Look up center, centre, or Centre in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Center or centre may refer to:

Mathematics and science[link]

• Centre (geometry), the middle of an object
• Center (algebra), uses of "center" in algebra
• Centroid, geometric center
• Center of mass
• Center (group theory), in abstract algebra, the subgroup consisting of those elements which commute with all other elements
• Center of symmetry, in geometry, a point that is well-distant from the boundary of a figure
• Graph center, the vertices in a graph that minimize the maximal distance from all other vertices
• Center of gravity (military)

Sports[link]

• Center (American football), a position in American and Canadian football
• Centre (Australian rules football), a position in Australian football
• Centre Back, a position in association football
• Center (basketball), a position in basketball
• Centre forward (also known as Striker), a position in association football and Water Polo
• Centre (ice hockey), a position in ice hockey
• Centre (rugby league), a position in rugby league
• Centre (rugby union), a position in rugby union
• Center fielder, often called "center", a position in baseball

Places[link]

• Downtown, or center
• Central business district

Place names spelled Center

• Center, Celje, Slovenia, a neighbourhood
• Center, Maribor, Slovenia, a district
• Center, Colorado, United States, a city
• Center, Indiana, United States, a town
• Center, Jay County, Indiana, United States
• Center, Kentucky, United States, a town
• Center, Missouri, United States, a city
• Center, Nebraska, United States, a village
• Center, North Dakota, United States, a city
• Center, Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States, a town
• Center, Portland, Oregon, United States, a neighborhood
• Center, Rock County, Wisconsin, United States, a town
• Center, Texas, United States, a city
• Center, Washington

Place names spelled Centre

• Centre, Alabama, United States, a city
• Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States
• Centre (French region), an administrative region in France
• Centru (development region), a region in Romania
• Centre Department, an administrative region in Haiti
• Centre Region (Cameroon)
• Centre Region (Burkina Faso)

Arts[link]

• Tonic (music), in tonal music, the central or most important pitch
• Center (music band), a famous Russian-speaking band

Education[link]

• Centre College, a liberal arts college in Danville, Kentucky, United States
• Yields Learning Centre, a learning centre for primary and secondary school students in Tuen Mun, New Territories, Hong Kong

Other[link]

• Area Control Center, an Air Traffic Control facility covering a large region of airspace not associated with a particular airport
• The Center, a paranormal organization in the Martin Mystery series
• Centers (Fourth Way), a human biological, psychological and spiritual nexus of energy process, equivalent to the concept of a Chakra
• Centrism, the middle ground between the left wing and the right wing
• Civic center
• Community centre
  • Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, a New York City non-profit organization commonly known as the Center
• Cultural center
• Lathe center, used in machining operations
• Social center

See also[link]

• Center Township (disambiguation)
• Central (disambiguation)
• Centre Party (disambiguation)
• The Centre (disambiguation)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Vega in 2010
Background information
Birth name	Suzanne Nadine Peck
Born	(1959-07-11) July 11, 1959 (age 52) Santa Monica, California, United States
Origin	New York City, United States
Genres	Alternative rock, folk rock
Occupations	Singer, songwriter, record producer
Instruments	Vocals, guitar
Years active	1982–present
Labels	A&M Blue Note Amanuensis Productions
Website	www.suzannevega.com

Suzanne Nadine Vega (born July 11, 1959) is an American songwriter and singer known for her eclectic folk-inspired music.

Two of Vega's songs (both from her second album Solitude Standing, 1987) reached the top 10 of various international chart listings: "Luka" and "Tom's Diner". The latter was originally an a cappella version on Vega's album, which was then remade in 1990 as a dance track produced by the British dance production team DNA.

Early life[link]

Vega was born July 11, 1959 in Santa Monica, California.^[1] Her mother, Pat Vega, is a computer systems analyst of German-Swedish heritage. Her father, Richard Peck, is of Scottish-English-Irish origin. They divorced soon after her birth.^[2] Her stepfather, Ed Vega, also known as Edgardo Vega Yunque, was a writer and teacher from Puerto Rico.^[3]

When Vega was two and a half, the family moved to New York City. She grew up in Spanish Harlem and the Upper West Side.^[4] At the age of nine she began to write poetry; she wrote her first song at age fourteen. Later she attended New York's prestigious High School of Performing Arts (now called LaGuardia High School). There she studied modern dance and graduated in 1977.

Career[link]

While majoring in English literature at Barnard College,^[5] she performed in small venues in Greenwich Village, where she was a regular contributor to Jack Hardy's Monday night songwriters' group at the Cornelia Street Cafe and had some of her first songs published on Fast Folk anthology albums.^[6] In 1984, she received a major label recording contract, making her one of the first Fast Folk artists to break out on a major label.

Vega's self-titled debut album was released in 1985 and was well-received by critics in the U.S.;^[4] it reached platinum status in the United Kingdom. Produced by Lenny Kaye and Steve Addabbo, the songs feature Vega's acoustic guitar in straightforward arrangements. A video was released for the album's song "Marlene on the Wall", which went into MTV and VH1's rotations. During this period Vega also wrote lyrics for two songs on Songs from Liquid Days by composer Philip Glass.

Her next effort, Solitude Standing (1987), garnered critical and commercial success including the hit single "Luka", an international success. "Luka" is written about, and from the point of view of, an abused child—at the time an uncommon subject for a pop hit. While continuing a focus on Vega's acoustic guitar, the music is more strongly pop-oriented and features fuller arrangements. The a cappella "Tom's Diner" from this album was later a hit, remixed by two British dance producers under the name DNA, in 1990. The track was originally a bootleg, until Vega allowed DNA to release through her record company, and it became her all-time biggest hit.

Tom's Diner[link]

Tom's Restaurant, after which the song Tom's Diner was named

Vega's song "Tom's Diner" was used as the reference track in an early trial of the MP3 compression system, thus earning her the distinction of being named "The Mother of the MP3". Because it is an a cappella vocal with relatively little reverberation, it was used as the model for Karlheinz Brandenburg's sound compression algorithm.^[7] Brandenburg heard “Tom's Diner” on a radio playing the song and was excited and at first convinced it would be “nearly impossible to compress this warm a cappella voice.”

"Tom's Diner" takes place in Tom's Restaurant at 112th Street and Broadway in New York City. Exterior shots of the same restaurant appear in the television sitcom Seinfeld as Monk's, which is the eatery where Jerry, George, Elaine, and Kramer hang out. The DNA remix of the track was so popular that it inspired many cover versions—the best of which were eventually collected by Vega on an album titled Tom's Album.^[7] The remixed version of "Tom's Diner" was later sampled by hip hop artist Nikki D in her single "Daddy's Little Girl". Rapper Tupac Shakur sampled the track in "Dopefiend's Diner".

Luka[link]

On a 1987 Swedish television special, Vega said this about her song "Luka":

Also, in an ASCAP interview, she responded to a question about "Luka":

"Luka" was covered by The Lemonheads on the 1989 album Lick, shortly before the band was signed by Atlantic Records, and was a minor college-airplay hit.

1990s[link]

Vega's third album, Days of Open Hand (1990) continued in the style of her first two albums.

In 1992 she released the album 99.9F°. It consists of a mixture of folk music, dance beats and industrial music.

