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[
"REO Speedwagon",
"Mainstream success"
]
| C_e4db42ff500e43a8bc170416e7c47a5f_1 | What accounted for the mainstream success of the band? | 1 | What accounted for the mainstream success of the band REO Speedwagon? | REO Speedwagon | The stage was now set for the height of the band's popularity. On November 21, 1980, REO Speedwagon released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material. Hi Infidelity spawned four hit singles written by Richrath and Cronin, including the chart-topping "Keep On Loving You" (Cronin), plus "Take It on the Run" (#5) (Richrath), "In Your Letter" (#20) (Richrath), and "Don't Let Him Go" (#24) (Cronin), and remained on the charts for 65 weeks, 32 of which were spent in the top ten, including 15 weeks atop the Billboard 200. Hi Infidelity sold over 10 million copies and set the bar for rock bands across the country. The band's follow-up album, Good Trouble, was released in 1982. Although it was not as successful as its predecessor, the album performed moderately well commercially, featuring the hit singles "Keep the Fire Burnin'" (U.S. #7), "Sweet Time" (U.S. #26) and the Album Rock chart hit "The Key." The band came storming back two years later with Wheels Are Turnin', an album that included the #1 hit single "Can't Fight This Feeling" plus three more hits: "I Do' Wanna Know" (U.S. #29), "One Lonely Night" (U.S. #19), and "Live Every Moment" (U.S. #34). REO Speedwagon toured the US in 1985, including a sold-out concert in Madison, Wisconsin in May. On July 13, on the way to a show in Milwaukee, the band made a stop in Philadelphia to play at the US leg of Live Aid, which broke a record for number of viewers. They performed "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Roll With the Changes," which featured members of the Beach Boys, the band members' families, and Paul Shaffer on stage for backing vocals. 1987's Life as We Know It saw a decline in sales, but still managed to provide the band with the top-20 hits "That Ain't Love" (U.S. #16) and "In My Dreams" (U.S. #19). The Hits (1988) is a compilation album from REO Speedwagon. It contains new tracks "Here With Me" and "I Don't Want to Lose You." "Here with Me" cracked the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the top ten on the Adult Contemporary chart. They were the last songs recorded with Gary Richrath and Alan Gratzer CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. The group's best-selling album, Hi Infidelity (1980), contained four US top 40 hits and sold more than 10 million copies.
Over the course of their career, the band has sold more than 40 million records and has charted 13 top 40 hits, including the number ones "Keep On Loving You" and "Can't Fight This Feeling". REO Speedwagon's mainstream popularity waned in the late 1980s, but the band remains a popular live act.
History
Formation
In the autumn of 1966, Neal Doughty entered the electrical engineering program at the University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois, as a junior. On his first night, he met fellow student Alan Gratzer. They held an impromptu jam session in the basement of their Illinois Street Residence Hall dormitory and soon started a rock band. Gratzer had been a drummer since high school, and was playing in a local group on the weekends, while Doughty had learned some Beatles songs on his parents' piano.
Doughty began to follow Gratzer's band, eventually sitting in on a song or two. The keyboard player was the leader, but several other band members were unhappy with the situation. On the last day of the university's spring semester, guitarist Joe Matt called the band's leader and told him that he, drummer Gratzer, and bassist Mike Blair had decided to leave the band to start a new one with Doughty.
They made a list of songs to learn over the summer break, and Doughty landed a summer job to buy his first keyboard. On his Farfisa organ, he learned "Light My Fire" by The Doors. The members returned to school in the fall of 1967 and had their first rehearsal before classes started. They named the band REO Speedwagon, from the REO Speed Wagon, a 1915 truck that was designed by Ransom Eli Olds. Doughty had seen the name written across the blackboard when he walked into his History of Transportation class on the first day they had decided to look for a name. Rather than pronouncing REO as a single word as the motor company did , they chose to spell the word out, pronouncing each letter individually ("R-E-O"). An advertisement in the school newspaper produced their first job, a fraternity party that turned into a food fight. They continued to perform cover songs in campus bars, fraternity parties, and university events. The first lineup consisted of Doughty on keyboards, Gratzer on drums and vocals, Joe Matt on guitar and vocals, Mike Blair on bass and vocals.
