Newsday Logo

260px The February 21, 2012 front page of Newsday
Type	Daily newspaper
Format	Tabloid
Owner	Cablevision
Publisher	Fred Groser
Editor	Debbie Henley
Founded	1940
Headquarters	235 Pinelawn Road Melville, New York 11747  United States
Circulation	397,973 weekdays 383,295 Saturdays 495,416 Sundays in 2012[1]
ISSN	0278-5587
OCLC number	5371847
Official website	Newsday.com

Melville, NY headquarters

Newsday is a daily American newspaper that primarily serves Nassau and Suffolk counties and the New York City borough of Queens on Long Island, although it is sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. As of 2009, its weekday circulation of 377,500 was the 11th-highest in the United States, and the highest among suburban newspapers.^[2]

The newspaper's headquarters are in Melville, New York, in Suffolk County.

History[link]

Founded by Alicia Patterson, with backing from her husband, Harry Guggenheim, the paper was first published on September 3, 1940 from Hempstead. After Patterson's death in 1963, Guggenheim became publisher and editor.

In 1967, Guggenheim turned over the publisher position to Bill Moyers and continued as president and editor-in-chief. But Guggenheim was disappointed by the liberal drift of the newspaper under Moyers, criticizing what he called the "left-wing" coverage of Vietnam War protests.^[3][4] The two split over the 1968 presidential election, with Guggenheim signing an editorial supporting Richard Nixon, when Moyers supported Hubert Humphrey.^[5]

Guggenheim sold his majority share to the then-conservative Times-Mirror Company over the attempt of newspaper employees to block the sale, even though Moyers offered $10 million more than the Times-Mirror purchase price; Moyers resigned a few days later.^[3][6][7] Guggenheim, who died a year later, disinherited Moyers from his will.^[8]

Newsday launched a separate Queens edition in 1977, followed by a New York City edition. In June 2000, Times Mirror merged with the Tribune Company, partnering Newsday with the New York City television station WPIX (Channel 11), also owned by Tribune. Chicago, Illinois, real estate magnate Samuel Zell purchased Tribune in 2007.^[2]

News Corporation, headed by CEO Rupert Murdoch, attempted to purchase Newsday for $580 million in April 2008.^[9] This was soon followed by a matching bid from New York Daily News owner Mort Zuckerman^[10] and a $680 million bid from Cablevision.^[11] In May 2008, News Corporation withdrew its bid,^[12] and on May 12, 2008, Newsday reported that Cablevision would purchase the paper for $650 million.^[13] The sale was completed July 29, 2008.^[14]

Editorial style[link]

Despite having a tabloid format, Newsday is not known for being sensationalistic, as are other local daily tabloids, such as the New York Daily News and the New York Post.^[15][16]

In 2004, the alternative weekly newspaper Long Island Press wrote that Newsday has used its clout to influence local politics in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.^[17]

Bill Moyers briefly served as publisher.^[18] During the tenure of publisher Robert M. Johnson in the 1980s, Newsday made a major push into New York City. The paper's roster of columnists and critics included Jimmy Breslin, Barbara Garson, Normand Poirier, Murray Kempton, Gail Collins, Pete Hamill, Sydney Schanberg, Jim Dwyer, sportswriter Mike Lupica, music critic Tim Page, and television critic Marvin Kitman. Newsday featured both the advice columnists Ann Landers and Dear Abby for several years. Its features section has included television reporters Verne Gay and Diane Werts, reality TV columnist Frank Lovece, and film critics John Anderson, Rafer Guzman, Gene Seymour, and Jan Stuart. Newsday carries the syndicated columnist Froma Harrop.

Newsday's use of graphics has sometimes attracted national attention, particularly of the c.-1970 work of such longtime in-house illustrators as Gary Viskupic, Tony D'Adamo, and Ned Levine. Pulitzer Prize winner Walt Handelsman's editorial political cartoons animation are a nationally syndicated feature of Newsday. In the 1980s, a new design director, Robert Eisner, guided the transition into digital design and color printing.

Newsday created and sponsored a "Long Island at the Crossroads" advisory board in 1978, to recommend regional goals, supervise local government, and liaison with state and Federal officials.^[19][20][21] It lasted approximately a decade.

