name	Hal Ashby
birth date	September 02, 1929
Birth place	Ogden, Utah, U.S.
Death date	December 27, 1988
Death place	Malibu, California, U.S.
occupation	film director and editor
spouse	Joan Marshall
years active	1956–1988
website	}}

Hal Ashby (September 2, 1929 – December 27, 1988) was an American film director and film editor.

Birth and early years

Born William Hal Ashby in Ogden, Utah, Ashby grew up in a Mormon household and had a tumultuous childhood as part of a dysfunctional family which included the divorce of his parents, his father's suicide and his dropping out of high school. Ashby was married and divorced by the time he was 19. He got a girl pregnant in high school, and had never seen their daughter. His daughter now lives in California.

Hollywood and career peaks

As Ashby was entering adult life, he moved from Utah to California where he quickly became an assistant film editor. His big break occurred in 1967 when he won the Academy Award for Film Editing for ''In the Heat of the Night''. Ashby has often stated that film editing provided him with the best film school background outside of traditional university study and he carried the techniques learned as an editor with him when he began directing.

At the urging of its producer, Norman Jewison, Ashby directed his first film, ''The Landlord'', in 1970. While his birth date placed him squarely within the realm of the prewar generation, the filmmaker quickly embraced the hippie lifestyle, adopting vegetarianism and growing his hair long before it became ''de rigueur'' amongst the principals of the Hollywood Renaissance. In 1970 he married actress Joan Marshall, today probably best known for her guest appearance in the ''Star Trek'' episode "Court Martial" as antagonistic prosecutor Arleen Shaw. While they remained married until his death in 1988, the two had separated by the mid-seventies, with Marshall never forgiving Ashby, along with Warren Beatty, and Robert Towne for dramatizing certain unflattering elements of her life in ''Shampoo''.

Over the next 16 years, Ashby directed several acclaimed and popular films, including the off-beat romance ''Harold and Maude'' and the social satire ''Being There'' with Peter Sellers, resuscitating the career of a brilliant actor who many felt had lapsed into self-parody. Ashby's greatest commercial success was the aforementioned Warren Beatty vehicle ''Shampoo'', although the director effectively ceded control of the production over to his star. ''Bound for Glory'', a muted biography of Woody Guthrie starring David Carradine, was the first film to utilize the Steadicam.

Aside from ''Shampoo'', where he was by all accounts a creative adjunct to Beatty and Towne, Ashby's most commercially successful film was the Vietnam War drama ''Coming Home''. Starring Jane Fonda and Jon Voight, both in Academy Award-winning performances, it was for this film that Ashby earned his only Best Director nomination from the Academy for his work. As Voight had reportedly been difficult and uncooperative during production, many feel that it was Ashby's skillful editing of a particularly melodramatic scene which earned him the nomination. Arriving in the post-''Jaws'' and ''Star Wars'' era, from a production standpoint ''Coming Home'' was one of the last films to encapsulate the ethos of the New Hollywood era, earning nearly $15 million dollars in returns and rentals on a minuscule $3 million budget.

Decline

Because of his critical and (relative) commercial success, shortly after the success of ''Coming Home'', Ashby was able to form a production company under the auspices of Lorimar. Entering into a drug-induced spiral after ''Being There'' (his last film to achieve widespread attention), Ashby became notoriously reclusive and eccentric, retreating to his spartan beachfront abode in Malibu.

The productions of ''Second-Hand Hearts'' and ''Lookin' to Get Out'' — the latter a Las Vegas caper film that reunited him with Voight and featured Voight's young daughter, Angelina Jolie — were plagued by Ashby's increasingly erratic behavior, such as pacifying former girlfriends by hiring them to edit ''Lookin' To Get Out''. Studio executives grew less tolerant of his increasingly perfectionist editing techniques, exemplified by his laboring over a montage set to The Police's "Message in a Bottle" for nearly six months. Initially set to helm ''Tootsie'' after two years of laborious negotiations, reports of these bizarre tendencies resulted in his dismissal shortly before production commenced.

Shortly thereafter, Ashby — a longtime Rolling Stones fan — accompanied the group on their 1981 American tour, in the process filming the documentary ''Let's Spend the Night Together''. The occupational hazards of the road were too much for Ashby, who overdosed before a show in Phoenix, Arizona. Although the film was eventually completed, it had limited theatrical release.

''The Slugger's Wife'', with a screenplay penned by Neil Simon, continued the losing streak. Ostensibly a commercially-minded romantic comedy, Simon was reportedly horrified when he viewed Ashby's rough cut of the first reel, sequenced as an impressionistic mood piece with the first half hour featuring minimal dialogue. Remaining defiant in his squabbles with producers and Simon, Ashby was eventually fired in the final stages of production; the completed film was a critical and commercial failure. ''8 Million Ways to Die'', written by Oliver Stone, fared similarly at the box office; by this juncture Ashby's post-production antics were considered to be such a liability that he was fired by the production company on the final day of principal photography.

Death

Attempting to turn a corner in his declining career, Ashby stopped using drugs, trimmed his hair and beard, and began to frequent Hollywood parties wearing a navy blue blazer so as to suggest that he was once again "respectable". Despite these efforts, however, word of his unreliable reputation had spread throughout the entertainment industry and he could only find work as a television director, helming the pilots for ''Beverly Hills Buntz'' (a Dennis Franz vehicle that purloined the premise of ''Beverly Hills Cop'' and lasted for 13 episodes) and ''Jake's Journey'', a planned collaboration in the Arthurian sword and sorcery vein with Graham Chapman of Monty Python fame. The latter never came to fruition because of the creators' ailing health.

Longtime friend Warren Beatty advised Ashby to seek medical care after he complained of various medical problems, including undiagnosed phlebitis; he was soon diagnosed with pancreatic cancer that rapidly spread to his lungs, colon and liver. A few of Ashby's friends grew incensed when his girlfriend Grif Griffis, who had been by his side day in and day out, insisted upon homeopathic treatments after all medical treatments had failed, and refused to let them see him. Ashby died on December 27, 1988 at his home in Malibu, California.

Sean Penn's directorial debut ''The Indian Runner'' is dedicated to Ashby and his contemporary, pioneering independent filmmaker/actor John Cassavetes.

Legacy

Today Ashby stands as an underappreciated filmmaker of the New Hollywood era, with only one web site dedicated to his works and no critical retrospectives of note as of 2006. Some have attributed this to his lack of a distinctive "style",(though looking through his movies one can see recurring themes, images and motifs); with his oeuvre ranging from heartfelt drama to dark, biting social satire to farce with no consistent pattern. ''Being There'' has always elicited the most criticism, but this is mostly in regard to its controversial ending. In the opinion of actor Bruce Dern, "What happened to Hal Ashby, both what he did to himself and what they did to him, was as repulsive as anything I've seen in my forty years of the industry".

A biography written by Nick Dawson entitled ''Being Hal Ashby: Life of a Hollywood Rebel'' was published in March 2009. Ashby was also discussed, and his output as director examined, at length in Peter Biskind's seminal book '' Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex-Drugs-And Rock 'N Roll Generation Saved Hollywood'' (1998).

Also in 2009, a tribute was held to honor the work of Hal Ashby. The event was hosted by Cameron Crowe in the Samuel Goldwyn Theater. Among those in attendance, on June 25, 2009, was the musician, Yusuf Islam, formerly known as Cat Stevens. "The impact of my musical legacy was due in part to the fact that Hal Ashby embraced my albums and used them as a soundtrack for his amazing film ''Harold and Maude''. People are as tied to that film as they are to my music and this event is an opportunity for me to honour the memory of the man", said Yusuf.

Filmography (as director)

''Harold and Maude'' ''The Last Detail'' ''Shampoo (film) ''Bound for Glory (film) ''Coming Home (film) ''Being There'' ''Second-Hand Hearts'' ''Lookin' to Get Out'' ''Let's Spend the Night Together (film) ''Solo Trans'' ''The Slugger's Wife'' ''8 Million Ways to Die'' ''Jake's Journey'' (TV)

Year !! Film !! Academy Award Wins !! Academy Award Nominations
1970	''The Landlord''	0
1971	|
1973	|	0	3
1975	Shampoo'' ||	1	4
1976	Bound for Glory'' ||	2	6
1978	Coming Home'' ||	3	8
1979	|	1	2
1981	|
1982	|
1983	Let's Spend the Night Together'' ||
1984	|
1985	|
1986	|
1988	|

References

External links

Hal Ashby on Find-A-Grave

Senses of Cinema: Great Directors Critical Database

The Director's Director – discussion by directors Ashby influenced

Literature on Hal Ashby

Category:American film directors Category:American film editors Category:People from Ogden, Utah Category:American Latter Day Saints Category:American vegetarians Category:Best Film Editing Academy Award winners Category:Deaths from pancreatic cancer Category:1929 births Category:1988 deaths Category:Cancer deaths in California Category:American film producers

an:Hal Ashby da:Hal Ashby de:Hal Ashby es:Hal Ashby fa:هال اشبی fr:Hal Ashby hr:Hal Ashby id:Hal Ashby it:Hal Ashby nl:Hal Ashby ja:ハル・アシュビー pl:Hal Ashby pt:Hal Ashby ru:Эшби, Хэл fi:Hal Ashby sv:Hal Ashby

name	Yusuf Islam / Cat Stevens
background	solo_singer
birth name	Steven Demetre Georgiou
alias	Steve Adams, Yusuf
born	July 21, 1948Marylebone, LondonEngland, United Kingdom
instrument	Vocals, guitar, bass, mandolin, organ, piano, mellotron, double bass, percussion
genre	Folk rock, psychedelic rock, soft rock, pop rock, nasheed, spoken word, hamd
occupation	Singer-songwriter, musician
years active	1966–1980 (as Cat Stevens)1995–present (as Yusuf Islam)
label	Deram (1966-1969)Island (1970-1980) A&M; (1970-1980) Jamal Records Ya Records
associated acts	Alun Davies
website	www.yusufislam.org.uk
notable instruments	Baldwin PianoEpiphone CasinoEpiphone EJ-200Fender RhodesFender TelecasterGibson Everly Brothers FlattopGibson ES-335Gibson J-200Hagstrom BJ12Ovation electro-acoustic Guitar }}

Yusuf Islam (born Steven Demetre Georgiou, 21 July 1948) originally and commonly known by his former stage name Cat Stevens, is an English musician. He is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, educator, philanthropist, and prominent convert to Islam.

His early 1970s record albums ''Tea for the Tillerman'' and ''Teaser and the Firecat'' were both certified as Triple Platinum by the RIAA in the United States; his 1972 album ''Catch Bull at Four'' sold half a million copies in the first two weeks of release alone and was ''Billboard'''s number-one LP for three consecutive weeks. He has also earned two ASCAP songwriting awards in consecutive years for "The First Cut Is the Deepest", which has been a hit single for four different artists.

Stevens converted to Islam in December 1977 and adopted his Muslim name, Yusuf Islam, the following year. In 1979, he auctioned all his guitars for charity and left his music career to devote himself to educational and philanthropic causes in the Muslim community. He has been given several awards for his work in promoting peace in the world, including 2003's World Award, the 2004 Man for Peace Award, and the 2007 Mediterranean Prize for Peace. In 2006, he returned to pop music with his first album of new pop songs in 28 years, entitled ''An Other Cup''. He now goes professionally by the single name Yusuf. His newest album, ''Roadsinger'', was released on 5 May 2009.

