The Northern Hemisphere is considered to be halfway through its summer and the Southern Hemisphere half way through its winter on this day.

Events

322 BC – Battle of Crannon between Athens and Macedon.

461 – Roman Emperor Majorian is beheaded near the river Iria in north-west Italy following his arrest and deposition by the ''magister militum'' Ricimer .

626 – The Avar and Slav armies leave the siege of Constantinople.

936 – Coronation of King Otto I of Germany.

1420 – Construction of the dome of Santa Maria del Fiore begins in Florence.

1427 – The Visconti of Milan's fleet is destroyed by the Venetians on the Po River.

1461 – The Ming Dynasty Chinese military general Cao Qin stages a coup against the Tianshun Emperor.

1679 – The brigantine ''Le Griffon'', commissioned by René Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, is towed to the south-eastern end of the Niagara River, to become the first ship to sail the upper Great Lakes of North America.

1714 – The Battle of Gangut: the first important victory of the Russian Navy.

1782 – George Washington orders the creation of the Badge of Military Merit to honor soldiers wounded in battle. It is later renamed to the more poetic Purple Heart.

1789 – The United States War Department is established.

1791 – United States troops destroy the Miami town of Kenapacomaqua near the site of present-day Logansport, Indiana in the Northwest Indian War.

1794 – U.S. President George Washington invokes the Militia Law of 1792 to suppress the Whiskey Rebellion in western Pennsylvania.

1819 – Simón Bolívar triumphs over Spain in the Battle of Boyacá.

1879 – The opening of the Poor Man's Palace in Manchester.

1890 – Anna Månsdotter becomes the last woman in Sweden to be executed, for the 1889 Yngsjö murder.

1909 – Alice Huyler Ramsey and three friends become the first women to complete a transcontinental auto trip, taking 59 days to travel from New York City to San Francisco.

1927 – The Peace Bridge opens between Fort Erie, Ontario and Buffalo, New York.

1930 – The last confirmed lynching of blacks in the Northern United States occurs in Marion, Indiana. Two men, Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith, are killed.

1933 – The Simele massacre: The Iraqi Government slaughters over 3,000 Assyrians in the village of Sumail. The day becomes known as Assyrian Martyrs Day.

1938 – The Holocaust: The building of Mauthausen concentration camp begins.

1940 – World War II: Alsace Lorraine is annexed by the Third Reich.

1942 – World War II: the Battle of Guadalcanal begins – United States Marines initiate the first American offensive of the war with landings on Guadalcanal and Tulagi in the Solomon Islands.

1944 – IBM dedicates the first program-controlled calculator, the Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator (known best as the Harvard Mark I).

1947 – Thor Heyerdahl's balsa wood raft the Kon-Tiki, smashes into the reef at Raroia in the Tuamotu Islands after a 101-day, journey across the Pacific Ocean in an attempt to prove that pre-historic peoples could have traveled from South America.

1947 – The Bombay Municipal Corporation formally takes over the Bombay Electric Supply and Transport (BEST).

1955 – Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering, the precursor to Sony, sells its first transistor radios in Japan.

1959 – The Lincoln Memorial design on the U.S. penny goes into circulation. It replaces the "sheaves of wheat" design, and was minted until 2008.

1959 – Explorer program: Explorer 6 launches from the Atlantic Missile Range in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

1960 – Côte d'Ivoire becomes independent.

1964 – Vietnam War: the U.S. Congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution giving US President Lyndon B. Johnson broad war powers to deal with North Vietnamese attacks on American forces.

1964 – Prometheus, a bristlecone pine and the world's oldest tree, is cut down.

1965 – The infamous first party between Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters and motorcycle gang the Hells Angels takes place at Kesey's estate in La Honda, California introducing psychedelics to the gang world and forever linking the hippie movement to the Hell's Angels.

1966 – Race riots occur in Lansing, Michigan.

1967 – Vietnam War: the People's Republic of China agrees to give North Vietnam an undisclosed amount of aid in the form of a grant.

1970 – California judge Harold Haley is taken hostage in his courtroom and killed during in an effort to free George Jackson from police custody.

1974 – Philippe Petit performs a high wire act between the twin towers of the World Trade Center in the air.

1976 – Viking program: Viking 2 enters orbit around Mars.

1978 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter declares a federal emergency at Love Canal due to toxic waste that had been negligently disposed of.

1979 – Several tornadoes struck the city of Woodstock, Ontario, Canada and the surrounding communities.

1981 – ''The Washington Star'' ceases all operations after 128 years of publication.

1985 – Takao Doi, Mamoru Mohri and Chiaki Mukai are chosen to be Japan's first astronauts.

1989 – U.S. Congressman Mickey Leland (D-TX) and 15 others die in a plane crash in Ethiopia.

1998 – The United States embassy bombings in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Nairobi, Kenya kill approximately 212 people.

1999 – The Chechnya-based Islamic International Brigade invades the neighbouring Russian Republic of Dagestan.

2007 – Barry Bonds of the San Francisco Giants breaks baseball great Hank Aaron's record by hitting his 756th home run.

Births

317 – Constantius II, Roman emperor (d. 361)

1282 – Princess Elizabeth of Rhuddlan (d. 1316)

1533 – Alonso de Ercilla y Zúñiga, Basque soldier and poet (d. 1595)

1560 – Elizabeth Báthory, Hungarian countess and serial killer (d. 1614)

1574 – Robert Dudley, styled Earl of Warwick, English writer (d. 1649)

1598 – Georg Stiernhielm, Swedish poet (d. 1672)

1726 – James Bowdoin, American Revolutionary leader and politician (d. 1790)

1734 – Maria Anna Josepha of Bavaria, consort of Baden-Baden (d. 1776)

1742 – Nathanael Greene, American Revolutionary general (d. 1786)

1751 – Wilhelmina of Prussia, Princess of Orange (d. 1820)

1779 – Louis de Freycinet, French explorer (d. 1842)

1779 – Carl Ritter, German geographer (d. 1859)

1783 – Princess Amelia of the United Kingdom (d. 1810)

1844 – Auguste Michel-Lévy, French geologist (d. 1911)

1860 – Alan Leo, British astrologer (d. 1917)

1862 – Victoria of Baden, Queen of Sweden (d. 1931)

1867 – Emil Nolde, German painter (d. 1956)

1868 – Ladislaus Bortkiewicz, Russian mathematician (d. 1931)

1876 – Mata Hari, Dutch spy (d. 1917)

1877 – Ulrich Salchow, Swedish figure skater (d. 1949)

1879 – Johannes Kotze, South African cricketer (d. 1931)

1884 – Billie Burke, American actress (d. 1970)

1901 – Ann Harding, American actress (d. 1981)

1903 – Louis Leakey, British archaeologist (d. 1972)

1904 – Ralph Bunche, American diplomat, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1971)

1907 – Albert Kotin, American abstract painter (d. 1980)

1911 – Nicholas Ray, American director and scenarist (d. 1979)

1911 – István Bibó, Hungarian lawyer and politician (d. 1979)

1918 – Gordon Zahn, American sociologist and pacifist (d. 2007)

1913 – George Van Eps, American guitarist (d. 1998)

1921 – Manitas de Plata, French guitarist

1925 – M. S. Swaminathan, Indian scientist

1925 – Felice Bryant, American country songwriter and singer (d. 2003)

1926 – Stan Freberg, American voice comedian

1926 – Géza Kádas, Hungarian swimmer (d. 1979)

1927 – Edwin W. Edwards, American politician

1927 – Art Houtteman, American baseball player (d. 2003)

1927 – Carl Switzer, American child actor (d. 1959)

1928 – Romeo Muller, American screenwriter (d. 1992)

1928 – James Randi, Canadian-American magician

1929 – Don Larsen, American baseball player

1931 – Charles E. Rice, American legal scholar and author

1932 – Abebe Bikila, Ethiopian athlete (d. 1973)

1932 – Edward Hardwicke, British actor (d. 2011)

1932 – Maurice Rabb, Jr., American ophthalmologist

1933 – Eddie Firmani, South African football player and coach

1934 – Sándor Simó, Hungarian film producer, director and screenwriter (d. 2001)

1936 – Rahsaan Roland Kirk, American saxophonist (d. 1977)

1937 – Don Wilson, England cricketer

1937 – Zoltán Berczik, Hungarian table tennis player (d. 2011)

1939 – Anjanette Comer, American actress

1940 – Jean-Luc Dehaene, Belgian politician

1942 – Tobin Bell, American actor

1942 – Garrison Keillor, American writer and radio host

1942 – Carlos Monzón, Argentine boxer

1942 – B.J. Thomas, American singer

1942 – Caetano Veloso, Brazilian musician

1943 – Lana Cantrell, Australian-American singer and entertainment lawyer

1943 – Alain Corneau, French film director {d. 2010}

1944 – John Glover, American actor

1944 – Robert Mueller, Director of the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation)

1944 – David Rasche, American actor

1945 – Alan Page, American football player and Minnesota Supreme Court justice

1946 – Ed Seykota, American commodities and futures trader

1947 – Franciscus Henri, Dutch-born Australian entertainer

1948 – Marty Appel, American public relations executive and author

1948 – Greg Chappell, Australian cricketer and coach

1949 – Walid Jumblatt, Lebanese political leader

1950 – Alan Keyes, American diplomat and political activist

1951 – Joachim Thiel, German footballer

1952 – Alexei Sayle, British comedian

1953 – Anne Fadiman, American writer; daughter of Clifton Fadiman

1954 – Jonathan Pollard, Israeli spy

1955 – Wayne Knight, American actor

1955 – Greg Nickels, American politician

1955 – Vladimir Sorokin, Russian writer

1955 – Gregoris Valtinos, Greek actor and director

1957 – Alexander Dityatin, Soviet gymnast

1958 – Russell Baze, Canadian-born American horse racing jockey

1958 – Bruce Dickinson, English singer (Iron Maiden)

1958 – Alberto Salazar, American distance runner

1959 – Ali Shah, Zimbabwean cricketer

1960 – David Duchovny, American actor

1960 – Jacquie O'Sullivan, British singer (Bananarama)

1961 – Brian Conley, English comedian

1961 – Yelena Davydova, Soviet gymnast

1962 – Alain Robert,French urban climber

1962 – Alison Brown,banjo player and guitarist

1962 – Bruno Pelletier, Québécois singer

1963 – Patrick Bouvier Kennedy, son of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy (d. 1963)

1963 – Harold Perrineau Jr., American actor

1964 – John Birmingham, Australian author

1964 – Michael Weishan, American TV host

1966 – Kristin Hersh, American singer and guitarist (Throwing Muses)

1966 – Jimmy Wales, American internet entrepreneur

1967 – Jason Grimsley, American baseball player

1968 – Lynn Strait, American singer (Snot) (d. 1998)

1969 – Paul Lambert, Scottish Footballer and Manager

1970 – Eric Namesnik, American swimmer (d. 2006)

1971 – Dominic Cork, England cricketer

1971 – Sydney Penny, American actress

1971 – Rachel York, American actress and singer

1972 – Greg Serano, American actor

1973 – Danny Graves, American baseball player

1973 – Kevin Muscat, Australian footballer

1973 – Zane Lowe, New Zealander DJ/ Radio and Television presenter

1974 – Chico Benymon, American actor

1974 – Sek Loso, Thai Singer

1974 – Michael Shannon, American actor

1974 – Andrejs Štolcers, Latvian footballer

1975 – Koray Candemir, Turkish singer

1975 – David Hicks, Australian alleged terrorist

1975 – Hans Matheson, Scottish Actor

1975 – Edgar Rentería, Colombian baseball player

1975 – Vanessa Stacey, New Zealand actress

1975 – Charlize Theron, South African actress

1975 – Gaahl (Kristian Eivind Espedal), Norwegian musician

1976 – Dimitrios Eleftheropoulos, Greek footballer

1976 – Shane Lechler, American football player

1977 – Charlotte Ronson, British fashion designer

1977 – Samantha Ronson, British DJ

1978 – Alexandre Aja, French director

1978 – Mark McCammon, Barbadian football player

1978 – Jamey Jasta, American singer (Hatebreed)

1978 – Cirroc Lofton, American actor

1978 – Vanness Wu, Taiwanese singer

1978 – Shirley Yeung, Hong Kong actress

1979 – Eric Johnson, American actor

1979 – Wendy van der Plank, English actress

1980 – Anomie Belle, American musician

1980 – Aurélie Claudel, French model

1980 – Tácio, Brazilian footballer

1982 – Yana Klochkova, Ukrainian swimmer

1982 – Marco Melandri, Italian motorcycle racer

1982 – Vasileios Spanoulis, Greek basketball player

1983 – Christian Chavez, Mexican singer and actor (RBD)

1983 – Andriy Hryvko, Ukrainian cyclist

1983 – Tina O'Brien, British actress

1984 – Stratos Perperoglou, Greek basketball player

1986 – Paul Biedermann, German swimmer

1986 – Valter Birsa, Slovenian footballer

1986 – Nancy Sumari, Tanzanian Beauty Queen and Model, (Miss World 2005)

1987 – Sidney Crosby, Canadian hockey player

1987 – Mustapha Dumbuya, English footballer

1987 – Ryan Lavarnway, American baseball player (Boston Red Sox)

