Become.com is a product price comparison service and discovery shopping search engine with a mission to help shoppers make ideal buying decisions. Become.com targets popular products such as electronics, home, garden, computers, cameras, clothing, health, beauty and more.^[1]

History[link]

Become, Inc., was founded in 2004 by entrepreneurs Michael Yang and Yeogirl Yun who also founded mySimon.^[2] By Early February, 2005, the original founders added Jon Glick, past Senior Manager of Search at Yahoo.^[3] Two other executives, Greg Haslam of NexTag, and Tony Pecora of eBay, were also brought on board at Become.com.^[4]

Become.com is a privately-held company in Sunnyvale, California who received an undisclosed amount of funding during their series A round and an additional $7.2 million in the second round of funding, led by Transcosmos venture capital group, while angel investors Rob Conway and Bob Bozeman were also named.^[5] On March 14, 2008 Become.com raised $17.5MM in additional funding from TPG Growth Fund. In October 2009, Become.com acquired the German e-commerce technology firm Pangora. Pangora’s Karlsruhe offices will now be the base for Become’s European operations.^[6] In September 2009, Become.com moved into the education lead generation market with its Simply Degrees service. In October 2009 Become.com released a Black Friday site that organized deals by category so that users could compare the savings of Black Friday deals from different merchants, and also contained the ability to compare each individual deal to existing prices for the product from online merchants, so consumers could tell if there were real savings availably for a given product.^[7]

In August 2010, Become released a comparison shopping application for the iPad, with features like side-by-side product comparison and the ability to view objects like furniture in sample rooms to see how they work as decor.^[8]

Technology[link]

Become.com makes use of product feeds which it acquires from retailers in order to aggregate retailer's product prices into product groups. Become.com operate a syndication system where other websites like PriceSpin.com^[9] and BuyCentral^[10] make use of Become.com's data using an XML webservice. Like most price comparison services Become.com's data is shared using a revenue share business model^[11].

Become.com adopt a product matching system which they call "M@ch"^[12]. This enables the matching of offers to from one merchant/retailer to another. Previously, matching merchant offer could be challenging. In the more modern world however, matching merchant offers has become far easier with more and more merchants using EAN13 or UPC barcodes.

Industry Recognition & Awards[link]

The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (November 2010)

Become.com was voted the Best of the Web by Forbes Magazine and Business Week during 2005 ^[13] and 2006. In addition, Become.com has been mentioned several times on authoritative industry news or press sites including SearchEngineWatch, Forbes, MarketWatch and more. Many of their founders and executives have conducted interviews or QandA's with industry professionals including Marketing Shift,^[14] Organized Shopping,^[15] ClickZ,^[16][17] InternetNews^[18] and eCommerceOptimization.com.^[19]"Starting Up, Post Bubble.". Technology Review. 2005-05. http://www.technologyreview.com/business/14402/. 

Become.com was named the top deal tracking site by PC Magazine (December, 2008) out of ten best deal tracking sites ^[20]

Become.com was named an AlwaysOn OnMedia 100 Winner (January 22, 2009) ^[21]

Become.com's AIR technology was published in the August 2009 issue of Communications of the ACM. The article, Ranking Billions of Web Pages Using Diodes, was written by Rohit Kaul, Yeogirl Yun, and Dr. Seong-Gon Kim and discusses the practical significance of the technology behind AIR ranking compared to other link-based ranking algorithms against search engine spamming techniques. ^[22]

See also[link]

• Dulance - search engine
• List of search engines
• Online shopping
• Price comparison service
• Search engines
• Vertical search
• E-Commerce

References[link]

External links[link]

• Become.com
• Become.com Shopping Blog
• Black Friday Deals
• Become UK
• Become's iPad App
• Become Japan

Zack Hemsey
Born	1983 (age 28–29)[1]
Origin
Genres	Film score, Trailer Soundtracks
Occupations	Composer, Record producer
Years active	2007–present
Website	zackhemsey.com

Zack Hemsey (born 1983) is an American composer and recording artist, best known for the use of his music in film trailers. A notable example was "Trailer 3" of the 2010 movie Inception which included his composed piece "Mind Heist"; it is a common misconception^[2] that the piece for this trailer was composed by Hans Zimmer because Zimmer composed the official score for the movie itself. Hemsey's music has also been used in trailers for The Town, Trust, and Ridley Scott's Robin Hood.^[3] "Mind Heist" is also used in the introduction video for the video game Madden NFL 12. His track "See What I've Become" has appeared in trailers as well as on the website for TNT's Falling Skies. "Vengeance" was featured in a trailer for the second season of the HBO program Game of Thrones.

