Name	Randy Newman
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Randall Stuart Newman
Born	November 28, 1943
Origin	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Instrument	Vocals, piano
Genre	Piano rock, comedy rock
Occupation	Singer-songwriter, arranger, musician
Years active	1961–present
Label	Warner Bros. Records Walt Disney Records (Disney-Pixar films) Dreamworks Records Nonesuch Records
Url	RandyNewman.com

Randall Stuart "Randy" Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer/songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist who is notable for his (and often satirical) pop songs and for his many film scores.

Newman is noted for his practice of writing lyrics from the perspective of a character far removed from Newman's own biography. For example, the 1972 song "Sail Away" is written as a slave trader's sales pitch to attract slaves, while the narrator of "Political Science" is a U.S. nationalist who complains of worldwide ingratitude toward America and proposes a brutally ironic final solution. One of his biggest hits, "Short People" was written from the perspective of "a lunatic" who hates short people. Since the 1980s, Newman has worked mostly as a film composer. His film scores include Ragtime, Awakenings, The Natural, Leatherheads, James and the Giant Peach, Meet the Parents, Seabiscuit and The Princess and the Frog. He has scored six Disney-Pixar films: Toy Story, A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc., Cars and most recently Toy Story 3.

He has been awarded an Academy Award, three Emmys, four Grammy Awards, and the Governor's Award from the Recording Academy. Newman was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002. In 2007, Newman was inducted as a Disney Legend.

Early life

Newman was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Adele (née Fox), a secretary, and Irving George Newman, an internist. He lived in New Orleans as a small child and spent summers there until he was 11 years old, his family having by then returned to Los Angeles. The paternal side of his family includes three uncles who were noted Hollywood film-score composers: Alfred Newman, Lionel Newman and Emil Newman. Newman's cousins Thomas and David, and nephew Joey are also composers for motion pictures. He graduated from University High School in Los Angeles. Newman attended the University of California, Los Angeles.

Songwriter

Newman has been a professional songwriter since he was seventeen. He cites Ray Charles as his greatest influence growing up, stating, "I loved Charles' music to excess." His first single as a performer was 1961's "Golden Gridiron Boy", released when he was eighteen. However, the single flopped and Newman chose to concentrate on songwriting and arranging for the next several years. His early songs were recorded by Gene Pitney, Jerry Butler, Jackie DeShannon, The O'Jays and Irma Thomas, among others. His work as a songwriter met with particular success in the UK: top 40 UK hits written by Newman included Cilla Black's "I've Been Wrong Before" (#17, 1965), Gene Pitney's "Nobody Needs Your Love" (#2, 1966) and "Just One Smile" (#8, 1966); and The Alan Price Set's "Simon Smith and His Amazing Dancing Bear" (#4, 1967). Besides "Simon Smith", Price featured seven Randy Newman songs on his 1967 A Price On His Head album.

In the mid-1960s, Newman was briefly a member of the band The Tikis, who later became Harpers Bizarre, best known for their 1967 hit version of the Paul Simon composition "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)". Newman kept a close musical relationship with Harpers Bizarre, offering them some of his own compositions, including "Simon Smith" and "Happyland". The band recorded six Newman compositions during their short initial career (1967–1969).

In this period, Newman began a long professional association with childhood friend Lenny Waronker. Waronker had been hired to produce The Tikis, the Beau Brummels, and The Mojo Men, who were all contracted to the Los Angeles independent label Autumn Records, and he in turn brought in Newman, Leon Russell and another friend, pianist/arranger Van Dyke Parks, to play on recording sessions. Later in 1966 Waronker was hired as an A&R; manager by Warner Bros. Records and his friendship with Newman, Russell, and Parks began a creative circle around Waronker at Warner Bros that became one of the keys to Warner Bros' subsequent success as a rock music label.

Recording artist

His 1968 debut album, Randy Newman, was a critical success but never dented the Billboard Top 200. Many artists, including Alan Price, Dave Van Ronk, Judy Collins, the Everly Brothers, Claudine Longet, Dusty Springfield, Nina Simone, Pat Boone and Peggy Lee, covered his songs and "I Think It's Going To Rain Today" became an early standard.

In 1969, he did the orchestral arrangements for Peggy Lee's single Is That All There Is?, as well as her album with the same title (which also contained her cover versions of two of his songs: "Love Story" and "Linda").

In 1970, Harry Nilsson recorded an entire album of Newman compositions called Nilsson Sings Newman. That album was a success, and it paved the way for Newman's 1970 release, 12 Songs, a more stripped-down sound that showcased Newman's piano. Ry Cooder's slide guitar and contributions from Byrds members Gene Parsons and Clarence White helped to give the album a much rootsier feel. 12 Songs was also critically acclaimed (6th best album of the seventies according to Rolling Stone critic Robert Christgau), but again found little commercial success, though Three Dog Night made a huge hit of his "Mama Told Me Not to Come". The following year, Randy Newman Live cemented his cult following and became his first LP to appear in the Billboard charts, at #191. Newman also made his first foray into music for films at this time, writing and performing the theme song "He Gives Us All His Love" for Norman Lear's 1971 film Cold Turkey.

1972's Sail Away reached #163 on Billboard, with the title track making its way into the repertoire of Ray Charles and Linda Ronstadt. "You Can Leave Your Hat On" enigmatically touches on what it is men find important in relationships, and was covered by Three Dog Night, then Joe Cocker, and later by Keb Mo, Etta James, Tom Jones (whose version was later used for the final striptease to the 1997 film The Full Monty), and the Québécois singer Garou. The album also featured "Burn On", an ode to an infamous incident in which the heavily polluted Cuyahoga River literally caught fire. In 1989, "Burn On" was used as the opening theme to the film Major League, whose focus was the hapless Cleveland Indians.

His 1974 release Good Old Boys was a set of songs about the American South. "Rednecks" began with a description of segregationist Lester Maddox pitted against a "smart-ass New York Jew" on a TV show, in a song that seems to criticize both southern racism and the complacent bigotry of American north-easterners who stereotype all southerners as racist yet ignore racism in northern states. This ambiguity was also apparent on "Kingfish" and "Every Man a King", the former a paean to Huey Long (the assassinated former Governor and United States Senator from Louisiana), the other a campaign song written by Long himself. An album that received lavish critical praise, Good Old Boys also became a commercial breakthrough for Newman, peaking at #36 on Billboard and spending 21 weeks in the Top 200.

Little Criminals (1977) contained the surprise hit "Short People," which also became a subject of controversy. In September 1977, the British music magazine, NME reported the following interview with Newman talking about his then new release. "There's one song about a child murderer," Newman deadpans. "That's fairly optimistic. Maybe. There's one called 'Jolly Coppers on Parade' which isn't an absolutely anti-police song. Maybe it's even a fascist song. I didn't notice at the time. There's also one about me as a cowboy called 'Rider in the Rain.' I think it's ridiculous. The Eagles are on there. That's what's good about it. There's also this song 'Short People.' It's purely a joke. I like other ones on the album better but the audiences go for that one."

1979's Born Again featured a song satirically mythologizing the Electric Light Orchestra (and their arranging style) entitled "The Story of a Rock and Roll Band".

His 1983 album Trouble in Paradise included the hit single "I Love L.A.", a song that has been interpreted as both praising and criticizing the city of Los Angeles. This ambivalence is borne out by Newman's own comments on the song. As he explained in a 2001 interview, "There's some kind of ignorance L.A. has that I'm proud of. The open car and the redhead, the Beach Boys...that sounds 'really' good to me." The ABC network and Frank Gari Productions transformed "I Love L.A." into a popular 1980s TV promotional campaign, retooling the lyrics and title to "You'll Love It! (on ABC)". This song became popular at games won by the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium.

In the years following Trouble in Paradise, Newman focused more on film work, but his personal life entered a difficult period. He separated from his wife of nearly 20 years, Roswitha, and was diagnosed with Epstein-Barr virus. He has released three albums of new material as a singer-songwriter since that time: Land of Dreams (1988), Bad Love (1999), and Harps and Angels, which was released on August 5, 2008. Land of Dreams included one of his most well-known songs, "It's Money That Matters", and featured Newman's first stab at autobiography with "Dixie Flyer" and "Four Eyes", while Bad Love included "I Miss You", a moving tribute to his ex-wife. He has also re-recorded a number of his earlier songs, accompanying himself on piano, as The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 1 (2003), and continues to perform his songs before live audiences as a touring concert artist.

In the aftermath of the Hurricane Katrina catastrophe of 2005, Newman's "Louisiana 1927" became an anthem and was played heavily on a wide range of American radio and television stations, in both Newman's 1974 original and Aaron Neville's cover version of the song. The song addresses the deceitful manner in which New Orleans's municipal government managed a flood in 1927, during which, as Newman asserts, "The guys who ran the Mardi Gras, the bosses in New Orleans decided the course of that flood. You know, they cut a hole in the levee and it flooded the cotton fields." In a related performance, Newman contributed to the 2007 release of (Vanguard), contributing his version of Domino's "Blue Monday". Domino had been rescued from his New Orleans home after Hurricane Katrina, initially having been feared dead.

During a European tour in the summer of 2006, Newman premiered three new songs: "Potholes in Memory Lane", "Losing You", and "A Few Words in Defense of Our Country" (all three songs were later recorded for his 2008 album, Harps and Angels). The latter was released as an MP3 single in February 2007. It compared the United States to previous empires, criticized the War on Terror and the Supreme Court, and suggested that "this empire is ending like all the rest." The song is available through his website.

Film composer

Newman's work as a film composer began in 1971, with his work on the Norman Lear satire Cold Turkey. He returned to film work with 1981's Ragtime, for which he was nominated for two Academy Awards. Newman co-wrote the 1986 film ¡Three Amigos! with Steve Martin and Lorne Michaels, wrote three songs for the film, and provided the voice for the singing bush. His orchestral film scores resembles the work of Elmer Bernstein (with whom he had worked on ¡Three Amigos!) and Maurice Jarre.

Newman scored the first four Disney/Pixar feature films; Toy Story, A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2, and Monsters, Inc. He also scored the 1996 film James and the Giant Peach and the 2006 Disney/Pixar film Cars. He returned to Disney/Pixar to score the 2010 film Toy Story 3. Additional scores by Newman include Avalon, Parenthood, Seabiscuit, Awakenings, The Paper, Overboard, Meet the Parents, and its sequel, Meet the Fockers. His score for Pleasantville was an Academy Award nominee. He also wrote the songs for Turner's Cats Don't Dance.

One of Newman's most iconic and recognizable works is the central theme to The Natural, a dramatic and Oscar-nominated score, which was described by at least one complimentary critic as "Coplandesque".

Newman had the dubious distinction of receiving the most Oscar nominations (fifteen) without a single win. His losing streak was broken when he received the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2001, for the Monsters, Inc. song "If I Didn't Have You", beating Sting, Enya and Paul McCartney. After receiving a standing ovation, a bemused but emotional Newman began his acceptance speech with "I don't want your pity!"

Besides writing songs for films, he also writes songs for television series such as the Emmy-Award winning current theme song of Monk, "It's a Jungle out There". Newman also composed the Emmy-Award winning song "When I'm Gone" for the final episode.

In October 2006, it was revealed that Newman would write the music for the Walt Disney movie The Princess and the Frog, which was released in December 2009. During the Walt Disney Company's annual shareholder meeting in March 2007, Newman performed a new song written for the movie. He was accompanied by the Dirty Dozen Brass Band. The New Orleans setting of the film played to Newman's musical strengths, and his songs contained elements of Cajun music, zydeco, blues and Dixieland jazz. Two of the songs, "Almost There" and "Down in New Orleans," were nominated for Oscars.

Filmography

¡Three Amigos! (1986) -The Singing Bush , Also Writer

Musical theatre

A revue of Newman's songs, titled Maybe I'm Doing It Wrong, was performed at the Astor Place Theater in New York City in 1982, and later at other theaters around the country. The New York cast featured Mark Linn-Baker and Deborah Rush, and at one point included Treat Williams.

In the 1990s, Newman adapted Goethe's Faust into a concept album and musical, Randy Newman's Faust. After a 1995 staging at the La Jolla Playhouse, he retained David Mamet to help rework the book before its relaunch on the Chicago Goodman Theatre mainstage in 1996. Newman's Faust project had been many years in the making, and it suffered for it; a central joke was Newman's depiction of Faust as a shallow heavy metal music fan in thrall to Satan, and this had to be modified to accommodate the less-than-devil obsessed age of grunge rock that was in fashion by 1995.

In 2000, South Coast Repertory (SCR) produced The Education of Randy Newman, a musical theater piece that recreates the life of a songwriter who bears some resemblance to the actual Newman. Set in New Orleans and Los Angeles, it was modeled on the celebrated American autobiography, The Education of Henry Adams. Newman, together with Jerry Patch and Michael Roth, surveyed Newman's songs to find those that, taken together, depict the life of an American artist in the last half of the 20th century. After its premiere at SCR, it was reworked with additional songs written specifically for the show by Newman and presented in Seattle by ACT.

Notable performances and appearances

In 2000, Newman hosted a PBS special on Sunset Blvd, in his native Los Angeles. Driving a convertible, he followed the road from the Amtrak train station downtown, through Silver Lake, on past his alma mater UCLA, and finished in Santa Monica.

Randy Newman appeared on The Colbert Report on October 9, 2006, performing "Political Science" after his interview. At the end of the performance Stephen Colbert said "I hope they're listening in D.C." This appearance came days after North Korea conducted an underground test of a nuclear weapon.

Newman appeared on the season two finale of the sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun, accompanying the character Harry Solomon's performance of "Life Has Been Good To Me" on piano in a dream sequence.

He appeared as a musical guest at the end of the Keynote Address at Macworld's 2008 San Francisco Macworld Expo, performing the songs "A Few Words in Defense of Our Country" and "You've Got a Friend in Me".

Newman appeared as a musical guest on the second episode of NBC's Saturday Night Live in 1975.

Pop culture references

Newman was parodied on the sketch comedy show MADtv, where he was impersonated by MADtv cast member Will Sasso.