1987 – Rouven Sattelmaier, German footballer

1988 – Melody Oliveria, American internet blogger

1988 – Beanie Wells, American football player

1989 – DeMar DeRozan, American basketball player

1990 – Helen Flanagan, English actress

1990 – Josh Franceschi, English singer-songwriter

1993 – Zaur Sizo, Russian footballer

Deaths

461 – Majorian, Roman Emperor (b. 420)

479 – Emperor Yūryaku of Japan

1106 – Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1050)

1485 – Alexander Stewart, 1st Duke of Albany, Scottish prince

1613 – Thomas Fleming, English judge (b. 1544)

1616 – Vincenzo Scamozzi, Italian architect (b. 1548)

1635 – Friedrich von Spee, German writer (b. 1591)

1639 – Martin van den Hove, Dutch scientist (b. 1605)

1661 – Jin Shengtan, Chinese editor, writer and critic (b. 1608)

1817 – Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours, French industrialist (b. 1739)

1834 – Joseph Marie Jacquard, French weaver and inventor (b. 1752)

1848 – Jöns Jakob Berzelius, Swedish chemist (b. 1779)

1855 – Mariano Arista, President of Mexico (b. 1802)

1864 – Li Xiucheng, Chinese General in the Taiping Rebellion.(b. 1823)

1893 – Alfredo Catalani, Italian musician (b. 1854)

1912 – François-Alphonse Forel, Swiss hydrologist (b. 1841)

1917 – Squadron Commander E.H. Dunning, first pilot to land his aircraft on a moving ship. (b. 1891)

1938 – Constantin Stanislavski, Russian/Soviet theatre practitioner (b. 1863)

1941 – Rabindranath Tagore, Indian author, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1861)

1953 – Abner Powell, American baseball player (b. 1860)

1957 – Oliver Hardy, American comedian and actor (b. 1892)

1960 – Luis Ángel Firpo, Argentine Boxer (b. 1894)

1969 – Joseph Kosma, French composer (Autumn Leaves) (b. 1905)

1969 – Joseph Kosma, Hungarian-French composer (b. 1905)

1970 – Harold Haley, American judge (b. 1904)

1970 – Jonathan Jackson, instigator of the Marin County Civic Center shootout and brother of Black Panther George Jackson (b. 1953)

1972 – Joi Lansing, American model and actress (b. 1929)

1972 – Aspasia Manos, wife of king Alexander of Greece (b. 1896)

1973 – Jack Gregory, Former Australian cricketer (b. 1895)

1974 – Rosario Castellanos, Mexican poet (b. 1925)

1974 – Sylvio Mantha, professional ice hockey player (b. 1902)

1984 – Esther Phillips, American singer (b. 1935)

1985 – Grayson Hall, American actress (b. 1923)

1987 – Camille Chamoun, Lebanese President (b. 1900)

1989 – Mickey Leland, American politician, United States Congressman from Texas (b. 1944)

1991 – Billy T. James, New Zealand comedian, (b. 1944)

1992 – John Anderson, American actor (b. 1922)

1994 – Larry Martyn, comedy actor (b. 1934)

1995 – Brigid Brophy, British author (b. 1929)

1999 – Brion James, American actor (b. 1945)

2003 – Mickey McDermott, baseball player (b. 1929)

2004 – Red Adair, American oil field firefighter (b. 1915)

2004 – Colin Bibby, English ornithologist (b. 1948)

2005 – Peter Jennings, Canadian-born news anchor (b. 1938)

2006 – Mary Anderson Bain, American New Deal politician (b. 1911)

2007 – Hal Fishman, Los Angeles based local news anchor. (b. 1931)

2007 – Ernesto Alonso, Mexican actor, director and producer. (b. 1917)

2007 – Angus Tait, New Zealand electronics innovator and businessman (b. 1919)

2008 – Bernie Brillstein, American talent agent/manager and producer (b. 1931)

2008 – Andrea Pininfarina, CEO of Pininfarina S.p.A. (b. 1957)

2009 – Louis E. Saavedra, American Mayor of Albuquerque, New Mexico (b. 1933)

2009 – Mike Seeger, American folk musician (b. 1933)

2011 – Nancy Wake, British war agent (b. 1912)

Holidays and observances

Assyrian Martyrs Day (Assyrian community)

Battle of Boyacá Day (Colombia)

Christian Feast Day:

*Albert of Trapani

*Cajetan of Thienna

*Carpophorus

*Dometius of Persia

*Donatus of Arezzo

*Pope Sixtus II

*August 7 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

Republic Day (Côte d'Ivoire)

Youth Day (Kiribati)

External links

BBC: On This Day

On This Day in Canada

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name	Aziz Ansari
birth date	February 23, 1983
birth place	Columbia, South Carolina, U.S.
medium	Stand-up, television, film
nationality	American
active	2004–present
genre	Observational comedy, improvisational comedy
subject	Everyday life, race relations, racism, self-deprecation, American culture, pop culture
notable work	Randy Springs in ''Funny People''Various in ''Human Giant''Tom Haverford in ''Parks and Recreation''Host of the 2010 MTV Movie AwardsChet in ''30 Minutes or Less''
website	AzizIsBored.com }}

Aziz Ansari (born February 23, 1983) is an American actor, writer, and stand-up comedian. He currently stars as Tom Haverford on the NBC show ''Parks and Recreation''.

Ansari began his career performing standup comedy in New York City during the summer of 2001 while attending New York University and was named Gay Rights Activist of the year in 2005. In 2007, he created and starred in the critically acclaimed MTV sketch comedy show ''Human Giant'', which ran for two seasons. This led to acting roles in feature films including ''Funny People'', ''I Love You, Man'', ''Observe and Report'', and most recently ''30 Minutes or Less''.

In addition to his acting work, Ansari has continued to work as a standup comedian. He released his debut CD/DVD, entitled ''Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening'', in January 2010 on Comedy Central Records, and still tours nationally between acting commitments. In 2010 and 2011, he performed his Dangerously Delicious tour. In 2012, he announced a new tour titled Buried Alive.

In June 2010, he hosted the 2010 MTV Movie Awards. On March 10, 2012, Ansari hosted Night to Make It Right Foundation New Orleans after-party.

Early life

Aziz Ansari was born in Columbia, South Carolina, to Indian parents who immigrated from Tamil Nadu, India. His father Shoukath Ansari is a gastroenterologist and his mother Fatima Ansari works in a medical office. Ansari grew up in Bennettsville, South Carolina, where he attended Marlboro Academy as well as the South Carolina Governor's School for Science and Mathematics.

Career

Early career

He frequently performed at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, as well as weekly shows such as ''Invite Them Up''. In 2005, ''Rolling Stone'' included him in their annual "Hot List" as their choice for the "Hot Standup", and he won the Jury Award for "Best Standup" at HBO's 2006 U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado.

''Human Giant''

Around the summer of 2005, Ansari began collaborating with fellow comedians Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer (both of the famed improv troupe Respecto Montalban), as well as director Jason Woliner to make short films. The first series created by the group was ''Shutterbugs'', which followed Huebel and Ansari as cutthroat child talent agents. This was followed up by the ''Illusionators'', which starred Ansari and Scheer as Criss Angel–style goth magicians. In mid-2006, MTV greenlit a sketch series from the group which debuted April 5, 2007. The critically acclaimed show completed two seasons. The group was offered a third season, but opted to pass in order to pursue other opportunities.

''Parks and Recreation''

In June 2008, Ansari was announced as the first cast hire for NBC's new comedy from producers of ''The Office''. The show, ''Parks and Recreation'', debuted in April 2009 with Ansari portraying government employee Tom Haverford. Ansari's performance has received notable praise from critics, including ''Entertainment Weekly'' naming him one of 2009's "Breakout TV Stars", ''TV Guide'' naming him a "Scene Stealer" and Yahoo! TV placing him in the number one spot on their list of "TV MVPS".

MTV Movie Awards

On June 6, 2010, Ansari hosted the 2010 MTV Movie Awards. The show opened with a spoof of the film ''Precious'' with Ansari appearing as Aziz "Precious" Ansari. Ansari also created the short film Stunt Kidz which reunited him with his ''Human Giant'' castmates. A second short film was also made with actor Zach Galifianakis in which Ansari portrayed Taavon, Galfianakis' "swagger coach". He accepted Galifianakis' award for Best Comedic Performance in character as Taavon. Ansari also performed a musical tribute to the film ''Avatar'' in the style of singer R. Kelly.

Other notable television work

In addition to his work on ''Parks and Recreation'', Ansari appeared on the HBO series ''Flight of the Conchords'' as a xenophobic fruit vendor who had difficulty telling the difference between Australians and New Zealanders. He had a recurring role in season eight of the ABC sitcom ''Scrubs'' as Ed, a new intern to the hospital. Ansari's character was written off the show to allow him to film ''Parks and Recreation''.

In August 2011, Ansari made a cameo appearance in the music video for "Otis" by Jay-Z and Kanye West from their collaborated album, ''Watch the Throne'' (2011).

Film career

Ansari has made appearances in several films, including ''Get Him to the Greek'', ''I Love You, Man'', and ''Observe and Report''. In the summer of 2009, Ansari appeared in the Judd Apatow film ''Funny People'' with Adam Sandler and Seth Rogen. Apatow liked Ansari's character, "Randy", and commissioned him and ''Human Giant'' collaborator Jason Woliner to create online shorts centered around his character, to promote the film. These shorts proved successful and the character became the subject of one of the film ideas Ansari and Woliner are currently developing for Apatow Productions. Two other ideas in development are ''Let's Do This'', a road movie about two motivational speakers, and an untitled film about two disgraced astronauts who must return to space to clear their names. Ansari is also attached to star in another film with Danny McBride based on an idea from Ansari and ''30 Rock'' writer Matt Hubbard. ''Parks and Recreation'' writer Harris Wittels is currently scripting the project. In April 2010, it was announced that Ansari would star in the film ''30 Minutes or Less''. The film was directed by ''Zombieland'' director Ruben Fleischer and co-starred Jesse Eisenberg and Danny McBride. The film was released on August 12, 2011.

Stand-up comedy

Even amongst various acting commitments, Ansari has continued performing and touring as a standup comedian. In 2006 and 2007, he toured with the Comedians of Comedy and Flight of the Conchords. In the fall of 2008 and early 2009, Ansari headlined his own comedy tour, the Glow in the Dark Tour. The material on this tour became the basis for a DVD/CD special for Comedy Central. The set, titled ''Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening'', aired January 17, 2010, with a CD/LP/DVD release on January 19.

In June 2010, Ansari began a new tour, Dangerously Delicious, which was in theaters across the US; stops included the Bonnaroo Music Festival and Carnegie Hall in New York City. The tour wrapped with a filming for a special at the Warner Theatre in Washington, DC in June 2011. In March 2012, Ansari announced a new tour, Buried Alive, with dates for the spring and summer of 2012.

Ansari's comedy style has always shied away from ethnic humor and more focused on aspects of his personal life. "I like talking about things that are going on in my life, because that's always going to be different and original," he says. "No one else is gonna be talking about my personal experiences."

Filmography

Film

Title ''School for Scoundrels (2006 film) ''The Rocker (film) ''Funny People'' ''Get Him to the Greek'' ''30 Minutes or Less'' ''Ice Age: Continental Drift ''Let's Do This''

Year	|	Role	Notes
	2006	School for Scoundrels'' ||	Classmate
	2008	The Rocker'' ||	Aziz
rowspan="3"	2009	|	Randy Springs
''Observe and Report''	Saddamn
''I Love You, Man''	Eugene
	2010	|	Matty Briggs
rowspan="2"	2011	|	Chet
''What's Your Number?''	Jay
	2012	|	Squint	Voice only
	2013	|

Television

Title ''Flight of the Conchords (TV series) ''Worst Week'' ''Reno 911!'' ''Bob's Burgers''

Year	|	Role	Notes
rowspan="2"	2007	Flight of the Conchords'' ||	Sinjay	Drive By (Flight of the Conchords)>Drive By"
''Human Giant''	Cast Member
	2008	|	Morgue Employee
rowspan="3"	2009	|	Insurance Representative	(3 episodes)
''Scrubs (TV series)	Scrubs''	Ed Dhandapani
''Parks and Recreation''	Tom Haverford
2012	|	DRL	(1 episode)

Music videos

Artist Jay-Z and Kanye West

Year	|	Song	Role
	2011	|	Otis (song)>Otis"	Himself

Discography

''Raaaaaaaandy Mixtape'' (with Dave Sitek) (2009)

''Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening'' (2010)

''Dangerously Delicious'' (2012)

References

External links

''The Human Giant''

Category:1983 births Category:Actors from South Carolina Category:American comedians Category:American film actors Category:American people of Indian descent Category:American people of Tamil descent Category:American television actors Category:American television writers Category:American actors of Indian descent Category:Living people Category:New York University alumni Category:People from Columbia, South Carolina

ar:عزيز أنصاري de:Aziz Ansari fr:Aziz Ansari it:Aziz Ansari he:עזיז אנסרי nl:Aziz Ansari no:Aziz Anzari pt:Aziz Ansari ru:Ансари, Азиз sv:Aziz Ansari ta:அசீஸ் அன்சாரி

Name	Jeff Jarrett
Names	Jeff Jarrett
Height
Weight
Birth date	July 14, 1967
Birth place	Hendersonville, Tennessee
Resides	Hendersonville, Tennessee
Billed	Nashville, Tennessee
Trainer	Jerry JarrettTojo YamamotoBuddy Landel
Debut	April 1986
Retired	}}

Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett (born July 14, 1967) is an American professional wrestler and wrestling promoter. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), an organization he co-founded along with his father and in which he holds minority stock. He also works for Mexican promotion Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA), where he is the current AAA World Heavyweight Champion. He is well-known from his multiple runs in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and World Wrestling Federation (WWF) during the 1990s.

