Alexa Chung
At London Fashion Week in 2009
Born	(1983-11-05) 5 November 1983 (age 28) Privett, Hampshire, UK
Height	5 ft 8.5 in (1.74 m)[1]
Hair colour	Brown[1]
Eye colour	Blue[1]
Measurements	32-24.5-36 (US); 81-62-91 (EU)[1]
Dress size	2 (US); 34 (EU)
Shoe size	7[1]
Manager	Next Models - New York and London

Alexa Chung (born 5 November 1983) is a British television presenter, model and contributing editor at British Vogue. She is currently the host of 24 Hour Catwalk on the Lifetime channel in the U.S. Previously, Chung was the host of MTV's It's On with Alexa Chung.^[2][3] She is the face of Lacoste's "Joy of Pink" fragrance^[4] and Superga's Italian sneakers.^[5]

Early life[link]

Alexa Chung was born in Privett, Hampshire, England to a Eurasian father, Philip, a graphic designer, and her English mother, Gillian (née Burgess), a housewife.^[6] She has two older brothers, Jamie and Dominic, and one older sister, Natalie. She attended secondary school at the local Perins School and spent sixth form at Peter Symonds College, Winchester. She was accepted at King’s College London to read English, but was scouted by a modelling agency before attending, and chose to pursue modelling for a while instead.^[7]

Modelling[link]

Chung was approached in the comedy tent at Reading Festival at the age of 16 ^[8] and was taken on by the London-based Storm Model Management. She modelled for teen magazines such as Elle Girl and CosmoGIRL! and worked for companies including Fanta, Sony Ericsson, Sunsilk, Urban Outfitters and Tampax.^[9] She appeared in music videos for artists including The Streets, Westlife, Delta Goodrem, Reuben and Holly Valance and starred as Jake in a scripted reality show called Shoot Me, broadcast on Fashion TV in 2005. After four years, Chung quit modelling with the intention of beginning an art foundation or fashion journalism course, having become disillusioned. She had developed a “distorted body image” and “low self-esteem” through modelling.^[10]

After becoming a TV personality, Chung made a return to occasional modelling. In 2008, she was the face of both Australian fashion label Antipodium's SS 2008 collection and Oxfam's ethical fashion range, Revamped. In September 2008, Chung walked the catwalk as part of the Vivienne Westwood Red Label Spring/Summer 2009 show at London Fashion Week. In early 2009, she became the face of British high street giant New Look. Chung then joined London-based modelling agency, Select, and, in April 2009, she modelled Wren's Holiday 2009 collection, alongside her friend Tennessee Thomas. In July 2009, Chung moved to Next Model Management and became the face of DKNY Jeans.^[11] Chung was the face of South Korean brand MOGG's SS10 campaign. In January 2010, she became the main model of the SS10 Pepe Jeans London campaign and later reprised her role for the FW10 campaign.^[12] She was announced as the first celebrity face of Lacoste in June 2010, appearing in both the TV and print advertising campaigns for their "Joy of Pink" fragrance.^[4] In January 2011, Chung was announced as the face of Italian sneaker brand Superga, in a campaign to mark their 100th anniversary.^[5] In February 2012, she took part in the London Fashion Week show for designer Stella McCartney, where she acted as a guest assistant to magician Hans Klok in a number of illusions including being levitated and sawed in half.^[13][14]

TV career[link]

In April 2006, then-model Chung was offered the job of co-host on Popworld on Channel 4, a music show known for its irreverent and awkward style of interviews. Chung and co-host Alex Zane also presented a weekly radio show called Popworld Radio in conjunction with the TV programme.^[15] The last show aired in July 2007, after Channel 4 decided not to recommission the programme, which had been on air for nearly seven years.^[16] Following this, Chung signed a year-long "golden handcuffs" deal with Channel 4 in August 2007, worth £100,000.^[17] As part of this deal, she guest presented Big Brother’s Big Mouth and appeared as a panellist on quiz show 8 out of 10 Cats. She hosted a number of T4 Movie Specials, 4Music Specials, T4 Holiday Mornings along with T4's coverage of many music festivals.^[18]

In January 2008, Chung became one of the four anchor T4 presenters. She hosted T4’s Vanity Lair, a reality show investigating the concept of "beauty". When the show was mentioned in a later interview, "Chung raises her eyebrows, indicating embarrassment".^[19] As well as her work on T4, she became a long-time host of Channel 4’s early morning music programme Freshly Squeezed, beginning in September 2007. In addition to her Channel 4 commitments, Chung presented the ITV1 series Get a Grip (2007) and BBC Three's The Wall (2008). In mid-2008, Chung began to host more fashion-oriented programming. She was the "roving reporter" on Channel 4's "Gok's Fashion Fix".^[20] On the programme, Chung roadtested the latest fashion trends with members of the public, and interviewed fashion designers such as Roberto Cavalli, Karl Lagerfeld, Jean Paul Gaultier, Margherita Missoni and Christian Lacroix. She described it as 'pretty much my dream job'.^[19] Chung also hosted a T4 fashion and music show called Frock Me, with fashion designer Henry Holland.^[21] She was awarded the Elle Style Award for Best TV Presenter in 2009. Also in 2009, she received Glamour's award for Best TV Presenter at the magazine's annual award ceremony.

