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Kevin Wu (KevJumba) 吳凱文
KevJumba
Chinese name	吳凱文 (Traditional)
Chinese name	吴凯文 (Simplified)
Pinyin	Wú Kǎi-Wén (Mandarin)
Jyutping	Ng Hoi-Man (Cantonese)
Pe̍h-ōe-jī	Gô͘ Khái-bûn (Hokkien)
Birth name	Kevin Wu
Ethnicity	Chinese[1][2] Taiwanese[3]
Origin	Houston, Texas, U.S.
Born	(1990-06-12) June 12, 1990 (age 22) Houston, Texas, U.S.
Other name(s)	KevJumba
Occupation	YouTube celebrity
Years active	2007 - Present
Parents	Michael Wu[4]
Influences	Conan O'Brien, Lil' Wayne

Kevin Wu (traditional Chinese: 吳凱文; simplified Chinese: 吴凯文; pinyin: Wú Kǎi-Wén);^[5](born June 12, 1990)^[6] is a Chinese American and Taiwanese American comedian and YouTube celebrity who is best known by his YouTube username of KevJumba. As of December 2011, he is YouTube's seventh most subscribed comedian and tenth most subscribed user overall.^[7] He is currently on an indefinite leave from the University of California, Davis; however, prior his departure, he was a film major. The San Francisco Chronicle's Jeff Yang has noted that Wu is not a comedian in the conventional sense but that by "just talking [he] is, well, pretty hilarious" due to his deadpan vocal delivery, animated facial expressions and tendency toward unexpected digressions.^[8] Wu previously appeared on The CW Television Network's short-lived Online Nation and co-starred with Jessica Lee Rose and Philip DeFranco in Hooking Up from HBOLabs (the online arm of HBO) in 2008.^[9] In 2010, Wu and his father, Michael, competed as a team on the 17th season of The Amazing Race, placing seventh out of eleven teams.^[10]

Kevin's YouTube videos[link]

Kevin Wu is known for posting humorous videos on YouTube. When Wu's "I Have to Deal With Stereotypes" video^[11] was featured on YouTube's home page, his number of viewers began to increase.^[12] In this video, Wu talks about stereotypes he must deal with as an Asian. He tries to disprove his cheapness by bragging about the recent purchase of a "brand new, top-of-the-line, TI-84 calculator". He acknowledges that this might make him nerdy but dismisses this stereotype too as he does not "make all A's...in school today [he] made a B+." He is then greeted by a voice that was supposed to be his mother calling him a loser and accusing him of shaming their family. Wu goes on to say he can prove the lack of his social life with the constant ringing of his cell phone. At this point, his phone indeed rings, he answers it, and the voice on the other end says, "Hey, why did you tell me to call you?"^[13] Wu has collaborated with fellow YouTube comedian Christine Gambito (HappySlip), making five videos with her. Kevin Wu graduated from Clements High School in Sugar Land, Texas, in 2008.^[14]

Following his video, "Butthash Hero", Wu introduced his father, PapaJumba, onto his YouTube channel, and his father made several appearances in candid video clips taken by his son. Responding to Wu's father's growing popularity amongst viewers, his father made a debut in "I Love My Dad", and has been featured alongside his son many times since. As of June 2010, Wu had more than 2,000,000 subscribers and more than 25 million views of his channel.^[15] His combined video views total over 91.9 million. On February 26, 2008, the Los Angeles Times compared the web series Quarterlife's viewership to Wu's. At the time Wu was a "semi-well known YouTube blogger" and had received 450,000 views for a video describing how he broke his shin. Quarterlife, which had been picked up by NBC, had received only 100,000 views on MySpace and 50,000 views on YouTube.^[16]

By May 29, 2008, Wu had become one of three East Asians under the age of 21 to be in the top five of YouTube's all-time most subscribed users with 187,000 subscribers and more than 5.9 million views.^[17] By June 5, 2008, he had become the number one subscribed comedian on YouTube, and third most subscribed uploader overall.^[8] Wu's videos have received replies from Ella Koon,^[18] Jessica Alba, and Baron Davis.^[19] In 2008, Davis created a "longest stare" contest for ibeatyou.com, a site that he and Alba's husband Cash Warren co-founded. The contest began with Davis challenging Wu, who then challenged Alba, who responded to the challenge.^[20][21][22] On September 22, 2011, Wu had gained more than 2,000,000 subscribers he is the 11th most subscribed YouTube.