Newman was also parodied on the television cartoon series Family Guy in the episode Da Boom, written by Neil Goldman and Garrett Donovan. The Randy Newman character (again voiced by Will Sasso) exaggerates the real Newman's style of observational singing and piano playing. Family Guy later parodied Randy Newman again in

Paul and Storm wrote 25 songs in the style of Newman for their 25 Days of Newman season.

Michael Grimm performed his song "You Can Leave Your Hat On" on the semi-Finals of America's Got Talent 2010.

In the Showtime television series Weeds, the main characters (Botwin family) are on the run and change their last name to Newman. Andy Botwin changes his first name to Randy and jokes about being named Randy Newman. This is a reference to three seasons earlier when Randy Newman performs the show's theme song for episode one of season three.

Discography

Albums

Randy Newman (1968)

12 Songs (1970)

Randy Newman Live (1971)

Sail Away (1972)

Good Old Boys (1974)

Little Criminals (1977)

Born Again (1979)

Trouble in Paradise (1983)

Land of Dreams (1988)

Randy Newman's Faust (1995)

Bad Love (1999)

Harps and Angels (2008)

Compilations

(1987)

(1998) (Box set)

The Best of Randy Newman (2001)

The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 1 (2003) (New recordings of previously released songs)

Other Contributions

(Vanguard, 2007)

Film scores

Performance (1970) (song: Gone Dead Train)

Cold Turkey (1971)

Ragtime (1981)

The Natural (1984)

¡Three Amigos! (1986) (songs: "The Ballad of the Three Amigos," "My Little Buttercup," and "Blue Shadows")

Parenthood (1989)

Awakenings (1990)

Avalon (1990)

The Paper (1994)

Maverick (1994)

Toy Story (1995)

James and the Giant Peach (1996)

Michael (1996)

Bean (1997) (song: I love L.A.)

Cats Don't Dance (1997) (songs: "Danny's Arrival Song","Little Boat On The Sea","Animal Jam Session","Big and Loud","Tell Me Lies", and "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now")

A Bug's Life (1998)

(1998) (song: "That'll Do" by Peter Gabriel)

Pleasantville (1998)

Toy Story 2 (1999)

Meet the Parents (2000)

Monsters, Inc. (2001)

Seabiscuit (2003)

Meet the Fockers (2004)

Cars (2006)

Leatherheads (2008)

The Princess and the Frog (2009)

Toy Story 3 (2010)

Cars 2 (2011)

Awards and honors

Academy Award

*2010: Nominee - Original Song - "Almost There" and "Down in New Orleans" - The Princess and the Frog

*2007: Nominee - Original Song - "Our Town" - Cars

*2002: Winner - Original Song - "If I Didn't Have You" - Monsters, Inc.

*2002: Nominee - Original Score - Monsters, Inc.

*2001: Nominee - Original Song- "A Fool In Love" - Meet The Parents

*2000: Nominee - Original Song- "When She Loved Me" - Toy Story 2

*1999: Nominee - Original Dramatic Score - Pleasantville

*1999: Nominee - Original Musical or Comedy Score - A Bug's Life

*1999: Nominee - Original Song- "That'll Do" -

*1997: Nominee - Musical or Comedy Score - James and the Giant Peach

*1996: Nominee - Original Song- "You've Got a Friend in Me" - Toy Story

*1996: Nominee - Original Musical or Comedy Score - Toy Story

*1995: Nominee - Original Song- "Make Up Your Mind" - The Paper

*1991: Nominee - Original Score - Avalon

*1990: Nominee - Original Song - "I Love to See You Smile" - Parenthood

*1985: Nominee - Original Score - The Natural

*1982: Nominee - Original Score - Ragtime

*1982: Nominee - Original Song- "One More Hour" - Ragtime

Golden Globe

*2000: Nominee - Original Song - "When She Loved Me" - Toy Story 2

*1999: Nominee - Original Score - A Bug's Life

*1996: Nominee - Original Song - "You've Got a Friend in Me" - Toy Story

*1991: Nominee - Original Score - Avalon

*1990: Nominee - Original Song - "I Love to See You Smile" - Parenthood

*1982: Nominee - Original Song - "One More Hour" - Ragtime

Grammy

*2011: Nominee - Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media - Toy Story 3

*2011: Nominee - Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media - "Down in New Orleans" - The Princess and the Frog

*2007: Winner - Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media - "Our Town" - Cars

*2004: Nominee - Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media - Seabiscuit

*2003: Winner - Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media- "If I Didn't Have You" - Monsters, Inc.

*2003: Nominee - Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media - Monsters, Inc.

*2001: Winner - Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media- "When She Loved Me" - Toy Story 2

*2001: Nominee - Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media - Toy Story 2

*2000: Winner - Instrumental Composition Written for Motion Picture or Television - A Bug's Life

*2000: Nominee - Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media - "The Time Of Your Life" - A Bug's Life

*1992: Nominee - Instrumental Composition Written for Motion Picture or Television - Avalon

*1992: Nominee - Instrumental Composition Written for Motion Picture or Television - Awakenings

*1990: Nominee - Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media - Parenthood

*1983: Nominee - Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special- Ragtime

Emmy

*2010: Winner - Original Music and Lyrics ("When I'm Gone") - Monk

*2004: Winner - Main Title Theme Music ("It's a Jungle out There") - Monk

*1991: Winner - Achievement in Music and Lyrics - Cop Rock

Annie Award

*2007: Winner - Music in an Animated Feature Production - Cars

*2003: Nominee - Music in an Animated Feature Production - Monsters, Inc.

*2000: Winner - Music in an Animated Feature Production - Toy Story 2

*1997: Winner - Music in an Animated Feature Production - Cats Don't Dance

*1996: Winner - Music in an Animated Feature Production - Toy Story

BAFTA Award

*1983: Nominee - Original Song - "One More Hour" - Ragtime

Chicago Film Critics Association Award

*1999: Nominee - Original Score - A Bug's Life

*1996: Winner - Original Score - Toy Story

Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award

*1981: Winner - Music - Ragtime

Online Film Critics Society Award

*1999: Winner - Original Score - Pleasantville

References

External links

RandyNewman.com

Randy Newman: American Dreams, Kevin Courrier (2005) ISBN 1-55022-690-8

Interview with Randy Newman on the Art of Songwriting

Randy Newman in NPR's All Songs Considered

Category:1943 births Category:Alumni of University High School (Los Angeles, California) Category:American film score composers Category:Jewish American composers and songwriters Category:American pianists Category:American satirists Category:American male singer-songwriters Category:Annie Award winners Category:Best Song Academy Award winning songwriters Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Jewish singers Category:Living people Category:Musicians from New Orleans, Louisiana Category:Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees Category:People from New Orleans, Louisiana Category:University of California, Los Angeles alumni

Name	Randy Pausch
Caption	Dr. Randy Pausch
Birth date	October 23, 1960
Birth place	Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Death date	July 25, 2008
Death place	Chesapeake, Virginia, USA
Death cause	Pancreatic cancer
Nationality	American
Fields	Computer scienceHuman Computer Interaction
Workplaces	Carnegie Mellon UniversityUniversity of Virginia
Alma mater	Brown UniversityCarnegie Mellon University
Doctoral advisor	Alfred Spector
Known for	Creator of Alice software projectCofounder of CMU's Entertainment Technology CenterVirtual Reality Research with Disney ImagineersInspirational speeches regarding life#1 best-selling bookBattle with cancer
Awards	Karl V. Karlstrom Outstanding Educator AwardACM Special Interest Group on Computer Science EducationAward for Outstanding Contributions to Computer Science EducationFellow of the ACMTime's Time 100
Religion	Unitarian Universalist
Signature

Randolph Frederick "Randy" Pausch (October 23, 1960 – July 25, 2008) was an American professor of computer science and human-computer interaction and design at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Pausch learned that he had pancreatic cancer in September 2006, and in August 2007 he was given a terminal diagnosis: "3 to 6 months of good health left". He gave an upbeat lecture entitled "The Last Lecture: Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams" on September 18, 2007 at Carnegie Mellon, which became a popular YouTube video and led to other media appearances. He then co-authored a book called The Last Lecture on the same theme, which became a New York Times best-seller. Pausch died of complications from pancreatic cancer on July 25, 2008.

Early life

Pausch was born in Baltimore, Maryland, and grew up in Columbia, Maryland. While completing his doctoral studies, Pausch was briefly employed at Xerox Palo Alto Research Center and Adobe Systems.

Computer science career

Pausch was an assistant and associate professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Virginia's School of Engineering and Applied Science from 1988 until 1997. While there, he completed sabbaticals at Walt Disney Imagineering and Electronic Arts (EA). In 1997, Pausch became Associate Professor of Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction and Design, at Carnegie Mellon University. He was a co-founder in 1998, along with Don Marinelli, of CMU's Entertainment Technology Center (ETC), and he started the Building Virtual Worlds course at CMU and taught it for 10 years. He consulted with Google on user interface design and also consulted with PARC, Imagineering, and Media Metrix. He received the National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator Award and was a Lilly Foundation Teaching Fellow. Pausch was the author or co-author of five books and over 70 articles.

Pausch received two awards from ACM in 2007 for his achievements in computing education: the Karl V. Karlstrom Outstanding Educator Award and the ACM Special Interest Group on Computer Science Education Award for Outstanding Contributions to Computer Science Education. He was also inducted as a Fellow of the ACM in 2007.

Cancer and death

Pausch was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and underwent a Whipple procedure (pancreaticoduodenectomy) on September 19, 2006 in an unsuccessful attempt to halt his pancreatic cancer. He was told in August 2007 to expect a remaining three to six months of good health. He soon moved his family to Chesapeake, Virginia, a suburb near Norfolk, to be close to his wife's family. On March 13, 2008, Pausch advocated for greater federal funding for pancreatic cancer before the United States Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies. In the week prior to this, he had been hospitalized in order to have needle aspiration of pleural effusion in his right lung.

On May 2, 2008, a positron emission tomography (PET) scan showed that he had very tiny ( or less) metastases in his lungs and some lymph nodes in his chest. He also had some metastases in his peritoneal and retroperitoneal cavities. On June 26, 2008, Pausch indicated that he was considering stopping further chemotherapy because of the potential adverse side effects. He was, however, considering some immuno-therapy-based approaches. On July 24, on behalf of Pausch, a friend anonymously posted a message on Pausch's webpage stating that a biopsy had indicated that the cancer had progressed further than what was expected from recent PET scans and that Pausch had "taken a step down" and was "much sicker than he had been". The friend also stated that Pausch had then enrolled in a hospice program designed to provide palliative care to those at the end of life.

Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

Pausch delivered his "Last Lecture", titled Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams, at CMU on September 18, 2007. He gave an abridged version of his speech on the Oprah show in October 2007. The talk was modeled after an ongoing series of lectures where top academics are asked to think deeply about what matters to them, and then give a hypothetical "final talk", with a topic such as "what wisdom would you try to impart to the world if you knew it was your last chance?" Before speaking, Pausch received a long standing ovation from a large crowd of over 400 colleagues and students. When he motioned them to sit down, saying, "Make me earn it," someone in the audience shouted back, "You did!"

During the lecture, Pausch was upbeat and humorous, alternating between wisecracks, insights on computer science and engineering education, advice on building multi-disciplinary collaborations, working in groups and interacting with other people, offering inspirational life lessons, and performing push-ups on stage. He also commented on the irony that the "Last Lecture" series had recently been renamed as "Journeys", saying, "I thought, damn, I finally nailed the venue and they renamed it."—pledged to honor Pausch by creating a memorial scholarship for women in computer science, in recognition of Pausch's support and mentoring of women in CS and engineering. to connect CMU's new Computer Science building and the Center for the Arts, symbolizing the way Pausch linked those two disciplines. Brown University professor Andries van Dam followed Pausch's last lecture with a tearful and impassioned speech praising him for his courage and leadership, calling him a role model.

The Randy Pausch Memorial Footbridge was dedicated in October 30, 2009 with Jai, Dylan, Logan and Chloe Pausch cutting the ribbon.

The Last Lecture

The Disney-owned publisher Hyperion paid $6.7 million for the rights to publish a book about Pausch called The Last Lecture, co-authored by Pausch and Wall Street Journal reporter Jeffrey Zaslow. The book became a New York Times best-seller on April 28, 2008. The Last Lecture expands on Pausch's speech. The book's first printing had 400,000 copies, and it has been translated into 46 languages. It has spent more than 85 weeks on The New York Times bestseller list, and there are now more than 4.5 million copies in print in the U.S. alone. Despite speculation that the book would be made into a movie, Pausch had denied these rumors, stating that "there's a reason to do the book, but if it's telling the story of the lecture in the medium of film, we already have that."

Media coverage

Pausch was named "Person of the Week" on ABC's World News with Charles Gibson on September 21, 2007. His "Last Lecture" attracted wide attention from the international media, became an Internet hit, and was viewed over a million times in the first month after its delivery. On October 22, 2007, Pausch appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show where he discussed his situation and summarized his "Last Lecture". On April 9, 2008, the ABC network aired an hour long Diane Sawyer feature on Pausch titled "The Last Lecture: A Love Story For Your Life". On July 29, 2008, ABC aired a follow up to the Last Lecture special, remembering Pausch and his famous lecture.

Other lectures and appearances

Pausch gave a lecture about time management on November 27, 2007 at the University of Virginia, to an audience of over 850 people. In March 2008, Pausch appeared in a public service announcement video and testified before Congress in support of cancer research. On May 18, 2008, Pausch made a surprise return appearance at Carnegie Mellon, giving a speech at the commencement ceremony, as well as attending the School of Computer Science's diploma ceremony, and on May 19 Pausch appeared on the Good Morning America show. His lecture, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams", was nominated at the 2007 YouTube Video Awards.

A devoted Star Trek fan, Pausch was invited by film director J. J. Abrams to film a role in Star Trek. Abrams heard of Pausch's condition and sent a personal e-mail inviting Pausch to the set. Pausch accepted and traveled to Los Angeles, California to shoot his scene. In addition to appearing in the film, he also has a line of dialogue at the beginning of the film ("Captain, we have visual.") and donated the $217.06 paycheck to charity.

