Aviva Stadium
150px
UEFA Category 4 Stadium
Location	62 Lansdowne Road, Dublin 4, Dublin, Ireland
Coordinates	53°20′6.5″N 6°13′42.0″W / 53.335139°N 6.22833°W / 53.335139; -6.22833Coordinates: 53°20′6.5″N 6°13′42.0″W / 53.335139°N 6.22833°W / 53.335139; -6.22833
Broke ground	March 2007
Built	2007–2010
Opened	14 May 2010
Owner	Irish Rugby Football Union and Football Association of Ireland
Operator	Lansdowne Road Stadium Development Company[1]
Surface	Grass
Construction cost	€410 million (inclusive of EUR € 191 million of government funding) (2010)[2]
Architect	Populous (formerly HOK Sport)[3] Scott Tallon Walker[4]
Structural engineer	Buro Happold
Services engineer	ME Engineers Town Planning Consultants = Tom Phillips + Associates
Capacity	51,700 seated (football, rugby union) 65,000 (concerts)
Field dimensions	106 × 68 m (348 × 223 ft)
Tenants
Ireland national rugby union team (IRFU) (2010–) Republic of Ireland national football team (FAI) (2010–) Leinster Rugby (2010-) Emerald Isle Classic (NCAA football) (2012-present)

The Aviva Stadium (Irish: Staid Aviva) is a sports stadium located in Dublin, Ireland, with a capacity for 51,700 spectators (all seated).^[5][6] It is built on the site of the former Lansdowne Road stadium, which was demolished in 2007, and replacing it as home to its chief tenants: the Irish rugby union team and the Republic of Ireland national football team. The decision to redevelop the stadium came after plans for both Stadium Ireland and Eircom Park fell through. The Aviva Group signed a 10-year deal for the naming rights in 2009.^[7]

The stadium, located adjacent to Lansdowne Road railway station, officially opened on 14 May 2010. The stadium is Ireland's first, and only, UEFA Elite Stadium and in 2011, it hosted the Europa League Final. It also hosted the inaugural Nations Cup, as well as the regular home fixtures of the national rugby team and national football team from August 2010 onwards.

Unlike its predecessor, which was solely owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU), the current stadium is controlled by the IRFU and the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) through a 50:50 joint venture known as the Lansdowne Road Stadium Development Company (LRSDC). The joint venture has a 60-year lease on the stadium;^[8] on expiry the stadium will return to the exclusive ownership of the IRFU.

Facilities[link]

Inside the stadium

The stadium has five tiers, with the lower and upper tiers being for general access, the second and third tier for premium tickets and the fourth tier for corporate boxes. The north stand, however, is single tiered due to its proximity to local housing. This stand is expected to be the away stand for soccer internationals. There are two basement levels and seven storeys of floors. The premium level holds 11,000 spectators, while the box level holds 1,300.^[9] The remaining 38,700 seats are shared between the top and bottom tiers. The capacity of the stadium was criticised even before its opening for being too small, particularly in light of the large supporter attendance figures for Irish rugby internationals and soccer internationals at Croke Park since 2007.^[10] The stadium's roof is designed to undulate in a wave-like manner so as to avoid blocking light to local residences.^[11]

History[link]

The stadium was officially opened on 14 May 2010 by then Taoiseach Brian Cowen.^[12][13][14] Over the months before and after the stadium was officially opened Aviva Insurance had commercials where at the end, an old couple would walk out of a hallway and into the main stand.