Funemployed[link]

Kevin is in a group called YTF. The web series Funemployed, launched in the summer of 2010, stars Kevin Wu and Wong Fu Productions Philip Wang and includes other notable YouTube stars such as Nigahiga, David Choi and Kina Grannis. With so many fans of Wong Fu Productions, and Kevjumba, this series quickly took off and became a hit, reaching 500,000 viewers in only a few weeks. The series focuses on two good friends named Kyle (Kevin Wu) and Jason (Philip Wang), and how they are dealing with unemployment after Jason is laid off at work. Kyle is characterized as the typical laid back guy, who comes off as somewhat of a slacker, while Jason is characterized as the more studious hard worker of the two. The two eventually come up with an idea of how to make money, believing that YouTube is the key, an allusion to Wu's and Wang's real life success with YouTube videos. "Funemployed" eventually came to an end on July 27, 2010, with their last episode entitled, "Gave it a Shot". There were a total of eleven episodes and 30 sitcoms.^[23]

Other work[link]

In 2007, Kevin Wu appeared on the The CW Television Network's short-lived Online Nation. Online Nation compiled an hour of web clips, broadcast them during primetime, lasting four episodes. Wu, along with other popular YouTube personalities, is also paid to broadcast a streaming show on BlogTV. He has been a member of BlogTV since March 29, 2008, and as of November 2, 2008, he had produced 70 live and 23 recorded shows with over 300,000 viewers of the live show and 100,000 viewers of the recorded shows.^{[citation needed]}

As of October 2008, Wu starred with Jessica Rose and Phillip DeFranco in Hooking Up from HBOLabs (the online arm of HBO), a scripted 10-episode web-based series. Hooking Up is set at a fictional university where the students spend most of their time emailing and twittering, but still manage to miscommunicate. It is his first work on a scripted production.^[24] Guest appearances on Hooking Up will be made by Kevin Nalty, Michael Buckley, and other internet celebrities.^[25] The entire cast of Hooking Up is composed of YouTube video bloggers in the hope of attracting a young, internet knowledgeable audience.^[26] By the show's second day on YouTube, it had received more than 450,000 views. According to NewTeeVee.com, an evolving consensus is that for an online video to be a hit, somewhere between 100,000 and one million views are needed, giving Hooking Up a strong start.^[27] Maria Russo of the Los Angeles Times felt that Wu was better looking than star DeFranco and wondered why Wu plays the "tired role of the East Asian friend who helps the white guy get the chicks,"^[27] while Bobbie Johnson of The Guardian said that many web surfers had "scoffed at what they see as a cynical attempt to cash in."^[28] On October 2, 2011, Kevin hosted Flicks on Cartoon Network during an airing of Around the World in 80 Days. Until further notice he will be the host as he has also hosted during The Mummy Returns, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Open Season 3 and more. Kevin has also announced he will be starring in the independent film "Rock Jocks" with Justin Chon, Felicia Day, and Gerry Bedknob, which will be release in 2012.

In 2011, Kevin began performing with YTF – Yesterday, Today, Forever along with other YouTube personalities.^[29] The group performed their first concert on October 9, 2011 in Honolulu, Hawaii.^[30]

On his JumbaFund videos, Kevin went to Lenana in Kenya to meet with kids in a campaign by The Supply. In 2011, a school in Kenya was built called the Jumba Lenana Academy.^[31][32]

In 2011, Kevin was a "sponsor" of Brian Wong of the NASCAR Nationwide Series, who raced a car with Kevin's paint job at the Casino Arizona 125.^[33]

[edit] The Amazing Race

In May and June 2010, Kevin participated with his father in filming for the 17th season of The Amazing Race, an American reality television game show. Upon this announcement, it was also the first time his dad's name, Michael, was revealed, which was kept anonymous since his debut. Kevin officially announced his participation on Facebook on September 1, and on YouTube a week later.^[34] The season premiered on September 26, 2010. Michael and Kevin's best placement was a third place finish in Leg 2 and Leg 6. Their worst placement was a last place finish (9th) in Leg 3, a non-elimination leg. They ended up in seventh place and were eliminated in Leg 7 after being issued two 30-minute penalties for using a cab to travel between tasks on the leg when they were instructed to walk; another team had also issued a similar penalty and checked in after them, but only had one half-hour penalty, resulting in Kevin and Michael's elimination.

Cartoon Network[link]

Kevin Wu is currently appearing in the pre-commercials on Cartoon Network's Flicks. He is the second internet sensation to appear in Cartoon Network, with the other being Annoying Orange. Fred Figglehorn and Ryan Higa's have appeared on CN's rival channel, Nickelodeon.

