Cetyl palmitate, a typical wax ester.

Commercial honeycomb foundation, made by pressing beeswax between patterned metal rollers.

Wax refers to a class of chemical compounds that are plastic (malleable) near ambient temperatures. Characteristically, they melt above 45 °C (113 °F) to give a low viscosity liquid. Waxes are insoluble in water but soluble in organic, nonpolar solvents. All waxes are organic compounds, both synthetic and naturally occurring.

Types[link]

Ceroline brand wax for floors and ceilings, first half of 20th century. From the Museo del Objeto del Objeto collection

Waxes are organic compounds that characteristically consist of long alkyl chains. Natural waxes are typically esters of fatty acids and long chain alcohols. Synthetic waxes are long-chain hydrocarbons lacking functional groups.

Plant and animal waxes[link]

Waxes are biosynthesized by many plants and animals. They typically consist of several components, including wax esters, wax acids, wax alcohols, and hydrocarbons. Wax esters are typically derived from a variety of carboxylic acids and a variety of fatty alcohols. The composition depends not only on species, but also on geographic location of the organism. Because they are mixtures, naturally produced waxes are softer and melt at lower temperatures than the pure components.

Animal waxes[link]

The most commonly known animal wax is beeswax, but other insects secrete waxes. A major component of beeswax is the ester myricyl palmitate substance which is used in constructing their honeycombs. Its melting point is 62-65 °C. Spermaceti occurs in large amounts in the head oil of the sperm whale. One of its main constituents is cetyl palmitate, another ester of a fatty acid and a fatty alcohol. Lanolin is a wax obtained from wool, consisting of esters of sterols.^[1]

Plant waxes[link]

Especially in warm climates, plants secrete waxes as a way to control evaporation and hydration.^[2] From the commercial perspective, the most important wax is Carnauba wax, a hard wax obtained from the Brazilian palm. Containing the ester myricyl cerotate, it has many applications. Other more specialized vegetable waxes include candelilla wax, ouricury wax, sugarcane wax, retamo wax, jojoba oil. The epicuticular waxes of plants are mixtures of substituted long-chain aliphatic hydrocarbons, containing alkanes, fatty acids, primary and secondary alcohols, diols, ketones, aldehydes.^[3]

Petroleum derived waxes[link]

Although most natural waxes are esters, paraffin waxes are hydrocarbons, mixtures of alkanes usually in a homologous series of chain lengths. These materials represent a significant fraction of petroleum. They are refined by vacuum distillation. Paraffin waxes are mixtures of saturated n- and isoalkanes, naphthenes, and alkyl- and naphthene-substituted aromatic compounds. The degree of branching has an important influence on the properties. Millions of tons of paraffin waxes are produced annually. They are used in adhesives, in foods (such as chewing gum and cheese wrapping), in cosmetics, and as coatings.

Montan wax[link]

Montan wax is a fossilized wax extracted from coal and lignite. It is very hard, reflecting the high concentration of saturated fatty acids and alcohols, not esters that characterize softer waxes. Although dark brown and smelly, they can be purified and bleached to give commercially useful products.

Polyethylene and related derivatives[link]

Some waxes are obtained by cracking polyethylene at 400 °C. The products have the formula (CH₂)_nH₂, where n ranges between about 50 and 100. As of 1995, about 200 million kilograms/y were consumed.^[2]

Uses[link]

Waxes are mainly consumed industrially as components of complex formulations, often for coatings.^[2] The main use of polyethylene and polypropylene waxes is in the formulation of colourants for plastics. Waxes confer matting effects and wear resistance to paints. Polyethyelene waxes are incorporated into inks in the form of dispersions to decrease friction. They are employed as release agents. They are also used as slip agents, e.g. in furniture, and corrosion resistance.

Candles[link]

Waxes and hard fats such as tallow have been used to make candles, used for lighting and decoration in a number of religious traditions, including Christianity and Hinduism, as well as various neo-pagan religions such as Wicca. The Emperor Constantine is reported to have called for the use of candles during an Easter service in the 4th century AD. Candles continue to be used today by Christians^[4] in worship as symbols of the light of Christ. In the Roman Catholic Church, beeswax candles are used, since a colony of bees is a celibate sisterhood with a single mother.^[5] Candles of wax or tallow took the place of lamps used in various Jewish rituals such as the Sabbath lights; in the Havdalah ceremony; and the Hanukkah lights. A synagogue had to be well lit, and pious folk used to donate candles for the purpose. On the basis of the verse: 'The soul of man is a candle of the Lord', a special candle which burns twenty-four hours is kindled on the anniversary of the death of a near relative (Yahrzeit) and often two lighted candles are placed at the head of the corpse awaiting burial.^[6] In fact, according to the Shulchan Aruch, wax candles are the only kind of light which can be used for Bedikat Chametz, and not tallow or oil.^[7] Candles have also played a role in pagan religions and in modern humanist festivals. Virtually all rituals in Wicca include the lighting of altar candles, where two main candles are often used to represent the God and the Goddess; and the lighting of candles is a central theme at the Wiccan holiday of Brigid or Imbolc, which is also known as Candlemas or the Feast of the Waxing Light. Wax candles were also used in secular life for lighting, signals in warfare, safety in travel and for time keeping, and are still in popular use today to provide soft lighting for meals and other social activities.