On March 21, 2011, Newsday remade its front page, scrapping the masthead and font used since the 1960s.^[22]

Circulation[link]

In 2008, Newsday was ranked 10th in terms of newspaper circulation in the United States.^[2]

A circulation scandal in 2004 revealed that the paper's daily and Sunday circulation had been inflated by 16.9% and 14.5%, respectively, in the auditing period September 30, 2002 to September 30, 2003.^[23] The Audit Bureau of Circulation adjusted average weekday circulation to 481,816 from 579,599; average Saturday circulation to 392,649 from 416,830; and average Sunday circulation to 574,081 from 671,820, and instituted twice-yearly audits.^[23]

On October 28, 2009, Newsday changed its web site to a paid-subscriber only model. Newsday.com would open its front page, classified ads, movie listings, and school closings to all site visitors, but access beyond this content would require a weekly fee — US$5 as of 2010. This fee would be waived for subscribers of the print edition of the paper, as well as for subscribers to parent-company Cablevision's Internet service.^[24] Through its first three months only 35 non-Optimum, non-Newsday subscribers signed up for the paid web site.^[25]

Awards[link]

Pulitzer Prize[link]

As of 2008, Newsday has won 19 Pulitzer Prizes and has been a finalist for 18 additional:^[26] If no individual is listed, award is for Newsday staff.

• 2008: Public Service (Finalist) — Jennifer Barrios, Sophia Chang, Michael R. Ebert, Reid J. Epstein, Jennifer Sinco Kelleher, Eden Laikin, Herbert Lowe, Joseph Mallia, Jennifer Maloney, Luis Perez and Karla Schuster
• 2007: Editorial Cartooning (Winner) — Walt Handelsman
• 2005: International Reporting (Winner) — Dele Olojede
• 2005: Explanatory Reporting (Finalist)
• 2004: Breaking News Reporting (Finalist)
• 2002: Criticism (Winner) — Justin Davidson
• 1999: Criticism (Finalist) — Justin Davidson
• 1999: Editorial Writing (Finalist) — Lawrence C. Levy
• 1998: Beat Reporting (Finalist) — Laurie Garrett
• 1997: Spot News Reporting (Winner)
• 1996: Explanatory Journalism (Winner) — Laurie Garrett
• 1996: Beat Reporting (Winner) — Bob Keeler
• 1996: International Reporting (Finalist) — Laurie Garrett
• 1995: Investigative Reporting (Winner) — Brian Donovan and Stephanie Saul
• 1995: Commentary (Winner) — Jim Dwyer
• 1994: Explanatory Journalism (Finalist)
• 1993: International Reporting (Winner) — Roy Gutman
• 1992: Spot News Reporting (Winner)
• 1992: International Reporting (Winner) — Patrick J. Sloyan
• 1991: Spot News Reporting (Finalist)
• 1991: Spot News Photography (Finalist)
• 1990: Specialized Reporting (Finalist) - Jim Dwyer
• 1989: Investigative Reporting (Finalist) — Penny Loeb
• 1986: Feature Writing (Finalist) — Irene Virag
• 1985: International Reporting (Winner) — Josh Friedman, Dennis Bell, and Ozier Muhammad
• 1985: Commentary (Winner) — Murray Kempton
• 1984: Local General or Spot News Reporting (Winner)
• 1984: International Reporting (Finalist) — Morris Thompson
• 1984: Criticism (Finalist) — Dan Cryer
• 1982: International Reporting (Finalist) — Bob Wyrick
• 1982: Criticism (Finalist) — Marvin Kitman
• 1980: Local Investigative Specialized Reporting (Finalist) — Carole E. Agus, Andrew V. Fetherston Jr. and Frederick J. Tuccillo
• 1974: Public Service (Winner)
• 1974: Criticism (Winner) — Emily Genauer, Newsday Syndicate
• 1970: Public Service (Winner)
• 1970: Editorial Cartooning (Winner) — Thomas F. Darcy
• 1954: Public Service (Winner)

In popular culture[link]

• In the 1985 comedy/thriller Compromising Positions, the lead character, played by Susan Sarandon, is a former Newsday journalist who is trying reestablish her career by selling a freelance story to the publication.
• On the 1996-2005 CBS sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, the fictional character Ray Barone (played by Ray Romano) is employed by Newsday as a sportswriter.
• The lead female character in the "Crocodile" Dundee movies worked at Newsday.
• The episode "The Homer They Fall" in season eight of The Simpsons quotes Newsday in referencing boxing as "The cruelest sport".

References[link]

External links[link]

• Newsday.com
• amNY.com

Babita Sharma is a British television newsreader, currently fronting the overnight bulletins on the BBC News and BBC World News, presenting the Newsday strand each Monday-Wednesday from London with Rico Hizon in Singapore.

Babita graduated from the University of Wales, where she attained a degree in Journalism, Film and Broadcasting. She began her first media placements with BBC Radio Wales and Thames Valley Television.^[1]

Babita then moved to Dubai, working on radio for Channel 4 FM and for Ajman TV where she presented a weekly music programme. She returned to the UK in 2003 and began her BBC career at BBC Radio Berkshire as a travel presenter and producer. She then moved to the newsroom in Southampton, reporting and producing for BBC South Today. In 2007 she moved onto BBC Spotlight Channel Islands working as a video journalist and regular presenter of the evening bulletin.^[1]

Babita moved to the BBC News channel in 2008, initially as presenter of the Your Money programme, as well as reading the business news on Fridays. She took on the main business role in early 2009, before moving to her current full-time presenting role for the BBC News Channel and BBC World News.

