- published: 11 Jan 2014
- views: 26876
AJ, Aj, aJ, or aj may refer to:
Howard Allan Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American radio and television personality, producer, author, actor, and photographer. He is best known as the host of The Howard Stern Show, his long-running radio show which gained popularity when it was nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from 1986 to 2005 before its move to Sirius XM Radio in 2006. Stern first wished to be on the radio at five years of age. He landed his first radio jobs while at Boston University—WTBU, the campus station, and WNTN in Newton, Massachusetts. From 1976 to 1982, Stern developed his on-air personality through morning positions at WRNW in Briarcliff Manor, New York, WCCC in Hartford, Connecticut, WWWW in Detroit, Michigan, and WWDC in Washington, D.C. Stern worked afternoons at WNBC in New York City from 1982 until his firing in 1985.
In 1985, Stern began a 20-year run at WXRK in New York City, where his show was syndicated to 60 markets and attracted 20 million listeners. Stern won numerous awards, including Billboard’s Nationally Syndicated Air Personality of the Year eight times. He became the most fined radio host when the Federal Communications Commission issued fines totaling $2.5 million to station licensees for content it deemed indecent. Stern became one of the highest paid radio figures after signing a five-year deal with Sirius in 2004 worth $500 million. In recent years, Stern took up photography and has had work featured in Hamptons and WHIRL magazines. From 2012 to 2015, he served as a judge on America's Got Talent.
Brittany Murphy-Monjack (born Brittany Anne Bertolotti; November 10, 1977 – December 20, 2009), known professionally as Brittany Murphy, was an American film and stage actress, singer, and voice artist. Murphy, a native of Atlanta, moved to Los Angeles as a teenager and pursued a career in acting. Her breakthrough role was in Amy Heckerling's Clueless (1995), followed by supporting roles in independent films such as Freeway (1996) and Bongwater (1998).
She made her stage debut in a Broadway production of Arthur Miller's A View from the Bridge in 1997, and then appeared in James Mangold's drama Girl, Interrupted (1999), as well as the satire Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999).
The 2000s saw Murphy with roles in Don't Say a Word (2001) alongside Michael Douglas, and alongside Eminem in Curtis Hanson's 8 Mile (2002), for which she gained critical recognition. Her later roles included Riding in Cars with Boys (2001), the dark comedy crime film Spun (2002), Uptown Girls (2003) alongside Dakota Fanning, Sin City (2005), and Happy Feet (2006). Murphy also voiced Luanne Platter on the animated TV series King of the Hill. Her final film, Something Wicked, was released in April 2014.