Early life (1948–1965)

Steven Georgiou, born in Marylebone, London, England, was the third child of a Greek-Cypriot father, Stavros Georgiou (b. 1900), and a Swedish mother, Ingrid Wickman (b. 1915). He has an older sister, Anita, and brother, David. The family lived above Moulin Rouge, the restaurant that his parents operated on the north end of Shaftesbury Avenue, a short walk from Piccadilly Circus in the Soho theatre district of London. All family members worked in the restaurant. His parents divorced when he was about 8 years old, but they continued to maintain the family restaurant and live above it.

Although his father was Greek Orthodox and his mother a Swedish Baptist, Georgiou was sent to a Catholic school, St. Joseph Roman Catholic Primary School in Macklin Street, which was closer to his father's business on Drury Lane. Georgiou developed an interest in piano at a fairly young age, eventually using the family baby grand piano to work out the chords, since no one else there played well enough to teach him. Inspired by the popularity of The Beatles, at age 15 he extended his interest to the guitar, convinced his father to pay £8 for his first instrument, and began playing it and writing songs. He would escape at times from his family responsibilities to the rooftop above their home, and listen to the tunes of the musicals drifting from just around the corner; from Denmark Street, which was then the centre of the British music industry. Later, Stevens has emphasized that the advent of ''West Side Story'' in particular affected him, giving him a "different view of life", he said in 2000, on a VH1 ''Behind the Music'' programme. With interests in both art and music, he and his mother moved to Gävle, Sweden, where he attended primary school (Solängsskolan). In Gävle he also started developing his drawing skills after being influenced by his uncle Hugo Wickman, a painter.

He attended other local West End schools, where he says he was constantly in trouble, and did poorly in everything but art. He was called "the artist boy" and mentions that "I was beat up, but I was noticed". He went on to take a one-year course of study at Hammersmith School of Art, as he considered a career as a cartoonist. Though he enjoyed art (his later record albums would feature his original artwork on his album covers), he wanted to establish a musical career and began to perform originally under the stage name "Steve Adams" in 1965 while at Hammersmith. At that point, his goal was to become a songwriter. Among the musicians who influenced him were Bob Dylan, Nina Simone, blues artists Lead Belly and Muddy Waters, John Lennon, Biff Rose (who played on his first album), Leo Kottke, and Paul Simon. He also wanted to emulate composers who wrote musicals, like Ira Gershwin and Leonard Bernstein. In 1965 he signed a publishing deal with Ardmore & Beechwood and cut several demos, including "The First Cut Is the Deepest".

Musical career (1966–1970)

Early musical career

Georgiou began to perform his songs in coffee houses and pubs. At first he tried forming a band, but soon realised he preferred performing solo. Thinking that his given name might not be memorable to prospective fans, he chose a stage name ''Cat Stevens'', in part because a girlfriend said he had eyes like a cat, but mainly because he said, "I couldn't imagine anyone going to the record store and asking for 'that Steven Demetre Georgiou album'. And in England, and I was sure in America, they loved animals." In 1966, at age 18, he impressed manager/producer Mike Hurst, formerly of British vocal group The Springfields, with his songs and Hurst arranged for him to record a demo and then helped him get a record deal. The first singles were hits. "I Love My Dog" charted at #28, and "Matthew and Son", the title song from his debut album, went to #2. "I'm Gonna Get Me a Gun" reached Britain's Top 10, and the album ''Matthew and Son'' itself began charting. The original version of the The Tremeloes cover hit, "Here Comes My Baby", was written and recorded by Stevens.

Over the next two years, Stevens recorded and toured with artists ranging from Jimi Hendrix to Engelbert Humperdinck. The music business had not yet begun targeting specific audiences, so he frequently toured with what now would be considered an unusual array of celebrities. Stevens was considered a fresh-faced teen star, placing several single releases in the British pop music charts. Some of that success was attributed to the pirate radio station Wonderful Radio London, which gained him fans by playing his records. In August 1967, he went on the air with other recording artists who had benefited from the station to mourn its closure.

His December 1967 album ''New Masters'' failed to chart in the United Kingdom. The album is now most notable for his song "The First Cut Is the Deepest", a song he sold for £30 to P.P. Arnold that was to become a massive hit for her, and an international hit for Keith Hampshire, Rod Stewart, James Morrison, and Sheryl Crow. Forty years after he recorded the first demo of the song, it earned him two back-to-back ASCAP "Songwriter of the Year" awards, in 2005 and 2006.

Tuberculosis

Stevens contracted tuberculosis in 1969 and was close to death at the time of his admittance to the King Edward VII Hospital, Midhurst; he spent months recuperating in hospital and a year of convalescence. During this time Stevens began to question aspects of his life, and spirituality. He later said, "to go from the show business environment and find you are in hospital, getting injections day in and day out, and people around you are dying, it certainly changes your perspective. I got down to thinking about myself. It seemed almost as if I had my eyes shut."

He took up meditation, yoga, and metaphysics; read about other religions; and became a vegetarian. As a result of his serious illness and long convalescence, and as a part of his spiritual awakening and questioning, he wrote as many as forty songs, many of which would appear on his albums in years to come.

Changes in musical sound after illness

The lack of success of Stevens' second album mirrored a difference of personal tastes in musical direction, and a growing resentment at producer Mike Hurst's attempts to re-create another album like that of his debut, with heavy-handed orchestration, and over-production, rather than the folk rock sound Stevens was attempting to produce. He admits having purposefully sabotaged his own contract with Hurst, making outlandishly expensive orchestral demands and threatening legal action, which resulted in his goal: release from his contract with Deram Records, a sub-label of major Decca Records. Upon regaining his health at home after his release from the hospital, Stevens recorded some of his newly written songs on his tape recorder, and played his changing sound for a few new record executives. After hiring agent Barry Krost, who had arranged for an audition with Chris Blackwell of Island Records, Blackwell offered him a "chance to record [his songs] whenever and with whomever he liked, and more importantly to Cat, however he liked". With Krost's recommendation, Stevens signed with Paul Samwell-Smith, previously the bassist of the Yardbirds, to be his new producer.

Musical career (1970–1978)

Height of popularity

Healthy and sporting a new beard, Stevens was armed with a catalogue of new songs that reflected his new perspective on what he wanted to bring to the world with his music. His previous work had sold in the United Kingdom, but Stevens was still relatively unknown by the public across the Atlantic. To rectify this, after signing with Island Records in 1970, an American distribution deal was arranged with A&M; Records' Jerry Moss in North America. Stevens began work on ''Mona Bone Jakon'', a folk-rock based album that was quite different from his earlier "pop" style records, drawing on his new, introspective work. Producer Paul Samwell-Smith paired guitarist Alun Davies, who was currently working as a session musician, with Stevens. Alun was the more experienced veteran of two albums which already had begun to explore the emerging genres of skiffle and folk rock music. Davies was also thought a perfect fit in particular for his "fingerwork" on the guitar, harmonizing and contributing backing vocals with Stevens. They originally met just to record ''Mona Bone Jakon'', but developed a fast friendship; Davies, like Stevens, was a perfectionist, appearing after all the sound checks had been completed, just to be sure that all the equipment and sound were prepared for each concert. He recorded on all but two of the succeeding pop music albums Stevens released, and continued performing and recording with him until Stevens' retirement. The two remained friends, however, and years later, when Stevens re-emerged as Yusuf Islam after 27 years, Davies appeared again performing at his side, and has remained there.

The first single released from ''Mona Bone Jakon'' was "Lady D'Arbanville", which Stevens wrote about his young American girlfriend Patti D'Arbanville. The record, with a madrigal sound unlike most music played on pop radio, with sounds of djembes and bass in addition to Stevens' and Davies' guitars, reached #8 in the UK. It was the first of his hits to get real airplay in the United States. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold record in 1971. Other songs written for her included "Maybe You're Right", and "Just Another Night". In addition, the song, "Pop Star", about his experience as a teen star, and "Katmandu", featuring Genesis frontman Peter Gabriel playing flute, were featured. ''Mona Bone Jakon'' was an early example of the solo singer-songwriter album format that was becoming popular for other artists as well. ''Rolling Stone'' magazine compared its popularity with that of Elton John's ''Tumbleweed Connection'', saying it was played "across the board, across radio formats".

''Mona Bone Jakon'' was the precursor for Stevens' international breakthrough album, ''Tea for the Tillerman'', which became a top-10 ''Billboard'' hit. Within six months of its release, it had sold over 500,000 copies, attaining gold record status in the United States and in Britain. The combination of Stevens' new folk-rock style and accessible lyrics which spoke of everyday situations and problems, mixed with the beginning of spiritual questions about life, would remain in his music from then on. The album features the top 20 single "Wild World"; a parting song after D'Arbanville moved on. "Wild World" has been credited as the song that gave ''Tea for the Tillerman'' 'enough kick' to get it played on FM radio; and the head of Island Records, Chris Blackwell, was quoted as calling it "the best album we’ve ever released". Other album cuts include "Hard-Headed Woman", and "Father and Son", a song sung both in baritone and tenor, about the struggle between fathers and their sons who are faced with their own personal choices in life. In 2001, this album was certified by the RIAA as a Multi-Platinum record, having sold 3 million copies in the United States at that time. It is ranked at #206 in ''Rolling Stone Magazine's'' 2003 list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".

After the end of his relationship with D'Arbanville, Stevens noted the effect it had on writing his music, saying,

"Everything I wrote while I was away was in a transitional period and reflects that. Like Patti. A year ago we split; I had been with her for two years. What I write about Patti and my family... when I sing the songs now, I learn strange things. I learn the meanings of my songs late..."

Having established a signature sound, Stevens enjoyed a string of successes over the following years. 1971's ''Teaser and the Firecat'' album reached number two and achieved gold record status within three weeks of its release in the United States. It yielded several hits, including "Peace Train", "Morning Has Broken" (a Christian hymn with lyrics by Eleanor Farjeon), and "Moon Shadow". This album was also certified by the RIAA as a Multi-Platinum record in 2001, with over three million US sales through that time. When interviewed on a Boston radio station, Stevens said about ''Teaser and the Firecat'':

"I get the tune and then I just keep on singing the tune until the words come out from the tune. It's kind of a hypnotic state that you reach after a while when you keep on playing it where words just evolve from it. So you take those words and just let them go whichever way they want... 'Moonshadow'? Funny, that was in Spain, I went there alone, completely alone, to get away from a few things. And I was dancin' on the rocks there... right on the rocks where the waves were, like, blowin' and splashin'. Really, it was so fantastic. And the moon was bright, ya know, and I started dancin' and singin' and I sang that song and it stayed. It's just the kind of moment that you want to find when you're writin' songs."

For seven months from 1971 to 1972 Stevens was romantically linked to popular singer Carly Simon while both were produced by Samwell-Smith. During that time both wrote songs for and about one another. Simon wrote and recorded at least two top 50 songs, "Legend in Your Own Time" and "Anticipation" about Stevens. He reciprocated in his song to her, after their romance, entitled, "Sweet Scarlet".

His next album, ''Catch Bull at Four'', released in 1972, was his most rapidly successful album in the United States, reaching gold record status in 15 days, and holding the number-one position on the ''Billboard'' charts for three weeks. This album continued the introspective and spiritual lyrics that he was known for, combined with a rougher-edged voice and a less acoustic sound than his previous records, utilizing synthesizers and other instruments. Although the sales of the album indicated Stevens' popularity, the album did not produce any real hits, with the exception of the single "Sitting", which charted at #16. ''Catch Bull at Four'' was Platinum certified in 2001.