References[link]

v t e BBC News BBC TV channels BBC Arabic Television BBC News BBC Parliament BBC Persian Television BBC World News Programmes Current 60 Seconds Asia Business Report BBC Breakfast BBC News at One BBC News at Six BBC News at Ten BBC News: 8pm Summary BBC News at Five BBC News Special BBC Weekend News BBC World News BBC World News America The Andrew Marr Show The Bottom Line Click Daily Politics Dateline London E24 Fast Track Film 24 GMT HARDtalk The Health Show The Hub Impact Newsbeat Newsday Newsnight NewsWatch Oddbox Sport Today Talking Movies This Week World Business Report World Have Your Say World News Today Question Time Show Me the Money Defunct The 7 O'Clock News BBC Nine O'Clock News Breakfast with Frost Politics Show Television Newsreel Tonight Working Lunch People Presenters George Alagiah Matthew Amroliwala Zeinab Badawi Ben Brown Fiona Bruce Ellie Crisell Martine Dennis Peter Dobbie Komla Dumor David Eades Chris Eakin Huw Edwards Mike Embley Gavin Esler Lyse Doucet Joanna Gosling Nik Gowing Carrie Gracie Geeta Guru-Murthy Karin Giannone Jane Hill Rico Hizon Lucy Hockings Mishal Husain Katty Kay Kirsty Lang Riz Lateef Sharanjit Leyl Deborah Mackenzie Kasia Madera Emily Maitlis Maxine Mawhinney Simon McCoy Annita McVeigh Louise Minchin Naga Munchetty Clive Myrie Nicholas Owen Sophie Raworth Susanna Reid Stephen Sackur Rachel Schofield Babita Sharma Kate Silverton Jon Sopel Charlie Stayt Bill Turnbull Tim Willcox Sian Williams Julian Worricker Declan Curry Other Helen Boaden Other BBC News Online BBC World Service Category

This biographical article related to BBC Television is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

This biographical article related to television journalism in the United Kingdom is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Rico Hizon is a Filipino broadcast journalist with BBC World News. He anchors Newsday and Asia Business Report, which is broadcast to more than 300 million households worldwide. He is the first-ever Filipino news anchor to work for two of the world's most prestigious television news networks - CNBC Asia and BBC World News.^[1]

Education and academia[link]

After gaining a degree in Communication Arts and Business at De La Salle University, Hizon taught Radio, Television and Broadcasting courses at the University.^[2]

Broadcast career[link]

Hizon started his broadcast career at Manila-based GMA Network, from 1988 to 1995, where he was responsible for covering capital markets, banking and finance, real estate, investment and corporate developments. He anchored the daily business program, Business Today, GMA News Live and Stock Market Live from the trading floor of the Philippine Stock Exchange. During his tenure, Hizon won the "The Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) for Broadcast Journalism" award.^[1]

Hizon then joined CNBC Asia in April 1995, based in Hong Kong and later in Singapore, where he was the main anchor of the morning edition of CNBC Today, Squawk Box, Market Watch and Power Lunch.^[1]

Hizon joined BBC World News in 2002, and anchored the daily business and finance programme Asia Business Report and Asia Today live from Singapore Monday to Friday.^[2] Since June 2011 Hizon has co-presented the new BBC Newsday programme from Singapore with Babita Sharma in London. He is also a regular on BBC World Business Report as an Asian business correspondent

Awards[link]

2011 Asian Television Awards Best News Anchor Nominee. January 2010, People of the Year Award from People Asia Magazine. September 2009, the La Sallian Achievement Award for Global Journalism. He is the youngest ever recipient. December 2008, Pamana ng Pilipino Presidential Award received from President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo at Malacañang Palace for excellence in International Journalism, and gave the response on behalf of his fellow awardees. October 2008, Bank of the Philippine Islands recognized Hizon for bringing honor and recognition to the Philippines with the 2008 BPinoy Award, and for advocating important Filipino values and principles, Rico received the 1st ever Yes The Filipino Can! Award. December 2006, the The Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) Award for International Journalism and Community Service.^[3][4]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Rico Hizon bio at the BBC Press Office
• Rico Hizon at the Internet Movie Database

