999, she reached the top of the US Dance Charts with remixes of her hits "To Deserve You" on Atlantic and "I'm Beautiful" on Warner Brothers Records. "To Deserve You" reached No. 2 and "I'm Beautiful" reached No. 1.

2000–01

Midler has guest-starred in various sitcoms over the years, including ''The Simpsons'' in the episode "Krusty Gets Kancelled" (she is first seen traversing a highway picking up trash when she is approached by Bart and Lisa with a request for Midler to appear on a show to revive Krusty's dying career). In 2000, Midler starred in her own sitcom, ''Bette''. Airing on CBS, initial ratings were high but soon declined and the show did not last a full season, being cancelled in early 2001. During the show's short lifespan, Bette's daughter (played by Lindsay Lohan in the pilot, then by Marina Malota starting with the third episode) and her husband were recast (Robert Hays succeeded Kevin Dunn in the final episode aired). The show was also reportedly rocked by backstage turmoil. Also in 2001, ''Bette or Bust'', a book chronicling Midler's "Divine Miss Millennium Tour", was released.

Music

Midler has won three Grammy Awards., Best New Artist, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "The Rose" and Record of the Year for "Wind Beneath My Wings". Two of her recordings, "Wind Beneath My Wings" and "From a Distance" won the Grammy Award for Song of the Year. "From a Distance" became her longest running No. 1 – six consecutive weeks – on ''Billboard''s Adult Contemporary chart. When the American Film Institute announced "The 100 Years of the Greatest Songs" on June 22, 2004, two of Midler's recordings were selected by the board: "Wind Beneath My Wings" (No. 44) and "The Rose" (No. 83). However, after years of erratic record sales, Midler was dropped from the Warner Brothers label in 2001, after nearly three decades with Warner Music Group.

After a reported long-standing feud with Barry Manilow, the two joined forces after many years in 2003 to record ''Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook''. Of the project, Manilow said he'd had a dream that he was recording with Midler again, so he called her up with the idea and she agreed that it was due time to work together again. Manilow duetted with Midler on the song "(I'd Like to Get You on a) Slow Boat to China", after a little dialogue between the two artists at the start of the track. Now signed to Columbia Records, the album was an instant success, being certified gold in only a few weeks. One of the ''Clooney Songbook'' selections, "This Ole House", became Midler's first Christian radio single shipped by Rick Hendrix and his positive music movement. The album was nominated for a Grammy the following year.

In 2003–04, Midler toured the U.S. in her new show, ''Kiss My Brass'', to sell-out audiences. In early 2005, an Australian tour, ''Kiss My Brass Down Under'', was equally successful. Midler joined forces again with Manilow for another tribute album, ''Bette Midler Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook''. Released in October 2005, the album sold 55,000 copies the first week of release, returned Midler to the Top 10, and was nominated for a Grammy Award.

Grammy Awards

!Year	!Award	!Performance	!Result
	Best New Artist	—
Album of the Year	''The Divine Miss M''
Best Female Pop Vocal Performance	"Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy"
	Best Female Pop Vocal Performance	rowspan=2
Record of the Year
	Record of the Year
Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
	Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
Record of the Year
2004		''Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook''
2007	Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album	''Bette Midler Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook''
2008	Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album	''Cool Yule''

The year given is the year of the ceremony.

In 1981 the album ''In Harmony: A Sesame Street Record'' won the Grammy for Best Recording for Children, Midler was one of the various artists featured. This Grammy was awarded to the producers, David Levine and Lucy Simon.

"Wind Beneath My Wings" also won the Grammy for Song of the Year. This Grammy was awarded to the songwriters, Larry Henley and Jeff Silbar.

In 1990 Midler's version of "From a Distance" won the Grammy for Song of the Year. This Grammy was awarded to the songwriter, Julie Gold.

Ongoing work

In 2006, Midler released a new Christmas album, ''Cool Yule'', featuring the title song (written by Steve Allen) and a duet of "Winter Wonderland"/"Let It Snow" with Johnny Mathis. Midler starred in the 2007 film ''Then She Found Me'', directed by Helen Hunt and starring Hunt, Matthew Broderick, and Colin Firth, and appeared on the ''American Idol'' season 6 finale, singing "Wind Beneath My Wings" live at the Kodak Theatre.

On December 6, 2007, Midler's album ''Cool Yule'' received a Grammy nomination for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album.

Midler had a Vegas show entitled ''Bette Midler: The Showgirl Must Go On'' at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. The show comprised The Staggering Harlettes, 20 female dancers called The Caesar Salad Girls and a 13-piece band. } The show debuted on February 20, 2008, and played its final performance on January 31, 2010, after a two-year run. The show was nominated for an Emmy for outstanding variety,music or comedy special in 2011.

A new "best of" album, ''Jackpot: The Best Bette'', was released in 2008 and reached No. 66 on the U.S. charts, and No. 6 in the UK, where it was certified Platinum for sales of over 300,000 copies.

In June 2009, Midler appeared on the Bravo TV show ''My Life on the D-List'' with Kathy Griffin. In December 2009, Midler appeared in the ''Royal Variety Performance'', an annual British charity event attended by Queen Elizabeth II. She performed "In My Life" and "Wind Beneath My Wings" as the closing act.

In 2010, Midler voiced the character Kitty Galore in the animated film ''Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore''. The film was a modest success, grossing $112 million worldwide. In November 2010, Midler released ''Memories of You'', another compilation of lesser known tracks from her catalog. She promoted the album to her UK fans on ''Daybreak'' and ''The Graham Norton Show'', on the latter of which she also performed "Dreamland" from ''For the Boys''.

Midler is one of the producers of the Broadway production of the musical ''Priscilla Queen of the Desert'' which opened in February 2011.

Midler will be co-starring alongside Billy Crystal in the movie ''Parental Guidance'' due to be released in 2012. Midler also auctioned her outfits and achievements from her 40-year career in November 2011 in order to raise money for the New York Restoration Project.

Midler has an estimated net worth of $175 million.

In June 2012, she is slated to receive the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award at the Songwriters Hall of Fame in New York in recognition of her having "captivated the world" with her "stylish presentation and unmistakable voice".

Charity work

In 1995, Midler founded the New York Restoration Project (NYRP), a non-profit organization with the goal of revitalizing neglected neighborhood parks in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods of New York City. These include Highbridge Park, Fort Washington Park, and Fort Tryon Park in upper Manhattan and Roberto Clemente State Park and ''Bridge Park'' in the Bronx.

In 1999, the city planned to auction 114 community gardens for commercial development. Midler led a coalition of greening organizations to save them. NYRP took ownership of 60 of the most neglected plots. Today, Midler and her organization work with local volunteers and community groups to ensure that these gardens are kept safe, clean and vibrant. In 2003, Midler opened Swindler Cove Park, a new public park on the Harlem River shore featuring specially designed educational facilities and the Peter Jay Sharp Boathouse, the first community rowing facility to be built on the Harlem River in more than 100 years. The organization offers free in-school and after-school environmental education programming to students from high-poverty Title I schools.

Discography

1972: ''The Divine Miss M''

1973: ''Bette Midler''

1976: ''Songs for the New Depression''

1977: ''Live at Last''

1977: ''Broken Blossom''

1979: ''Thighs and Whispers''

1983: ''No Frills''

1990: ''Some People's Lives''

1995: ''Bette of Roses''

1998: ''Bathhouse Betty''

2000: ''Bette''

2003: ''Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook''

2005: ''Bette Midler Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook''

2006: ''Cool Yule''

Tours

1970–1972: Continental Baths

1972: Cross Country Tour

1973: The Divine Miss M Tour

1975: Clams on the Half Shell Revue

1975–1976: The Depression Tour

1977–1978: An Intimate Evening with Bette

1978: The Rose Live In Concert

1978: World Tour (Bette Midler)

1979–1980: Bette! Divine Madness

1980: Divine Madness – Pasadena

1982–1983: De Tour

1993: Experience the Divine

1994: Experience The Divine Again!