A second-generation wrestler, Jarrett has held seventy championships in various promotions throughout his career. Within TNA, he is currently recognized as an 11-time world champion, having been a self-booked six-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, four-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, and one-time AAA World Heavyweight Champion. He has also accumulated five additional world title reigns, being a three-time USWA Unified World Heavyweight Champion and two-time WWA World Heavyweight Champion. While he never captured the WWF Championship during his time with the WWF, he challenged for the title and achieved notable championship success in the promotion, becoming a six-time Intercontinental Champion (a record from 1999–2004), and is one of three men to hold both the Intercontinental and European Championships simultaneously. He is the first wrestler to be a two-time King of the Mountain (self-booked), and also won AAA's Rey de Reyes tournament in 2004. Between WWE, WCW, and TNA, Jarrett has held 22 total championships as well as other numerous regional titles.

Professional wrestling career

Born in Hendersonville, Tennessee, Jarrett became involved with basketball when he was in high school, but, he worked for his father Jerry Jarrett's Continental Wrestling Association (CWA) as a referee in March 1986 and trained as a wrestler under his father and Tojo Yamamoto. Jeff Jarrett made his in-ring debut at the age of 18 in April 1986 when jobber Tony Falk attempted to end his lengthy losing streak by challenging Jarrett, then a referee, to a match. Jarrett accepted the challenge, wrestling Falk to a 10-minute draw. Jarrett is a 3rd-generation wrestler; his father wrestled, as did his maternal grandfather, Eddie Marlin, while his paternal grandmother, Christine, was employed by a wrestling promotion.

In 1989, Jerry Jarrett purchased the Texas-based World Class Championship Wrestling promotion and merged it with the CWA to create the United States Wrestling Association (USWA). Over the following years, Jarrett won the USWA Southern Heavyweight Championship on 10 occasions and the USWA World Tag Team Championship on 15 occasions. Jarrett also wrestled on the independent circuit for 7 years, appearing in Japan and Puerto Rico. In 1993, he was hired by the World Wrestling Federation.

World Wrestling Federation (1993–1996)

Jarrett debuted in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) under the gimmick of "Double J" Jeff Jarrett, a country music singer who intended to elevate his singing career through his exposure as a wrestler. Jarrett's character would strut to the ring wearing flashing "Double J" hats and ring attire, and he punctuated his promos with the phrase "ain't I great?". He ended his interviews by distinctly spelling out his name ("That's J-E-Double-F, J-A-Double-R, E-Double-T!").

Jarrett made his pay-per-view debut in January 1994 at the Royal Rumble. At SummerSlam, he pinned Mabel. At Survivor Series, Jarrett competed in a 10 man elimination tag match. In January 1995, Jarrett had a brief feud with Bret Hart, ultimately losing to Hart on the January 23 edition of ''Monday Night Raw''. At the Royal Rumble in Tampa, Florida, Jarrett defeated Razor Ramon to win the WWF Intercontinental Championship. Jarrett challenged Diesel for the WWF Championship on the February 20 edition of ''Raw'', but lost the match. Razor Ramon received a rematch at WrestleMania XI which Jarrett lost by disqualification, but retained the WWF Intercontinental Championship. Jarrett was then joined by The Roadie, with the duo losing to Razor Ramon in a handicap match at In Your House 1. On April 26, 1995, the WWF Intercontinental Championship was declared vacant after a controversial ending to a match between Jarrett and Bob Holly. They had a rematch later that evening where Jarrett reclaimed the title. On May 19, Razor Ramon regained the title from Jarrett in Montreal, Quebec, but Jarrett won it back two nights later in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, making him a three-time Intercontinental Champion.

At In Your House 2: The Lumberjacks on July 23, 1995, Jarrett and Sawyer Brown performed the song "''With My Baby Tonight''". Later that evening, Jarrett lost the WWF Intercontinental Championship to Shawn Michaels. Following the event, Jarrett left the WWF for 7 months and returned to the United States Wrestling Association. Jarrett returned to the WWF in late 1995, feuding with Ahmed Johnson. Jarrett lost to Johnson by disqualification at the 1996 Royal Rumble and left the WWF shortly thereafter due to a contract dispute. Later that year, The Roadie revealed that he had in fact sung "''With My Baby Tonight''" and that Jarrett had been lip synching.

World Championship Wrestling (1996–1997)

In October 1996, Jarrett was hired by World Championship Wrestling (WCW), signing a 1 year contract. Upon debuting in WCW, Jarrett became a "free agent" in the rivalry between the Four Horsemen and the New World Order. After defeating Chris Benoit at Starrcade, Jarrett was inducted into the Four Horsemen. On June 9, 1997, Jarrett defeated Dean Malenko to win the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship. In mid-1997, Jarrett left the Four Horsemen and began feuding with Horsemen member Steve "Mongo" McMichael. Despite aligning himself with McMichael's ex-wife, Debra McMichael, Jarrett lost the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship to McMichael on August 21. In October, Jarrett's contract expired and he opted to return to the WWF, despite the dominance of WCW in the ongoing Monday Night Wars.

Return to WWF (1997–1999)

Jarrett returned to the WWF on the October 20, 1997 episode of ''Raw'', delivering a worked shoot speech in which he criticized both WCW President Eric Bischoff and WWF Chairman Vince McMahon. After briefly feuding with The Undertaker, Jarrett defeated Barry Windham to win the vacant NWA North American Heavyweight Championship. In early 1998, Jarrett joined forces with Jim Cornette and his stable of "invading" National Wrestling Alliance wrestlers, and began defending the NWA North American Heavyweight Championship on WWF television. In March, Jarrett left Cornette's stable, and Cornette stripped him of the title and awarded it to Windham.

Jarrett went on to reprise his country music singer gimmick, introducing Tennessee Lee as his manager and the tag team Southern Justice (formerly known as The Godwinns) as his bodyguards. He redeveloped his habit of breaking an acoustic guitar over the heads of his opponents. At Unforgiven: In Your House, Jarrett once again sang alongside Sawyer Brown with their hit single, "Some Girls Do". In August, Jarrett abandoned his country singer gimmick and dismissed Lee. He and Southern Justice began feuding with D-Generation X, with Jarrett losing to D-X member X-Pac in a hair versus hair match at SummerSlam. Jarrett's long hair was subsequently cut short by D-X and Howard Finkel, who had himself been shaved bald by Jarrett and Southern Justice shortly before SummerSlam. Jarrett and Southern Justice were defeated by D-X at Breakdown in September, and the trio separated shortly thereafter.

Jarrett briefly feuded with Al Snow before reuniting with Debra, who had left WCW for the WWF, and forming a tag team with Owen Hart. Hart and Jarrett were close friends and travel partners for years, so the team gelled almost immediately. Jarrett and Hart won the WWF World Tag Team Championship from Ken Shamrock and The Big Boss Man, successfully defending the titles at WrestleMania XV before losing to Kane and X-Pac on an episode of ''Raw''. 8 days after Hart was killed in a stunt that went wrong at Over the Edge, Jarrett defeated The Godfather, who Owen was scheduled to face at the pay-per-view. As he was handed the title he yelled Hart's name in tribute to his friend. In mid-1999, Jarrett won and lost the WWF Intercontinental Championship on 2 more occasions.

In the months that followed, Jarrett became increasingly abusive towards Debra. At SummerSlam, Jarrett challenged D'Lo Brown for both the WWF European and Intercontinental Championships, with Debra accompanying Brown to the ring following an argument with Jarrett. Brown lost the match after both Mark Henry and Debra turned on him, making Jarrett the second ever "Euro-Continental Champion". On the following episode of ''Raw'', Jarrett rewarded Debra and Henry by giving Debra an assistant, Miss Kitty, and Henry the European Championship. In late 1999, Jarrett began feuding with Chyna over the Intercontinental Championship. In the course of the feud, Jarrett became somewhat misogynistic, attacking numerous females, including both wrestlers and actress Cindy Margolis, and executing the figure four leglock on them. Jarrett eventually abandoned Debra in favor of Miss Kitty after he and Debra were defeated by Stephanie McMahon and Test in a mixed tag team match. He later also turned on Miss Kitty after she lost a match that Jarrett had inserted her into in his place.

Jarrett left the WWF in October 1999, right after WWF head writer Vince Russo resigned from the WWF in order to join WCW. Jarrett's contract expired on October 16, 1999, one day before his scheduled match with Chyna at No Mercy. Jarrett wrestled at No Mercy nonetheless, losing the Intercontinental Championship to Chyna. Chyna later alleged that Jarrett and Russo had colluded in order to delay Jarrett's title defense until after Jarrett's contract had expired, and that Jarrett had subsequently extorted WWF Chairman Vince McMahon for $300,000 in order to wrestle without a contract.

In 2006, Jarrett asserted that he had been paid only what he was owed by the WWF. In a 2008 interview for a TNA special, Jarrett stated that not only were his negotiations cordial and in good faith, but that he also got stock options in WWF's IPO, which occurred 2 days after he left.

Return to WCW (1999–2001)

Jarrett returned to WCW on the October 18, 1999 episode of ''WCW Monday Nitro'', attacking Buff Bagwell and proclaiming himself the "Chosen One" of WCW. Jarrett took part in a tournament for the vacant WCW World Heavyweight Championship, winning his first three matches with the assistance of Creative Control. At Mayhem, he was eliminated from the tournament after losing his semi-final match to Chris Benoit following interference from Dustin Rhodes. At Starrcade, Jarrett defeated Rhodes in a bunkhouse brawl, then unsuccessfully challenged Benoit for the WCW United States Championship in a ladder match. On the following episode of ''Monday Nitro'', Jarrett defeated Benoit in a rematch. In the same evening, Jarrett reformed the New World Order with WCW World Champion Bret Hart and the reigning WCW Tag Team Champions, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall, with the foursome calling themselves "nWo 2000".

In early 2000, Jarrett feuded with WCW Commissioner Terry Funk, who forced him to wrestle three veterans - George Steele, Tito Santana, and Jimmy Snuka - in 1 night. Jarrett was stripped of the United States Championship after suffering a concussion during his bout with Snuka, but the title was returned to him by Nash after he became WCW Commissioner. In order to help him retain the title, Jarrett drafted the Harris Brothers (formerly Creative Control) into nWo 2000. In the following months, Jarrett repeatedly challenged Sid Vicious for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, in the process clashing with Nash and winning the position of WCW Commissioner for himself. Following the retirement of Hart, the New World Order disbanded.

In April, WCW was "rebooted" by Eric Bischoff and Vince Russo, with all titles vacated as a result. Bischoff and Russo also created the New Blood, a stable of younger wrestlers who feuded with the Millionaire's Club, made up of the older members of the WCW roster. Jarrett joined the New Blood, and at Spring Stampede on April 16, he defeated Millionaires Club member Diamond Dallas Page to win the vacant WCW World Heavyweight Championship. Page regained the title on April 24, and on April 25, the title was contested in a tag team match pitting Jarrett and Bischoff against Page and actor David Arquette. Arquette won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship after pinning Bischoff. Jarrett hit Page with the championship belt while special referee Kimberly Page's back was turned; WCW official Mickie Jay counted Bischoff out while Jarrett had Page pinned. At Slamboree on May 7, Jarrett defeated Page and Arquette in a three way triple cage match to win his 2nd WCW World Heavyweight Championship after Arquette turned on Page.

In May, Jarrett won and lost the World Championship on 2 further occasions, regaining the title from Ric Flair both times. Jarrett feuded with Nash and Hulk Hogan throughout June 2000, and on July 9 at Bash at the Beach, he faced Hogan with the World Championship on the line. The match ended swiftly after Jarrett immediately laid down, allowing Hogan to rest a boot on his chest and win the title, with Hogan commenting, "That's why this company is in the damn shape it's in—because of bullshit like this." Vince Russo subsequently came to the ring and delivered a profanity-laced interview in which he accused Hogan of politicking and claimed that Hogan had used his creative control to refuse to lose to Jarrett. Russo then stated that, while Hogan was free to keep the title belt he had just won (the "Hulk Hogan Memorial Belt"), Jarrett would wrestle Booker T for the official WCW World Heavyweight Championship later that night. Booker T won the resultant match, and Hogan didn't appear in WCW again. It is disputed whether the situation was a shoot, a work, or some combination of the two.