Rugby Union[link]

Rugby Union matches
Date	Competition	Home	Away	Score	Attendance
31 July 2010	Challenge Match	Leinster/Ulster	Munster/Connacht	68–0	34,000
2 October 2010	2010–11 PRO12	Leinster	Munster	13–9	50,645
6 November 2010	Test Match	Ireland	South Africa	21–23	35,515
13 November 2010	Test Match	Ireland	Samoa	20–10	37,955
20 November 2010	Test Match	Ireland	New Zealand	18–38	49,640
28 November 2010	Test Match	Ireland	Argentina	29–9	45,340
18 December 2010	2010–11 Heineken Cup pool stage	Leinster	Clermont Auvergne	24–8	44,873
13 February 2011	2011 Six Nations Championship	Ireland	France	22–25	51,700
19 March 2011	2011 Six Nations Championship	Ireland	England	24-8	51,700
9 April 2011	2010–11 Heineken Cup quarter-final	Leinster	Leicester Tigers	17-10	49,672
30 April 2011	2010–11 Heineken Cup semi-final	Leinster	Toulouse	32–23	50,073
20 August 2011	Test Match	Ireland	France	22–26
27 August 2011	Test Match	Ireland	England	6–20	48,523
4 November 2011	2011–12 PRO12	Leinster	Munster	24-19	48,365
17 December 2011	2011–12 Heineken Cup pool stage	Leinster	Bath	52–27	46,365
5 February 2012	2012 Six Nations Championship	Ireland	Wales	21-23	51,000
25 February 2012	2012 Six Nations Championship	Ireland	Italy	42-10	51,000
19 March 2012	2012 Six Nations Championship	Ireland	Scotland	32-14	51,000
7 April 2012	2011–12 Heineken Cup quarter-final	Leinster	Cardiff Blues	34–3	50,043
28 April 2012	2011–12 Heineken Cup semi-final	Ulster	Edinburgh	22–19	45,147
Row colours: green for club matches, yellow for international ones.

The Aviva prior to a Leinster Rugby match.

The Ireland rugby union team is playing its home games at the stadium, as it did previously at Lansdowne Road, taking over from their temporary home, Croke Park, where games were being played during Aviva's construction. Ireland's first international game was on 6 November 2010 against South Africa, with the Springboks winning 23–21. The game drew a disappointing crowd of 35,515, mainly due to a backlash by Ireland supporters over the IRFU's controversial ticketing strategy for the November Test series.^[15] Initially, the IRFU announced that tickets to the November Tests would only be sold as packages for all four matches. Later, it announced that the tickets would instead be split into two packages, with the South Africa Test bundled with the following week's match with Samoa for a minimum of €150, and the New Zealand and Argentina Tests bundled for a minimum of €190. Single-game tickets were to be available only for the Samoa and Argentina Tests. On 1 November, the IRFU backed away from this plan amid heavy criticism from member clubs that had problems selling the packages in a difficult economy.^[16]

Lansdowne Road was replaced by the Aviva Stadium, shown here during construction

The first rugby union game at the Aviva was an exhibition game on 31 July, billed as the O₂ Challenge, involving under-18 and under-20 players from all four of Ireland's provincial sides, with a Leinster/Ulster side defeating a Munster/Connacht combination 68–0.^[17] As part of the run-up to the event, O₂ ran a promotion which gave the winner the opportunity to attempt to score the ceremonial first points at the Aviva via a simulated conversion kick on the day before the match. The winner of the promotion, John Baker of Ennis, was successful.^[18] The first official points at the Aviva were a try by Ulster's Craig Gilroy in the O₂ Challenge.^[17]

The stadium also hosts some home games for Leinster when the RDS Arena's smaller capacity doesn't satisfy demand. Leinster won their opening home game in the Aviva against Munster by 13 points to 9, during the Magners League (now PRO12) season, in front of a record PRO12 attendance of 50,645. Leinster won their first Heineken Cup game in the Aviva 24-8, against Clermont Auvergne in a pool game during the 2010–11 Heineken Cup season. During Leinster's successful run to the Heineken Cup title that season, they took their quarter-final and semi-final matches to the Aviva, defeating Leicester Tigers and Toulouse respectively. Ulster took their 2012 Heineken Cup semi-final to the Aviva as well, defeating Edinburgh.