Her fifth album, Nine Objects of Desire, was released in 1996. The music varies between a frugal, simple style and the industrial production of 99.9F°. This album contains "Caramel", featured in the movie The Truth About Cats & Dogs and, later, the trailer for the movie Closer. A song not included on that album, "Woman on the Tier", was featured on the soundtrack of the movie Dead Man Walking.

In 1997 she took a singing part on the concept album Heaven and Hell, a musical interpretation of the Seven deadly sins by her colleague Joe Jackson, with whom she had already collaborated in 1986 on "Left of Center" from the Pretty in Pink soundtrack (with Vega singing and Jackson playing piano).

In 1999, Avon Books published Vega's book "The Passionate Eye: The Collected Writings Of Suzanne Vega"; a volume of poems, lyrics, essays and journalistic pieces.

2000s[link]

On stage, 2008

September 2001 saw the release of a new album, Songs In Red and Gray. Three songs deal with Vega's divorce from first husband Mitchell Froom.

At the memorial concert for her brother Tim Vega in December 2002, she began as the long-term subject of a direct cinema documentary, Some Journey, by director Christopher Seufert of Mooncusser Films. This has not been completed.

In 2003, the twenty-one-song greatest hits compilation Retrospective: The Best of Suzanne Vega was released. (The UK version of Retrospective included an eight-song bonus CD as well as a DVD containing twelve songs.) In the same year she was invited by Grammy Award-winning jazz guitarist Bill Frisell, to play at the Century of Song concerts at the famed RuhrTriennale in Germany.

In 2003, she hosted the American Public Media radio series American Mavericks, about 20th century American composers, which received the prestigious Peabody Award for Excellence in Broadcasting.

On August 3, 2006, Vega became the first major recording artist to perform live in the Internet-based virtual world, Second Life. The event was hosted by John Hockenberry of public radio's The Infinite Mind.

On September 17, 2006, she performed in Central Park, as part of a benefit concert for The Save Darfur Coalition.^[10] During the concert she highlighted her support for Amnesty International, of which she has been a member since 1988.^{[11] [12]}

In early October 2006, Vega took part in the Academia Film Olomouc (AFO) in Olomouc, the Czech Republic, the oldest festival of documentary films in Europe, in which she appeared as a main guest. She was invited there as the subject of the documentary film by director Christopher Seufert, that had a test screening at the festival. At the end of the festival she performed her classical songs, and added one brand new piece called "New York Is a Woman".

Vega is also interviewed in the book Everything Is Just a Bet which was published in Czech in October 2006. The book contains twelve interview transcriptions from the talk show called Stage Talks that regularly runs in the Švandovo divadlo (Švandovo Theatre) in Prague. Vega introduced the book to the audience of the Švandovo divadlo (Švandovo Theatre), and together with some other Czech celebrities gave a signing session.

She signed a new recording contract with Blue Note Records in the spring of 2006, and released Beauty & Crime on July 17, 2007. The album was produced by Jimmy Hogarth, which won a Grammy for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. Her contract was not renewed and she was dropped in June 2008.^[13]

In 2007, Vega followed the lead of numerous other mainstream artists and released her track "Pornographer's Dream" as podsafe. The song spent two weeks at #1 during 2007 and finished as the #11^[14] hit of the year on the PMC Top10's annual countdown. Vega joined the 10th annual Independent Music Awards judging panel to assist independent musicians' careers.^{[15] [16] [17]} She was also a judge for the 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th Independent Music Awards.^[18]

2010s[link]

A partial cover version of her song "Tom's Diner" is used to introduce the 2010 British movie 4.3.2.1, with its lyrics largely rewritten to echo the plot. This musical hybrid was released as "Keep Moving".

Vega is included in the Danger Mouse/Sparklehorse/David Lynch collaboration "Dark Night of the Soul". She wrote both melody and lyrics for her song, which is titled "The Man Who Played God", inspired by a biography of Pablo Picasso.

Vega is rerecording her back-catalogue,^[19] both for artistic and commercial (and control) reasons,^[20][21] in the Close-up series. Vol.1 (Love Songs) and Vol. 2 (People & Places) appeared in 2010 while Vol. 3 (States of Being) was released in July 2011 ^[22] and 4 (Songs of Family) is planned for the near future.

Vega sang lead vocals on the song "Now I Am an Arsonist" with singer-songwriter Jonathan Coulton on his 2011 album, Artificial Heart.

Theater[link]

Vega co-wrote (with Duncan Sheik) a play “Carson McCullers Talks About Love”, about the life of the writer Carson McCullers. In the play, which premiered in 2011, Vega alternates between monologue and songs. ^[23][24][25]

Personal life[link]

On March 17, 1995, Vega married Mitchell Froom, a musician and a record producer (who played in and produced 99.9F° and Nine Objects of Desire). They have a daughter, Ruby Froom (born July 8, 1994). The band Soul Coughing's Ruby Vroom album was named after her, with Vega's approval, though she requested a slight change.^[7] Recently Ruby sang with her mother on a couple of occasions.^[26][27][28] Vega and Froom separated in 1998.

On February 11, 2006, Vega married Paul Mills, a lawyer and poet. They originally met each other at Folk City on West 4th Street when singer-songwriter Lucy Kaplansky, a friend of both, introduced them. In the words of her website, "The couple met at Folk City on West 4th Street in 1981. Mr. Mills proposed to Miss Vega in May, 1983, and she accepted his proposal on Christmas Day, 2005."^[29]

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

• ¹ Days of Open Hand made #2 in Norway albums chart
• ² Nine Objects of Desire made #20 in Finland, #23 in Switzerland, #39 in Sweden
• ³ Beauty & Crime made #9 in Estonia, #13 in Finland, #37 in Czech Republic, #49 in Poland, #74 in Italy
• Close-Up Vol. 2, People & Places Number 2 Top Purchased Album (Amazon.com) 11th October-13th October

Compilation albums[link]

• Tried & True: The Best of Suzanne Vega, 1998 – UK #46, AUS #96, GER #58
• Retrospective: The Best of Suzanne Vega, 2003 – UK #27^[30]

Singles[link]

• "Rusted Pipe (DNA remix)", promotional, 1991
• "Caramel", 1996
• "Birth-day", promotional, 1997
• "World before Columbus", 1997
• "Headshots", promotional, 1997
• "Book & a Cover", 1998
• "Rosemary / Remember me", 1999
• "Widow's Walk", promotional, 2001
• "Last Year's Troubles", promotional, 2001
• "Penitent", promotional, 2001
• "(I'll Never Be) Your Maggie May", promotional, 2002
• "Frank & Ava", promotional, 2007
• "Ludlow Street", promotional, 2007
• "Unbound", promotional, 2007
• "Pornographer's Dream", podsafe, 2007 – PMC #1

Other contributions[link]

• Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films (1988) – "Stay Awake"
• One World One Voice (1990) – "One World, One Voice"
• Deadicated: A Tribute to the Grateful Dead (1991) – "Cassidy" and "China Doll"
• DNA: Taste This (1992) – "Tom's Diner (DNA Remix)" and "Salt Water"
• Hector Zazou: Songs From the Cold Sea (1994) – "The Long Voyage" (with John Cale)
• Grammy's Greatest Moments Volume III (1994) - "Luka" (live version)^[34]
• Tower of Song (1995) – "Story of Isaac"
• Dead Man Walking soundtrack (1995) – "Woman on the Tier (I'll See You Through)"
• The Smithereens: Blown to Smithereens (1995) – "In a Lonely Place"
• Time and Love: The Music of Laura Nyro (1997) – "Buy and Sell"
• "Perfect Day"^{[disambiguation needed ]} (1997)
• Joe Jackson: Heaven & Hell (1997) – "Angel (Lust)"
• Mitchell Froom: Dopamine (1998) – "Dopamine"
• Celebrate the Season (1998) – "Coventry Carol"
• Bleecker Street: Greenwich Village in the 60's (1999) – "So Long, Marianne" (with John Cale)
• Dan Zanes: Rocket Ship Beach (2000) – "Erie Canal"
• Hear Music Volume 7: Waking (2002) – "Widow's Walk"
• 107.1 KGSR Radio Austin - Broadcasts Vol.10 (2002) – "Widow's Walk"
• WYEP Live and Direct: Volume 4 - On Air Performances (2002) – "(I'll Never Be) Your Maggie May"
• Vigil (album) (2004) – "It Hit Home"
• WFUV: City Folk Live VII (2004) – "Penitent"
• The Acoustic Album (2006, Virgin) – "Marlene On the Wall"
• Dar Williams: Promised Land (2008) – "Go to the Woods"
• Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse Present: Dark Night of the Soul (2009) – "The Man Who Played God"
• Pioneers for a Cure: Songs To Fight Cancer (2011) – "Streets of Laredo"

References[link]

External links[link]

This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. (July 2011)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Suzanne Vega

• Official website
• Suzanne Vega on A&M Records
• Suzanne Vega at the Internet Movie Database
• Suzanne Vega on Charlie Rose
• Works by or about Suzanne Vega in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Suzanne Vega collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Suzanne Vega documentary clips
• Love Songs Review – Love Songs Review by SLUG Magazine
• Suzanne Vega recording of 'Streets of Laredo' for Pioneers For A Cure

Serj Tankian
Serj Tankian performing in Burgas, Bulgaria in August 2010.
Background information
Native name	Սերժ Թանգեան
Birth name	Serj Tankian
Born	(1967-08-21) August 21, 1967 (age 44) Beirut, Lebanon[1]
Genres	Heavy metal, experimental, alternative metal, progressive rock, alternative rock, art rock, classical
Occupations	Musician, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, poet, political activist
Instruments	Vocal, piano, keyboards, synthesizer, sampler, theremin, guitar, bass guitar, violin, harmonica, melodica, bouzouki, dulcimer[disambiguation needed ], drums
Years active	1992–present
Labels	Serjical Strike, Reprise, American, Columbia, Axis of Justice
Associated acts	System of a Down, Axis of Justice, The F.C.C.
Website	www.serjtankian.com

Serj Tankian (Western Armenian: Սերժ Թանգեան [ˈsɛɾʒ tʰɑnˈkʰjɑn]; born August 21, 1967) is a Lebanese-born Armenian-American singer–songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, playwright, record producer, poet, and political activist. He is best known as the lead vocalist, songwriter, keyboardist, and occasional live rhythm guitarist of the rock band System of a Down.

During his musical career, Tankian has released five albums with System of a Down, one with Arto Tunçboyacıyan (Serart), as well as three solo albums Elect the Dead, Imperfect Harmonies and Harakiri. A live orchestral version of Elect the Dead incorporating the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra named Elect the Dead Symphony was released. In 2002, Tankian and Rage Against the Machine/Audioslave guitarist Tom Morello co-founded a non-profit political activist organization, Axis of Justice. Tankian also founded the music label Serjical Strike Records.

Tankian is ranked 26th in the Hit Parader's Top 100 Metal Vocalists of All Time.

On August 12, 2011, Tankian was awarded the Armenian Prime Minister's Medal for his contributions to the recognition of the Armenian Genocide and the advancement of music.^[2]

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Tankian was born in Beirut, Lebanon on August 21, 1967.^[3] At age seven, Serj Tankian moved with his parents to Los Angeles, California.^[3] In his youth, he attended a school for Armenian-Americans, Rose and Alex Pilibos Armenian School,^[4] which was also attended by Tankian's future System of a Down bandmates Daron Malakian and Shavo Odadjian.^[5] Tankian was accepted into California State University, Northridge. This is where Tankian first began to play instruments and write songs.^[3]

Soil and System of a Down (1994–2006)[link]

The early beginnings of System of a Down lie in a band named Soil (not to be confused with the Chicago-based band SOiL) with Tankian on vocals & keyboards, Daron Malakian on vocals & lead guitar, Dave Hakopyan on bass and Domingo Loranio on drums. The band hired Shavo Odadjian as their then-manager but for him to later join as rhythm guitarist. Loriano and Hakopyan later left the band feeling that it wasn't going anywhere, leading to Soil splitting up.

After Soil split up, Tankian, Odadjian and Malakian formed a new band they called System of a Down, after a poem Malakian wrote called Victims of a Down. Their original drummer was Ontronik Khachaturian, with whom they had spent time playing with in Soil, though he was later replaced by John Dolmayan after breaking his hand shortly before a gig the band had been booked to play, giving Dolmayan the last-minute call up. The band quickly began touring the Southern California rock clubs, and began to attract a strong following.

[edit] Elect the Dead (2007–2010)

Tankian's breakthrough as a solo artist came with the release of his debut record Elect the Dead. The first singles from Elect the Dead are "The Unthinking Majority" and "Empty Walls". The music video "Feed Us" was released on the Swedish^[6] and UK^[7] MTV. Tankian appeared on MTV's You Rock The Deuce to promote Elect the Dead.^{[citation needed]} A music video was directed and filmed for every song on the record, each by unique directors. Tankian explained, "I asked each of the directors for their visual interpretation of my work. They were asked not to write treatments and that they could make whatever they liked. The results have been overwhelmingly amazing!"^[8] Some music videos were initially released exclusively to those who purchased the limited edition of Elect the Dead, while all of the music videos, except "Money", have since been publicly released on Tankian's website and YouTube channel. Some videos have alternative versions which were originally released as well, but later altered.^{[citation needed]}

Three different promo versions of the album have surfaced to the public. The instrumental promotional version, issued by Serjical Strike/Reprise Records and intended for the music and movie industry, contains instrumental versions of the twelve album tracks. Another promotional version, issued by Reprise Records and made only for individual reviewers, features the album in final master form. This promotional CD-R, which was labeled "Smart Talk" as a codename for "Serj Tankian" to prevent leaking by unauthorized persons, also indicates that the album was finalized prior to August 20, 2007 (2007-08-20).^[9] Before this a similar but undated promo, also under the name 'Smart Talk', was issued featuring the final versions of the songs, albeit not yet mastered.^{[citation needed]} Whilst the printed track list on this version is identical the released album, tracks ten and eleven are in fact juxtaposed on the promo itself.