Hemsey began his career as the composer for an obscure hip-hop group called Nine Leaves, where he was also one of five lyricists / MCs.^[4] He is currently an independent artist, self releasing his own studio albums, all of which tend to combine elements of orchestral score, hip-hop, and world instrumentation.^[5]

Discography[link]

^[6]

Studio albums

• Empty Room (2010)
• The Way (2011)

EPs

• Mind Heist (2011)

Singles

• Empty Room (Trailer Version) (2010)
• R.E.F. (Warrior's Lullabye) (2010)
• Lifespan (Resurrection) (2011)
• Revelations (Remix) (2011)
• Changeling (New Beginnings) (2011)

Studio albums (under Nine Leaves)

• Nine Leaves (2006)
• Peace In Death (2008)

Trailer credits[link]

^[7]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Official blog
• Zack Hemsey at the Internet Movie Database
• Zack Hemsey's channel on YouTube

Russell Peters
Russell Peters in 2009
Birth name	Russell Dominic Peters
Born	(1970-09-29) September 29, 1970 (age 41) Brampton, Ontario, Canada
Medium	Stand-up, Television, Film, Radio
Nationality	Canadian
Years active	1989–present
Genres	Satire, Improvisational comedy, Black comedy
Subject(s)	Racism, Race relations, Stereotypes, Multiculturalism, Indian culture
Influences	George Carlin,[1] Steve Martin, Cheech and Chong,[2] Don Rickles,[3] Eddie Murphy
Spouse	Monica Diaz (2010–2012) 1 child
Website	RussellPeters.com

Russell Dominic Peters (born September 29, 1970)^[4] is a Canadian comedian, actor and disc jockey. He began performing in Toronto in 1989 and has been nominated for four Gemini Awards.

Early life[link]

Russell Peters was born in Brampton, Ontario, Canada to Eric and Maureen Peters. His family is of Anglo-Indian ancestry and is Catholic.^[4] His father was born in Bombay, Maharashtra, India, and worked as a federal meat inspector; he is regularly mentioned and featured in his comedy work.^[5] His mother was born in Calcutta, West Bengal, India. He has an older brother named Clayton who was born in Calcutta.^[6] Russell attended Chinguacousy Secondary School for grades 9–10, and North Peel Secondary School for grades 11–12 in Brampton.^[7][8][9]

Career[link]

Peters began performing in Toronto in 1989. Peters' popularity extends to several countries. He has since also performed in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Afghanistan, Sweden, South Africa, India, the Caribbean, Philippines, Vietnam, mainland China, Canada, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, France, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Jordan, Norway, Lebanon, Oman, Pakistan, Malaysia, and Trinidad among other places.

Peters attribute performance he did on the Canadian TV comedy series Comedy Now! that was uploaded onto YouTube and became viral.^[10] While the initial video upload featured his performance in its 45 minute entirety, subsequent videos uploaded by other YouTube users were snippets of that performance, chopped into each of the cultural groups he targeted. According to Peters, those snippets made their way to those specified cultural groups, and were well received by them.^[11]

Notable performances[link]

In Canada, Peters became the first comedian to sell out Toronto's Air Canada Centre,^[12] with more than 16,000 tickets in two days for the single show. He ended up selling over 30,000 tickets nationally over the two-day sales period. A total of over 60,000 tickets were sold across six cities.^{[citation needed]} His show in Sydney, Australia on 15 May 2010 had an audience of 13,880, making it the largest stand-up comedy show in Australian history.^[13] He broke a UK comedy sales record at London's O2 Arena when he sold over 16,000 tickets to his show on 2009.^[14]

He hosted the Canada Day Comedy Festival 2006. Peters participated in a USO tour of Iraq, Afghanistan, Germany, Africa and Greenland in November 2007 with Wilmer Valderrama and Mayra Veronica.^[15]. Peters also currently produces and stars on the radio situation comedy series, Monsoon House, on CBC Radio One.

Peters was the host of the 2008 Juno Awards televised ceremonies in Calgary on April 6, 2008,^[16] for which he won a Gemini Award for "Best Performance or Host in a Variety Program or Series". The 2008 awards broadcast received the second-highest ratings ever for the program. He was asked to host the Juno Awards for a second year in a row. The 2009 Juno Awards took place in Vancouver on March 29, 2009.