Chung left Channel 4, and the United Kingdom, in April 2009 in order to pursue a stateside career. She presented It's On with Alexa Chung for MTV. The live, daily show - billed as TRL's replacement- featured celebrity talk, live music and online interaction with viewers. The show was cancelled in December 2009.^[3] She returned to UK TV screens in April 2010 with a second series of the T4 fashion and music series Frock Me. In October 2010, she began hosting Gonzo with Alexa Chung, an informal UK chat show previously hosted by Zane Lowe, for MTV Rocks.^[22] In January 2011, she co-hosted NBC's "2011 Golden Globe Arrivals Special" with Carson Daly and Natalie Morales. The live show featured interviews with television and movie stars as well as segments devoted to fashion on the red carpet.^[23] Chung presented the iTunes Festival in July 2011.^[24]

Print journalist[link]

Chung wrote a monthly column for British women’s magazine Company from October 2007 to June 2008. She then wrote a weekly newspaper column for England's The Independent from November 2008 to June 2009, entitled 'Girl About Town' and later 'New York Doll'. In June 2009, she was made a contributing editor of British Vogue and has interviewed designers such as Karl Lagerfeld and Christopher Kane for the publication.

Style[link]

Chung is a muse to many fashion designers because of her distinctive personal style. She frequently appears on best dressed lists, is a regular cover girl for Vogue, Elle and Harper's Bazaar and is often seen in the front row at fashion shows. In 2009, the designer handbag company Mulberry created a much sought-after bag named after and inspired by Chung, called the "Alexa".^[25] In February 2010, Chung collaborated with J.Crew's Madewell on a womenswear line which was unveiled during New York Fashion Week.^[26] She is collaborating with Madewell once again for a second collection, set to debut on September 22nd, 2011.

Vogue's Anna Wintour has described Chung as "a phenomenon"^[27] while the New York Times has declared her "the Kate Moss of the new generation".^[28] Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld has described her as "beautiful and clever..a modern girl".^[29] In December 2010, Bryan Ferry, on behalf of the British Fashion Council, presented Chung with the British Style Award which "recognises an individual who embodies the spirit of British fashion and is an international ambassador for the UK as a leading creative hub for fashion" at a ceremony at the Savoy Theatre in London.^[30] At the British Fashion Awards 2011, Chung won the British Style Award, which was voted for by the public.^[31]

Personal life[link]

Chung lived with fashion photographer David Titlow, for three and a half years until their break-up in 2006.^[32] Following that split, she briefly dated Lostprophets frontman Ian Watkins and Klaxons keyboard player James Righton. She dated The Horrors frontman Faris Badwan for six months in late 2006 and early 2007. Chung was in a relationship with Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner from April 2007 until July 2011.^[33]

Filmography[link]

• Fashion Police (2012) (Guest star)
• 24 Hour Catwalk (2011)
• Thrift America (2011)
• NBC's 2011 Golden Globe Arrivals Special (2011)
• Gonzo for MTV Rocks (2010)
• Frock Me with TK Maxx (2010)
• Channel 4 NME Awards Backstage (2010)
• Autotune the News (2009)
• It's On with Alexa Chung (2009)
• Freshly Squeezed (2007–2009)
• T4 Weekends (2008–2009)
• T4 Holiday Mornings (2007–2009)
• T4 Movie Specials (2006–2009)
• 4Music Specials (2006–2009)
• T4 on the Beach coverage (2006–2008)
• Gok's Fashion Fix (2008)
• Frock Me (2008)
• The Wall (2008)
• Vanity Lair (2008)
• T4 NME Awards coverage (2008)
• V Festival coverage (2007–2008)
• The Devil Wears Primark (2008)
• Big Brother's Big Mouth (2007)
• Fashion Rocks is Coming (2007)
• T in the Park coverage (2007)
• Get a Grip (2007)
• Popworld (2006–2007)
• Rip Curl Festival coverage (2006)
• Shoot Me (2005)

References[link]

External links[link]

This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. (August 2010)

• ELLEuk.com Meets Alexa Chung
• Alexa Chung Today I'm Wearing Photo Blog
• The Guardian - We Can Do It! interview
• The Observer - Who's Hot Now
• The Telegraph - The One To Watch^{[dead link]}
• The Guardian - She's the One
• The Independent - Television's Hottest Property
• The Times - Small Screen Goddess
• It's On with Alexa Chung
• Alexa Chung - News and Pictures
• The Internet Fashion Database

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. (July 2010)

This article's tone or style may not reflect the encyclopedic tone used on Wikipedia. Specific concerns may be found on the talk page. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for suggestions. (June 2009)