The official tour for Elect the Dead commenced on October 12, 2007 with a show at Chicago's Vic theater. Roughly one thousand people attended the first concert. Although Tankian had stated he would not be performing any material by his former band, System of a Down, he performed "Charades" and "Blue", songs co-written by Daron Malakian, the guitarist of System of a Down. "Blue" had previously appeared on their Fourth Demo Tape in 1998, and Charades was attempted during the 2005 Mezmerize/Hypnotize sessions, but never released (although a short video clip of Tankian and Dolmayan playing the song in a recording studio was featured on "the Making of Mezmerize/Hypnotize"). Although it is originally a song restricted to piano and vocals, Tankian used his backing band, the Flying Cunts of Chaos (F.C.C.), to provide guitars, drums, and bass.^{[citation needed]} The songs "Beethoven's Cunt", Empty Walls, and Sky Is Over are available as downloadable content for Rock Band. A portion of the song "Lie Lie Lie" is currently featured in the opening title sequence of NBC's Fear Itself, a horror anthology show from the creators of Masters of Horror, and can be viewed on the show's main website.^{[citation needed]}

More recently, he sang with Les Rita Mitsouko on the song "Terminal Beauty". Also, he sang with the band Fair to Midland during a live improvisational version of their song "Walls of Jericho", from the album Fables from a Mayfly: What I Tell You Three Times Is True, which was a massive hit with fans. He often collaborates with his close friend, director Diran Noubar on various projects, including the voice-over of Noubar's Armenia, a Country Under Blockade. Noubar played some guitar on Tankian's Elect the Dead album on the track "Saving Us" and directed the music video for "Baby".

Serj Tankian performing in 2005

Tankian is also politically involved. Together with Tom Morello, he founded the organization Axis of Justice. Tankian is a New Zealand resident and has a secondary vacation dwelling there.^[10] There has been a misconception that he intends to stay in New Zealand until the Iraq War is over, but as stated in an interview, Tankian has no intention of doing so. He often speaks publicly against violence and injustice in the world. Tankian released a new song "Fears" in November 2008 exclusively in support of Amnesty International's Global Write-A-Thon.^[11]

On March 16, 2009, Serj performed with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra in New Zealand, an orchestral version of the album Elect the Dead. The live performance was captured in a CD/DVD titled Elect the Dead Symphony which was released on March 9, 2010.

Tankian co-wrote a musical with the American playwright Steven Sater. It is based on the Ancient Greek tragedy Prometheus Bound. It will open at the American Repertory Theater on March 14, 2011.^[12][13]

In 2009, Tankian collaborated with the band Viza (previously known as Visa) for their track "Viktor".^[14] Viza is signed to Tankian's Serjical Strike label.

On February 15, 2010, Serj Tankian released a new single, "The Charade". The song is available as a digital download on iTunes.

[edit] Imperfect Harmonies (2010–2012)

Tankian's second solo album was originally due in 2009. It is said to be more of a jazz and orchestral based sound. Said Tankian of the second album, "I'm structuring the next record kind of like a jazz orchestral. I've got a full orchestra interested, so I want this giant electric guitar in the air to be played by a full orchestra. I want the orchestra to be the electric guitar. I want to make an orchestra do what it's never done before, like a GG Allin type orchestra. Think of that."^[15] The album had the working title Music Without Borders, however, the final album title is Imperfect Harmonies. On June 23, 2010, a promo single from his upcoming album Imperfect Harmonies was released called "Borders Are". The first radio single from Imperfect Harmonies, "Left Of Center", was released on July 13, 2010. A third single, "Disowned Inc." was released on August 9, 2010. Imperfect Harmonies was released on September 21, 2010. Preceding the album's release, two contests were announced (one consisting of brainteasers related to the album/song titles, the other an art contest) in which fans could win prizes such as Tankian's autograph and merchandise. On August 22, 2010, a music video for Left Of Center was released on Tankian's MySpace account.

The premiere date for Tankian and Sater's Prometheus Bound at the American Repertory Theater is February 25, 2011. The singer has said that collaborating on the show has been a great learning experience for him. "I’ve been using a lot of my archives, a lot of different types of music that I had already put together for underscoring and what not," he said. "It’s quite diverse, from noise to jazz to electronic stuff to hip-hop songs to rock songs to cool, piano dark underscores, and that’s a whole different bag of tricks there because it’s always evolving. Unlike a film score that’s very linear and you get a scene to score for, this is something where you do another workshop and one song is gone, that underscore changes to 20 seconds and they need something else on the spot. Everything’s always changing until the show comes, so it’s quite interesting."^[16]

In January 2011 Tankian released a music video for his song Reconstructive Demonstrations from his album Imperfect Harmonies. Tankian also announced on his Facebook page, during the video's release, that a new EP entitled Imperfect Remixes would be released sometime within 2011. On February 3, Serj uploaded a photo of him singing into a microphone onto his Facebook fan page, accompanied with the description "New music video coming soon..." On March 1, Serj released Imperfect Remixes and the music video for Goodbye, a remix of Gate 21 from Imperfect Harmonies.

[edit] System of a Down reunion and Harakiri (2011-Future)

On November 29, 2010, following several weeks of internet rumors, System of a Down officially announced that they will play shows in Europe during Festivals and in North America, mostly in US. Dates are between May and July 2011.^[17] Among the announced tour dates included UK's Download Festival, Switzerland's Greenfield Festival, Germany's Rock am Ring/Rock im Park, Sweden's Metaltown, Austria's Nova Rock Festival and Finland's Provinssirock. The band gave a single concert in Olympic Sports Complex of Moscow in June 2011.^[18] In their reunion statement posted on their website, the band was unclear as to the extent of their reformation. It read, "We have no master plan of sorts—we are playing these shows simply because we want to play together again as a band and for you, our amazing fans."^[19] Dates have been announced in the official System of a Down website.

In early July 2011, Serj posted a video on YouTube showing two samples of new songs. During the video he said "next year". In multiple interviews he has stated that he has been working on a Rock record that will be released in 2011, and some side projects including jazz, electronic, and symphonic records. John Dolmayan has also confirmed the solo album, as well as confirmed that a new System album will be made^{[citation needed]}, but not for at least a year. This is due to Serj being in New Zealand as well as touring for his new album in 2012. It has been confirmed that his newest album is named Harakiri and will be released on July 10, 2012. This will be the first of 4 new albums to be released in the near future.^[20] The first single from this album is called "Figure It Out" and was released on May 1st. ^[21] Song has later appeared on Serj Tankian official YouTube channel. On May 30th, 2012, is announced that "Cornucopia" will be the second single taken from Harakiri and it will be released on June 12th.