Exploration with movie soundtracks

In July 1970, Stevens recorded one of his songs, "But I Might Die Tonight", for the Jerzy Skolimowski film ''Deep End''. In 1971, Stevens provided nine songs to the soundtrack of the black comedy ''Harold and Maude'' which became a popular cult movie celebrating the free spirit, and brought Stevens' music to a wider audience, continuing to do so long after he stopped recording in the late 1970s. Among the songs were "Where Do the Children Play?," "Trouble," and "I Think I See the Light." Two of the songs, "Don't Be Shy" and "If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out," were not released on any album until their inclusion in 1984 on a second "greatest hits" collection: ''Footsteps in the Dark: Greatest Hits, Vol. 2.''

After his religious conversion in the late 1970s, Stevens stopped granting permission for his songs to be used in films. However, almost twenty years later, in 1997, the movie ''Rushmore'' was allowed to use his songs "Here Comes My Baby" and "The Wind", showing a new willingness on his part to release his music from his Western "pop star" days. This was followed in 2000 by the inclusion of "Peace Train" in the movie ''Remember the Titans'', in 2000 by the use in ''Almost Famous'' of the song "The Wind", and in 2006 the inclusion of "Peace Train" on the soundtrack to ''We Are Marshall''. In 2007, an excerpt of "If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out" is sung by characters in ''Charlie Bartlett'' whose title character resembles the character of Harold in ''Harold and Maude'', where the song first appeared. In 2009, the song "Father and Son" was in the soundtrack of the movie ''The Boat That Rocked'' (known as ''Pirate Radio'' in the U.S.).

Later Cat Stevens recordings

Subsequent releases in the 1970s also did well on the charts and in ongoing sales, although they did not touch the success he had from 1970 to 1973. In 1973, Stevens moved to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, as a tax exile from the United Kingdom, (however, he later donated the money to UNESCO). During that time he created the album ''Foreigner'', which was a departure from the music that had brought him to the height of his fame. It differed in several respects: entirely written by Stevens, he dropped his band and produced the record without the assistance of Samwell-Smith, who had played a large role in catapulting him to fame, and instead of guitar, he played keyboard instruments throughout the album. It was intended to show a funk/soul element rising in popularity that Stevens had come to appreciate. One side of ''Foreigner'' was continuous, much different from the radio-friendly pop tunes fans had come to expect. In November 1973 he performed side two of the album at the Aquarius Theater in Hollywood, with a pre-arranged uninterrupted quadraphonic simulcast on the ABC network titled the "Moon and Star" concert; this performance included his band, but they were all but overshadowed by an orchestra. The album produced a couple of singles including "The Hurt", but did not reach the heights he had once enjoyed.

The follow-up to ''Foreigner'' was ''Buddha and the Chocolate Box'', largely a return to the instrumentation and styles employed in ''Teaser and the Firecat'' and ''Tea for the Tillerman''. Featuring the return of Alun Davies and best known for "Oh Very Young", ''Buddha and the Chocolate Box'' reached platinum status in 2001. Stevens' next album was the concept album ''Numbers'', a less successful departure for him.

The 1977 ''Izitso'' included his last chart hit, "(Remember the Days of the) Old Schoolyard", a duet with fellow UK singer Elkie Brooks. Linda Lewis appears in the song's video, with Cat Stevens singing to her, as they portray former schoolmates, singing to each other on a schoolyard merry-go-round. This is one of few videos that Stevens made, other than simple videos of concert performances. The album is also notable for "Was Dog a Doughnut", a precursor to the electro music genre of the 1980s.

His final original album under the name Cat Stevens was ''Back to Earth'', released in late 1978, which was also the first album produced by Samwell-Smith since his peak in single album sales in the early 1970s.

Several compilation albums were released before and after he stopped recording. After Stevens left Decca Records they bundled his first two albums together as a set, hoping to ride the commercial tide of his early success; later his newer labels did the same, and he himself released compilations. The most successful of the compilation albums was the 1975 ''Greatest Hits'' which has sold over 4 million copies in the United States. In May 2003 he received his first Platinum Europe Award from the IFPI for ''Remember Cat Stevens, The Ultimate Collection'', indicating over one million European sales.

Religious conversion

While on holiday in Marrakech, Morocco, shortly after visiting Ibiza, Stevens was intrigued by the sound of the Aḏhān, the Islamic ritual call to prayer, which was explained to him as "music for God". Stevens said, "I thought, music for God? I’d never heard that before – I’d heard of music for money, music for fame, music for personal power, but music for God!"

In 1976 Stevens nearly drowned off the coast of Malibu, California, USA and said he shouted: “Oh God! If you save me I will work for you.” He related that right afterward a wave appeared and carried him back to shore. This brush with death intensified his long-held quest for spiritual truth. He had looked into "Buddhism, Zen, I Ching, Numerology, tarot cards and Astrology". Stevens' brother David Gordon brought him a copy of the Qur'an as a birthday gift from a trip to Jerusalem. Stevens took to it right away, and began his transition to Islam.

During the time he was studying the Qur'an, he began to identify more and more with the name of Joseph, a man bought and sold in the market place, which is how he says he had increasingly felt within the music business. Regarding his conversion, in his 2006 interview with Alan Yentob, he stated, "to some people, it may have seemed like an enormous jump, but for me, it was a gradual move to this." And, in a ''Rolling Stone'' magazine interview, he reaffirmed this, saying, "I had found the spiritual home I'd been seeking for most of my life. And if you listen to my music and lyrics, like "Peace Train" and "On The Road To Find Out", it clearly shows my yearning for direction and the spiritual path I was travelling."

Stevens formally converted to the Islamic religion on 23 December 1977, taking the name Yusuf Islam in 1978. Yusuf is the Arabic rendition of the name Joseph. He stated that he "always loved the name Joseph" and was particularly drawn to the story of Joseph in the Qur'an. Although he discontinued his pop career, he was persuaded to perform one last time before what would become his twenty-five year musical hiatus. Appearing with his hair freshly shorn and an untrimmed beard, he headlined a charity concert on 22 November 1979 in Wembley Stadium to benefit UNICEF's International Year of the Child. The concert closed with a performance by Stevens, David Essex, Alun Davies, and Stevens' brother, David, who wrote the song that was the finale, "Child for a Day".

Yusuf married Fauzia Mubarak Ali on 7 September 1979, at Regent's Park Mosque in London. They have five children and currently live in London, spending part of each year in Dubai.

Life as Yusuf Islam (1978–present)

Muslim faith and musical career

Following his conversion, Yusuf abandoned his music career. When he became a Muslim in 1977, he said, the Imam at the mosque was told that he was a pop star, and he told Yusuf that it was fine to continue as a musician, so long as the songs were morally acceptable. But Yusuf says he knew there were aspects of the music business, such as vanity and temptations, that did go against the teachings of the Qur'an, and this was the primary reason he gave for retreating from the spotlight. But in his first performance on the television show ''Later... with Jools Holland'', 27 years after leaving the music business, and in other interviews, he gave different reasons for leaving: "A lot of people would have loved me to keep singing," he said. "You come to a point where you have sung, more or less ... your whole repertoire and you want to get down to the job of living. You know, up until that point, I hadn't had a life. I'd been searching, been on the road."

Estimating in January 2007 that he continues to earn approximately $1.5 million USD a year from his Cat Stevens music, he decided to use his accumulated wealth and ongoing earnings from his music career on philanthropic and educational causes in the Muslim community of London and elsewhere. In 1981, he founded the Islamia Primary School in Salusbury Road in the north London area of Kilburn and, soon after, founded several Muslim secondary schools; in 1992, Yusuf set up The Association of Muslim Schools (AMS-UK), a charity that brought together all the Muslim schools in the UK, and served as chairman. He is also the founder and chairman of the ''Small Kindness'' charity, which initially assisted famine victims in Africa and now supports thousands of orphans and families in the Balkans, Indonesia, and Iraq. He served as chairman of the charity Muslim Aid from 1985 to 1993.

In 1985, Yusuf decided to return to the public spotlight for the first time since his religious conversion, at the historic Live Aid concert, concerned with the famine threatening Ethiopia. Though he had written a song especially for the occasion, his appearance was skipped when Elton John's set ran too long.

Salman Rushdie controversy

The singer attracted controversy in 1989, during an address to students at London's Kingston University, where he was asked about the fatwa calling for the death of author Salman Rushdie. The media interpreted his response as support for the fatwa. Yusuf released a statement the following day denying that he supported vigilantism, and claiming that he had merely recounted the legal Islamic punishment for blasphemy. In a BBC interview, he displayed a newspaper clipping from that period, with quotes from his statement. Subsequent comments made by him in 1989 on a British television programme were also seen as being in support of the fatwa. In a statement in the FAQ section of one of his Web sites, Yusuf asserted that while he regretted the comments, he was joking and that the show was improperly edited. In the years since these comments, he has repeatedly denied ever calling for the death of Rushdie or supporting the fatwa.

September 11 attacks

Immediately following the 11 September 2001, attacks on the United States, he said:

:I wish to express my heartfelt horror at the indiscriminate terrorist attacks committed against innocent people of the United States yesterday. While it is still not clear who carried out the attack, it must be stated that no right-thinking follower of Islam could possibly condone such an action. The Qur'an equates the murder of one innocent person with the murder of the whole of humanity. We pray for the families of all those who lost their lives in this unthinkable act of violence as well as all those injured; I hope to reflect the feelings of all Muslims and people around the world whose sympathies go out to the victims of this sorrowful moment.

He appeared on videotape on a VH1 pre-show for the October 2001 Concert for New York City, condemning the attacks and singing his song "Peace Train" for the first time in public in more than 20 years, as an ''a cappella'' version. He also donated a portion of his box-set royalties to the Fund for victims' families, and the rest to orphans in underdeveloped countries. During the same year, Yusuf Islam dedicated time and effort in joining the Forum Against Islamophobia and Racism, an organization that worked towards battling misperceptions and acts against others because of their religious beliefs and/or racial identity, after many Muslims reported a backlash against them due in part to the grief caused by the events in the United States on 9-11.

Denial of entry into the United States

On 21 September 2004, Yusuf was on a United Airlines flight from London to Washington, travelling to a meeting with U.S. entertainer Dolly Parton, who had recorded "Peace Train" several years earlier and was planning to include another Cat Stevens song on an upcoming album. While the plane was in flight, his name was flagged as being on a no fly list. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers alerted the United States Transportation Security Administration, which then diverted his flight to Bangor, Maine, where he was detained by officers from the Department of Homeland Security.

The following day, Yusuf was denied entry and flown back to the United Kingdom. A spokesman for Homeland Security claimed there were "concerns of ties he may have to potential terrorist-related activities". The Israeli government had deported Yusuf in 2000 over allegations that he provided funding to the Palestinian organisation Hamas; he denied doing so knowingly. "I have never knowingly supported or given money to Hamas," says Yusuf, who repeatedly has condemned terrorism and Islamic extremism. "At the time I was reported to have done it, I didn't know such a group existed. Some people give a political interpretation to charity. We were horrified at how people were suffering in the Holy Land." However, the United States Department of Homeland Security added him to a "watch list". The US removal provoked a small international controversy, and led British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw to complain personally to US Secretary of State Colin Powell at the United Nations. Powell responded by stating that the watchlist was under review, adding, "I think we have that obligation to review these matters to see if we are right".

