William Bruce Jenner (born October 28, 1949) is a former U.S. track and field athlete, motivational speaker, socialite and television personality. He won the gold medal for decathlon in the Montreal 1976 Summer Olympics.

Following his Olympic victory and the related recognition, his professional career evolved into being a television celebrity. By 1981 he had starred in several made-for-TV movies and was Erik Estrada's replacement on the top rated TV series CHiPs. Since the 2007 debut of Keeping Up with the Kardashians he has appeared as the step-father to the Kardashian sisters.

Early life[link]

Bruce Jenner is originally from Mount Kisco, New York.^[1] He attended Newtown High School in Newtown, Connecticut,^[1] after spending a year at Sleepy Hollow High School in Sleepy Hollow, New York. Jenner earned a football scholarship and attended Graceland College (now Graceland University) in Iowa, but a knee injury forced him to stop playing football and he switched to the decathlon. He was mentored by Graceland's track coach L. D. Weldon, who was the first to recognize Jenner's potential and encouraged him to pursue the decathlon. Jenner debuted in the decathlon at the Drake Relays in 1970, placing fifth.

Olympic career[link]

Jenner placed third in the decathlon at the 1972 U.S. Olympic trials^[2] and finished in tenth place at the 1972 Munich games.^[3] His success prompted him to devote himself to an intense training regimen,^[4] while also selling insurance outside training hours.^[1] He acknowledged that he was supported and subsidized by his then wife, Chrystie Crownover, who worked as an airline stewardess.^[5] In the era before professionalism was allowed in athletics, this kind of training was unheard of. During that period he spent eight hours a day at the San Jose City College track.^[1][6] Centered around Bert Bonnano, the coach at SJCC, San Jose at the time was a hotbed for training aspiring Olympic athletes, including Jenner, along with Millard Hampton, Andre Phillips, John Powell, Mac Wilkins, Al Feuerbach and others.^[6][7] In 1974 and 1976, Jenner was the American champion in the event.^[8]

At the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, he won the gold medal in the Decathlon, setting the world record of 8,618 points. The world record was broken by just 4 points by Daley Thompson in 1980. In 1985, the IAAF Decathlon scoring table was changed, so Jenner's winning score has been reevaluated against that table and reported as 8634 for comparative purposes. As of 2011, Jenner is #25 on the world all-time list and the #9 American.^[9]

As a result of winning the Olympic decathlon, Jenner was a national hero. He was the 1976 recipient of the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States. Jenner was also the Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year in 1976. He was inducted into the Olympic Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame, the Connecticut Sports Hall of Fame in 1994 and the United States National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1980.

San Jose City College hosted the "Bruce Jenner Invitational" (frequently shortened to "Jenner") as a televised, annual stop on the United States Track and Field Circuit (a meet equivalent in stature to the Prefontaine Classic) for the better part of two decades. Records were set at the meet, with Jenner frequently hosting the telecasts.^[10]

Celebrity[link]

In the 1970s, Olympic athletes were considered amateur and were absolutely not allowed to seek or accept payment for their position as a sports celebrity. In 1972, three major Olympic titles (basketball, 100 meters and decathlon), were won by Soviet athletes during the Cold War. Winning 'back' the decathlon title made Jenner an American hero. After his Olympic success, Jenner set out to cash in on his celebrity status (requiring him to give up any future Olympic appearances). He left his vaulting poles in the stadium, having no intention of ever using them again. Quickly after the Games, Jenner appeared on the front of Wheaties brand breakfast cereal as a "Wheaties champion." Of several hundred athletes who have been so featured, Jenner is one of seven Wheaties "spokesmen." He was invited to the White House to meet with President Gerald R. Ford, who autographed a political cartoon that featured the pair.