Animal rights[link]

Tankian has taken a stance supporting animal rights. He also has become a vegetarian who has strong feelings against the establishment of industrial slaughterhouses. In an interview with PETA, he claimed his change was due to "touring and its variety of edible crap," and also he felt it was "instinctive somewhat." Furthermore, he also feels the need for respect towards 'mother earth'.^[22]

In July 2009, Serj signed a PETA petition against the slaughtering methods of chickens in KFC slaughterhouses.^[23]

The F.C.C.[link]

The F.C.C. (Flying Cunts of Chaos) was Serj's backing band when he played live up until 2009.^[24]

Final line-up

• Mario Pagliarulo  – bass, vocals
• Erwin Khachikian  – keyboards, piano, synthesizers, vocals
• Troy Zeigler  – drums, vocals
• Dan Monti  – guitar, vocals
• Jeff Mallow  – guitar, vocals (2008–present)

Past members

• Larry "Ler" LaLonde  – guitar, vocals (2007–2008)

Discography[link]

Solo

• Elect the Dead (2007)
• Imperfect Harmonies (2010)
• Harakiri (2012)
• Orca

With System of a Down

• System of a Down (1998)
• Toxicity (2001)
• Steal This Album! (2002)
• Mezmerize (2005)
• Hypnotize (2005)

With Serart

• Serart (2003)

With Buckethead and various artists

• Enter The Chicken (2005)
• Profanation (Preparation for a Coming Darkness) (2008)

With Tony Iommi

• Iommi (2000)

With Wyclef Jean

• Carnival Vol. II: Memoirs of an Immigrant (2007)

Bibliography[link]

• Cool Gardens, 2001, MTV Books
• Glaring Through Oblivion, 2011, It Books ^[25]

Awards and nominations[link]

System of a Down has been nominated for four Grammy Awards, of which has won one in 2006 for Best Hard Rock Performance for the song B.Y.O.B.. The band has also been nominated for several Kerrang! and MTV awards.

Grammy Awards

General

• In 2005, System of a Down won for Best Alternative Act in the Europe Music Awards
• In 2006, System of a Down won the "MTV Good Woodie Award" for their song "Question!"
• In 2006, System of a Down's song "Toxicity" was #14 on the VH1 Top 40 Metal Songs List

References[link]

External links[link]

• Serj Tankian's official website
• Serjical Strike official website
• Brazilian Fan Site
• System of a Down's official website
• Serj Tankian at the Internet Movie Database

Earvin "Magic" Johnson

No. 32
Point guard / Forward
Personal information
Born	(1959-08-14) August 14, 1959 (age 52) Lansing, Michigan
High school	Everett (Lansing, Michigan)
Listed height	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)[1]
Listed weight	255 lb (116 kg)[2]
Career information
College	Michigan State (1977–1979)
NBA Draft	1979 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1st overall
Selected by the Los Angeles Lakers
Pro career	1979–1996
Career history
1979–1991, 1996	Los Angeles Lakers
Career highlights and awards
5× NBA Champion (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987–1988) 3× NBA Most Valuable Player (1987, 1989–1990) 12× NBA All-Star (1980, 1982–1992) 3× NBA Finals MVP (1980, 1982, 1987) 9× All-NBA First Team (1983–1991) All-NBA Second Team (1982) NBA All-Rookie First Team (1980) 2× NBA All-Star Game MVP (1990, 1992) NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team NCAA Champion (1979) #32 Retired by Los Angeles Lakers
Career statistics
Points	17,707 (19.5 ppg)
Rebounds	6,559 (7.2 rpg)
Assists	10,141 (11.2 apg)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Basketball Hall of Fame as player

Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is a retired American professional basketball player who played point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After winning championships in high school and college, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA Draft by the Lakers. He won a championship and an NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award in his rookie season, and won four more championships with the Lakers during the 1980s. Johnson retired abruptly in 1991 after announcing that he had contracted HIV, but returned to play in the 1992 All-Star Game, winning the All-Star MVP Award. After protests from his fellow players, he retired again for four years, but returned in 1996, at age 36, to play 32 games for the Lakers before retiring for the third and final time.

Johnson's career achievements include three NBA MVP Awards, nine NBA Finals appearances, twelve All-Star games, and ten All-NBA First and Second Team nominations. He led the league in regular-season assists four times, and is the NBA's all-time leader in average assists per game, at 11.2.^[3] Johnson was a member of the "Dream Team", the U.S. basketball team that won the Olympic gold medal in 1992.

Johnson was honored as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996, and enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.^[4] He was rated the greatest NBA point guard of all time by ESPN in 2007.^[5] His friendship and rivalry with Boston Celtics star Larry Bird, whom he faced in the 1979 NCAA finals and three NBA championship series, were well documented. Since his retirement, Johnson has been an advocate for HIV/AIDS prevention and safe sex,^[4] as well as an entrepreneur,^[6] philanthropist,^[7] broadcaster and motivational speaker.^[8] Johnson was a part-owner of the Lakers for several years, and was part of a group that purchased the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2012.

Amateur career[link]

Early years[link]

Earvin Johnson Jr. was born to Earvin Sr., a General Motors assembly worker, and Christine, a school custodian.^[9] Johnson grew up in Lansing, Michigan, and came to love basketball as a youngster, idolizing players such as Earl Monroe and Marques Haynes,^[10] and practicing "all day".^[4]

Johnson was first dubbed "Magic" as a 15-year-old sophomore playing for Lansing's Everett High School, when he recorded a triple-double of 36 points, 18 rebounds and 16 assists.^[4] After the game, Fred Stabley Jr., a sports writer for the Lansing State Journal, gave him the moniker^[11] despite the belief of Johnson's mother, a Christian, that the name was sacrilegious.^[4] In his final high school season, Johnson led Lansing Everett to a 27–1 win–loss record while averaging 28.8 points and 16.8 rebounds per game,^[4] and took his team to an overtime victory in the state championship game.^[12]

Michigan State University[link]

Although Johnson was recruited by several top-ranked colleges such as Indiana and UCLA, he decided to play close to home.^[13] His college decision came down to the University of Michigan and Michigan State University in East Lansing. He ultimately decided to attend Michigan State when its coach Jud Heathcote told him he could play the point guard position. The talent already on Michigan State's roster also drew him to the program.^[14]

Johnson did not initially aspire to play professionally, focusing instead on his communication studies major and on his desire to become a television commentator.^[15] Playing with future NBA draftees Greg Kelser, Jay Vincent and Mike Brkovich, Johnson averaged 17.0 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 7.4 assists per game as a freshman, and led the Spartans to a 25–5 record, the Big Ten Conference title, and a berth in the 1978 NCAA Tournament.^[4] The Spartans reached the Elite Eight, but lost narrowly to eventual national champion Kentucky.^[16]

During the 1978–79 season, Michigan State again qualified for the NCAA Tournament, where they advanced to the championship game and faced Indiana State University, which was led by senior Larry Bird. In what was the most-watched college basketball game ever,^[17] Michigan State defeated Indiana State 75–64, and Johnson was voted Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four.^[12] After two years in college, during which he averaged 17.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 7.9 assists per game, Johnson was drafted in the 1979 NBA Draft.^[18]

Professional career[link]

Rookie season in the NBA (1979–80)[link]

Johnson was drafted first overall in 1979 by the Los Angeles Lakers. Johnson said that what was "most amazing" about joining the Lakers was the chance to play alongside Kareem Abdul-Jabbar,^[19] the team's 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) center who became the leading scorer in NBA history.^[20] Despite Abdul-Jabbar's dominance, he had failed to win a championship with the Lakers, and Johnson was expected to help them achieve that goal.^[21] Johnson averaged 18.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 7.3 assists per game for the season, was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Team, and was named an NBA All-Star Game starter.^[22]