Other uses[link]

Sealing wax was used to close important documents in the Middle Ages. Wax tablets were used as writing surfaces. There were different types of wax in the Middle Ages, namely four kinds of wax (Ragusan, Montenegro, Byzantine and Bulgarian), "ordinary" waxes from Spain, Poland and Riga, unrefined waxes and colored waxes (red, white and green).^[8][9] Waxes are used to make wax paper, impregnating and coating paper and card to waterproof it or make it resistant to staining, or to modify its surface properties. Waxes are also used in shoe polishes, wood polishes, and automotive polishes, as mold release agents in mold making, as a coating for many cheeses, and to waterproof leather and fabric. Wax has been used since antiquity as a temporary, removable model in lost-wax casting of gold, silver and other materials.

Wax with colorful pigments added has been used as a medium in encaustic painting, and is used today in the manufacture of crayons and colored pencils. Carbon paper, used for making duplicate typewritten documents was coated with carbon black suspended in wax, typically montan wax, but has largely been superseded by photocopiers and computer printers. In another context, lipstick and mascara are blends of various fats and waxes colored with pigments, and both beeswax and lanolin are used in other cosmetics. Ski wax is used in skiing and snowboarding. Also, the sports of surfing and skateboarding often use wax to enhance the performance. Beeswax or coloured synthetic wax is used to decorate Easter eggs in Ukraine and the Czech Republic. Paraffin wax is used in making chocolate covered bon-bons. Wax is also used in wax bullets, which are used as simulation aids.

Wax candle.   A typical modern wax sculpture of Cecilia Cheung at Madame Tussauds Hong Kong.   Wax-decorated Easter eggs as made in Ukraine and the Czech Republic.   A lava lamp is a novelty item that contains wax melted from below by a bulb. The wax rises and falls in decorative, molten blobs.

Wax types[link]

Animal waxes[link]

• Beeswax - produced by honey bees
• Chinese wax - produced by the scale insect Ceroplastes ceriferus
• Earwax - found in the human ear.
• Lanolin (wool wax) - from the sebaceous glands of sheep
• Shellac wax - from the lac insect Kerria lacca
• Spermaceti - from the head cavities and blubber of the sperm whale

Vegetable waxes[link]

• Bayberry wax - from the surface wax of the fruits of the bayberry shrub, Myrica faya
• Candelilla wax - from the Mexican shrubs Euphorbia cerifera and Euphorbia antisyphilitica
• Carnauba wax - from the leaves of the Carnauba palm, Copernica cerifera
• Castor wax - catalytically hydrogenated castor oil
• Esparto wax - a byproduct of making paper from esparto grass, (Macrochloa tenacissima)
• Japan wax - a vegetable triglyceride (not a true wax), from the berries of Rhus and Toxicodendron species
• Jojoba oil - a replacement for spermaceti, jojoba is pressed from the seeds of the jojoba bush, Simmondsia chinensis
• Ouricury wax - from the Brazilian feather palm, Syagrus coronata.
• Rice bran wax - obtained from rice bran (Oryza sativa)
• Soy wax - from soybean oil

Mineral waxes[link]

• Ceresin waxes
• Montan wax - extracted from lignite and brown coal
• Ozocerite - found in lignite beds
• Peat waxes

Petroleum waxes[link]

• Paraffin wax - made of long-chain alkane hydrocarbons
• Microcrystalline wax - with very fine crystalline structure
• Petroleum jelly

Synthetic waxes[link]

• Polyethylene waxes - based on polyethylene
• Fischer-Tropsch waxes
• Chemically modified waxes - usually esterified or saponified
• substituted amide waxes
• polymerized α-olefins

See also[link]

• Slip melting point

References[link]

External links[link]

• Waxes
• www.microcrystallinewax.net, resource for microcrystalline wax research

Ruby Wax
At the 2007 BAFTA awards
Birth name	Ruby Wachs[1]
Born	(1953-04-19) 19 April 1953 (age 59)[2] Evanston, Illinois, USA
Nationality	American
Years active	1970s-present
Genres	Alternative comedy
Spouse	Ed Bye

Ruby Wax (born 19 April 1953) is an American comedian who made a career in the United Kingdom as part of the alternative comedy scene in the 1980s.