Yusuf believed his inclusion on a "watch list" may have simply been an error: a mistaken identification of him for a man with the same name, but different spelling. On 1 October 2004 Yusuf requested the removal of his name, "I remain bewildered by the decision of the US authorities to refuse me entry to the United States". According to a statement by Yusuf, the man on the list was named "Youssef Islam", indicating that Yusuf himself was not the suspected terrorism supporter. Romanization of Arabic names can easily result in different spellings: the transliteration of the Islamic name for Joseph (Yusuf's chosen name) lists a dozen spellings.

Two years later, in December 2006 Yusuf was admitted without incident into the United States for several radio concert performances and interviews to promote his new record. Yusuf said of the incident at the time, that, "No reason was ever given, but being asked to repeat the spelling of my name again and again, made me think it was a fairly simple mistake of identity. Rumors which circulated after made me imagine otherwise."

Yusuf has written a song about the 2004 exclusion from the U.S., entitled "Boots and Sand", recorded in the summer of 2008 and featuring Paul McCartney, Alison Krauss, Dolly Parton, and Terry Sylvester.

Libel cases

British reports regarding inadmissibility to the U.S.

In October 2004 the British newspapers ''The Sun'' and ''The Sunday Times'' voiced their support for Yusuf's exclusion from the U.S., claiming that he had supported terrorism. Yusuf successfully sued for libel and received a substantial out-of-court financial settlement and apologies from the newspapers stating that he had never supported terrorism and acknowledging that he had recently been given a Man of Peace award from the private Nobel Peace Prize Laureates Committee. However ''The Sunday Times'' managing editor Richard Caseby said that while there was an "agreed settlement", they "always denied liability" and "disagreed with Cat Stevens' lawyers interpretation", but took a "pragmatic view" of the lawsuit.

Yusuf responded that he was "delighted by the settlement [which] helps vindicate my character and good name. ... It seems to be the easiest thing in the world these days to make scurrilous accusations against Muslims, and in my case it directly impacts on my relief work and damages my reputation as an artist. The harm done is often difficult to repair", and added that he intended to donate the financial award given to him by the court to help orphans of the tsunami in the Indian Ocean.

Yusuf wrote about the experience in a newspaper article titled "A Cat in a Wild World".

False rumour regarding unveiled women

On 18 July 2008, Yusuf received substantial undisclosed damages from the World Entertainment News Network following their distribution of the false rumour that the singer did not speak to unveiled women. The allegations first surfaced in German newspaper [[B.Z. (newspaper)| B.Z.]] after Yusuf's trip to Berlin in March 2007 to collect the Echo music award for "life achievements as musician and ambassador between cultures". Once again he was awarded damages after the World Entertainment News Network allowed an article to be published on Contactmusic.com, a "website said to have 2.2 million page views a month", alleging that Yusuf would not speak to unveiled women with the exception of his wife. His solicitor was reported as having said that "he was made out to be 'so sexist and bigoted that he refused at an awards ceremony to speak to or even acknowledge any women who were not wearing a veil'". The offending news agency apologized, admitting that Yusuf has never had any problem in working with women and, contrary to the article in question, never has required a third party as an intermediary to function at work. The money from this lawsuit will go to Yusuf's ''Small Kindness'' Charity.

Yusuf himself discusses this topic on his website, saying, "It’s true that I have asked my manager to respectfully request lady presenters refrain from embracing me when giving awards or during public appearances, but that has nothing to do with my feelings or respect for them. Islam simply requires me to honour the dignity of ladies or young girls who are not closely related to me, and avoid physical intimacy, however innocent it may be." He adds, "My four daughters all follow the basic wearing of clothes which modestly cover their God-given beauty. They’re extremely well educated; they do not cover their faces and interact perfectly well with friends and society."

Return to music

Yusuf gradually resumed his musical career in the 1990s. His initial recordings had not included any musical instruments other than percussion, and featured lyrics about Islamic themes. He invested in building his own recording studio which he named Mountain of Light Studios in the late 1990s, and he was featured as a guest singer on "God Is the Light", a song on an album of nasheeds by the group Raihan. In addition, he invited and collaborated with other Muslim singers, including Canadian artist Dawud Wharnsby. After Yusuf's friend, Irfan Ljubijankic, the Foreign Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina, was killed by a Serbian rocket attack, Yusuf appeared at a 1997 benefit concert in Sarajevo and recorded a benefit album named after a song written by Ljubijankic, ''I Have No Cannons That Roar''. Realizing there were few educational resources designed to teach children about the Islamic religion, Yusuf wrote and produced a children's album, ''A Is for Allah'', in 2000 with the assistance of South African singer-songwriter Zain Bhikha. The title song was one Yusuf had written years before to introduce his first child to both the religion and the Arabic alphabet. He also established his own record label, "Jamal Records", and Mountain of Light Productions, and he donates a percentage of his projects' proceeds to his ''Small Kindness'' charity, whose name is taken from the Qur'an.

On the occasion of the 2000 re-release of his Cat Stevens albums, he explained that he had stopped performing in English due to his misunderstanding of the Islamic faith. "This issue of music in Islam is not as cut-and-dried as I was led to believe ... I relied on heresy ''[sic]'', that was perhaps my mistake."

Yusuf has reflected that his decision to leave the Western pop music business was perhaps too quick with too little communication for his fans. For most, it was a surprise, and even his guitarist, Alun Davies said in later interviews that he hadn't believed that Stevens would actually go through with it, after his many forays into other religions throughout their relationship. Yusuf himself has said the "cut" between his former life and his life as a Muslim might have been too quick, too severe, and that more people might have been better informed about Islam, and given an opportunity to better understand it, and himself, if he had simply removed those items that were considered ''harām'', in his performances, allowing him to express himself musically and educate listeners through his music without violating any religious constraints.

In 2003, after repeated encouragement from within the Muslim world, Yusuf once again recorded "Peace Train" for a compilation CD, which also included performances by David Bowie and Paul McCartney. He performed "Wild World" in Nelson Mandela's 46664 concert with his former session player Peter Gabriel, the first time he had publicly performed in English in 25 years. In December 2004, he and Ronan Keating released a new version of "Father and Son": the song entered the charts at number two, behind Band Aid 20's "Do They Know It's Christmas?". They also produced a video of the pair walking between photographs of fathers and sons, while singing the song. The proceeds of "Father and Son" were donated to the Band Aid charity. Keating's former group, Boyzone, had a hit with the song a decade earlier. As he had been persuaded before, Yusuf contributed to the song, because the proceeds were marked for charity. However, this marked a point in his artistic career where he entertained the concept of using more than simply voice and drums.

On 21 April 2005 Yusuf gave a short talk before a scheduled musical performance in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on the anniversary of Muhammad's birthday. He said, "There is a great deal of ignorance in the world about Islam today, and we hope to communicate with the help of something more refined than lectures and talks. Our recordings are particularly appealing to the young, having used songs as well as Qur'an verses with pleasing sound effects..." Yusuf observed that there are no real guidelines about instruments and no references about the business of music in the Qur'an, and that Muslim travellers first brought the guitar to Moorish Spain. He noted that Muhammad was fond of celebrations, as in the case of the birth of a child, or a traveller arriving after a long journey. Thus, Yusuf concluded that healthy entertainment was acceptable within limitations, and that he now felt that it was no sin to perform with the guitar. Music, he now felt, is uplifting to the soul; something sorely needed in troubled times. At that point, he was joined by several young male singers who sang backing vocals and played a drum, with Yusuf as lead singer and guitarist. They performed two songs, both half in Arabic, and half in English; "Tala'a Al-Badru Alayna", an old song in Arabic which Yusuf recorded with a folk sound to it, and another song, "The Wind East and West", which was newly written by Yusuf and featured a distinct R&B; sound.

With this performance, Yusuf began slowly to integrate instruments into both older material from his Cat Stevens era (some with slight lyrical changes) and new songs, both those known to the Muslim communities around the world and some that have the same Western flair from before with a focus on new topics and another generation of listeners.

In a 2005 press release, he explained his revived recording career:

}}

In early 2005, Yusuf released a new song entitled "Indian Ocean" about the 2004 tsunami disaster. The song featured Indian composer/producer A. R. Rahman, a-ha keyboard player Magne Furuholmen and Travis drummer Neil Primrose. Proceeds of the single went to help orphans in Banda Aceh, one of the areas worst affected by the tsunami, through Yusuf's ''Small Kindness'' charity. At first, the single was released only through several online music stores but later featured on the compilation album ''Cat Stevens: Gold''. "I had to learn my faith and look after my family, and I had to make priorities. But now I've done it all and there's a little space for me to fill in the universe of music again."

On 28 May 2005, Yusuf delivered a keynote speech and performed at the Adopt-A-Minefield Gala in Düsseldorf. The Adopt-A-Minefield charity, under the patronage of Paul McCartney, works internationally to raise awareness and funds to clear landmines and rehabilitate landmine survivors. Yusuf attended as part of an honorary committee which also included George Martin, Richard Branson, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Klaus Voormann, Christopher Lee and others.

In mid-2005, Yusuf played guitar for the Dolly Parton album, ''Those Were the Days'', on her version of his "Where Do the Children Play?". (Parton had also covered "Peace Train" a few years earlier.)

In May 2006, in anticipation of his forthcoming new pop album, the BBC1 programme "Imagine" aired a 49-minute documentary with Alan Yentob called ''Yusuf: The Artist formerly Known as Cat Stevens''. This documentary film features rare audio and video clips from the late 1960s and 1970s, as well as an extensive interview with Yusuf, his brother David Gordon, several record executives, Bob Geldof, Dolly Parton, and others outlining his career as Cat Stevens, his conversion and emergence as Yusuf Islam, and his return to music in 2006. There are clips of him singing in the studio when he was recording ''An Other Cup'' as well as a few 2006 excerpts of him on guitar singing a few verses of Cat Stevens songs including "The Wind" and "On the Road to Find Out".

Yusuf has credited his then 21-year-old son Muhammad Islam, also a musician and artist, for his return to secular music, when the son brought a guitar back into the house, which Yusuf began playing. Muhammad's professional name is Yoriyos and his debut album was released in February 2007. Yoriyos created the art on Yusuf's album ''An Other Cup'', something that Cat Stevens did for his albums in the 1970s.

Starting in 2006, the Cat Stevens song "Tea for The Tillerman" was used as the theme tune for the Ricky Gervais BBC-HBO sitcom ''Extras''. A Christmas-season television commercial for gift-giving by the diamond industry aired in 2006 with Cat Power's cover of "How Can I Tell You". That song is also covered by John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers frequently in concert.

In December 2006, Yusuf was one of the artists who performed at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo, Norway, in honour of the prize winners, Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank. He performed the songs "Midday (Avoid City After Dark)", "Peace Train", and "Heaven/Where True Love Goes". He also gave a concert in New York City that month as a ''Jazz at Lincoln Center'' event, recorded and broadcast by KCRW-FM radio, along with an interview by Nic Harcourt. Accompanying him, as in the Cat Stevens days, was Alun Davies, on guitar and vocals.

In April 2007, BBC1 broadcast a concert given at the Porchester Hall by Yusuf as part of ''BBC Sessions'', his first live performance in London in 28 years (the previous one being the UNICEF "Year of the Child" concert in 1979). He played several new songs along with some old ones like "Father and Son", "The Wind", "Where Do the Children Play?", "Don't Be Shy", "Wild World", and "Peace Train".