Honors

The Pittsburgh City Council declared November 19, 2007 to be "Dr. Randy Pausch Day". In May 2008, Pausch was listed by Time as one of the World's Top-100 Most Influential People. On May 30, 2008, Randy received a letter from then President George W. Bush thanking him for his commitment to the Nation's youth. On February 4, 2009, The Walt Disney Company dedicated a tribute plaque at Walt Disney World near the "Mad Tea Party" attraction with a quote by Randy that reads "Be good at something; It makes you valuable ... Have something to bring to the table, because that will make you more welcome." The Walt Disney Company also created the Disney Memorial Pausch Fellowship at Carnegie Mellon University, which will support two graduate students.

Per Jared Cohon's announcement on the day of the Last Lecture, a raised pedestrian bridge at CMU that connects the Gates Computer Science building and the Purnell Center for the Arts is named after Pausch, symbolizing the way he linked the two disciplines.

Other publications

Adding input and output to the transactional model (Research paper, CMU), 1988

References

External links

Randy Pausch's Home Page at Carnegie Mellon University

News about Randy Pausch at the University of Virginia

Randy Pausch's Publications on Google Scholar

Videos

The last lecture of Randy Pausch at Youtube

The last lecture of Randy Pausch at iTunes U

"Time Management" by Randy Pausch, November 2007 at Google Video

(presentation slides)

Randy Pausch addressing the CMU 2008 graduating class

Randy Pausch on Good Morning America, May 19, 2008

An Interview with Steve Seabolt about Randy Pausch - video audio (mp3) with John Ortberg at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church on September 12, 2008

Randy Pausch's five second Star Trek cameo

Category:American academics Category:American computer scientists Category:American scientists Category:Human Computer Interaction Institute faculty Category:Computer science teachers Category:Fellows of the Association for Computing Machinery Category:Carnegie Mellon University faculty Category:University of Virginia faculty Category:Brown University alumni Category:Carnegie Mellon University alumni Category:People from Baltimore, Maryland Category:People from Howard County, Maryland Category:People from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Category:American motivational speakers Category:Deaths from pancreatic cancer Category:Cancer deaths in Virginia Category:1960 births Category:2008 deaths

Name	Randy Crawford
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Veronica Crawford
Born	February 18, 1952Macon, Georgia, United States
Instrument	Vocals
Genre	Jazz, R&B;, Disco
Occupation	Singer
Years active	1970s-present
Label	Warner Bros. Records

Randy Crawford (born Veronica Crawford, February 18, 1952, Macon, Georgia) Adderley invited her to sing on his album, Big Man (1975). and appeared in commercials in the early 2000s. She moved to Warner Bros. and after "Street Life," recorded and toured Europe with the Crusaders. Crawford was named the 'Most Outstanding Performer' at the 1980 Tokyo Music Festival. !! UK Singles Chart !! NL Top 40 !! SE Top 20 !! Album |- | 1979 || "Street Life" - with The Crusaders || align="center"|17, 36 Pop || align="center"|5 || align="center"|13 || align="center"|8 || Street Life |- | rowspan="3"|1980 || "Same Old Story (Same Old Song)" || align="center"|34 || align="center"|- || align="center"|23 || align="center"|- || rowspan="3"|Now We May Begin |- | "Last Night at Danceland" || align="center"|68 || align="center"|61 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | "One Day I'll Fly Away" || align="center"|- || align="center"|2 || align="center"|1 || align="center"|- |- | rowspan="5"|1981 || "People Alone" (Love Theme from The Competition) || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|25 || align="center"|- || The Competition |- | "When I Lose My Way" || align="center"|58 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || rowspan="4"|Secret Combination |- | "You Might Need Somebody" || align="center"|- || align="center"|11 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | "Rainy Night in Georgia" || align="center"|- || align="center"|18 || align="center"|17 || align="center"|- |- | "Secret Combination" || align="center"|70 || align="center"|48 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | rowspan="5"|1982 || "Imagine" (Live) - with the Yellowjackets || align="center"|69,108 BUB UNDER || align="center"|60 || align="center"|- || align="center"|15 || Casino Lights |- | "One Hello" || align="center"|50,110 BUB UNDER || align="center"|48 || align="center"|35 || align="center"|- || rowspan="2"|Windsong |- | "Look Who's Lonely Now" || align="center"|68 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | "Your Precious Love" (Live) - with Al Jarreau || align="center"|16,102 BUB UNDER || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || Casino Lights |- | "Give Peace a Chance" (Live) || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|6 || rowspan="2"|Windsong |- | rowspan="2"|1983 || "He Reminds Me" || align="center"|- || align="center"|65 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | "Nightline" || align="center"|91 || align="center"|51 || align="center"|19 || align="center"|15 || Nightline |- | rowspan="1"|1984 || "Taxi Dancing" - with Rick Springfield || align="center"|58 POP, 16 A/C || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|-|| |- | rowspan="3"|1986 || "Can't Stand the Pain" || align="center"|58 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || rowspan="3"|Abstract Emotions |- | "Desire" || align="center"|90 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | "Almaz" || align="center"|- || align="center"|4 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | 1989 || "Knocking on Heaven's Door" - featuring Eric Clapton and David Sanborn || align="center"|4 || align="center"|- || align="center"|10 || align="center"|- || rowspan="4"|Rich and Poor |- | rowspan="3"|1990 || "Wrap-U-Up" || align="center"|15 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | "I Don't Feel Much Like Crying" || align="center"|16 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | "Cigarette in the Rain" || align="center"|38 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | rowspan="3"|1992 || "Diamante" (with Zucchero) || align="center"|- || align="center"|44 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || rowspan="3"|Through the Eyes of Love |- | "Who's Crying Now" - featuring Joe Sample || align="center"|30 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | "A Lot That You Can Do" || align="center"|74 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | rowspan="1"|1995 || "Forget Me Nots" || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|-|| |- | rowspan="2"|1996 || " Give Me the Night" || align="center"|47 || align="center"|60 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || rowspan="2"|Naked and True |- | "Cajun Moon" || align="center"|65 || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | rowspan="3"|1998 || "Bye Bye" || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || rowspan="3"|Every Kind of Mood: Randy, Randi, Randee |- | "Silence" || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |- | "Wishing on a Star" || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- || align="center"|- |}

Albums

Everything Must Change (1976)

Miss Randy Crawford (1977)

Raw Silk (1979)

Now We May Begin (1980)

Secret Combination (1981)

Windsong (1982)

Nightline (1983)

Abstract Emotions (1986)

Rich and Poor (1989)

Through the Eyes of Love (1992)

Don't Say It's Over (1993)

Naked and True (1995)

Every Kind of Mood: Randy, Randi, Randee (1997)

Play Mode (aka Permanent) (2000)

Feeling Good (with Joe Sample) (2006)

No Regrets (with Joe Sample) (2008)

Compilation albums

The Competition (1980, soundtrack, Oscar nominated theme song "People Alone")

Sharky's Machine (1981 soundtrack, new version of "Street Life")

Greatest Hits (1984)

Wildcats (1986 soundtrack, song "Don't Wanna Be Normal")

Love Songs (1987)

The Very Best of Randy Crawford (1993)

Best of Randy Crawford (1996)

Jackie Brown (1997, soundtrack, "Street Life" - Sharky's Machine newer version)

Best of Randy Crawford and Friends (2000)

Love Songs: The Very Best of Randy Crawford (2000)

Hits (2002)

The Ultimate Collection (2005)

Pop-Jazz Volume One (2006)

Guest appearances

"Hoping Love Will Last", on Steve Hackett's album, Please Don't Touch.

"Come Il Sole All'improvviso" and "Imagine" on Zucchero's album, Zucchero Live at the Kremlin.

"Taxi Dancing", on Rick Springfield's album, Hard to Hold.

"Fallen", on Presuntos Implicados' live album, La Noche

Awards

1982 BRIT Awards - Best female solo artist.

Trivium

The soundtrack of "The Competition" entitled "People Alone" was revived by Filipina singer Jamie Rivera in 1999.

References

External links

Randy Crawford biography at musicianguide.com

Randy Crawford at Vh1

Randy Crawford biography at Yahoo Music

Category:1952 births Category:Living people Category:African American singers Category:American female singers Category:American jazz singers Category:BRIT Award winners Category:People from Macon, Georgia

Name	Randy Rogers Band
Background	group_or_band
Origin	Cleburne, Texas, USA
Genre	Texas Country, Red Dirt, Country
Years active	2000-present
Label	Mercury NashvilleMCA Nashville
Associated acts	Cross Canadian RagweedRadney FosterWade Bowen
Url	http://randyrogersband.com
Current members	Brady BlackGeoffrey HillLes LawlessJon RichardsonRandy Rogers

The Randy Rogers Band is an American country music group from the state of Texas. The band is composed of Randy Rogers (lead vocals), Geoffrey Hill (guitar), Jon Richardson (bass guitar), Brady Black (fiddle), and Les Lawless (drums). They have recorded four studio albums and two live albums, and have charted six singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. Their highest-charting single, "Tonight's Not the Night (For Goodbye)", reached #43 in 2005.

Biography

Randy Rogers was born in Cleburne, Texas. When he was six years old, he learned to play the piano from his grandmother and later learned to play the guitar.

The Randy Rogers Band recorded its debut album, Live at Cheatham Street Warehouse, at a music hall of the same name in San Marcos, Texas. By 2002, the band was signed to the independent Downtime record label, on which they released the album Like It Used to Be. It was around this time that the band began performing outside of San Marcos, primarily at Nutty Brown Cafe and Amphitheatre in nearby Dripping Springs, Texas. Two years later, the album Rollercoaster was released, producing two minor entries on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts in early 2005. ! width="45"| US |- | 2002 | align="left"| Like It Used to Be

Release date: June 25, 2002

Label: Downtime Records

| — | — |- | 2004 | align="left"| Rollercoaster

Release date: August 24, 2004

Label: Smith Music Group

| — | — |- | 2006 | align="left"| Just a Matter of Time

Release date: September 12, 2006

Label: Mercury Nashville

| 8 | 61 |- | 2008 | align="left"| Randy Rogers Band

Release date: September 23, 2008

Label: Mercury Nashville

| 3 | 29 |- | 2010 | align="left"| Burning the Day

Release date: August 24, 2010

Label: MCA Nashville

| 2 | 8 |- | colspan="10" style="font-size:8pt"| "—" denotes releases that did not chart |- |}

Live albums

^ACurrent single.

Music videos

References

External links

Official website

Randy Rogers Band on MySpace

Official UMG Nashville Artist Page

Category:2000s music groups Category:American country music groups Category:Mercury Records artists Category:Musical groups established in 2000 Category:Musical groups from Texas Category:Texas country music groups Category:MCA Records artists

Name	Randy Rhoads
Background	non_vocal_instrumentalist
Birth name	Randall William Rhoads
Born	December 06, 1956Santa Monica, California, USA
Died	March 19, 1982 Leesburg, Florida, USA
Instrument	Guitar, keyboards
Genre	Heavy metal, hard rock, neo-classical metal
Occupation	Musician, songwriter, producer, music teacher
Years active	1972–1982
Label	Epic, Sony
Associated acts	Ozzy Osbourne, Quiet Riot
Notable instruments	Jackson RR Signature ModelKarl Sandoval "Polka Dot" Custom Flying VGibson Les Paul Custom

Randall William "Randy" Rhoads (December 6, 1956 – March 19, 1982) was an American heavy metal guitarist who played with Ozzy Osbourne and Quiet Riot. A devoted student of classical guitar, Rhoads often combined his classical music influences with his own heavy metal style. While on tour with Ozzy Osbourne, he would seek out classical guitar tutors for lessons. Despite his relatively short career, Rhoads is a major influence on neo-classical metal players that emerged in the 1980s such as Yngwie Malmsteen, Michael Angelo Batio, and Jason Becker. He is cited as an influence by many contemporary heavy metal guitarists. He is included in several 'Greatest Guitarist' lists.

Childhood and early life

Rhoads was born on December 6, 1956 at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, California. He was the youngest of three children. His older brother, Doug, who goes by the name of Kelle Rhoads, is a vocalist who also arranges classical compositions. His sister's name is Kathy.

When Randy was 17 months old, his father, William Arthur Rhoads, left his mother, Delores Rhoads, and the three kids, but he stayed in touch with Randy even up until his son's death. Mrs. Rhoads has owned and operated the Musonia School of Music in North Hollywood, California, since 1949. Rhoads started playing guitar at age six on his grandfather's old Gibson "Army-Navy" classical acoustic guitar. According to Rhoads's mother, he learned to play folk guitar, a popular way to learn guitar at the time, although he did not take lessons for very long. Rhoads was always evolving toward a hard rock/metal lead guitar style, but he was heavily influenced by classical music as well.

Quiet Riot

At the age of 14 Rhoads formed a cover band called Violet Fox (after his mother's middle name, Violet), with his older brother Kelle on drums. Violet Fox staged several performances in the "Grand Salon" at Musonia, Delores Rhoads's music school. Among their setlist was "Mississippi Queen" by Mountain, as well as songs from The Rolling Stones, Alice Cooper, and David Bowie. After the dissolution of Violet Fox, Rhoads taught his best friend Kelly Garni how to play bass, and together they formed a band called The Whore (rehearsing during the day at Rodney Bingenheimer's English Disco, a famous '70s Hollywood nightspot), spending several months playing at backyard parties around Los Angeles. Together the pair went on to form Quiet Riot when Rhoads was 16. Kevin DuBrow auditioned for vocalist in Rhoads's kitchen after he convinced Rhoads and Garni to give him a chance. The drummer, Drew Forsyth, was already in the picture and had periodically played with Rhoads and Garni in the past.

Quiet Riot initially played in small bars in Hollywood and local parties in Burbank, eventually playing at the two main L.A. music clubs of the day — the Whisky a Go Go, and The Starwood. While the band had a strong following in the L.A. club scene, they were unable to secure a major recording contract in the United States. Eventually, however, the band was able to land a record deal with Japanese label CBS/Sony Records and Quiet Riot and Quiet Riot II were released in Japan.