On November 22, 1977, Bruce went to San Francisco to refute charges filed by the district attorney that General Mills, the makers of Wheaties, had been engaged in false advertising. Jenner contended that he likes the cereal and consumes this breakfast cereal two to three times per week. Two days later District Attorney Joseph Freitas withdrew the false advertising suit against General Mills for its advertising campaign featuring Mr. Jenner, saying that it was "a case of overzealousness" on the part of his staff.^[11]

In 1977, the Kansas City Kings selected Jenner with the 139th pick of the NBA Draft. Jenner had not actually played basketball since high school; the closest he came to a roundball career came when he sank a basket in the "YMCA" sequence of the film Can't Stop The Music in 1980. The movie was a disco-era comedy about the singing group The Village People. It gave Jenner a starring role, but the movie was a flop. Jenner was nominated for the 1980 Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor for his performance That was the end of his theatrical movie career until he appeared in 2011's Jack and Jill in a scene with Al Pacino as an actor in a play. Adam Sandler won the Golden Raspberry as both Worst Actor and Worst Actress in that film. Both Can't Stop The Music and Jack and Jill won the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture, making Jenner two for two in his movie career.

Jenner decided to try for a television career, and had some success, starring in the TV movies The Golden Moment: An Olympic Love Story (1980) and Grambling's White Tiger (1981). In 1981–82 he became a semi-regular on the police series CHiPs, guest-starring as Officer Steve McLeish (substituting for star Erik Estrada, who was lodged in a contract dispute with NBC and MGM), for a half-dozen episodes.

His "hero shot," the finish of the final event of 1976 Olympic decathlon, was parodied by John Belushi on Saturday Night Live endorsing "Little Chocolate Donuts" instead of Wheaties.^[12]

Jenner also appears in the video games Olympic Decathlon (1981) and Bruce Jenner's World Class Decathlon (1996).

Auto racing career[link]

Jenner was a successful race driver in the IMSA Camel GT series (International Motor Sports Association) in the 1980s. His first victory came in the 1986 12 hours of Sebring in the IMSA GTO class driving the 7-Eleven Roush Racing Ford Mustang with co-driver Scott Pruett, not only winning their class but finishing 4th overall in the 12-hour endurance race. His most successful year was also 1986 finishing second in the championship to Pruett.

Further TV appearances[link]

Jenner has appeared as himself on a variety of game shows and reality TV programs. He starred with Grits Gresham in an episode of ABC's The American Sportsman. The program featured Gresham hunting, fishing, or shooting in exotic spots with celebrities. In the early 1990s he was the host of an infomercial for a stair-climbing exercise machine called the Stair Climber Plus.

In January 2002, Jenner participated in an episode of the American series of The Weakest Link featuring Olympic athletes. In February and March 2003, he was part of the cast of the American series of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, and made a cameo on a season three episode of The Apprentice that originally aired in May 2005. He was partnered with Tai Babilonia for Skating with Celebrities that aired January–March 2006 (they were eliminated during the fifth of seven episodes). Jenner has additionally served as a guest judge on Pet Star on Animal Planet, and appeared on NBC's game show Identity as well as Celebrity Family Feud with his family.

Additional television and talk show appearances by Jenner include Nickelodeon's made-for-TV film Gym Teacher: The Movie as well as episodes of Murder She Wrote, Family Guy, Pet Star on Animal Planet, Identity, Lingo Olympic Winners episode ^[13] and Celebrity Family Feud as well as such talk shows as Hannity and The Bonnie Hunt Show.^[14]

Since late 2007,^[15] Jenner has starred in the E! reality series Keeping Up with the Kardashians, along with wife Kris Jenner, stepdaughters Kourtney, Kim, Khloé, and stepson Rob (from Kris' marriage to attorney Robert Kardashian), and daughters Kylie and Kendall. Season two had an average of 1.6 million viewers, an increase over the previous cycle.^[16] Jenner has also made cameo appearances on the show's spinoff series.

Personal life[link]

His company, Bruce Jenner Aviation, sells aircraft supplies to executives and corporations.^[17] Jenner was the business development vice president for a staffing industry software application known as JennerNet, which was based on Lotus Domino technology.

Jenner was the marketing name for Bruce Jenner's Westwood Centers for Nautilus & Aerobics in the early '80s. Jenner had no ownership in the centers. The fitness centers were owned by David Cirotto and Chin Yi. The centers were sold to Super Fitness Centers, owned by martial arts expert Paul Snow. Chin Yi later became the founder of LA Fitness. Jenner also was diagnosed with dyslexia as a young child—he appeared on the sitcom Silver Spoons where he revealed his condition to the Stratton family—and after retiring from sports, built a successful career as a motivational speaker and television sports commentator (making an appearance on the series Learn To Read).