YouTube chronology[link]

KevJumba channel[link]

Source:^[35]

JumbaFund channel[link]

Source:^[36]

Mighty Fresh Produced Videos[link]

Source:^[37]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• KevJumba at YouTube

Nick Swisher
Swisher during a game for the Yankees
New York Yankees – No. 33
Outfielder / First baseman
Born: (1980-11-25) November 25, 1980 (age 31) Columbus, Ohio
Bats: Switch	Throws: Left
MLB debut
September 3, 2004 for the Oakland Athletics
Career statistics (through May 6, 2012)
Batting average	.254
Home runs	192
Runs batted in	620
Hits	963
Teams
Oakland Athletics (2004–2007) Chicago White Sox (2008) New York Yankees (2009–present)
Career highlights and awards
All-Star (2010) World Series champion (2009)

Nicholas Thompson "Nick" Swisher (born November 25, 1980) is an outfielder and first baseman for the New York Yankees. Swisher is a switch hitter who throws left-handed. He has played for the Oakland Athletics (2004–2007), Chicago White Sox (2008), and New York Yankees (2009–present). With the Yankees, he won the 2009 World Series and was an All-Star in 2010.

Swisher is the son of former MLB catcher Steve Swisher, who played for various National League baseball clubs in the 1970s and 1980s. Swisher was born in Columbus, Ohio, but grew up in Parkersburg, West Virginia. Prior to his professional career, Swisher played college baseball for the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Early life and career[link]

Nick Swisher is the son of Steve Swisher, a former major leaguer of German descent, and an Italian mother Rebecca. Swisher's parents divorced when he was 11 years old. He then went to live with his grandparents, who cared for him throughout his teenage years. He has said many times that his grandmother was the closest person to him and because of her, he has a great life and career in baseball. Swisher honors his grandparents, who have passed away, by looking up at the sky before every single pitch.

Swisher was a two-sport star at Parkersburg High School in football and baseball as well as a letterman in basketball. As a strong safety he was recruited by several Division I-A colleges, including Notre Dame,^[1] but chose to pursue baseball. Because he was not selected in the Major League Baseball Draft out of high school, he went to college and signed with Ohio State University, as that school and Ohio University were the only colleges to recruit him for baseball.^[2] He was named Big 10 Freshman of the Year in 2000, after hitting .299 with 10 home runs and 48 RBIs. He was an All-Big 10 selection at first base as a sophomore in 2001, after hitting .322 with 56 RBIs and a league-leading 15 home runs. He earned All-Big 10 honors in the outfield in 2002, after batting .348 with 10 home runs and 52 RBIs. Swisher was selected by the A's with the Boston Red Sox first round pick in 2002 as compensation for the loss of free agent Johnny Damon.

Swisher, and the A's 2002 draft, are heavily featured in Michael Lewis' 2003 book Moneyball. In a book whose key theme is the gulf between orthodox baseball thinking and the new sabermetric influenced system being implemented by Billy Beane, Swisher was notable as one of the few examples of a player who traditional scouts and Beane could agree upon.^[3]

Professional baseball career[link]

Minor league career[link]

Prior to moving up to the big leagues, Swisher played for the Visalia Oaks, Vancouver Canadians, Modesto A's, Midland RockHounds, and Sacramento River Cats--all Oakland farm teams.^[4] In 2005, he led the minor leagues with 102 walks.^[5]

Major league career[link]

Oakland Athletics (2004–2007)[link]

Swisher batting for the Athletics in 2005.

Swisher played in only 20 games during the 2004 season, and consequently was still considered to be in his rookie year in 2005. He finished 6th in the American League Rookie of the Year voting. He hit 21 home runs and drove in 74 for Oakland in 131 games. His teammates Huston Street and Joe Blanton finished 1st and 7th, respectively.^[6]

Following his rookie season, Swisher improved in most offensive categories. During the 2006 regular season, Swisher compiled a .254 batting average with 35 home runs. He also improved his on base percentage by raising it to .372, as well as boosting his slugging percentage to .493. Swisher finished second for the team in on base plus slugging behind the veteran slugger Frank Thomas. Swisher spent about half of his playing time in left field, and the other half at first base. The Oakland A's lacked both Dan Johnson and Erubiel Durazo for a large portion of the 2006 season, leaving room for Swisher to move back into his preferred position on a temporary basis.^[7] During the season, Swisher had a column for ESPN.com about his various baseball experiences called Sophomore Year. This included multiple articles that pertained to his early MLB playing experiences, as well as the MLB Draft of 2002.^[8]

Swisher made his postseason debut as the Oakland A's took on the Minnesota Twins in the 2006 ALDS. Swisher got 3 hits and an RBI during the series as the Oakland A's performed a 3-game sweep against the Twins to advance to the ALCS. During the 2006 ALCS vs the Detroit Tigers, Swisher had a .100 batting average with one hit. The Oakland A's would eventually lose the ALCS to the Tigers in just 4 games.

Swisher has also exemplified a good amount of durability in contrast to his teammates who have spent a large portion of time on the disabled list.

On September 16, 2007, Swisher initiated a brawl when he charged the mound after getting hit by a pitch from Texas Rangers pitcher Vicente Padilla. Earlier in the plate appearance, Padilla (who had hit Swisher the prior year) threw two inside pitches with the apparent intention of hitting Swisher. Both players were ejected following the brawl.