Nick Grimshaw
Grimshaw (right) with a fan in 2009 at a Jonas Brothers concert
Born	Nicholas Peter Grimshaw (1984-08-14) 14 August 1984 (age 27) Manchester, England
Occupation	DJ, radio and television presenter
Website
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/nickgrimshaw/

Nicholas Peter "Nick" Grimshaw (born 14 August 1984), also known as Grimmy and G-Munni is a British television and radio presenter. He has presented shows for Channel 4, E4, BBC One, BBC Two and Channel 4 youth strand T4. Currently he appears on the television channel Channel 4 and hosts two radio shows on BBC Radio 1, on Mondays to Thursdays - 10 pm to Midnight, and on Sundays - 10 pm to Midnight with Annie Mac.

Early life[link]

Born in St Mary's Hospital in Manchester, he was brought up in nearby Oldham and attended Our Lady's R.C. High School in Royton. Early work career included a Saturday job at Madeleine Lindley Ltd.^[1] Grimshaw attended the University of Liverpool, leaving in 2005.

Radio[link]

Grimshaw's first taste of radio was at BBC Radio 1 which he joined in September 2005 on the BBC's youth strand Switch. He presented the show with friend and fellow DJ Annie Mac. He hosted the show for 9 months solo when Mac hosted a weekend lunchtime slot. They are now back together hosting the evening teen show. From August 2008 to May 2009 Grimshaw hosted Radio 1's Weekend Breakfast Show. Grimshaw now presents the 10 pm - 12 midnight slot on BBC Radio 1 which he started on 1 June 2009, following the departure of Colin Murray from the station who left to follow his love of sport radio. This show was formerly hosted by John Peel. Although being a renowned and popular radio host, Grimshaw regularly jokes over how long his position at BBC Radio 1 will last him and whether he will actually be able to complete his long list of '1000 Albums Everyone Says You Should Listen To But We Only Have Time To Play One Track So Here It Is' which is a nightly feature on his show. Other features on his show include Peaceful Ponderings, an interactive minor problem-solving initiative broadcast on the Sunday night show he takes part in with Annie Mac, This Weeks Musical Showoff, an interactive new music sharing initiative, Fresh Off Stage, an interview with an important figure from the world of performing arts and Rob da Banks Monday Night Pop Quiz between a listener and a musician which culminates in an offensive word being broadcast live on air as the final answer. Since 2010 Grimshaw has been the main stand in presenter for Scott Mills on BBC Radio 1.

Television[link]

His career started on UK entertainment channel E4 hosting daily shows. He crossed over to Channel 4 in September 2007 hosting the daily breakfast show Freshly Squeezed alongside Alexa Chung and more recently Jameela Jamil which airs on Channel 4 at 7 am on weekdays. The pair went on to host various award shows for TV and coverage from music events and festivals for Channel 4. As well as hosting the radio show Switch for BBC Radio 1, he and Annie Mac teamed up to host music show Sound for BBC Two. This year he presented the first ever BBC Switch Awards show with Kimberley Walsh of Girls Aloud on BBC One. He appeared on The Xtra Factor on 13 November 2009. He is also the newest addition to the T4 presenting team on Channel 4 on Saturdays and Sundays.

Grimshaw will also be hosting the sixth series of The Album Chart Show for Channel 4, as a replacement for Sara Cox.

As of Summer 2011, Grimshaw is hosting a live 6-part series for Channel 4 on a Saturday morning entitled New Look Style The Nation in which hopeful fashion designers compete for a job at New Look. As well as hosting the show, Grimshaw is the sole person to decide upon six people who have turned up at the open auditions, two of which are then selected to compete further by two fashion experts.

References[link]

1. ^ Sawyer, Miranda (14 September 2008). "Meet the It-boy". London: Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2008/sep/14/television.radio. Retrieved 1 December 2008. 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2008/sep/14/television.radio

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Nick Grimshaw

• Nick Grimshaw at BBC Programmes
• Nick Grimshaw & Annie Mac at BBC Programmes

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 2009)

Karl Lagerfeld
Lagerfeld at the Red Cross Ball in Monaco, August 2005
Born	(1933-09-10) 10 September 1933 (age 78) Hamburg, Germany
Residence	France
Nationality	German
Occupation	Fashion designer
Labels	Karl Lagerfeld (since 1974,various brands)[1] Chanel (since 1983)[2] Fendi (since 1965),[3] Chloe (1963–1978, 1992–1997),[4] Jean Patou (1958–1963),[1] H&M (2004), Hogan (2011)

Karl Lagerfeld (born Karl Otto Lagerfeldt on 10 September 1933 in Hamburg) is a German fashion designer, artist and photographer based in Paris. He has collaborated on a variety of fashion and art related projects, most notably as head designer and creative director for the fashion house Chanel. Lagerfeld has his own label fashion house, as well as the Italian house Fendi.