Career with Ozzy Osbourne

In 1979, ex-Black Sabbath singer Ozzy Osbourne was forming a new band. During an interview with Raw Power Magazine editors Robert Olshever, Murray Schwartz and Scott Stephens (future singer of Liquid Blue), Ozzy mentioned he was looking for a new guitar player. Randy's name was suggested during the interview and the next day Robert asked friend and future Slaughter bassist Dana Strum to try to reach Randy to see if he was interested. Rhoads got the call for the audition just before his final show with Quiet Riot. He walked in with his Les Paul guitar and a practice amp and started warming up; Osbourne immediately gave him the job. Rhoads recalled later, "I just tuned up and did some riffs, and he said, 'You've got the gig.' I had the weirdest feeling, because I thought, 'You didn't even hear me yet.'" Osbourne described Rhoads's playing as "God entering my life." Rhoads subsequently recommended his friend Greg Leon, who also taught guitar at Musonia for Rhoads's mother, to replace him in Quiet Riot, and then departed for the UK to write and record with Osbourne in November 1979.

The band, then known as The Blizzard of Ozz headed into the studio to record the band's debut album, which would also be called Blizzard of Ozz. Rhoads's guitar playing had changed due to the level of freedom allowed by Ozzy and Bob Daisley and he was encouraged to play what he wanted. His work with Quiet Riot has been criticized as being "dull" and did not rely on classical scales or arrangements. Propelled by Rhoads's neo-classical guitar work, the album proved an instant hit with rock fans, particularly in the USA. They released two singles from the album: "Mr. Crowley" and the hit "Crazy Train". The British tour of 1980-81 for Blizzard of Ozz was with Bob Daisley and Lee Kerslake. After the UK tour, the band wrote another LP before the US Blizzard of Ozz tour. But before the US Blizzard tour, both Lee Kerslake and Bob Daisley were fired by Sharon Arden, Ozzy's future wife. For the US Blizzard tour, Tommy Aldridge and Rudy Sarzo were hired. Diary of a Madman was released soon after Blizzard of Ozz in October 1981, and since Kerslake and Daisley were already out of the band, Aldridge and Sarzo's photos appear on the album sleeve. Disputes over royalties performance, and other intellectual property rights became a source of future court battles. You Said it All and You Looking At Me, Looking At You became rare collector's items, only released on the B-Sides of a singles. A live album, Tribute, mainly drawn from a performance in Cleveland, Ohio, was released in 1987.

Around this time Rhoads remarked to Osbourne, fellow Ozz bandmates Tommy Aldridge and Rudy Sarzo, and friend Kelly Garni that he was considering leaving rock for a few years to earn a degree in classical guitar at UCLA. In the documentary Don't Blame Me, Osbourne confirmed Randy's desire to earn the degree and stated that had he lived, he didn't believe Randy would have stayed in his band. Friend and ex-Quiet Riot bassist Kelly Garni has stated in interviews that if Randy had continued to play rock, he might have gone the route of more keyboard-driven rock, which had become very popular through the 1980s.

It was at this time that Rhoads was beginning to receive recognition for his playing. Just before his death Jackson Guitars created a signature model, the Jackson Randy Rhoads or Randy Rhoads Pro (though it was recommended to be called the Jackson Concorde). Randy received two prototypes — one in black and one in white — but died before the guitar went into production. Rhoads also received the Best New Talent award from Guitar Player magazine.

Death

Randy Rhoads's last show was played on Thursday, March 18, 1982 at the Knoxville Civic Coliseum in Knoxville, Tennessee. The next day, the band was headed to a festival in Orlando, Florida. After driving much of the night, they stopped on the property belonging to Jerry Calhoun, owner of "Florida Coach," in Leesburg, Florida. On it, there was a small airstrip lined with small helicopters and planes, and two houses. One belonged to the tour bus driver, Andrew Aycock, and the other was owned by Calhoun. Aycock - a licensed pilot - talked the band's keyboardist, Don Airey, into taking a test flight with him in a '55 Beechcraft Bonanza F-35. By some accounts the manager, Jake Duncan, was also on this first flight. The joyride ended, and the plane landed safely. Then Aycock took Rhoads and hairdresser/seamstress Rachel Youngblood on another flight. Airey persuaded Rhoads to go on the second flight, despite his fear of flying. Rhoads apparently agreed to go for two reasons: the seamstress had a heart condition so Aycock agreed to do nothing risky; also, Rhoads wanted to take an aerial photo as one of his hobbies was photography. During the second flight, attempts were made to "buzz" the tour bus where the other band members were sleeping. They succeeded twice, but the third attempt was botched. The left wing clipped the back side of the tour bus, tore the fiberglass roof then sent the plane spiraling. The plane severed the top of a pine tree and crashed into the garage of a nearby mansion, bursting into flames. Rhoads was killed instantly, as were Aycock, 36, and Youngblood, 58. All three bodies were burned beyond recognition, and were identified by dental records. It was later revealed in an autopsy that Aycock's system showed traces of cocaine at the time; Rhoads's toxicology test revealed only nicotine. The NTSB investigation also determined that Aycock's medical certificate had expired and that his biennial flight review, required for all pilots, was overdue.

Rhoads's funeral was held at the First Lutheran Church in Burbank, California. He is interred at Mountain View Cemetery in San Bernardino, California, where his grandparents are also buried.

Equipment

Rhoads used a relatively small setup, with few guitars and a small set of effects and amplifiers. He preferred .010-.011 strings.

Black Gibson Les Paul Custom, Black beauty with gold hardware, and 3 pickups.

Karl Sandoval Polka Dot Flying V (Randy had complained of tuning problems with this guitar)

White Jackson Randy Rhoads with dark blue metallic pinstripes and headstock. Also known as the Concorde.

Black Jackson Randy Rhoads with gold pick guard.

Gibson 12 string acoustic

EQ

Posthumous achievements

In 1987, five years after Rhoads's death, Osbourne released Tribute, the only official album featuring Osbourne and Rhoads playing together in concert. Most of the album is a live performance from Cleveland, Ohio, recorded on May 11, 1981. Also used in the recording was Rhoads's guitar solo from a show in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, recorded on July 28, 1981. That whole show (NBC SOURCE) had been broadcast on WMMS, and the NBC SOURCE Concert Series, from which it became an extremely popular and fast selling bootleg by the name of "Bats Head Soup". The songs "Goodbye to Romance" and "No Bone Movies" from the Tribute album were recorded on the UK Blizzard of Ozz tour at Southampton, on the same date as the Mr. Crowley EP.

Randy was inducted into the Guitar Center Rock Walk on March 18, 2004. In a 2006 Guitar World article, it was mentioned that Rhoads's last name was mistakenly spelled "Rhodes" on his plaque, and by the time it was discovered, there was not enough time to correct the mistake. It has since been fixed.

As a tribute to Rhoads, Marshall Amplification released the 1959RR at NAMM 2008. The amp is a limited-edition all-white Marshall Super Lead 100 watt head modeled after Randy's own Super Lead amp. Marshall engineers looked extensively at Rhoads's actual amplifier and made the 1959RR to those exact specifications, right down to the special high-gain modification Randy specifically requested when he visited the Marshall factory in 1980.

As another tribute to Randy, Jackson Guitars has released an exact replica of Randy's original white "shortwing" V. Randy's original guitar was looked at, photographed, and measured extensively by Jackson's luthiers so as to produce the most exact replica possible. The guitar even comes with black gaffer's tape covering the top wing and the back of the guitar, just like Randy's. Only 60 of the guitars will be made, each with the symbolic price tag of $12,619.56 which is Rhoads's birthday.

In 2010, Gibson Guitars announced a new custom shop signature guitar modeled after Rhoads's 1974 Les Paul Custom.

In 2011, author Joel McIver announced the publication of the first fully comprehensive Rhoads biography, with a foreword written by Zakk Wylde and an afterword supplied by Yngwie J. Malmsteen. The book, titled Crazy Train: The High Life And Tragic Death Of Randy Rhoads, is scheduled for publication in April.

Awards and recognition

Voted "Best New Talent" by the readers of Guitar Player magazine in December 1981

Voted "Best Heavy Metal Guitarist" by the readers of UK-based Sounds magazine in December 1981

Placed 85th on Rolling Stone Magazine's 100 Greatest Guitarists. Placed 4th on Guitar World Magazine's 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Guitarists. Crazy Train and Mr. Crowley placed 9th and 28th respectively on Guitar World's 100 Greatest Guitar Solos readers poll. Named one of the fastest guitar players in Guitar World's 50 Fastest Guitarists list. "Crazy Train" placed 51 in Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time" list.

In 2008 - 2010 applications for a Posthumous Star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame were submitted in the name of Randy Rhoads. Randy Rhoads's Posthumous Star has not yet been approved and the HWOF Star application will be resubmitted in 2011. If approved by the Hollywood Walk Of Fame Committee in June 2011, Randy Rhoads's Posthumous Star would be placed on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame in the year 2012.http://www.bravewords.com/news/147962

Influence

Despite his youth and relatively limited recorded work, Rhoads has been on the covers of many guitar magazines and has influenced many notable guitar players, including Michael Angelo Batio, Zakk Wylde, George Lynch, Alexi Laiho, Mick Thomson, Paul Gilbert, and Buckethead.

Discography

With Quiet Riot

Quiet Riot (1977)

Quiet Riot II (1978)

The Randy Rhoads Years (1993)

With Ozzy Osbourne

Mr. Crowley Live EP (1980)

Blizzard of Ozz (1980)

Diary of a Madman (1981)

Tribute (1987)

References

28. Campaign For Randy Rhoads Hollywood Walk Of Fame Star Announced http://www.bravewords.com/news/147962 Bravewords.com

External links

Guitar World 2007 article on the discovery of the third Randy Rhoads guitar (p. 64)

www.ultimaterhoads.com

Category:1956 births Category:1982 deaths Category:American heavy metal guitarists Category:Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Category:The Ozzy Osbourne Band members Category:Quiet Riot members Category:People from Burbank, California Category:People from Santa Monica, California Category:Accidental deaths in Florida Category:Lead guitarists

Name	Randy Orton
Names	Randy Orton
Height
Billed	St. Louis, MissouriMid Missouri Wrestling AllianceOhio Valley Wrestling (born April 1, 1980)
Image1	RKO-2006-finsiher.jpg
Image1 cap	Orton performing the RKO on Kane
Image2	RandyOrton-chokehold.jpg
Image2 cap	Orton performing a chinlock on John Cena

Finishing moves

Diving crossbody

Randy Orton Stomp (Multiple stomps while circling a fallen opponent)

Rope hung DDT

Snap scoop powerslam

Wrenching chinlock

"The Viper"

"WWE's Apex Predator"

Entrance themes

* "" by Motörhead (Used while a member of Evolution)

"Burn in My Light" by Mercy Drive

"This Fire Burns" by Killswitch Engage (Used for one week, and eventually became the theme for CM Punk)

"" by Rev Theory

Championships and accomplishments

.]]

Ohio Valley Wrestling

OVW Hardcore Championship (2 times)

PWI Most Improved Wrestler of the Year (2004)

PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (2010)

PWI Rookie of the Year (2001)

PWI ranked him #1 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2008

PWI Wrestler of the Year (2009)

World Wrestling Entertainment

World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

*WWE Intercontinental Championship (1 time)

*Royal Rumble (2009)

*Seventeenth Triple Crown Champion

Wrestling Observer Newsletter

*Most Improved (2004)

Notes

References

External links

WWE profile

Online World of Wrestling profile

Slam! bio and story archive

Category:1980 births Category:American professional wrestlers Category:Living people Category:People from Knoxville, Tennessee Category:People from St. Louis, Missouri Category:People from Jefferson County, Missouri Category:United States Marines

Name	Randy Houser
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Shawn Randolph Houser
Born
Origin	Lake, Mississippi, USA
Instrument	Vocals
Genre	Country
Occupation	Singer
Years active	2004-present
Label	MCA Nashville, Show Dog-Universal (formerly of Universal South)
Associated acts	Trace Adkins, Jamey Johnson, John Michael Montgomery, Justin Moore

Shawn Randolph "Randy" Houser (born in Lake, Mississippi) is an American country music artist. Signed to the Universal South Records label in 2008, he charted the single "Anything Goes" that year. This song, a Top 20 hit on the Billboard country singles charts, is the title track to his debut album Anything Goes, which has also produced his first Top 10 hit in "Boots On". Houser also co-wrote the singles "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk" for Trace Adkins, "Back That Thing Up" for Justin Moore and "My Cowboy" for country-pop artist Jessie James.

Biography

Randy Houser was born in Lake, Mississippi. His father, a professional musician as well, performed at various local venues. Houser fronted his own band by age thirteen, and while attending East Central Community College in Decatur, Mississippi, he formed another band called 10 lb. Biscuit. This song was recorded by Trace Adkins on his 2005 album Songs About Me, and was a Top 5 single for him. After this song's success, Houser shifted his focus to performing, and started playing at local gigs in Nashville. He was briefly signed to MCA Nashville but did not release anything on the label.

Debut album: Anything Goes (2008-2009)

Houser subsequently signed to Universal South Records in 2008. His first single, "Anything Goes", was released in May of that year. It was co-written by Brice Long and John Wiggins. The song entered Top 40 on the Billboard country charts that same month. His debut album, also titled Anything Goes, was released in November, at which point the title track was in the Top 20 on the country charts. "Boots On" was released as the album's second single in February 2009, and became his first top ten hit in July 2009. Houser also co-wrote "Back That Thing Up", the debut single for Valory Music Group artist Justin Moore. This song peaked at #38 on Hot Country Songs in December 2008.

Houser received two nominations for the 2009 CMA Awards, including New Artist of the Year and Music Video of the Year for his Top 5 hit "Boots On".