The Lakers compiled a 60–22 record in the regular season and reached the 1980 NBA Finals,^[23] in which they faced the Philadelphia 76ers, who were led by forward Julius Erving. The Lakers took a 3–2 lead in the series, but Abdul-Jabbar, who averaged 33 points a game in the series,^[24] sprained his ankle in Game 5 and could not play in Game 6.^[21] Paul Westhead decided to start Johnson at center in Game 6; Johnson recorded 42 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 steals in a 123–107 win, while playing guard, forward, and center at different times during the game.^[21] Johnson became the only rookie to win the NBA Finals MVP award,^[21] and his clutch performance is still regarded as one of the finest in NBA history.^[5][25][26] He also became one of four players to win NCAA and NBA championships in consecutive years.^[27]

Ups and downs (1980–83)[link]

Early in the 1980–81 season, Johnson was sidelined after he suffered torn cartilage in his left knee. He missed 45 games,^[18] and said that his rehabilitation was the "most down" he had ever felt.^[28] Johnson returned before the start of the 1981 playoffs, but the Lakers' then-assistant and future head coach Pat Riley later said Johnson's much-anticipated return made the Lakers a "divided team".^[29] The 54-win Lakers faced the 40–42 Houston Rockets in the first round of playoffs,^[30][31] where Houston upset the Lakers 2–1 after Johnson airballed a last-second shot in Game 3.^[32]

During the off-season, Johnson signed a 25-year, $25-million contract with the Lakers, which was the highest-paying contract in sports history up to that point.^[33] At the beginning of the 1981–82 season, Johnson had a heated dispute with Westhead, who Johnson said made the Lakers "slow" and "predictable".^[34] After Johnson demanded to be traded, Lakers owner Jerry Buss fired Westhead and replaced him with Riley. Although Johnson denied responsibility for Westhead's firing,^[35] he was booed across the league, even by Lakers' fans.^[4] Despite his off-court troubles, Johnson averaged 18.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, 9.5 assists, and a league-high 2.7 steals per game, and was voted a member of the All-NBA Second Team.^[18] He also joined Wilt Chamberlain and Oscar Robertson as the only NBA players to tally at least 700 points, 700 rebounds, and 700 assists in the same season.^[12] The Lakers advanced through the 1982 playoffs and faced Philadelphia for the second time in three years in the 1982 NBA Finals. After a triple-double from Johnson in Game 6, the Lakers defeated the Sixers 4–2, as Johnson won his second NBA Finals MVP award.^[36] During the championship series against the Sixers, Johnson averaged 16.2 points on .533 shooting, 10.8 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 2.5 steals per game.^[37] Johnson later said that his third season was when the Lakers first became a great team,^[38] and he credited their success to Riley.^[39]

During the 1982–83 NBA season, Johnson averaged 16.8 points, 10.5 assists, and 8.6 rebounds per game and earned his first All-NBA First Team nomination.^[18] The Lakers again reached the Finals, and for a third time faced the Sixers, who featured center Moses Malone as well as Erving.^[40] With Johnson's teammates Norm Nixon, James Worthy and Bob McAdoo all hobbled by injuries, the Lakers were swept by the Sixers, and Malone was crowned the Finals MVP.^[40] In a losing effort against Philadelphia, Johnson averaged 19.0 points on .403 shooting, 12.5 assists, and 7.8 rebounds per game.^[41]

Battles against the Celtics (1983–87)[link]

Johnson battling with Bird for rebounding position in Game 2 of the 1985 NBA Finals at Boston Garden.

In Johnson's fifth season, he averaged a double-double of 17.6 points and 13.1 assists, as well as 7.3 rebounds per game.^[18] The Lakers reached the Finals for the third year in a row, where Johnson's Lakers and Bird's Celtics met for the first time in the post-season.^[42] The Lakers won the first game, and led by two points in Game 2 with 18 seconds to go, but after a layup by Gerald Henderson, Johnson failed to get a shot off before the final buzzer sounded, and the Lakers lost 124–121 in overtime.^[42] In Game 3, Johnson responded with 21 assists in a 137–104 win, but in Game 4, he again made several crucial errors late in the contest. In the final minute of the game, Johnson had the ball stolen by Celtics center Robert Parish, and then missed two free throws that could have won the game. The Celtics won Game 4 in overtime, and the teams split the next two games. In the decisive Game 7 in Boston, as the Lakers trailed by three points in the final minute, opposing point guard Dennis Johnson stole the ball from Johnson, a play that effectively ended the series.^[42] Friends Isiah Thomas and Mark Aguirre consoled him that night, talking until the morning in his Boston hotel room amidst fan celebrations on the street.^[43][44] During the Finals, Johnson averaged 18.0 points on .560 shooting, 13.6 assists, and 7.7 rebounds per game.^[45] Johnson later described the series as "the one championship we should have had but didn't get".^[46]

In the 1984–85 regular season, Johnson averaged 18.3 points, 12.6 assists, and 6.2 rebounds per game and led the Lakers into the 1985 NBA Finals, where they faced the Celtics again. The series started poorly for the Lakers when they allowed an NBA Finals record 148 points to the Celtics in a 34-point loss in Game 1.^[47] However, Abdul-Jabbar, who was now 38 years old, scored 30 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in Game 2, and his 36 points in a Game 5 win were instrumental in establishing a 3–2 lead for Los Angeles.^[47] After the Lakers defeated the Celtics in six games, Abdul-Jabbar and Johnson, who averaged 18.3 points on .494 shooting, 14.0 assists, and 6.8 rebounds per game in the championship series,^[48][49] said the Finals win was the highlight of their careers.^[50]

Johnson again averaged a double-double in the 1985–86 NBA season, with 18.8 points, 12.6 assists, and 5.9 rebounds per game.^[18] The Lakers advanced to the Western Conference Finals, but were unable to defeat the Houston Rockets, who advanced to the Finals in five games.^[51] In the next season, Johnson averaged a career-high of 23.9 points, as well as 12.2 assists and 6.3 rebounds per game,^[18] and earned his first regular season MVP award.^[4][52] The Lakers met the Celtics for the third time in the NBA Finals, and in Game 4 Johnson hit a last-second hook shot over Celtics big men Parish and Kevin McHale to win the game 107–106.^[53] The game-winning shot, which Johnson dubbed his "junior, junior, junior sky-hook",^[53] helped Los Angeles defeat Boston in six games. Johnson was awarded his third Finals MVP title after averaging 26.2 points on .541 shooting, 13.0 assists, 8.0 rebounds, and 2.33 steals per game.^[53][54]

Repeat and falling short (1987–91)[link]

Before the 1987–88 NBA season, Lakers coach Pat Riley publicly promised that they would defend the NBA title, even though no team had won consecutive titles since the Celtics did so in the 1969 NBA Finals.^[55] Johnson had another productive season with averages of 19.6 points, 11.9 assists, and 6.2 rebounds per game.^[18] In the 1988 playoffs, the Lakers survived two 4–3 series against the Utah Jazz and the Dallas Mavericks to reach the Finals and face Thomas and the Detroit Pistons,^[56] known as the "Bad Boys" for their physical style of play.^[57] Johnson and Thomas greeted each other with a kiss on the cheek before the opening tip of Game 1, which they called a display of brotherly love.^[44][58][59] After the teams split the first six games, Lakers forward and Finals MVP James Worthy had his first career triple-double of 36 points, 16 rebounds, and 10 assists, and led his team to a 108–105 win.^[60] Despite not being named MVP, Johnson had a strong championship series, averaging 21.1 points on .550 shooting, 13.0 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game.^[61] It was the fifth and final NBA championship of his career.