Chicago White Sox (2008)[link]

Swisher as a White Sox player.

Swisher was traded on January 3, 2008 to the Chicago White Sox for minor leaguers Ryan Sweeney, Gio Gonzalez, and Fautino De Los Santos as part of what Athletics general manager Billy Beane termed a "rebuilding effort".^[9] While Swisher quickly established himself as a fan favorite on his new team he struggled offensively, batting just .219 through the season (the lowest batting average in the majors), though he improved his home run total from 22 in 2007 to 24 in 2008.^[10][11] He also led the majors in pitches per plate appearance, with 4.51.^[12] Because of his poor offensive play White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen benched Swisher for most of September, saying publicly that "I have to put the best lineup out there to win the game ... To me, the best lineup right now is without (Swisher)."^[13] Swisher finished the 2008 regular season with a .219 batting average, 24 home runs, and 69 RBI.

Despite his career low stats in the regular season, Swisher was included in the postseason roster for the White Sox. During the 2008 ALDS against the Tampa Bay Rays, Swisher had a hit and 2 walks. The White Sox would eventually lose the division series against the Rays in 4 games.

New York Yankees (2009–present)[link]

Swisher batting in 2009, his first year with the Yankees

On November 13, 2008, Swisher and minor league pitcher Kanekoa Texeira were traded to the New York Yankees for utility man Wilson Betemit and minor league pitchers Jeffrey Marquez and Jhonny Núñez.^[14] Swisher was acquired to be the Yankees starting first baseman. However, the Yankees signed Mark Teixiera later in the offseason, who took the starting role.^[15] At the end of spring training, manager Joe Girardi announced that Xavier Nady would be starting in right field while Swisher would be a bench player.^[16][17] Due to the perceived logjam, many teams reportedly pursued Swisher,^[18][19] but the Yankees opted to keep him as a reserve outfielder and first baseman.

On April 9, 2009 against the Baltimore Orioles, Swisher was started for the first time as a Yankee in right field, replacing Xavier Nady who was playing DH to give Hideki Matsui a rest. Swisher capitalized on this opportunity and had a great game, going 3 for 5 with a home run and tying his career high of five RBIs. Just five days later, Swisher became the starting right fielder after Nady went down with a season-ending elbow injury.^[20]

On April 13, 2009, in a game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Swisher pitched one inning in relief, allowing one hit and one walk before retiring the next three batters in a row, including a strikeout against Gabe Kapler in his first pitching appearance in the major leagues.^[21] He was the first Yankee position player to pitch since Wade Boggs in 1997 and the first Yankee to homer and pitch in the same game since Lindy McDaniel did it in Detroit on September 28, 1972.^[22]

Swisher hit his first postseason home run in the 2009 World Series. He got his first championship title as the Yankees eventually won the World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies in 6 games.

Due to a .128 batting average in the 2009 postseason, Swisher worked with hitting coach Kevin Long to reinvent his swing for the 2010 season.^[23] Swisher was a contestant in the 2010 All-Star Final Vote from July 4 to July 8. Swisher lobbied for the post with a promotion commercial of him with a surf board to indicate that he would be surfing in Southern California since the game was to be hosted by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. In what was to that date the closest vote in Final Vote history, he won the final place on the AL roster ahead of Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis.^[24] Additionally, Swisher participated in the Home Run Derby.^[25] Swisher finished the season with a career-high .288 batting average and 29 home runs.^[26] Although Swisher was usually hitting in the bottom third of the lineup, he was moved into the #2 slot in the lineup after Nick Johnson went down with an injury and served as a buffer for the middle of the Yankees lineup.

In 2011, Swisher was moved down in the lineup to allow Curtis Granderson to hit second behind Derek Jeter and spent the majority of the season hitting sixth behind Robinson Cano. His fielding percentage ranked 2nd among all American League Right Fielders with a .996 behind Baltimore's Nick Markakis. Although Swisher's totals dipped a bit from his 2010 career year, he still managed to hit .260 and was one of four Yankees with at least 20 home runs (after Granderson, Teixeira, and Cano) and finished fourth on the team with 85 RBIs.

During the Bleacher Creatures' roll call at the top of the first inning, Swisher is known to come to attention and salute the bleachers.

Personal life[link]

Swisher is known for his outgoing personality and has become a favorite of Yankees fans

Swisher's father, Steve Swisher, played 509 games in the major leagues with the Chicago Cubs (1974–77), St. Louis Cardinals (1978–80), and San Diego Padres (1981–82). He was a .216 lifetime hitter with 20 home runs and 124 RBIs. His father was also a first round draft pick, as he was selected by the Chicago White Sox with the 21st selection of the 1973 draft.

