True Lies is a 1994 American action-comedy film directed by James Cameron and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Arnold, Bill Paxton, Tia Carrere, Charlton Heston, and Art Malik. Eliza Dushku also appears in the film in one of her first major film roles. True Lies is an extended remake of the 1991 French film La Totale !,^[1] which was directed by Claude Zidi and starred Thierry Lhermitte and Miou-Miou. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects and Curtis won a Golden Globe for her comedic portrayal of Helen Tasker.

True Lies was the first Lightstorm Entertainment project to be distributed under Cameron's multi-million dollar production deal with 20th Century Fox, as well as the first major production for the visual effects company Digital Domain, which was co-founded by Cameron. True Lies was the only feature film collaboration outside of the Terminator series to feature Cameron, Schwarzenegger, and Brad Fiedel as director, actor, and composer respectively.

Upon its release, True Lies was one of the most expensive films ever made, costing $100^[2][3]–120^[4] million.

One of the reasons why the movie was so expensive was this example which came to light via New Idea magazine: The scene where Jamie Lee Curtis slashes a dowdy dress took three days to shoot, using fifteen lookalike dresses at $1200 each.^[5]

Plot[link]

Harry Tasker (Arnold Schwarzenegger) leads a double life, performing covert missions for the United States Government under a counter-terrorism task force called "The Omega Sector". Albert "Gib" Gibson (Tom Arnold) and Faisil (Grant Heslov) assist him in these missions under the command of Spencer Trilby (Charlton Heston). However, Harry's wife, Helen (Jamie Lee Curtis), and his daughter, Dana (Eliza Dushku), believe he is a boring computer salesman with Tektel Systems (the cover company for Omega Sector) doing a lot of "corporate" travel.

Harry's latest mission in Switzerland reveals the existence of an Islamic terrorist organization group known as the Crimson Jihad, led by Salim Abu Aziz (Art Malik). Harry suspects that antiques dealer Juno Skinner (Tia Carrere) has ties to Aziz. After visiting her, Harry is chased by Aziz's men through the Georgetown Park shopping mall and a large hotel, meanwhile missing the birthday party that his wife and daughter have arranged for him.

When Harry goes to Helen's office the next day to surprise her and take her to lunch, he overhears a conversation with her coworker about "Simon" (Bill Paxton), a man she is seeing, causing Harry to worry about their marriage. Using the Omega Sector's resources (including a GPS tracker and wireless microphone hidden in her purse), he tracks down Simon, who turns out to be a used car salesman posing as a spy to seduce Helen. Helen is kidnapped by Harry's agency from Simon's trailer and left in a bare concrete interrogation room with a one way mirror. Harry questions her using a voice distorter about her relationship with "Simon" and about their marriage. She says that she wanted to have adventure in her life for once since Harry never gave her that. Harry realizes his cover as a boring salesman was too convincing. He decides to spice up Helen's life to make her happy by giving her a choice: go on a "mission" or be sent to prison. She chooses the mission: to pose as a prostitute and plant a bug on the phone of an arms dealer. Before she has a chance to plant the bug, Harry (who poses as the arms dealer) insists that she dances for him. The sham is interrupted by Aziz's men who burst into the room, taking both of them hostage, and subsequently flying them to the terrorist hideout somewhere in the Florida Keys.

Aziz reveals he possesses small nuclear warheads hidden inside antique statues shipped by Juno and plans to detonate one to demonstrate his power to the United States. Harry, under the effects of a truth serum, reveals his secret double life, much to Helen's shock. Harry then escapes, frees Helen and attacks the camp, trying to stop the planned detonation. While fighting Aziz's troops, Harry appears to die in an explosion. Helen is recaptured and is taken by Aziz, Juno, and the terrorists as they escape the island before a nuclear warhead is set to detonate and wipe out their camp and any evidence. Gib locates and rescues Harry using the GPS device in Helen's purse. Two U.S. Marine AV-8B Harrier jets are brought in to attack Aziz's convoy as they travel the Overseas Highway and Harry is able to rescue Helen, but Aziz evades capture.