v t e BBC News BBC TV channels BBC Arabic Television BBC News BBC Parliament BBC Persian Television BBC World News Programmes Current 60 Seconds Asia Business Report BBC Breakfast BBC News at One BBC News at Six BBC News at Ten BBC News: 8pm Summary BBC News at Five BBC News Special BBC Weekend News BBC World News BBC World News America The Andrew Marr Show The Bottom Line Click Daily Politics Dateline London E24 Fast Track Film 24 GMT HARDtalk The Health Show The Hub Impact Newsbeat Newsday Newsnight NewsWatch Oddbox Sport Today Talking Movies This Week World Business Report World Have Your Say World News Today Question Time Show Me the Money Defunct The 7 O'Clock News BBC Nine O'Clock News Breakfast with Frost Politics Show Television Newsreel Tonight Working Lunch People Presenters George Alagiah Matthew Amroliwala Zeinab Badawi Ben Brown Fiona Bruce Ellie Crisell Martine Dennis Peter Dobbie Komla Dumor David Eades Chris Eakin Huw Edwards Mike Embley Gavin Esler Lyse Doucet Joanna Gosling Nik Gowing Carrie Gracie Geeta Guru-Murthy Karin Giannone Jane Hill Rico Hizon Lucy Hockings Mishal Husain Katty Kay Kirsty Lang Riz Lateef Sharanjit Leyl Deborah Mackenzie Kasia Madera Emily Maitlis Maxine Mawhinney Simon McCoy Annita McVeigh Louise Minchin Naga Munchetty Clive Myrie Nicholas Owen Sophie Raworth Susanna Reid Stephen Sackur Rachel Schofield Babita Sharma Kate Silverton Jon Sopel Charlie Stayt Bill Turnbull Tim Willcox Sian Williams Julian Worricker Declan Curry Other Helen Boaden Other BBC News Online BBC World Service Category

Dee Snider
Snider performing at The Roxy, West Hollywood, CA, on October 11, 2009
Background information
Birth name	Daniel Dee Snider
Born	(1955-03-15) March 15, 1955 (age 57) Astoria, New York, U.S.
Genres	Heavy metal, glam metal, hard rock
Occupations	Musician, songwriter, actor, radio personality, television personality, voice over artist, screenplay writer, spokesperson
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1974–present
Associated acts	Twisted Sister Bent Brother Desperado Widowmaker S.M.F.'s (Sick Mother Fuckers) Van Helsing's Curse
Website	http://www.deesnider.com http://www.twistedsister.com

Daniel "Dee" Snider (born March 15, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter, screenwriter, radio personality, and actor. Snider is most famous for his role as the frontman of the heavy metal band Twisted Sister. He was ranked 83 in the Hit Parader's Top 100 Metal Vocalist of All Time.^[1]

Early life[link]

Born in Astoria, Queens New York, Snider grew up in nearby Baldwin and graduated from Baldwin Senior High School in 1973.^[2] His father, Bob, is a retired New York State Trooper and Nassau County court clerk while his mother, Marguerite, is a retired art teacher.^[3] As a child he sang in a church choir, several school choruses, and Baldwin HS Concert Choir. He also was selected for the All-State Chorus by singing.^[4] While in eighth grade, Snider was in a Black Sabbath cover band.^[5]

Career[link]

1970s–1980s[link]

In early 1976, Snider joined Twisted Sister and became the sole songwriter of the band thereafter. The group released their first studio album, Under the Blade, in September 1982 and developed a following in the UK. Less than a year later, Twisted Sister released their sophomore effort, You Can't Stop Rock 'n' Roll. Their third album, Stay Hungry, hit shelves on May 10, 1984. This would become the band's most successful record with the hits "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock." To emphasize the "twisted sister" image, Snider adopted a trademark persona of metal-inspired drag with long blond hair, an excessive amount of eye shadow and rouge, and bright red lipstick.

Dee Snider testifies before the US Senate, 1985

Testimony continued

During the mid 1980s, before the premiere of Headbangers Ball, the first MTV program to consist entirely of heavy metal videos was Heavy Metal Mania. The first episode aired in June 1985 and was hosted by Dee Snider. It featured metal news, interviews with metal artists, and in-studio co-hosts. That same year in November, Twisted Sister released Come Out and Play which sold over 500,000 copies but was marred by a poor concert tour.

In 1985, a Senate hearing was instigated by the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), who wanted to introduce a parental warning system that would label all albums containing offensive material. The system was to include letters identifying the type of objectionable content to be found in each album (e.g. O for occult themes, S for sex, D for drugs, V for violence, etc.). Dee Snider, John Denver, and Frank Zappa all testified against censorship and the proposed warning system. Such a system was never implemented, but the result of the hearing brought about what is now the generic "Parental Advisory: Explicit Content" label.

The PMRC was initially formed by the wives of Washington, D.C. power brokers Senator Al Gore (D-TN), and Secretary of State James Baker. Tipper Gore in particular became the face of the PMRC and a public foil for Snider in the hearings. Ironically, in the 2000 US Presidential Election cycle, Snider endorsed Vice President Gore for office.