In July 2007, he performed at a concert in Bochum, Germany, in benefit of Archbishop Desmond Tutu's Peace Centre in South Africa and the Milagro Foundation of Deborah and Carlos Santana. The audience included Nobel Laureates Mikhail Gorbachev, Desmond Tutu and other prominent global figures. He later appeared as the final act in the German leg of Live Earth in Hamburg performing some classic Cat Stevens songs and more recent compositions reflecting his concern for peace and child welfare. His set included Stevie Wonder's "Saturn", "Peace Train", "Where Do the Children Play?", "Ruins", and "Wild World". He performed at the Peace One Day concert at the Royal Albert Hall on 21 September 2007. In 2008 Yusuf contributed the song "Edge of Existence" to the charity album ''Songs for Survival'', in support of the indigenous rights organization Survival International.

In January 2009, Yusuf released a charity song in aid of children in Gaza. He recorded a rendition of the George Harrison song "The Day the World Gets Round", along with the German bassist and former Beatles collaborator Klaus Voorman. Yusuf said that all proceeds from the song will be donated to the U.N. agency in charge of Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, and to the nonprofit group Save the Children to be directed to aiding Gaza residents. Israeli Consul David Saranga criticized Yusuf for not dedicating the song to all the children who are victims of the violence, including Israeli children.

2006: ''An Other Cup''

In March 2006, Yusuf finished recording his first all-new pop album since 1978. The album, ''An Other Cup'', was released internationally in November 2006 on his own label, Ya Records (distributed by Polydor Records in the UK and internationally by Atlantic Records) — the 40th anniversary of his first album, ''Matthew and Son''. A single, called ''Heaven/Where True Love Goes'', was simultaneously released. The album was produced with Rick Nowels, who has worked with Dido and Rod Stewart. The performer is noted as "Yusuf", with a cover label identifying him as "the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens". The art on the album is credited to Yoriyos. Yusuf wrote all of the songs except "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood", and recorded it in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Yusuf actively promoted this album, appearing on radio, television and in print interviews. In November, 2006, he told the BBC, "It's me, so it's going to sound like that of course ... This is the real thing.... When my son brought the guitar back into the house, you know, that was the turning point. It opened a flood of, of new ideas and music which I think a lot of people would connect with." Originally, Yusuf began to return only to his acoustic guitar as he had in the past, but his son encouraged him to "experiment", which resulted in the purchase of a Stevie Ray Vaughan Fender Stratocaster in 2007.

Also in November 2006, ''Billboard'' magazine was curious as to why the artist is credited as just his first name, "Yusuf" rather than "Yusuf Islam". His response was "Because 'Islam' doesn't have to be sloganized. The second name is like the official tag, but you call a friend by their first name. It's more intimate, and to me that's the message of this record." As for why the album sleeve says "the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens", he responded, "That's the tag with which most people are familiar; for recognition purposes I'm not averse to that. For a lot of people, it reminds them of something they want to hold on to. That name is part of my history and a lot of the things I dreamt about as Cat Stevens have come true as Yusuf Islam."

Yusuf was asked by the Swiss periodical ''Das Magazin'' why the title of the album was ''An Other Cup'', rather than "Another Cup". The answer was that his breakthrough album, ''Tea for the Tillerman'' in 1970, was decorated with Yusuf's painting of a peasant sitting down to a cup of steaming drink on the land. Yusuf commented that the two worlds "then, and now, are very different". His new album shows a steaming cup alone on this cover. His answer was that this was actually an ''other'' cup; something different; a bridge between the East and West, which Yusuf explained was his own perceived role. He added that, through him, "Westerners might get a glimpse of the East, and Easterners, some understanding of the West. The cup, too, is important; it's a meeting place, a thing meant to be shared."

On ''CBS Sunday Morning'' in December 2006, he said, "You know, the cup is there to be filled ... with whatever you want to fill it with. For those people looking for Cat Stevens, they'll probably find him in this record. If you want to find [Yusuf] Islam, go a bit deeper, you'll find him."

Yusuf has since described the album as being too "over-produced" and refers to ''An Other Cup'' as being a necessary hurdle he had to overcome before he could release his new album, ''Roadsinger.'' Yusuf compares the relationship between ''An Other Cup'' and ''Roadsinger'' to the relationship between the Cat Stevens albums ''Mona Bone Jakon'' and the landmark ''Tea for the Tillerman'' with the latter being superior in quality to the former.

2009–2011: ''Roadsinger'', appearances and tours

In January 2009, Yusuf recorded a George Harrison song, "The Day the World Gets Round", collaborating with Klaus Voormann. Proceeds from the single were donated to a charity to help the people of war-torn Gaza. To promote the new single, Voormann re-designed his famous Beatles ''Revolver'' album cover, drawing a picture of a young Cat Stevens along with himself and George Harrison. A new pop album, ''Roadsinger'', was released on 5 May 2009. The lead track, "Thinking 'Bout You", received its debut radio play on a BBC programme on 23 March 2009. Unlike ''An Other Cup'', Yusuf promoted the new album with appearances on American television as well as in the U.K. He appeared on the ''Chris Isaak Hour'' on the A&E; network in April 2009, performing live versions of his new songs, "World O'Darkness", "Boots and Sand", and "Roadsinger". On 13 May he appeared on ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' in Los Angeles, and on 14 May, on ''The Colbert Report'' in New York City, performing the title song from the ''Roadsinger'' album. On 15 May, he appeared on ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'', performing "Boots and Sand" and "Father and Son". On 24 May he appeared on the BBC's The Andrew Marr Show, where he was interviewed and performed the title track of ''Roadsinger''. On 15 August, he was one of many guests at Fairport Convention's annual Fairport's Cropredy Convention where he performed five songs accompanied by Alun Davies, with Fairport Convention as his backing band.

A world tour was announced on his web site to promote the new album. He was scheduled to perform at an invitation-only concert at New York City's Highline Ballroom on 3 May and to go on to Los Angeles, Chicago and Toronto, as well as some to-be-announced European venues. However, the New York appearance was postponed due to issues regarding his work visa. He appeared in May 2009 at Island Records' 50th Anniversary concert in London. In November and December 2009 Yusuf undertook his "Guess I'll Take My Time Tour" which also showcased his musical play ''Moonshadow''. The tour took him to Dublin, where he had a mixed reception; subsequently he was well received in Birmingham and Liverpool, culminating in an emotional performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London. In June 2010 he toured Australia for the first time in 36 years, and New Zealand for the first time ever.

On October 30, 2010 Yusuf appeared at Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert's Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear in Washington, DC, singing alongside Ozzy Osbourne. Yusuf performed "Peace Train" and Ozzy performed "Crazy Train" at the same time, followed by The O'Jays performance of "Love Train".

On March 2, 2011, Yusuf released his latest song, "My People", as a free download available through his official website, as well as numerous other online outlets. Said to have been recorded at a studio located within a hundred yards of the site of the Berlin Wall, the song is inspired by a series of popular uprisings in the Arab world.

On April 1, 2011, Yusuf launched a new tour website (yusufinconcert.com) to commemorate his first European tour in over 36 years scheduled from May 7 to June 2, 2011. The ten-date tour will visit Germany, France, the Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, and cities such as Stockholm, Hamburg, Oberhausen, Berlin, Munich, Rotterdam, Paris, Mannheim, Vienna and Brussels.

Awards

Philanthropic and humanitarian awards

2003 World Award also known as the "World Social Award" for "humanitarian relief work helping children and victims of war".

2004 Man for Peace Award presented by Mikhail Gorbachev for his "dedication to promote peace, the reconciliation of people and to condemn terrorism", the ceremony was held in Rome, Italy and attended by five Nobel Peace Prize laureates.

(2005) Honorary Doctorate by the University of Gloucestershire for services to education and humanitarian relief. 4 January 2007, The Mediterranean Prize for Peace in Naples, Italy. The award was received "as a result of the work he has done to increase peace in the world." 10 July 2007, honorary doctorate (LLD) by the University of Exeter, in recognition of "his humanitarian work and improving understanding between Islamic and Western cultures". The ceremony was attended by esteemed personalities including Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu and guitarist Brian May.

6 November 2009, Special Achievement Award of the German Sustainability Award.

Music awards and recognition

2005 Nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 20 October 2005, ASCAP named Songwriter of the Year and Song of the Year for "The First Cut Is the Deepest" 8 June 2006, listed as #49 in ''Paste'' magazine's "100 Best Living Songwriters" 11 October 2006, awarded Songwriter of the Year for the second year running, for the same song "The First Cut Is the Deepest" 25 March 2007, received the German ECHO "special award for life achievements as musician and ambassador between cultures", Europe's Grammy, in Berlin 2008 Nominated for induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame

Discography

:''(includes Yusuf discography)''

See also

List of best-selling music artists

List of converts to Islam

Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time

Notes and references

Further reading

#''Cat Stevens Complete Illustrated Biography & Discography'' by George Brown, 2006 (finalist for the award for "Best Research in Recorded Rock Music" from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections). #''My Journey From Cat Stevens to Yusuf Islam'' By Yusuf Islam (Mountain of Light, 2001 Autobiographical account published by Mountain of Light in 2001. #''Cat Stevens biography'' by Chris Charlesworth (Proteus, 1985) #''Cat Stevens/Yusuf Islam'', (a German language biography) by Albert Eigner Hannibal Verlag GmbH, 2006) #Cat Stevens Breaks His Silence ''Rolling Stone'' article, 14 June 2000 #Billboard Q&A; with Yusuf Islam November 2006 #New York Times Magazine Q&A; with Yusuf Islam January 2007 #Roadsinger album demo

External links

Yusuf Islam's official website

Small Kindness, Yusuf Islam's charity

Mountain of Light, Yusuf Islam's spiritual website

Category:1948 births Category:Atlantic Records artists Category:British Muslims Category:Converts to Islam Category:Decca Records artists Category:English expatriates in the United Arab Emirates Category:English folk singers Category:English humanitarians Category:English male singers Category:English multi-instrumentalists Category:English Muslims Category:English people of Cypriot descent Category:English people of Swedish descent Category:English pop singers Category:English rock guitarists Category:English singer-songwriters Category:English songwriters Category:English spoken word artists Category:English vegetarians Category:Island Records artists Category:Ivor Novello Award winners Category:Living people Category:Musicians from London Category:People deported from the United States Category:People from Soho Category:People from Marylebone Category:Performers of Islamic music Category:European Muslims

ar:يوسف إسلام an:Cat Stevens az:Yusuf İslam bg:Юсуф Ислям ca:Cat Stevens cs:Cat Stevens da:Cat Stevens de:Cat Stevens et:Cat Stevens es:Cat Stevens eo:Cat Stevens fa:کت استیونس fr:Cat Stevens gl:Cat Stevens hi:कैट स्टीवंस hr:Cat Stevens id:Yusuf Islam it:Cat Stevens he:קט סטיבנס jv:Yusuf Islam kn:ಕ್ಯಾಟ್ ಸ್ಟೀವನ್ಸ್ lt:Cat Stevens ml:കാറ്റ് സ്റ്റീവൻസ് ms:Yusuf Islam nl:Cat Stevens ja:キャット・スティーヴンス no:Yusuf Islam pl:Yusuf Islam pt:Yusuf Islam ru:Кэт Стивенс sc:Cat Stevens sco:Cat Stevens simple:Yusuf Islam so:Yuusuf Islaam fi:Cat Stevens sv:Cat Stevens tl:Cat Stevens te:కాట్ స్టీవెన్స్ th:แคท สตีเวนส์ tr:Cat Stevens uk:Кет Стівенс ur:یوسف اسلام

birth date	December 21, 1937
birth name	Lady Jayne Seymour Fonda
birth place	New York City, New York, U.S.
nationality	American
occupation	Actress, writer, activist
years active	1959–present
spouse	Roger Vadim(1965–1973, divorced)Tom Hayden(1973–1989, divorced)Ted Turner(1991–2001, divorced)
children	Vanessa VadimTroy Garity
parents	Henry FondaFrances Ford Seymour
relatives	Peter Fonda (brother)Bridget Fonda (niece) }}

Jane Fonda (born Lady Jayne Seymour Fonda; December 21, 1937) is an American actress, writer, political activist, former fashion model, and fitness guru. She rose to fame in the 1960s with films such as ''Barbarella'' and ''Cat Ballou''. She has won two Academy Awards and received several other movie awards and nominations during more than 50 years as an actress. After 15 years of retirement she returned to film in 2005 with ''Monster in Law'', followed by ''Georgia Rule'' two years later. She also produced and starred in over 20 exercise videos released between 1982 and 1995, and once again in 2010.