Publications[link]

His comedy special Russell Peters: Outsourced, aired on Comedy Central on August 16, 2006. The DVD version features his uncensored performance. The DVD has been popular, especially in Canada, selling over 100,000 copies. Outsourced remained on the National DVD Chart over one and a half years after release. Peters released a second DVD/CD combo Russell Peters: Red, White, and Brown in Canada in September 2008 and in the US on January 27, 2009. The DVD/CD was recorded on February 2, 2008, at The WAMU Theatre at Madison Square Garden. Peters and his brother, Clayton Peters, who is also his manager, self-produced and financed Red, White and Brown. In May 2011, Peters released Russell Peters: The Green Card Tour a live performance recorded in front of a total audience of 30,000 over a two-night performance at O2 Arena in London, England.^[17]

On October 26, 2010, Peters released his autobiography, Call me Russell, co - written with his brother Clayton and Dannis Koromilas.

Earnings[link]

According to Forbes.com, Peters earned an estimated $15 million between June 2009 and June 2010, continuing his run as one of the highest-paid comedians after earning an estimated $5 million in the prior year's report. He was ranked as the 7th highest paid comedian by Forbes.^[18][19]

Comedic style[link]

Russell Peters' stand-up performances are mostly made up of observational comedy where he uses humour to highlight racial, ethnic, class and cultural stereotypes. He often refers his own life experiences growing up in an Indian family and impersonates various English accents of different groups in his act to poke fun at each group. As Peters told an audience in San Francisco, "I don't make the stereotypes, I just see them."^[20] Russell Peters uses his minority status to allow him to poke fun at different races in his performance, but according to an interview done for The National, he does not intend to put down or offend different races and cultures, but instead tries to raise them up through humour.^[21]

Peters' is widely known for his comedy punchlines "Somebody gonna get a hurt real bad" in which he tells a joke about his childhood with a traditional Indian father who would use corporal punishment and “Be a man!" while imitating an Asian trying to get him to pay more for an item at a shop.^[22]

Personal life[link]

Peters proposed to girlfriend Monica Diaz on July 10, 2010, at the Los Angeles International Airport. He announced the engagement via Twitter.^[23][24] The couple married on August 20, 2010 at A Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas. The wedding was attended by about 20 guests, including an Elvis impersonator. Peters and Diaz had their first child, a girl, who was due to be born on February 23, 2011. When announcing the pregnancy, Peters told The Canadian Press, "Did I get married because she was knocked up? I would say that expedited it." His daughter was born two and a half months early (on December 14, 2010), but was healthy as Peters stated on his Twitter. She was given the name Crystianna Marie Peters.

Peters lives in Los Angeles and owns two homes there. He also owns homes in Las Vegas and Vaughan, Ontario.^[25]

Filmography[link]

Television and film appearances[link]

Peters has appeared in a few films, most recently in the 2011 Canadian-Punjabi movie titled Speedy Singhs alongside Camilla Belle, Anupham Kher, and Vinay Virmani. He has also appeared in Senior Skip Day starring Larry Miller, Tara Reid, and Gary Lundy. Besides this, he has also had short appearances in the 1994 film Boozecan as Snake's Friend, the 1999 film Tiger Claws III as Detective Elliott, the 2004 film My Baby's Daddy as the obstetrician, the 2006 film Quarter Life Crisis as Dilip Kumar, the 2007 film The Take as Dr. Sharma, and the 2008 film Senior Skip Day as Uncle Todd.

Peters starred in a Christmas special,A Russell Peters Christmas aired in Canada on 1 December, 2011. Guests included Michael Bublé, Pamela Anderson, Jon Lovitz among others.^[27]

He also acted in Duncan Jones's movie Source Code as Max, an amateur comedian with a bad attitude, and is scheduled to star as "Pervius" in National Lampoon's The Legend of Awesomest Maximus.^[28]

Acting roles – television

• "Comics Without Borders" (2008)
• Russell Peters: Red, White and Brown (2008)
• Senior Skip Day/High School's Day Off (Australia title) (2008)- Uncle Todd
• Bob's Burgers - "Moody Foodie" (Season 2, Episode 7) - Tran