In the following months, Jarrett briefly feuded with Booker T, Mike Awesome, Sting, Buff Bagwell, and Flair. In late 2000, he joined forces with the Harris Brothers once more, with the trio defeating the Filthy Animals at Starrcade on December 17. In the same evening, Jarrett aligned himself with WCW World Champion Scott Steiner by helping Steiner defeat Sid Vicious. In 2001, Jarrett and Steiner became members of the Magnificent Seven, a large stable headed by Flair. Flair and Jarrett feuded with Dusty and Dustin Rhodes until March, when WCW was purchased by the WWF. His contract was not picked up by the WWF. On the last Nitro, Jeff was seen on ''RAW'' while Vince McMahon watched the show. Vince saw Jeff on the screen and told the viewer that Jarrett would not have a future in the WWF by saying Jeff's name would now be known as "Capital G Double-O Double-N Double-E" following McMahon's acquisition of WCW, effectively firing him on-air.

World Wrestling All-Stars (2001–2003)

In late 2001, Jarrett wrestled in World Wrestling All-Stars in Australia and Europe. Jarrett won the 1st WWA World Heavyweight Championship, but was later stripped of the title. Jarrett returned to the WWA during his 1st NWA World Heavyweight Championship reign; he defeated Sting for the WWA World Heavyweight Championship at the last WWA event on May 25, 2003, unifying the two titles.

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2002–present)

In June 2002, Jarrett and his father created a limited-liability company, J Sports and Entertainment and opened a new pro wrestling promotion, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. TNA aired in a weekly pay-per-view format until May 2004, when the promotion negotiated a TV deal with Fox Sports Net and began broadcasting ''TNA Impact!''. In November 2004, TNA began airing monthly pay-per-views instead of weekly pay-per-views, and in October 2005 ''Impact!'' moved to Spike TV. Panda Energy acquired a controlling interest in TNA in 2002, although Jarrett remained a minority owner.

NWA World Heavyweight Champion (2002–2006)

On the inaugural TNA pay-per-view on June 19, 2002, Jarrett took part in a Gauntlet for the Gold with the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on the line, but was eliminated by country singer Toby Keith. In the following months, Jarrett feuded with Scott Hall, Brian Lawler, and Brian Gerard James. On November 20, 2002, Jarrett defeated Ron Killings to win the NWA World Championship with the assistance of Vince Russo. After Jarrett refused to join Russo's Sports Entertainment Xtreme stable, Russo turned the members of SEX, including the debuting Raven, against Jarrett. The rivalry continued until February 2003, when Russo lost interest in SEX. In the following months, Jarrett feuded with the remaining members of SEX, then began feuding with Raven and Raven's Nest, the group of wrestlers that Raven controlled. On June 11, 2003, Jarrett faced Raven and A.J. Styles in a 3-way match for the NWA World Championship. Styles pinned Jarrett to win the title after the returning Russo struck Jarrett with a guitar. Jarrett regained the title from Styles on October 22, 2003, turning heel. Jarrett was unable to escape Styles, losing the title back to him on April 21, 2004 in a steel cage after Russo - who had returned as the new TNA Director of Authority - chose Styles to replace the injured Chris Harris. Jarrett would get revenge on May 19, however, by hitting Styles with a guitar during a title match, which enabled Ron Killings to win the title. Jarrett then defeated Killings, Styles, Raven and Harris in a King of the Mountain match on June 2 to win his 3rd NWA World Championship.

In early 2005, Jarrett formed a dominant stable known as Planet Jarrett with Monty Brown, Kip James, and, later, Rhino. Jarrett also uses the phrase "Planet Jarrett" to refer to TNA as a whole, reflecting his real-life stake in the company and his prominent role within the promotion. Despite his efforts to hold on to the title, however, he lost it back to long-time rival Styles on May 15, 2005.

Jarrett won his 4th NWA World Heavyweight Championship on September 15, 2005, defeating Raven at a Border City Wrestling event. He lost the title to Rhino at Bound for Glory on October 23, but regained it on the November 3 episode of ''Impact!''. Jarrett's reign lasted until Against All Odds on February 12, 2006, when he was defeated by Christian Cage.

In the following months, Jarrett feuded with Sting, who had declared that Jarrett was a "cancer" in TNA. In the course of the feud, Scott Steiner debuted in TNA as an ally of Jarrett.

At Slammiversary on June 18, 2006 Jarrett won his 6th NWA World Championship in a King of the Mountain match when referee Earl Hebner tipped over a ladder that Christian Cage and Sting were simultaneously climbing. He retained the title in a bout with Sting at Hard Justice 2006 after Cage turned on Sting, hitting him with one of Jarrett's guitars. After a polygraph proved that Jarrett had cheated to win the NWA World Championship, Director of Authority Jim Cornette forced Jarrett to wrestle Samoa Joe in a "fan's revenge" lumberjack match at TNA No Surrender, with Joe winning the match. At the Bound for Glory pay-per-view on October 22, Sting defeated Jarrett for the NWA World Championship after Jarrett was forced to submit to Sting's signature finisher, the Scorpion Death Lock.

Hiatus, return, and face turn (2007–2009)

On the following episode of ''Impact!'', Jarrett announced in an interview that he was leaving TNA indefinitely. For the following 6 months, Jarrett did not appear on TNA television, instead focusing on his role as Vice President of TNA Entertainment. Jarrett, however, temporarily returned to TNA television on the April 12, 2007 episode of ''Impact!'', and aligned himself with Samoa Joe, by helping him defeat A.J. Styles, turning face. On April 15, 2007 at Lockdown, Jarrett, making his in-ring return, and the rest of Team Angle defeated Team Cage in a Lethal Lockdown match. The following episode of ''Impact!'', he delivered his first promo in months, stating it's not all about Jeff Jarrett and he returned to give back to the wrestlers and fans, officially completing his face turn. He then entered into a feud with Robert Roode, losing a match to him at Sacrifice. Jarrett was then scheduled to take on Styles with the winner to earn a spot in the King of the Mountain match but could not compete due to "personal issues". In 2008, Jarrett was featured in the promotion of TNA's "Maximum Impact!" tour of the UK.

At Hard Justice 2008, Samoa Joe defeated Booker T using the Acoustic Equalizer, the trademark move of Jarrett, setting up for his return to in-ring action, as quoted by the website, "Obviously, we all know who used a guitar in the past!" referring indirectly to Jarrett. After numerous weeks of Jarrett's theme song playing and his guitar appearing on TNA programming, Jarrett returned to ''Impact!'' on September 11, 2008. At No Surrender, he would help Joe defeat Kurt Angle and Cage and assist Joe in retaining the TNA World Championship by hitting Angle with a guitar keeping him a face. The following Thursday, on ''Impact!'', Jarrett cut his first promo since Slammiversary, claiming that the current respect angle that Sting was involved in was actually a matter of the veterans refusing to pass the torch to the young guys. Angle came out and challenged Jarrett to a match at Bound for Glory IV, but Jarrett refused, saying he had nothing left to prove, and instead pointed to the screen to reveal the debuting Mick Foley. On the next edition of ''IMPACT'', Jarrett relented to verbal cheap shots taken by Angle regarding Jarrett's children and accepted the match at Bound for Glory. The feud got more personal due to Angle mentioning Jarrett's wife, which lead to Foley being named the Special Enforcer for their match. At Bound For Glory Jarrett returned to the ring after a 1 year and 5 month absence, and defeated Angle using his Acoustic Equalizer.

On the November 20, 2008 edition of ''Impact!'', Kurt Angle threatened Mick Foley and wanted another match against Jarrett at Final Resolution after Foley announced that it was Angle vs. Rhino at the event. Angle continued to demand a match with Jarrett and he said if he couldn't get him at Final Resolution, he would wrestle Foley. Angle then slapped Foley causing Jarrett to come out and talk about what Angle wanted and then what Jarrett wanted (Angle to be fired). Because of Angle's contract clause, Jarrett could not fire him, so he made this stipulation: if Angle lost to Rhino, he would be fired from TNA; if Angle beat Rhino, he would get Jarrett at Genesis. Angle won, allowing him to face Jarrett at Genesis. The feud got even more personal when it started involving Jarrett's 3 daughters during the December 11, 2008 episode of ''IMPACT!''. Angle said that they would become orphans after Genesis and that "Uncle Kurt" may find it in his heart to adopt them and make them his. Jarrett came out to confront him but was held back by his longtime friend, BG James, TNA Personnel Terry Taylor, referee Earl Hebner, and Scott D'Amore. On January 11 at Genesis, Jarrett lost to Angle. Jeff suffered some injuries, but able to compete on the TNA Maxium Impact Tour, by facing against Kurt Angle in 2 singles and a few tag team matches with AJ Styles against Kurt Angle and Scott Steiner. Then on February 12, 2009, Jeff Jarrett returned to ''Impact!'' to stop Angle from forcing Sting to lay down and gain an easy championship victory. The next week, Jarrett allowed Angle to have another match against Sting, and on February 26, 2009 Jarrett announced Angle vs. Sting at Destination X for the TNA World Championship. Jarrett would then enter a feud with Mick Foley who attacked him while shooting his DVD at the TNA Asylum. The 2 would meet in a 4 way match at TNA Sacrifice involving Kurt Angle and Sting with Jarret putting his voting shares in TNA on the line and Angle putting his leadership of The Main Event Mafia and Sting putting his career and Foley putting the TNA World title; Sting would go on to pin Angle for the victory and leadership of the mafia. Jarrett later pinned Eric Young in order to qualify for the King of the Mountain match, however Young attacked Jarrett after the match in storyline. The following week Jarrett called out Young and offered to turn the other cheek but instead Young provoked him by saying that he pays more attention to wrestling than his own daughters just like his father Jerry Jarrett which resulted in Jeff slapping Young and assaulting him. Jarrett also would accidentally punch referee Earl Hebner while Hebner was trying to separate the 2. On the June 11 edition of ''Impact!'', Mick Foley kayfabe fined and suspended Jarrett and threw him out of the arena as a punishment. The following week Foley threw a party for Jarrett and welcomed him back to TNA in order to have him on his side at Slammiversary. At Slammiversary, Jarrett refused to give Foley the belt in the King of the Mountain match, which was won by Kurt Angle after assistance from Samoa Joe. Shortly after Slammiversary, Jarrett once again disappeared from TNA programming. During his hiatus, it was reported that Jarrett had lost all of his backstage power in TNA and would return only as a wrestler.

Feuding with Eric Bischoff and Sting (2009–2010)

On the December 3 edition of ''Impact!'', Jarrett made his first appearance in months via telephone, refusing to help Mick Foley regain control over TNA after Dixie Carter had announced that Hulk Hogan was coming to TNA. On the December 10 edition of ''Impact!'', Foley met with Jarrett, who agreed to return and help him deal with Carter and Hogan. On January 4, 2010, Hogan made his debut, confronted Jarrett and claimed that he had to earn his spot in the company. The following week Jarrett started showing signs of a heel turn as he threatened Hogan with legal action, however, on the January 28 edition of ''Impact!'' he changed his mind and agreed to fight for his spot. In the main event of the show he came out to no entrance music or pyrotechnics and was defeated by Mr. Anderson after a low blow. This started an angle of Hogan's business partner Eric Bischoff, acting on his own without Hogan, having Jarrett work humiliating jobs backstage at the Impact! Zone, such as flipping burgers and cleaning restrooms, while also booking him in unfavorable matches, such as surprise Falls Count Anywhere and handicap matches. On the March 22 edition of ''Impact!'', after Jarrett broke a guitar over Bischoff's head, Bischoff placed him and Mick Foley, another wrestler he had had problems with, against each other in a No Disqualification match, where the loser would get fired from the company. Jarrett managed to win the match, refereed by Beer Money, Inc., and with Foley fired from the company, Hogan ordered Bischoff to lay off of Jarrett. The following week Hogan, prior to leaving on a business trip, apologized to Jarrett for Bischoff's behavior and gave him a chance to earn the number one contendership to the TNA World Heavyweight Championship in a match against the champion A.J. Styles. With Hogan out of the building, Bischoff and Styles' manager Ric Flair interfered in the match and cost Jarrett the number one contendership. Later in the evening Jarrett was announced as the second member of Abyss' Team Hogan in the annual Lethal Lockdown match, where they would meet Team Flair, led by Sting. At Lockdown Team Hogan (Abyss, Jarrett, Rob Van Dam and Jeff Hardy) defeated Team Flair (Sting, Desmond Wolfe, Robert Roode and James Storm), when Bischoff turned face and helped Team Hogan pick up the victory, effectively ending his feud with Jarrett. Just before Lockdown, Jarrett said that he was going to find out the answers to Sting's behavior, which led into a brawl on ''Impact!'' with Sting leaving a beaten Jarrett in the ring, which in turn led to their match at Sacrifice. At the pay-per-view Sting assaulted Jarrett prior to their match and then dragged him in to the ring, where he managed to score a pinfall in seconds over his bloodied opponent. Jarrett was sidelined for a month before making his return at Slammiversary VIII, where he cost Sting his World Heavyweight Championship match against Rob Van Dam. On the June 24 edition of ''Impact!'' Sting assaulted Jarrett to the point that TNA president Dixie Carter suspended him for 30 days without pay the following week. During Sting's suspension Jarrett found a new enemy in Kevin Nash, who claimed that Jarrett himself, and not Sting, was what was wrong with TNA. Sting returned from his suspension on the August 5 edition of ''Impact!'', wearing a new red face paint, and, together with Nash, beat down Jarrett, Bischoff and Hogan. On the August 26 edition of ''Impact!'' Jarrett attempted to recruit Samoa Joe to help him against Nash and Sting, but was turned down. Thus Jarrett was left alone for a match, where he was defeated by Nash, after an interference from Sting. The following week Sting defeated Jarrett in a singles match, after an interference from Kevin Nash. After the match Samoa Joe joined Jarrett and drove Sting and Nash away. At No Surrender Jarrett and Joe defeated Sting and Nash in a tag team match, after Jarrett hit Sting with his own baseball bat.