Fonda has been an activist for many political causes, one of the most notable and controversial of which was her opposition to the Vietnam War and her activities surrounding that opposition. She has also protested the Iraq War and violence against women. She describes herself as a liberal and a feminist. In 2005 Fonda worked alongside Robin Morgan and Gloria Steinem to co-found the Women's Media Center, an organization that works to amplify the voices of women in the media through advocacy, media and leadership training, and the creation of original content. Fonda currently serves on the board of the organization. Since 2001 Fonda has been a Christian. She published an autobiography in 2005.

Family background

Lady Jayne Seymour Fonda was born in New York City, the daughter of actor Henry Fonda and socialite Frances Ford Seymour Brokaw. The Fondas had distant Dutch ancestry. She was named after the third wife of English king Henry VIII, Lady Jane Seymour, to whom she is distantly related on her mother's side. Her brother, Peter Fonda (born 1940), and his daughter Bridget Fonda, also are actors. Fonda had a maternal half-sister, Frances, who died in 2008.

In 1950 when Fonda was 12 her mother committed suicide while under treatment at a psychiatric hospital. Later that year Fonda's father married socialite, Susan Blanchard; this marriage ended in divorce.

At 15 Fonda taught dance at Fire Island Pines, New York. She attended The Emma Willard School in Troy, New York, and Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, but dropped out to become a fashion model, appearing twice on the cover of ''Vogue''.

Acting career

Fonda became interested in acting in 1954, while appearing with her father in a charity performance of ''The Country Girl'', at the Omaha Community Playhouse. She recalled that at the age of five, she and her brother, Peter, acted out Western stories similar to those their father played in the movies. While at Vassar she went to Paris for two years to study art. Upon returning to the states, she met Lee Strasberg, a meeting that changed the course of her life, Fonda saying, "I went to the Actors Studio and Lee Strasberg told me I had talent. Real talent. It was the first time that anyone, except my father—who had to say so—told me I was good. At anything. It was a turning point in my life. I went to bed thinking about acting. I woke up thinking about acting. It was like the roof had come off my life!"

1960s

Her stage work in the late 1950s laid the foundation for her film career in the 1960s. She averaged almost two movies a year throughout the decade, starting in 1960 with ''Tall Story'', in which she recreated one of her Broadway roles as a college cheerleader pursuing a basketball star, played by Anthony Perkins. ''Period of Adjustment'' and ''Walk on the Wild Side'' followed in 1962. In ''Walk on the Wild Side'' Fonda played a prostitute, and earned a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer.

In 1963 she appeared in ''Sunday in New York''. ''Newsday'' called her "the loveliest and most gifted of all our new young actresses". However, she also had her detractors—in the same year, the ''Harvard Lampoon'' named her the "Year's Worst Actress". Fonda's career breakthrough came with ''Cat Ballou'' (1965), in which she played a schoolmarm turned outlaw. This comedy Western received five Oscar nominations and was one of the year's top ten films at the box office. It was considered by many to have been the film that brought Fonda to stardom at the age of twenty-eight. After this came the comedies ''Any Wednesday'' (1966) and ''Barefoot in the Park'' (1967), the latter co-starring Robert Redford.

In 1968 she played the lead role in the science fiction spoof ''Barbarella'', directed by her French film director husband Roger Vadim, which established her status as a sex symbol. In contrast, the tragedy ''They Shoot Horses, Don't They?'' (1969) won her critical acclaim, and she earned her first Oscar nomination for the role. Fonda was very selective by the end of the 1960s, turning down lead roles in ''Rosemary's Baby'' and ''Bonnie and Clyde''.

1970s

Fonda won her first Academy Award for Best Actress in 1971, again playing a prostitute, the gamine Bree Daniels, in the murder mystery ''Klute''. She won her second Oscar in 1978 for ''Coming Home'', the story of a disabled Vietnam War veteran's difficulty in re-entering civilian life.

Between ''Klute'' in 1971 and ''Fun With Dick and Jane'' in 1977, Fonda did not have a major film success, even though she appeared in films such as ''A Doll's House'' (1973), ''Steelyard Blues'' and ''The Blue Bird'' (1976). From comments ascribed to her in interviews, some have inferred that she personally blamed the situation on anger at her outspoken political views – "I can't say I was blacklisted, but I was greylisted." However, in her 2005 autobiography, ''My Life So Far'', she categorically rejected such simplification. "The suggestion is that because of my actions against the war my career had been destroyed ... But the truth is that my career, far from being destroyed after the war, flourished with a vigor it had not previously enjoyed." From her own point of view, her absence from the silver screen was related more to the fact that her political activism provided a new focus in her life. By the same token her return to acting with a series of 'issue-driven' films was a reflection of this new focus. "When I hear admonitions ... warning outspoken actors to remember 'what happened to Jane Fonda back in the seventies', this has me scratching my head: And what would that be...?"

In 1972 Fonda starred as a reporter alongside Yves Montand in Jean-Luc Godard's and Jean-Pierre Gorin's film ''Tout va bien''. The film's directors then made ''Letter to Jane'', in which the two spent nearly an hour discussing a news photograph of Fonda.

Through her production company, IPC Films, she produced films that helped return her to star status. The 1977 comedy film ''Fun With Dick and Jane'' is generally considered her "comeback" picture. She also received positive reviews, BAFTA and Golden Globe Awards for Best Actress, and an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of playwright Lillian Hellman in the 1977 film ''Julia''. During this period, Fonda announced that she would make films only that focused on important issues, and she generally stuck to her word. She turned down ''An Unmarried Woman'' because she felt the part was not relevant. She followed with popular and successful films such as ''The China Syndrome'' (1979), about a cover-up of an accident in a nuclear power plant; and ''The Electric Horseman'' (1979) with her previous co-star, Robert Redford.

1980s

In 1980 Fonda starred in ''Nine to Five'' with Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton. The film was a critical and box office success. Fonda had long wanted to work with her father, hoping it would help their strained relationship. She achieved this goal when she purchased the screen rights to the play ''On Golden Pond'' specifically for her father and herself. ''On Golden Pond'', which also starred Katharine Hepburn, brought Henry Fonda his only Academy Award for Best Actor, which Jane accepted on his behalf, as he was ill and home bound. He died five months later.

Fonda continued appearing in feature films throughout the 1980s, most notably in the role of Dr. Martha Livingston in ''Agnes of God''. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of an alcoholic murder suspect in the 1986 thriller ''The Morning After''. She ended the decade by appearing in ''Old Gringo''. This was followed by the romantic drama ''Stanley & Iris'' (1990), which would be her final film for 15 years.

Exercise videos

For many years Fonda was a ballet enthusiast, but – after fracturing her foot while filming ''The China Syndrome'' – she was no longer able to participate. To compensate, she began actively participating in aerobics and strengthening exercises under the direction of Leni Cazden. The ''Leni Workout'' became the ''Jane Fonda Workout'' and thus began a second career for her, which continued for many years. This was considered one of the influences that started the fitness craze among baby boomers who were then approaching middle age.

In 1982 Fonda released her first exercise video, titled ''Jane Fonda's Workout'', inspired by her best-selling book, ''Jane Fonda's Workout Book''. The ''Jane Fonda's Workout'' video eventually sold 17 million copies: more than any other home video. The video's release led many people to buy the then-new VCR in order to watch and perform the workout in the privacy and convenience of their own homes. Fonda subsequently released 23 workout videos, five workout books and thirteen audio programs, through 1995. After a fifteen-year hiatus, she released two new fitness videos on DVD in 2010, aiming at an older audience.

Retirement and return

In 1991 after three decades in film Fonda announced her retirement from the film industry. In May 2005, she returned to the screen with the box office success ''Monster-in-Law''. In July 2005 the British tabloid ''The Sun'' reported that when asked if she would appear in a sequel to her 1980 hit ''Nine to Five'', Fonda replied "I'd love to". Fonda appeared in the 2007 Garry Marshall-directed ''Georgia Rule'', starring along with Felicity Huffman and Lindsay Lohan.

In 2009 Fonda returned to theater with her first Broadway performance since the 1963 play, ''Strange Interlude'', playing Katherine Brandt in Moisés Kaufman's ''33 Variations''. The role earned her a Tony nomination for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play.

She will star alongside Catherine Keener in the upcoming indie film, ''Peace, Love, and Misunderstanding'', expected to be released in 2011. She also made a return to French cinema, shooting ''Et Si On Vivait Tous Ensemble'' (''And If We All Lived Together'') mid-2010.

In July 2011, Fonda's planned appearance on the QVC shopping network to promote her latest book, ''Prime Time: Making the Most of Your Life'', was cancelled on short notice. Fonda said the cancellation was a response to viewer complaints about her activities during the Vietnam War. Fonda stated that she had "never done anything to hurt my country or the men and women who have fought and continue to fight for us" and blamed QVC's actions on "pressure by some well-funded and organized political extremist groups".

Political activism

During the 1960s Fonda engaged in political activism in support of the Civil Rights Movement, and in opposition to the Vietnam War. Fonda's visits to France brought her into sympathetic contact with what she later characterized as "small-c communism": Leftist French intellectuals who were opposed to war.

Along with other celebrities, she supported the Alcatraz Island occupation in 1969, which was intended to call attention to Native American issues.

She likewise supported Huey Newton and the Black Panthers in the early 1970s, stating "Revolution is an act of love; we are the children of revolution, born to be rebels. It runs in our blood." She called the Black Panthers "our revolutionary vanguard", and said "we must support them with love, money, propaganda and risk."

Fonda has also been involved in the feminist movement since the 1970s, which dovetails with her activism in support of civil rights.

Opposition to Vietnam War

In April 1970 Fred Gardner, Fonda and Donald Sutherland formed the FTA tour ("Free The Army", a play on the troop expression "Fuck The Army"), an anti-war road show designed as an answer to Bob Hope's USO tour. The tour, referred to as "political vaudeville" by Fonda, visited military towns along the West Coast, with the goal of establishing a dialogue with soldiers about their upcoming deployments to Vietnam. The dialogue was made into a movie (''F.T.A.'') that contained strong, frank criticism of the war by service men and women. It was released in 1972.

In the same year Fonda spoke out against the war at a rally organized by Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. She offered to help raise funds for VVAW, and, for her efforts, was rewarded with the title of Honorary National Coordinator. On November 3, 1970, Fonda started a tour of college campuses on which she raised funds for the organization. As noted by ''The New York Times'', Fonda was a "major patron" of the VVAW.