1997: Diva Las Vegas

1999: Bathhouse Betty Club Tour

1999–2000: The Divine Miss Millennium Tour

2003–2004: Kiss My Brass

2005: Kiss My Brass Down Under

2008–2010: The Showgirl Must Go On

Filmography

Film

! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
1966		Passenger	uncredited
1969		Wedding Guest	uncredited, cut scene
1972	''Scarecrow in a Garden of Cucumbers''	unknown	voice
1974	''''	Virgin Mary	Also known as ''The Divine Mr. J''; blocked distribution of film
1979	''''	Mary Rose Foster
1980	''Divine Madness!''	Herself/Divine Miss M.	concert filmNominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1982	''Jinxed!''	Bonita Friml
1986	''Down and Out in Beverly Hills''	Barbara Whiteman	Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1986	''Ruthless People''	Barbara Stone	American Comedy Award for Funniest Actress in a Motion Picture
1987		Sandy Brozinsky	American Comedy Award for Funniest Actress in a Motion PictureNominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1988		C. C. Bloom
1988	''Oliver & Company''	Georgette	voice
1988		Sadie Shelton/Sadie Ratliff	American Comedy Award for Funniest Actress in a Motion Picture
1989	''''		Short film
1990		Stella Claire
1991	''For the Boys''	Dixie Leonard	Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or ComedyNominated — Academy Award for Best Actress
1991	''Scenes from a Mall''	Deborah Fifer
1992	''Hijinx''	... The Ringmaster
1993		Mama Rose	Television filmGolden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TVNominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress – Miniseries or a Movie
1993		Winifred 'Winnie' Sanderson	Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Actress
1995		Doris Saphron	uncreditedAmerican Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
1996	''''	Brenda Cushman	National Board of Review Award for Best CastNominated — Satellite Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1997		Lilly Leonard
1999	''Get Bruce''	Herself
1999	''Fantasia 2000''	Herself / Hostess	(segment "Piano Concerto No. 2, Allegro, Opus 102")
2000	''What Women Want''	Dr. J.M. Perkins	uncredited
2000	''Isn't She Great''	Jacqueline Susann
2000	''Drowning Mona''	Mona Dearly
2004	''''	Bobbie Markowitz
2007	''Then She Found Me''	Bernice Graves
2008	''''	Leah Miller
2010	''Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore''	Kitty Galore
2012		Diane Decker	To be released December 25, 2012

Television

! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
1976	''Vegetable Soup''	Woody the Spoon	Voice role
1976	''The Bette Midler Show''	Herself	Television special
1977	''Ol' Red Hair is Back''	Herself	Television specialPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy-Variety or Music SpecialNominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program
1984	''Art Or Bust''	Herself/Divine Miss M.	Television special
1984	''Video Music Awards''	Herself/co-host	Awards Show
1989	''''	Music teacher	Created to demonstrate special effects; shot entirely and shown only at Disney-MGM Studios in Florida
1990	''Earth Day Special''	Mother Nature
1993	''''	Herself	"Krusty Gets Kancelled"
1995	''Seinfeld''	Herself
1997	''Diva Las Vegas''	Herself/Divine Miss M.	Television specialPrimetime Emmy Award for Individual Performance in a Variety or Music ProgramNominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy-Variety or Music Special
1997	''''	Herself	"You Bette Your Life"
1998	''Murphy Brown	Herself	"Never Can Say Goodbye"
1999	''Jackie's Back''	Herself
2000–01		Bette	18 episodesTV Guide Award - Actress of the Year in a New SeriesNominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy
2008	''Strictly Come Dancing''	Herself	Performed ''Wind Beneath My Wings''
2009	''Loose Women''	Herself	Guest Host
2009	''Dancing on Ice''	Herself	Performed
2009	''Strictly Come Dancing''	Herself
2009	''''	Herself	Guest
2009	''''	Herself	Performed
2009	''''	Herself	Guest
2009	''Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List''	Herself	Guest / toured Las Vegas nightlife w/Kathy
2010	''''	Herself	HBO TV Special (December 31)
2010	''Paul O'Grady's Christmas''	Herself	Guest

See also

List of number-one hits (United States)

List of artists who reached number one on the Hot 100 (U.S.)

List of number-one dance hits (United States)

List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. Dance chart

References

Further reading

''A View From A Broad'' 1981

''The Saga of Baby Divine'' (Crown Publishers, 1984), ISBN 978-0-517-55040-3

''Bette: An Intimate Biography of Bette Midler'' by George Mair (Birch Lane Press, 1995), ISBN 1-55972-272-X

External links

Official Website

Bette Midler: Bootleg Betty

Bette Midler: Fan-Forum

Bette on the Boards

Bette Midler at TVGuide.com

Las Vegas Sun''">Bette Midler bio, photos, stories and blogs in the ''Las Vegas Sun''

Bette Midler on Muppet Wiki

Bette Midler at Emmys.com

Category:1945 births Category:Actors from Hawaii Category:American comedians Category:American dance musicians Category:American female pop singers Category:American film actors Category:American mezzo-sopranos Category:American television actors Category:American voice actors Category:Atlantic Records artists Category:Blue-eyed soul singers Category:Columbia Records artists Category:English-language singers Category:Best Miniseries or Television Movie Actress Golden Globe winners Category:Best Musical or Comedy Actress Golden Globe (film) winners Category:Emmy Award winners Category:French-language singers Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Jewish actors Category:Jewish American musicians Category:Jewish comedians Category:Jewish singers Category:Living people Category:New Star of the Year (Actress) Golden Globe winners Category:People from Honolulu, Hawaii Category:Tony Award winners Category:Torch singers Category:Traditional pop music singers Category:Warner Bros. Records artists Category:Women comedians

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name	Johnny Carson
birth name	John William Carson
birth date	October 23, 1925
birth place	Corning, Iowa, U.S.
death date	January 23, 2005
death place	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
nationality	American
active	1950–1994
genre	Satire, sketch comedy, improvisational comedy
subject	current events, American politics, American culture, pop culture
signature	Johnny Carson Signature.svg
influences	Groucho Marx, Jack Benny, Fred Allen, Bob Hope, Laurel and Hardy, Red Skelton, George Burns, Milton Berle, Steve Allen, Charlie Chaplin, Don Rickles, Michael Gough, Bob Newhart
influenced	Ray Combs, Ellen DeGeneres, Kathy Griffin, Bill Hicks, Jay Leno, David Letterman, George Lopez, Bill Maher, Conan O'Brien, Jerry Seinfeld, Garry Shandling
spouse	Jody Morrill Wolcott (1949–1963)Joanne Copeland (1963–1972)Joanna Holland (1972–1985)Alexis Mass (1987–2005, his death)
notable work	Host of ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson''

}} John William "Johnny" Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host and comedian, known for thirty years as host of ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson received six Emmy Awards, including the Governor Award, and a 1985 Peabody Award; he was inducted into the ''Television Academy Hall of Fame'' in 1987. Johnny Carson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1992 and received a Kennedy Center Honor in 1993.

Although his show was already successful by the end of the 1960s, during the 1970s Carson became an American icon and remained so until his retirement in 1992. He adopted a casual, conversational approach with extensive interaction with guests, an approach pioneered by Arthur Godfrey and previous ''Tonight Show'' hosts Steve Allen and Jack Paar. Late night hosts David Letterman, Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien, Craig Ferguson, and Jimmy Fallon have all cited Carson's influence on their late-night talk shows, which resemble his in format and tone.

Early life and career

Carson was born in Corning, Iowa, on October 23, 1925, to Homer Lloyd "Kit" Carson, a power company manager, and Ruth Hook Carson. He grew up in the nearby towns of Avoca, Clarinda, and Red Oak in southwest Iowa before moving to Norfolk, Nebraska, at the age of eight. At the age of twelve, Carson found a book on magic at a friend's house and immediately purchased a mail-order magician's kit. He debuted as "The Great Carsoni" at fourteen and was paid $3; many other performances at local picnics and country fairs followed.

Carson joined the U.S. Navy on June 8, 1943, received V-12 officer training at Columbia University and Millsaps College, and continued to perform magic. Commissioned an ensign late in the war, Carson was assigned to the USS ''Pennsylvania'' in the Pacific. He was en route to the combat zone aboard a troopship when the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki ended the war. Carson served as a communications officer in charge of decoding encrypted messages and said that the high point of his military career was performing a magic trick for United States Secretary of the Navy James V. Forrestal.

Carson then attended the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, where he joined Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, continued performing magic (now paid $25 per appearance), wrote a thesis on the structure of Jack Benny's comedy routines, and graduated with a bachelor of arts degree in radio and speech with a minor in physics in 1949.

He began his broadcasting career in 1950 at WOW radio and television in Omaha, Nebraska. Carson soon hosted a morning television program called ''The Squirrel's Nest''. One of his routines involved interviewing pigeons on the roof of the local courthouse that would allegedly report on the political corruption they had seen. Carson supplemented his income by serving as master of ceremonies at local church dinners, attended by some of the same politicians and civic leaders that he had lampooned on the radio.

In 1951 Carson visited California and unsuccessfully sought work. The wife of one of the political figures he spoofed owned stock in a radio station in Los Angeles and referred Carson to her brother, who was influential in the emerging television market in southern California, and later that year Carson went to work at CBS-owned Los Angeles television station KNXT. He would later joke that he owed his success to the birds of Omaha. In 1953 comic Red Skelton — a fan of Carson's "cult success" low-budget sketch comedy show, ''Carson's Cellar'' (1951 to 1953) on KNXT — asked Carson to join his show as a writer. In 1954 Skelton during rehearsal accidentally knocked himself unconscious an hour before his live show began, and Carson successfully filled in for him. In 1955, Jack Benny invited Carson to appear on one of his programs during the opening and closing segments. Carson imitated Benny and claimed that Benny had copied his gestures. Benny, however, predicted that Carson would have a successful career as a comedian.

Carson hosted several shows besides ''Carson's Cellar'', including the game show ''Earn Your Vacation'' (1954) and the variety show ''The Johnny Carson Show'' (1955–1956). He was a regular panelist on the original ''To Tell the Truth'' until 1962. After the prime time ''The Johnny Carson Show'' failed, he moved to New York City to host ''Who Do You Trust?'' (1957–1962), formerly known as ''Do You Trust Your Wife?''. In 1958 he appeared as a guest star in an episode entitled "Do You Trust Your Wife" on NBC's short-lived variety show, ''The Polly Bergen Show''. It was on ''Who Do You Trust?'' that Carson met his future sidekick, Ed McMahon. Although he believed moving to daytime would hurt his career, ''Who Do You Trust?'' was a success. It was the first show where he could ad lib and interview guests, and because of Carson's on-camera wit, the show became "the hottest item on daytime television" during his five years there.