Harry soon learns that Aziz has kidnapped their daughter, Dana, and with the remaining terrorists has taken over the top floor of an under-construction office building in downtown Miami. Harry commandeers a Harrier to rescue his daughter and stop them from detonating the remaining nuclear warhead. Dana steals the arming key—and pursued by Aziz—climbs up onto a crane at the top of the building. Harry eliminates a few of the terrorists with the Harrier's machine guns while the rest decide to escape by helicopter. Harry sees Dana climbing the rigging and persuades her into jumping onto the Harrier. Aziz follows Dana and attacks Harry while he tries to pull his daughter to safety. Aziz falls off the jet, but gets his backpack caught on an AIM-9 Sidewinder missile which Harry shoots at the terrorists' hovering helicopter, with Aziz still attached, killing them all.

A year later, the Tasker family is having dinner together. A phone call reveals that Helen now also works for Omega Sector. Harry and Helen then embark on a new mission together.

Reception[link]

Upon its release in 1994, the film garnered mostly positive reviews. Based on 47 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes, True Lies has a 72% fresh rating and a weighted average of 6.5/10 with the consensus being "If it doesn't reach the heights of director James Cameron's and star Arnold Schwarzenegger's previous collaborations, True Lies still packs enough action and humor into its sometimes absurd plot to entertain".^[6] Website Metacritic, which assigns a weighted mean to various reviews, gave the film a 63 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews".^[7]

James Berardinelli from Reelviews gave the film 3.5 stars out of 4, saying,

"I have yet to decide whether True Lies is a better comedy or action film. It contains heavy elements of both, and plays them equally well. Unlike such failed attempts as Hudson Hawk and Last Action Hero, however, True Lies is a big, grandiose movie that has an immense amount of fun while never taking itself too seriously... Speed (which was released in the same year) and True Lies deliver a summer one-two punch that will leave viewers squirming with excitement and gasping for breath."^[8]

The film relies heavily on stunts, often performed by Schwarzenegger and Curtis themselves. The film earned $146 million domestically and $232.6 million abroad,^[9] making it third best-grossing movie of 1994,^[10] and also a comeback for Schwarzenegger following the disastrous Last Action Hero of the previous summer. For her performance, Jamie Lee Curtis received a 1994 Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Musical/Comedy.^[11]

Despite the positive reviews, the film was criticized as sexist, cruel or even misogynistic, for its treatment of female characters, such as the hero (Schwarzenegger) using his agency's resources to stalk and frighten his wife.^[12] Others perceived it as conveying a strong anti-Arab or anti-Muslim prejudice.^[13]

Possible sequel and television series adaptation[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2010)

In September 2010, multiple websites reported James Cameron developing True Lies as a possible television series with Dark Angel producer Rene Echevarria acting as showrunner and producer.^[14] In 2002, online news reports quoted Eliza Dushku as saying there would be a sequel reuniting the original cast with the writer/director James Cameron.^{[citation needed]} Cameron originally planned to make a sequel sometime in 2002, but he put his plans on hold once the September 11, 2001 attacks occurred in New York City, saying terrorism was no longer something to be taken lightly.^[15] In an interview, James Cameron stated there are no plans for a True Lies sequel, but he and Schwarzenegger had spoken about possibly working on a new project together once Schwarzenegger leaves office.^[16]

In the film The Kid & I, Tom Arnold plays a fictional character based on himself. In that film, the character had starred in True Lies and is pursued, by a fan and teams up with Henry Winkler and Linda Hamilton to make a sequel; Schwarzenegger and Curtis cameo as themselves. Tom Arnold jokingly commented at the Schwarzenegger campaign headquarters that a sequel to True Lies was cancelled after Arnold Schwarzenegger had won the 2003 California recall election.