Appearances on television

• "A Russell Peters Christmas" - Himself (1 December 2011)
• "Lopez Tonight" - Himself (2010)
• "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" – Himself (2009)
• "The 9th Annual Canadian Comedy Awards" (2008)- Himself (Winner – Best Large Venue Stand-up)
• "CBC News: The Hour" .... Himself – Episode dated 18 September 2008 (2008) TV episode .... Himself
• "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" – Himself – Episode dated 15 February 2008 (2008)
• "Def Comedy Jam" – Episode #8.4 (2008) TV episode – Himself/Comedian
• "Pulse: The Desi Beat" – Episode #1.9 (2007) TV episode – Himself
• "Video on Trial" – Episode #3.3 (2007) TV episode – Himself
• "Comics Unleashed" – Episode #1.6 (2009) TV episode- Himself
• The 4th Annual Canadian Comedy Awards (2039) – Himself
• The 5th Annual Canadian Comedy Awards (2004) – Nominee (Male Stand-up)
• MTV Cribs (Where he featured on two different episodes)
• "8 out of 10 Cats" (Season 12, Episode 9)

Self

• Heckler (2007)
• Let's All Hate Toronto (2007)

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Russell Peters (26 July 2011). Call Me Russell. Random House Digital, Inc.. ISBN 978-0-385-66965-8. http://books.google.com/books?id=Man0-BpnFjkC&pg=PP1. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Russell Peters

• Russell named first Toronto ambassador

Hines Ward

Ward during the 2006 NFL season.
No. 86
Wide receiver
Personal information
Date of birth: (1976-03-08) March 8, 1976 (age 36)
Place of birth: Seoul, South Korea
Height: 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) Weight: 205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
College: Georgia
NFL Draft: 1998 / Round: 3 / Pick: 92
Debuted in 1998 for the Pittsburgh Steelers
Last played in 2011 for the Pittsburgh Steelers
Career history
Pittsburgh Steelers (1998–2011)
Career highlights and awards
4× Pro Bowl selection (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004) 3× 2nd Team All-Pro selection (2002, 2003, 2004) 2× Super Bowl Champion (XL, XLIII) Super Bowl MVP (XL) 3× Steelers MVP ( 2002,2004 2005) 3× AFC Champion (2005, 2008, 2010) Steelers Career Records for Receptions, Receiving Yards, & Receiving TDs Dancing With the Stars Champion (2011)
Career NFL statistics as of 2011
Receptions 1,000 Receiving Yards 12,083 Receiving TDs 85 Stats at NFL.com
Stats at pro-football-reference.com
Stats at DatabaseFootball.com

Hines Edward Ward, Jr. (born March 8, 1976) is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the Pittsburgh Steelers for fourteen seasons after being drafted in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft, becoming the team's all-time leader in receptions, receiving yardage and touchdown receptions. Ward was voted MVP of Super Bowl XL, and upon retirement was one of only eight NFL players to have 1,000 or more career receptions. He played college football at the University of Georgia.

Born in Seoul, South Korea to a Korean mother and an African American father, Ward grew up in the Atlanta area. He has become an advocate for the social acceptance of foreigners in Korea, especially mixed-race youth.^[1]

Early life[link]

Ward was born in Seoul, South Korea, to an African American father, Hines Ward Sr., and Korean mother, Kim Young He (김영희). His family moved to Atlanta and East Point, Georgia when Hines Jr. was one, and Hines Sr. went to Germany to serve a tour of duty. The next year Ward's parents divorced leaving Ward to live with his mother and then with his paternal grandmother after Hines Sr. convinced a family court that Kim could not raise Hines Jr. independently, because she did not speak English. Ward would later be reunited with his mother at the age of 7. During this time, Hines Ward Sr. did not support Ward with child support or visit Ward regularly with Ward stating that he talks with his father about once every two years.^[2] Ward has stated that he has never reconciled with his father who abandoned him when he was 2 years old.^[3] Under the guidance of coach Mike Parris at Forest Park High School in Forest Park, Georgia, Ward showcased his athletic skills as a quarterback, and was two-time Clayton County Offensive Player of the Year.

College career[link]

As a wide receiver for the University of Georgia Bulldogs (1994–1997), Ward's 149 career receptions for 1,965 yards placed him second in team history. He also played tailback and totaled 3,870 all-purpose yards, second only to Herschel Walker in Bulldogs history. In 1996, Hines had 52 receptions for 900 yards, and also ran 26 times for 170 yards. In 1997, Hines hauled in 55 passes and scored six TDs, getting All-SEC honors in the process. Ward played some quarterback his sophomore year, and holds Georgia bowl records for pass attempts, pass completions, and passing yards in the 1995 Peach Bowl in which he completed 31 of 59 passes for 413 yards.