''The Tonight Show''

NBC's ''Tonight'' was the late-night counterpart to its early-morning show ''Today''. Originating in 1953 with host Steve Allen, ''Tonight'' was somewhat experimental at the time, as the only previous network late-night program was NBC's "Broadway Open House". ''Tonight'' was successful, and when Allen moved on to prime-time comedy-variety shows, Jack Paar replaced him as host of ''Tonight''. Paar left the show in 1962.

Johnny Carson's success on ''Whom Do You Trust?'' led NBC to invite him to take over ''Tonight'' a few months before Paar's departure. Carson declined the offer because he feared the difficulty of interviewing celebrities for 1 3/4 hours (105 minutes) daily, but NBC asked him again after Bob Newhart, Jackie Gleason, Groucho Marx, and Joey Bishop all declined. Carson accepted in March 1962 but had six months left on his ABC contract, during which NBC used multiple guest hosts including Merv Griffin.

Although he continued to have doubts about his new job, Carson became host of ''Tonight'' (later becoming ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'') on October 1, 1962, and, after a difficult first year, overcame his fears. While ''Tonight'' under its previous hosts had been successful, especially under Paar, Carson's version eventually did well in the ratings. Billy Wilder said of Carson:

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McMahon followed Carson from ''Whom Do You Trust?'' as his announcer and sidekick. McMahon's opening line, "Heeeere's Johnny" was followed by a brief monologue by Carson. This was often followed by comedy sketches, interviews, and music. Carson's trademark was a phantom golf swing at the end of his monologues, aimed stage left toward the studio orchestra. (Guest hosts sometimes parodied that gesture. Bob Newhart rolled an imaginary bowling ball toward the audience.) Johnny enjoyed what he called the "Carson Kits," or beautiful girls, to adorn his show. Theona Bryant, a favorite, was a model. The other "Carson Cuties" were Phyllis Applegate, Norma Brooks, and Sally Todd.

Paul Anka wrote the theme song, ("Johnny's Theme"), a reworking of his "Toot Sweet"; given lyrics, it was renamed, "It's Really Love," and recorded by Annette Funicello in 1959. Before taking over ''The Tonight Show'', Carson wrote lyrics for the song and thus claimed 50% of the song's performance royalties (even though the lyrics were never used). The theme is heard being played on sound recordings of Carson's first ''Tonight Show'' and it was used without interruption through to his very last broadcast in 1992.

The show was originally produced in New York City, with occasional stints in California. It was not live in its early years, although during the 1970s, NBC fed the live taping from Burbank to New York via satellite for editing (see below). The program had been done "live on tape" (uninterrupted unless a problem occurred) since the Jack Paar days. Carson had a talent for quick quips to deal with problems. If the opening monologue fared poorly, the band would start playing "Tea for Two" and Carson danced, to laughs from the studio audience. Alternatively, Carson might pull the boom mic close to his face and announce ''"Attention K-Mart shoppers!"''

Move to Burbank

In May 1972, the show moved from New York to Burbank, California. Carson often joked about "beautiful downtown Burbank" and referred to "beautiful downtown Bakersfield," which prompted Mayor Mary K. Shell to chide Carson and invite him to her city to see improvements made during the early 1980s.

After July 1971, Carson stopped doing shows five days a week. Instead, on Monday nights there was a guest host, leaving Carson to do the other four each week. Shows were taped in Burbank at 5:30 pm (8:30 pm Eastern time) to be shown that evening at 11:30 pm Eastern time. On September 8, 1980, at Carson's request, the show cut its 90-minute format to 60 minutes; Tom Snyder's ''Tomorrow'' added a half hour to fill the vacant time. Joan Rivers became the "permanent" guest host from September 1983 until 1986. ''The Tonight Show'' returned to using rotating guest hosts, including comic George Carlin. Jay Leno then became the exclusive guest host in fall 1987. Leno joked that although other guest hosts had upped their fees, he had kept his low, assuring himself more bookings. Eventually, Monday night was for Leno, Tuesday for ''The Best of Carson''—rebroadcasts usually dating from a year earlier but occasionally from the 1970s.

Although Carson's work schedule became more attenuated, ''Tonight'' remained so successful that his compensation from NBC continued to rise; by the mid-1970s he had become the highest-paid personality on television,earning about $4 million a year ($}} today), not including nightclub appearances and his other businesses. He refused many offers to appear in films, including title roles in ''The Thomas Crown Affair'' and Gene Wilder's role in ''Blazing Saddles''.

In recognition of his 25th anniversary on ''The Tonight Show'', Carson received a personal Peabody Award, the Board saying he had "become an American institution, a household word, [and] the most widely quoted American"; they also said they "felt the time had come to recognize the contributions that Johnny has made to television, to humor, and to America."

Comic characters

Carson played several continuing characters on sketches during the show, including

Art Fern, the "Tea Time Movie" announcer, whose theme song was "Hooray for Hollywood." Carson once admitted on camera that this was his favorite character, based on late-afternoon TV hosts who would deliver commercials throughout the movie. Each sketch usually featured three long commercials interrupted by silent, four-second clips from antique films. When the camera returned from each clip, Art was always caught off-guard and immediately reminded viewers that they were watching a film favorite. The movies always had unlikely casts and even less likely titles: "Slim Pickens, Patti Page, Duke Wayne, and Charlton Heston in another classic Western: 'Kiss My Saddle Horn'!" Carson originally played the fast-talking huckster in his own voice (as Honest Bernie Schlock or Ralph Willie), and finally settled on a nasal, high-pitched, smarmy drone, reminiscent of Jackie Gleason's "Reginald Van Gleason III" character. The character, now permanently known as Art Fern, wore a lavish toupee, loud jackets, and a pencil mustache. Actress Carol Wayne became famous for her 100-plus appearances (1971–1982) as Art's buxom assistant, the Matinée Lady. While Art gave his spiel, she would enter the stage behind him. Art would react to her attractive body, wincing loudly, "''Ho'' — leeeee!" After Carol Wayne's death in 1985, Carson kept Art Fern off the air for most of the next year, and finally hired Danuta Wesley and then Teresa Ganzel to play the Matinée Lady. Carson also used these sketches to poke fun at the intricate Los Angeles interstate system, using a pointer and map to give confusing directions to shoppers often including points where he would unfold the cardboard map to point out, via the appropriate picture, when the shopper would arrive at "the fork in the road." Another freeway routine in the same theme centered around the fictional "Slauson Cutoff." Art Fern would advise drivers to take a series of freeways until they reached the Slauson Cutoff, and would then advise them to "Get out of your car, cut off your slauson, get back in your car," often followed by peals of laughter from the audience, led by McMahon.

Carnac the Magnificent, a turbaned psychic who could answer questions before seeing them. (This same routine had been done by Carson's predecessor, Steve Allen, as "The Answer Man." The Carnac character and routine closely resembled Ernie Kovacs' character "Mr. Question Man.") Carnac had a trademark entrance in which he always turned the wrong direction when coming onto stage and then "tripped" on the step up to Carson's desk. (In one episode, technicians rigged Carson's desk to fall apart when Carnac fell into it.) These comedic missteps were an indication of Carnac's true prescient abilities. Ed McMahon would hand Carnac a series of envelopes, said to have been "sitting inside a mayonaisse jar on Funk & Wagnall's porch since noon today," containing questions. Carnac would place each envelope against his forehead and predict the answer, such as "Gatorade." Then he would read the question: "What does an alligator get on welfare?" Some of the jokes were feeble, and McMahon used pauses after terrible puns and audience groans to make light of Carnac's lack of comic success ("Carnac must be used to quiet surroundings"), prompting Carson to return an equal insult. McMahon would always announce near the end, "I hold in my hand the ''last'' envelope," at which the audience would applaud wildly, prompting Carnac to pronounce a comedic "curse" on the audience, such as "May your sister elope with a camel!", or the most famous, "may the bird of paradise fly up your nose!".

Floyd R. Turbo, American (with no pause between words). A stereotypical redneck wearing a plaid hunting coat and cap, who offered "editorial responses" to left-leaning causes or news events. Railing against women's rights in the workplace, for example, Turbo would shout, "This raises the question: kiss my Dictaphone!"

Aunt Blabby, a cantankerous and sometimes amorous old lady, invariably being interviewed by straight man Ed McMahon about elder affairs. McMahon would innocently use a common expression like "check out," only to have Aunt Blabby warn him, "Don't say 'check out' to an old person!" Aunt Blabby was an obvious copy of Jonathan Winters’ most famous creation, Maude Frickert, including her black spinster dress and wig.

El Mouldo, a mentalist, who would attempt to perform mind-reading and mind-over-matter feats, all of which failed. Often his tricks would include an attempt to bilk money from Ed McMahon or would end with him begging the audience for a dollar, or at least bus fare.