Swisher was very close to his paternal grandmother, Betty Lorraine Swisher, who raised him after his parents' divorce and died from brain cancer in 2005; he has her initials tattooed on his chest surrounded by angel's wings and a halo. To honor her further, he let his hair grow for eleven months and donated it to Pantene Beautiful Lengths, a program that creates free wigs for cancer patients. On May 19, 2007, he cut his hair with assistance from his father.^[27] His website, nickswisher.net, is also dedicated to his grandmother.^[28] He is well known for touching his lips and pointing to the sky in her honor after he gets a hit as well as inking her initials on the bottom of his bats' knobs and kissing the letters when he comes to home plate. After his grandfather Don died in November 2008, Swisher began adding his initials to his bats as well. When Nick is up at bat, he looks up to the sky to honor his parents and grandparents. He is known by his loyal fans as the "Swish Dog". He later stated that he planned on getting another tattoo on his back in the same style as his existing one after the 2009 season to honor his grandfather.^[29]

In August 2009, People reported that Swisher was dating actress Joanna García.^[30] Swish and García became engaged in May 2010,^[31] and married on December 11, 2010 at the Breakers Hotel & Resort in Palm Beach, Florida.^[32]

In 2011 Swisher guest starred as himself on two episodes of his wife Joanna Garcia's sitcom Better with You. The first episode aired February 16 and the second aired February 23.^[33] He also appeared on the February 1, 2010 episode of How I Met Your Mother.^[34]

Swisher is releasing a kids music album titled "Believe" on August 9, 2011. A percentage of the proceeds will be donated to "Swish's Wishes", a charity started by Swisher for children who are facing health crises. The twelve song album features guest appearances from former New York Yankees outfielder Bernie Williams and current San Francisco Giants pitcher Barry Zito. All of the songs recorded on the album are cover songs that were selected by Swisher.^[35]

The album peaked at #3 on the chart of iTunes Children's Albums.^[36]

See also[link]

• List of second-generation Major League Baseball players
• Moneyball by Michael Lewis

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Nick Swisher

• NickSwisher.net
• Baseball Almanac
• Nick Swisher on Twitter
• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)

Jessica Alba
Alba in 2010
Born	Jessica Marie Alba (1981-04-28) April 28, 1981 (age 31) Pomona, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1994–present
Spouse	Cash Warren (m. 2008) «start: (2008)»"Marriage: Cash Warren to Jessica Alba" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Jessica_Alba)
Children	2

Jessica Marie Alba (born April 28, 1981^[1]) is an American television and film actress. She began her television and movie appearances at age 13 in Camp Nowhere and The Secret World of Alex Mack (1994). Alba rose to prominence as the lead actress in the television series Dark Angel (2000–2002).^[2][3] Alba later appeared in various films including Honey (2003), Sin City (2005), Fantastic Four (2005), Into the Blue (2005), Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and Good Luck Chuck both in 2007.^[4][5]

Alba has been called a sex symbol.^[6][7] She appears on the "Hot 100" section of Maxim and was voted number one on AskMen.com's list of "99 Most Desirable Women" in 2006, as well as "Sexiest Woman in the World" by FHM in 2007.^[8][9][10] The use of her image on the cover of the March 2006 Playboy sparked a lawsuit by her, which was later dropped.^[11] She has also won various awards for her acting, including the Choice Actress Teen Choice Award and Saturn Award for Best Actress on Television, and a Golden Globe nomination for her lead role in the television series Dark Angel.^[4]

Early life[link]

Alba was born in Pomona, California^[1] to Catherine (née Jensen) and Mark Alba. Her mother is of Danish and French Canadian descent and her father is Mexican American.^[12] She has a younger brother, Joshua. Her father's Air Force career took the family to Biloxi, Mississippi and Del Rio, Texas, before settling back in California when she was nine years old.^[3][12] Alba described her family as being a "very conservative family – a traditional, Catholic, Latin American family" and herself as very liberal; she says she had identified herself as a "feminist" as early as age five.^[13]

Alba's early life was marked by a multitude of physical maladies. During childhood, she suffered from collapsed lungs twice, had pneumonia four to five times a year, as well as a ruptured appendix and a tonsillar cyst.^[3] Alba became isolated from other children at school, because she was in the hospital so often due to her illnesses that no one knew her well enough to befriend her.^[14] Alba has also had asthma since she was a child.^[3] Alba has said that her family's frequent moving also contributed to her isolation from her peers.^[13] She has acknowledged that she has suffered from obsessive–compulsive disorder during her childhood.^[15][16] Alba graduated from high school at age 16,^[17] and she subsequently attended the Atlantic Theater Company.^[18]

Career[link]

Alba at the 2008 Paris premiere for The Eye.