Heel turn and feud with Kurt Angle (2010–2011)

At Bound for Glory Jarrett and Joe faced Sting, Nash and their newest ally D'Angelo Dinero in a handicap match, after Hulk Hogan, who was scheduled to team with Joe and Jarrett, was forced to pull out due to a back surgery. At the end of the match Jarrett turned heel and abandoned Joe and left him to be pinned by Nash. At the end of the event Jarrett aligned himself with Hulk Hogan, who ended up making a surprise appearance, Eric Bischoff, Abyss and the new TNA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Hardy, all of whom made heel turns with the exception of the already heel Abyss, in the process revealing themselves as the "they" Abyss had referred to. On the following edition of ''Impact!'' Jarrett explained that he had joined the stable, now known as Immortal, in order to get back at Dixie Carter for taking away his backstage power in TNA, while also wanting to end the career of Kurt Angle, who had proclaimed that he would retire from professional wrestling if he failed to win the TNA World Heavyweight Championship at Bound for Glory. Jarrett then attacked Angle, when he was being restrained by TNA's security officers. The following week Samoa Joe attempted to avenge what had happened at Bound for Glory, but was restrained by the security officers, before being beat down by Jarrett. At Turning Point Jarrett defeated Joe, after choking him out with a baton, following interference from Gunner and Murphy, his security officers. On the following edition of ''Impact!'' Jarrett assaulted Joe, after he had defeated Gunner and Murphy in a handicap match, but was then chased away by the returning Kurt Angle. At Final Resolution Jarrett faced Joe in a submission match. After a pre–match assault and later an interference by Gunner and Murphy, Jarrett managed to force Joe to submit with an ankle lock. On the January 6, 2011, edition of ''Impact!'' Kurt Angle interrupted Jarrett's $100,000 mixed martial arts challenge and signed a contract to face him at Genesis in an MMA exhibition match, since he had promised not to wrestle again. The match was thrown out in the third round after Jarrett blinded Angle. After the match Jarrett bloodied Angle, before announcing that he was ending his mixed martial arts career and promised that his current wife and Kurt's former wife, Karen Jarrett, would be joining the retirement party. On the January 13 edition of ''Impact!'' Karen made her return and stopped Angle just as he was about to attack Jeff, telling him that she would not allow him to ruin their personal lives and promised to tell all about their divorce the following week. The following week Karen slapped Kurt, providing a distraction which allowed Jeff to beat him down. On February 13 at Against All Odds Jarrett defeated Angle in a singles match and as a result Angle was forced to walk Karen down the aisle, when she and Jarrett renewed their wedding vows on the March 3 edition of ''Impact!''. On March 3 Angle proceeded to destroy the wedding set with an axe and forced wedding guest, New York Jet Bart Scott to tap out with the ankle lock. On April 17 at Lockdown, Jarrett defeated Angle in an "Ultra Male Rules" Two out of Three Falls steel cage match, with help from Karen. It was later reported that Jarrett had severely bruised his ribs in the match. On the May 12 edition of ''Impact!'', Angle revealed a name from Jarrett's past, Chyna, as his backup in taking care of him and Karen. At Sacrifice, Angle and Chyna defeated the Jarretts in a mixed tag team match. With Karen out of the picture, Angle defeated Jarrett on June 12 at Slammiversary IX in what was billed as the "final battle" between the two. However, on the following edition of ''Impact Wrestling'', Jarrett challenged Angle to a Parking Lot Brawl and agreed to sign a contract that would force him to move to Mexico without Angle's children, which he lost the match. Angle ended up winning the fight after choking Jarrett with a shirt, forcing him to say "adiós", thus ending the long feud in the process. The following week on ''Impact Wrestling'', Bischoff forced Jarrett to obey the match stipulations and exiled him to Mexico.

Mexican Heavyweight Champion (2011–present)

Jarrett returned to TNA on the July 14 edition of ''Impact Wrestling'', showing off the "Mexican Heavyweight Championship" belt, playing off the AAA World Heavyweight Championship, he had won during his stay in Mexico. On the August 18 edition of ''Impact Wrestling'', Jarrett aligned himself with the Mexican America stable by helping its members Anarquia and Hernandez defeat Beer Money, Inc. for the TNA World Tag Team Championship.

Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (2004–2006, 2011–present)

Jarrett made his debut for Mexican promotion Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA) on March 21, 2004, defeating Latin Lover to win the 2004 Rey de Reyes tournament. Over the next two years, Jarrett would make several sporadic appearances for AAA as a member of the heel stable ''La Legión Extranjera'', before the working relationship between AAA and TNA was ended.

In February 2010, TNA restarted their working relationship with AAA and in early May 2011, Jarrett made his return to AAA television, announcing his and TNA's alignment with Dorian Roldán and his heel stable ''La Sociedad'' and their participation in TripleManía XIX. Konnan, the co-leader of ''La Sociedad'' and former TNA worker, however, was against the idea of his former employer coming to AAA and believed that Roldán had made a mistake by inviting him to the promotion. Jarrett and Abyss arrived to AAA on May 18 for a confrontation with Konnan and ''La Sociedad''. In the end, Jarrett and Konnan revealed that they were in fact on the same page with each other and turned on AAA World Heavyweight Champion El Zorro with Konnan announcing that Jarrett would be challenging for his title at TripleManía XIX. On June 18 at TripleManía XIX, Jarrett defeated El Zorro to become the new AAA World Heavyweight Champion. On July 31 at ''Verano de Escándalo'', Jarrett successfully defended the title in a three-way elimination match against Dr. Wagner, Jr. and L.A. Park, when someone wearing El Zorro's old mask interfered and hit Park with a guitar.

Media

TNA announced that on April 14, 2009 the first-ever Jeff Jarrett DVD release would be a four-disc set, including his best TNA matches and moments, a lengthy and candid interview on his life, career and TNA Wrestling, rare photos, and guest commentary, among others.

Personal life

Jarrett was married to his "high school sweetheart" Jill on November 14, 1992, with whom he had three daughters, Joslyn, Jaclyn, and Jerlyn. His parents names are father, Jerry W. and mother Deborah. He also has two brothers, Jerry Jr. and Jason, and he has one sister, Jennifer. Jill was diagnosed with breast cancer in the late 1990s, and died on May 23, 2007 at the age of 38 from cancer, exactly eight years after the death of his friend Owen Hart.

In 2009, It was reported that Jeff Jarrett was romantically linked to Karen Angle. This resulted in TNA president Dixie Carter placing Jeff Jarrett on leave of absence. The situation was revealed in July 2009 when a caller claiming to be a TNA employee called in on Bubba the Love Sponge's radio show. Dixie Carter commented on the situation on Impact, stating "a personal situation that affected the company and it put all of us in a very difficult position." She said Jeff was placed "on leave as both a talent and in his capacity with the company and I'd like to leave it at that." In December 2009, Jeff returned to TNA, using the real life situation briefly as a storyline, with Carter reprimanding Jarrett on camera for his actions and ordering him to apologize to Kurt Angle. Jarrett confronted Angle backstage and offered an awkward apology, which a visibly upset Angle brushed off. On April 6, 2010, Jarrett and Karen Angle announced their engagement. Jarrett and Angle were married on August 21, 2010.

In wrestling

Finishing moves

''Acoustic Equalizer'' / ''El Kabong'' (Guitar shot)

Figure-four leglock

''The Stroke'' (Forward Russian legsweep, sometimes from the second rope)

Signature moves

Diving crossbody

*Double leg slam

*Double underhook facebuster

Dropkick, sometimes from the top rope

*Enzuigiri

Lariat

*Leapfrog body guillotine to an opponent draped over the second rope

Powerslam

Sleeper hold

*Snap suplex

Swinging neckbreaker

Managers

The Roadie

Debra

Jim Cornette

Tennessee Lee

*Southern Justice (Mark Canterbury and Dennis Knight)

Miss Kitty

*nWo Girls

*New Blood

*Harris Brothers (Don and Ron Harris)

*Don Callis

*Baby Doll

Gail Kim

*Jackie Gayda

*Karen Jarrett

Nicknames

"The Chosen One"

"Double J"

"The TNA Founder"

"The Great One"

"Simply Irresistible"

"The King of the Mountain"

"The Ultra Male"

*"Big Daddy"

Entrance themes

*"Tennessee Jam" by Jim Johnston (WWF; 1998–1999)

*"Rockhouse" by Jimmy Hart and H.Helm (WCW; as part of nWo 2000; 1999-early 2000)

"My World" by Dale Oliver (TNA / AAA; 2002–present)

"Immortal Theme" by Dale Oliver

Championships and accomplishments

American Wrestling Association

*Rookie of the Year (1984)

Asistencia Asesoría y Administración

AAA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time, current)

AAA Rey de Reyes (2004)¹

Continental Wrestling Association

AWA Southern Tag Team Championship (4 times) – with Billy Travis (3) and Pat Tanaka (1)

CWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

CWA International Tag Team Championship (2 time) – with Pat Tanaka (1) and Paul Diamond (1)

NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Championship (5 times)

NWA Cyberspace

NWA Cyberspace Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

Pennsylvania Championship Wrestling

PCW United States Championship (1 time)

Pro Wrestling Illustrated

PWI Feud of the Year (1992)with Jerry Lawler vs. the Moondogs

PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year (2007)

PWI ranked him #5 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2000

PWI ranked him #141 in the PWI Years in 2003

PWI ranked him #78 of the Top 100 Tag Teams of the PWI Years in 2003 with Jerry Lawler

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling

NWA World Heavyweight Championship (6 times)

*King of the Mountain (2004, 2006)

United States Wrestling Association

USWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

USWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (9 times)

USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship (3 times)

USWA World Tag Team Championship (14 times) – with Jeff Gaylord (2), Cody Michaels (1), Jerry Lawler (4), Robert Fuller (4), and Brian Christopher (2)

World Championship Wrestling

WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (3 times)

WCW World Heavyweight Championship (4 times)

World Class Wrestling Association

USWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Matt Borne

WCWA World Light Heavyweight Championship (2 times)

WCWA World Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Kerry Von Erich (1), Mil Máscaras (1), and Matt Borne (1)

World Wrestling Federation

NWA North American Heavyweight Championship (1 time)²

WWF European Championship (1 time)

WWF Intercontinental Championship (6 times)

WWF Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Owen Hart

World Series Wrestling

WSW Heavyweight Championship

World Wrestling All-Stars

*WWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)³

Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards

*Feud of the Year (1992) with Jerry Lawler vs. The Moondogs

*Most Overrated Wrestler (2005)

¹After Asistencia Asesoría y Administración retracted their working relationship with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, Jarrett's win was stricken from AAA's records. However, when the relationship was resumed in 2010, AAA once again began recognizing Jarrett as a former Rey de Reyes.

²Wins the title while working for the World Wrestling Federation as part of an angle with the National Wrestling Alliance.

³Upon winning the title for the second time, Jarrett instantly unified it with the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.

Lucha de Apuesta record

Jeff Jarrett

style="background:#e3e3e3; width:5%;"	Wager	Winner	Loser	Location	Date	Notes
Hair	Sean Waltman>X-Pac	|	New York City>New York, New York		SummerSlam (1998)>SummerSlam
Career	Jeff Jarrett	Mick Foley	Orlando, Florida

Notes

References

External links

TNA profile

AAA profile

Online World of Wrestling profile

Category:Article Feedback Pilot Category:1967 births Category:Living people Category:American professional wrestlers Category:People from Nashville, Tennessee Category:Professional wrestling executives

bg:Джеф Джарет da:Jeff Jarrett de:Jeff Jarrett es:Jeff Jarrett fr:Jeff Jarrett ko:제프 제럿 it:Jeff Jarrett lt:Jeff Jarrett nl:Jeff Jarrett ja:ジェフ・ジャレット pl:Jeff Jarrett pt:Jeff Jarrett ro:Jeff Jarrett ru:Джарретт, Джефф th:เจฟฟ์ จาเรตต์ vi:Jeff Jarrett

name	Simon Cowell
background	non_performing_personnel
birth name	Simon Phillip Cowell
birth date	October 07, 1959
birth place	Lambeth, London, England
origin	Elstree, Hertfordshire, England
occupation	A&R; executive, television producer, entrepreneur, television personality
years active	1979–present
label	EMIE&S; MusicFanfare RecordsBMGS RecordsSony Music EntertainmentSyco
associated acts	Westlife, Sinitta, Leon Jackson, Jai McDowall, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Curiosity Killed the Cat, Sonia, Five, Robson & Jerome, Ultimate Kaos, WWF Wrestlers, Zig and Zag, Leona Lewis, Alexandra Burke, Joe McElderry, Shayne Ward, Il Divo, Susan Boyle, Paul Potts, JLS
notable instruments	}}

Simon Phillip Cowell (born 7 October 1959) is an English A&R; executive, television producer, entrepreneur, and television personality. He is known in the United Kingdom and United States for his role as a talent judge on TV shows such as ''Pop Idol'', ''The X Factor'', ''Britain's Got Talent'' and ''American Idol''. He is also the owner of the television production and music publishing house Syco.