In early 1968, Terry Luttrell became lead singer, and Bob Crownover joined as the guitar player, replacing Matt. When Mike Blair left the band in mid-1968, Gregg Philbin replaced Blair, Marty Shepard played trumpet and Joe McCabe played sax until McCabe moved to Southern Illinois University. Crownover played guitar for the group until mid-1969 when Bill Fiorio replaced him. Fiorio then departed in late 1969, eventually assuming the name Duke Tumatoe, and went on to form the All Star Frogs. Steve Scorfina (who would go on to found progressive rock/album-oriented rock band Pavlov's Dog) came aboard for over a year, composing with the band and performing live, before being replaced by Gary Richrath in late 1970.
Richrath was a Peoria, Illinois-based guitarist and prolific songwriter who brought fresh original material to the band. Richrath had driven 100 miles (160 km) to see the band and become a part of it. He is quoted as saying "I'm going to be a part of that band whether they like it or not", and then went about making it happen. With Richrath on board, the regional popularity of the band grew tremendously. The Midwestern United States was the original REO Speedwagon fan stronghold and is pivotal in this period of the band's history. They gained a major supporter in the St. Louis, Missouri-based radio station KSHE, whose status as one of America's most influential rock stations boosted their platform beyond the Midwest.
The band signed to Epic Records in 1971. Paul Leka, an East Coast record producer, brought the band to his recording studio in Bridgeport, Connecticut where it recorded original material for its first album. The lineup on the first album consisted of Richrath, Gratzer, Doughty, Philbin, and Luttrell.
Early years
With their equipment being hauled to dates in a friend's station wagon, REO played bars and clubs all over the Midwest. The band's debut album, R.E.O. Speedwagon, was released on Epic Records in 1971. The most popular track on this record was "157 Riverside Avenue". The title refers to the Westport, Connecticut address, where the band stayed while recording in Leka's studio in Bridgeport and remains an in-concert favorite.
Although the rest of the band's lineup remained stable, REO Speedwagon switched lead vocalists three times for their first three albums. Luttrell left the band in early 1972, eventually becoming the vocalist for Starcastle. He was replaced by Kevin Cronin. Cronin recorded one album with the band, 1972's R.E.O./T.W.O. but left the band during the recording sessions for 1973's Ridin' the Storm Out because of internal conflicts. Ridin' the Storm Out was completed with Michael Bryan Murphy on lead vocal, and it featured Neal Doughty's "wailing storm siren" synthesizer intro on the title track. Murphy stayed on for two more albums, Lost in a Dream and This Time We Mean It, before Cronin returned to the fold in January 1976 and recorded R.E.O., which was released that same year.
Cronin's return came after Greg X. Volz turned down the position for lead vocalist after becoming a Christian.
In 1977, REO convinced Epic Records that their strength was in their live performances. Epic agreed to let them produce their first live album, Live: You Get What You Play For, which was eventually certified platinum. That same year, the band moved to Los Angeles, California.
In 1977, bassist Gregg Philbin left the band. Depending upon which band member is expressing an opinion, it was either because Philbin was disenchanted with the new corporate-structure REO where Cronin and Richrath got bigger slices of the pie instead of the equal credit they once shared as a "garage band", or he was asked to leave over his lifestyle issues affecting the music quality. Philbin was replaced with another Champaign, Illinois musician, Centennial High School alumnus, Bruce Hall, to record You Can Tune a Piano but You Can't Tuna Fish. The album was released in 1978 and has received FM radio airplay over the years, thanks to songs like "Roll with the Changes" and "Time for Me to Fly". The album was REO's first to make the top 40, peaking at No. 29. The album sold over two million copies in the US, ultimately achieving double platinum status.
In 1979, the band took a turn back to hard rock with the release of Nine Lives.
Mainstream success
On November 21, 1980, Epic released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material. Hi Infidelity spawned four hit singles written by Richrath and Cronin, including the chart-topping "Keep On Loving You" (Cronin), plus "Take It on the Run" (#5) (Richrath), "In Your Letter" (#20) (Richrath), and "Don't Let Him Go" (#24) (Cronin), and remained on the charts for 65 weeks, 32 of which were spent in the top ten, including 15 weeks atop the Billboard 200. Hi Infidelity sold over 10 million copies.
The band's follow-up album, Good Trouble, was released in June 1982. Although it was not as successful as its predecessor, the album performed moderately well commercially, featuring the hit singles "Keep the Fire Burnin'" (U.S. #7), "Sweet Time" (U.S. #26) and the Album Rock chart hit "The Key."