Soundtrack[link]

Songs appearing in the film not included with the release of the soundtrack

• "I Never Thought I'd See The Day" – Performed by Sade
• "More Than a Woman" – Performed by The Bee Gees
• "The Blue Danube" – Performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra
• "Por una Cabeza" – Argentinean tango, performed by The Tango Project

References[link]

External links[link]

	United States portal
	Film portal

• True Lies at the Internet Movie Database
• True Lies at AllRovi
• True Lies at Box Office Mojo
• True Lies at Rotten Tomatoes
• True Lies at Metacritic

Look up true in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

True may refer to:

• Truth, the state of being in accord with fact or reality

Arts and entertainment[link]

Music[link]

• True (L'Arc-en-Ciel album), 1996
• True (Mika Nakashima album), 2002
• True (Spandau Ballet album), 1983
  • "True" (Spandau Ballet song)
• True (TrinityRoots album), 2001
• True (TRU album), 1995
• "True" (George Strait song), 1998
• "True" (Ryan Cabrera song), 2004
• "True...", a 2001 song by Riyu Kosaka
• "True", a 2009 song by Brandy Norwood from Human
• "True", a 1987 song by Concrete Blonde from Concrete Blonde
• "True", a 2005 song by Zion I from True & Livin'
• "True Song", a 2002 song by Do As Infinity

Other media[link]

• True (magazine), an American men's magazine
  • GE True, an anthology TV series based on stories from True magazine
• Trace (magazine), formerly True, a British hip-hop magazine
• True (film), a short film directed by Tom Tykwer, starring Natalie Portman

Businesses, organizations and products[link]

• True (cigarette), a brand of cigarettes made by Lorillard Tobacco Company
• True (dating service), an online dating service
• True Corporation, a Thai communications group
• Transit Riders' Union of Edmonton, a Canadian social action group
• Trust for Urban Ecology, a UK ecological organisation

Computing[link]

• true (Unix), a Unix utility
• true, a boolean value
• TRUE (Temporal Reasoning Universal Elaboration), a discrete and continuous time simulation software program for 2D, 3D and 4D modeling

People[link]

• Alfred Charles True, American educator and agriculturist
• Allen Tupper True, American artist
• Andrea True, American pornographic actress and disco singer
• Arnold E. True, American naval officer
• Charles Kittredge True, American clergyman
• Clarence True, American architect
• Delbert Leroy True, American archaeologist
• Everett True, British music journalist
• Frederick W. True, American biologist
• Katie True, American politician
• Laurel True, American artist
• Marion True, American curator
• Rachel True, American actress
• Ronald True, English murderer
• Steve True, American sportscaster
• TRUE, American artist

Places[link]

• True, West Virginia, U.S.
• True, Wisconsin, U.S.

See also[link]

• TRU (group), an American hip hop group
• True self
• Truth value, in logic and mathematics, a logical value

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Vincenzo Luvineri (born August 19, 1978), better known as Vinnie Paz (formerly known as Ikon the Verbal Hologram), is an Italian-American rapper and the lyricist behind the Philadelphia underground hip hop group Jedi Mind Tricks. He is also the frontman of the hip hop supergroup Army of the Pharaohs.

Biography[link]

Originally taking the pseudonym of Ikon the Verbal Hologram, he later changed his name to Vinnie Paz, after the Rhode Island boxer Vinny Pazienza. Paz originally started rapping with fellow Jedi Mind Tricks member Stoupe in his basement. Paz is known for his raw and gritty lyrical delivery. He is also known for his extensive use of studio punch-ins, seldom recording a verse in one take. His lyrics frequently contain references to religion, war, politics, mythology, conspiracy theories, and the paranormal. His more recent albums such as Servants in Heaven Kings in Hell show a more obvious approach to politics and world issues. This gritty style of Paz became apparent with the release of Violent by Design, and has become progressively more defined since its release. Vinnie Paz has a number of aliases, including Louie Doggs, Vinnie P, The Pazmanian Devil, Pazienza, Frank Vinatra, Vin Jong Ill, Rumplestiltsvin, Muhammad Al Vinejahd, and Vin Laden. Raised Catholic, Vinnie Paz is now a Muslim, which plays a major role in much of his lyrics.^[1] Vinnie is also a heavy metal fan, and occasionally uses song titles and band names in JMT tracks and lyrics.