Early life[link]

Lagerfeld was born in Hamburg. He has claimed he was born in 1938, by Elisabeth (born Bahlman) and his Swedish father Otto Lagerfeldt.^[5] He is known to insist that no-one knows his real birth date: Interviewed on French television in February 2009, Lagerfeld said that he was "born neither in 1933 nor 1938."^[6] His older sister, Martha Christiane (a.k.a. Christel), was born in 1931. Lagerfeld also has an older half-sister, Thea, from his father's first marriage. His original name was Lagerfeldt (with a "t"), but he later changed it to Lagerfeld as "it sounds more commercial."^[7]

Lagerfeld grew up as the son of a wealthy businessman from Hamburg who was introducing condensed milk (Glücksklee-Milch GmbH) to Germany;^[8][9] his mother is from Berlin.^[10] According to Alicia Drake,^[vague] Lagerfeld's mother, Elisabeth Bahlmann, was a lingerie saleswoman in Berlin when she met her husband and married him in 1930.

After attending a private school, Lagerfield finished his secondary education at the Lycée Montaigne in Paris, where he majored in drawing and history.^[11]

Early career (Balmain and Patou)[link]

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In 1955, at the age of 22, Lagerfeld was awarded a position as an apprentice at Pierre Balmain after winning second place, behind Yves Saint-Laurent, in a competition for a coat sponsored by the International Wool Secretariat. He told a reporter a few years later, "I won on coats, but actually I like designing coats least of all. What I really love are little black dresses." Yves Saint Laurent also won the contest for a dress award. "Yves was working for Dior. Other young people I knew were working for Balenciaga (Spanish Basque fashion designer and the founder of the Balenciaga fashion house), whom they thought was God, but I wasn't so impressed," he recalled in 1976.^{[citation needed]}

In 1958, after three years at Balmain, he moved to Jean Patou where he designed two haute couture collections a year for five years. His first collection was shown in a two-hour presentation in July 1958, but he used the name Roland Karl, rather than Karl Lagerfeld (although in 1962, reporters began referring to him as Karl Lagerfelt or Karl Logerfeld). The first collection was poorly received. Carrie Donovan wrote that "the press booed the collection"^{[citation needed]}. The UPI noted: "The firm's brand new designer, 25-year old Roland Karl, showed a collection which stressed shape and had no trace of last year's sack." The reporter went on to say that "A couple of short black cocktail dresses were cut so wide open at the front that even some of the women reporters gasped. Other cocktail and evening dresses feature low, low-cut backs." Most interestingly, Karl said that his design silhouette for the season was called by the letter "K" (for Karl), which was translated into a straight line in front, curved in at the waist in the back, with a low fullness to the skirt.

His skirts for the spring 1960 season were the shortest in Paris, and the collection was not well received. Carrie Donovan said it "looked like clever and immensely salable ready-to-wear, not couture." In his late 1960 collection he designed special little hats, pancake shaped circles of satin, which hung on the cheek. He called them "slaps in the face." Karl's collection were said to be well received, but not groundbreaking. "I became bored there, too, and I quit and tried to go back to school, but that didn't work, so I spent two years mostly on beaches – I guess I studied life."

Freelance career (1962–1982)[link]

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After launching himself as a freelance designer, working with brands such as Mario Valentino, Repetto, and the supermarket chain Monoprix and with financial backing from his family, he set up a small shop in Paris. At this time, he would often consult with Madame Zereakian, Christian Dior's Armenian fortune teller. Lagerfeld later said, "She told me I'd succeed in fashion and perfume."

In 1963, he began designing for Tiziani, a Roman couture house founded that year by Evan Richards (b. 1924) of Jacksboro, Texas. It began as couture and then branched out into ready-to-wear, bearing the label "Tiziani-Roma – Made in England." Lagerfeld and Richards sketched the first collection in 1963 together. "When they wound up with 90 outfits, Tiziani threw caution and invitations to the winds, borrowed Catherine the Great's jewels from Harry Winston, and opened his salon with a three-night wingding," according to one report in 1969. Lagerfeld designed for the company until 1969. Elizabeth Taylor was a fan of the label (she referred to Evan as "Evan Tiziani") and began wearing it in August 1966. Gina Lollobrigida, Doris Duke and Principessa Borghese were also customers while Lagerfeld was designing the line. He was replaced in 1969 with Guy Douvier.

Lagerfeld had begun to freelance for French fashion house Chloe in 1964, at first designing a few pieces a season. As more and more pieces were incorporated, he would soon design the entire collection. In 1970, he also began a brief design collaboration with Roman Haute Couture house Curiel (the designer, a woman named Gigliola Curiel, died in November 1969.) His first collection was described as having a "drippy drapey elegance" designed for a "1930s cinema queen." The Curiel mannequins all wore identical, short-cropped blonde wigs. He also showed black velvet shorts, to be worn under a black velvet ankle-length cape.