The Maharishi, whose theme song was "Song of India". This frizzy-haired "holy man" spoke in a high-pitched, tranquil tone, greeted announcer McMahon with a flower, and answered philosophical questions.

Carson uncensored on satellite

Even though Carson's program was based in Burbank, NBC's editing and production services for the program were located in New York, resulting in the requirement that Carson's program be transmitted from Burbank to New York. Beginning in 1976, NBC used the Satcom 2 satellite to do this, feeding the live taping (which usually took place in the early evening) directly to New York, where it would be edited prior to the normal broadcast. This live feed lasted usually from two to two-and-a-half hours a night, and was uncensored and commercial-free. During the commercial breaks the audio and picture would be left on, capturing at times risque language and other events that would certainly be edited out later going out over the feed.

At the same time, however, satellite ground stations owned by private individuals began to appear, and some managed to find the live feed. Satellite dish owners began to document their sightings in technical journals, giving viewers knowledge of things they were not meant to see. Carson and his production staff grew concerned about this, and pressured NBC into ceasing the satellite transmissions of the live taping in the early 1980s. The satellite link was replaced by microwave landline transmission until the show's editing facilities were finally moved to Burbank.

Effect on popular culture

Carson's show launched the careers of many performers, especially comedians. Getting Carson to laugh and then to be called to the guest chair was the highest honor. Most notable among these were Jerry Seinfeld, Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Maher, Ellen Degeneres, Tim Allen, Drew Carey, and Roseanne Barr. Carson was successor to ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' as a showcase for all kinds of talent, as well as continuing a vaudeville-style variety show.

In 1966, Carson single-handedly popularized Milton Bradley's game Twister when he played it with actress Eva Gabor. Not widely known at the time, the game skyrocketed in popularity after the broadcast.

Controversies and feuds

Carson often made routine jokes at the expense of other celebrities. Some years after a high-profile feud between Carson and Wayne Newton, the latter appeared on ''Larry King Live'', declaring that "Johnny Carson is a mean-spirited human being. And there are people that he has hurt that people will never know about. And for some reason at some point, he decided to turn that kind of negative attention toward me. And I refused to have it."

One veteran NBC actor, Raymond Burr, became riled over Carson's continuing fat jokes and refused to appear on "The Tonight Show".

Carson reportedly loathed what appeared to represent disloyalty among friends. The comedian was displeased when former ''Tonight Show'' guest hosts John Davidson and Joan Rivers got their own talk shows. Rivers's show on the Fox Network directly competed with Carson during the 1986-1987 season and then ended. On June 24, 2009, following Ed McMahon's death, Rivers lauded McMahon on ''Larry King Live'' but said that after she got her own show Carson never spoke to her again.

Carson successfully sued a manufacturer of portable toilets who wanted to call its product "Here's Johnny".

Business ventures

Carson was a major investor in the ultimately failed DeLorean Motor Company.

Carson was head of a group of investors who purchased and operated two television stations. The first was KVVU-TV in Henderson, Nevada, an independent station serving Las Vegas, acquired by the Carson group in 1979. Shortly after buying the station, KVVU was rumored to acquiring an NBC affiliation as then long-time affiliate KORK-TV was in the process of being replaced by KVBC, but it never happened. Carson's second station, independent KNAT-TV in Albuquerque, New Mexico was purchased in 1982. Unlike the Las Vegas operation, KNAT faced stiffer competition for top-quality syndicated programming. Carson sold both of his stations between 1985 and 1986, with KVVU going to Meredith Corporation and KNAT being sold to Trinity Broadcasting Network.

Carson's other business ventures included the successful Johnny Carson Apparel, Inc.—his turtlenecks became a fashion trend—and a failed restaurant franchise.

Retirement

Carson retired from show business on May 22, 1992, at age 65, when he stepped down as host of ''The Tonight Show''. His farewell was a major media event, often emotional for Carson, his colleagues, and the audiences, and stretched over several nights. He said the following on his 4,531st and final ''Tonight Show'':

NBC gave the role of host to the show's then-current permanent guest host, Jay Leno. Leno and David Letterman were soon competing on separate networks.

Post-retirement appearances

At the end of his final ''Tonight Show'' appearance, Carson indicated that he might, if so inspired, return with a new project, but instead chose to go into full retirement, rarely giving interviews and declining to participate in NBC's 75th anniversary celebrations. He made the occasional cameo appearance, including voicing himself on a 1993 episode of ''The Simpsons'' ("Krusty Gets Kancelled"), telephoning David Letterman on a November 1993 episode of ''Late Show with David Letterman'', and appearing in the 1993 NBC Special ''Bob Hope: The First 90 Years''. On May 13, 1994, Carson appeared on ''Late Show with David Letterman''. During a week of shows from Los Angeles, Letterman was having Larry "Bud" Melman (Calvert DeForest) deliver his "Top Ten Lists" under the guise that a famous personality would be delivering the list instead. On the last show of the week, Letterman indicated that Carson would be delivering the list. Instead, DeForest delivered the list, insulted the audience (in keeping with the gag), and walked off to polite applause. Letterman then indicated that the card he was given did not have the proper list on it and asked that the "real" list be brought out. On that cue, the real Carson emerged from behind the curtain (as Letterman's band played "Johnny's Theme"), an appearance that prompted a standing ovation from the audience. Carson then requested to sit behind Letterman's desk; Letterman obliged, as the audience continued to cheer and applaud. After some moments, Carson departed from the show without having spoken to the audience. He later cited acute laryngitis as the reason for his silence. This night turned out to be Carson's last television appearance.

Letterman

Just days before Carson's death, it was revealed that he occasionally sent jokes to Letterman. Letterman would then use these jokes in the monologue of his show, which Carson got "a big kick out of" according to Worldwide Pants, Inc., Senior Vice-President Peter Lassally, who formerly produced both men's programs. He also claimed that Carson had always believed Letterman, not Leno, to be his "rightful successor." Letterman frequently employs some of Carson's trademark bits on his show, including "Carnac" (with band leader Paul Shaffer as Carnac), "Stump the Band," and the "Week in Review."

Personal life

Despite his on-camera demeanor, Carson was very shy off-camera, avoided most large parties, and was referred to as "the most private public man who ever lived". Dick Cavett recalled that "I felt sorry for Johnny in that he was so socially uncomfortable. I've hardly ever met anybody who had as hard a time as he did." George Axelrod said of Carson: "Socially, he doesn’t exist. The reason is that there are no television cameras in living rooms. If human beings had little-red lights in the middle of their foreheads, Carson would be the greatest conversationalist on earth."

He normally refused to discuss politics, social controversies, his childhood, or private life with interviewers, and offered the following list of pre-written answers to journalists who wanted to ask him questions: #Yes, I did. #Not a bit of truth in that rumor. #Only twice in my life, both times on Saturday. #I can do either, but I prefer the first. #No. Kumquats. #I can’t answer that question. #Toads and tarantulas. #Turkestan, Denmark, Chile, and the Komandorskie Islands. #As often as possible, but I’m not very good at it yet. I need much more practice. #It happened to some old friends of mine, and it’s a story I’ll never forget.

Politics

Carson opposed capital punishment, favored racial equality, and was against criminalizing extramarital sex and pornography. He avoided explicitly mentioning his views on ''Tonight'', however, saying "I hate to be pinned down", as that would "hurt me as an entertainer, which is what I am". As he explained in 1970, "In my living room I would argue for liberalization of abortion laws, divorce laws, and there are times when I would like to express a view on the air. I would love to have taken on Billy Graham. But I'm on TV five nights a week; I have nothing to gain by it and everything to lose."

Marriages

In 1948, Carson married Jody Wolcott. The marriage was volatile, with infidelities committed by both parties, and ended in divorce in 1963. Carson got a "quickie" Mexican divorce from Wolcott that year and married Joanne Copeland on August 17, 1963. After a second protracted divorce proceeding in 1972, Copeland received nearly half a million dollars in cash and art and $100,000 a year in alimony for life.

At the Carson ''Tonight Show'' 10th anniversary party on September 30, 1972, Carson announced that he and former model Joanna Holland had been secretly married that afternoon, shocking his friends and associates. Carson kidded that he had married three similarly named women to avoid "having to change the monogram on the towels." On March 8, 1983, Holland filed for divorce. Under California's community property laws, she was entitled to 50% of all the assets accumulated during the marriage, even though Carson earned virtually all of the couple's income. During this period, he joked on ''The Tonight Show'', "my producer, Freddie de Cordova, really gave me something I needed for Christmas. He gave me a gift certificate to the law offices of Jacoby & Meyers." The divorce case finally ended in 1985 with an eighty-page settlement, Holland receiving $20 million in cash and property.

On June 20, 1987, Carson married Alexis Maas. The marriage lasted until his death in 2005.

Children

Carson had three sons, Kit, Cory and Ricky. Richard Carson, his son from his first marriage, died on June 21, 1991, when his car plunged down a steep embankment along a paved service road off Highway 1 near Cayucos, a small town north of San Luis Obispo, California. Apparently, Richard had been taking photographs when the accident occurred. On the first ''Tonight Show'' after Ricky's death, Carson paid tribute to his son's photographic work, and showed portraits of Ricky accompanied by Stevie Ray Vaughan on blues guitar playing ''Riviera Paradise''. In addition, the final image of the show, as well as some "More to Come" bumpers, of Carson's last show on May 22, 1992, featured a photo Richard had taken.