A fifth Twisted Sister album would be made in 1987's Love Is for Suckers. The record was originally planned to be a Dee Snider solo effort, but Atlantic Records encouraged a release under the Twisted Sister name. Touring lasted only into October that year and on the 12th of that month, Snider announced his departure from the band. It was during this time that Snider formed Desperado, a band featuring ex-Iron Maiden drummer Clive Burr, ex-Gillan guitarist Bernie Torme, and bassist Marc Russel.^[6] The group's only album, Ace, has never been officially released but was heavily bootlegged on CD under the title Bloodied But Unbowed.

1990s[link]

Snider performing in Manchester, England

In the 1990s, Snider formed Widowmaker with Joe Franco, a good friend to Twisted Sister and drummer on the Love Is for Suckers, as well as Al Pitrelli and Marc Russel. The quartet recorded two albums with limited underground success, titled Blood and Bullets and Stand By For Pain. In the late 1990s, Snider toured with a "self-tribute" band called Dee Snider's SMFs (Sick Mother Fuckers), sometimes featuring ex-Twisted Sister drummer A.J. Pero. The usual line up included Dee Snider, Derek Tailer, Charlie Mills, Keith Alexander, and Spike.

In 1993, he composed the theme song for The Terrible Thunderlizards.

In 1997, Dee Snider began hosting the House of Hair, a syndicated 1980s hard rock/heavy metal radio show that airs on over 200 radio stations across North America. It is syndicated by the United Stations Radio Networks. The show's format runs two hours and features Snider's closing catchphrase, "If it ain't metal, it's crap!"

In 1998, Snider had penned a song entitled "The Magic of Christmas Day (God Bless Us Everyone)" which would be recorded in 1998 by Celine Dion for her album These Are Special Times. According to Snider, Dion at the time was not aware of who wrote the song. Later that year, he also wrote and starred in the horror film Strangeland. Snider has also penned the script to a sequel which has the working title of Strangeland: Disciple. As of January 2008, however, Snider was less than optimistic that it would ever see the light of day, saying in an interview with Bullz-Eye.com that he had reached a point where he should "put a sign on my website that says, 'Y’got ten million dollars? Give me a call. I’ve got the script ready to go, Robert Englund’s attached, I’m attached. If somebody’s serious and wants to make it, call me. But don’t call me ‘til you’re ready to hand the check over.'” In May 2009, Dee Snider revealed on his radio show,"The House Of Hair," that Strangeland: Rising Sons will go ahead and is set to begin shooting in the fall of 2009 and is slated for a 2010 release.

Radio 104 Dee Snider Euro Sticker

2000s–Present[link]

From June 1999 to August 2003, Snider hosted a morning radio show on a Hartford, Connecticut Clear Channel station, Radio 104 (104.1 FM WMRQ), called Dee Snider Radio. His show returned to the air at night in August 2004 on 93.3 WMMR in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania until June 2005. He fondly referred to his listeners as his "Peeps," and "DEE" euro stickers, printed by the station, could be seen on the bumpers of his fans' cars throughout Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. Other members of the morning show included Nick Lentino, Beth Lockwood, "Psycho Dan" Williams, Sean Robbins, and "Darkside Dave" Wallace. He frequently featured high-profile guests, including Ozzy Osbourne, pro wrestler Mick Foley, and KISS singer/bassist Gene Simmons.

In 2001, Snider was the voice of Gol Acheron, the main villain for the PlayStation 2 video game Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy. The following year, he rejoined with the reunited Twisted Sister. Snider also played himself in the 2002 TV-movie Warning: Parental Advisory. In 2003, he appeared with actor Arnold Schwarzenegger during his drive to recall incumbent California Governor Gray Davis. Snider sang the Twisted Sister hit, "We're Not Gonna Take It," which was adopted by the Schwarzenegger campaign.

Snider also voiced Angry Jack in the episode "Shell Shocked" for the Nickelodeon cartoon SpongeBob SquarePants. He admitted to being a huge fan of the show during an hour-long 10th anniversary documentary of the show in 2009, and to be asked to voice a character on the show was a real honor. He changed the lyrics of his famous "I Wanna Rock" to "Goofy Goober Rock" for the 2004 The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie.

Snider narrates and hosts many shows and specials on VH1, movie trailers, behind the scenes segments, and DVD special features. He was featured as the 'voice' in the bumpers for MSNBC's 2001/2002 "Fiercely Independent" branding campaign. Every year since 2004, Snider has narrated a live show known as Van Helsing's Curse which tours the US around Halloween giving a mix of famous music with dark overtones and an occasional part of a storytelling to accompany the music. The concert has also been released on CD. Snider hosted VH1's 2008 "Aftermath" concert in remembrance of the victims and survivors of the 2003 Station nightclub fire.