Jenner has a younger sister named Lisa. His younger brother, Burt was killed in an auto accident in Canton, Connecticut shortly after Jenner's success in the Olympics,^[18] so Jenner named his first son after his deceased brother. In his first marriage to Chrystie Crownover (December 15, 1972 – January 2, 1980) he had two children, first son Burton William "Burt" Jenner (b. September 6, 1978) and daughter Cassandra Lynn "Casey" Jenner (b. June 10, 1980).^[19][20] His second marriage was from 1981–1985 to Linda Thompson. Their two sons together Brandon Thompson (b. June 4, 1981) and Brody (born August 21, 1983) appeared in their own reality show The Princes of Malibu; which also featured them living with their stepfather David Foster. Brody was also on the reality show The Hills.

Jenner is married to Kris (née Houghton). After dating for five months, they married on April 21, 1991.^[21] Kris was previously married to lawyer Robert Kardashian. Jenner has two daughters with Kris, Kendall Nicole (b. November 3, 1995) and Kylie Kristen (b. August 10, 1997). He is also the stepfather of Kim, Khloé, Kourtney and Rob Kardashian. In 2009 Jenner became a grandfather to Francesca, his daughter Casey's first child. He became a step-grandfather for the first time on December 14, 2009, when his stepdaughter Kourtney gave birth to her first child, Mason.

See also[link]

• List of athletes on Wheaties boxes

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official site
• Bruce Jenner at the Internet Movie Database
• IAAF profile for Bruce Jenner
• Wheaties spokesperson
• Jenner Communications
• The short film Ten for Gold (1976) is available for free download at the Internet Archive [more]
• Bruce Jenner's U.S. Olympic Team bio
• USATF Hall of Fame bio

Records
Preceded by Mykola Avilov	Men's decathlon world record holder August 10, 1975 – May 15, 1980	Succeeded by Daley Thompson

Kim Kardashian
Kim Kardashian Fragrance Launch, Glendale, CA on February 22, 2011
Born	Kimberly Noel Kardashian (1980-10-21) October 21, 1980 (age 31) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Nationality	American
Ethnicity	Armenian, Dutch, Scottish
Occupation	Businesswoman, socialite, television personality, model, actress
Years active	2007–present
Height	5 ft 2.5 in (1.59 m)
Television	Keeping Up with the Kardashians Kourtney and Kim Take New York
Spouse	Damon Thomas (m. 2000–2004) «start: (2000)–end+1: (2005)»"Marriage: Damon Thomas to Kim Kardashian" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Kim_Kardashian) Kris Humphries (m. 2011) «start: (2011)»"Marriage: Kris Humphries to Kim Kardashian" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Kim_Kardashian) (separated)
Parents	Robert Kardashian (father) Kris Jenner (mother) Bruce Jenner (stepfather)
Relatives	Kourtney Kardashian (sister) Khloé Kardashian (sister) Robert Kardashian Jr. (brother) Kylie Jenner (half-sister) Kendall Jenner (half-sister)
Website
kimkardashian.celebuzz.com

Kimberly Noel "Kim" Kardashian^[1] (born October 21, 1980^[2]) is an American socialite, celebutante, television personality, model, actress and businesswoman. She is known for starring in Keeping Up with the Kardashians, the E! reality series that she shares with her family, and its spin-offs including Kourtney and Kim Take New York.^[3]

Prior to the development of her career as a reality television star, Kardashian gained notoriety as the subject of a sex tape that subsequently resulted in a court awarding her $5 million. She has been involved in the production of several lines of clothing and fragrances. In 2010, she was the highest earning reality star, with estimated earnings of $6 million, and is one of the most highly documented and followed celebrities in the world in popular media.

In August 2011, Kardashian married basketball player Kris Humphries in a widely publicized ceremony. In October 2011, Kardashian filed for divorce, 72 days after the wedding.