Charity

In 1981, Carson created the John W. Carson Foundation, dedicated to supporting children, education and health services. The Foundation continues to support charitable causes.

In November 2004, Carson announced a $5.3 million gift to the University of Nebraska Foundation to support the Hixson–Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts Department of Theater Arts, which created the Johnny Carson School of Theater and Film. Another $5 million donation was announced by the estate of Carson to the University of Nebraska following his death., while a $1 million donation was announced on November 4, 2011, creating the "Johnny Carson Opportunity Scholarship Fund".

Carson also donated to causes in his hometown of Norfolk, including the Carson Cancer Center at Faith Regional Health Services, the Elkhorn Valley Museum, and the Johnny Carson Theater at Norfolk Senior High School.

In August 2010, the charitable foundation created by Johnny Carson reported receiving $156 million from a personal trust established by the entertainer years prior to his January 2005 death. Carson's foundation was now by far the largest of the Hollywood charities.

Other notes

Carson, an amateur astronomer, was close friends with astronomer Carl Sagan, who often appeared on ''The Tonight Show''. The unique way Sagan had of saying certain words, like "billions" of galaxies, would lead Carson to ribbing his friend, saying ''"BILL-ions and BILL-ions"''. Carson was the first person to contact Sagan's wife Ann Druyan with condolences when the scientist died in 1996. He owned several telescopes, including a Questar, considered at the time a top-of-the line telescope.

Carson was shown on a 1978 segment of ''60 Minutes'' practicing at home on a drum set given to him by close friend Buddy Rich, who was the jazz musician with the most appearances on ''The Tonight Show''. Writer Gore Vidal, another frequent ''Tonight Show'' guest and friend, writes about Carson's personality in his 2006 memoirs.

In 1982, Carson was found to be driving his DeLorean while under the influence of alcohol. He pled ''nolo contendere'' to a misdemeanor charge and given three years of probation. Carson was required to attend an alcohol program for drivers and was permitted to use his car only to drive to work and back.

Death and tributes

On March 19, 1999, Carson, then 73, suffered a severe heart attack at his home in Malibu, California. Carson was sleeping when he suddenly awoke with severe chest pains. He was rushed to a hospital in nearby Santa Monica where he underwent quadruple-bypass surgery.

At 6:50 AM PST on January 23, 2005, Carson died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles of respiratory failure arising from emphysema. He was 79 years old. Carson had revealed his terminal illness to the public in September 2002. Following his death, Carson's body was cremated and the ashes were given to his wife, Alexis Maas Carson. In accordance with his family's wishes, no public memorial service was held. Numerous tributes were paid to Carson upon his death, recognizing the deep and enduring affection held for him around the world, including a statement by then-President George W. Bush.

The day after his death, January 24, 2005, ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' paid tribute to Carson with guests Ed McMahon, Bob Newhart, Don Rickles, Drew Carey and k.d. lang. Letterman followed suit on January 31 with former ''Tonight Show'' executive producer Peter Lassally and bandleader Doc Severinsen. At the beginning of this show, Letterman said that for thirty years no matter what was going on in the world, whether people had had a good or bad day, they wanted to end the day by being "tucked in by Johnny." Letterman also told his viewers that the monologue he had just spoken (which had been very well received by the studio audience) had consisted entirely of jokes sent to him by Carson in the last few months of his life. Doc Severinsen ended the Letterman show that night by playing one of Carson's two favorite songs, "Here's That Rainy Day" (the other was "I'll Be Seeing You").

On his final ''Tonight Show'' appearance, Carson himself said that while sometimes people who work together for long stretches of time on television don't necessarily like each other, this was not the case with him and McMahon; they were good friends that would have drinks and dinner together, and the camaraderie that they had on the show could not be faked. Carson and McMahon were friends for forty-six years.

The 2005 film ''The Aristocrats'' was dedicated to Carson.

At the 1st Annual Comedy Awards on Comedy Central, the Johnny Carson Award was given to David Letterman.

References

Further reading

Accounts on work and life

Humor material collections

ISBN 1-199-39735-0 ASIN: B002J1EG3A

''Johnny Carson Collection'', Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

External links

Official website for ''The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson''

at Salon at ''The New Republic''

Tynan, Kenneth. 1978 profile, ''The New Yorker''

''The Johnny Carson Show'', ''USA Today''

Martin, Steve. Posthumous Letter to Carson, ''The New York Times''

Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Obituaries

Obituary at CNN

Obituary at MSNBC

Wolcott, James. Obituary, ''Vanity Fair''

Category:1925 births Category:2005 deaths Category:American game show hosts Category:American stand-up comedians Category:American television talk show hosts Category:American military personnel of World War II Category:Deaths from emphysema Category:Disease-related deaths in California Category:Entertainers from Nebraska Category:University of Nebraska–Lincoln alumni Category:United States Navy officers Category:Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Category:Emmy Award winners Category:Kennedy Center honorees Category:Peabody Award winners Category:People from Adams County, Iowa Category:People from Montgomery County, Iowa

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

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

Early life and career

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

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

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

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

Channel 4

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

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

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

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

BBC

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Eurovision

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

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

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

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

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

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

Other

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Personal life

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

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

Norton is openly homosexual.

TV appearances

Main presenting credits

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

''Bring Me the Head of Light Entertainment''

''So Graham Norton'' (1998–2002)

''V Graham Norton'' (2002–2003)

''NY Graham Norton'' (2004)

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

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

''Strictly Dance Fever'' (2005–2006)

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

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

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

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

* ''Over the Rainbow'' (2010)

''The Big Finish'' (2006–)

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

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

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

''Live Earth'' (2007)

''Eurovision Dance Contest'' (2007)

''The One and Only'' (2008)

''Eurovision Dance Contest'' (2008)

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

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

''Totally Saturday'' (2009)

''Most Popular'' (2009–present)

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

Other television credits

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

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

Radio

''Just a Minute''

Sitting in for Steve Wright August 2009 BBC Radio 2

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

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

2011/12 Radio 2 Saturday mornings

Filmography

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

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

Stand-Up videos

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

Awards

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

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

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

2001 : TRIC Award TV Personality of the Year

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

References

External links

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

cy:Graham Norton da:Graham Norton de:Graham Norton es:Graham Norton fy:Graham Norton ga:Graham Norton nl:Graham Norton no:Graham Norton pl:Graham Norton ro:Graham Norton ru:Нортон, Грэм sv:Graham Norton tr:Graham Norton

name	Ellen DeGeneres
birth name	Ellen Lee DeGeneres
birth date	January 26, 1958
birth place	Metairie, Louisiana, United States
active	1981 – present
medium	Stand-up, television, film, books
nationality	American
subjects	Observational comedy, celebrity comedy, political comedy, family comedy, everyday life
influences	Steve Martin, Woody Allen, Bob Newhart, Johnny Carson
spouse	Portia de Rossi (2008–present)
domesticpartner	Anne Heche (1997–2000)Alexandra Hedison (2001–2004)
child	yes
emmyawards	Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series1997 ''Ellen'' Outstanding Talk Show2004 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''2005 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''2006 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''2007 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' Outstanding Talk Show Entertainment2010 ''The Ellen Degeneres Show'' 2011 ''The Ellen Degeneres Show'' Outstanding Special Class Writing2005 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''2006 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''2007 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' Outstanding Talk Show Host2005 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''2006 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''2007 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''2008 ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' | americancomedyawards Funniest Female Stand-Up Comic1991 Funniest Female Performer in a TV Special1994 ''46th Primetime Emmy Awards''2000 ''Ellen DeGeneres: The Beginning''
Awardtitle1	Saturn Award
Award1	Best Supporting Actress (film)2003 ''Finding Nemo''
Awardtitle2	Teen Choice Awards
Award2	Best Comedian2011 }}

}}

Ellen Lee DeGeneres (; born January 26, 1958) is an American stand-up comedian, television host and actress. She hosts the syndicated talk show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''.

DeGeneres has hosted both the Academy Awards and the Primetime Emmys. As a film actress, she starred in ''Mr. Wrong'', appeared in ''EDtv'' and ''The Love Letter'', and provided the voice of Dory in the Disney-Pixar animated film ''Finding Nemo'', for which she was awarded a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first and only time a voice performance won a Saturn Award. She was a judge on ''American Idol'' for one year, having joined the show in its ninth season. She also starred in two television sitcoms, ''Ellen'' from 1994 to 1998 and ''The Ellen Show'' from 2001 to 2002. During the fourth season of ''Ellen'' in 1997, DeGeneres came out publicly as a lesbian in an appearance on ''The Oprah Winfrey Show''. Shortly afterwards, her character Ellen Morgan also came out to a therapist played by Winfrey, and the series went on to explore various LGBT issues including the coming out process. She has won thirteen Emmys and numerous other awards for her work and charitable efforts.

In November 2011, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton named her a Special Envoy for Global AIDS Awareness.