"Hanoi Jane" controversy

Fonda visited Hanoi in July 1972. Among other statements, she said that the United States had been deliberately targeting the dike system along the Red River stating that "I believe in my heart, profoundly, that the dikes are being bombed on purpose." Columnist Joseph Kraft, who was also touring North Vietnam, believed that the damage to the dikes was incidental and was being used as propaganda by Hanoi, and that if the U.S. Air Force were "truly going after the dikes, it would do so in a methodical, not a harum-scarum way".

In North Vietnam, Fonda was photographed seated on an anti-aircraft battery. In her 2005 autobiography, she writes that she was manipulated into sitting on the battery, adding that she had been horrified at the implications of the pictures and regretted they were taken. In a recent entry at her official website, Fonda further explained:

It happened on my last day in Hanoi. I was exhausted and an emotional wreck after the 2-week visit ... The translator told me that the soldiers wanted to sing me a song. He translated as they sung. It was a song about the day 'Uncle Ho' declared their country's independence in Hanoi's Ba Dinh Square. I heard these words: "All men are created equal; they are given certain rights; among these are life, Liberty and Happiness." These are the words Ho pronounced at the historic ceremony. I began to cry and clap. ''These young men should not be our enemy. They celebrate the same words Americans do.'' The soldiers asked me to sing for them in return ... I memorized a song called ''Day Ma Di'', written by anti-war South Vietnamese students. I knew I was slaughtering it, but everyone seemed delighted that I was making the attempt. I finished. Everyone was laughing and clapping, including me ... Here is my best, honest recollection of what happened: someone (I don't remember who) led me towards the gun, and I sat down, still laughing, still applauding. It all had nothing to do with where I was sitting. I hardly even thought about where I was sitting. The cameras flashed ... It is possible that it was a set up, that the Vietnamese had it all planned. I will never know. But if they did I can't blame them. The buck stops here. If I was used, I allowed it to happen ... a two-minute lapse of sanity that will haunt me forever ... But the photo exists, delivering its message regardless of what I was doing or feeling. I carry this heavy in my heart. I have apologized numerous times for any pain I may have caused servicemen and their families because of this photograph. It was never my intention to cause harm.

During her trip, Fonda made ten radio broadcasts in which she denounced American political and military leaders as "war criminals". Fonda has defended her decision to travel to North Vietnam and her radio broadcasts. Also during the course of her visit, Fonda visited American prisoners of war (POWs), and brought back messages from them to their families. When cases of torture began to emerge among POWs returning to the United States, Fonda called the returning POWs "hypocrites and liars". She added, "These were not men who had been tortured. These were not men who had been starved. These were not men who had been brainwashed." Later, on the subject of torture used during the Vietnam War, Fonda told ''The New York Times'' in 1973, "I'm quite sure that there were incidents of torture ... but the pilots who were saying it was the policy of the Vietnamese and that it was systematic, I believe that's a lie." Fonda further stated that the POWs were "military careerists and professional killers" who are "trying to make themselves look self-righteous, but they are war criminals according to the law".

The POW camp visits also led to persistent rumors that were circulated widely in the press and decades later on the Internet and via email. Among the most recent rumors were claims that when meeting the POWs, Fonda had spat on them and called them "baby-killers". Other rumors stated that after the POWs attempted to sneak notes to her with their Social Security numbers written on them she had then turned them over to the North Vietnamese, which led to prisoner abuse at the hands of the North Vietnamese. Fonda has personally denied these claims. Interviews with two of the alleged victims specifically named in the emails found these allegations to be false as they had never met Fonda.

In 1972, Fonda helped fund and organize the Indochina Peace Campaign. It continued to mobilize antiwar activists across the nation after the 1973 Paris Peace Agreement, through 1975, when the United States withdrew from Vietnam.

Because of her time in North Vietnam, the ensuing circulated rumors regarding the visit, and statements made following her return, resentment against her among veterans and those currently serving in the U.S. military still exists. For example, at the U.S. Naval Academy, when a plebe shouts out "Goodnight, Jane Fonda!", the entire company will reply "Goodnight, bitch!" In 2005, Michael A. Smith, a U.S. Navy veteran, was arrested for disorderly conduct in Kansas City after he spit chewing tobacco in Fonda's face during a book signing event for her autobiography ''My Life So Far''. He told reporters that he "consider[s] it a debt of honor" stating that "she spit in our faces for 37 years. It was absolutely worth it. There are a lot of veterans who would love to do what I did."

Regrets

In a 1988 interview with Barbara Walters Fonda expressed regret for some of her comments and actions, stating:

"I would like to say something, not just to Vietnam veterans in New England, but to men who were in Vietnam, who I hurt, or whose pain I caused to deepen because of things that I said or did. I was trying to help end the killing and the war, but there were times when I was thoughtless and careless about it and I'm very sorry that I hurt them. And I want to apologize to them and their families. [...] I will go to my grave regretting the photograph of me in an anti-aircraft gun, which looks like I was trying to shoot at American planes. It hurt so many soldiers. It galvanized such hostility. It was the most horrible thing I could possibly have done. It was just thoughtless..."

Critics pointed out that her apology came at a time when a group of New England Veterans had launched a campaign to disrupt a film project she was working on, leading to the charge that her apology was motivated at least partially by self-interest.

In a ''60 Minutes'' interview on March 31, 2005, Fonda reiterated that she had no regrets about her trip to North Vietnam in 1972, with the exception of the anti-aircraft gun photo. She stated that the incident was a "betrayal" of American forces and of the "country that gave me privilege". Fonda said, "The image of Jane Fonda, Barbarella, Henry Fonda's daughter ... sitting on an enemy aircraft gun was a betrayal ... the largest lapse of judgment that I can even imagine." She later distinguished between regret over the use of her image as propaganda and pride for her anti-war activism: "There are hundreds of American delegations that had met with the POWs. Both sides were using the POWs for propaganda... It's not something that I will apologize for." Fonda said she had no regrets about the broadcasts she made on Radio Hanoi, something she asked the North Vietnamese to do: "Our government was lying to us and men were dying because of it, and I felt I had to do anything that I could to expose the lies and help end the war."

Feminist causes

Fonda has been a longtime supporter of feminist causes, including V-Day, a movement to stop violence against women, inspired by the off-Broadway hit ''The Vagina Monologues'', of which she is an honorary chairperson. She was present at their first summit in 2002, bringing together founder Eve Ensler, Afghan women oppressed by the Taliban, and a Kenyan activist campaigning to save girls from genital mutilation.

In 2001 Fonda established the Jane Fonda Center for Adolescent Reproductive Health at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia; the goal of the center is to prevent adolescent pregnancy through training and program development.

On February 16, 2004, Fonda led a march through Ciudad Juárez, with Sally Field, Eve Ensler, and other women, urging Mexico to provide sufficient resources to newly appointed officials helping investigate the murders of hundreds of women in the rough border city.

In 2004, she served as a mentor to the first ever all-transsexual cast of ''The Vagina Monologues''.

In the days before the Swedish election on September 17, 2006, Fonda went to Sweden to support the new political party Feministiskt initiativ in their election campaign.

In ''My Life So Far'' Fonda says that she considers patriarchy to be harmful to men as well as women. She also states that for many years, she feared to call herself a feminist, because she believed that all feminists were "anti-male". But now, with her increased understanding of patriarchy, she feels that feminism is beneficial to both men and women, and states that she "still loves men". She states that when she divorced Ted Turner, she felt like she had also divorced the world of patriarchy, and was very happy to have done so.

Native Americans

Fonda went to Seattle, Washington, in 1970 to support a group of Native Americans who were led by Bernie Whitebear. The group had occupied part of the grounds of Fort Lawton, which was in the process of being surplussed by the United States Army and turned into a park. The group was attempting to secure a land base where they could establish services for the sizable local urban Indian population, protesting that "Indians had a right to part of the land that was originally all theirs." The endeavor succeeded and the Daybreak Star Cultural Center was constructed in the city's Discovery Park.

Israeli–Palestinian conflict

In December 2002 Fonda visited Israel and the West Bank as part of a tour focusing on stopping violence against women. She demonstrated with Women in Black against Israel's occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip outside the residence of Israel's Prime Minister. She later visited Jewish and Arab doctors and patients at a Jerusalem hospital, followed by visits to Ramallah to see a physical rehabilitation center, and a Palestinian refugee camp. Fonda was criticized by right-wing Israelis, and was heckled by members of Women for Israel's Tomorrow as she arrived for a meeting with leading Israeli feminists.

In September 2009 Fonda was one of over fifty signatories to a letter protesting the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival's presentation of ten films about the Israeli city Tel Aviv. The protest letter said that the spotlight on Tel Aviv was part of "the Israeli propaganda machine" because it was supported in part by funding from the Israeli government and had been described by the Israeli Consul General Amir Gissin as being part of a Brand Israel campaign intended to draw attention away from Israel's conflict with the Palestinians. Other signers included actor Danny Glover, musician David Byrne, journalist John Pilger, and authors Alice Walker, Naomi Klein, and Howard Zinn.

Rabbi Marvin Hier of the Simon Wiesenthal Center stated that "People who support letters like this are people who do not support a two-state solution. By calling into question the legitimacy of Tel Aviv, they are supporting a one-state solution, which means the destruction of the State of Israel." Hier continued, saying that "it is clear that the script [the protesters] are reading from might as well have been written by Hamas."

Fonda, in a posting on ''The Huffington Post'', said that she regretted some of the language used in the original protest letter and how it "was perhaps too easily misunderstood. It certainly has been wildly distorted. Contrary to the lies that have been circulated, the protest letter was not demonizing Israeli films and filmmakers." She continued, writing "the greatest 're-branding' of Israel would be to celebrate that country's long standing, courageous and robust peace movement by helping to end the blockade of Gaza through negotiations with all parties to the conflict, and by stopping the expansion of West Bank settlements. That's the way to show Israel's commitment to peace, not a PR campaign. There will be no two-state solution unless this happens." Fonda emphasized that she, "in no way, support[s] the destruction of Israel. I am for the two-state solution. I have been to Israel many times and love the country and its people." Several prominent Atlanta Jews subsequently signed a letter to ''The Huffington Post'' rejecting the vilification of Fonda, who they described as "a strong supporter and friend of Israel".

Opposition to the Iraq War

Fonda has argued that the military campaign in Iraq will turn people all over the world against America, and has asserted that a global hatred of America will result in more terrorist attacks in the aftermath of the war. In July 2005, Fonda announced plans to make an anti-war bus tour in March 2006 with her daughter and several families of military veterans, saying that some of the war veterans she had met while on her book tour had urged her to speak out against the Iraq War. She later canceled the tour, due to concerns that she would distract attention from Cindy Sheehan's activism.

In September 2005, Fonda was scheduled to join British politician and anti-war activist George Galloway at two stops on his U.S. book tour, Madison, Wisconsin and Chicago. She canceled her appearances at the last minute, citing instructions from her doctors to avoid travel following recent hip surgery

On January 27, 2007, Fonda participated in an anti-war rally and march held on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., declaring that "silence is no longer an option". Fonda also spoke at an anti-war rally earlier in the day at the Navy Memorial, where members of the organization Free Republic picketed in a counter protest.