Second album: They Call Me Cadillac (2009-present)

Houser, along with Jamey Johnson and Jessie James co-wrote James' third single from her self-titled debut album, "My Cowboy". The song was released in late October 2009, and was also released as a music video. Also in October 2009, Houser released his third single. The song titled "Whistlin' Dixie", is the lead-off single to Houser's second studio album, They Call Me Cadillac. It debuted at #59 on the Billboard country charts before the initial release date of November 2, 2009. It peaked at #31 in January 2010. After it came "I'm All About It," which peaked at #49 and was not included on the album. Houser's fifth single will be "A Man Like Me," which he wrote with Danny Green and Jameson Clark.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Music videos

Awards and nominations

{| border="3" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaa solid; border-collapse: collapse;" |- ! Year ! Organization ! Award ! Result |- | rowspan="2"| 2009 | rowspan="2"| Country Music Association | New Artist of the Year | |- | Music Video of the Year - "Boots On" | |- | rowspan="2"| 2010 | Academy of Country Music | Video of the Year - "Boots On" | |- | CMT Music Awards | USA Weekend Breakthrough Video of the Year - "Boots On" | |- | 2011 | Academy of Country Music | Top New Solo Vocalist | |- |}

References

External links

Official Website

Category:American country singers Category:American male singers Category:Living people Category:People from Newton County, Mississippi Category:Musicians from Mississippi Category:Show Dog-Universal Music artists Category:Year of birth missing (living people)

Name	Randy Couture
Caption	Couture at the San Diego Comic-Con International, July 2010
Birth name	Randy Duane Couture
Birth date	June 22, 1963
Birth place	Everett, Washington, United States
Death date
Other names	The Natural, Captain America
Nationality	American
Height
Weight
Weight class	Light Heavyweight Heavyweight
Reach
Style	Greco-Roman Wrestling, Boxing, Submission Grappling
Stance	Orthodox
Fighting out of	Las Vegas, Nevada
Team	RAW (1997-1999)Team Quest (1999-2006)Xtreme Couture (2006-present)DeathClutch Gym (2010)
Rank	NCAA Division I Collegiate wrestling Olympic Alternate Greco-Roman Wrestling Black belt in Neil Melanson's Submission Grappling System
Years active	1997–present (MMA)
Mma win	19
Mma kowin	7
Mma subwin	4
Mma decwin	8
Mma loss	10
Mma koloss	5
Mma subloss	4
Mma decloss	1
University	Oklahoma State University
Children	4
Relatives	Ryan Couture, son Kim Couture, ex-wife
School	Lynnwood High School
Url	http://www.randycouture.tv/
Sherdog	166
Updated	August 28, 2010

}}

Randy Duane Couture (; born June 22, 1963) is an American mixed martial artist, Greco-Roman wrestler, actor, a three-time former heavyweight champion and a two-time light-heavyweight champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Couture is the first fighter to hold two UFC championship titles in two different divisions (heavyweight and light heavyweight). Couture has competed in a record 15 title fights. He, along with Chuck Liddell, has the second highest amount of fights in the UFC at 23, behind Matt Hughes' 24. Couture is one of the first members of the UFC Hall of Fame and many consider him to be one of the greatest in MMA history.

Couture was an Olympic wrestling alternate and has lived in Corvallis, Oregon, throughout much of his career, where he served as an assistant wrestling coach and a strength and conditioning coach for Oregon State University. He established Team Quest with Matt Lindland and Dan Henderson, a training camp for fighters, based out of Gresham, Oregon, and headed by coach Robert Folis. In 2005, Couture moved to Las Vegas, where he opened his own extensive chain of gyms under the name Xtreme Couture. He currently trains at his Las Vegas-based gym. Couture also partnered with Bas Rutten in the opening of Legends Gym in Hollywood, California.

Couture is generally recognized as a clinch and ground-and-pound fighter who uses his wrestling ability to execute take downs, establish top position and successively strike the opponent on the bottom. Couture has also displayed a variety of skills in Boxing, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu; submitting three opponents using different chokeholds. Couture is the only athlete in UFC history to win a championship after becoming a Hall of Fame member and is the oldest title holder ever (in the UFC and MMA). Along with Chuck Liddell, Couture is widely credited for bringing mixed martial arts into the mainstream of American sports and pop culture.

Early life

Couture was born in Everett, Washington, the son of Sharan and Ed Couture. He wrestled at Alderwood Middle School in Lynnwood, Washington, then moved on to Lynnwood High School, where he won a State Championship during his senior year. Couture served in the U.S. Army from 1982–1988 where he "wrestled and did a little boxing."

Upon discharge, he became a three-time Olympic team alternate (1988, 1992 and 1996), a semifinalist at the 2000 Olympic Trials, a three-time National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division-I All-American and a two-time NCAA Division-I runner-up at Oklahoma State University.

In 1992, he was the Division-I runner up at 190 pounds, coming in second after Mark Kerr. Couture was settling into life as a wrestling coach, until he saw a video of a UFC event and decided to pursue a career in mixed martial arts.

Mixed martial arts career

UFC, RINGS, and Heavyweight Championship(s)

Couture made his MMA debut at UFC 13 in May 1997. He entered the 4-man Heavyweight tournament, his first opponent being Tony Halme, also known as WWF wrestler Ludvig Borga. Outweighted by nearly 100 lbs, Couture scored a double-leg takedown right off the bat. After working some ground and pound, he got a back mount and secured a rear naked choke win in just less than a minute. His second fight that night was in the tournament finals against Steven Graham, yet another larger opponent at 290 lbs. Again Randy took the fight to the ground, scoring a TKO win at 3:13 minutes of the first round.

His next UFC appearance was on October 17, 1997, at UFC 15. He fought Vitor Belfort to determine the number 1 challenger of the Heavyweight belt. Couture was a massive underdog in that fight, as the 19-year-old Belfort was not only a Carlson Gracie blackbelt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, but also had extremely fast hands and punching power, and was scheduled to compete for the Olympic trials in boxing for Brazil.

Couture put on a display that began to earn him the reputation of a master strategist in the sport. After circling away from Vitor's powerful left hand, Couture got the clinch, but was unable to score a takedown. The fighters broke up, and when Vitor attempted a flurry of punches, Couture changed levels and took the fight to the ground. He immediately gained side control and landed strikes, and as Vitor scrambled to his feet, he also scored with knee strikes. Back on the feet Randy clinched again and wore Vitor out with dirty boxing. Around the 7 minute mark, Vitor was exhausted. Couture yet again took the fight to the ground, and finished with punches from back mount in what was one of the biggest upsets in early MMA history.

His next fight took place on December 21, 1997, at UFC Japan. He fought the then Heavyweight champion, Maurice Smith, who was making his second title defense after winning the belt from Mark Coleman earlier that year. In a slow paced, calculated fight, neither fighter was able to damage the other, but Randy scored several takedowns and had the positional control throughout the fight. After 21 minutes, he won a majority decision and became the new UFC heavyweight champion.

In 1998, the UFC wanted Couture to defend his belt against Bas Rutten, former King of Pancrase. Randy instead signed with Vale Tudo Japan and was stripped of the heavyweight belt. In Japan, he was matched up against Enson Inoue. After taking the fight to the ground, he was forced to tap out to an armbar just more than 90 seconds into the first round. His next fight was on March 20, 1999, for the Japanese Rings promotion. There he suffered a very controversial loss to Mikhail Illoukhine via Kimura, one which many fans blamed on a mistake by the referee. After that loss, Couture took a break from MMA to focus on his amateur wrestling career, with the 2000 Summer Olympics in sight.

He returned to MMA in October 2000 for the Rings King of Kings 2000 Tournament, where he defeated UFC veteran Jeremy Horn by unanimous decision in his first fight and defeated Pancrase veteran Ryushi Yanagisawa, also by unanimous decision, in the second fight. These two wins qualified him for the finals of the tournament, which would take place in early 2001. Before that, he was offered a shot at the UFC heavyweight title against Kevin Randleman in Nov. 17, 2000. Randy was taken down in the first two rounds, but he showed very good defense from his back, frustrating most of Kevin's ground and pound attempts. In the third round, he tripped Randleman to the mat and landed several strikes from the full mount, winning by referee stoppage. Couture had won the UFC heavyweight belt for the second time.

In March 2001, he fought for the finals of the Rings King of Kings 2000 tournament. After dominating UFC veteran Tsuyoshi Kosaka in the first fight, he fought the semi finals against Valentijn Overeem, and was caught in a guillotine choke early in the fight. The tournament was eventually won by Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, and Randy went back to the UFC after that.

His first title defense was against Brazilian Kickboxer Pedro Rizzo at UFC 31. This was also the first UFC event under the Zuffa management, with Dana White as the new president. In one of the best and most brutal fights in MMA history, both fighters inflicted a lot of damage on each other. After five 5-minute rounds, Randy was declared the winner by unanimous decision, which generated a lot of controversy as many fans felt Rizzo had won the fight. This prompted the UFC to set up an immediate rematch between the two, which took place at UFC 34, in November 2001. This time, Randy didn't have many problems, as he had adjusted to Rizzo's style and won a TKO stoppage in the 3rd round. His third title defense was in March 2002, against up-and-comer Josh Barnett. In the second round, Josh got on top of Randy and landed several strikes, winning by TKO. After the fight, it was revealed that Josh had tested positive for anabolic steroids; he was subsequently stripped of his title and left the UFC. Randy was then matched up against Ricco Rodriguez for the vacant UFC heavyweight belt at UFC 39, in late 2002. After dominating the first 3 rounds, the 39-year-old Randy began to show signs of fatigue. In the fifth round, Ricco took him down and landed an elbow strike to the eye, breaking Randy's orbital bone, forcing him to submit. This fight marked the first time a UFC fight was ended via KO, TKO or submission in the fifth round.

Move to Light Heavyweight and trilogy with Liddell

After his two consecutive losses in the heavyweight division to larger opponents, Couture moved down a weight class to fight at 205 lbs in the UFC's light heavyweight division. In his light heavyweight debut, Couture took on long-time number one contender Chuck Liddell for the interim light heavyweight championship. Couture was again the underdog, but after outstriking Chuck for three rounds, he took the fight to the ground, winning by TKO via strikes from the mount position. Couture became the only UFC competitor to win championship titles in two weight classes, earning Couture his nickname "Captain America". His next match was billed as a "Champion vs. Champion" fight in order to settle who was the rightful, undisputed champion of the division. Couture faced the five-time defending champion Tito Ortiz for the undisputed light heavyweight title. Couture won a unanimous decision and became the undisputed UFC light heavyweight champion at age 40.

Couture's first title defense at Light Heavyweight was against Vitor Belfort, whom he had defeated in 1997 at UFC 15. In the first round, as Couture closed the distance to attempt a clinch, Belfort threw a left hook that grazed his right eye. A piece of Belfort's glove caused serious damage, and Vitor was declared the winner by medical stoppage. The rematch took place later that year, with Randy dominating all 3 rounds before winning by medical stoppage due to a cut. This made him a 2-time Light Heavyweight champion, as well as 2-time Heavyweight champion.

On April 16, 2005, Couture lost his title and suffered the first knockout loss of his career in a rematch with Chuck Liddell. Couture came back in August with a win over Mike Van Arsdale to re-establish himself as a top contender. He faced Liddell again for the third and final time in a championship match on February 4, 2006, at UFC 57. He did not succeed, falling to a second round knockout. Immediately after the match, he announced his retirement from the sport.

On June 24, 2006, during The Ultimate Fighter 3 finale, which was broadcast live on Spike TV, Couture became the fourth fighter to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame, joining Royce Gracie, Dan Severn, and Ken Shamrock.

Retirement

After retiring from the professional fighting circuit, Couture began appearing at UFC events as a regular broadcast commentator and as co-host of "Before/After The Bell" on The Fight Network. He also appeared in the Rob Schneider comedy Big Stan, along with fellow mixed martial artists Don Frye and Bob Sapp.

On Nov. 17, 2006, Couture decided to compete athletically again, facing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu champion Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza in a submission wrestling match. The bout ended in a draw.

Couture was featured on season two of Spike TV's reality show "Pros vs. Joes," which premiered on January 25, 2007. His teammates on the episode were Michael Irvin, Kevin Willis, and José Canseco. He returned for the finale, where he even took part in a football based round. His teammates were Willis, Randall Cunningham, Bruce Smith, Roy Jones Jr. and Tim Hardaway. Couture also had a brief cameo appearance on the season finale of the CBS show The Unit as a military guard and on the film Redbelt as a fight commentator. Couture also appeared on an episode of The History Channel's "Human Weapon" on September 27, 2007, and starred in the 2008 film, "."

Reclaiming the heavyweight title

On January 11, 2007, Couture appeared for an interview on the Spike TV magazine show, "Inside the UFC", to announce his return from retirement. In a conversation with Joe Rogan, Couture confirmed that he would be facing Tim Sylvia for the UFC heavyweight championship at UFC 68 on March 3, 2007, and revealed that he had signed a four-fight, two-year deal with the company.

At the age of 43, Couture defeated then-champion Tim Sylvia at UFC 68 by unanimous decision to claim his third UFC heavyweight title. Couture's first punch, at :08 of the first round, sent the (2.03 m) Sylvia reeling to the mat. Couture controlled the pace of the fight for five rounds, smothering Sylvia with effective striking and numerous takedowns. All three judges' scored the bout 50–45 for Couture, making him the first fighter in UFC history to become a three-time champion.

On August 25, 2007, at UFC 74 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Couture defended his title against Gabriel Gonzaga, who previously defeated Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipović at UFC 70 to become the number one contender. In the fight, Couture defeated Gonzaga by TKO (strikes) to retain the title. Couture suffered a broken left arm from blocking one of Gonzaga's kicks during the course of the fight. The kick cleanly separated the ulna bone. The injury placed the UFC heavyweight champion's arm in a splint for six weeks. This would be the least of Couture's worries, as shortly after the fight he would be embroiled in a legal battle with the UFC.

Resignation and dispute with the UFC

On October 11, 2007, Couture announced that he was severing all ties with the UFC, leaving two contracted fights, a position as an on-air analyst, and his heavyweight championship behind. He reportedly received $250,000, plus $936,000 of PPV revenue, for his comeback against Tim Sylvia. He also reportedly received a $250,000 purse for defeating Gabriel Gonzaga, as well as a $35,000 bonus for "Fight of the Night" and $787,000 in PPV revenue. This became a sticking point since Chuck Liddell lost his two previous fights yet is still being paid more, according to Couture. Couture cited the UFC's failure to sign #1 ranked heavyweight fighter Fedor Emelianenko, as well as disputes with UFC management.