When he came out of college it was discovered that Ward was missing an ACL in his left knee, which he lost during a bicycle accident during childhood.^[4][5] According to a Yahoo! Sports article, Ward broke his kneecap in the fourth grade and the doctors never accounted for the ligament.^[6] He received his bachelor's degree in consumer economics from UGA.

Professional career[link]

Ward makes a catch against the Baltimore Ravens in 2006.

Ward's versatility, hands and willingness to block served him well as a professional wide receiver. Since being drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft, he earned three team Most Valuable Player (MVP) selections. He was also a four-time NFL Pro Bowl selection (2001–2004). Ward also had a streak of 4 consecutive 1,000 yard seasons The streak was broken in the 2005 NFL season during which he missed a game due to injury. In 2002, he set a Steelers franchise record for receptions (112) and touchdowns (12) and was named to his first of two consecutive All-NFL teams. Although he was considered one of the best blocking receivers in the NFL, he was also criticized for habitually hitting defenders on their blind-side.^{[citation needed]} Ward was twice named the NFL's dirtiest player, as determined by a Sports Illustrated poll of NFL players; the most recent was in 2009.^[7]

In 2005, Ward missed the first two weeks of training camp in a holdout for a contract extension that would increase his salary. Ward had considered holding out before camp in 2004, but had been persuaded by the Steelers that they could work out an extension during the year. Ward eventually showed up on August 15, 2005 and was on the sidelines for Pittsburgh's first preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles that night, though he did not play in that game. On September 5, 2005, the Steelers announced that they had reached an agreement on a four-year contract extension worth $25.83 million with Ward.^[8]

On November 13, 2005, Ward became the Steelers' all-time leading receiver with his 538th catch against the Browns on ESPN Sunday Night Football surpassing John Stallworth's record. The Steelers won 34-21.

Ward accumulated 76 receptions, 1,064 yards, and eight receiving touchdowns in 14 post-season appearances. On February 5, 2006, Ward was named MVP in Super Bowl XL as the Pittsburgh Steelers won 21-10. Ward became the second foreign born player to earn the accolade. Ward scored a 43-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, thrown by fellow wide receiver Antwaan Randle El. Overall, Ward had five receptions for 123 yards, one touchdown and one rush for 18 yards.

Immediately following Super Bowl XL, Ward was videotaped for the "I'm Going to Disney World!" television commercial, adding "...and I'm taking The Bus!" Ward and Steelers teammate Jerome "The Bus" Bettis appeared in a victory parade at the Magic Kingdom theme park on February 6 along with Emmitt Smith.

On December 2, 2007, Ward became the Steelers' all-time touchdown receptions leader with his 64th touchdown reception against the Bengals on Sunday Night Football.^[9] Then on December 20, 2007, Ward became the Steelers' all-time receiving yardage leader in a game against the St. Louis Rams.

Ward often faced criticism for his style of blocking, particularly for his propensity to hit defenders on their blind-side. During a game on October 19, 2008, Ward put a vicious downfield blindside block on rookie Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Keith Rivers. The impact of the block left Rivers with a broken jaw, and caused him to miss the remainder of the 2008 season. Ward was not penalized for this block, nor was he fined by the league as the hit was deemed legal. The league, however, later passed a new rule banning such hits. The so-called "Hines Ward Rule" made a blindside block illegal if the block came from the blocker's helmet, forearm or shoulder and lands to the head or neck area of a defender.^[10] In a Sports Illustrated poll of NFL players in 2009, he was voted the "dirtiest player in the NFL."[1]

According to Terrell Suggs of the Baltimore Ravens when the Ravens played the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday Night Football that season, the Ravens players placed a bounty on Ward and rookie running back Rashard Mendenhall. Mendenhall left the game with a broken shoulder which ended his season. Ward talked about Suggs' comments in an interview on Pardon the Interruption. Although he held up an NFL policy banning bounties, he thought it was also humorous that they would do it to him.

Ward attempts to break Sammy Knight's tackle during a game against the Kansas City Chiefs in 2006.