Two years later, the band released Wheels Are Turnin', an album that included the #1 hit single "Can't Fight This Feeling" plus three more hits: "I Do' Wanna Know" (U.S. #29), "One Lonely Night" (U.S. #19), and "Live Every Moment" (U.S. #34).
REO Speedwagon toured the US in 1985, including a sold-out concert in Madison, Wisconsin in May. On July 13, on the way to a show in Milwaukee, the band made a stop in Philadelphia to play at the US leg of Live Aid, which broke a record for number of viewers. They performed "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Roll with the Changes" which featured members of the Beach Boys, the band members' families, and Paul Shaffer on stage for backing vocals.
1987's Life as We Know It saw a decline in sales, but still managed to provide the band with the top-20 hits "That Ain't Love" (U.S. #16) and "In My Dreams" (U.S. #19). The Hits is a 1988 compilation album which contained the new tracks "I Don't Want to Lose You" and "Here with Me". These were the last songs recorded with Gary Richrath and Alan Gratzer. "Here with Me" cracked the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 and the top ten on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Changes in the 1990s
By the late 1980s, the band's popularity was starting to decline. Original drummer Alan Gratzer left in September 1988 after he decided to retire from music to open a restaurant. In early 1989, Gary Richrath was fired after tensions between him and Kevin Cronin boiled over. Cronin had been playing in The Strolling Dudes, a jazz ensemble that included jazz trumpet player Rick Braun (who had co-written the abovementioned "Here with Me" with Cronin), Miles Joseph on lead guitar and Graham Lear on drums. Lear had already been invited to join REO in September 1988 as Gratzer's successor and Joseph was brought in as a temporary stand-in for Richrath. Back up singers Carla Day and Melanie Jackson were also added. This lineup did only one show, on January 7, 1989, in Viña del Mar, Chile, where it won the award for best group at the city's annual International Song Festival. After that, Miles Joseph and the back up singers were dropped in favor of former Ted Nugent guitarist Dave Amato (who was brought aboard in May 1989) and keyboardist/songwriter/producer Jesse Harms.
The 1990 release The Earth, a Small Man, His Dog and a Chicken, with Bryan Hitt (formerly of Wang Chung) on drums, was a commercial disappointment. The album produced only one, and - to date - the band's last Billboard Hot 100 single, "Love Is a Rock," which peaked at No. 65. Harms, disenchanted by the album's failure, left the group in early 1991.
Shortly after his departure, Richrath assembled former members of the Midwestern band Vancouver to form a namesake band, Richrath. After touring for several years, the Richrath band released Only the Strong Survive in 1992 on the GNP Crescendo label. Richrath (the band) continued to perform for several years before disbanding in the late 1990s. In September 1998, Gary Richrath briefly joined REO onstage at the County Fair in Los Angeles to play on the band's encore song, "157 Riverside Avenue". He then joined REO once again in Los Angeles in May 2000 for the same encore but no serious plans for a reunion ever materialized.
Having lost their recording contract with Epic, REO Speedwagon ended up releasing Building the Bridge (1996) on the Priority/Rhythm Safari label. When that label went bankrupt, the album was released on Castle Records, which also experienced financial troubles. REO Speedwagon ultimately self-financed this effort, which failed to chart. The title track did make R&R's AC Top 30 chart.
Revival of the hits
The commercial failure of the band's newer material with its revised lineup demanded a change in marketing strategy. As a consequence, Epic began re-releasing recordings from older albums with updated artwork and design.
Since 1995, the label has released over a dozen compilation albums featuring greatest hits, including 1999's The Ballads which features two new songs: "Just for You" (Cronin and Jim Peterik) and "Till The River's Run Dry" (Cronin). In 2000, REO teamed up with Styx for an appearance at Riverport Amphitheater in St. Louis, which was released as a live concert video Arch Allies: Live at Riverport. The REO portion of the show was released again under three separate titles: Live - Plus (2001), Live Plus 3 (2001) and Extended Versions (2001) (which was certified gold by the RIAA on April 26, 2006). REO once again teamed with Styx in 2003 for the Classic Rock's Main Event tour which also included another band from their common rock era, Journey.
2000–present
The band released a self-financed album entitled Find Your Own Way Home in April 2007. Though it did not chart as an album, it produced two singles "I Needed to Fall" (Cronin) and "Find Your Own Way Home" (Cronin) which appeared on Billboard's Adult Contemporary radio chart.