Army of the Pharaohs[link]

Paz formed Army of the Pharaohs, an underground East Coast hip hop group featuring himself, Apathy, Celph Titled, Chief Kamachi, 7L & Esoteric, Planetary & Crypt the Warchild (Outerspace), King Syze, Faez One, Jus Allah, Doap Nixon, Reef the Lost Cauze, Demoz, Block Mccloud, and Des Devious, although not every artist is on every track.

Solo Albums[link]

Vinnie released his debut solo album Season of the Assassin on June 21, 2010, which peaked at number 25 on the US Billboard rap charts. The album featured guest appearances from Paul Wall, Ill Bill, Clipse among others.

Vinnie is currently working on his sophomore solo album God of the Serengeti, which is set to feature production from DJ Premier, The Alchemist, Da Beatminerz, The Beatnuts, C-Lance, among others.^[2][3]

Discography[link]

Solo albums[link]

• Season of the Assassin (2010)
• God of the Serengeti (2012)^[4]

Collaboration albums[link]

• Heavy Metal Kings (2011) (with Ill Bill)
• Heavy Metal Kings vs. DJ Muggs (2012) (with Ill Bill & DJ Muggs)^[5]
• Heavy Metal Kings 2 (TBA) (with Ill Bill)

Mixtapes and EPs[link]

• Pazmanian Devil (2005)
• The Sound and the Fury (2006)
• Before the Assassin (2010)
• Prayer for The Assassin (2010)
• The Priest of Bloodshed (2012)

Jedi Mind Tricks[link]

Army of the Pharaohs[link]

References[link]

1. ^ Gloss, Jason. Philly should have been its own state. Philaflava. Accessed June 13, 2008.
2. ^ http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.14931/title.vinnie-paz-taps-dj-premier-alchemist-for-sophomore-lp
3. ^ http://www.411mania.com/music/columns/207398/411-Music-Interview:-Jedi-Mind-Tricks.htm
4. ^ http://www.hiphopug.com/1/post/2011/11/hhug-interviews-c-lance-violence-begets-violence.html
5. ^ http://www.hiphopug.com/1/post/2011/11/hhug-interviews-c-lance-violence-begets-violence.html

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Vinnie Paz

• Vinnie Paz official website
• Interview with Vinnie Paz in the Vermont Cynic
• Jedi Mind Tricks' official website

Jamie Lee Curtis
Curtis in June 2010
Born	(1958-11-22) November 22, 1958 (age 53) Santa Monica, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress Author Blogger
Years active	1977–present
Spouse	Christopher Guest (1984–present)

Jamie Lee Curtis (born November 22, 1958) is an American actress and author. Although she was initially known as a "scream queen" because of her starring roles in several horror films early in her career, such as Halloween, The Fog, Prom Night, and Terror Train, Curtis has since compiled a body of work that spans many genres, and has won BAFTA and Golden Globe awards. Her 1998 book, Today I Feel Silly, and Other Moods That Make My Day, made the best-seller list in The New York Times. Curtis has appeared in advertisements, and is a blogger for The Huffington Post online newspaper. She is married to actor, screenwriter, and director Christopher Guest.

Early life[link]

Curtis was born in Santa Monica, California, to actor Tony Curtis and actress Janet Leigh. Her paternal grandparents were Hungarian Jewish immigrants^[1] and two of her maternal great-grandparents were Danish.^[2] Curtis's parents divorced in 1962, after which her mother married Robert Brandt. Curtis has an older sister, Kelly Curtis, who is also an actress, and several half-siblings (all from her father's remarriages), Alexandra, Allegra, Ben, and Nicholas Curtis (who died in 1994 of a drug overdose).^[3] Curtis attended Westlake School in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills High School, and graduated from Choate Rosemary Hall. Returning to California in 1976, she attended the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California. She considered majoring in social work, but quit after one semester to pursue an acting career.

Career[link]

Film[link]

Curtis's film debut occurred in the 1978 horror film Halloween, in which she played the role of Laurie Strode. The film was a major success and was considered the highest grossing independent film of its time, earning accolades as a classic horror film. Curtis was subsequently cast in several horror films, garnering her the title, "scream queen".