On December 28, 2008, Ward caught his 800th NFL reception, extending his record for receptions by a Steeler receiver.^[11] Also in this game, Ward achieved his first 1000 yard season since 2004, finishing with 81 receptions for 1043 yards and 7 touchdowns on the year. In the 2008 Playoffs, Ward recorded 9 receptions for 168 yards. In the 27-23 win over Arizona Cardinals at the Super Bowl XLIII, Ward played a supporting role, catching two passes for 43 yards. He played the game with a sprained right MCL.^[12]

Ward was signed to a four-year, $22 million extension by the Steelers on April 25, 2009.^[13] On September 27, 2009, during a game against Cincinnati, Ward's four catches for 82 yards earned him 10,000 career receiving yards and made him the first wide receiver in Steelers' history to achieve that milestone.^[14] On third-and-two Ben Roethlisberger hit Ward for a 14-yard gain, giving Ward 10,001 career receiving yards. Ward finished the 2009 season with 95 receptions for 1,167 yards and 6 touchdowns.

In a September 12, 2010 home game against the Atlanta Falcons, Ward became the first player in Steeler history to surpass 11,000 receiving yards. He caught 108 yards worth of passes in that game to pass Hall of Fame Steeler receiver John Stallworth for the most 100-yard receiving games all-time for the Steelers with his 26th. His 6 catches against the Falcons gave him 901 for his career, making him only the 12th NFL player of all time to surpass 900 career receptions. Ward's streak of 186 consecutive games with at least one reception came to an end in a 39-26 loss against the New England Patriots in Week 10 of the 2010 season. A short catch by Ward was knocked loose when he was tackled by safeties, Patrick Chung and James Sanders, and was knocked out of the rest of the game; the Patriots challenged the call, and the pass was ruled incomplete on review, ending the streak.

On December 4, 2011, in a 35-7 home victory against the Cincinnati Bengals, Ward became just the 19th player in NFL history to reach 12,000 receiving yards.^[15] On January 1, 2012, in a game against the Cleveland Browns, Ward caught his 1000th reception, becoming the eighth player in NFL history to do so.

On February 29, 2012, the Steelers announced their intention to release Ward,^[16] which they did two days later.^[17]

Ward on March 20, 2012, announced his retirement from football stating, "Without the support over the past 14 years this game wouldn't be the same to me. It wouldn't be as fun for me. You guys meant the world to me. The city and this organization means the world to me. So today as sadly as it feels for me right now, I hope it will be a good day for everyone here."^[18][19]

Personal[link]

Ward prior to a game in 2008.

Ward resides in Sandy Springs, Georgia, and has a son named Jaden who he had with his ex-wife Simone Ward. On his upper right arm he has a tattoo of Mighty Mouse in the Heisman pose, just below a tattoo of his name in Korean.^[20]

Business and media enterprises[link]

Ward co-owned a bar in Pittsburgh's South Side called The Locker Room.^[21] The bar sustained serious water damage in February 2007, due to flooding from a malfunctioning boiler, and it was closed for repairs until June of that year.^[22] The bar received an insurance settlement of $500,000, which subsequently became an issue during a legal dispute between the bar's owners.^[22]

On September 11, 2007, co-owner Nicholas Lettieri withdrew the entirety of the bar's funds, approximately $19,000, from a corporate account, causing it to miss a large number of scheduled payments.^[22] The company filed suit for the return of the money, and Lettieri subsequently justified his actions by claiming that the money was owed to him, also voicing the belief that the other co-owners, Ward and Kimberly Pitts, as well as Pitts' husband, Korry Pitts, had falsified invoices and diverted company funds to their own bank accounts.^[22] Company attorney Thomas Castello dismissed Lettieri's allegations as "baseless, ridiculous and unfounded," and the matter currently is before the court.^[22]

The Locker Room reopened under the name South Side 86 (because of Ward's jersey number), and is owned entirely by Ward, who bought out his co owners.

In September 2006 Ward began hosting the Hines Ward Show on Pittsburgh CBS O&O KDKA-TV.^[23]

As a figure for social change[link]

In 2006 Ward became the first Korean American to win the Super Bowl MVP award. This achievement threw him into the spotlight of media in South Korea.^[24]

From April 3 through May 30, 2006, Ward returned to his birthplace of Seoul for the first time since his parents moved to the United States when he was one year old. Ward used his celebrity status to arrange "hope-sharing" meetings with multiracial Korean children and to encourage social and political reform. At one hope-sharing meeting, he told a group of children, "If the country can accept me for who I am and accept me for being a Korean, I'm pretty sure that this country can change and accept you for who you are."^[24] On his final day in Korea, he donated $1 million USD to create the Hines Ward Helping Hands Foundation, which the AP called "a foundation to help mixed-race children like himself in South Korea, where they have suffered discrimination."^[25]

In January 2007 former Steeler and Pro Football Hall of Fame member, Franco Harris, owner of R Super Foods, honored Ward for his philanthropic efforts by featuring Ward's picture and story on boxes of Super Buns. Like Ward, Harris also won a Super Bowl MVP award (in Super Bowl IX), and also is biracial, being of African American and Italian American parentage.