Heineken Cup[link]

The 2013 Heineken Cup Final will take place in the Aviva Stadium in May of that year.^[19]

The Heineken Cup final was last held in Dublin in 2003 when Toulouse beat Perpignan 22-17 at Lansdowne Road although since then the stadium, both old and new, has staged an array of classic European contests.

Association Football[link]

Association Football matches
Date	Competition	Home	Away	Score	Attendance
31 July 2010	Challenge Match	League of Ireland XI	Manchester United	1-7	49,800
11 August	Friendly	Republic of Ireland	Argentina	0-1	45,133
7 September 2010	UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group B	Republic of Ireland	Andorra	3-1	40,283
8 October 2010	UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group B	Republic of Ireland	Russia	2-3	50,411
14 November 2010	2010 FAI Cup Final	Sligo Rovers	Shamrock Rovers	0-0 AET PSO : 2-0	36,101
17 November 2010	Friendly	Republic of Ireland	Norway	1-2	25,000
8 February 2011	2011 Nations Cup	Republic of Ireland	Wales	3-0	19,783
9 February 2011	2011 Nations Cup	Scotland	Northern Ireland	3-0	18,742
26 March 2011	UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group B	Republic of Ireland	Macedonia	2-1	32,000
29 March 2011	Friendly	Republic of Ireland	Uruguay	2-3	15,000
18 May 2011	2011 UEFA Europa League Final	F.C. Porto	S.C. Braga	1-0	44,391
24 May 2011	2011 Nations Cup	Republic of Ireland	Northern Ireland	5-0	19,783
25 May 2011	2011 Nations Cup	Wales	Scotland	1-3	6,036
27 May 2011	2011 Nations Cup	Wales	Northern Ireland	2-0	529
29 May 2011	2011 Nations Cup	Republic of Ireland	Scotland	1-0	29,986
30 July 2011	Dublin Super Cup	Inter Milan	Celtic	2-0	N/A
30 July 2011	Dublin Super Cup	Manchester City	League of Ireland XI	3-0	N/A
31 July 2011	Dublin Super Cup	League of Ireland XI	Celtic	0-5	N/A
31 July 2011	Dublin Super Cup	Inter Milan	Manchester City	0-3	N/A
2 September 2011	UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group B	Republic of Ireland	Slovakia	0-0	35,480
11 October 2011	UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group B	Republic of Ireland	Armenia	2-1	45,200
6 November 2011	2011 FAI Cup Final	Shelbourne	Sligo Rovers	1-1 AET PSO : 1-4	21,662
15 November 2011	UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying play-offs	Republic of Ireland	Estonia	1-1	51,151
Row colours: green for club matches, yellow for international ones.

The stadium also hosts the home games of the Republic of Ireland, as did Lansdowne Road. The team had played most home games at Croke Park during the construction of the Aviva. The first soccer match in the Aviva was Manchester United against a League of Ireland XI side, managed by Damien Richardson, on 4 August 2010.^[20] Manchester United won the game 7-1, with Park Ji-Sung scoring the first ever goal in the Aviva Stadium.^[21] The first international game for Ireland in the Aviva Stadium was a 1-0 friendly loss against Argentina on 11 August 2010.^[22] The first competitive goal was scored by Kevin Kilbane in a UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying game on the 7 September 2010 against Andorra.^[23]

FAI Cup Final[link]

Ireland vs Argentina

The Aviva annually hosts the FAI Ford Cup Final, which was shared between the RDS Arena and the Tallaght Stadium while the new stadium was being built. The first Cup Final at the new stadium was the 2010 FAI Cup Final, held on Sunday 14 November 2010. Sligo Rovers beat Shamrock Rovers 2-0 on penalties after the game finished 0-0 after extra time. A total of 36,101 attended the game making it the biggest attendance at an FAI Cup Final since 1968. Tickets for the finals are to be included as part of the ten-year international tickets.