Snider returned to radio in June 2006 with Fangoria Radio on Sirius Satellite Radio channel 102 from 9-12 Eastern.

During winter of 2008, Snider was featured as a contestant on CMT's Gone Country. The show recruited famous musical celebrities who competed against each other to win a chance to release a country song. Also in 2008, Snider appeared on the first episode of season two's Kitchen Nightmares who Gordon Ramsay had recruited as part of the marketing for the re-launch of the Handlebar restaurant. On the show, Snider donated a motorcycle for auction in which customers of the Handlebar were able to bid on through the Handlebar restaurants website.

Dee hosts DEAD ART on Gallery HD, a show about the beauty and art of cemeteries. He also hosts House of Hair, a radio show that plays heavy metal music. Snider has made appearances on the IFC Channel's original series Z Rock as himself playing the character of a "rock guru."

On July 27, 2010.,^[7] Dee Snider and his family began appearing in the reality television show "Growing Up Twisted," airing on the Arts and Entertainment Network.

On October 8, 2010 started an 11 week run in the cast of Rock of Ages as Dennis, the owner of The Bourbon Room, with his official start date being October 11.

In 2011, Snider performed with Ohio-based metalcore band Attack Attack! on stage at the Bamboozle Festival playing their song "Turbo Swag". On the May 15, 2011 episode of The Apprentice (U.S. season 11), Snider appeared to assist John Rich with his final challenge. He starred in a commercial featuring a mock audition where he came on as himself, and after drinking a soda turns into the lead singer from Twisted Sister (himself). Snider agreed to come because he is personal friends with John Rich and wanted to support the charity effort for St. Jude Medical Center.

Snider guest starred in the video for "Immaculate Misconception" by the metalcore band, Motionless in White.^[8] Snider's son, Cody Blue Snider directed the video.^[9]

Snider and his family appeared on Celebrity Wife Swap January 10, 2012. Dee's wife Suzette traded places with Flavor Flav's long-time fiancée Liz.^[10]

On the Valentine's Day 2012 taping of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Snider partnered with Donald Trump in a skit based upon the format of the TV game show, Password. On February 19, 2012, Snider began appearing as one of 18 contestants vying to become Trump's next Celebrity Apprentice and was fired after the eighth task during the seventh episode.

Personal life[link]

Snider has been married to his wife Suzette, a costume designer, since October 21, 1981.^[11] They have four children, Jesse Blaze Snider (September 19, 1982), Shane Royal Snider (February 29, 1988), Cody Blue Snider (December 7, 1989), and Cheyenne Jean Snider (October 31, 1996) who is currently in the band They All Float (Facebook.com/They.All.Float.LI). His eldest son Jesse hosted MTV2 Rock, a music video countdown program in 2003, and was the runner-up in MTV's 2008 show Rock the Cradle. Dee appeared on the show as Jesse's mentor. Jesse is also the lead singer of the punk metal band Baptized By Fire. Cody directed a music video for the band, Motionless in White (for the song "Immaculate Misconception) to where Dee guest-starred in its filming.^[9]

In 2003, Snider's brother-in-law, Vincent Gargiulo, was murdered.^[12] The murderer was apprehended in 2009.

Snider currently lives part-time in East Setauket, New York.^[13] He appeared on MTV Cribs in 2005 to show his Long Island home, along with two of his four children, Shane and Cheyenne.

Snider is a personal friend of professional wrestlers Mick Foley and Chris Jericho.^{[citation needed]}

In 2008, he stated in a TMZ interview that he would be voting for Barack Obama because John McCain (whom he liked and supported for many years) would not acknowledge George W. Bush's mistakes that he made while in office.^[14]

At the PMRC hearings, Dee Snider stated: "I was born and raised a Christian and I still adhere to those principles."^[15]

Projects[link]

Bands[link]

• Twisted Sister
• Desperado
• Widowmaker
• Bent Brother (heavy metal group)

Books[link]

• Dee Snider's Teenage Survival Guide, Doubleday, 1987 - available in hardcover & softcover
• Rock & Roll War Stories, Pitbull Publishing LLC, a chapter is dedicated to a hilarious anecdote Dee Snider told musician/author Gordon G.G. Gebert on Dee's House of Hair Radio show. The story inspired Gebert to write his third book.