Early life and education

DeGeneres was raised in Metairie, Louisiana, the daughter of Elizabeth Jane DeGeneres (née Pfeffer), a speech therapist, and Elliott Everett DeGeneres, an insurance agent. She has one brother, Vance DeGeneres, who is a producer and musician. She is of French, English, German and Irish descent. DeGeneres was raised as a Christian Scientist until the age of thirteen. In 1973 DeGeneres's parents filed for separation and were divorced the following year. Shortly after, Betty Jane remarried Roy Gruessendorf, who worked as a salesman. Betty Jane and Ellen moved with Gruessendorf from the New Orleans area to Atlanta, Texas. Vance stayed with their birth father.

DeGeneres graduated from Atlanta High School in May 1976, after completing her first years of high school at Grace King High School in Metairie, Louisiana. She moved back to New Orleans to attend the University of New Orleans, where she majored in communication studies. After one semester, she left school to do clerical work in a law firm with her cousin Laura Gillen. She also held a job selling clothes at the chain store the Merry-Go-Round at the Lakeside Shopping Center. Other working experiences included J.C. Penney, being a waitress at TGI Friday's and another restaurant, a house painter, a hostess, and a bartender. She relates much of her childhood and career experiences in her comedic work.

Ancestry

On a February 9, 2011, episode of ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'', DeGeneres told her studio audience via a letter from the New England Genealogical Society that she is Kate Middleton's 15th cousin via their shared common ancestor Thomas Fairfax.

Stand-up comedy

DeGeneres started performing stand-up comedy at small clubs and coffee houses. By 1981 she was the emcee at Clyde's Comedy Club in New Orleans. DeGeneres cites Woody Allen and Steve Martin as her main influences at this time. In the early 1980s she began to tour nationally, being named Showtime's ''Funniest Person in America'' in 1982. In 1986 she appeared for the first time on the ''Tonight Show'' with Johnny Carson, who likened her to Bob Newhart. When Carson invited her over for an onscreen chat after her performance, she became the first comedienne in the show's history to be treated this way.

Film career

Early screen work

Television and film work in the late 1980s and early 1990s included roles on television in ''Open House'' and in the film ''Coneheads''. In 1992, producers Neal Marlens and Carol Black cast DeGeneres in their sitcom ''Laurie Hill'', in the role of Nurse Nancy MacIntyre. The series was canceled after only four episodes, but Marlens and Black were so impressed with DeGeneres' performance that they soon cast her in their next ABC pilot, ''These Friends of Mine'', which they co-created with David S. Rosenthal.

''Ellen's Energy Adventure''

DeGeneres starred in a series of films for a show named ''Ellen's Energy Adventure'', which is part of the Universe of Energy attraction and pavilion at Walt Disney World's Epcot. The film also featured Bill Nye, Alex Trebek, Michael Richards, and Jamie Lee Curtis. The show revolved around DeGeneres's falling asleep and finding herself in an energy-themed version of ''Jeopardy!'', playing against an old rival, portrayed by Curtis, and Albert Einstein. The next film had DeGeneres hosting an educational look at energy, co-hosted with Nye. The ride first opened on September 15, 1996, as ''Ellen's Energy Crisis'', but was quickly renamed to the more positive-sounding ''Ellen's Energy Adventure''.

Television career

''Ellen'' (1994–1998)

DeGeneres's comedy material became the basis of the successful 1994–1998 sitcom ''Ellen'', named ''These Friends of Mine'' during its first season. The ABC show was popular in its first few seasons due in part to DeGeneres's style of observational humor; it was often referred to as a "female ''Seinfeld''."

''Ellen'' reached its height of popularity in February 1997, when DeGeneres made her homosexuality public on ''The Oprah Winfrey Show''. Subsequently her character on the sitcom came out of the closet in April to her therapist, played by Oprah Winfrey, revealing that she is gay. The coming-out episode, titled "The Puppy Episode", was one of the highest-rated episodes of the show. Later episodes of the series did not match its popularity, and after declining ratings, the show was canceled. DeGeneres returned to the stand-up comedy circuit, and later re-established herself as a successful talk show host.

''The Ellen Show''

DeGeneres returned to series television in 2001 with a new CBS sitcom, ''The Ellen Show''.

''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''

DeGeneres launched a daytime television talk show, ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' in September 2003. Amid a crop of several celebrity-hosted talk shows surfacing at the beginning of that season, such as those of Sharon Osbourne and Rita Rudner, her show has consistently risen in the Nielsen ratings and received widespread critical praise. It was nominated for 11 Daytime Emmy Awards in its first season, winning four, including Best Talk Show. The show has won 25 Emmy Awards in its first three seasons on the air. DeGeneres is known for her dancing and singing with the audience at the beginning of the show and during commercial breaks. She often gives away free prizes and trips to her studio audience with the help of her sponsors.

DeGeneres celebrated her thirty-year class reunion by flying her graduating class to California to be guests on her show in February 2006. She presented Atlanta High School with a surprise gift of a new electronic LED marquee sign.

In May 2006, DeGeneres made a surprise appearance at the Tulane University commencement in New Orleans. Following George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton to the podium, she came out in a bathrobe and furry slippers. "They told me everyone would be wearing robes," she said. Ellen then went on to make another commencement speech at Tulane in 2009.

The show broadcast for a week from Universal Studios Orlando in March 2007. Skits included DeGeneres going on the Hulk Roller Coaster Ride and the Jaws Boat Ride.

In May 2007, DeGeneres was placed on bed rest due to a torn ligament in her back. She continued hosting her show from a hospital bed, tended to by a nurse, explaining "the show must go on, as they say." Guests sat in hospital beds as well.

On May 1, 2009, DeGeneres celebrated her 1000th episode, featuring celebrity guests such as Oprah, Justin Timberlake, and Paris Hilton, among others.

''American Idol''

On September 9, 2009, it was confirmed that DeGeneres would replace Paula Abdul as a judge of the ninth season of ''American Idol''. Her role started after the contestant auditions, at the beginning of "Hollywood Week". It is reported that DeGeneres also signed a contract to be a judge on the show for at least five seasons. She made her ''American Idol'' debut on February 9, 2010.

On July 29, 2010, DeGeneres and Fox executives announced that the comedienne would be departing from the series after one season. In a statement, DeGeneres said that the series "didn't feel like the right fit for me".

Award shows

2001 Emmy Awards

DeGeneres received wide exposure on November 4, 2001, when she hosted the televised broadcast of the Emmy Awards. Presented after two cancellations due to network concerns that a lavish ceremony following the September 11, 2001 attacks would appear insensitive, the show required a more somber tone that would also allow viewers to temporarily forget the tragedy. DeGeneres received several standing ovations for her performance that evening, which included the line: "What would bug the Taliban more than seeing a gay woman in a suit surrounded by Jews?"

In August 2005, DeGeneres hosted the 2005 Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony held on September 18, 2005. This was three weeks after Hurricane Katrina, making it the second time she hosted the Emmys following a national tragedy. She also hosted the Grammy Awards in 1996 and in 1997.

79th Academy Awards

On September 7, 2006, DeGeneres was selected to host the 79th Academy Awards ceremony, which took place on February 25, 2007. This makes her the first openly gay or lesbian person to have hosted the event. During the Awards show, DeGeneres said, "What a wonderful night, such diversity in the room, in a year when there's been so many negative things said about people's race, religion, and sexual orientation. And I want to put this out there: If there weren't blacks, Jews and gays, there would be no Oscars, or anyone named Oscar, when you think about that." Reviews of her hosting gig were positive, with one saying, "DeGeneres rocked, as she never forgot that she wasn't just there to entertain the Oscar nominees but also to tickle the audience at home." Regis Philbin said in an interview that "the only complaint was there's not enough Ellen."

DeGeneres was nominated for an Emmy Award as host of the Academy Awards broadcast.

2007 Writers Guild strike

DeGeneres, like many actors who are also writers, is a member of both the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) and the Writers Guild of America (WGA). Thus, although DeGeneres verbally supported the 2007 WGA strike, she did not support it when she crossed the picket line the day after the strike began. Her representatives said she was competing with other first-run syndicated shows during the competitive November sweeps period, and that she could not break her contracts or risk her show's losing its time slot. As a show of solidarity with the strikers, DeGeneres omitted her monologue during the strike, typically written by WGA writers. The WGA condemned her while the AFTRA defended her.

Other ventures

Voice acting

DeGeneres lent her voice to the role of Dory, a fish with short-term memory loss, in the summer 2003 hit animated Disney/Pixar film ''Finding Nemo''. The film's director, Andrew Stanton, claimed that he chose Ellen because she "changed the subject five times before one sentence had finished" on her show. For her performance as Dory, DeGeneres won the Saturn Award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films for "Best Supporting Actress"; "Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie" from the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards; and the Annie Award from the International Animated Film Association for "Outstanding Voice Acting". She was also nominated for a Chicago Film Critics Association Award in the "Best Supporting Actress" category. She also provided the voice of the dog in the prologue of the Eddie Murphy feature film ''Dr. Dolittle''. Her win of the Saturn Award marked the first and only time the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films has given the acting award for a voice performance.

Commercial spokeswoman

In November 2004, DeGeneres appeared, dancing, in an ad campaign for American Express. Her most recent American Express commercial, a two-minute black-and-white spot in which she works with animals, debuted in November 2006 and was created by Ogilvy and Mather. In 2007, the commercial won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Commercial.