2011 Nations Cup[link]

The 2011 Nations Cup took place in the Aviva Stadium. The tournament featured national football teams from Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. In the opening round of fixtures the Republic of Ireland beat Wales 3-0 while Scotland beat Northern Ireland 3-0. The remaining four fixtures took place in May, with the Republic of Ireland winning the tournament after beating Scotland 1-0 on the 29th of May.^[24]

2011 Europa League Final[link]

The 2011 UEFA Europa League Final between Portuguese sides F.C. Porto and S.C. Braga took place in the Aviva Stadium. Due to UEFA rules against corporate sponsorship outside the federation, the stadium was referred to as the "Dublin Arena" for this final, that ended with a 1–0 victory for Porto.

Dublin Super Cup[link]

The Dublin Super Cup was a pre-season football tournament which was held in the Aviva. Celtic, Manchester City, Inter Milan and a League of Ireland XI competed in the 2011 edition, with Manchester City winning the tournament.

American Football[link]

In 2012, Aviva Stadium will host an American college football game billed as the Emerald Isle Classic between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Navy Midshipmen.^[25]

Concerts[link]

Transport connections[link]

The stadium is served by public transport with Bus and DART. More remotely, it may also be reached, following a journey on foot by the Luas and Busáras. The stadium is inaccessible by car on match days due to a 1 km car-free exclusion zone in operation. |

See also[link]

• Stadia of Ireland

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Aviva Stadium

• Official website
• Lansdowne Road Stadium Development Company
• Engineer's press release
• Aviva arrives photography
• The Dublin Arena opens

The Script
The Script, Nobel Peace Prize Concert 2008
Background information
Origin	Dublin, Ireland
Genres	Soft rock, alternative rock, blue-eyed soul, worldbeat
Years active	2001–present[1]
Labels	Sony Music Entertainment
Associated acts	mytown (1996-2001)
Website	thescriptmusic.com
Members
Danny O'Donoghue Mark Sheehan Glen Power

The Script are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Based in London after signing to Sony Label Group imprint Phonogenic, the band released their eponymous debut album in August 2008, featuring the hit songs "The Man Who Can't Be Moved" and "Breakeven". The album debuted at number one in Ireland and the UK.^[2] Their second album, Science & Faith, was released in September 2010, and contains the hit songs "For the First Time" and "Nothing". The album debuted at number one in Ireland and the UK, and number three on the US Billboard 200.^[2][3]

Their music has been featured in many video games and many popular television programs including 90210, Ghost Whisperer, The Hills, Waterloo Road, EastEnders, Made in Chelsea and The Vampire Diaries. Frontman Danny O'Donoghue is also a coach on The Voice UK.

Biography[link]

Danny O'Donoghue and Mark Sheehan met in a club in The Liberties area of Dublin, Ireland near the Guinness brewery, gravitating to each other through a shared liking of music, and in particular a love of R & B music (Rhythm and Blues). "At that time, MTV only came on in Dublin after midnight, it was the fuzzy channel, and for my generation urban culture was just a wave through us all," explains Sheehan. "It wasn't about gangs and guns; it was fashion and fun, singing and dancing." ^[4]

Mark and Danny were formerly part of a band that had formed in 1996 called mytown. Striking up a songwriting and production partnership, O'Donoghue and Sheehan's talent was recognized early, and, to their astonishment, they found themselves invited to Canada to collaborate with some of their production heroes, including such legends of modern R&B as Dallas Austin, Montell Jordan and Teddy Riley. They were based in the US for many years, but moved back to Dublin where they recruited Glen Power for their new band. He had been playing sessions from the age of fifteen, using the money to work on a solo project in his home. But that went on hold when his collaboration with Mark and Danny produced three songs in one week. The band signed to Phonogenic in 2005, and released an EP on Last.FM. The band's influences include a diverse group of artists that include U2, Coldplay, The Police, The Neptunes, Timbaland, and Van Morrison.^[5] O'Donoghue also made a reference to Amy Winehouse and Stevie Wonder while discussing his personal voice while singing. They have worked on a few collaborations with Amy Winehouse and Denzel Washington, varying styles and genres. He stated that the instrument he attempts to imitate is a violin, based on the string arrangements of Stevie Wonder, while Amy Winehouse is similar to a saxophone.^[6]