Solo albums[link]

• Never Let the Bastards Wear You Down, 2000
• Dee Does Broadway, 2012 ^[16]

Guest appearances[link]

• "Crazy Train" on Bat Head Soup: A Tribute to Ozzy, 2000
• "Go to Hell" on Humanary Stew: A Tribute To Alice Cooper, 1999
• "Go to Hell" on Welcome to My Nightmare: An All Star Salute To Alice Cooper, 1999
• "Eleanor Rigby" on Eddie Ojeda's Axes 2 Axes, 2005
• "Wasted Years" on Numbers From The Beast: An All Star Tribute to Iron Maiden, 2005
• "SCG3 Special Report" on Lordi: The Arockalypse, 2006
• "Detroit Rock City" on Spin The Bottle: An All-Star Tribute To KISS, 2004
• "Howard Stern" on Sirius, Feb 8, 2006; 2007
• "Saigon Suicide Show"; an episode of the television show "The Upright Citizens Brigade", 1998
• "Handlebar"; an episode of the television show "Kitchen Nightmares", 2008
• "Episode#1.7"; an episode of the television show "Z Rock (ZO2)", 2008
• Monster Circus live at the Las Vegas Hilton March 19–21 & 26-28, 2009
• "Paint it Black" on "Harder & Heavier-60's British Invasion Goes Metal," 2010
• "I Wanna Rock" on America's Got Talent, 2010
• Celebrity Apprentice May 15, 2011
• "It Was a Very Good Year" on Sin-Atra, 2011
• VH1's I love the... series, 2002-2004

Filmography[link]

• Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985) - cameo appearance on top of a car hood singing "Burn in Hell"
• Private Parts (1997) - cameo appearance in the opening scene
• Strangeland (1998)
• Warning: Parental Advisory (2002)
• Van Helsing's Curse (2004)
• Kiss Loves You (2004)
• Metal: A Headbangers Journey (2005)

Other appearances in media[link]

• "Street Monkeys", SNI/SI Networks L.L.C (2011) - narrator
• SpongeBob SquarePants (2009) - played the character Angry Jack on the episode "Shell Shocked" (coincidentally, Twisted Sister's song "I Wanna Rock" was spoofed in The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie)
• Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (2001) - did the voice of Gol the Sage
• Bluetooth= D-bag (2009)- Partook in the JOHNisFUNNY.com [1] YouTube sketch about Bluetooth headsets, created by Long Island filmmaker John Mingione
• "Penn Radio" (October 19, 2006) - Interviewed by Penn Jillette [2]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Dee Snider.com - Official website
• HouseOfHairOnline.com - Official House of Hair website
• Dee Snider at the Internet Movie Database
• Dee Snider with Von Dutch Kustom Cycles — Dee Snider hanging out with Von Dutch.
• Meet the Snider Family on VH1- Official VH1 Site
• MTV Cribs with Dee Snider and his home- Official MTV Site
• HardRadio.com interview with Dee Snider
• Dee Snider radio talk show
• http://www.ntunega.com/Dark-Times.html

Rita Moreno
Rita Moreno, January 2008
Born	Rosita Dolores Alverío (1931-12-11) December 11, 1931 (age 80) Humacao, Puerto Rico
Occupation	Actress, singer, dancer
Years active	1950–present
Spouse	Leonard Gordon (1965-2010; his death); 1 child

Rita Moreno (born December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican singer, dancer and actress. She is the only Hispanic and one of the few performers who have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony, and was the second Puerto Rican to win an Academy Award.^[1]

Early years[link]

Moreno was born Rosa Dolores Alverío in Humacao, Puerto Rico, to Rosa María, a seamstress, and Paco Alverío, a farmer.^[2] She moved with her mother to New York City at the age of five, and took the surname of her stepfather, Edward Moreno.^[2]

She began her first dancing lessons soon after arriving in New York from a friend of her mother, a Spanish dancer called Paco Cansino, who was the uncle of Rita Hayworth.^[3] When she was 11 years old, she lent her voice to Spanish language versions of American films.

She had her first Broadway role — as "Angelina" in Skydrift — by the time she was 13, which caught the attention of Hollywood talent scouts. She appeared in small roles in The Toast of New Orleans^[4] and Singin' in the Rain, in which she played Zelda Zanners.

In March 1954, Moreno was featured on the cover of Life Magazine with a caption “Rita Moreno: An Actresses' Catalog of Sex and Innocence.” ^[5][6]

In 1956, she had a supporting role in the film version of The King and I as Tuptim, but disliked most of her other work during this period.^[7]

[edit] West Side Story and its Aftermath

External audio
	You may listen to Rita Moreno sing the song "America" in a scene from "West Side Story" here

In 1961, Moreno landed the role of Anita in Robert Wise's and Jerome Robbins' film adaptation of Leonard Bernstein's and Stephen Sondheim's groundbreaking Broadway musical, West Side Story, which was played by Chita Rivera on Broadway. Moreno won the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award for that role.^[8]

After winning the Oscar, Moreno thought she would be able to continue to perform less stereotypical film roles, but was disappointed.