In the 1988–89 NBA season, Johnson's 22.5 points, 12.8 assists, and 7.9 rebounds per game^[18] earned him his second MVP award,^[62] and the Lakers reached the 1989 NBA Finals, in which they again faced the Pistons. However, after Johnson went down with a hamstring injury in Game 2, the Lakers were no match for the Pistons, who swept them 4–0.^[63]

Playing without Abdul-Jabbar for the first time, Johnson won his third MVP award^[64] after a strong 1989–90 NBA season in which he averaged 22.3 points, 11.5 assists, and 6.6 rebounds per game.^[18] However, the Lakers bowed out to the Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference semifinals, which was the Lakers' earliest playoffs elimination in nine years.^[65] Johnson performed well during the 1990–91 NBA season, with averages of 19.4 points, 12.5 assists, and 7.0 rebounds per game, and the Lakers reached the 1991 NBA Finals. There they faced the Chicago Bulls, led by shooting guard Michael Jordan, a five-time scoring champion regarded as the finest player of his era.^[66][67] Although the series was portrayed as a matchup between Johnson and Jordan,^[68] Bulls forward Scottie Pippen defended effectively against Johnson. Despite two triple-doubles from Johnson during the series, finals MVP Jordan led his team to a 4–1 win.^[4] In the last championship series of his career, Johnson averaged 18.6 points on .431 shooting, 12.4 assists, and 8.0 rebounds per game.^[69]

HIV announcement and Olympics (1991–92)[link]

After a physical before the 1991–92 NBA season, Johnson discovered that he had tested positive for HIV. In a press conference held on November 7, 1991, Johnson made a public announcement that he would retire immediately.^[70] He stated that his wife Cookie and their unborn child did not have HIV, and that he would dedicate his life to "battle this deadly disease".^[70] Johnson initially said that he did not know how he contracted the disease,^[70] but later acknowledged that it was through having multiple sexual partners during his playing career.^[71] At the time, only a small percentage of HIV-positive people had contracted it from heterosexual sex,^[59][72] and it was initially rumored that Johnson was gay or bisexual, although he denied both.^[59] Johnson later accused Isiah Thomas of spreading the rumors, a claim Thomas denied.^[44][73] Johnson's HIV announcement became a major news story in the United States,^[74] and in 2004 was named as ESPN's seventh most memorable moment of the past 25 years.^[75] Many articles praised Johnson as a hero, and former U.S. President George H. W. Bush said, "For me, Magic is a hero, a hero for anyone who loves sports."^[76]

Olympic medal record
Men's basketball
Competitor for  United States
Gold	1992 Barcelona	National team

Despite his retirement, Johnson was voted by fans as a starter for the 1992 NBA All-Star Game at Orlando Arena, although his former teammates Byron Scott and A. C. Green said that Johnson should not play,^[77] and several NBA players, including Utah Jazz forward Karl Malone, argued that they would be at risk of contamination if Johnson suffered an open wound while on court.^[78] Johnson led the West to a 153–113 win and was crowned All-Star MVP after recording 25 points, 9 assists, and 5 rebounds.^[79] The game ended after he made a last-minute three-pointer, and players from both teams ran onto the court to congratulate Johnson.^[80]

Johnson was chosen to compete in the 1992 Summer Olympics for the US basketball team, dubbed the "Dream Team" because of the NBA stars on the roster.^[81] During the tournament, which the USA won,^[82] Johnson played infrequently because of knee problems, but he received standing ovations from the crowd, and used the opportunity to inspire HIV-positive people.^[15]

Post-Olympics and later life[link]

Before the 1992–93 NBA season, Johnson announced his intention to stage an NBA comeback. After practicing and playing in several pre-season games, he returned to retirement before the start of the regular season, citing controversy over his return sparked by opposition from several active players.^[12] During his retirement, Johnson has written a book on safer sex, run several businesses, worked for NBC as a commentator, and toured Asia and Australia with a basketball team that comprised former college and NBA players.^[4]

He returned to the NBA as coach of the Lakers near the end of the 1993–94 NBA season, replacing Randy Pfund. After losing five of six games, Johnson announced he would resign after the season, choosing instead to purchase a 5% share of the team in June 1994.^[4] In the following season, at the age of 36, Johnson attempted another comeback as a player. Playing power forward, he averaged 14.6 points, 6.9 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game in the last 32 games of the season.^[18] After the Lakers lost to the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs,^[83] Johnson retired permanently, saying, "I am going out on my terms, something I couldn't say when I aborted a comeback in 1992."^[12]

Off the court[link]

Magic Johnson's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

Personal life[link]

Johnson first fathered a son in 1981, when Andre Johnson was born to Melissa Mitchell. Although Andre was raised by his mother, he visited Johnson each summer, and as of October 2005 was working for Magic Johnson Enterprises as a marketing director.^[6] In 1991, Johnson married Earlitha "Cookie" Kelly in a small wedding in Lansing which included guests Thomas, Aguirre, and Herb Williams.^[84] Johnson and Cookie have one son, Earvin III;^[6] the couple adopted a daughter, Elisa, in 1995.^[85] Johnson resides in Dana Point, California.^[86]

Media figure and business interests[link]

In 1998, Johnson hosted a late night talk show on the Fox network called The Magic Hour, but the show was canceled after two months because of low ratings.^[87] He runs Magic Johnson Enterprises, a company that has a net worth of $700 million;^[6] its subsidiaries include Magic Johnson Productions, a promotional company; Magic Johnson Theaters, a nationwide chain of movie theaters; and Magic Johnson Entertainment, a movie studio.^[88] Johnson has also worked as a motivational speaker.^[8] Johnson was an NBA commentator for Turner Network Television for seven years,^[89] before becoming a studio analyst for ESPN's NBA Countdown in 2008.^[90] In 1994, Johnson became a minority owner of the Lakers, having reportedly paid more than $10 million for part ownership. He also held the title of team vice president.^[91] Johnson sold his ownership stake in the Lakers in October 2010.^[92] In 2006 Johnson created a contract food service with Sodexo USA called Sodexo-Magic.^[93]

Los Angeles Dodgers[link]

In January 2012, Johnson joined with Guggenheim Partners and Stan Kasten in a bid for ownership of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team.^[94] In March 2012, Johnson's ownership group was announced as the winner of the proceedings to buy the Dodgers.^[95]

Politics[link]

Johnson is a supporter of the Democratic Party—in 2006, he publicly endorsed Phil Angelides for governor of California,^[96] and in 2007 he supported Hillary Clinton for president of the United States.^[97] In 2010 Johnson endorsed Barbara Boxer in her race for re-election.^[98]

HIV activism[link]

In 2003, Johnson met with Nancy Pelosi to discuss federal assistance for those with AIDS.