Alba expressed interest in acting since the age of five. In 1992, the 11-year-old Alba persuaded her mother to take her to an acting competition in Beverly Hills, whose grand prize was free acting classes. Alba won the grand prize, and took her first acting lessons. An agent signed Alba nine months later.^[3][18][19] Her first appearance on film was a small role in the 1994 feature Camp Nowhere as Gail. She was originally hired for two weeks but her role turned into a two-month job in a leading role when one of the prominent actresses dropped out.^[2]

Alba appeared in two national television commercials for Nintendo and J.C. Penney as a child. She was later featured in several independent films. She branched out into television in 1994 with a recurring role as the vain Jessica in three episodes of the Nickelodeon comedy series The Secret World of Alex Mack.^[3] She then performed the role of Maya in the first two seasons of the television series Flipper.^[2][3] Under the tutelage of her lifeguard mother, Alba learned to swim before she could walk, and she was a PADI-certified scuba diver, skills which were put to use on the show, which was filmed in Australia.^[3][20]

In 1998, she appeared as Melissa Hauer in a first-season episode of the Steven Bochco crime-drama Brooklyn South, as Leanne in two episodes of Beverly Hills, 90210, and as Layla in an episode of The Love Boat: The Next Wave.^{[citation needed]} In 1999, she appeared in the Randy Quaid comedy feature P.U.N.K.S..^[2] After Alba graduated from high school, she studied acting with William H. Macy and his wife, Felicity Huffman, at the Atlantic Theater Company, which was developed by Macy and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and film director, David Mamet.^[18][21]

Alba rose to greater prominence in Hollywood in 1999 after appearing as a member of a snobby high school clique in the Drew Barrymore romantic comedy Never Been Kissed, and as the female lead in the 1999 comedy-horror film Idle Hands, opposite Devon Sawa.^[5]

Her big break came when writer/director James Cameron picked Alba from a pool of 1,200 candidates for the role of the genetically-engineered super-soldier, Max Guevara, on the Fox sci-fi television series Dark Angel. Co-created by Cameron, the series starred Alba, and ran for two seasons until 2002, earning her critical acclaim as well as a Golden Globe nomination.^[5][22] Alba later admitted to practicing anorexia while in preparation for Dark Angel.^[23]

Alba has been well-received in popular culture. She received the Teen Choice Award for Choice Actress and Saturn Award for Best Actress for her role in Dark Angel. In 2006, Alba received an MTV Movie Award for "Sexiest Performance" for Sin City.^[4][10][24] Her acting has also drawn criticism, however, as she was nominated for a 2007 Razzie Award for Worst Actress for her performances in Awake, Good Luck Chuck, and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.^[25] She was also nominated for the same award in 2005 for her performances in Fantastic Four and Into the Blue.^[26]

Alba's most notable film roles have included an aspiring dancer-choreographer in Honey, exotic dancer Nancy Callahan in Sin City, and as the Marvel Comics character Sue Storm, the Invisible Woman in Fantastic Four. She then appeared in its sequel, in Into the Blue later that year, and Good Luck Chuck a few years later.^[4][27][28] Alba hosted the 2006 MTV Movie Awards and performed sketches spoofing the movies King Kong, Mission: Impossible 3, and The Da Vinci Code.^[29] In February 2008, she hosted the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' Science and Technical Awards.^[30] Alba has been represented by talent agents Patrick Whitesell^[31] and Brad Cafarelli.^[11]

In 2008, Alba made her acting transition to the horror-film genre in The Eye, a remake of the Hong Kong original.^[12][32] The film was released on February 1, 2008. Though the film was not well received by critics,^[33] Alba's performance was both positively and negatively received. Alba won a Teen Choice for Choice Movie Actress: Horror/Thriller and a Razzie Award for Worst Actress-nomination.^[34] Also in 2008, Alba starred alongside Mike Myers and Justin Timberlake in "box office bomb" The Love Guru. Alba was nominated for a Razzie Award for Worst Actress.^[4]

In late 2008, Alba signed on to star as the lead role in An Invisible Sign of My Own.^[35] The movie finished filming in November 2008.^[36] It premiered at the Hamptons International Film Festival and was released to theaters in May 2011.^[37][38]

In 2010, Alba starred in five films. She played Joyce Lakeland, a prostitute in The Killer Inside Me, film adaption of the book of the same name which co-starred Kate Hudson and Casey Affleck. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.^{[39][40][41][40][42]} Her second film of the year was the hit romantic comedy Valentine's Day, directed by Garry Marshall.^[43][44][45] She portrayed Ashton Kutcher's girlfriend, Morley Clarkson, in the ensemble film that included Julia Roberts, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper, and Jennifer Garner, among others.^[44][46][47] It was released on February 12, 2010.^[47] Later in the year, she appeared in action film Machete, in An Invisible Sign of My Own and in Little Fockers, reuniting with Robert De Niro who was also in Machete.

