- published: 06 Apr 2010
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David (/ˈdeɪvɪd/; Hebrew: דָּוִד, Modern David, Tiberian Dāwîḏ;ISO 259-3 Dawid; Arabic: داوُد Dāwūd; Syriac: ܕܘܝܕ Dawid; Ancient Greek: Δαυίδ; Latin: Davidus, David; Strong's: Daveed) was, according to the Books of Samuel, the second king of the United Kingdom of Israel, and according to the New Testament, an ancestor of Jesus. His life is conventionally dated to c. 1040 – 970 BCE, his reign over Judah c. 1010–970 BCE.
The Books of Samuel, 1 Kings, and 1 Chronicles are the only Old Testament sources of information on David, although the Tel Dan Stele (dated c. 850–835 BCE) contains the phrase בית דוד (bytdwd), read as "House of David", which many scholars confirm to be a likely plausible match to the existence in the mid-9th century BCE of a Judean royal dynasty called the House of David.
Depicted as a valorous warrior of great renown, and a poet and musician credited for composing much of the psalms contained in the Book of Psalms, King David is widely viewed as a righteous and effective king in battle and civil justice. He is described as a man after God's own heart in 1 Samuel 13:14 and Acts 13:22.
David Aaron Proval (born May 20, 1942) is an American actor, well known for his roles as Tony DeVienazo in the Martin Scorsese film Mean Streets (1973) and as Richie Aprile on the HBO television series The Sopranos (1999–2007).
Proval was born in Brooklyn, New York, of Jewish heritage, the son of Clara Katz, an actress from Bucharest, Romania. He has appeared in such feature films as The Shawshank Redemption (1994),The Phantom (1996), Mob Queen (1998), Four Rooms (1995), UHF (1989), Innocent Blood (1992), The Siege (1998), Bookies (2003), Balls of Fury (2007), had cameo appearances in The Brady Bunch Movie (1995) and Smokin' Aces (2006), and has had recurring roles in television shows such as Picket Fences, Boomtown and Everybody Loves Raymond. He appeared in the 14th episode of The West Wing - "Take This Sabbath Day" - as Toby Ziegler's rabbi. In 1977 his voice was heard in the cult animated film WIZARDS, as the robot assassin Necron 99. In 2004, he played both adult twin brothers James and Edward Talley in the Hallmark Channel original movie Murder Without Conviction. Creator David Chase has also stated Proval was his original choice for the lead role of Tony Soprano which of course later wound up going to the late James Gandolfini on the HBO hit show The Sopranos.
David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American former television and radio host, comedian, writer, producer, and actor.
He hosted a late night television talk show for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982, debut of Late Night with David Letterman on NBC, and ending with the May 20, 2015, broadcast of the Late Show with David Letterman on CBS. In total, Letterman hosted 6,028 episodes of Late Night and Late Show, surpassing friend and mentor Johnny Carson as the longest-serving late night talk show host in American television history. In 1996, David Letterman was ranked No. 45 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time.
Letterman is also a television and film producer. His company, Worldwide Pants, produced his show and formerly produced The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Worldwide Pants has also produced several prime-time comedies, the most successful of which was Everybody Loves Raymond, currently in syndication.
Late-night hosts Conan O'Brien (Letterman's successor on Late Night), and Jimmy Kimmel, cite Letterman's influence.
Everybody Loves Raymond is an American television sitcom starring Ray Romano, Patricia Heaton, Brad Garrett, Doris Roberts, Peter Boyle, Madylin Sweeten, and Monica Horan. It ran on CBS from September 13, 1996 to May 16, 2005. Many of the situations from the show are based on the real-life experiences of Romano, creator/producer Phil Rosenthal, and the show's writing staff. The main characters on the show are loosely based on Romano and Rosenthal's real-life family members.
The show revolves around the life of Italian-American Raymond Barone, a sportswriter for Newsday living with his family in Long Island. Whiny and flippant, Raymond does not take many things seriously, making jokes in nearly every situation, no matter how troubling or problematic. He often avoids responsibilities around the house and with his kids, leaving this to his wife Debra.
Raymond and Debra live with their daughter Ally (which is a nickname – her real name is Alexandra) and twin sons Michael and Geoffrey (originally Matthew and Gregory in the pilot). The Barone children are regular characters but not a major focus. Raymond's parents, Marie and Frank, and older brother Robert live together across the street (although, in later series, Robert has his own apartment), and frequently make their presence known to the frustration of Raymond and Debra. Debra's frequent complaints about Raymond's family are a running joke. Out of the three unwanted visitors, Debra is particularly put off by Marie – an insulting, controlling and manipulative, though loving, woman who constantly criticizes Debra and coddles Ray, clearly favoring him over Robert, whose impending birth (as was established in the episode "Good Girls") drove her into marriage.