Her next film was the horror film The Fog, which was helmed by Halloween director John Carpenter. The film opened in February 1980 to mixed reviews but strong box office,^[4] further cementing Curtis as a horror film starlet. Her next film, Prom Night, was a low-budget Canadian slasher film released in July 1980. The film, for which she earned a Genie Award nomination for Best Performance by a Foreign Actress, was similar in style to Halloween, yet received negative reviews which marked it as a disposable entry in the then-popular "slasher film" genre. That year, Curtis also starred in Terror Train, which opened in October and was met with negative reviews akin to Prom Night. Both films performed only moderately well at the box office.^[5] Curtis had a similar function in both films - the main character whose friends are murdered, and is practically the only protagonist to survive. Film critic Roger Ebert, who had given negative reviews to all three of Curtis' 1980 films, said that Curtis "is to the current horror film glut what Christopher Lee was to the last one-or Boris Karloff was in the 1930s".^[6] Curtis later appeared in Halloween II, Halloween H20: 20 Years Later and Halloween: Resurrection, as well as giving an uncredited voice role in Halloween III: Season of the Witch.

Her role in 1983's Trading Places helped Curtis shed her horror queen image, and garnered her a BAFTA award as best supporting actress.^[7] 1988's A Fish Called Wanda achieved near cult status – while showcasing her as a comedic actress; she was nominated for a BAFTA as best leading actress.^[7] She won a Golden Globe for her work in 1994's True Lies. Her recent film roles include Disney's Freaky Friday (2003), opposite Lindsay Lohan, filmed at Palisades High School in Pacific Palisades, California, near where Curtis and Guest live with their children. She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for this film.^[8]

In October 2006, Curtis told Access Hollywood that she had closed the book on her acting career to focus on her family. She returned to acting after being cast in June 2007 in Disney's live-action-animated film, Beverly Hills Chihuahua, co-starring opposite Piper Perabo as one of three live-action characters in the film. She also starred in the 2010 comedy film You Again, opposite Kristen Bell and Sigourney Weaver.^[9]

Television[link]

Curtis made her television debut in an episode of Columbo, but her first starring TV role was opposite Richard Lewis in the situation comedy Anything But Love, which ran for four seasons from 1989 through 1992. Her performance as Hannah Miller received both a Golden Globe and People's Choice Award. She appeared as nurse Lt. Duran in the short-lived television series, Operation Petticoat; based on the big-screen version which starred her real-life father.

She starred in the 1981 TV film, Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story, playing the part of the eponymous doomed Playmate. She earned a Golden Globe nomination for her work in TNT's adaptation of the Wendy Wasserstein play The Heidi Chronicles. More recently, Curtis starred in the CBS television movie Nicholas' Gift, for which she received an Emmy nomination. Curtis also appeared in the science fiction series, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, and an early episode of The Drew Carey Show. Jamie Lee Curtis was a game-show panelist on several episodes of Match Game.

In 2012, she appeared in three episodes of the television series NCIS, playing the role of Dr. Samantha Ryan, a potential romantic interest of Special Agent Gibbs. It has been hinted that her role may be a recurring one. During an interview, she openly said that if they could develop a story line that she would be more than happy to be on the show more.^[10] If the role is made recurring, it will be at least the second time Harmon has worked with Curtis; he played her fiancée and later husband in the 2003 remake of Freaky Friday ^[11]

Children's books[link]

Working with illustrator Laura Cornell, Curtis has written a number of children's books,^[12] all published by HarperCollins Children's Books.^[13]

• When I Was Little: A Four-Year Old's Memoir of Her Youth, 1993.
• Tell Me Again About The Night I was Born, 1996.
• Today I Feel Silly, and Other Moods That Make My Day, 1998; listed on the New York Times best-seller list for 10 weeks.^[14]
• Where Do Balloons Go?: An Uplifting Mystery, 2000.
• I'm Gonna Like Me: Letting Off a Little Self-Esteem, 2002.
• It's Hard to Be Five: Learning How to Work My Control Panel, 2004.
• Is There Really a Human Race?, 2006.
• Big Words for Little People, ISBN 978-0-06-112759-5, 2008.
• My Friend Jay, 2009, edition of one, presented to Jay Leno
• My Mommy Hung the Moon: A Love Story, 2010.