UFC president Dana White said on October 18, 2007, that Couture remains the promotion's heavyweight champion despite his announced plans to quit. White also reiterated he would not release Couture from the final two fights on his UFC contract. Couture held a press conference on October 25, 2007, in which he denied his leaving of the UFC was a "retirement", set forth his grievances over the pay he received for his fights against Tim Sylvia and Gabriel Gonzaga, and reiterated his belief that he would be free from any contractual obligations to the UFC after nine months. On October 30, 2007, White and UFC co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta held another press conference. There White reiterated the UFC's position that Couture remains the promotion's heavyweight champion despite his tendered resignation, and that Couture would remain obligated under his UFC contract well beyond nine months. White also released documents at the press conference to refute Couture's claims about the pay he received. Sherdog.com analyzed language reportedly found in the UFC's standard contracts relating to fighter retirement which Sherdog believes clarifies the dispute over Couture's contractual status.

In another chapter to the Couture/UFC saga, White and Randy Couture met and had a "good" conversation at UFC 78. However, White also met with Couture during the Thanksgiving holiday to discuss a possible return to the Octagon, where Couture said he had no desire to return to the UFC at that time.

Cornering some of his fighters from Xtreme Couture at HDNet Fights on December 15, 2007, in Dallas, Texas, Couture answered questions about Fedor, stating that he would like to fight him in October once his employment contract with the UFC has expired, if the UFC cannot come to some kind of co-promotion agreement with M-1 Global before that time.

On January 15, 2008, Zuffa—the UFC's parent company—filed a lawsuit in Clark County District Court in Nevada, citing breach of contract and irreparable damage. Zuffa is seeking over $10,000 in damages. This suit concerns only Couture's employment contract and not his promotional contract. On February 28, 2008, Judge Jennifer Togliatti handed down the first ruling in the case of Zuffa v. Randy Couture, issuing a preliminary injunction barring Couture's participation in an IFL event to be held the following day.

On August 2, 2008, a Texas appeals court granted Zuffa LLC's request for a stay against a motion for a declaratory judgment in a suit filed by HDNet regarding Randy Couture's contractual status with the UFC. The stay effectively ends the dispute in the state of Texas and Zuffa will be allowed to move forward with the Nevada suit.

Return to the UFC

On September 2, 2008, the UFC announced a three-fight deal with the 45-year-old Randy Couture to return to active competition for the UFC. His first fight back was at UFC 91 on November 15, 2008, in Las Vegas, Nevada where he lost his UFC Heavyweight Championship to Brock Lesnar. It was at first a closely contested match; however, later in the fight Lesnar knocked Couture down and finished him with hammer fists for a TKO victory at 3:07 of the second round. In the post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, Couture declared his desire to keep fighting. He stated that he felt like he was still becoming a better fighter and blamed his loss on a bad performance, not his age.

Couture has said he still wants to fight former PRIDE FC Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko, but has since been unable to, due to UFC contract issues.

Couture has said he would also drop weight to fight former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida if that is what the UFC wants.

On February 26, 2009, it was reported that Couture had agreed to a bout with former UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion and former PRIDE Heavyweight Champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 102 in Portland, Oregon. In that fight, on August 29, 2009, Couture lost a relatively one-sided bout via unanimous decision. After the bout, Couture stated he felt like he was in the best shape of his life, and that he will wait and see what the UFC has in store for him in the future. The fight received the "Fight of the Night" award.

Return to Light Heavyweight and fight with Toney

After the Nogueira match, Dana White announced Couture had signed a new 28 month/6 fight deal, prior to fighting Nogueira. (In other words, the loss to Nogueira was the first fight under his new contract, which replaced his old contract.

On November 14, 2009, at UFC 105, Couture defeated Brandon Vera via unanimous decision in his first fight at Light Heavyweight since his loss to Chuck Liddell in 2006. At age 46, Couture became the oldest fighter to ever win a fight in the UFC. on March 6, 2010.]] Couture fought fellow Hall of Famer Mark Coleman at UFC 109. The bout marked the first time that UFC Hall of Famers fought against each other in the Octagon. The pair were scheduled to meet at UFC 17 in 1998, but a Couture injury forced the cancellation of the bout. The legendary pair wrestled one another in a freestyle match at the 1989 Olympic Festival at Oklahoma State where Coleman won the match by one point. Couture modified his training for this bout focusing on catch wrestling and refining his boxing under coach Gil Martinez. This fight marked the oldest combined age of fighters to go head to head in the UFC. The fight took place at UFC 109: Relentless. Couture defeated Coleman via technical submission (rear naked choke) in the second round, which marked the first time in over 4 years that Couture had won via submission.

A bout between Couture and Rich Franklin was reported to take place at UFC 115, but Franklin instead fought Chuck Liddell. Dana White later confirmed that multiple time boxing world champion James Toney would fight Couture at UFC 118. Couture dominated the fight, taking down and mounting Toney within seconds of the start of the fight and soon after submitted Toney with an arm triangle choke.

Couture has stated that he is interested in a fight with either Lyoto Machida or Maurício Rua in a non-title bout.

Couture vs. Machida at UFC 129

Couture has reportedly agreed to a fight with Machida at UFC 129 on April 30, 2011, in Toronto.

Personal life

Couture was previously married to Sharon and Tricia, and was recently married to Kim Couture (née Holderman). He has three children, sons Ryan and Caden, and daughter Aimee, in addition to a stepson. Politically, he identifies himself with the Republican Party, but he chose not to officially endorse a candidate in the 2008 Presidential Election. Kim and Randy have filed for divorce.

Championships and achievements

Wrestling

:Pan American Championship Greco-Roman Seniors 90 kg – second place (June 13, 1990) :Pan American Championship Greco-Roman Seniors 90 kg – winner (January 1, 1991) :Pan American Championship Greco-Roman Seniors 90 kg – second place (January 1, 1992) :Pan American Championship Greco-Roman Seniors 97 kg – third place (May 21, 1997) :Pan American Championship Greco-Roman Seniors 97 kg – second place (March 24, 1998) :Pan American Games Greco-Roman Seniors 90 kg – winner (August 6, 1991) :FILA test tournament Greco-Roman Seniors 97 kg – third place (March 14, 1998) :FILA World Cup Greco-Roman Seniors 90 kg – third place (November 9, 1991) :FILA World Cup Greco-Roman Seniors 90 kg – third place (November 21, 1992)

Mixed martial arts

:Black Belt Magazine ::1997 Full-Contact Competitor of the Year

:Fighting Network RINGS ::RINGS King of Kings 2000 Tournament Semifinalist

:Inside Fights ::2009 Fight of the Year - vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira on August 29

:Ultimate Fighting Championship ::UFC Heavyweight Championship (Three times) ::UFC Light Heavyweight Championship (Two times) ::Interim UFC Light Heavyweight championship (One time) ::UFC 13 Heavyweight Tournament Winner ::Fight of the Night (Two Times) ::UFC Hall of Fame ::UFC Viewer's Choice Award ::Most Championship reigns in UFC history (Six times) ::Most Championship fights in UFC history (Fifteen times) ::Oldest fighter to win a title in UFC history (43 years, 255 days) ::First fighter to hold Championship titles in two weight classes

:Wrestling Observer Newsletter ::2003 Most Outstanding Fighter ::MMA Most Valuable Fighter (2007) ::MMA Most Valuable Fighter of the Decade (2000–2009) ::2001 Fight of the Year vs. Pedro Rizzo on May 4 ::2007 Fight of the Year vs. Tim Sylvia on March 3

:World MMA Awards Outstanding Contribution to MMA

Mixed martial arts record

{| style="font-size: 85%; text-align: left;" class="wikitable sortable" width="100%" |- !style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Result !style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Record !style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Opponent !style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Method !style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Event !style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Date !style="border-style: none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Round !style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Time !style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Location !style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Notes |- | | | Lyoto Machida | |UFC 129 |April 30, 2011 |align="center"| |align="center"| | Toronto, Ontario |- |Win |19–10 | James Toney |Submission (Arm-Triangle Choke) |UFC 118: Edgar vs. Penn 2 |August 28, 2010 |align="center"|1 |align=center|3:19 | Boston, Massachusetts |Heavyweight bout. |- |Win |18–10 | Mark Coleman |Technical Submission (Rear Naked Choke) |UFC 109: Relentless |February 6, 2010 |align="center"|2 |align="center"|1:09 | Las Vegas, Nevada | |- |Win |17–10 | Brandon Vera |Decision (Unanimous) |UFC 105: Couture vs. Vera |November 14, 2009 |align="center"|3 |align="center"|5:00 | Manchester, England |Return to Light Heavyweight |- |Loss |16–10 | Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira |Decision (Unanimous) |UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira |August 29, 2009 |align="center"|3 |align="center"|5:00 | Portland, Oregon |Fight of the Night |- |Loss |16–9 | Brock Lesnar |TKO (Strikes) |UFC 91: Couture vs. Lesnar |November 15, 2008 |align="center"|2 |align="center"|3:07 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Lost UFC Heavyweight Championship |- |Win |16–8 | Gabriel Gonzaga |TKO (Punches) |UFC 74: Respect |August 25, 2007 |align="center"|3 |align="center"|1:37 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Defended UFC Heavyweight Championship. Fight of The Night |- |Win |15–8 | Tim Sylvia |Decision (Unanimous) |UFC 68: The Uprising |March 3, 2007 |align="center"|5 |align="center"|5:00 | Columbus, Ohio |Won UFC Heavyweight Championship, Wrestling Observer Newsletter Fight of the Year |- |Loss |14–8 | Chuck Liddell |KO (Punches) |UFC 57: Liddell vs. Couture 3 |February 4, 2006 |align="center"|2 |align="center"|1:28 | Las Vegas, Nevada |For UFC Light Heavyweight Championship |- |Win |14–7 | Mike Van Arsdale |Submission (Anaconda Choke) |UFC 54: Boiling Point |August 20, 2005 |align="center"|3 |align="center"|0:52 | Las Vegas, Nevada | |- |Loss |13–7 | Chuck Liddell |KO (Punches) |UFC 52: Couture vs. Liddell 2 |April 16, 2005 |align="center"|1 |align="center"|2:06 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Lost UFC Light Heavyweight Championship |- |Win |13–6 | Vitor Belfort |TKO (Doctor Stoppage) |UFC 49: Unfinished Business |August 21, 2004 |align="center"|3 |align="center"|5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Won UFC Light Heavyweight Championship |- |Loss |12–6 | Vitor Belfort |TKO (Cut on eyelid) |UFC 46: Supernatural |January 31, 2004 |align="center"|1 |align="center"|0:49 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Lost UFC Light Heavyweight Championship |- |Win |12–5 | Tito Ortiz |Decision (Unanimous) |UFC 44: Undisputed |September 26, 2003 |align="center"|5 |align="center"|5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Won UFC Light Heavyweight Championship |- |Win |11–5 | Chuck Liddell |TKO (Punches) |UFC 43: Meltdown |June 6, 2003 |align="center"|3 |align="center"|2:40 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Won Interim UFC Light Heavyweight Championship |- |Loss |10–5 | Ricco Rodriguez |Submission (Elbow) |UFC 39: The Warriors Return |September 27, 2002 |align="center"|5 |align="center"|3:04 | Uncasville, Connecticut |For vacant UFC Heavyweight Championship |- |Loss |10–4 | Josh Barnett |TKO (Punches) |UFC 36: Worlds Collide |March 22, 2002 |align="center"|2 |align="center"|4:35 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Lost UFC Heavyweight Championship; Barnett tested positive for steroids. |- |Win |10–3 | Pedro Rizzo |TKO (Strikes) |UFC 34: High Voltage |November 2, 2001 |align="center"|3 |align="center"|1:38 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Defended UFC Heavyweight Championship |- |Win |9–3 | Pedro Rizzo |Decision (Unanimous) |UFC 31: Locked and Loaded |May 4, 2001 |align="center"|5 |align="center"|5:00 | Atlantic City, New Jersey |Defended UFC Heavyweight Championship, Wrestling Observer Newsletter Fight of the Year |- |Loss |8–3 | Valentijn Overeem |Submission (Guillotine Choke) |RINGS: King of Kings 2000 Final |February 24, 2001 |align="center"|1 |align="center"|0:56 | Tokyo, Japan |King of Kings 2000 Tournament Semifinal |- |Win |8–2 | Tsuyoshi Kohsaka |Decision (Unanimous) |RINGS: King of Kings 2000 Final |February 24, 2001 |align="center"|2 |align="center"|5:00 | Tokyo, Japan |King of Kings 2000 Tournament Quarterfinal |- |Win |7–2 | Kevin Randleman |TKO (Strikes) |UFC 28: High Stakes |November 17, 2000 |align="center"|3 |align="center"|4:13 | Atlantic City, New Jersey |Won UFC Heavyweight Championship |- |Win |6–2 | Ryushi Yanagisawa |Decision (Majority) |RINGS: King of Kings 2000 Block A |October 9, 2000 |align="center"|2 |align="center"|5:00 | Tokyo, Japan |King of Kings 2000 Tournament 2nd Round |- |Win |5–2 | Jeremy Horn |Decision (Unanimous) |RINGS: King of Kings 2000 Block A |October 9, 2000 |align="center"|3 |align="center"|5:00 | Tokyo, Japan |King of Kings 2000 Tournament 1st Round |- |Loss |4–2 | Mikhail Illoukhine |Submission (Kimura) |RINGS: Rise 1st |March 20, 1999 |align="center"|1 |align="center"|7:43 | Japan | |- |Loss |4–1 | Enson Inoue |Submission (Armbar) |Vale Tudo Japan 1998 |October 25, 1998 |align="center"|1 |align="center"|1:39 | Japan | |- |Win |4–0 | Maurice Smith |Decision (Majority) |UFC Ultimate Japan |December 21, 1997 |align="center"|1 |align="center"|21:00 | Yokohama, Japan |Won UFC Heavyweight Championship |- |Win |3–0 | Vitor Belfort |TKO (Strikes) |UFC 15: Collision Course |October 17, 1997 |align="center"|1 |align="center"|8:17 | Bay St. Louis, Mississippi | |- |Win |2–0 | Steven Graham |TKO (Strikes) |UFC 13: The Ultimate Force |May 30, 1997 |align="center"|1 |align="center"|3:13 | Augusta, Georgia |Won UFC 13 Heavyweight Tournament |- |Win |1–0 | Tony Halme |Submission (Rear Naked Choke) |UFC 13: The Ultimate Force |May 30, 1997 |align="center"|1 |align="center"|1:00 | Augusta, Georgia | |- |}