In September 2010, President Barack Obama, appointed Ward as a member of the President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.^[26]

DUI arrest[link]

On July 9, 2011, Hines Ward was arrested for driving under the influence in DeKalb County, Georgia after being witnessed by a MARTA police officer failing to maintain his lane and subsequently hitting a curb.^[27] An officer of the DeKalb County Police Department responded which led to the investigation and Ward's arrest. On February 22, 2012, the DUI charge was dropped as part of a plea agreement. Ward agreed to plead guilty to reckless driving and received a sentence of one year of probation, 80 hours of community service and a $2,000 fine.^[28]

Film and TV appearances[link]

Ward will make an appearance as a member of the fictional Gotham Rogues football team in the upcoming 2012 film The Dark Knight Rises.^[29]

Dancing with the Stars performance[link]

On May 24, 2011, Hines and his partner Kym Johnson won season 12 of the American TV dance competition Dancing with the Stars.

* In week 7, Donnie Burns was the guest judge and scored the dances as well (first score listed is Burns').

References[link]

External links[link]

• Hines Ward Official Website
• Hines Ward on Twitter
• Pittsburgh Steelers bio
• "Ward spins biracial roots into blessing", Paul Wiseman, USA Today, April 9, 2006

Jennifer Lawrence
Lawrence at the 83rd Academy Awards, February 27, 2011
Born	Jennifer Shrader Lawrence (1990-08-15) August 15, 1990 (age 21) Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2006–present

Jennifer Shrader Lawrence^[1] (born August 15, 1990) is an American film and television actress. She had lead roles in TBS's The Bill Engvall Show and in the independent films The Burning Plain and Winter's Bone, for which she received nominations for the Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, Satellite Award, and the Screen Actors Guild Award. At age 20, she was the second youngest actress ever to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress. She is also known for playing Mystique in X-Men: First Class. In 2012, Lawrence achieved wider recognition starring as the heroine Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games, an adaptation of Suzanne Collins' best-selling novel of the same name. Her performance in the film garnered her notable critical praise and marked her as the highest grossing action heroine of all time.^[2][3] Lawrence's performances thus far have prompted Rolling Stone to define her as "the most talented young actress in America."^[4]

Early life[link]

Lawrence was born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky, and has two older brothers. Her parents are Karen (née Koch), who runs a children's camp, and Gary Lawrence, who once owned a concrete construction firm, Lawrence & Associates.^[5][6][7] She acted in local theater^[8] and, by the age of 14, had decided to pursue an acting career, persuading her parents to take her to New York City to find a talent agent. Prior to finding success in Hollywood, Lawrence attended Kammerer Middle School. She graduated from high school two years early with a 3.9 average in order to begin a career in acting.^[5][9] While growing up and in between acting, Lawrence served as an assistant nurse at the children's summer day camp that her mother ran.^[10]

Career[link]

Early work[link]

Lawrence had never taken any drama classes/lessons for acting.^[5] She started out her acting career in the TBS comedy The Bill Engvall Show, playing the eldest daughter of Lauren Pearson. Written and created by Bill Engvall and Michael Leeson, the show is set in a Denver suburb and follows the life of 'Bill Pearson' (played by Engvall), a family counselor whose own family could use a little dose of counseling. The series went on the air in September 2007 and was canceled in 2009 after three seasons. Lawrence received the Young Artist Award for Outstanding Young Performer in a TV Series for her role in the show.

Lawrence had guest-roles in the television series The Devil You Know, Cold Case, Medium, and Monk.^[11]

In 2008, she appeared in a small role in the film Garden Party as Tiff. It was directed by Jason Freeland. The same year, Lawrence appeared on the big screen in Guillermo Arriaga's film directorial debut The Burning Plain, opposite Charlize Theron and Kim Basinger. Her performance in the film earned her the Marcello Mastroianni Award for best young emerging actor/actress at the Venice Film Festival in 2008.^[12]

Still in 2008, Lawrence had the lead role in another film director's debut, Lori Petty's family drama The Poker House, opposite Selma Blair and Chloë Moretz, where she starred as Agnes, a young girl victim of abuse.^[13] Lawrence was awarded the Los Angeles Film Festival for Outstanding Performance for her role in the film. She appeared in the music video for the song "The Mess I Made", from the 2009 album Losing Sleep by Parachute.