"Ha, ha. I showed them. I didn't make another movie for seven years after winning the Oscar.... Before West Side Story I was always offered the stereotypical Latina roles. The Conchitas and Lolitas in westerns. I was always barefoot. It was humiliating, embarrassing stuff. But I did it because there was nothing else. After West Side Story, it was pretty much the same thing. A lot of gang stories."^[9]

Moreno went on to be the first Hispanic to win an Emmy (1977), a Grammy (1972), an Oscar (1962) and a Tony (1975). In 1985, she won the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago.^[8].

Other roles[link]

Besides appearing in Singin' in the Rain, The King and I, Summer and Smoke (1961), West Side Story, The Night of the Following Day (1968) and Carnal Knowledge in (1971),

Moreno appeared on the PBS children's series The Electric Company in the 1970s, most notably as Millie the Helper. In fact, it was Moreno who screamed the show's opening line, "HEY, YOU GUYS!" She also had roles as the naughty little girl Pandora, and as "Otto", the very short-tempered director. Moreno appeared in the family variety series The Muppet Show, and she made other guest appearances on television series such as The Rockford Files, The Love Boat, The Cosby Show, George Lopez, The Golden Girls, and Miami Vice. She was also a regular on the short-lived sitcom version of Nine to Five (based on the film hit) during the early 1980s.^[7]

Broadway and television[link]

Moreno's Broadway credits include The Last of the Red Hot Lovers, Gantry, The Ritz, for which she won the 1975 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress, and the female version of The Odd Couple.^[7] In 1993 she was invited to perform at President Bill Clinton's inauguration and later that month was asked to perform at the White House.^[1] During the mid 1990s, Moreno provided the voice of Carmen Sandiego on the animated Fox show Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego?^[10] In 1995, she co-starred with Charlton Heston, Mickey Rooney, Deborah Winters and Peter Graves in the Warren Chaney docudrama, America: A Call to Greatness.^[11]

In the late 1990s, she gained exposure to a new generation of viewers when she played Sister Pete, a nun trained as a psychologist in the popular HBO series, Oz. She made a guest appearance on The Nanny as Coach Stone, Maggie's (Nicholle Tom) tyrannical gym teacher, whom Fran Fine (Fran Drescher) also remembered from her school as Ms. Wickavich.^[12]

Performing in the 21st century[link]

Moreno continues to be active on stage and screen. In 2006, she portrayed Amanda Wingfield in Berkeley Repertory Theatre's revival of The Glass Menagerie. She was seen on Law and Order: Criminal Intent as the dying mother of Detective Goren. She was a regular on the short-lived TV series Cane, which starred Jimmy Smits and Hector Elizondo. In 2011 she accepted the role of the mother of Fran Drescher's character in the TV sitcom Happily Divorced.^[13]

In September 2011, Moreno began performing a solo autobiographical show at the Berkeley Rep (theater) in Berkeley, California, Rita Moreno: Life Without Makeup written by Berkeley Rep artistic director Tony Taccone after hours of interviews with Moreno.^[5]

Family and Personal Life[link]

Moreno dated Marlon Brando for 8 years, and attempted suicide in his home in 1962.^[14]

On June 18, 1965, Moreno married Leonard Gordon, a cardiologist who was also her manager. He died on June 30, 2010.^[15] They have one daughter, Fernanda Luisa Gordon-Fisher,^[8] and two grandsons, Justin and Cameron Fisher.^[16]

Awards[link]

Awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2004

Among Moreno's awards and recognitions are the following:

• Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress - "West Side Story" (1961)
• Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - "West Side Story" (1961)
• "The Joseph Jefferson Award" Best Chicago Theatre Actress (1968)
• Grammy Award The Electric Company Album (1972)
• Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play - "The Ritz" (1975)
• Emmy Award for Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (1977)
• Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress - Drama Series (1978)
• "The Golden Apple" Cue Magazine Award
• Library of Congress Living Legends Award, April 2000
• In 2000, the Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA) renamed their Award for Excellence in her honor (now named HOLA Rita Moreno Award for Excellence)
• "The Sarah Siddons Awards" for her portrayal of Olive Madison in the female version of the Odd Couple
• "Special Recognition Award" from the International Latin Music Hall of Fame (2001)
• "Presidential Medal of Freedom" from President George W. Bush in June 2004
• Rita Moreno has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7083 Hollywood Blvd.
• On December 5, 2007, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver inducted Moreno into the California Hall of Fame, located at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts.^[17]
• In 2009, Rita Moreno was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama.^[18]
• In 2010, the Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA) honored her with an HOLA Lifetime Achievement Award

Filmography[link]

Film[link]