Filmography

{| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year !! Title !! Role !! Notes |- | 2003 || Cradle 2 The Grave || Fighter #8 || Major Film |- | 2005 || No Rules || Mason || Film |- | 2005 || Today You Die || Vincent's Bodyguard || Major Film |- | 2005 || Beyond The Glory || Himself || TV Series Documentary (Episode: "The Ultimate Fighting Championship") |- | 2005 || Fighter || Himself || Film Documentary |- | 2005 || The Ultimate Fighter || Himself (Team Captain) || TV Series |- | 2006 || The King of Queens || Priority Plus Driver || TV Series (Episode: "Fight Schlub") |- | 2006 || Invincible || 'Toruci' Player #1 || Major Film |- | 2007 || The Unit || Sgt. Strickland || TV Series (Episodes: "M.P.'s", "Paradise Lost") |- | 2007 || Human Weapon || Himself || TV Series (Episode: "Mixed Martial Arts") |- | 2007 || Fight Science || Himself || TV Series |- | 2007 || Big Stan || Carnahan || Major Film |- | 2008 || Redbelt || Dylan Flynn || Major Film |- | 2008 || || Sargon || Direct-to-Video |- | 2008 || || Cmdr. Warren Fuller || Video Game |- | 2009 || How Bruce Lee Changed The World || Himself || TV Documentary |- | 2010 || The Expendables || Toll Road || Major Film |- | 2011 || Once I Was a Champion || Himself || Film Documentary (filming) |- | 2011 || Setup || Petey || Major Film (filming) |- | 2012 || The Expendables II || Toll Road (rumored) || Major Film (announced) |- |}

See also

List of current UFC fighters

References

External links

Official website for Xtreme Couture Mixed Martial Arts

Randy Couture Profile at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame

Category:1963 births Category:American mixed martial artists Category:American sport wrestlers Category:American strength and conditioning coaches Category:American video game actors Category:American wrestling coaches Category:Heavyweight mixed martial artists Category:Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Category:Living people Category:Mixed martial artists from Washington (U.S. state) Category:Mixed martial arts broadcasters Category:Oklahoma State University alumni Category:Oregon State Beavers wrestling coaches Category:People from Corvallis, Oregon Category:Ultimate Fighting Championship champions

Name	Brock Lesnar
Birth name	Brock Edward Lesnar
Birth date	July 12, 1977
Weight
Weight class	Heavyweight
Reach
Style	Freestyle Wrestling
Stance	Orthodox
Fighting out of	Alexandria, Minnesota
Team	DeathClutch / CSW training center
Trainer	Head Trainer: Marty Morgan Striking Coach: Erik Paulson Boxing: Peter Welch Jiu-Jitsu: Rodrigo Medeiros
Rank	NCAA Division I Wrestler
Years active	2007–present
Mma win	5
Mma kowin	2
Mma subwin	2
Mma decwin	1
Mma loss	2
Mma koloss	1
Mma subloss	1
University	University of Minnesota
Spouse	Rena Mero
Sherdog	17522
Updated	October 14, 2010

Brock Edward Lesnar (; born July 12, 1977) is an American mixed martial artist and a former professional and amateur wrestler. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and is ranked the #2 Heavyweight in the world by Sherdog. Lesnar is an accomplished amateur wrestler, winning the 2000 NCAA heavyweight wrestling championship and placing second in 1999, losing in the finals to future New England Patriots offensive lineman Stephen Neal.

He then gained prominence in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), where he was a three-time WWE Champion, becoming the youngest WWE Champion at age 25 with his first reign. Lesnar was also the 2002 King of the Ring and the winner of the 2003 Royal Rumble. After leaving WWE in 2004, Lesnar pursued a career in the NFL. He then signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in October 2007. He lost his UFC debut against Frank Mir. He captured the UFC Heavyweight Championship from Randy Couture on November 15, 2008, then avenged his loss to Mir at UFC 100 to become the Undisputed Champion. After being sidelined from fighting in late 2009 due to diverticulitis, Lesnar returned to defeat the Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion Shane Carwin at UFC 116. Lesnar lost the Heavyweight belt against Cain Velasquez at UFC 121.

Early life

Brock Lesnar was born in Webster, South Dakota. He attended Webster High School in Webster, where he had a wrestling record of 33–0–0 in his senior year. Lesnar admits he graduated last of 54 students in his class. Lesnar later attended the University of Minnesota on a full wrestling scholarship for his junior and senior years of college; his roommate was fellow professional wrestler Shelton Benjamin who also served as Lesnar's assistant coach. Lesnar won the 2000 NCAA wrestling championship as a heavyweight after placing second in 1999.

Prior to joining the Minnesota Golden Gophers, Lesnar also wrestled at Bismarck State College in Bismarck, North Dakota. Lesnar finished his amateur career as a two-time NJCAA All-American, 1998 NJCAA Heavyweight Champion, two-time NCAA All-American, two-time Big Ten Conference Champion, and the 2000 NCAA heavyweight champion with a record of 106–5 overall in four years of college.

Professional wrestling career

World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment (2002–2004)

Training and debut (2000–2002)

In 2000, after leaving college, Lesnar signed up with the World Wrestling Federation. He was sent to its developmental territory, Ohio Valley Wrestling. There, he formed a tag team known as "The Minnesota Stretching Crew" with his former college roommate, Shelton Benjamin. Lesnar and Benjamin won the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship on three occasions.

Lesnar debuted on WWF television on the March 18, 2002 episode of Raw, the night after WrestleMania X8, coming through the crowd and attacking Al Snow, Maven, and Spike Dudley during the course of a match. He was accompanied by Paul Heyman, who was seen giving instructions to Lesnar. When the brand extension was introduced in the WWF, Lesnar was drafted to the Raw brand. Later, Heyman was confirmed to be Lesnar's agent and gave Lesnar the nickname "The Next Big Thing". Brock's first feud was with the Hardy Boyz. Lesnar and Jeff Hardy squared off at Backlash in Lesnar's first official televised match. The next night on Raw Lesnar faced off against Matt Hardy, defeating him in the same fashion. At Judgment Day, Lesnar once again gained the upper hand on the Hardy Boyz before tagging his partner, Heyman, in to make the pin.

Main event status (2002–2003)

In June 2002, Lesnar won the King of the Ring tournament, defeating Rob Van Dam in the final round. After a quick feud with Hollywood Hulk Hogan in August 2002, Lesnar began feuding with the Undisputed Champion The Rock. At the main event of SummerSlam, Lesnar defeated The Rock to become the WWE Undisputed Champion.

Lesnar's rapid rise to the top of WWE in 2002 led to a feud with The Undertaker, which involved a match at Unforgiven. Despite Heyman begging McMahon not to let The Undertaker use his cast as a weapon, the request was denied and the match went on as planned. In a match that saw both wrestlers and even Heyman covered in blood, it ended when Lesnar reversed an attempted Tombstone piledriver into his finishing F-5 maneuver for the win.

Lesnar's next opponent was The Big Show. Heyman was convinced more than anyone that Lesnar could not win, trying to talk him out of defending the title. Lesnar refused and lost the championship in Madison Square Garden at the Survivor Series pay-per-view to Big Show, Lesnar's first pinfall loss in WWE. When the champion tried to pin the 500-pounder following an F-5, he was betrayed by Heyman who pulled the referee out of the ring allowing Big Show to capitalize and win the title. As a result, Lesnar became a fan favorite. Following Survivor Series, Heyman made it clear that Lesnar would not get a rematch, even going so far as to sneak a special clause in his contract. At the Royal Rumble event in January 2003, Lesnar defeated The Big Show in a qualification match. Lesnar later entered the Rumble as the #29 entrant where he eventually won by eliminating The Undertaker. This led to Cena receiving a title match at Backlash in which Lesnar successfully retained the title. Earlier at the Backlash pay-per-view, Big Show had injured Rey Mysterio badly, resulting in Mysterio being carried out on a stretcher. During the scripted rivalry, on SmackDown!, Lesnar lifted Big Show over in a Superplex which caused the ring to collapse on impact. At Vengeance, Lesnar lost his title to Kurt Angle in a No Disqualification Triple Threat match that also involved Big Show. Lesnar lost to Angle when Angle made Lesnar tap out to the ankle lock. A second rematch between Lesnar and Angle, an Iron Man match, was later held on an episode of SmackDown!. Lesnar defeated Angle in a match that was said as one of the best in SmackDown! history. Angle slapped on the ankle lock with a few seconds remaining but Lesnar did not tap. Lesnar won with five falls to Angle's four, making him a three-time WWE Champion. Lesnar's first challenger for his newly won title was The Undertaker. Lesnar had previously cost Undertaker the title in a match against then-champion Kurt Angle, which granted him a shot at Lesnar's title. At No Mercy, Lesnar defeated Undertaker in a Biker Chain match.

Lesnar realigned himself with Paul Heyman after Heyman became General Manager of SmackDown! and formed Team Lesnar with Big Show, Matt Morgan, A-Train, and Nathan Jones for a 10-man Survivor Series match at Survivor Series. In the climax of the match, Chris Benoit became the second person to make Lesnar tap out.

Feuding with Goldberg and departure (2003–2004)

The Survivor Series event also marked the first time Lesnar met Goldberg from the Raw brand, a man to whom Lesnar had been compared due to their similar and undefeated streaks in wrestling. Lesnar claimed in a backstage interview that he could beat anybody in the world, leading to Goldberg interrupting the interview and introducing himself to Lesnar, shaking hands with him before leaving with a staredown. In this storyline, Holly wanted revenge on Lesnar for legitimately breaking his neck during a previous match between the two in 2002. During that match, Lesnar went for a powerbomb, but Holly, who has gained a reputation of being uncooperative with rookies, supposedly sandbagged mid-lift so that Lesnar could not get him all the way up. Holly compounded the difficulty of the move by not lifting up at the waist. During the struggle, Lesnar ended up dropping Holly on his head, leaving him in need of neck surgery and out of action for a year. At the Royal Rumble in 2004, Lesnar defeated Holly to retain the WWE Championship. Later in the Royal Rumble match, Lesnar attacked Goldberg and delivered an F-5, enabling Kurt Angle to eliminate him. During the feud with Goldberg, Lesnar also was feuding with Raw's Stone Cold Steve Austin (who was shown suggesting to Goldberg that he attack Lesnar at No Way Out). When Lesnar attacked Austin on Raw and stole his four-wheeler, Austin was inserted as the special guest referee for the WrestleMania match. Behind the scenes, it was widely known that the match would be Goldberg's last in WWE. Only a week before WrestleMania, however, rumors surfaced that Lesnar, too, was leaving in order to pursue a career in the National Football League. As a result, Lesnar's match with Goldberg became a fiasco as the fans at Madison Square Garden jeered both wrestlers with very loud and distinct chants of "na na, hey hey goodbye" and "you sold out," with the crowd support mostly given to special referee Austin. Although Goldberg won the match, both men were given a Stone Cold Stunner by Austin on their way out.

New Japan Pro Wrestling (2005–2006)

On October 8, 2005, Lesnar won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in a three-way match at a New Japan Pro Wrestling show in the Tokyo Dome, which included the then-champion Kazuyuki Fujita and Masahiro Chono. He won the match by pinning Masahiro Chono after an F-5, which he had renamed the Verdict, since WWE owns the trademark on the F-5 name. Lesnar successfully defended his championship on January 4, 2006, against former champion Shinsuke Nakamura. On March 19, at the Sumo Hall, Lesnar retained his championship against former Sumo Wrestling Grand Champion Akebono when Lesnar hit him with the championship belt and a DDT. Lesnar went on to successfully defend his title against the winner of the New Japan Cup, Giant Bernard, on May 3, 2006, in Fukuoka. This was the first American vs. American title match in NJPW since Vader vs. Stan Hansen in 1990.

On July 15, 2006, New Japan Pro Wrestling announced that Brock Lesnar had been stripped of the IWGP Heavyweight Championship as he would no longer be returning to defend the title due to "visa issues." A tournament was held on July 16 to determine the new champion, which was won by Hiroshi Tanahashi, the man Lesnar was originally scheduled to face. Lesnar continued to possess the physical IWGP Championship belt until late June 2007.

Approximately one year later on June 29, 2007, Lesnar defended his IWGP Heavyweight Championship (IGF promoter Antonio Inoki had stated he still viewed Lesnar as the "proper" IWGP Champion, as he was not defeated for the title) against TNA World Heavyweight Champion Kurt Angle in a champion versus champion match. Angle defeated Lesnar with the Ankle lock to win the IWGP Heavyweight Championship as recognized by IGF and TNA. This was Lesnar's last match as a professional wrestler.

Lawsuit

Lesnar had previously signed a no-compete clause in order to be released from his contract with WWE, which prohibited him from working for any other sports entertainment or mixed martial arts companies before June 2010. Lesnar had anticipated leaving wrestling entirely, but his inability to secure a career in professional football led to him challenging this ruling in court. WWE responded by demanding damages as a result of Lesnar allegedly breaching the agreement by appearing at a New Japan Pro Wrestling show in 2004. In July 2005, the two sides dropped their claims and entered negotiations to renew their relationship. WWE had offered Lesnar a contract, but on August 2, 2005, WWE's official website reported that Lesnar had withdrawn from any involvement with the company. The lawsuit was then entered into settlement on September 21, but talks broke down.

On January 14, 2006, Judge Christopher Droney stated that unless WWE gave him a good argument between then and January 25, he would rule in favor of Brock Lesnar, giving him a summary judgment. This would have enabled Lesnar to work anywhere he wanted immediately. WWE was later granted a deadline postponement. On April 24, World Wrestling Entertainment announced on their official website, WWE.com, that both parties had mutually come to a settlement and on June 12, a federal judge dismissed Lesnar's lawsuit against WWE after both parties requested for the case to be dismissed.