His Chloe collection for Spring 1973 (shown in October 1972) garnered headlines for offering something both "high fashion and high camp." He showed loose Spencer jackets and printed silk shirt jackets. He designed something he called a "surprise" skirt, which was ankle-length, pleated silk, so loose that it hid the fact it was actually pants. "It seems that wearing these skirts is an extraordinary sensation," he told a reporter at the time. He also designed a look inspired by Carmen Miranda, which consisted of mini bra dresses with very short skirts, and long dresses with bra tops and scarf shawls.

In 1972, he began to collaborate with Italian fashion house Fendi, designing furs, clothing and accessories.

Starting in the 1970s, Lagerfeld has occasionally worked as a costume designer for theatrical productions. He collaborated with stage directors such as Luca Ronconi and Jürgen Flimm, and designed for theatres like La Scala in Milan (Les Troyens by Hector Berlioz, 1980; directed by Ronconi), the Burgtheater in Vienna (Komödie der Verführung by Arthur Schnitzler, 1980; directed by Horst Zankl), and the Salzburg Festival (Der Schwierige by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, 1990; directed by Flimm).

International fame (1982–present)[link]

Lagerfeld at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival

At the time, he had also been maintaining a design contract with the Japanese firm Isetan, to create collections for both men and women through 30 licenses; had a lingerie line in the US, produced by Eve Stillmann; was designing shoes for Charles Jourdan, sweaters for Ballantyne, and worked with Trevira as a fashion adviser.

In 2002, Karl Lagerfeld asked Renzo Rosso, the founder of Diesel, to collaborate with him on a special denim collection for the Lagerfeld Gallery.^[12] The collection, which was titled Lagerfeld Gallery by Diesel, was co-designed by Lagerfeld and then developed by Diesel's Creative Team, under the supervision of Rosso. It consisted of five pieces that were presented during the designer's catwalk shows during Paris Fashion Week^[13] and then sold in very strict limited editions at the Lagerfeld Galleries in Paris and Monaco, and at the Diesel Denim Galleries in New York and Tokyo. During the first week of sales in New York, more than 90% of the trousers had already been sold out, even though prices ranged from as high as $240 to $1,840.^[14] In a statement after the show in Paris, Rosso said "I am honored to have met this fashion icon of our time. Karl represents creativity, tradition and challenge, and the fact that he thought of Diesel for this collaboration is a great gift and acknowledgement of our reputation as the prêt-à-porter of casual wear."^[13]

Lagerfeld designed the costumes for the Carmen sequences in the 2002 film Callas Forever. In 2004, he designed some outfits for the international music artist Madonna, for her Re-Invention tour, and recently designed outfits for Kylie Minogue's Showgirl tour.

Lagerfeld collaborated with the international Swedish fashion brand H&M. On 12 November 2004, H&M offered a limited range of different Lagerfeld clothes in chosen outlets for both women and men. Only two days after having supplied its outlets, H&M announced that almost all the clothes were sold out. Lagerfeld has expressed some fear that working with lower-end brands will taint his image,^{[citation needed]} although in the past he has worked closely with the hosiery designer Wolford.

Lagerfeld is also a photographer. He produced Visionaire 23: The Emperor's New Clothes, a series of nude pictures of models and celebrities. He also personally photographed Mariah Carey for the cover of V magazine in 2005. In addition to his editorial work for Harper's Bazaar, Numéro and the Russian and German editions of Vogue, Lagerfeld photographs advertising campaigns for the houses under his direction (Chanel, Fendi and his eponymous line) every season.

In the 1980s, the Hans Christian Andersen tale "The Emperor's New Clothes" was published with drawings by Lagerfeld.

The designer was also the subject of a French reality series called Signé Chanel in 2005. The show covered the creation of his Fall/Winter 2004–2005 Chanel couture collection. It aired on Sundance Channel in the United States during the fall of 2006.

He has also supported and encouraged the work of up and coming designers including Philip Colbert of Rodnik.^{[citation needed]}

On 18 December 2006, Lagerfeld announced the launch of a new collection for men and women dubbed K Karl Lagerfeld. The collection includes fitted T-shirts and a wide range of jeans.^[15]

Lagerfeld has signed a deal with Dubai Infinity Holdings (DIH); an investments enterprise that will focus on first of its kind projects in non conventional growth sectors, in line with their mandate^[vague] to fulfil unmet market needs. Lagerfeld is to design limited edition homes^[vague] on Isla Moda, the world’s first dedicated fashion island,^[vague] set in the iconic^[vague] development, The World. This will be a collaboration between Dubai Infinity Holdings and Lagerfeld across the GCC and India.^{[citation needed]}

Lagerfeld is the host of fictional radio station "K109 – The Studio" in the videogame Grand Theft Auto IV.^[16]

In 2008, Lagerfeld created a teddy bear in his likeness produced by Steiff in a limited-edition of 2,500 that sold for $1,500.^[17] Lagerfeld has been immortalized in many forms: pins, shirts, dolls, and more. In 2009, Tra Tutti began selling Karl Lagermouse and Karl Lagerfelt, mini Lagerfelds in the form of mice and finger puppets respectively.^[18]