Early life[link]

Wax was born Ruby Wachs, the daughter of Jewish parents who left Austria in 1939 because of the Nazi threat.^[3] Her father became wealthy as a sausage manufacturer^[4] and her mother qualified as an accountant. Wax was raised in Evanston, Illinois in the 1950s and 60s. Wax elected to major in psychology at the University of California, Berkeley.

Early career[link]

Wax came to the UK and studied at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. She began her acting career as a straight actress at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, where she began a long-standing writing and directing partnership with Alan Rickman, who later was to direct most of her stage comedy shows.^[5] In 1978, she joined the Royal Shakespeare Company, working alongside Juliet Stevenson in Measure for Measure, as Jaquenetta opposite Michael Hordern in Love's Labours Lost, replacing Zoë Wanamaker as Jane in The Way of the World^[5] and appearing in the Howard Brenton three-hander Sore Throats.^[6] While at the RSC, Wax also met and befriended Ian Charleson, and later contributed a chapter to the 1990 book, For Ian Charleson: A Tribute.^[7]

Wax made a one-off appearance in a 1980 episode of The Professionals, Bloodsports, playing Lonnie, an American student. In 1981, she appeared in the follow up to The Rocky Horror Picture Show, called Shock Treatment. In the film, Wax portrays Betty Hapschatt, who got married to Ralph Hapschatt in the first film. Wax also appeared briefly as a secretary in Omen III: The Final Conflict.

Comedic Work[link]

Her popularity in terms of comedy came from her interviewing technique: she was always forthright, brash and loud, conforming to the British stereotype of an American. Her physical appearance matched this image, with red hair and blood-red lipstick. She cemented this trademark image in 1985, when she starred as loud-mouthed American actress Shelley DuPont on the British sitcom Girls On Top. According to a BBC Arena documentary narrated by Dawn French it was Wax's role as backstage interviewer at Amnesty International's 1987 benefit show The Secret Policeman's Third Ball that eventually boosted her career to a higher level.^{[citation needed]}

Many of her early television shows involved her being put into a situation where she simply met and interviewed people, mostly extraordinary members of the public (including a memorable visit to pre-breakup Soviet Russia). In 1987, Wax was given her own comedy chat show Don't Miss Wax, on Channel 4. She was also hired as a radio presenter by The Superstation, an overnight sustaining service for commercial radio in the UK.^[8]

In December 1989, she appeared in the Red Dwarf episode "Timeslides" as an American reporter.

Wax began work with the BBC in 1991 in a variety of television documentaries and interview programs, similar in tone to her 1980s work on the UK's Channel 4. Programs on alternative health and primetime interviews culminated in the mid 1990s with Wax's 1996 series Ruby Wax Meets, for the BBC in which she interviewed public figures such as Imelda Marcos and Pamela Anderson.^[9] Wax was nominated in 1996 for a BAFTA award for her interview with Sarah, Duchess of York, an interview which attracted an audience of over 14 million viewers.^[10]

She also made several guest appearances in Absolutely Fabulous, a programme on which she served as script editor throughout the run of the series.^[11]

From November 2001 to June 2002 Wax presented a TV quiz show broadcast on BBC1 called The Waiting Game.^[9] Her final BBC interview series aired in 2003.

Writing, Academia, Corporate Training and Returns to Television and Stage[link]

In 2002 Wax authored her memoir, How Do You Want Me? which became a bestseller according to The Sunday Times bestseller list.

In March 2003, Wax was one of the celebrity contestants on Comic Relief does Fame Academy, which was a spin-off from the BBC's Fame Academy with all proceeds donated to Comic Relief. Although not a singer, Wax made it to the final, taking runner-up position to Will Mellor.^[12]

Wax appeared in a supporting role opposite Olivia Williams and Andie MacDowell in the 2005 film Tara Road. In September and October 2005, she appeared as a celebrity contestant in Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon, progressing through to Sale of the Century before getting knocked out. In summer 2006, she was a celebrity showjumper in the BBC's Sport Relief event Only Fools On Horses. She presented Cirque de Celebrité on Sky One in 2006. Wax also appeared in an episode of Jackass where she was participating in the Gumball 3000. While the race was stopped at the Latvian border she was wrestled by Jackass Personality Chris Pontius.