National Football League (2004–2005)

Name	Brock Lesnar
Currentteam	Free Agent
Currentnumber	--
Currentposition	Defensive tackle
Birthdate	July 12, 1977
Birthplace	Webster, South Dakota
Heightft	6
Heightin	4
Weight	296
Highschool	Webster High School
College	University of Minnesota
Undraftedyear	2004
Pastteams
Status	active
Statweek	17
Statseason	2004
Statlabel1	Games played
Statvalue1	--
Statlabel2	Tackles
Statvalue2	--
Statlabel3	Sacks
Statvalue3	--

After his final match at WrestleMania XX, Lesnar sidelined his career in WWE to pursue a career in the National Football League. This move upset many in WWE, as the company felt they had invested heavily in Lesnar. World Wrestling Entertainment confirmed Lesnar's departure on their official website WWE.com by the statement

}}

Lesnar later told a Minnesota radio show that he had three wonderful years in WWE, but had grown unhappy and had always wanted to play pro football, adding that he did not want to be 40 years old and wondering if he could have made it in football. In an interview about starting with the NFL, Lesnar made the statement }}

Lesnar played for the Minnesota Vikings, where he created controversy in some games by starting minor fights and got heat from the Kansas City Chiefs for a sack on quarterback Damon Huard, which drew a big response from the crowd. After playing in the preseason, Lesnar ended up being a late cut.

Mixed martial arts

K-1 Grand Prix (2007)

On April 28, 2006, Lesnar appeared inside the ring after the final match of K-1 Hero's Las Vegas and announced his intent to join the MMA promotion. He trained with Minnesota Martial Arts Academy under Greg Nelson, and University of Minnesota Assistant Head wrestling coach Marty Morgan. Brock Lesnar announced on August 12 in Las Vegas that he had signed a deal with the K-1 promotion. His first fight was scheduled for June 2, 2007, on the K-1 Dynamite!! USA show against Choi Hong-man of Korea. However, prior to the match, Choi Hong-Man was replaced by Min Soo Kim. Lesnar submitted Min Soo Kim due to strikes in 1 minute 9 seconds of the first round to win his first official MMA match. Lesnar secured an early takedown, but was deducted a point for hitting Mir on the back of the head. Following another takedown by Lesnar, Mir managed to secure a kneebar and force a submission at 1:30 of the first round. Lesnar was wearing 4XL gloves for the fight, making him the second man in Nevada's combat sports history to wear such gloves after Choi Hong-man. At UFC 82, it was announced that former UFC Heavyweight Champion and UFC Hall of Fame inductee Mark Coleman would fight Lesnar at UFC 87:Seek and Destroy. Coleman was forced to withdraw from the fight due to a training injury, and Lesnar's opponent was changed to Heath Herring. In the early seconds of the first round, Lesnar dropped Herring with a straight right. For the rest of the fight, Lesnar kept the fight on the ground and went on to win by unanimous decision.

Lesnar's next opponent was Randy Couture for the UFC Heavyweight Championship at UFC 91:Couture vs Lesnar on November 15. Lesnar beat Couture via a technical knockout in Round 2, becoming the UFC Heavyweight Champion.

On December 27, 2008, at UFC 92, Frank Mir defeated Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira for the Interim Heavyweight title and was to face Lesnar for the Undisputed UFC Heavyweight Championship at UFC 98. Immediately after winning the Interim Heavyweight title, Mir found Lesnar in the crowd and shouted at him "You've got my belt."

However, due to a knee injury to Mir, the title unification match with Lesnar that was originally slated to be the UFC 98 main event was postponed. The news broke during the broadcast of UFC 96 that the bout had been cancelled and was replaced by Rashad Evans vs. Lyoto Machida for the UFC Light-Heavyweight Championship." Lesnar won the postponed rematch with Mir at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009, via technical knockout after dominating his opponent for the duration of the bout. The win earned Lesnar Beatdown of the Year honors from Sherdog for 2009. It's an award he also shares with Anderson Silva after his win over Forrest Griffin. . During his post-match celebration, Lesnar flipped off the crowd who had been booing him. He made a disparaging comment about the PPV's primary sponsor Bud Light, claiming they "won't pay me nothin, promoting Coors Light instead. He then stated he might even "get on top of [his] wife" after the show. He would later apologize for his actions in his post-fight press conference, where he held a bottle of Bud Light.

In January 2009, Brock Lesnar signed a supplement endorsement deal with Dymatize Nutrition. A CD containing training footage of Lesnar was included with boxes of Dymatize Xpand and Energized Xpand.

On July 1, 2009, it was reported that the winner of the Shane Carwin vs. Cain Velasquez fight at UFC 104 would face Brock Lesnar in his second title defense on a date yet to be determined; however, the UFC then reconsidered the contendership bout and Lesnar was scheduled to defend his belt against Shane Carwin at UFC 106 on November 21.

Illness

On October 26, 2009, it was announced that Lesnar had pulled out of the UFC 106 card in which he was set to face Shane Carwin for the UFC Heavyweight Championship due to an illness. UFC President Dana White said that Brock had been ill for three weeks, claiming he had never been this sick in his life and that it would take him a while to recover; his fight with Carwin was rescheduled for UFC 108 in early 2010. Lesnar initially sought treatment in Canada, but later told reporters that he had received "Third World treatment" from malfunctioning equipment at a hospital in Manitoba, and that seeking better medical treatment in the United States saved his life. Lesnar, who describes himself as a conservative and a supporter of the US Republican Party, went on to criticize Canadian-style health care further and said that he shared his experience in an effort to speak "on the behalf of the doctors in the United States that don't want health care reform to happen and neither do I."

On November 4, it was confirmed that Lesnar was suffering from mononucleosis and that his bout with Carwin would have to wait a bit longer, thus the fight for UFC 108 was cancelled. On November 14 at the UFC 105 post-fight conference, Dana stated, "He's not well and he's not going to be getting well anytime soon." and that an interim title match might need to be set up. In addition to mononucleosis, it was revealed that Lesnar was suffering from a serious case of diverticulitis, an intestinal disorder, which would require surgery. After further diagnosis, on November 16 Lesnar underwent surgery to close a perforation in his intestine that had been leaking fecal matter into his abdomen, causing pain, abscesses, and overtaxing his immune system to the point that he contracted mononucleosis. From the level of damage to Lesnar's system, the surgeon estimated that the intestinal condition had been ongoing for around a year.

Return

In January 2010, Lesnar announced on ESPN SportsCenter that he was scheduled to make a return to the UFC in the summer of 2010. A match between Frank Mir and Shane Carwin took place on March 27 at UFC 111 to determine the UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion, and Brock's next opponent. Shane Carwin defeated Frank Mir by KO in the first round, becoming the new Interim Champion. After the fight, Brock came into the ring and stated "It was a good fight, but he's wearing a belt that's a make believe belt, I've got the real championship belt."

Lesnar faced Shane Carwin at UFC 116 to unify the heavyweight titles. After Carwin knocked him down early in the first round, Lesnar survived a ground and pound attack. Early in the second round, Lesnar was able to take Carwin down, attain a full mount, then move into side-control and finish the fight with an arm triangle choke. With the victory, Lesnar again became the Undisputed UFC Heavyweight Champion, earning his first UFC Submission Of The Night and giving Carwin his first loss.

Losing the title

Lesnar's next defense was against undefeated top contender Cain Velasquez on October 23, 2010, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California at UFC 121. Dana White announced via SportsNation that the UFC would be bringing back UFC Primetime to hype up Lesnar vs. Velasquez at UFC 121. Lesnar was defeated by Velasquez for the UFC Heavyweight Championship via TKO in the first round at UFC 121 on October 23, 2010.

Rumors of leaving UFC to go back to WWE

Following the loss to Velasquez at UFC 121, Lesnar was met on his way out of the Octagon by Mark Calaway, the WWE's Undertaker. Calaway confronted Lesnar about them stepping in the ring again. Rumors flared that the WWE was courting Lesnar for a return to fight Calaway in a professional wrestling bout at WWE's Wrestlemania XXVII in April 2011. UFC president Dana White put a halt to those rumors, saying that Lesnar was under contract with him and that there was no way that he would let him take part in the WWE promotion.

On January 11, 2011, it was revealed that Lesnar would be one of the coaches of The Ultimate Fighter Season 13, opposite to Junior dos Santos, with the two expected to face each other on June 11, 2011 at UFC 131.

Personal life

Lesnar grew up on a farm in South Dakota, and later joined the National Guard at the age of seventeen.

Lesnar has one daughter, Mya Lynn who was born on April 10, 2002, with his ex-fiancée, Nicole. He left Nicole in 2003 in order to begin a relationship with Rena "Sable" Mero who had been recently divorced from Marc Mero. Lesnar and Mero were engaged in 2004, separated in 2005, then reconciled later that year and married on May 6, 2006. Lesnar has one stepchild with Mero: Mariah, a stepdaughter born to Mero and her late husband, Wayne Richardson. The couple had their first child together, a son named Turk in June 2009. The couple is expecting their second child in July 2010.

Lesnar has numerous tattoos, with the most prominent being a stylized skull in the center of his back and a large sword on his chest. Other video games Lesnar has also appeared in include WWE SmackDown! Shut Your Mouth, WWE WrestleMania XIX, WWE Crush Hour, Madden NFL 06, UFC 2009 Undisputed, UFC Undisputed 2010, and the PlayStation 2 version of Wrestle Kingdom. With the release of UFC Undisputed 2010 Lesnar became the first man to appear on the cover of a WWE and UFC video game as he was the cover star on Here Comes the Pain.

Lesnar was on the cover of Flex Magazine. Lesnar was also featured in Minneapolis' City Pages in February 2008. In February 2008 Lesnar was featured on the cover of Muscle & Fitness magazine.

WWE Home Video released a DVD in 2003 titled Brock Lesnar: Here Comes the Pain. The DVD covered Lesnar's career up to 2003 which featured some of his biggest matches.

Lesnar owns an MMA clothing line called "DeathClutch".

He is also known to be very conservative of his private life and avoids discussing it in interviews. He recently stated:

}}

Mixed martial arts record

{| class="wikitable sortable" border="1" style="font-size:85%; text-align:left; width:100%;" |- !style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Result !style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Record !style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Opponent !style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Method !style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Event !style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Date !style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Round !style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Time !style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Location !style="border-style:none none solid solid; background:#e3e3e3;"|Notes |- | | | Junior dos Santos | |UFC 131 | |align=center| |align=center| | Vancouver, British Columbia |To determine #1 contender for UFC Heavyweight Championship |- |Loss |align=center|5–2 | Cain Velasquez |TKO (Strikes) |UFC 121: Lesnar vs. Velasquez | |align=center|1 |align=center|4:12 | Anaheim, California |Lost UFC Heavyweight Championship |- |Win |align=center|5–1 | Shane Carwin |Submission (Arm Triangle Choke) |UFC 116: Lesnar vs. Carwin | |align=center|2 |align=center|2:19 |align='left'| Las Vegas, Nevada |Defended UFC Heavyweight Championship. Submission of the Night |- |Win |align=center|4–1 | Frank Mir |TKO (Punches) |UFC 100 | |align=center|2 |align=center|1:48 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Defended UFC Heavyweight Championship |- |Win |align=center|3–1 | Randy Couture |TKO (Strikes) |UFC 91: Couture vs. Lesnar | |align=center|2 |align=center|3:07 | Las Vegas, Nevada |Won UFC Heavyweight Championship. |- |Win |align=center|2–1 | Heath Herring |Decision (Unanimous) |UFC 87: Seek and Destroy | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 | Minneapolis, Minnesota | |- |Loss |align=center|1–1 | Frank Mir |Submission (Kneebar) |UFC 81: Breaking Point | |align=center|1 |align=center|1:30 | Las Vegas, Nevada |UFC Debut |- |Win |align=center|1–0 | Min-Soo Kim |Submission (Punches) |Dynamite!! USA | |align=center|1 |align=center|1:09 | Los Angeles, California |MMA Debut |}

In wrestling

Finishing moves

Brock Lock (Over the shoulder single leg Boston crab – WWE or a side bearhug – OVW)

National Junior College Athletic Association

*NJCAA All-American (1997, 1998)

*Junior College National Championship (1998)

Mixed martial arts

Ultimate Fighting Championship

*UFC Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

*Submission of the Night (1 time)

Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards

*Best Box Office Draw (2008, 2009)

*MMA Most Valuable Fighter (2008, 2009)

Sherdog Awards

Beatdown of the Year (2009)

Fighter's Only World MMA Awards

Breakthrough fighter of the year (2009)

Professional wrestling

New Japan Pro Wrestling

IWGP Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

Pro Wrestling Illustrated

PWI Feud of the Year (2003) vs. Kurt Angle

PWI Match of the Year (2003) vs. Kurt Angle – a 60 minute Iron Man match on SmackDown!, September 16

PWI Most Improved Wrestler of the Year (2002)

PWI Wrestler of the Year (2002)

PWI ranked him #1 of the 500 best singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2003

World Wrestling Entertainment

WWE Championship (3 times)¹

King of the Ring (2002)

*Best Wrestling Maneuver (2002) F-5

Feud of the Year (2003) vs. Kurt Angle

Most Improved Wrestler (2002, 2003)

¹Lesnar's first reign was as WWE Undisputed Champion.

See also

List of current UFC fighters

References

External links

Brock Lesnar's Official Deathclutch Website

Online World of Wrestling profile

Brock Lesnar stats

UFC profile

Brock Lesnar Profile at National (Amateur) Wrestling Hall of Fame

Category:1977 births Category:American football defensive linemen Category:American mixed martial artists Category:American professional wrestlers Category:American sport wrestlers Category:Fictional kings Category:Heavyweight mixed martial artists Category:Living people Category:Minnesota Vikings players Category:Minnesota Republicans Category:Mixed martial artists from Minnesota Category:Mixed martial artists from South Dakota Category:People from Day County, South Dakota Category:Sportspeople of multiple sports Category:Ultimate Fighting Championship champions Category:University of Minnesota alumni