Danny and Mark started making demos for other artists, but when they met drummer Glen Power, the objective changed. The pair had never heard Power play, but they made a connection that motivated Sheehan to invite Glen on a working holiday to Los Angeles. In one week, the trio produced three songs. "It was like I found my home playing with these guys," says Glen. "I had never had a chance with any other band to express myself with such freedom." "Individually, we all had our own talents, but together it just went to another level," according to Danny.^{[cite this quote]}

In the beginning years of the band, Mark Sheehan's mother fell terminally ill, causing a lot of stress on the band and members, but it also had a positive effect on Sheehan's writing. With such strong emotional tension, the songwriter found new lyrics every day. Sheehan said that "That was the time when it finally came home to me how important music was to me, 'cause in my darkest moments that's what got me through." After Sheehan's mother's death, ten months after her diagnosis, Danny's father died four months later of a heart attack. Even with such trying moments in their early years, the band was able to rise out of it, albeit with somewhat bleak lyrics in several songs, as commented by Danny when referencing "We Cry": "There is not a lot of hope in the song, cause not everybody's life is full of hope. There's not always roses at the end."^[6]

[edit] The Script (2008–2010)

The Script performed "We Cry" for the first time on BalconyTV in Dublin on 13 September 2007.^[7] The band claimed that BalconyTV was the "first TV they ever did" and credited Michael Hunter as the "push we needed to propel us" when they won Best Band at the DanishTV Music Video Awards 2009 in the Pepper Club Dublin on 20 June 2008. At the awards the band said the award was their "first ever".^[8] The Script released their debut single "We Cry" on 14 April 2008. "We Cry" received "Single of the Day" on RTÉ 2FM, Today FM and by Jo Whiley on BBC Radio 1, where many radio presenters heavily supported the band.^[9] The single peaked at number 15 on the UK Singles Chart,^[10] giving the band their first top 20 single. The track also performed well on the Irish Singles Chart, peaking at number 9 and giving the band their first top ten single in their home country.^[10] The Script also performed 'We Cry' on one of the CW's TV series, 90210.

Their second single, "The Man Who Can't Be Moved", was released on 15 September 2008.^[11] The single reached number 2 in Ireland, Denmark, and the UK.^[12] The band released their debut album, The Script, on 11 August 2008. Following the success of "The Man Who Can't Be Moved", the album entered the UK Albums Chart at number one with sales of 20,240 copies where it stayed for eleven weeks. The album spent three weeks in the top ten and was the eighteenth best selling album in the UK of 2008. The album also entered the Irish Albums Chart at number one, holding the top spot for five weeks.^[13] It had, as of January 2009, spent 2 wks. in the top 10. The Irish office of Sony BMG music presented the group with their first multi-platinum disc for over 600,000 sales of their debut album, The Script.^[14]

The band's third single, "Breakeven", was released in Ireland on 21 November 2008 and in the UK on 29 December 2008. The single was an instant success on the Irish Singles Chart. After entering the chart at number forty, it spent one week before entering the top ten at number ten giving the Script their third top ten single in Russia. The single has, to date, spent 4 weeks on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 21. The band's fourth single "Talk You Down" was released in March 2009.^[15]

On 9 November The Script received an award at the World Music Awards for 'Best Selling Irish Act' of 2008 and on 19 February 2010, they won 'Best Live Performance' at the Meteor Ireland Music Awards. The band has confirmed that they plan to write a track for Leona Lewis's second album.^[16] In December 2008, the band were confirmed to be supporting Take That at their concert at Croke Park on 13 June 2009. The band played at the Cheerio's Childline concert on the opening night of Dublin's 02. They played among big stars Enrique Iglesias, Anastacia and many more.