Lagerfeld with the Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco, 2011

On 10 September 2010, the Couture Council of The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology presented Lagerfeld with an award created for him, "The Couture Council Fashion Visionary Award", at a benefit luncheon at Avery Fisher Hall, New York.^[19]

On 10 November 2010, Lagerfeld and Swedish crystal manufacturer Orrefors announced a collaboration for designing a crystal art collection.^[20] The first collection was launched in spring 2011 under the name "Orrefors by Karl Lagerfeld".^[21]

Controversies[link]

In 1993, he caused US Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour to walk out of his Milan Fashion Week runway show when he employed strippers and adult film star Moana Pozzi to model his black-and-white collection for Fendi.^[22]

There was much controversy from Lagerfeld's use of a verse from the Qur'an in his spring 1994 couture collection for Chanel, despite apologies from the designer and the fashion house. The controversy erupted after the 1994 couture show in Paris, when the Indonesian Muslim Scholars Council in Jakarta called for a boycott of Chanel and threatened to file formal protests with the government of Mr. Lagerfeld's homeland, Germany. The designer apologized, explaining that he had taken the design from a book about the Taj Mahal, thinking the words came from a love poem.^[23]

Lagerfeld was the target of a pieing by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) in 2001 at a fashion premiere at Lincoln Center in New York City. The tofu pies hurled by animal rights activists in protest of his use of fur within his collections, however went astray and hit Calvin Klein. A PETA spokesperson described the hit on Klein as "friendly fire", calling Klein, who doesn't use fur, "a great friend to the animals", while he called Lagerfeld a "designer dinosaur" who continues to use fur in his collections.^[24]

Lagerfeld defends the fur industry and the use of fur in fashion, although he himself doesn't wear fur and hardly eats meat. In a BBC interview in 2009 he claimed that hunters "make a living having learnt nothing else than hunting, killing those beasts who would kill us if they could", and maintained that "in a meat-eating world, wearing leather for shoes and clothes and even handbags, the discussion of fur is childish." Spokespersons for PETA called Lagerfeld "a fashion dinosaur who is as out of step as his furs are out of style",^[25] and "particularly delusional with his kill-or-be-killed mentality. When was the last time a person's life was threatened by a mink or rabbit?"^[26]

In 2010, PETA quotes Lagerfeld, who used fake fur in his 2010 Chanel collection, on their website as saying: "It's the triumph of fake fur … because fake fur changed so much and became so great now that you can hardly see a difference."^[27]

Lagerfeld in 2009 joined critics of supermodel Heidi Klum. After German designer Wolfgang Joop called Klum, who had posed naked on the cover of the German edition of GQ magazine,^[28] "no runway model. She is simply too heavy and has too big a bust",^[29] Lagerfeld followed suit by saying that neither he nor Claudia Schiffer knew Klum as she has never worked in Paris and is insignificant in the world of high fashion, being "more bling bling and glamorous than current fashion."^[30]

Lagerfeld created an international furore on 9 February 2012, when he called the singer Adele" A little too fat". This caused instant fury throughout the United Kingdom and Lagerfeld responded with a statement of apology. Adele hit back by saying she is like the majority of women, and she is very proud of that fact.^[31][32]

Weight loss[link]

When Lagerfeld lost 42 kg (roughly 92.6 pounds) in 13 months in 2001, his explanation was "...I suddenly wanted to dress differently, to wear clothes designed by Hedi Slimane," he said anxiously. "But these fashions, modeled by very, very slim boys—and not men my age—required me to lose at least 40 kg. It took me exactly thirteen months." The diet was created specially for Lagerfeld by Dr. Jean-Claude Houdret, which led to a book called The Karl Lagerfeld Diet, which he promoted on Larry King Live and other shows.^[7]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Karl Lagerfeld

• Karl Lagerfeld Official Website
• Karl Lagerfeld designer profile at Fashion Model Directory
• New Yorker: John Colapinto: In The Now. Where Karl Lagerfeld Lives Extensive profile (ca. 10,000 words)
• The Independent: Susannah Frankel: Being Karl Lagerfeld: What's it like being the most powerful man in fashion? 5 November 2011
• "Interactive timeline of couture houses and couturier biographies". Victoria and Albert Museum. http://www.vam.ac.uk/vastatic/microsites/1486_couture/explore.php. 
• Karl Lagerfeld’s twitter
• Karl Lagerfeld on Fashion Net

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Daniel Radcliffe
Radcliffe at Make Believe On Broadway, 23 November 2011
Born	Daniel Jacob Radcliffe (1989-07-23) 23 July 1989 (age 22) London, England
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1999–present

Daniel Jacob Radcliffe (born 23 July 1989) is an English film and stage actor who rose to prominence playing the title character in the Harry Potter film series.