Invention[link]

In 1987, Curtis filed a US patent application that subsequently issued as Patent No. 4,753,647. This is a modification of a diaper with a moisture proof pocket containing wipes that can be taken out and used with one hand.^[15] Curtis refused to allow her invention to be marketed until companies started selling biodegradable diapers,^[16] although the full statutory term of this patent expired February 20, 2007 and is now in the public domain.

Humanitarian and political causes[link]

In March 2012, Curtis was featured with Martin Sheen and Brad Pitt in a performance of Dustin Lance Black's play, '8' — a staged reenactment of the federal trial that overturned California's Prop 8 ban on same-sex marriage — as Sandy Stier.^[17] The production was held at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre and broadcast on YouTube to raise money for the American Foundation for Equal Rights.^[18][19]

Personal life[link]

Curtis married actor Christopher Guest on December 18, 1984, becoming Lady Haden-Guest when her husband inherited the Barony of Haden-Guest in 1996, upon the death of his father. The couple have two adopted children (Annie, b. 1986; Thomas b. 1996).^[20] Curtis is actor Jake Gyllenhaal's godmother.^[21]

On her website, Curtis tells her young readers that she "moonlights as an actor, photographer, and closet organizer."^[12] She takes time to support various philanthropic groups. Curtis was Guest of Honor at the 11th annual Gala and Fundraiser in 2003 for Women in Recovery, Inc., a Venice, California-based non-profit organization offering a live-in, twelve-step program of rehabilitation for women in need. Past honorees of this organization include Sir Anthony Hopkins and Angela Lansbury. Curtis is also involved in the work of the Children Affected by AIDS Foundation, serving as the annual host for the organization's "Dream Halloween" event in Los Angeles, launched every year in October.^[22][23]

Curtis appeared on the cover of the May/June 2008 issue of AARP Magazine, with gray hair and in water up to her chest.^[24]

Curtis was an alcoholic who was once addicted to pain killers that she began using after a routine cosmetic surgical procedure. She became sober in 1999^[25] and maintains that recovery is the greatest achievement of her life.^[26]

Curtis has appeared in advertisements for Activia since 2007,^[27] and is a blogger for The Huffington Post online newspaper.^[28] During California's 2008 General Election, Curtis appeared in the "YES on Prop 3" TV advertisements.^[29]

Filmography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jamie Lee Curtis

Wikinews has related news: Jamie Lee Curtis quits acting

• Official website for Jamie Lee Curtis & Laura Cornell books
• Jamie Lee Curtis at the Internet Movie Database
• Jamie Lee Curtis interview

This article's lead section may not adequately summarize its contents. Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of the article's key points. (December 2008)

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (January 2008)

Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Kenny Wayne Shepherd live at the New Orleans Jazz Festival on May 1, 2010.
Background information
Birth name	Kenny Wayne Brobst
Born	(1977-06-12) June 12, 1977 (age 35) Shreveport, Louisiana, United States
Genres	Blues, blues rock
Occupations	Musician, singer-songwriter
Instruments	Guitar, vocals
Years active	1990-present
Labels	Roadrunner Records
Associated acts	Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band G3
Website	Official Website
Notable instruments
Fender Stratocaster

Kenny Wayne Shepherd (born Kenny Wayne Brobst, June 12, 1977, Shreveport, Louisiana^[1]) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He has released several studio albums and experienced a rare level of commercial success both as a blues artist and a young musician.^[2]

Biography[link]

Shepherd graduated Caddo Magnet High School in Shreveport, Louisiana. The guitarist is "completely self taught", ^[3] and does not read music. Growing up, Shepherd's father (Ken Shepherd) was a local radio personality and some-time concert promoter, and had a vast collection of music. Shepherd got his first "guitar" at the age of three or four, when his grandmother purchased a series of several plastic guitars for him with S&H Green Stamps, which Shepherd has said he would "go through like candy".^{[4][clarification needed]}