As a judge, Cowell is known for his blunt and often controversial criticisms, insults and wisecracks about contestants and their abilities. He is also known for combining activities in the television and music industries, having promoted singles and records for various artists, including television personalities. He was most recently featured on the seventh series of ''The X Factor'' and the fifth series of ''Britain's Got Talent''. In September 2011, he will feature as a judge on the first season of the American version of ''The X Factor''.

In 2010, the British magazine ''New Statesman'' listed Cowell at number 41 in a list of "The World's 50 Most Influential Figures 2010".

Early life

Cowell was born in Lambeth, London and brought up in Elstree, Hertfordshire. His father, Eric Philip Cowell (1918–1999), was an estate agent developer and music industry executive; his mother, Julie Brett (née Josie Dalglish), is a former ballet dancer and socialite. Cowell's paternal grandparents, Joseph Cowell and Esther Malinsky, were English Jews, and his maternal grandfather was Scottish. He has one brother and three half-brothers; younger brother Nicholas Cowell, half-brother John Cowell, half-brother Tony Cowell and half-brother Michael Cowell. Michael is the oldest, followed by John, Tony, Simon and Nicholas respectively.

Cowell attended Radlett Preparatory School and the independent Dover College as did his brother, but left after taking GCE O levels. He passed in English Language and Literature and then attended Windsor Technical College where he gained another GCE in Sociology. At the age of 17, he dated model Paula Hamilton. Cowell took a few menial jobs—including, according to Tony, working as a runner on Stanley Kubrick's ''The Shining''—but did not get along well with colleagues and bosses, until his father who was executive at the recording giant EMI Music Publishing, managed to get him a job in the mail room.

Career

Cowell's father's connections originally got him rehired as the assistant to an A&R; man. From there onwards, Simon worked his way up and eventually got promoted to a music publishing position but left during the early 1980s to form E&S; Music with his boss at EMI, Ellis Rich (later Chairman of the Performing Right Society). The company had several hit records at one point with five singles in the UK top 40. The offices were in a converted gentleman's washroom in the NCP car park on Brewer Street in London's Soho district. Cowell left by mutual agreement a few years later. He worked for Iain Burton, manager of choreographer Arlene Phillips, co-founder of dance group Hot Gossip and of nascent independent record label Fanfare Records. Cowell worked with Burton for eight years at Fanfare where he achieved his first real success in the music industry, becoming a partner and building Fanfare into a highly successful 'indie' pop label. Fanfare had numerous top ten hits with various pop artists and particularly Sinitta, selling more than 500,000 copies of her debut single "So Macho", and more than 500,000 copies of her album ''Rondo Veneziano''. Next in 1984, Cowell and Burton met up with Pete Waterman for the first time.

Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman formed the songwriting and record producing trio known as Stock Aitken Waterman. Stock Aitken Waterman helped Fanfare during the second half of the 1980s producing several hit singles for Sinitta and licensing ''The Hit Factory'' SAW Compilation Albums to Fanfare. Next in 1989, Fanfare's parent, Public Company, found itself in difficulties, forcing Fanfare into the hands of BMG, and an in-debt Cowell was forced to move back in with his parents. Later that year, he became an A&R; consultant for BMG.

Subsequently, Cowell signed up a number of acts to ''S-Records'' that became successful, including Curiosity Killed the Cat, Sonia, Five, Westlife, Robson & Jerome, and Ultimate Kaos. He also released several novelty recordings featuring the likes of wrestlers of the World Wrestling Entertainment, Teletubbies, Zig and Zag and the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, that were huge successes. Cowell set up another label, Syco Music, in 2002 which later became part of Columbia Records and Sony BMG Music Entertainment. Artists such as Leona Lewis, Il Divo and contestants from ''The X Factor'' and ''America's Got Talent'' are released on Syco. Cowell explained, "There has to come a point when I will step down from being on camera and remain behind the scenes because you can't keep doing this forever...I think by [the end of my contract] that the public will be sick to death of me anyway and it will be time to go."

In 2006, Cowell signed to two more record-breaking deals. In the USA, he agreed to remain as a judge on ''American Idol'', earning £20 million (US$33 million) per season for another five years. He also has a deal with FOX which allows his production company to broadcast ''Got Talent'' and ''American Inventor'' on other networks, but he may not appear on them. In the UK, he signed a "golden handcuffs" deal with ITV, worth approximately £6.5 million a year for three years, which gave ITV rights to his talent show ''The X Factor'', a British singing talent show, and ''Grease Is the Word'', a musical talent show to find the stars of a ''Grease'' production in London's West End. In late 2005, he signed a new contract to remain working for Sony BMG.

In 2010, Cowell finalised a deal which secures the long-term business future of Syco with Sony Music Entertainment. The deal will also see him launching a US version of X Factor on 21 September 2011.

''Idol'' franchise and ''Il Divo''

Cowell was given the role of judge on the first series of Pop Idol by then ITV Controller of Entertainment Claudia Rosencrantz in 2001, he was then judge on the first season of ''American Idol'' in 2002. With his notoriously critical reputation, Cowell is likened to TV personalities, such as Judge Judy, and ''Weakest Link'''s Anne Robinson. Though comparable to Anne Robinson, Cowell has expressed his dislike for her and has commented in an interview, "I hate her and I hate her show because it's just an act". Cowell's prominence grew, fed by his signature phrase, "I don't mean to be rude, but ...", inevitably followed by an unsparingly blunt appraisal of the contestant's talents, personality, or even physical appearance. A lot of these one-liners were the product of coaching that Cowell received from noted publicist Max Clifford. Cowell also appeared on the one-off ''World Idol'' programme in 2003, where it became clear that each country's version of the ''Idol'' had attempted to come up with its own "Simon Cowell" type personality. In 2003, Cowell placed No 33 on Channel 4's list of the all-time 100 Worst Britons. Cowell's S Records signed the top two finishers of the first season of ''Pop Idol'', Will Young and Gareth Gates, both of whom went on to have No 1 UK hits. Efforts begun in 2001 materialised in 2004, when Cowell returned to his group manufacturing roots with his latest brainchild, the internationally successful operatic pop group Il Divo, consisting of three opera singers and one pop singer of four different nationalities. Inspired by the success of Il Divo, Simon created a child version, Angelis, beating competition from many similar groups emerging at Christmas 2006.

On 11 January 2010, Cowell's exit from ''American Idol'' was made official. The 2010 season was Cowell's last on the show. It was also announced that Fox has acquired the rights to an American version of Cowell's popular British show, ''The X Factor'', which is slated to begin production in autumn 2011.

''The X Factor''

In 2004, with Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh, Cowell was a judge on the first series of the British television music competition ''The X Factor'', which he created using his production company, Syco. ''The X Factor'' was an instant success with the viewers and will begin its eighth series in 2011.

Leona Lewis, the winner of the third series of ''The X Factor'', was signed to Cowell's label Syco and has gone on to become an international star, with number one singles and album sales around the world. Cowell returned for a fourth series on 18 August 2007 alongside Osbourne, Walsh and new judge, Dannii Minogue. Walsh had previously been sacked from the judging panel by Cowell for the fourth series, and was subsequently replaced by Brian Friedman, who was a judge on ''Grease Is the Word''. Walsh was later brought back a week into the auditions by Cowell when he and Osbourne realised that they missed Walsh and that without him, there was no chemistry between the judges. Cowell returned for the fifth series in 2008, with Walsh, Minogue and new judge Cheryl Cole, as Sharon Osbourne decided to quit before the show began.

''The X Factor'' has been confirmed to return to Australian television in 2010 on the Seven Network with Kyle Sandilands, Ronan Keating, Guy Sebastian and Natalie Imbruglia as judges. Matthew Newton will host the show. Auditions will begin in May 2010.

Cowell will also launch the U.S. version of ''The X Factor'' in September 2011 on American broadcaster Fox. It was announced that he would be a judge both on the UK and US editions of the show, which will air at similar times of the year, but MTV officially reported on 17 April 2011 that this was not true; Cowell will no longer be a judge in the UK version., but instead will be an enormous presence backstage.

In October 2010, Cowell signed new three-year deals with ITV for both ''Britain's Got Talent'' and ''The X Factor''.

''Got Talent'' franchise

Following the success of the ''Idol'' and ''X-Factor'' franchises, Cowell, his company Syco, and its business partners developed a talent show format open to performers of any kind, not only singers, but also dancers, instrumentalists, magicians, comedians, novelty acts, and so on. The origins of the ''Got Talent'' format can be traced to the British show ''Opportunity Knocks'', which began as a radio programme in the 1940s and later transferred to television, where it was an ITV staple for several decades. Looking further back, ''Opportunity Knocks'' had its roots in the variety show traditions of British music hall and American vaudeville.

Cowell is the executive producer of ''America's Got Talent'', which debuted in June 2006, along with Fremantle producers of the ''Idol'' series, but he does not appear on the show due to the terms of his ''American Idol'' contract. The show was a huge success for NBC, drawing around 12 million viewers a week, and beating ''So You Think You Can Dance'' on FOX (produced by rival and ''Idol'' creator Simon Fuller).

''Britain's Got Talent'' debuted on ITV in June 2007. Cowell appears as a judge alongside Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan. The show was a ratings success and second and third seasons followed in 2008 and 2009. The third series featured a publicity coup when Susan Boyle made a global media impact with her regional audition performance comparable to that of any previous talent show series winner.

''American Inventor''

On 16 March 2006, Simon Cowell's next competition show, ''American Inventor'', debuted on ABC. Fledgling entrepreneurs from across the United States competed to see who could come up with the best new product concept. The 2006 winner, Janusz Liberkowski, received $1 million and the opportunity to develop his idea into a business. The show returned one more time in 2007 for a second season.

''Celebrity Duets''

In 2006, Cowell executive-produced ''Celebrity Duets'', which was described as "an Idol show for Hollywood superstars." The show was hosted by Wayne Brady, and its judges were Marie Osmond, Little Richard and David Foster.

''Grease Is the Word''

Cowell was also the executive producer of ''Grease Is the Word'' for ITV. This show set out to find performers to play Danny and Sandy in the 2007 West End revival of Grease. It was hosted by Zoe Ball and judged by Britons David Ian and Sinitta and Americans David Gest and Brian Friedman. The musical theatre casting concept had already been introduced by the BBC with the ratings hit ''How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?'', but Cowell's show was not the hoped for success. He himself said, "It has been slaughtered by the critics – and rightly so. It is far too similar to our other formats."

''Rock Rivals''

Cowell collaborated with UK production company Shed Media to produce 2008 ITV drama series ''Rock Rivals'', which is based on an ''X Factor'' type show.

Other activities

Cowell has been involved in charity work for many years. He supports children from The Association Of Children's Hospices and invites them backstage to the screenings of ''The X Factor''. When he can, he stops by some of the hospices to visit the children. He also supports animal rights and has appeared in a video for PETA in which he reminds drivers of the cruelty to animals that can occur when their pets are locked in cars in the summer. In view of his charitable works, particularly the production of the charity single ''Everybody Hurts'' in aid of victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, as well as his services to the music industry, there was considerable media speculation as to whether Cowell would receive a knighthood in the Queen's 2010 Birthday Honours, a proposal allegedly put forward by former Prime Minister, Gordon Brown. Cowell stated that he believed his chances of receiving the honour were "zero" following what he described as being a "royal row"; ultimately Cowell did not receive an honour in the list.

In December 2003, Cowell published his autobiography titled ''I Don't Mean to be Rude, but...''. In it, he told the whole story of his childhood, his years working in music and experiences on ''Pop Idol'', ''Pop Stars Rivals'', and ''American Idol'', and finally, his tips for being successful as a pop star.

Cowell has appeared as a guest voice in an episode of ''The Simpsons'' ("Smart and Smarter"), in which he gets beaten up by Homer Simpson (while criticising Homer's punches). His voice was also heard on an episode of ''Family Guy'' ("Lois Kills Stewie"), in which he told Stewie that his singing was so awful that he should be dead. He made an MTV Movie Award-winning cameo appearance as himself in ''Scary Movie 3'', where he sits in judgment during a battle rap (and subsequently gets killed by gunfire for criticising the rappers). He also appears in the DVD version of ''Shrek 2'' as a judge in ''Far Far Away Idol'', and also provided the voice.