After announcing his infection in November 1991, Johnson created the Magic Johnson Foundation to help combat HIV,^[99] although he later diversified the foundation to include other charitable goals.^[100] In 1992, he joined the National Commission on AIDS, but left after eight months, saying that the commission was not doing enough to combat the disease.^[99] He was also the main speaker for the United Nations (UN) World AIDS Day Conference in 1999,^[100] and has served as a United Nations Messenger of Peace.^[101]

HIV had been associated with drug addicts and homosexuals,^[99] but Johnson's campaigns sought to show that the risk of infection was not limited to those groups. Johnson stated that his aim was to "help educate all people about what [HIV] is about" and teach others not to "discriminate against people who have HIV and AIDS".^[100] Johnson was later criticized by the AIDS community for his decreased involvement in publicizing the spread of the disease.^[99][100]

To prevent his HIV infection from progressing to AIDS, Johnson takes a daily combination of drugs.^[102] He has advertised GlaxoSmithKline's drugs,^[103] and partnered with Abbott Laboratories to publicize the fight against AIDS in African American communities.^[102]

Career achievements[link]

Johnson's number 32 jersey was retired by the Lakers in 1992.

In 905 NBA games, Johnson scored 17,707 points, 6,559 rebounds, and 10,141 assists, translating to career averages of 19.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 11.2 assists per game, the highest assists per game average in NBA history.^[18] Johnson shares the single-game playoff record for assists (24),^[104] holds the Finals record for assists in a game (21),^[104] and has the most playoff assists (2,346).^[105] He holds the All-Star Game single-game record for assists (22), and the All-Star Game record for career assists (127).^[104] Johnson introduced a fast-paced style of basketball called "Showtime", described as a mix of "no-look passes off the fastbreak, pin-point alley-oops from halfcourt, spinning feeds and overhand bullets under the basket through triple teams."^[4] Fellow Lakers guard Michael Cooper said, "There have been times when [Johnson] has thrown passes and I wasn't sure where he was going. Then one of our guys catches the ball and scores, and I run back up the floor convinced that he must've thrown it through somebody."^[4][12] Johnson was exceptional because he played point guard despite being 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m), a size reserved normally for frontcourt players.^[4] He combined the size of a power forward, the one-on-one skills of a swingman, and the ball handling talent of a guard, making him one of the most dangerous triple-double threats of all time; his 138 triple-double games are second only to Oscar Robertson's 181.^[106]

For his feats, Johnson was voted as one of the 50 Greatest Players of All Time by the NBA in 1996,^[107] and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.^[108] ESPN's SportsCentury ranked Johnson #17 in their "50 Greatest Athletes of the 20th Century"^[109] In 2006, ESPN.com rated Johnson the greatest point guard of all time, stating, "It could be argued that he's the one player in NBA history who was better than Michael Jordan."^[5] Several of his achievements in individual games have also been named among the top moments in the NBA.^{[26][110][111]}

Rivalry with Larry Bird[link]

Johnson and Larry Bird were first linked as rivals after Johnson's Michigan State squad defeated Bird's Indiana State team in the 1979 NCAA finals. The rivalry continued in the NBA, and reached its climax when Boston and Los Angeles met in three out of four NBA Finals from 1984 to 1987. Johnson asserted that for him, the 82-game regular season was composed of 80 normal games, and two Lakers–Celtics games. Similarly, Bird admitted that Johnson's daily box score was the first thing he checked in the morning.^[80]

Several journalists hypothesized that the Johnson–Bird rivalry was so appealing because it represented many other contrasts, such as the clash between the Lakers and Celtics, between Hollywood flashiness ("Showtime") and Boston/Indiana blue collar grit ("Celtic Pride"), and between blacks and whites.^[112][113] The rivalry was also significant because it drew national attention to the faltering NBA. Prior to Johnson and Bird's arrival, the NBA had gone through a decade of declining interest and low TV ratings.^[114] With the two future Hall of Famers, the league won a whole generation of new fans,^[115] drawing both traditionalist adherents of Bird's dirt court Indiana game and those appreciative of Johnson's public park flair. Sports journalist Larry Schwartz of ESPN asserted that Johnson and Bird saved the NBA from bankruptcy.^[12]

Despite their on-court rivalry, Johnson and Bird became close friends during the filming of a 1984 Converse shoe advertisement that depicted them as enemies.^[116][117] Johnson appeared at Bird's retirement ceremony in 1992, and described Bird as a "friend forever";^[80] during Johnson's Hall of Fame ceremony, Bird formally inducted his old rival.^[115]

Works[link]

Biographies[link]

Johnson's autobiography is Johnson, Earvin (1992). Magic Johnson: My Life. Random House. ISBN 0-449-22254-3.  Other biographies include:

• Haskins, James (1981). Magic: A Biography of Earvin Johnson. Hillside, New Jersey: Enslow Publishers. ISBN 0-89490-044-7. 
• Gutman, Bill (1991). Magic: More Than a Legend. New York, New York: Harper Paperbacks. ISBN 0-06-100542-8. 
• Morgan, Bill (1991). The Magic: Earvin Johnson. ISBN 0-606-01895-6. 
• Gutman, Bill (1992). Magic Johnson: Hero On and Off the Court. Brookfield, Connecticut: Millbrook Press. ISBN 1-56294-287-5. 
• Johnson, Rick L. (1992). Magic Johnson: Basketball's Smiling Superstar. New York, New York: Dillon Press. ISBN 0-87518-553-3. 
• Rozakis, Laurie (1993). Magic Johnson: Basketball Immortal. Vero Beach, Florida: Rourke Enterprises. ISBN 0-86592-025-7. 
• Schwabacher, Martin (1993). Magic Johnson (Junior World Biographies). New York, New York: Chelsea Juniors. ISBN 0-7910-2038-X. 
• Bork, Günter (1994). Die großen Basketball Stars. Copress-Verl. ISBN 3-7679-0369-5.  (German)
• Frank, Steven (1994). Magic Johnson (Basketball Legends). New York, New York: Chelsea House Publishers. ISBN 0-7910-2430-X. 
• Bork, Günter (1995). Basketball Sternstunden. Copress-Verl. ISBN 3-7679-0456-X.  (German)
• Blatt, Howard (1996). Magic! Against The Odds. New York, New York: Pocket Books. ISBN 0-671-00301-1. 
• Rosner, Mark (1999). Michael MacCambridge. ed. Earvin "Magic" Johnson: The Star of Showtime. New York: Hyperion ESPN Books. pp. 251–52.  (In ESPN SportsCentury)
• Gottfried, Ted (2001). Earvin Magic Johnson: Champion and Crusader. New York, New York: F. Watts. ISBN 0-531-11675-1. 

Instructional[link]

• Johnson, Earvin "Magic" (1992). Magic's Touch: From Fundamentals to Fast Break With One of Basketball's All-Time Greats. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley Pub. Co. ISBN 0-201-63222-5. 
• Johnson, Earvin "Magic" (1996). What You Can Do to Avoid AIDS. New York: Times Books. ISBN 0-8129-2844-X. 
  • Updated version of Johnson, Earvin "Magic" (1992). Unsafe Sex in the Age of AIDS. New York: Times Books. ISBN 0-8129-2063-5. 

See also[link]

• List of National Basketball Association career assists leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff assists leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff steals leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders
• List of National Basketball Association players with most assists in a game
• List of National Basketball Association players with most steals in a game

References[link]