DeGeneres began working with Cover Girl Cosmetics in September 2008, for which she has been criticized, as her animal-friendly values clash with Procter and Gamble's (the maker of Cover Girl Cosmetics) animal testing. Her face is the focus of new Cover Girl advertisements starting in January 2009. The beauty campaign will be DeGeneres's first.

On December 3, 2011, DeGeneres headlined the third annual “Change Begins Within” gala for the David Lynch Foundation held at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

In Spring 2012, DeGeneres becomes the spokesperson for J.C. Penney in a tour and advertising campaign.

Eleveneleven

On May 26, 2010, Ellen announced on her show that she was starting her own record label entitled "eleveneleven". Ellen explained her choice of name, claiming that she often sees the number 11:11 when looking at her clocks, that she found Greyson on the 11th, and that the singer's soccer jersey has the number 11. She mentioned that she had been looking for videos of performances on YouTube to start her label. The acts thus far signed to the label are Greyson Chance, Tom Andrews, and Jessica Simpson.

Personal life

DeGeneres was in a relationship (1997–2000) with actress Anne Heche. From 2001 to 2004, DeGeneres and actress/director/photographer Alexandra Hedison were in a relationship. They appeared on the cover of ''The Advocate'' after their separation had already been announced to the media.

Since 2004, DeGeneres has had a relationship with Portia de Rossi. After the overturn of the same-sex marriage ban in California, DeGeneres announced on a May 2008 show that she and de Rossi were engaged, and gave de Rossi a three-carat pink diamond ring. They were married on August 16, 2008, at their home, with nineteen guests including their mothers. The passage of Proposition 8 cast doubt on the legal status of their marriage, but a subsequent California Supreme Court judgment validated it because it occurred before November 4, 2008.

DeGeneres and de Rossi live in Beverly Hills, with three dogs and four cats, and both are vegan. DeGeneres served as campaign ambassador to Farm Sanctuary's Adopt-A-Turkey Project in 2010, asking people to start "a new tradition by adopting a turkey instead of eating one" at Thanksgiving.

On August 6, 2010, de Rossi filed a petition to legally change her name to Portia Lee James DeGeneres The petition was granted on September 23, 2010.

In her book ''Love, Ellen'', DeGeneres's mother Betty DeGeneres describes being initially shocked when her daughter came out as a lesbian, but has become one of her strongest supporters, an active member of Parents & Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) and spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign's Coming Out Project.

In 2007, ''Forbes'' estimated DeGeneres's net worth at US$65 million.

She is a fan of the National Football League, and has shown particular support for the New Orleans Saints and the Green Bay Packers. In 2011, she attended a Saints practice dressed as Packers Hall of Famer Don Hutson.

Filmography

Film

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1990	''Arduous Moon''	Herself	Short film
1991	''Wisecracks''	Herself	Documentary
1993		Coach
1994		Herself	Short film
		Herself	Short film
	Martha Alston
	''Goodbye Lover''	Sgt. Rita Pompano
	Prologue Dog
	''EDtv''	Cynthia
	Janet Hall
	''Pauly Shore Is Dead''	Herself
''Finding Nemo''	Dory
2004	''My Short Film''	Herself	Short film

Television

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1988	''Women of the Night''	Herself
1989		Margo Van Mete	Episode: "The Bad Seed" Episode: "Let's Get Physicals"
1992	''Laurie Hill''	Nancy MacIntyre	Episode: "Pilot" Episode: "The Heart Thing" Episode: "Walter and Beverly"
1994–1998
1995		Dr. Whitman
1998	''Mad About You''	Nancy Bloom
	''Ellen DeGeneres: The Beginning''	Herself	Comedy special
''If These Walls Could Talk 2''	Kal	Segment: "2000"
2001		Operator	Segment: "Reaching Normal"
2001	''Will & Grace''	Sister Louise
2001	''Saturday Night Live''	Host	Episode: "Ellen Degeneres; No Doubt"
2001–2002	''The Ellen Show''	Ellen Richmond
	''Ellen DeGeneres: Here and Now''	Herself	Comedy special
''MADtv''	Herself
2003–present	''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''	Herself	TV show
	''E! True Hollywood Story''	Herself
	Herself
2005		Herself
	''Ellen's Really Big Show''	Herself
''Sesame Street''	Herself	Episode: "The Tutu Spell" ''(uncredited)''
''Forbes 20 Richest Women in Entertainment''	Herself
''The Bachelorette''	Herself
2007–2008	''American Idol''	Herself	Episode: "Idol Gives Back
2008	''Ellen's Even Bigger Really Big Show''	Herself	Comedy special
	''Ellen's Bigger, Longer & Wider Show''	Herself	Comedy special
	Guest Judge
2010	''[[American Idol''	Judge
2010	''The Simpsons''	Herself	Episode: "Judge Me Tender"

Discography

Year	Album	Notes
1996		Stand-up comedy Live CD

Awards and honors

;Daytime Emmy Awards

Outstanding Talk Show, ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' – 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2011

Outstanding Talk Show Host, ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' – 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008

Outstanding Special Class Writing, ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' – 2005, 2006, 2007

;Emmy Awards

Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series, ''Ellen:'' "The Puppy Episode" – 1997

;People's Choice Awards

Favorite Funny Female Star – 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008

Favorite Talk Show Host – 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010

Favorite Yes I Chose This Star – 2008

;Kids' Choice Awards

Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie – 2004

; Tulane University President's Medal 2009

; Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards 2000 Lucy Award, actor, If These Walls Could Talk 2, in recognition of her excellence and innovation in her creative works that have enhanced the perception of women through the medium of television.

Bibliography

Gallery

References

External links

The Ellen DeGeneres Show's official website

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name	James Caan
birth name	James E. Caan
birth date	March 26, 1940
birth place	The Bronx, New York City, U.S.
nationality	American
other names
education	Rhodes Preparatory School
alma mater
occupation	Actor
years active	1961–present
spouse	{{ubl|Dee Jay Mattis (1960–1966; divorced; 1 child)|Sheila Ryan (1976–1977; divorced; 1 child) (Scott Caan)|Ingrid Hajek (1990–1995; divorced; 1 child)|Linda Stokes (1995–2009; 2 children; filed for divorce)
children	5; including Scott Caan}}

| website = }}

James E. Caan (born March 26, 1940) is an American actor. He is best known for his starring roles in ''The Godfather'', ''Thief'', ''Misery'', ''A Bridge Too Far'', ''Brian's Song'', ''Rollerball'', ''Kiss Me Goodbye'', ''Elf'', and ''El Dorado''. He also starred as "Big Ed" Deline in the television series ''Las Vegas''.

Early life

Caan was born in The Bronx, New York City, the son of Sophie (née Falkenstein) and Arthur Caan, Jewish immigrants from Germany. His father was a meat dealer and butcher. Caan had a sister, Barbara, and has a brother, Ronald. He grew up in Sunnyside, Queens, New York City. He was educated at P.S. 150 40-01 43rd Avenue School in Queens, at the private Rhodes Preparatory School, also in New York City, and then attended Michigan State University. He later transferred to Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, but did not graduate. While studying at Hofstra University, however, he became intrigued by acting and was interviewed for, accepted to, and graduated from, New York City's Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre. There, one of his instructors was Sanford Meisner.

Acting career

Early credits

Caan began his acting career in television on such series as ''The Untouchables'', ''The Alfred Hitchcock Hour'', ''Kraft Suspense Theatre'', ''Combat!'', ''Ben Casey'', ''Dr. Kildare'', ''The Wide Country'', ''Alcoa Premiere'', ''Route 66'', and ''Naked City''. In 1964, he starred as Jewish athlete Jeff Brubaker in the episode "My Son, the All-American" of ''Channing'', a drama about college life.

His first substantial film role was as a punk hoodlum in the 1964 thriller ''Lady in a Cage'', which starred Olivia de Havilland. In 1965, he landed his first starring role, in Howard Hawks' auto-racing drama ''Red Line 7000''. In 1966, Caan appeared as Alan Badillion Trahern, aka Mississippi, in ''El Dorado'', with John Wayne and Robert Mitchum. He had a starring role in Robert Altman's second feature film, ''Countdown'', in 1968. In 1969, his appearance on the spy sitcom ''Get Smart'' was uncredited, billed as "Rupert of Rathskeller as Himself"; in that same year he won praise for his role as a brain-damaged football player in ''The Rain People'' (1969) directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

1970 to 1982

In 1971, Caan won more acclaim, as dying football player Brian Piccolo, opposite Billy Dee Williams, in the television movie ''Brian's Song'', which was later released theatrically.

The following year, Caan's career evolved to superstardom when Coppola cast him as the short-tempered Sonny Corleone in ''The Godfather''. Originally, Caan was cast as Michael Corleone (Sonny's youngest brother); both Coppola and Caan demanded that this role be played by Al Pacino, so Caan could play Sonny instead. Although another actor was already signed to play Sonny, the studio insisted on having Caan, so he remained in the production. Caan was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the film, competing with co-stars Pacino and Robert Duvall. It can be said that out of ''The Godfather'' cast, Caan was the most identified with his role, often mistaken for Italian despite his Jewish heritage, and he remarked “They called me a wiseguy. I won Italian of the Year twice in New York, and I’m not Italian.... I was denied in a country club once. Oh yeah, the guy sat in front of the board, and he says, ‘No, no, he’s a wiseguy, been downtown. He’s a made guy.’ I thought, What? Are you out of your mind?”