In August 2010, it was announced that Alba would appear in Spy Kids 4.^[48] The film was released a year later.

In January 2012, Alba and business partner Chris Gavigan launched The Honest Company, a collection of toxin-free household goods, diapers, and body care products.^[49] In March 2012, Alba announced that she will be releasing a book, The Honest Life, based on her experiences creating a natural, non-toxic life for her family. The book, slated for release in early 2013, will be published by Rodale.^[50]

Her next projects include comedy A.C.O.D.^[51] and animated film Escape from Planet Earth.^[52] Alba will also reprise her role as Santana in Machete's sequel Machete Kills^[53] and as Nancy Callahan in Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, sequel to 2005's Sin City.^[54] Filming for Sin City is expected to start in the summer of 2012 with a release set in October 2013.^[54]

Public image[link]

In 2001, Alba was ranked No. 1 on Maxim magazine's Hot 100 list. She said that "I have to go to certain lengths to use sexuality to my advantage, while guiding people to thinking the way I want them to."^[55] In 2005, Alba was named one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People, and also appeared in the magazine's 100 Most Beautiful list in 2007. In 2002, Alba was voted as the fifth Sexiest Female Star for 2002 in a Hollywood.com poll, No.4 in the Top 10 Sci-Fi Babes, No.6 in FHM's Sexiest Girls for their poll, and ranked at No.12 in Stuff magazine's "102 Sexiest Women in the World" 2002 edition.^[56] In 2005, Alba was ranked at No.5 on the Maxim magazine's Hot 100 list.^[57]

On the cover of the March 2006 issue, Playboy magazine named Alba among its 25 Sexiest Celebrities, and the Sex Star of the Year. Alba was involved in litigation against Playboy for its use of her image (from a promotional shot for Into the Blue) without her consent, which she contends gave the appearance that she was featured in the issue in a "nude pictorial". However, she later dropped the lawsuit after receiving a personal apology from Playboy owner Hugh Hefner, who agreed to make donations to two charities that Alba has supported.^[11]

When reports surfaced that a 21-year-old Chinese girl was seeking plastic surgery to resemble Alba in order to win back an ex-boyfriend, the star spoke out against the perceived need to change one's appearance for love.^[58]

Alba in 2007 at the London premiere of Fantastic Four

In 2006, Alba ranked No.3 on E! Television's 101 Sexiest Celebrity Bodies. In 2006 readers of AskMen.com voted Alba No. 1 on 99 Most Desirable Women,^[9] while in 2007, Maxim Magazine placed Alba on the number 2 spot of their "Top 100".^[10] Both GQ and In Style had Alba on their June 2008 covers,^[59][60] and in May, after eight million votes, FHM (UK and USA editions) named Alba the winner as "2007's Sexiest Woman in the World".^[61] Alba has been regarded as one of the world's most attractive women, being named to Maxim's Hot 100 in 2008.^[62] In 2007, Alba was ranked in at No.1 in FHM's Sexiest Girls of 2007 poll, in the magazine's Latvian edition. Alba was ranked No.4 on Empire Magazine's 100 Sexiest Movie Stars in 2007. In 2006 and 2007, Alba was voted No.1 as the most sexy woman in the world by the Norwegian FHM.^[57] Alba appeared in the 2009 Campari calendar. Campari printed 9,999 copies of the calendar featuring photos of Alba posing sexually in swimsuits, and high heels.^[63] In 2008, Alba was ranked No.34 on Maxim magazine's Hot 100 list, was ranked No.2 on Wizard magazine's "Sexiest Women of TV" list, and was named in GQ Magazine one of the 25 Sexiest Women in film of all time.^[57] Alba is the only woman who has made the Maxim Magazine Hot 100 list in all the years it was published; from 2000 to 2012.^[64] She appeared on Maxim's 2011 Hot 100 list, finishing 21.^[65] She was named one of the "100 Hottest Women of All-Time" by Men's Health.^[66] People named her one of 2012 Most Beautiful at Every Age.^[67]

Alba fears being typecast as a sex kitten based on the bulk of parts offered to her, commenting, "Somehow, I don't think this is happening to Natalie Portman."^[69] In the interview, Alba said she wants to be taken seriously as an actress but believes she needs to do movies that she would otherwise not be interested in to build her career, stating that eventually she hopes to be more selective in her film projects.^[69] Alba also maintains a strict no-nudity clause in her contract. She was given the option to appear nude in Sin City by the film's directors, Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez, but declined the offer, saying, "I don't do nudity. I just don't. Maybe that makes me a bad actress. Maybe I won't get hired in some things. But I have too much anxiety".^[70] She remarked of a GQ shoot in which she was scantily clad, "They didn't want me to wear the granny panties, but I said, 'If I'm gonna be topless I need to wear granny panties."^[71] In March 2010, she reasserted her position to Scarlet magazine, saying, "I can act sexy and wear sexy clothes but I can’t go naked."^[72] For the shower scene in Machete, she was wearing underwear, which was digitally removed afterwards.^[72]