Radcliffe made his acting debut at age ten in BBC One's 1999 television movie David Copperfield, followed by his film debut in 2001's The Tailor of Panama. At age eleven he was cast as the title character in the first Harry Potter film, and he starred in the series for ten years until the release of the eighth and final film in July 2011. He also began to branch out to stage acting in 2007, starring in the London and New York productions of the play Equus and in the 2011 Broadway revival of the musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. In addition, he starred in 2007's December Boys and the 2012 hit horror film The Woman in Black. He will play beat poet Allen Ginsberg in 2013 indie film Kill Your Darlings.

Radcliffe has contributed to many charities, including Demelza House Children's Hospice and The Trevor Project. He has also made public service announcements for the latter. In 2011, he was awarded the Trevor Project's "Hero Award".

Early life and education[link]

Radcliffe was born on 23 July 1989 in West London, England,^[1] the only child of Alan George Radcliffe, a literary agent, and Marcia Jeannine Gresham (née Marcia Gresham Jacobson), a casting agent who was involved in several films for the BBC, including The Inspector Lynley Mysteries and Walk Away And I Stumble.^[2][3] Radcliffe's mother is Jewish and a native of Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex;^[3][4] his father, originally from Northern Ireland, is Protestant.^[5] He was raised without religion.^[6] Radcliffe first expressed a desire to act at the age of five,^[7] and in December 1999, aged ten, he made his acting debut in the BBC One's televised two-part adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel David Copperfield, portraying the title character as a young boy.^[8]

Radcliffe was educated at two independent schools for boys:^[9] at Sussex House School, a day school in Cadogan Square in Chelsea in London,^[10] followed by the City of London School,^[11] a day school on the North Bank of the River Thames in London's financial district, known as the City of London.

Following the release of the first Harry Potter movie, attending school became hard for Radcliffe, with some fellow pupils becoming hostile. Radcliffe said it was people just trying to "have a crack at the kid that plays Harry Potter" rather than jealousy.^[12] As his acting career began to consume his schedule, Radcliffe continued his education through on-set tutors. He admitted he was not very good at school, considered it useless, and found the work to be "really, really difficult";^[9] however, he did achieve A grades in the three A-levels that he sat in 2006, but then decided to take a break from education and did not go to college or university.^[13] Part of the reason was that he already knew he wanted to act and write, and that it would be difficult to have a normal college experience. "The paparazzi, they’d love it," he told Details magazine in 2007. "If there were any parties going on, they’d be tipped off as to where they were".^[12]

Career[link]

[edit] Harry Potter

Radcliffe at the July 2009 premiere of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

In 2000 producer David Heyman asked Radcliffe to audition for the role of Harry Potter for the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the best-selling book by British author J. K. Rowling.^[14][15] Rowling had been searching for an unknown British actor to personify the character; however, Radcliffe's parents did not want him to audition for the role, as the contract required shooting all seven films in Los Angeles, California, and so they did not tell him.^[16] The movie's director Chris Columbus recalled thinking, "This is what I want. This is Harry Potter", after he saw a video of the young actor in David Copperfield.^[16] Eight months later, and after several auditions, Radcliffe was selected to play the part.^[17] Rowling also endorsed the selection saying, "I don't think Chris Columbus could have found a better Harry."^[18] Radcliffe's parents originally turned down the offer, as they had been told that it would involve six films shot in Los Angeles.^[19] Warner Bros. instead offered Radcliffe a two-movie contract with shooting in the UK though,^[16] when signing up, Radcliffe was unsure if he would do any more pictures.^[20]

The release of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (released as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the United States) took place in 2001. The story follows Harry, a young boy who learns he is a wizard and is sent to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to begin his education; gaining the help of friends Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) along the way. Radcliffe received a seven figure salary for the lead role, but asserted that the fee was "not that important" to him;^[21] his parents chose to invest the money for him.^[16] The film broke records for opening-day sales and opening-weekend takings, becoming the highest–grossing film of 2001. With a total of US$974 million in ticket sales, Philosopher's Stone stands as the second most commercially successful in the series behind Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, the final instalment.^[22] The adaptation was met with positive reviews and critics took notice of Radcliffe:^[23] "Radcliffe is the embodiment of every reader's imagination. It is wonderful to see a young hero who is so scholarly looking and filled with curiosity and who connects with very real emotions, from solemn intelligence and the delight of discovery to deep family longing," wrote Bob Graham of the San Francisco Chronicle.^[24]

Handprints, footprints and wand prints of (from left to right) Watson, Radcliffe, Grint.