From 1971 to 1982, Caan appeared in many films, playing a wide variety of roles. His films included ''T.R. Baskin'', ''Cinderella Liberty'', ''Freebie and the Bean'', ''The Godfather Part II'', ''Rollerball'', a musical turn in ''Funny Lady'', ''Harry And Walter Go To New York'', ''A Bridge Too Far'', ''Comes A Horseman'', and Neil Simon's autobiographical ''Chapter Two''. In 1980, Caan directed ''Hide in Plain Sight'', a film about a father searching for his children, who were lost in the Witness Protection Program. Despite critical praise, the film was not a hit with the public. The following year, Caan appeared in the neo-noir movie ''Thief'', directed by Michael Mann, in which he played a professional safe cracker. Caan has often said it is the role of which he is proudest next to ''The Godfather''.

Caan rejected a series of starring roles which proved to be successes for other actors, including ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'', ''Star Wars'', ''Close Encounters of the Third Kind'', ''Kramer vs. Kramer'', ''Apocalypse Now'', ''Blade Runner'', and ''Superman''.

1982 to the present

thumb|left|In ''A Bridge Too Far'' (1977)From 1982 to 1987, Caan suffered from depression over his sister's death, a growing problem with cocaine, and what he described as "Hollywood burnout," and did not act in any films. He returned to acting in 1987, when Coppola cast him as an army platoon sergeant for the "Old Guard" in ''Gardens of Stone'', a film that dealt with the effect of the Vietnam War on the United States homefront. In 1988 and 1990, Caan starred in the films ''Alien Nation'', ''Dick Tracy'', and ''Misery'', a hit film that marked a comeback for Caan. Since the script for ''Misery'' called for Caan's character, Paul Sheldon, to spend most of his time lying in bed, the role was turned down by many of Hollywood's leading actors before Caan accepted.

In 1992, Caan appeared in ''Honeymoon in Vegas'', and in 1993, he played Coach Winters in ''The Program'', alongside Halle Berry. In 1996, he appeared in ''Bottle Rocket'', and with Arnold Schwarzenegger in ''Eraser'', and later starred as kingpin Frank Colton in ''Bulletproof'' with Adam Sandler and Damon Wayans. In 1998, Caan portrayed Philip Marlowe in the HBO film ''Poodle Springs''. Some of his more recent appearances have been in ''Mickey Blue Eyes'' (1999), ''The Way of the Gun'' (2000), ''The Yards'' (2000), ''City of Ghosts'' (2002), ''Night at the Golden Eagle'' (2002), ''Dogville'' (2003), and ''Elf'' (2003).

In 2003, Caan auditioned for and won the role of Montecito Hotel/Casino president "Big Ed" Deline in ''Las Vegas''. On February 27, 2007, Caan announced that he would not return to the show for its fifth season in order to return to film work; he was replaced by Tom Selleck.

Caan played the President of the United States in the 2008 film ''Get Smart'', and had a part in the movie ''Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs'' as the voice of the father of the lead character, Flint. As of 2010 Caan is Chairman of an Internet company, Openfilm, intended to help upcoming filmmakers.

Other work

Caan is a practicing martial artist. He has trained with Takayuki Kubota for nearly thirty years, earning various ranks. He is a Master (Rank = 6 Dan) of Gosoku Ryu Karate and was granted the title of Soke Dai by the International Karate Association. Caan trained the Culver City Police Department in martial arts use.

Caan is an avid golfer with an 8 handicap. He is acting assistant golf coach to PGA professional and good friend Greg Osbourne at Glendale Community College in Southern California. He played in the LPGA pro-am event in Aventura, Florida on April 23–25, 2008.

Personal life

Caan has been married four times. In 1960 he married Dee Jay Mathis; they divorced in 1966. They had a daughter, Tara A. Caan, born on November 5, 1964. Caan's second marriage to Sheila Ryan (a former girlfriend of Elvis Presley) in 1976 was short-lived; they divorced the following year. Their son, Scott Caan, who also is an actor, was born August 23, 1976.

Caan was married to Ingrid Hajek from September 1990 to March 1995; they had a son, Alexander James Caan, born on April 10, 1991. He married the widow of alleged murdered Aspen Drug kingpin Steven Grabow, Linda Stokes in October 1996; they have two sons, James Arthur Caan (born November 6, 1995) and Jacob Nicholas Caan (born September 24, 1998). Caan filed for divorce on November 20, 2009, citing irreconcilable differences.

Filmography

Title	Year	Role	Notes
''Irma la Douce''	1963	Soldier with radio	(uncredited)
''Lady in a Cage''	1964	Randall Simpson O'Connell
	1965	Pvt. Anthony Dugan
''Red Line 7000''	1965	Mike
! scope="row"	1966	Alan Bedillion Traherne ('Mississippi')
! scope="row"	1967	Paul Montgomery
''Submarine X-1''	1968	Cmdr. Richard Bolton, RNVR
! scope="row"	1968	Lee Stegler
''Journey to Shiloh''	1968	Buck Burnett
	1969	Jimmy Kilgannon (Killer)
! scope="row"	1970	Rabbit Angstrom
''T.R. Baskin''	1971	Larry Moore
''Brian's Song''	1971	Brian Piccolo
	1972		Nominated –
! scope="row"	1973	Dick Kanipsia
''Cinderella Liberty''	1973	John Baggs Jr.
	1974	Axel Freed	Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
	1974	Sonny Corleone
''Freebie and the Bean''	1974	Freebie
''Funny Lady''	1975	Billy Rose	Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
! scope="row"	1975	Jonathan E.	Saturn Award for Best Actor tied with Don Johnson for ''A Boy and His Dog''
''Gone with the West''	1975	Jud McGraw
	1975	Mike Locken
''Harry and Walter Go to New York''	1976	Harry Dighby
''Silent Movie''	1976	Himself
	1977	Sgt. Eddie Dohun
''Un autre homme, une autre chance''	1977	David Williams	aka ''Another Man, Another Chance''
''Comes a Horseman''	1978	Frank 'Buck' Athearn
! scope="row"	1979	Sailor in fight	(uncredited)
! scope="row"	1979	George Schneider
''Hide in Plain Sight''	1980	Thomas Hacklin
! scope="row"	1981	Frank
''Les uns et les autres''	1981	Jack Glenn/Jason Glenn	aka ''Dance of Life''
! scope="row"	1982	Jolly Villano
''Gardens of Stone''	1987	SFC. Clell Hazard
! scope="row"	1987	Det. Sgt. Matthew Sykes
! scope="row"	1990	Spaldoni
! scope="row"	1990	Paul Sheldon	Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Actor
	1991	Doctor Scurvy
''For the Boys''	1991	Eddie Sparks
''Honeymoon in Vegas''	1992	Tommy Korman
	1993	Sam Winters
! scope="row"	1993	Roy Sweeney
	1995	Jim
! scope="row"	1996	Sean McLennon
! scope="row"	1996	Mr. Henry
! scope="row"	1996	U.S. Marshal Robert Deguerin
! scope="row"	1996	Frank Colton
''This Is My Father''	1998	Kieran Johnson
''Mickey Blue Eyes''	1999	Frank Vitale
	2000	Frank Olchin
''Luckytown''	2000	Charlie Doyles
	2000	Joe Sarno
''Warden of Red Rock''	2001	John Flinders
''Viva Las Nowhere''	2001	Roy Baker
	2001	Capt. Fred Moosally
! scope="row"	2001	Lance Huston
''Night at the Golden Eagle''	2002	Prison Warden	(uncredited)
''City of Ghosts''	2002	Marvin
''Blood Crime''	2002	Sheriff Morgan McKenna
''Jericho Mansions''	2003	Leonard Grey
''Dogville''	2003	The Big Man
''This Thing of Ours''	2003	Jimmy 'the con'
! scope="row"	2003	Walter Hobbs
''Santa's Slay''	2005	Darren Mason	(uncredited)
''Wisegal''	2008	Salvatore Palmeri
! scope="row"	2008	The President
! scope="row"	2009	Gerry Ryan
! scope="row"	2009	Himself
''New York, I Love You''	2009	Mr. Riccoli	(segment "Brett Ratner")
! scope="row"	2009	Tim Lockwood (Flint's father)	(voice)
! scope="row"	2010	Jerry Haggerty
''Henry's Crime''	2010	Max
''Minkow''	2010	Paul Vinsant
	2010	Jalepeno	(voice, web-based series)
''Anyone's Son''	2011	John Hanna
! scope="row"	2011	Mr. Seaboldt
! scope="row"	2012	Ned Irish	(pre-production)
! scope="row"	2012	Tony Archer	Episode: Lekio

References

External links

''Bright Lights Film Journal'' interview

Category:1940 births Category:Actors from New York City Category:American film actors Category:American people of German-Jewish descent Category:American television actors Category:Jewish actors Category:Living people Category:Michigan State University alumni Category:Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre alumni Category:People from Queens Category:People from the Bronx Category:Saturn Award winners

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