Personal life[link]

Religion[link]

Alba was raised as a Catholic^[73] throughout her teenage years,^[74] but left the church after four years because she felt she was being judged for her appearance, explaining: "Older men would hit on me, and my youth pastor said it was because I was wearing provocative clothing, when I wasn't. It just made me feel like if I was in any way desirable to the opposite sex that it was my fault, and it made me ashamed of my body and being a woman".^[75]

Alba also had objections to the church's condemnations of premarital sex and homosexuality, and what she saw as a lack of strong female role models in the Bible, explaining "I thought it was a nice guide, but it certainly wasn't how I was going to live my life."^[70] Her "religious devotion [began] to wane" at the age of 15 when she guest-starred as a teenager with gonorrhea in the throat in a 1996 episode of the television series Chicago Hope. Her friends at church reacted negatively to her role, making her lose faith in the church.^[3] However, she has stated that she still holds her belief in God despite leaving the church.^[76]

Relationships and family[link]

While filming Dark Angel in January 2000, Alba began a three year relationship with her co-star Michael Weatherly, which caused controversy due to their 12-year age difference.^[77] Weatherly proposed to Alba on her twentieth birthday, which she accepted.^[12] In August 2003, Alba and Weatherly announced that they'd ended their relationship.^[3] In July 2007, Alba spoke out about the breakup, saying "I don't know [why I got engaged]. I was a virgin. He was 12 years older than me. I thought he knew better. My parents weren't happy. They're really religious. They believe God wouldn't allow the Bible to be written if it wasn't what they are supposed to believe. I'm completely different."^[78] Alba had at one time said she envisioned a much older man as her ideal partner, making references to Morgan Freeman, Sean Connery, Robert Redford, and Michael Caine. She said, "I have this thing for older men. They've been around and know so much."^[79]

Alba met Cash Warren, son of actor Michael Warren, while filming Fantastic Four in 2004.^[80][81] Alba married Warren in Los Angeles on Monday, May 19, 2008.^[82][83] They have two daughters: Honor Marie Warren (born 2008)^[84][85] and Haven Garner Warren (born 2011).^[86] The first pictures of Honor Marie appeared in the July 2008 issue of OK! magazine, which reportedly paid $1.5 million.^[87]

Charity and politics[link]

In 2005, Alba offered her acting talents for free, to raise money for AIDS charity Amfar at the Cannes Film Festival. The Industry had held a benefit for the US research foundation. Alba had caused "the greatest stir" by promising to star as an unpaid actress in one of The Lord of the Rings producer Bob Weinstein's movies, if Weinstein agreed to bid $100,000 for tennis lessons with sports stars Monica Seles and Boris Becker.^[88]

Alba's charity work includes participation with Clothes Off Our Back, Habitat for Humanity, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Project HOME, RADD, Revlon Run/Walk for Women, SOS Children Villages, Soles4Souls, and Step up.^[89] Alba openly endorsed and supported Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama during the 2008 primary season.^[90] Alba is an ambassador for the 1Goal movement to provide education to children in Africa.^[91]

Alba posed for a bondage-themed print advertising campaign by Declare Yourself, a campaign encouraging voter registration among youth for the 2008 United States presidential election. The ads photographed by Mark Liddell,^[92][93] which feature Alba wrapped in and gagged with black tape, drew national media attention. The ads were described by some as being "Shocking".^[93] Alba said of doing the advertisements that "it didn't freak me out at all." Alba also said "I think it is important for young people to be aware of the need we have in this country to get them more active politically," and "People respond to things that are shocking."^[94]

In June 2009, while filming The Killer Inside Me in Oklahoma City, Alba was involved in a controversy with residents when she pasted posters of sharks around town.^{[citation needed]} Alba said that she was trying to bring attention to the diminishing population of great white sharks. Media outlets speculated that Alba would be pursued and charged with vandalism.^[95] On June 16, 2009, Oklahoma City police said that they would not pursue criminal charges against Alba, because none of the property owners wanted to pursue it.^[96][97] Alba apologized in a statement to People magazine and said that she regretted her actions.^[96] She later donated an undisclosed amount of money (over $500)^[98] to the United Way, whose billboard she had obscured with one of the shark posters.^{[99][100][101][102]}

In 2011, Alba participated in a two day lobbying effort in Washington D.C. in support of the Safe Chemicals Act, a revision of the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976.^[103][104]

Filmography[link]

Film[link]

Television[link]

Awards[link]

References[link]