He appeared on an episode of ''Who Wants to be a Millionaire?'' (the original British version) and ''Saturday Night Live'' in 2004. Cowell has also guest-starred (filling in for Regis Philbin) in the popular talk show ''Live with Regis and Kelly'' during ''American Idol'''s finalist week in early 2006. Cowell was once the fastest "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" on BBC's motoring show ''Top Gear'', driving a Suzuki Liana around the show's test track in a time of 1:47.1. When ''Top Gear'' retired the Liana along with its rankings after the eighth series, Cowell was the eighth fastest overall and the third fastest non-professional driver. On 11 November 2007 Cowell yet again appeared on Top Gear, achieving a time of 1:45.9 thus putting him ahead of Gordon Ramsay and back at the top of the table. Cowell introduced entertainer Dick Clark at the 2006 Primetime Emmy Awards. He was seen on ''Comic Relief Does The Apprentice'' where he donated £25,000 for a fun fair ticket. Cowell has also appeared on the MTV shows Cribs and Punk'd. On Punk'd, Ryan Seacrest and Randy Jackson set him up to believe his $400,000 Rolls Royce was stolen and had caused an accident by using a nearly identical car.

Cowell was chosen as the first subject of the re-launched ''This Is Your Life'' in an episode broadcast on 2 June 2007. He was presented with the Red Book by Sir Trevor McDonald while presenting ''American Idol''.

On 1 July 2007 Cowell appeared alongside Randy Jackson and Ryan Seacrest as a speaker at the Concert For Diana, held at Wembley Stadium.

Simon Cowell was a partner in the Royal Ascot Racing Club, a thoroughbred horse racing syndicate which owned the 2005 Epsom Derby winner, Motivator.

In May 2010, he portrayed himself again, in another episode of ''The Simpsons'', "Judge Me Tender".

In December 2010, he was added as a new entry to the latest edition of ''Who's Who''.

Personal life

In late 2002, Cowell started dating longtime friend Terri Seymour. In November 2008, ''TV Guide'' reported that Cowell and Seymour had since broken up.

Cowell is the godfather of pop singer Sinitta's adopted children.

Upon his appearance on ''Top Gear'', it was revealed that Cowell pays more than £21.7m per year in income tax, suggesting that his taxable income is over £54.25m per year with income tax at the time approximately 40%. (NB: UK Income Tax 40% for earnings over £34,600). Cowell was estimated to have a fortune of £200 million in the ''Sunday Times Rich List'' of 2011, making him the sixth richest person in the British music industry.

Cowell has admitted to using Botox.

Cowell has a $22 million, home in Beverly Hills.

In May 2009, in the ''Daily Mail'' tabloid newspaper, Cowell revealed that he is often plagued by "dark moods and miserable thoughts". He claims that he has considered seeking therapy for this, stating that it would be a 'long session'.

Cowell became engaged to make up artist Mezhgan Hussainy in February 2010. They met on the set of ''American Idol''.

Cowell endorsed David Cameron to be Prime Minister and claimed that he has the 'substance and the stomach to navigate us through difficult times'. In the aftermath of the election, it was reported that he had fallen out with fellow X Factor judge Cheryl Cole (who had declared her support for Labour and Gordon Brown) in a telephone conversation about politics.

References

External links

Simon Cowell at itv.com/xfactor

Simon Cowell for PETA

Simon Cowell on World Top 100 A&R; Chart

New York Times: How a Hit Almost Failed Its Own Audition

Reviews and short bio of Simon Cowell

Playboy Interview: Simon Cowell, February 2007

Interview, HitQuarters Oct 2001

2011 radio interview with Simon Cowell

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Category:1959 births Category:Living people Category:American Idol participants Category:American music industry executives Category:Anglo-Scots Category:A&R; people Category:British music industry executives Category:British people of Jewish descent Category:British racehorse owners and breeders Category:English expatriates in the United States Category:English memoirists Category:English people of Scottish descent Category:English record producers Category:Got Talent series Category:Idol series judges Category:Old Dovorians Category:Pop Idol Category:Reality television judges Category:The X Factor judges Category:The X Factor (UK) Category:People educated at Licensed Victuallers' School

ar:سيمون كويل cy:Simon Cowell da:Simon Cowell de:Simon Cowell es:Simon Cowell fa:سایمون کاول fr:Simon Cowell gl:Simon Cowell ko:사이먼 코웰 hr:Simon Cowell id:Simon Cowell it:Simon Cowell he:סיימון קאוול lv:Saimons Kauels ms:Simon Cowell nl:Simon Cowell ja:サイモン・コーウェル no:Simon Cowell pl:Simon Cowell pt:Simon Cowell ru:Ковелл, Саймон simple:Simon Cowell fi:Simon Cowell sv:Simon Cowell th:ไซมอน โคเวลล์ vi:Simon Cowell zh:西蒙·高維爾

name	Jonathan Ross
birth name	Jonathan Stephen Ross
birth date	November 17, 1960
birth place	Camden, London, England
nationality	British
occupation	Broadcaster, film critic
years active	1987–present
spouse
children	2 daughters, 1 son
parents	Martha Ross }}

Jonathan Stephen Ross, OBE (born 17 November 1960) is an English television and radio presenter, best known for presenting the BBC One chat show ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'' from 2001 until he left the BBC in 2010. Ross began hosting a new chat show on ITV1 starting 3 September 2011. Ross also hosted his own radio show on BBC Radio 2, and acted as a film critic and presenter of the ''Film'' programme. Other regular roles have included being a regular panellist on the comedy sports quiz ''They Think It's All Over'' from 1999 to 2006, and presenting the annual British Comedy Awards from 1991 to 2007, and 2009 onwards.

Ross began his television career as a programme researcher, before débuting as a television presenter for ''The Last Resort with Jonathan Ross'' on Channel 4 in 1987. Over the next decade he had several radio and television roles, many through his own production company, Channel X. In 1995 he sold his stake in Channel X, and embarked on a career with the BBC. In 1999, Ross took over presenting the ''Film'' programme from Barry Norman, and also began presenting his own radio show, while two years later he began hosting ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross''. For the chat show, Ross won three British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards for Best Entertainment Performance, in 2004, 2006 and 2007. By 2006 Ross was believed to be the BBC's highest paid star. In 2005, Ross was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to broadcasting. Ross has been involved in controversies throughout his broadcasting career. As a result, in 2008 he wrote a semi-autobiographical work titled ''Why Do I Say These Things?'', detailing some of his life experiences.

Ross has been married to the author, journalist and broadcaster Jane Goldman since 1988; they have three children. Ross and Goldman have together established the television production company Hotsauce TV. Ross is known as an avid fan and collector of comic books and memorabilia, and has written his own comic book, ''Turf''. Ross is known for his distinctive voice, flamboyant style of dress, and his light-hearted banter. He is also known for his characteristic difficulty in pronouncing the sound 'r'.

Personal

Ross was born in Camden, London, England on 17 November 1960, a son of British actress and radio presenter Martha Ross. He grew up in Leytonstone and is the brother of journalist, television editor, and media personality Paul Ross; TV producer/actor Miles Ross; TV producer Simon Ross, and music industry professional Adam Ross. He was educated at Norlington School for Boys, a comprehensive school at the same time as his elder brother Paul, and at Leyton County High School for Boys, a comprehensive school. He also attended Southampton College of Art, now known as Southampton Solent University. He then studied Modern European History at the School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES), University of London.

Ross married author/journalist/broadcaster Jane Goldman, nine years his junior, in 1988, when Goldman was 18. They have since had three children: Betty Kitten (named after Bettie Page), Harvey Kirby (named after Jack Kirby, a comic book creator whom Ross especially admires), and Honey Kinney. The family lives in Hampstead Garden Suburb.

Ross and others have used his rhotacism for comic effect and he is sometimes known as "Wossy," including on his Twitter feed (@wossy).

Ross is known for owning exotic pets. He is a big music fan and the first band he saw live was punk rockers X-Ray Spex at Islington's Hope and Anchor pub in North London. He is a big fan of David Bowie, Roxy Music and Bryan Ferry, Queen (he was in the audience for Queen at Wembley), British punk rock, Spandau Ballet, Sparks, ''Star Trek'', ''Doctor Who'' (his favourite Doctor was Jon Pertwee), and comic books. Ross has even co-owned a comic shop in London with Paul Gambaccini and released ''Turf'', his first comic book, in 2010, with American artist Tommy Lee Edwards. He was also the visual inspiration for the main character in the comic book ''Saviour''. Ross is also greatly interested in Japan, presenting a BBC-TV series on many different aspects of Japanese culture, ''Japanorama'', for three series between 2002–07. He was a regular at London's ''Blitz'' club during the early 1980s (famous for the Blitz Kids). He is a fan and friend of the singers Morrissey and George Michael.

He is a close friend of comedian Ricky Gervais and bought him a kitten after Gervais' previous cat, Colin, had died. The cat's name is Ollie and was presented to him on an episode of Ross' talk show ''Friday Night With Jonathan Ross''. He was one of the special celebrity guests in the final episode of Gervais's second season of ''Extras'', in which Gervais's character, Andy Millman, and Ross were shown to be the best of friends after a fictional appearance on ''Friday Night With Jonathan Ross''.

He is also a friend of author Neil Gaiman, and he and his wife appear in Gaiman's short story "The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch", collected in ''Fragile Things''.

In 2005, Ross was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Birthday Honours for services to broadcasting. He celebrated the news by playing "God Save the Queen" by the Sex Pistols on his Radio 2 show.

When talking to Colin Farrell on ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'' on 19 February 2010, Ross claimed not to have consumed alcohol for ten years.

Ross has attended a fund raiser for the James Randi Educational Foundation called ''The Amazing Meeting'' in London in 2009 and 2010. Interviewed by Rebecca Watson, Ross described himself as a big fan of James Randi and the other speakers – who were mainly prominent sceptics – and said that he and his wife had come to have a sceptical view of the world. Ross has been supportive of Simon Singh's efforts to defend an accusation of libel by the British Chiropractic Association and Ross has posed for the ''Geek Calendar 2011'', a fund raiser for the libel reform in the UK.

At a book signing event in Central London in September 2010, Ross stated that as a youngster he went to school in Leyton (Leyton Senior High School) and supports Leyton Orient F.C.

On 6 June 2011, it was announced that Ross' beloved pug Mr Pickle had been killed in an accident on board a train while Ross was filming a new travelogue show for ITV. Mr Pickle was well known to both viewers and listeners of Ross' TV and radio shows.

Career

Child actor

Following the acting lead of his mother, who appeared as an extra on television shows such as ''East Enders'', Ross appeared in television ads as a child actor. His first, for the breakfast cereal Kellogg's Rice Krispies, gave him his television debut in 1970, when he was 10 years old. He also appeared in an ad for the laundry detergent Persil.

Early career

Ross began his adult career as a researcher on the Channel 4 show ''Loose Talk''. After leaving this, he worked on various other shows before beginning another research job on ''Soul Train'', which became ''Solid Soul''. It is believed his first appearance on television was as an extra in the 1981 ''It Ain't Half Hot, Mum'' episode, ''The Last Roll Call''.

Channel X: 1987–95

Whilst on ''Solid Soul'', he met fellow researcher Alan Marke, and the two devised what would prove to be a breakthrough hit for Ross in 1987, ''The Last Resort with Jonathan Ross''.

The pair based their concept on the successful American show ''Late Night with David Letterman'', and formed a new production company called Channel X, to produce a pilot. Ross was not originally slated as the show's host, but with little time to find one Jonathan Ross stepped in and made his television debut on the show in January 1987.

While the series was initially a co-production with Colin Calendar, ownership transferred to Marke and Ross, meaning that the latter retained a great deal of control as well as being presenter. The show proved popular for both Ross and for Channel 4, making him one of the major personalities on the channel.

A year later, his documentary series ''The Incredibly Strange Film Show'' introduced many to the works of cult filmmakers like Sam Raimi and Jackie Chan.

In 1989, he co-presented the biennial BBC charity telethon ''Comic Relief'', the same year he launched ''One Hour with Jonathan Ross'' a short lived chat show on Channel 4, most notable for the game show segment "Knock down ginger" which introduced comedians such as Vic Reeves, Bob Mortimer, Paul Whitehouse and Charlie Higson to television.

In 1991, he presented the annual ''British Comedy Awards'' on ITV. He has presented the event each year since, but in 2008 announced he would be stepping down from the role following his suspension from the BBC. In 1992 he presented an interview with Madonna about her ''Erotica'' album and ''Sex Book'' promotion.

In 1993, he was the narrator for ''FIA Formula One 1993 Season Review'' video.

Ross has appeared in numerous television entertainment programmes on several channels throughout the 1990s and 2000s. He was a regular panellist on the sports quiz ''They Think It's All Over'', and hosted the panel game ''It's Only TV...But I Like It''. Other projects include the BBC joke-quiz ''Gagtag'', the Channel 4 variety show ''Saturday Zoo'', new-acts showcase ''The Big Big Talent Show'', and the ITV programme ''Fantastic Facts''.

