Gwyneth Paltrow

Gwyneth Kate Paltrow (/ˈɡwɪnᵻθ ˈpæltroʊ/; born September 27, 1972) is an American actress, singer, and food writer. She first garnered worldwide recognition through her performance in Shakespeare in Love (1998), for which she won the Golden Globe, SAG, and Academy Award for Best Actress.

Paltrow is also known for roles in the films The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), and Proof (2005), for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination. Since 2008, she has portrayed Pepper Potts, the love interest of Iron Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She also won an Emmy Award in 2011 for her role as Holly Holliday on the Fox hit TV show Glee.

Paltrow has been the face of Estée Lauder's Pleasures perfume since 2005. She is also the face of American fashion brand Coach, owner of a lifestyle company, and author of two cookbooks.

Early life and education

Paltrow was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of actress Blythe Danner and film producer/director Bruce Paltrow. Her father was Jewish and her mother is from a Christian background, and Paltrow was raised with "both Jewish and Christian holidays" (her brother had a Bar Mitzvah ceremony). Her father's Ashkenazi family immigrated from Belarus and Poland, while her mother has Pennsylvania Dutch (German), and some white Barbadian (English), ancestry. Paltrow's paternal great-great-grandfather, whose surname was "Paltrowicz," was a rabbi in Nowogród, Poland. Paltrow has a younger brother, director and screenwriter Jake Paltrow, and is a half-cousin of actress Katherine Moennig (through her mother), and a second cousin of former U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (AZ-08) (through her father). Her uncle is opera singer and actor Harry Danner.

Shakespeare in Love

Shakespeare in Love is a 1998 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by John Madden, written by Marc Norman and playwright Tom Stoppard. The film depicts an imaginary love affair involving Viola de Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow) and playwright William Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) while he was writing Romeo and Juliet. Several characters are based on historical people, and many of the characters, lines, and plot devices allude to Shakespeare's plays.

Shakespeare in Love won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actress (Gwyneth Paltrow), and Best Supporting Actress (Judi Dench).

Plot

In 1593 London, William Shakespeare is a sometime player in the Lord Chamberlain's Men and poor playwright for Philip Henslowe, owner of The Rose Theatre. Shakespeare is working on a new comedy, Romeo and Ethel, the Pirate's Daughter. Suffering from writer's block, he has barely begun the play, but starts auditioning players. Viola de Lesseps, the daughter of a wealthy merchant, who has seen Shakespeare's plays at court, disguises herself as "Thomas Kent" to audition, then runs away. Shakespeare pursues Kent to Viola's house and leaves a note with the nurse, asking Thomas Kent to begin rehearsals at the Rose. He sneaks into the house with the minstrels playing that night at the ball, where her parents are arranging her betrothal to Lord Wessex, an impoverished aristocrat. While dancing with Viola, Shakespeare is struck speechless, and after being forcibly ejected by Wessex, uses Thomas Kent as a go-between to woo her. Wessex also asks Will's name, to which he replies that he is Christopher Marlowe.

Iron Man

Iron Man (Tony Stark) is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, as well as its associated media. The character was created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby. He made his first appearance in Tales of Suspense #39 (cover dated March 1963).

An American billionaire playboy, business magnate, and ingenious engineer, Tony Stark suffers a severe chest injury during a kidnapping in which his captors attempt to force him to build a weapon of mass destruction. He instead creates a powered suit of armor to save his life and escape captivity. Later, Stark augments his suit with weapons and other technological devices he designed through his company, Stark Industries. He uses the suit and successive versions to protect the world as Iron Man, while at first concealing his true identity. Initially, Iron Man was a vehicle for Stan Lee to explore Cold War themes, particularly the role of American technology and business in the fight against communism. Subsequent re-imaginings of Iron Man have transitioned from Cold War themes to contemporary concerns, such as corporate crime and terrorism.

Gwyneth

Gwyneth is a Welsh feminine given name. It is borne by the following people:

Joseph Fiennes

Joseph Alberic Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes (/ˈfaɪnz/; born 27 May 1970) is an English film and stage actor. He is known for his portrayals of William Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love (1998), for which he was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role, Sir Robert Dudley in Elizabeth (1998), Commisar Danilov in Enemy at the Gates (2001), and for starring as Monsignor Timothy Howard in the second season of the TV series American Horror Story (2012-2013).

Early life and family

Fiennes was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, in 1970, the son of photographer Mark Fiennes and novelist Jennifer Lash. The youngest of six siblings, his elder siblings are actor Ralph Fiennes; filmmakers Sophie Fiennes and Martha Fiennes; composer Magnus Fiennes; conservationist Jacob Fiennes, his twin brother; and archaeologist Mike Emery, his foster brother. He is a third cousin to explorer Ranulph Fiennes and eighth cousin of the Prince of Wales.