A year later Radcliffe starred in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the second instalment of the series. Reviewers were positive about the lead actors' performances but had polarised opinions on the movie as a whole. Stephen Hunter of the Washington Post labelled it "big, dull and empty".^[25] Observing that Radcliffe and his peers had matured, Los Angeles Times's staff writer Kenneth Turan believed the novel's magic could not be successfully duplicated in the film.^[26] Nonetheless, it still managed to earn US$878 million, taking the second spot of the highest-grossing 2002 films worldwide behind The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.^[27]

The 2004 release Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was the third film in the series. While garnering the highest critical acclaim of the series at that point^[23] and grossing US$795.6 million worldwide, the film's performance at the box office ranks the lowest in the series.^[22] Radcliffe's performance was panned by New York Times journalist A. O. Scott, who wrote that Watson had to carry him with her performance.^[28] Next was Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire in 2005. The film set records for a Harry Potter opening weekend, as well as for a non-May opening weekend in the US and in the UK.^[29] The film eventually grossed US$896 million worldwide, and the film was the second-highest grossing Harry Potter film at that point.^[30] In a 2005 interview, Radcliffe singled out the humour as being a reason for the movie's creative success.^[31]

Despite the success of the previous three movies, the future of the franchise was put into question when all three lead actors were unsure about signing on to continue their roles for the final two episodes; however, by 2 March 2007 Radcliffe had signed for the final films, which put an end to weeks of press "speculation that he would be denied the role due to his involvement in Equus".^[32] Radcliffe reprised his role for the fifth time in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), which details Harry's return to Hogwarts after his encounter with Lord Voldemort in the previous film. It opened to positive responses from the press;^[23] IGN movie critic Steven Horn found Order of the Phoenix to be one of "those rare films that exceeds the source material"^[33] and Colin Bertram of New York's Daily News dubbed it the best movie in the series.^[34] Radcliffe stated that director David Yates and actress Imelda Staunton made Order of the Phoenix the "most fun" film in the series to work on.^[35] His performance earned several award nominations, and he received the 2008 National Movie Award for "Best Male Performance".^[36] As his fame and the series continued, Radcliffe, Grint and Watson left imprints of their hands, feet, and wands in front of Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.^[37]

In July 2009 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was released, the series' sixth instalment. The film did considerably better than the previous movie, breaking the then-record for biggest midnight US showings with US$22.2 million at 3,000 theatres,^[38] and was the biggest ever Wednesday-opening in the UK, with US$7.6 million at 1,305 screens.^[39] Half-Blood Prince achieved a total of US$933 million ticket sales^[22] and was one of the most positively reviewed of the series among film critics, who praised the film's "emotionally satisfying" story, direction, cinematography, visuals and music.^[40][41][42] Radcliffe received nominations for "Best Male Performance" and "Global Superstar" at the 2010 MTV Movie Awards.^[43]

Radcliffe, Watson and Grint at the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 premiere in London.

For financial and scripting reasons the last book was divided into two films, shot back to back,^[44][45] which drew criticism from the series' fanbase. Radcliffe defended the split, pointing out that it would have been impossible to properly adapt the final novel into a single film.^[46] He added that the last movie was going to be extremely fast-paced with a lot of action, while the first part would be far more sedate, focusing on character development; he added that, had they combined them, those things would not have made it to the final cut.^[47] Filming lasted for a year, concluding in June 2010 and on the last day of shooting, like most of the cast and crew, Radcliffe openly wept.^[48] Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010) was about Harry, Ron and Hermione leaving Hogwarts to track down Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes, objects Voldemort has left part of his soul inside. The film was released in November and grossed over US$950 million.^[22] Its most lucrative territory was the UK, where it reportedly had the highest-grossing three-day opening in history; while its earnings of US$205 million, in 91 markets, made it the highest ever top-grossing non-US opening for a non-summer picture, and "the fourth-biggest-grossing international opening ever".^[49] The movie received mostly favourable reviews in the media.^[23]

The final film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, was released worldwide starting on 13 July 2011 in Australia. The film concerns the battle against Voldemort's followers in Hogwarts, along with Harry's final climactic duel with Voldemort. Radcliffe, along with the film,^[23] was critically acclaimed: Ann Hornaday of The Washington Post asked, "Who could have predicted that Radcliffe, Grint and Watson would turn out to be good actors?";^[50] similarly, Rex Reed said: "Frankly, I’m sorry to see [Radcliffe] go";^[51] while Rolling Stone critic Peter Travers commented on Radcliffe: "Well played, sir."^[52] Among those who were less favourable, Roger Ebert said that Radcliffe, Grint and Watson were "upstaged by the supporting [actors]".^[53] The film broke several box office records, including biggest midnight release,^[54] biggest first-day opening,^[54] and biggest opening-weekend.^[55] Deathly Hallows – Part 2 is currently the third-highest grossing film in the world, and the highest-grossing non-James Cameron film, with more than US$1.3 billion worldwide.^[56] Radcliffe admitted that some people would never be able to separate him from the character, but also said he is "proud to be associated with this film series forever."^[57] Despite positive feelings about the movies, he has no interest in doing more Harry Potter films. After Rowling hinted about writing an eighth book, Radcliffe was asked if he would do another film to which he replied: "[It is] very doubtful. I think 10 years is a long time to spend with one character."^[58] Despite devoting so much time to the series, Radcliffe has asserted that he did not miss out on a childhood like other child actors: "I’ve been given a much better perspective on life by doing Potter."^[59]