On 7 April 2009 the band was confirmed to be supporting U2 on their third concert at Croke Park, which took place on 27 July 2009.^[17] On 29 April 2009, the band announced that their next single would be Before The Worst, to be released on 15 June 2009.^[18] On 17, 18 and 21 July 2009, The Script opened for Paul McCartney at the historic first concerts at New York's Citi Field^[19] and for U2 at Dublin's Croke Park.

The band's bonus track and B-side "Live Like We're Dying" was re-recorded by American Idol 2009 winner Kris Allen as the first single off his self-titled album. Allen's version of "Live Like We're Dying" was digitally released for download on 21 September 2009.^[20]

On 2 December 2009 the band's single "The Man Who Can't Be Moved" was featured as a remix on the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show during the Enchanted Forest segment.

On 16 April 2010, their first U.S. single "Breakeven" was certified Platinum by the RIAA (the Recording Industry Association of America), selling over one million copies in the U.S. and has since peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 2010. The band performed a headline tour in the United States that kicked off in San Diego on 11 October 2010 at the House of Blues and ended on 7 November 2010 at the House of Blues in Boston, Massachusetts.^[19] On 21 May 2010, they appeared live on NBC's Today Show as part of the show's outdoor Toyota Concert Series.

[edit] Science & Faith (2010-2011)

The Script announced a new album and single on their website on Monday, 19 July 2010. The first single from album Science & Faith, "For the First Time", was released in the UK on 20 August 2010 and the album followed on 13 September 2010. In the United States, "For the First Time" was released on iTunes on 8 November 2010, with "Science & Faith" was released on 18 January 2011.^[21] The song was first released in the United States on AOL Music on 29 September 2010.^[22] "For the First Time" has entered the UK charts at #5 and moved up to #4 the following week and entered the Irish charts at #1. The music video features Bono's daughter Eve Hewson. Science & Faith entered the Irish Album Chart and the UK album chart at #1.

The Script recorded their album in London, and vocalist Danny O'Donoghue says that the economic crisis in Ireland is "a microcosm for the rest of the world." He talks about people being stripped of everything that they own and how it inspired the band to write the songs for the new album. Danny says, "We're dealing with complex emotions in the simplest of ways, that's what we battle with in these songs." The subject matter might sound bleak at first, but Science & Faith is about optimism. "With Irish people, no matter how bad things get, you always pick yourself up and carry on."^{[cite this quote]}

On Friday, 24 September at 9:00am tickets for The Script's three nights at The O2 Dublin, two nights at The Odyssey, Belfast & two at The INEC, Killarney went on sale and sold out in less than 40 minutes, with over 60,000 tickets sold. On 1 October at 9:00am tickets for The Script arena tour in March 2011 went on sale. The tickets for all 12 arenas around the UK sold out in 5 days. They also announced that they would play a "Homecoming" concert at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. This is part of the Science & Faith Tour and will be their biggest headline show to date.

The Script also took part in Children in Need 2010. The Script will be participating in the VH1 Best Cruise Ever and sailing to Cozumel 28 April-2 May 2011. The Script took part in BRMB's live 2010 with acts such as The Saturdays, Mark Ronson and Mcfly. The Script were nominated for Best International Act at the 2011 Brit Awards. The Script announced that they will perform at: Pinkpop festival, V festival, Oxegen, Isle of Wight Festival, T in the park, Thetford Forest Show, iTunes Festival, Skanderborg Festival, Sudoeste Festival, Tennents ViTal.

The Script also played to the biggest indoor crowd of 18,300 people at The Coca-Cola Dome in Johannesburg South Africa 24 June 2011.

They later went on to play their official biggest crowd ever on 2 July 2011 in Dublin's Aviva Stadium, and performed to a sold-out crowd of 50,000 people. The Coronas and Tinie Tempah were support acts on the night.