Fonda and Kerry

In the 2004 presidential election, her name was used as a disparaging epithet against John Kerry, the former VVAW leader, who was then the Democratic Party presidential candidate. Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie called Kerry a "Jane Fonda Democrat". In addition, Kerry's opponents circulated a photograph showing Fonda and Kerry in the same large crowd at a 1970 anti-war rally, although they were sitting several rows apart. A faked composite photograph, which gave the false impression that the two had shared a speaker's platform, was also circulated.

Religion

In 2001 Fonda announced that she had become a Christian. She stated that she strongly opposed bigotry, discrimination and dogma, which she believes are promoted by a small minority of Christians. Her announcement came shortly after her divorce from Ted Turner. Fonda stated publicly on ''Charlie Rose'' in April 2006 that her Christianity may have played a part in the divorce, as Turner was known to be critical of religion.

Fonda has in the past practiced Transcendental Meditation with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, and more recently has engaged in meditation at the Upaya Institute and Zen Center.

Writing

On April 5, 2005, Random House released Fonda's autobiography ''My Life So Far''. The book describes her life as a series of three acts, each thirty years long, and declares that her third "act" will be her most significant, due in part to her commitment to the Christian religion, and that it will determine the things for which she will be remembered.

Fonda's autobiography was well received by book critics, and was noted to be "as beguiling and as maddening as Jane Fonda herself" in its ''Washington Post'' review, pronouncing her a "a beautiful bundle of contradictions". ''The New York Times'' called the book "achingly poignant".

In January 2009, Fonda started chronicling her Broadway return in a blog, ranging from posts on her Pilates class, to her fears and excitement of her new play. She also uses Twitter and has a Facebook page.

Honors

In 1981, she was awarded the Women in Film Crystal Award.

In 1994 the United Nations Population Fund made Fonda a Goodwill Ambassador.

In 2004 Fonda was awarded the Women's eNews 21 Leaders for the 21st Century award as one of Seven Who Change Their Worlds

In 2007 Fonda was awarded an Honorary Palme d'Or by Cannes Film Festival President Gilles Jacob for career achievement. Only three others had received such an award – Jeanne Moreau, Alain Resnais, and Gerard Oury.

In December 2008 Fonda was inducted into the California Hall of Fame, located at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts.

In December 2009 Fonda was given the New York Women's Agenda Lifetime Achievement Award.

Personal life

Fonda married her first husband Roger Vadim in 1965. The couple had a daughter, Vanessa, born in 1968 and named for actress and activist Vanessa Redgrave.

In 1973, shortly after her divorce from Vadim, Fonda married activist Tom Hayden. Their son, Troy O'Donovan Garity (born 1973), was given his paternal grandmother's surname, Garity, since the names "Fonda and Hayden carried too much baggage", and "Troy", an Americanization of the Vietnamese name "Troi". Fonda and Hayden unofficially adopted an African-American teenager, Mary Luana Williams (known as Lulu), who was the daughter of members of the Black Panthers. Fonda and Hayden divorced in 1989.

Fonda married her third husband, cable-television tycoon and CNN founder Ted Turner, in 1991. The pair divorced in 2001.

Having been diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010, Fonda underwent a lumpectomy in November 2010, and has recovered.

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1960	''Tall Story''	June Ryder
1961	''A String of Beads''		made for television
		Kitty Twist
''The Chapman Report''	Kathleen Barclay
	Isabel Haverstick	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
		Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress
	''In the Cool of the Day''	Christine Bonner
''Sunday in New York''	Eileen Tyler
	''Les Félins'' (Joy House, The Love Cage)	Melinda
	Sophie
1965	''Cat Ballou''	Catherine 'Cat' Ballou	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
		Anna Reeves
''La Curée'' (The Game Is Over)	Renee Saccard
''Any Wednesday''	Ellen Gordon	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
		Julie Ann Warren
	Corie Bratter
	''Spirits of the Dead''	Contessa Frederica
	Barbarella
1969		Gloria Beatty	Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressNew York Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressNominated—Academy Award for Best ActressNominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading RoleNominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
1971	''Klute''	Bree Daniels	Academy Award for Best ActressFotogramas de Plata for Best Foreign Movie PerformerGolden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture DramaKansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressNational Society of Film Critics Award for Best ActressNew York Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressNominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
	''Tout va bien''	Suzanne
''F.T.A.''	Herself
	''Steelyard Blues''	Iris Caine
	Nora Helmer
1976		The Night
		Jane Harper
	Lillian Hellman
		Sally Hyde	Academy Award for Best ActressGolden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture DramaLos Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress
''Comes a Horseman''	Ella Connors
	Hannah Warren
	''The China Syndrome''	Kimberly Wells
''The Electric Horseman''	Alice 'Hallie' Martin
1980	''Nine to Five''	Judy Bernly
		Chelsea Thayer Wayne
	Lee Winters
	''The Dollmaker''	Gertie Nevels
''Terror in the Aisles''		archival footage
1985		Dr. Martha Livingston
1986		Alex Sternbergen	Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress
1989	''Old Gringo''	Harriet Winslow
1990	''Stanley & Iris''	Iris Estelle King
2002	''Searching for Debra Winger''	Herself
2003	''V-Day: Until the Violence Stops''	Herself
2005	''Monster-in-Law''	Viola Fields
2007	''Georgia Rule''	Georgia Randall
2011	''Peace, Love, & Misunderstanding''	Grace
2011	''...And If We All Lived Together''	Jeanne

Exercise videos in chronological order:

1982: ''Jane Fonda's Workout'' (aka ''Workout Starring Jane Fonda'')

1983: ''Jane Fonda's Pregnancy, Birth and Recovery Workout''

1983: ''Jane Fonda's Workout Challenge''

1984: ''Jane Fonda's Prime Time Workout'' (re-released as ''Jane Fonda's Easy Going Workout'')

1985: ''Jane Fonda's New Workout''

1986: ''Jane Fonda's Low Impact Aerobic Workout''

1987: ''Jane Fonda's Start Up'' (aka ''Start Up with Jane Fonda'')

1987: ''Jane Fonda's Sports Aid''

1987: ''Jane Fonda's Workout with Weights'' (re-released as ''Jane Fonda's Toning and Shaping'')

1988: ''Jane Fonda's Complete Workout''

1989: ''Jane Fonda's Light Aerobics and Stress Reduction Program'' (re-released as ''Jane Fonda's Stress Reduction Program'')

1990: ''Jane Fonda's Lean Routine Workout''

1990: ''Jane Fonda's Workout Presents Fun House Fitness: The Swamp Stomp''

1990: ''Jane Fonda's Workout Presents Fun House Fitness: The Fun House Funk''

1991: ''Jane Fonda's Lower Body Solution''

1992: ''Jane Fonda's Step Aerobic and Abdominal Workout''

1993: ''Jane Fonda's Favorite Fat Burners''

1993: ''Jane Fonda's Yoga Exercise Workout''

1994: ''Jane Fonda's Step and Stretch Workout''

1995: ''Jane Fonda's Personal Trainer Series: Low Impact Aerobics & Stretch''

1995: ''Jane Fonda's Personal Trainer Series: Total Body Sculpting''

1995: ''Jane Fonda's Personal Trainer Series: Abs, Buns & Thighs''

2010: ''Jane Fonda's Prime Time: Fit and Strong''

2010: ''Jane Fonda's Prime Time: Walkout''

References

Bibliography

Andersen, Christopher. ''Citizen Jane''. 1990: Henry Holt and Company. ISBN 0-8050-0959-0.

Davidson, Bill. ''Jane Fonda: An Intimate Biography''. 1991: New American Library. ISBN 0-451-17028-8.

Fine, Carla and Jane Fonda. ''Strong, Smart, and Bold: Empowering Girls for Life''. 2001: Collins. ISBN 0-06-019771-4.

Fonda, Jane. ''My Life So Far''. 2005: Random House. ISBN 0-375-50710-8.

Fonda, Jane. ''Jane Fonda's Workout Book''. 1986: Random House Value Publishing. ISBN 0-517-40908-9.

Fonda, Jane, with Mignon McCarthy. ''Women Coming of Age''. 1987: Random House Value Publishing. ISBN 5-550-36643-6.

Fox, Mary Virginia and Mary Molina. ''Jane Fonda: Something to Fight for''. 1980: Dillon Press. ISBN 0-87518-189-9.

Freedland, Michael. ''Jane Fonda: The Many Lives of One of Hollywood's Greatest Stars''. 1989: HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 0-00-637390-9.

French, Sean. ''Jane Fonda: A Biography''. 1998: Trafalgar Square Publishing. ISBN 1-85793-658-2.

Gilmore, John. ''Laid Bare: A Memoir of Wrecked Lives and the Hollywood Death Trip''. Amok Books, 1997. ISBN 1-878923-08-0.

Hershberger, Mary. Peace work, war myths: Jane Fonda and the antiwar movement. ''Peace & Change'', Vol. 29, No. 3&4, July 2004.

Hershberger, Mary. ''Jane Fonda's War: A Political Biography of an Antiwar Icon''. 2005: New Press. ISBN 1-56584-988-4.

Kiernan, Thomas. ''Jane: an intimate biography of Jane Fonda''. 1973: Putnam. ISBN 0-399-11207-3.

External links

Official Web Site

Jane Fonda Profile at Turner Classic Movies

Spotlight on Jane Fonda

About.com article about Fonda's Vietnam era activities

Jane Fonda and Gloria Steinem discuss The Women’s Media Center, their non-profit media organization. (video)

Fonda Family Genealogy

Text of Jane Fonda Hanoi Radio Broadcast

Category:Actors from New York Category:Actors Studio alumni Category:American anti–Iraq War activists Category:American anti–Vietnam War activists Category:American Christians Category:American exercise instructors Category:American film actors Category:American female models Category:American people of Dutch descent Category:Art Students League of New York alumni Category:BAFTA winners (people) Category:Best Actress Academy Award winners Category:Best Drama Actress Golden Globe (film) winners Category:Breast cancer survivors Category:Converts to Christianity from atheism or agnosticism Category:California Democrats Category:Emma Willard School alumni Category:Emmy Award winners Category:Feminist artists Category:People from Atlanta, Georgia Category:People from Fire Island, New York Category:Spouses of California politicians Category:Transcendental Meditation practitioners Category:Vassar College alumni Category:Women in war Category:1937 births Category:Living people Category:20th-century actors Category:21st-century actors

ar:جين فوندا zh-min-nan:Jane Fonda bg:Джейн Фонда ca:Jane Fonda cs:Jane Fondová cy:Jane Fonda da:Jane Fonda de:Jane Fonda et:Jane Fonda el:Τζέιν Φόντα es:Jane Fonda eo:Jane Fonda eu:Jane Fonda fa:جین فوندا fr:Jane Fonda fy:Jane Fonda ko:제인 폰다 hr:Jane Fonda io:Jane Fonda id:Jane Fonda it:Jane Fonda he:ג'יין פונדה la:Ioanna Fonda lv:Džeina Fonda hu:Jane Fonda mk:Џејн Фонда mr:जेन फोंडा nl:Jane Fonda ja:ジェーン・フォンダ no:Jane Fonda oc:Jane Fonda pl:Jane Fonda pt:Jane Fonda ro:Jane Fonda ru:Фонда, Джейн simple:Jane Fonda sk:Jane Fondová sl:Jane Fonda sr:Џејн Фонда sh:Jane Fonda fi:Jane Fonda sv:Jane Fonda tl:Jane Fonda th:เจน ฟอนดา tg:Ҷейн Фонда tr:Jane Fonda uk:Джейн Фонда yo:Jane Fonda zh:珍·芳達