Shepherd stated in a 2010 interview that he began playing guitar in earnest at age seven, about six months after meeting and being "pretty mesmerized"^[4] by Stevie Ray Vaughan, in June 1984, at one of his father's promoted concerts. His self-taught method employed a process of learning one note at a time, playing and rewinding cassette tapes, utilizing "a cheap Yamaha wanna-be Stratocaster...made out of plywood, basically",^[4] learning Muddy Waters, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Albert Lee licks from his father's vast music collection.^[4]

At the age of 13, Shepherd was invited on stage by the New Orleans bluesman Bryan Lee. After proving his abilities, he decided on music as a career. Demo tapes were made and a two-camera video was shot at Shepherd's first performance at the Red River Revel Arts Festival in Shreveport. It was this video performance that impressed Giant Records chief Irving Azoff enough to sign Shepherd to a multiple album record deal.

From 1995 on, Shepherd took seven singles into the Top 10, and holds the record for the longest-running album on the Billboard Blues Charts with Trouble Is.... In 1996, Shepherd began a longtime collaboration with vocalist Noah Hunt, who provided the vocals for Shepherd's signature song, "Blue on Black". Shepherd has been nominated for five Grammy Awards, and has received two Billboard Music Awards, two Blues Music Awards and two Orville H. Gibson Awards.

In September 2008, Fender Musical Instruments Corp. released the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Signature Series Stratocaster, designed exclusively by Shepherd. In 2007, he released a critically acclaimed and two time Grammy nominated DVD–CD project, 10 Days Out: Blues from the Backroads. This documents Shepherd as he travels the country to jam with and interview the last of the authentic blues musicians. As they tour the backroads, Shepherd, with members of the Double Trouble Band, play with a host of blues greats including Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown and Bryan Lee, Buddy Flett (with whom he jams at Lead Belly's grave), B. B. King, blues harp master Jerry "Boogie" McCain, Cootie Stark, Neal Pattman, John Dee Holeman, Etta Baker, Henry Townsend with Honeyboy Edwards, and a concert session with the surviving members of Muddy Waters' and Howlin' Wolf's bands, including luminaries such as Hubert Sumlin, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith and Pinetop Perkins. In 2010 Shepherd was nominated for a Grammy for Live In Chicago which featured performances with Hubert Sumlin, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Buddy Flett and Bryan Lee. Most recently in 2011, Shepherd released his 7th CD entitled How I Go on Roadrunner Records.

Personal life[link]

Shepherd married actor Mel Gibson's oldest daughter, Hannah Gibson, on September 16, 2006,^[5] and they now have three children, a daughter born October 10, 2007, first son born in 2009, and a second son born March 12, 2011.^[6]

Live performances[link]

• Shepherd made a trip of ten days in the U.S. to meet and play with his idols: B.B. King, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Hubert Sumlin, Pinetop Perkins, Henry Townsend, Honeyboy Edwards, Cootie Stark, Neal Pattman, Etta Baker, Jerry "Boogie" McCain, Buddy Flett, Bryan Lee, John Dee Holeman, The Howlin' Wolf and the Muddy Waters Band.
• Shepherd and Bryan Lee appeared as the musical guest on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on February 14, 2007.
• On July 24, 2007, he opened for Lynyrd Skynyrd at the Orange County Fair.
• He was the opening act for The Rolling Stones during a stint of their 1999 No Security tour.
• Shepherd performed some of his songs including a cover of Jimi Hendrix's "Voodoo Child" at the Dutch Mason Blues Festival in 2007 and 2009.
• Has also opened for Aerosmith, Bob Dylan, the Eagles (originally on the Hell Freezes Over Tour), and Van Halen.
• Late Night with Jimmy Fallon performance, Nov 2010 - Shepherd sat in with house band, playing the same white Stratocaster played by Jimi Hendrix during his historic performance at Woodstock.
• Shepherd appeared at the Experience Hendrix tribute concert in Mesa Arizona on May 23, 2011.

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Live albums[link]

Singles[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kenny Wayne Shepherd

• Official website
• Ten Days Out
• Shepherd biography at Allmusic website