In 1995 he left Channel X, despite its profitable nature. He was quoted in a 1998 article as stating:

Television 1995–2006

In 1995 he presented ''Mondo Rosso'', a programme about old ''cult'' films. He took over presenting of the Film programme, the BBC's long-running cinema review series, in 1999 after Barry Norman left the show. Ross himself has made a number of cameo appearances in films, playing himself in the Spice Girls' film ''Spice World'' (1997) and voicing the character of Doris in the UK version of ''Shrek 2'' (2004). He also played himself in ''Only Fools and Horses'', presenting ''Goldrush'', a fictional television quiz on which the main character, Del, was a contestant. In 2001 he voiced characters in two episodes of the animated comedy series ''Rex the Runt''. In the 30 October episode of ''Film 2006'', Ross also claimed that he had appeared as an extra in the 1981 film 'The Rise and Fall of Idi Amin', as an Israeli soldier raiding Entebbe Airport. He also appeared on the first pilot show for ''Shooting Stars'', acting as a team captain.

BBC Radio: 1999–2010

Ross began presenting a Saturday morning show on BBC Radio 2 in 1999. He has also presented radio shows for BBC Radio 1 and Virgin Radio (having previously worked on Richard Branson's earlier venture, ''Radio Radio''), as well as the now-defunct commercial radio network service ''The Superstation'', where his producer was Chris Evans.

From 23 May 2009, Ross' BBC Radio 2 show was pre-recorded 24 hours before broadcast. This decision was made to make the show more watertight and, according to the press, to make sure any of Ross's off-the-cuff comments might be edited out.

Ross' show on Radio 2 last aired on 17 July 2010 when his contract at the BBC ended.

''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'': 2001–10

On 2 November 2001, Ross began presenting his chat show ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross''.

In 2005, Ross anchored the BBC television coverage of the Live 8 concerts. Later that year he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Birthday Honours for services to broadcasting. He celebrated the news by playing "God Save the Queen" by The Sex Pistols (which was banned by the BBC when released in 1977) on his BBC Radio 2 Saturday morning show. On 21 June 2006 Ross was made a Fellow of University College London, where he studied.

In early 2006, Ross announced that after eight years he was quitting his regular panellist seat on the sport/comedy quiz show ''They Think It's All Over'', stating:

However, after Ross' departure, only two more episodes of the show were made before it was cancelled.

In January 2006 he presented ''Jonathan Ross' Asian Invasion'', broadcast on BBC Four. The three-part documentary followed Ross as he explored the film industry in Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea, interviewing directors and showcasing clips. His interest in Asian culture and his self confessed love for anime and video games led him to making three series of BBC Three show ''Japanorama'', as well as producing another series for the same channel called ''Adam and Joe Go Tokyo'', starring Adam Buxton and Joe Cornish. He produced the latter programme through his own production company Hot Sauce.

In June 2006, a bidding war was sparked between BBC and other broadcasters for Ross' services. Although other broadcasters were unsuccessful in poaching Ross, it is believed that their bids were higher than the BBC during negotiations. ITV, who bid for Ross, poached chat host Michael Parkinson around the same time. Ross became the highest paid television personality in Britain, when a new BBC contract secured his services until 2010, for a reported £18 million (£6 million per year).

On 25 June 2006, he performed at the Children's Party at the Palace for the Queen's 80th birthday. In August 2006, Ross was enlisted to ask the first question since the transition from beta for the Yahoo Answers in UK and Ireland. On 16 March 2007, Ross hosted Comic Relief 2007 alongside Fearne Cotton and Lenny Henry. On 7 July 2007 Ross presented at the Live Earth concert.

Starting on 10 September 2007 he presented the BBC Four series ''Comics Britannia'', about the history of the British comic. This forms the core of a Comics Britannia season, which includes another documentary, ''In Search of Steve Ditko'', by Ross.

In May 2008, Ross won the Sony Gold Award "Music Radio Personality of the Year".

On 3 August 2008, on BBC1, he hosted ''Jonathan Ross Salutes Dad's Army''.

In 2010, Ross took part in ''Channel 4's Comedy Gala'', a benefit show held in aid of Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, filmed live at the O2 Arena in London on 30 March.

On 7 April 2010, Ross' first comic book was published. Turf was written by Jonathan himself and drawn by artist Tommy Lee Edwards. In 2011, Ross wrote an introduction for ''The Steve Ditko Omnibus Vol. 1'', a collection of work by the American comics artist featured in Ross' 2007 documentary.

In one of his last appearances on the show, Ross was bundled on repeatedly by Gary Lineker, Ross Noble, Damon Albarn, Jamie Hewlett & Tinie Tempah, after a performance of Gorillaz' iconic song "Clint Eastwood" & "On Melancholy Hill".

Leaving the BBC (2010)

On 7 January 2010, Ross confirmed that he would leave the BBC in July 2010, having decided not to renegotiate his contract. This would see him leave all his regular BBC roles, namely his Friday night chat show, Radio 2 show and a film review programme, although he would be continuing with some specials, such as Comic Relief and the BAFTA Awards.

Explaining the decision, Ross said:

Although I have had a wonderful time working for the BBC, and am very proud of the shows I have made while there, over the last two weeks I have decided not to re-negotiate when my current contract comes to an end. While there, I have worked with some of the nicest and most talented people in the industry and had the opportunity to interview some of the biggest stars in the world, and am grateful to the BBC for such a marvellous experience. I would like to make it perfectly clear that no negotiations ever took place and that my decision is not financially motivated

The decision came a day after it was announced that Graham Norton had signed a two year deal with the BBC, and the BBC's media correspondent Torin Douglas speculated Norton would be a ready-made replacement for Ross's chat show role, while Mark Kermode of BBC Radio 5 Live was a potential successor in the film review role, but that "replacing Ross on radio will be harder". Ross last appeared on the film programme in Episode 10 of ''Film 2010 with Jonathan Ross'' aired on 17 March 2010. After Kermode publicly ruled himself out on 26 March, Claudia Winkleman was announced 30 March 2010 as his replacement as host of ''the Film programme'', who was to host Film 2010 from September 2010.

Ross's final ''Friday Night'' chat show episode aired on 16 July 2010, with David Beckham, Jackie Chan, Mickey Rourke and Roxy Music as guests. Ross ended the show with an affectionate tribute to his guests and to the audience, while mentioning that he had promised his friend Morrissey that he would remain composed and "wouldn't cry". His final Radio 2 show was broadcast the following day. Patrick Kielty initially took over Ross' Radio 2 slot from 24 July 2010 after which Graham Norton took over permanently.

2010 onwards (ITV and Cinemoi)

On 14 December 2010, Jonathan Ross announced his creative partnership with CineMoi, the UK's first and only independent French film channel. His deal with the company gives him a multi-faceted role as presenter, producer, creative director and shareholder in the company. A life long cinephile Ross has a unique perspective on French film and hopes to encourage 'first-timers' to explore a world of film that differs slightly from that of the regular Hollywood fare.

On 19 December 2010, Ross presented a three hour Channel 4 list show, ''100 Greatest Toys'', with the broadcaster describing Ross as a "huge toy enthusiast with a private collection that would rival any museum's."

In 2011, he presented ''Penn & Teller: Fool Us'' on ITV, a collaboration with magicians Penn & Teller.

Ross's new chat show ''The Jonathan Ross Show'' began on 3 September 2011 on ITV1, drawing an audience of 4.3m viewers, compared to the 4.6m for his finale on the BBC show. The first series will run for thirteen weeks. Speaking about the new show, Ross said: "I am thrilled and excited that after a short break I will be rolling up my sleeves and creating a brand new show for ITV1."

Controversies

BBC contract

In April 2006, Ross, along with other BBC personalities, had details of his fees leaked to the tabloid press. It was claimed at the time, by a then unidentified BBC mole, that Ross earned £530,000 (equivalent to £10,000 per show) per year for hosting his Radio 2 show. While refusing to comment specifically on the leak in line with the BBC policy on the matter, Ross did hint during his radio show that the figure was exaggerated; in addition to this, any pay highlighted as being 'his' would actually be split between himself and his producer/co-presenter on the show, Andy Davies.

David Cameron interview

In June 2006, when Conservative Party leader David Cameron appeared on ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'', Ross began a line of questioning relating to Conservative ex-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, culminating in the question "Did you or did you not have a wank thinking of Margaret Thatcher?". Ross was defended by the BBC publicly, but repeat showings of the interview have been banned.

Heather Mills comment

In 2006, Ross was criticised when he made a joke against Heather Mills, soon after she and Paul McCartney announced they were to divorce. He branded Mills, who only has one leg, a "fucking liar" and that he "wouldn't be surprised if we found out she's actually got two legs".

"1,000 journalists" comment

On 5 December 2007, Ross joked at the ''British Comedy Awards'' that his salary meant that he was "apparently worth 1,000 BBC journalists". His quip came shortly after the BBC had announced plans for more than 2,000 jobs cuts, and was condemned as "obscene" by the general secretary of the National Union of Journalists. Ross has denied this saying that he was commenting on a piece that was written in a newspaper about his salary being that of 1,000 journalists:

"You know where that came from? The newspapers. After the fee was announced, they said, 'The BBC says he's worth 1,000 journalists', so on the Comedy Awards I made a joke that began, 'Apparently I'm worth 1,000 journalists according to the newspapers.' Every time it's quoted, is the word 'apparently' ever used? Which does change the meaning somewhat."

The Russell Brand Show and Andrew Sachs

Following a guest appearance by Ross on ''The Russell Brand Show'' broadcast on 18 October 2008, Ross was suspended for 12 weeks without pay by the BBC on 29 October, after a series of answer phone messages were left for 79-year-old actor Andrew Sachs regarding Sachs' granddaughter Georgina Baillie, by Russell Brand and Ross, which were broadcast on the pre-recorded show. After little initial interest, a media story about the calls generated a high number of complaints. Brand resigned from the BBC, while Ross was suspended without pay. BBC director general Mark Thompson stated that Ross should take the disciplinary action as a "final warning". The BBC was later fined £150,000 by Britain's broadcast regulator for airing the calls.

On 21 November 2008, the BBC Trust said that the phone calls were a "deplorable intrusion with no editorial justification". The trust gave its backing to Ross's 12 week suspension but recommended that no further action be taken against him. He returned to work in January, and the first episode of a new series of ''Friday Night With Jonathan Ross'' with guests Tom Cruise, Stephen Fry and Lee Evans, and music from Franz Ferdinand, was broadcast on 23 January 2009.

Gwyneth Paltrow interview

The BBC Trust ruled that Ross’ interview with Gwyneth Paltrow, broadcast on 2 May 2008, breached editorial guidelines. They ruled that bad language in an episode of Ross's pre-recorded BBC1 chat show, ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'', in which the presenter told Hollywood actress Gwyneth Paltrow he "would fuck her" was "gratuitous and unnecessarily offensive". The trust said it disagreed with the judgement made by BBC management that the episode should be broadcast uncensored, adding that the comment was made in an "overly sexual way" and that it had upheld a number of complaints made about the edition of ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross''. The trust reminded BBC staff that "the casual gratuitous use of the most offensive language is not acceptable on the BBC in accordance with the BBC's existing guidelines and practices", adding that "this particularly applies in entertainment programmes".

''Hannah Montana'' comment

On 13 May 2009, Ross was accused of homophobia after a comment he made on his radio show. In which he said,

If your son asks for a ''Hannah Montana'' MP3 player, then you might want to already think about putting him down for adoption in later life, when they settle down with their partner.

An incorrect version of this quote was also circulated, in which Ross was accused of saying:

If your son asks for a Hannah Montana MP3 player, you might want to already think about putting him down for adoption before he brings his … erm … partner home.

Ofcom received 61 complaints following the comment. A representative from the BBC defended Ross saying the comment was made "purely in jest" and that "Jonathan is not homophobic in any sense and never meant for his comments to be taken seriously." On 7 July 2009, Ofcom ruled that Ross did not breach the broadcasting code. They wrote in their opinion that "the comment was clearly presented as a joke intended to make light of the reactions that some parents may have if their child chooses a toy that is very widely recognised to be designed and marketed for the opposite sex" and that the nature of the joke and tone and manner in which it was presented "made clear that it was not intended to be hostile or pejorative towards the gay community in general." Stonewall criticised the ruling; saying "the fact that a comment is light-hearted does not absolve it from perpetuating the stereotypes that lead to homophobic bullying."

Video games

''Fable III''

Year	! Video game	! Role	! Notes
2007	''Halo 3''	UNSC Marine
2010	|	Barry Hatch

Honours and Awards

2006, made a Fellow of University College, London (UCL), into which his alma mater, SSEES, had been absorbed.

2012, Special Recognition award at the National Television Awards.

References

Further reading

''Jonathan Ross: The Biography'', Neil Simpson, John Blake Publishing Ltd (31 July 2007), ISBN 184454432X

''Why Do I Say These Things?'', Jonathan Ross, Bantam Press (16 October 2008), ISBN 0593060822

External links

''The Jonathan Ross Show'' on itv.com

Interactive video talk by Jonathan Ross on Ealing studios for the British Film Institute

Category:1960 births Category:Living people Category:20th-century actors Category:20th-century writers Category:21st-century actors Category:21st-century writers Category:Alumni of Southampton Solent University Category:Alumni of the UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies Category:BAFTA winners (people) Category:English film actors Category:English film critics Category:English radio DJs Category:English television actors Category:English television presenters Category:English television producers Category:English television talk show hosts Category:English television writers Category:English voice actors Category:Friday Night with Jonathan Ross Category:Officers of the Order of the British Empire Category:People from Camden Town Category:People from Leytonstone

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