Discography[link]

Studio albums

• The Script (2008)
• Science & Faith (2010)

Tours and shows[link]

• Science & Faith Tour
• iTunes Festival 2011
• Isle Of Wight Festival 2011
• Radio City Music Hall - October 9, 2012
• V FEST 2011
• World Tour October 2012

Awards and Nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• The Script at MySpace
• The Script at Billboard.com
• The Script on BalconyTV – Music With Nothing
• BBC Talking Shop: The Script by Neil Smith, 17 April 2008 at ITV
• BBC Music Club: The Script
• The Script CD review in MTVMexico.com
• Talk You Down Review at Daily Music Book
• The Script Interview in the Virgin Red Room
• Project This = Love, home to the only charity group for fans of The Script

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2012)

"The Man" is a slang phrase that may refer to the government or to some other authority in a position of power. In addition to this derogatory connotation, it may also serve as a term of respect and praise.

The phrase "the Man is keeping me down" is commonly used to describe oppression. The phrase "stick it to the Man" encourages resistance to authority, and essentially means "fight back" or "resist", either openly or via sabotage.^[1]

History[link]

The earliest recorded use^{[citation needed]} of the term "the Man" in the American sense dates back to a letter written by a young Alexander Hamilton in September 1772, when he was 15. In a letter to his father James Hamilton, published in the Royal Dutch-American Gazette, he described the response of the Dutch governor of St. Croix to a hurricane that raked that island on August 31, 1772. "Our General has issued several very salutary and humane regulations and both in his publick and private measures, has shewn himself the Man." ^{[2][dubious – discuss]} In the Southern U.S. states, the phrase came to be applied to any man or any group in a position of authority, or to authority in the abstract. From about the 1950s the phrase was also an underworld code word for police, the warden of a prison or other law enforcement or penal authorities.

It was also used as a term for a drug dealer in the 1950s and 1960s and can be seen in such media as Curtis Mayfield's "No Thing On Me", William Burroughs's novel Naked Lunch, and in the Velvet Underground song "I'm Waiting for the Man", in which Lou Reed sings about going to Uptown Manhattan, specifically Lexington Avenue and 125th Street, to buy heroin.

The use of this term was expanded to counterculture groups and their battles against authority, such as the Yippies, which, according to a May 19, 1969 article in U.S. News and World Report, had the "avowed aim ... to destroy 'The Man', their term for the present system of government". The term eventually found its way into humorous usage, such as in a December 1979 motorcycle ad from the magazine Easyriders which featured the tagline, "California residents: Add 6% sales tax for The Man."

In present day, the phrase has been popularized in commercials and cinema, featuring particularly prominently as a recurring motif in the 2003 film School of Rock.^[3][4][5][6]

Use as praise[link]

The term has also been used as an approbation or form of praise. This may refer to the recipient's status as the leader or authority within a particular context, or it might be assumed to be a shortened form of a phrase like "He is the man (who is in charge)." One example of this usage dates to 1879 when Otto von Bismarck commented, referring to Benjamin Disraeli's pre-eminent position at the Congress of Berlin, "The old Jew, he is the man."^{[7][dubious – discuss]}

In more modern usage, it can be a superlative compliment ("you da man!") indicating that the subject is currently standing out amongst his peers even though they have no special designation or rank, such as a basketball player who is performing better than the other players on the court. It can also be used as a genuine compliment with an implied, slightly exaggerated or sarcastic tone, usually indicating that the person has indeed impressed the speaker but by doing something relatively trivial.

See also[link]

• Absentee landlord
• Big Brother (Nineteen Eighty-Four)
• New World Order (conspiracy theory)
• Ruling class
• The Establishment
• Power elite
• Corrections officer
• YTMND

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Lighter, J.E. (Ed.). (1997). Random House Dictionary of American Slang. New York: Random House.