2010–present[link]

Lawrence's lead role in Debra Granik's Winter's Bone, which won best picture at the Sundance Film Festival in 2010, is generally cited as a breakout performance for her.^[14] She portrays Ree Dolly, a seventeen-year-old in the Ozark Mountains who cares for her mentally ill mother and her younger brother and sister. Ree then discovers that her father put their house and land up as a bond for a court appearance before he disappeared, and the family now faces eviction.^[15] The performance was highly acclaimed by film critics. David Denby, writing in The New Yorker, said "the movie would be unimaginable with anyone less charismatic playing Ree."^[16] Peter Travers from the Rolling Stone also spoke highly of her and noted that "her performance is more than acting, it's a gathering storm. Lawrence's eyes are a roadmap to what's tearing Ree apart".^[17] Receiving accolades for her performance, Lawrence was awarded the National Board of Review Award for Best Breakthrough Performance. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress on January 25, 2011, becoming the second-youngest actress to date to be nominated for the category,^[18] and also accrued nominations from the Golden Globe Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, Independent Spirit Awards, and the Satellite Awards among others.

Lawrence had a role in The Beaver, a dark comedy starring Jodie Foster and Mel Gibson that was filmed in 2009, but which spent an extended period of time stalled due to controversies surrounding Gibson. It was released on May 6, 2011. Lawrence co-starred in the independent film Like Crazy, which premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and received a wider release by Paramount Pictures.^[19]

On June 18, 2011, it was announced that Lawrence was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

In June 2011, she starred as shape-shifting villain Mystique alongside James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender in X-Men: First Class,^[20] a prequel to the rest of the X-Men film series and will be reprising this role again in the sequel. Lawrence's Mystique is a younger version of the character played by Rebecca Romijn in earlier X-Men films.

She is also set to star alongside Elisabeth Shue in Mark Tonderai's thriller House at the End of the Street,^[21] which completed filming in 2010 and is in post-production.^[22]

Lawrence was cast in David O. Russell's The Silver Linings Playbook, opposite Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro. She was originally cast to play "O" in the film Savages directed by Oliver Stone, but dropped out due to scheduling conflicts.

In 2012, Lawrence replaced Angelina Jolie in Susanne Bier's period thriller, The Falling, based on the novel Serena by Ron Rash.^[23][24] She will be playing the role of Serena who learns that she can never bear her husband children and is set out to murder the woman who bore her husband an illegitimate son before their marriage.

[edit] The Hunger Games

In March 2011, Lawrence was offered the part of Katniss Everdeen in the film The Hunger Games, based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Suzanne Collins. Despite being a fan of the books, Lawrence took three days to accept the role because she was initially intimidated by the size of the movie and what it may mean for her fame.^[25] She underwent extensive training to get in shape for the role, including stunt training, archery, rock and tree climbing, combat, running, parkour, pilates, and yoga.^[26][27] The film was released on March 23, 2012, and set the record for the third-largest opening weekend of all time, making a record-breaking $152.5 million in three days for a non-sequel film.^[28]

The fact that The Hunger Games emerged as a big box office hit with a female lead represents a dramatic shift for the action film genre because historically, among the "top 200 worldwide box-office hits ever ($350 million and up), not one has been built around a female action star" and for the first time ever, Lawrence contradicts that.^[29] She is currently the highest grossing action heroine.

Though the film generally received positive reviews, Lawrence's strong portrayal of Katniss Everdeen was the most highly praised with Todd McCarthy from The Hollywood Reporter saying Lawrence embodies Katniss, "just as one might imagine her from the novel" and "anchors" the whole film "with impressive gravity and presence", ultimately calling her "the ideal screen actress".^[30] Kenneth Turan from the Los Angeles Times stated that Lawrence is the "best possible performer as Katniss and is the key factor in making 'Hunger Games' an involving popular entertainment with strong narrative drive that holds our attention".^[31] Chicago Sun-Times film critic Roger Ebert also agreed that "Lawrence is strong and convincing in the central role".^[32]