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Kardashian was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of attorney Robert Kardashian and his wife Kris Kardashian (née Houghton). Her father was a third generation Armenian American, and her mother is of Dutch and Scottish descent.^[4] Kardashian has two sisters, Kourtney and Khloé, and one brother, Robert. She has stepbrothers Burton Jenner, Brandon Jenner, and reality TV star Brody Jenner, step-sister Casey Jenner, and half-sisters Kendall Jenner and Kylie Jenner.^[5] She attended Marymount High School.^[6]

In 2000, Kardashian married music producer Damon Thomas; their relationship ended in divorce in 2004. Subsequently she dated R&B singer Ray J, NFL star Reggie Bush^[7] and Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Miles Austin.^[8] She also dated model Gabriel Aubry.^[9]

2003–07: Controversy and reality television[link]

In February 2007, a home sex video that she made with singer Ray J in 2003^[10] was leaked.^[11] Vivid Entertainment bought the rights for $1 million and released the film as Kim Kardashian: Superstar on February 21.^[11] Kardashian sued Vivid for ownership of the tape. In late April 2007, Kardashian dropped the suit and settled with Vivid Entertainment for $5 million.^[12]

Kardashian was a friend of Paris Hilton, who introduced her to the socialite scene.^[13] Her first acting role was in the television series Beyond the Break. In October 2007, along with her two sisters, mother, brother, half-sisters, and stepfather she starred in the E! television series, Keeping Up with the Kardashians. As of October 2011, the series has aired 69 episodes over six seasons.

2007–2010: Modeling and retail[link]

Kardashian in Santa Monica, California on May 13, 2009 at Maxim's 10th Annual Hot 100 Celebration

Kardashian co-owns a clothing boutique called D-A-S-H with her sisters Kourtney and Khloé.^[14] In December 2007, Kardashian posed nude for Playboy.^[15] In February 2008, Bongo Jeans announced that she would be their face model.^[16] She has also modeled for Carl's Jr., Sugar Factory lollipops, and various other products.^[17][18]

Kardashian starred in the 2008 disaster film spoof Disaster Movie as Lisa,^[19] and appeared in the How I Met Your Mother episode "Benefits". She also appeared on the Season 3 premiere of the series 90210 with her sisters Khloé and Kourtney; they all played themselves.^[20] Kardashian was a guest hostess of WrestleMania XXIV and appeared as a guest judge during Cycle 13 of America's Next Top Model.^[21] On December 16, 2009, Kardashian made a guest star appearance on CBS's CSI: NY with Vanessa Minnillo.^[22][19] In 2009 she had a cameo as club bouncer in the 2009 porn film spoof Deep in the Valley^[19]

Kardashian was one of 13 participants on the seventh season of Dancing with the Stars.^[23][19] She was partnered with Mark Ballas and was the third contestant voted off the show on September 30, 2008, finishing in 11th place overall.^[24] Sanford Siegal, the creator of the Cookie Diet, sued Kardashian, claiming she defamed him on Twitter. According to Siegal, Kardashian tweeted in October 2009 that he was "falsely promoting" that she was on the cookie diet. Siegal filed a claim in a Florida state court claiming the statements are false and defamatory. He also alleges that Kardashian was on QuickTrim's payroll when she posted the tweet. Kardashian's tweet appears to stem from an article on CookieDiet.com, that named Kardashian as one of many celebrities who saw positive results on the diet. Kardashian sent a cease-and-desist order to Siegal, demanding the link be removed.^[25]

Kardashian released her own fragrance product in 2010.^[26] In March 2009, Kardashian launched an endorsement with ShoeDazzle shopping,^[27] of which she is the co-founder and chief fashion stylist.^[17] The following month on April 9, 2009, Kardashian released a workout DVD series, Fit In Your Jeans By Friday, with trainers Jennifer Galardi and Patrick Goudeau.^[14][28] In September 2009, Fusion Beauty and Seven Bar Foundation launched "Kiss Away Poverty", with Kardashian as the face of the campaign. For every LipFusion lipgloss sold, $1 went to the Foundation to fund women entrepreneurs in the US.^[29]

She has also been featured in numerous international editions of FHM, including the cover of the April 2010 Australian edition and the UK March 2011 edition.^[30] Famous Cupcakes, a Los Angeles bakery, created a vanilla cupcake mix for Kardashian. The cupcake flavor is called Va-Va-Va-Nilla.^[17] Kardashian has also created jewelry along with her sisters, Khloé and Kourtney. They produced a collection for Virgins, Saints, and Angels in 2010.^[31]