In March 2009, Wax returned to Comic Relief to take part in Comic Relief Does The Apprentice. Wax appeared in the 2010 Comic Relief in Comic Relief Does Master Chef in which Wax prepared an appetizer for the Prime Minister, David Cameron.

On April 1, 2009, Ruby Wax Goes Dutch premiered on Dutch television network Net5.

Wax's 2010 standup show Losing It deals with her experience of depression.^[13][14] The show played in London at The Duchess Theater in 2011. Wax founded a mental health website in 2011 in response to the audience reaction from her theater show.^[15]

In addition, Wax teaches business communication in both the public and private sector, clients include Deutsche Bank, the UK Home Office and Skype^[16] .

Currently, Wax is attending Kellogg College at Oxford University to obtain a Master's Degree in mindfulness based cognitive therapy, having previously obtained a postgraduate certificate in psychotherapy and counselling from Regents College in London.^[17]

Controversies[link]

Popetown[link]

In 2004, the BBC planned to show a cartoon series called Popetown, which poked fun at the Roman Catholic Church. In it, Wax portrayed the Pope as a spoiled child. After protests, the BBC chose not to show the series.^[18]

Slander case[link]

In February 2004, Irish broadcaster Patricia Danaher reached an out-of-court settlement with Wax, who had initially claimed that Danaher had made racist remarks about her Jewish origins in an interview for Ulster TV. Wax's legal team apologised and announced that there had been a financial settlement.^[19]

Opposition to disabled-access ramp[link]

In November 2005, Wax was criticised by the Daily Mail columnist Richard Kay for opposing a proposed disabled-access ramp for the nearby Couper Collection charitable art gallery. The UK Sunday newspaper The Observer also reported the controversy,^[20] as did the act "I, Ludicrous" in "The Ruby Wax Song", from their Dirty Washing 2008 EP.

Personal life[link]

Wax is married to television producer and director Ed Bye, who produces some of the series of her long-time friends and working partners, Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. Wax and Bye have three children together: one son, Max (b. 1988), and two daughters, Madeleine (b. 1990) and Marina (b. 1993).^[21]

Interview Programs & Documentaries[link]

• Don't Miss Wax, Channel 4, 1987-1988
• Miami Memoirs, Channel 4, 1988
• East Meets Wax, Channel 4, 1988
• Class of '69, Channel 4 1989
• Wax on Wheels, Channel 4, 1988-1989
• Ruby Takes a Trip, BBC, 1991
• The Full Wax, BBC, 1991–1993
• Ruby Wax Meets..., BBC, 1994–1998
• Ruby's American Pie, BBC, 1999
• Ruby Gets Streetwise, BBC, 2000
• Ruby, BBC 1997-2002
• Ruby Wax With..., BBC, 2003

References[link]

External links[link]

• Profile from her agent's page
• Ruby Wax at the Internet Movie Database
• Wax in the RSC performance database
• Ruby's Room, Ruby Wax's web show on BBC Headroom, where she regularly interviewed people with different mental health conditions.
• Ruby Wax discussion her choice of a great life on the BBC Radio 4 program Great Lives, first broadcast on 1 May 2009.

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (May 2010)

Wax Tailor is the alias of French trip hop/hip hop producer, Jean-Christophe Le Saoût^[1] (born 19 July 1975 in Vernon, Eure). He started in 2004 with two EP's (Lost The Way and Que Sera / Where My Heart's At). The first album Tales of the Forgotten Melodies was released in March 2005, mixing hip-hop, downtempo, trip-hop with samples extracted from movies. This album became one of the best selling electronic releases of the year^{[citation needed]}. The second album Hope & Sorrow released in April 2007. It was nominated for the French "Victoires de la Musique" and US Indie music award.

Background[link]

After being a host on a French radio in the Paris suburb of Mantes-La-Jolie, JC Le Saout started the French Rap band La Formule in the 1990s. He created his label Lab'Oratoire in 1998 and produced records from La Formule as well as Break Beat compilations and a collaboration with the Swedish band Looptroop. He began work on the Wax Tailor project in 2001, first appearing on a remix of Looptroop & La Formule's "Deep Under Water". Wax Tailor's first EP Lost The Way was released in 2004 and features contributions from Charlotte Savary, Marina Quaisse, and Big Dada rapper Infinite Livez. Other musicians who have appeared alongside Wax Tailor include North Carolina Hip-Hop duo The Others made up of Mattic, Johnny Madwreck "Madwreck" and DJ DR, Ursula Rucker, Sharon Jones, Voice and A State Of Mind.

His third album "In The Mood For Life" was released on September 22, 2009.