Again with her sisters, Kardashian has released various clothing lines. One called K-Dash was to be sold on QVC in 2010,^[32] and in the same year they produced a range for Bebe.^[33][34][35] As of August 2011 they are creating another for Sears, called the Kardashian Kollection.^[36] In addition, Kardashian and her sisters created a sunless tanner called Kardashian Glamour Tan in 2010.^[37] On July 1, 2010, the New York City branch of Madame Tussauds revealed a wax figure of Kardashian.^[38]

2010–present: Marriage and other ventures[link]

Kardashian is the producer of The Spin Crowd, a reality television show about Command PR, a New York City public relations firm, run by Jonathan Cheban and Simon Huck. The show follows them as they settle into their new offices in Los Angeles. Kardashian is friends with both, specifically Cheban, and frequently appears on her reality shows. She also appeared at the 2010 MTV VMAs on September 12, 2010.^[39] She also appeared in and was the subject and judge of a task on the ninth episode of Season 10 of The Apprentice in 2010; the two teams had to create an in-store display for her new perfume line, to be sold at Perfumania.^[40][41] Kim, Kourtney, and Khloé wrote an autobiography entitled Kardashian Konfidential, which was released in stores on November 23, 2010.^[42]

Kardashian at the Style Your Slim event.

In April 2010, Kardashian sparked controversy over the way she held a cat for a photograph.^[43] The same year, animal rights organization PETA criticized Kardashian for repeatedly wearing fur coats, and named her as one of the five worst people or organizations of 2010 when it came to animal welfare.^[44] In June 2010, The Guardian commented on her ability to attract payments of up to US$10,000 from sponsors for each tweet that she broadcasts.^[45]

In December 2010, Kardashian filmed a music video for a song titled "Jam (Turn It Up)". The video was directed by Hype Williams; Kanye West makes a cameo in the video.^[46] Kardashian premiered the song during a New Year's Eve party at TAO Las Vegas on December 31, 2010.^[47] The song was produced by The-Dream and Tricky Stewart. When asked if an album is in the works, Kardashian replied: "There's no album in the works or anything – just one song we did for Kourtney and Kim Take New York, and a video Hype Williams directed, half of the proceeds we're giving away to a cancer foundation, because The-Dream's and one of my parents passed away from cancer. It's just all having fun – with a good cause".^[48] Jim Farber, writing for the Daily News, called the song a "dead-brained piece of generic dance music, without a single distinguishing feature," and suggested that the single made Kardashian the "worst singer in the reality TV universe."^[49]

Kardashian's 2010 earnings were the highest among Hollywood-based reality stars, being estimated at $6 million.^[50]

Kardashian has supported the recognition of the Armenian Genocide on numerous occasions and has encouraged Barack Obama and the United States government to consider its acknowledgement. On April 21, 2011, a few days before the 96th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, she wrote about the issue on her blog in an effort to put it under spotlight and also sent a tweet to her fans urging its recognition.^[51]

Kardashian began dating NBA player Kris Humphries of the New Jersey Nets in October 2010. They became engaged in May 2011,^[52] and married on August 20, 2011 in Montecito, California.^[53] A two-part TV special showing the preparations and the wedding itself aired on E! in early October 2011, amidst what the Washington Post called a "media blitz" related to the wedding.^[54] After 72 days of marriage, Kardashian filed for divorce from Humphries on October 31, 2011, citing irreconcilable differences.^[55] After filing for the divorce, Kardashian asked the court to order Humphries to pay his own legal expenses.^[56] On December 1, 2011, Humphries filed his response to Kardashian's petition, requesting an annulment on the grounds of fraud or if the court will not grant an annulment, a decree of legal separation rather than Kardashian's requested divorce.^[57]

Several news outlets have surmised that Kardashian's marriage to Humphries was merely a publicity stunt to promote the Kardashian family's brand and their subsequent television ventures.^[58] Her former publicist has also claimed that her short-lived wedding was indeed staged and a ploy to generate money. Kardashian has since filed suit against him, saying his claims were untrue.^[59] A widely circulated petition asking to remove all Kardashian related programing off the air has been followed since their split.^[60] In March 2012, Kardashian and her sisters Kourtney and Khloe were named in a $5 million class action lawsuit against QuickTrim, the weight loss supplement they endorse.^[61]

Filmography[link]

References[link]

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External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kim Kardashian

• Official website
• Kim Kardashian at the Internet Movie Database
• Kardashians join forces with Australian designer at Mediasearch