Winner of the 7th annual Independent Music Awards Vox Pop vote for best Dance/Electronica album "Hope & Sorrow"

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• Tales of the Forgotten Melodies 2005
• Hope & Sorrow 2007
• In The Mood For Life 2009

EPs[link]

• Lost the Way 2004
• Que Sera/Where my Heart's at 2004
• Our Dance/Walk the Line 2006
• Positively Inclined/The Way We Lived 2007
• To Dry Up/The Games You Play 2007
• We Be/There is Danger 2008
• Say Yes 2009
• I Own You 2010

Remixes[link]

• Looptroop & La Formule - Deep under Water (Wax Tailor remix) 2001
• Olaf Hund - Kitch Kitch Myrtille Sauvage 2001
• Clover - Death of the Lonely Superhero (Wax Tailor remix) 2005
• Nina Simone - I Am Blessed 2008

Videos[link]

• I Own You (Charlie Winston & Wax Tailor)
• Say yes (A.S.M & Wax Tailor)
• Where my hearts at (Tenas)
• The Games You Play (Tenas)
• We Be (Mathieu Foucher)
• We be (Al'Arash Collectif)
• Positively Inclined (A.S.M)
• To Dry up (Laurent King)
• Hypnosis Theme (Hugo Arcier)
• Our Dance (Laurent King)
• Lost the Way (Seamus Haley)
• Dragon Chasers

Covers, references, and sampling[link]

• His track "Seize The Day" recorded with Charlotte Savary appears in the soundtrack of the 2008 film Paris by Cédric Klapisch.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Website
• Wax Tailor at Discogs
• Wax Tailor We Be : by Mathieu Foucher
• Wax Tailor artist page at Le Plan
• Wax Tailor at MusicBrainz
• Wax Tailor artistpage at Mole Listening Pearls

Aloe Blacc
Blacc at Festival Mundial in Tilburg on June 19, 2011
Background information
Birth name	Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III
Born	January 8, 1979
Origin	Orange County, California, United States
Genres	Soul, R&B, jazz, hip hop
Occupations	Musician
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1995–present
Labels	Stones Throw Records, Goontrax
Associated acts	Emanon, Exile, Lena Meyer-Landrut, Sherif
Website	Aloe Blacc.com

Aloe Blacc (born Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III; January 7, 1979^[1][2]) is an American soul singer, rapper and musician. He is married to Australian rapper Maya Jupiter.

[edit] Early career and Shine Through (1995–2009)

Blacc was born in Orange County, California to Panamanian parents.^[3] He began his music career in 1995 as a rapper in the hip hop duo Emanon with producer Exile.

By the late 1990s, Blacc was part of the duo Emanon and joined the group Lootpack on tour in Europe. The duo released six albums. This led to Blacc working with the French Jazz group Jazz Liberatorz. He released an album at the end of the 1990s.^[4]

In 2003, Blacc signed with Stones Throw Records and began a solo career. On July 11, 2006, he released his first LP album, Shine Through, on CD, vinyl record and online (on the Stones Throw website).

He then toured across Europe and the U.S. with Emanon, while working on his second solo album.

In 2009, Blacc collaborated with the Japanese hip hop producer Cradle. They called themselves Bee.

[edit] Mainstream success and Good Things (2010–present)

In 2010, Blacc released his second album, Good Things, on Stones Throw records. The album was produced by Jeff Dynamite and Leon Michels for Truth & Soul Productions.

Blacc was signed by Matthew Larkin for the charity album Red Hot + Rio 2, a follow-up to the 1996 Red Hot + Rio. Proceeds from the sales were donated to raise awareness and money to fight AIDS/HIV and related health and social issues. In 2011, Kenneth Bager used Aloe Blacc on "The Sound of Swing, Pt. 2 (Oh Na Na)" co-written by Thomas Troelsen.^[5]

In summer 2011, Blacc performed on the main stages at major festivals such as Glastonbury and The Falls Festival in Australia with his primary touring band The Grand Scheme. "I Need a Dollar" is the opening title track on the HBO series, How To Make It In America.

Television appearances[link]

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Extended plays[link]

Singles[link]

With Emanon[link]

With Cradle[link]

• Bee – Open Your Mind (2009)

With The Grand Scheme[link]

• "Dark End Of The Street" from the Carhartt: Dark End Of The Street Compilation (2010)
• "Green Lights Grand Scheme Remix" from the UK Sony/Epic Single Release (2011)

With Joel Van Dijk[link]

• "I Got The Blues" Rolling Stones Cover - Mojo: Sticky Soul Fingers Compilation (2011)

References[link]