REO Speedwagon continues to tour regularly, performing mostly their classic hits. They teamed up with Styx to record a new single entitled "Can't Stop Rockin'", released in March 2009, as well as for a full tour that included special guest .38 Special.
In November 2009, REO Speedwagon released a Christmas album, Not So Silent Night...Christmas with REO Speedwagon. On December 2, the band released an online video game, Find Your Own Way Home, produced by digital design agency Curious Sense. The game was the first "downloadable casual game" produced with a rock band and was cited by numerous publications including The New York Times as an innovative marketing product for a music act. In mid-2010, the band — then touring with Pat Benatar — announced that it would release a 30th anniversary deluxe edition reissue of Hi Infidelity.
REO Speedwagon headlined on the M&I Classic Rock Stage at the Milwaukee Summerfest on June 30, 2011. On March 11, 2012, Kevin Cronin appeared on the Canadian reality TV series Star Académie. He sang a sampling of REO's hits with the show's singing finalists.
On November 22, 2013, they announced a benefit concert with Styx titled "Rock to the Rescue" to raise money for the affected families of the tornadoes in central Illinois. The concert was held on December 4, 2013, in Bloomington, Illinois. Richard Marx joined REO on stage for a joint performance of two of his hit songs. Gary Richrath reunited with REO one final time for a performance of "Ridin' the Storm Out" to end REO's set at the sold-out concert. Richrath stayed on stage to help with the encore of "With a Little Help From My Friends" along with REO, Styx, Richard Marx, and others. Richrath was originally from the town of East Peoria which was damaged during the storm. Families impacted by the storm and first responders sat near the stage for this special REO concert.
In early 2014, it was announced that REO Speedwagon and Chicago would be teaming up for 15 dates throughout 2014. Gary Richrath died on September 13, 2015, due to complications from surgery. In 2016 the band went on tour with Def Leppard and Tesla.
The band performed with Pitbull the song "Messin' Around" live on the ABC TV show Greatest Hits in 2016; that version of the song was also released as a single on iTunes. The band toured the UK arena circuit with Status Quo in December 2016. The band toured the US with Styx and Don Felder on the "United We Rock" tour, debuting June 20, 2017, at the Sunlight Supply Amphitheater. In 2017, the Hi Infidelity album received the Diamond Award for official U.S. sales of over 10 million copies. REO and Chicago teamed up once again in the summer of 2018 for a 30-city tour.
The band appeared in an episode in the third season of the American TV series Ozark, which was released on Netflix on March 27, 2020. After the appearance, four of REO's songs reentered the Billboard rock charts.
In 2021, REO Speedwagon was inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Illinois Rock & Roll Museum on Rt. 66 located in Joliet, IL. web|url=https://roadtorock.org
Band members
Current members
Neal Doughty – keyboards (1967–present)
Kevin Cronin – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards (1972–1973, 1976–present)
Bruce Hall – bass, backing and lead vocals (1977–present)
Dave Amato – lead guitar, backing vocals (1989–present)
Bryan Hitt – drums, percussion (1989–present)
Former members
Alan Gratzer – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1967–1988)
Joe Matt – lead guitar, lead vocals (1967–1968)
Mike Blair – bass, backing vocals (1967–1968)
Terry Luttrell – lead vocals (1968–1972)
Bob Crownover – lead guitar (1968–1969)
Gregg Philbin – bass, backing vocals (1968–1977)
Joe McCabe – saxophone (1968)
Marty Shepard – trumpet (1968)
Bill Fiorio – lead guitar (1969)
Steve Scorfina – lead guitar (1969–1970)
Gary Richrath – lead guitar, occasional vocals (1970–1989; died 2015)
Mike Murphy – lead vocals, occasional rhythm guitar (1973–1976)
Graham Lear – drums (1988–1989)
Miles Joseph – lead guitar (1989; died 2012)
Carla Day – backing vocals (1989)
Melanie Jackson – backing vocals (1989)
Jesse Harms – keyboards (1989–1991)
Discography
Studio albums
R.E.O. Speedwagon (1971)
R.E.O./T.W.O. (1972)
Ridin' the Storm Out (1973)
Lost in a Dream (1974)
This Time We Mean It (1975)
R.E.O. (1976)
You Can Tune a Piano, but You Can't Tuna Fish (1978)
Nine Lives (1979)
Hi Infidelity (1980)
Good Trouble (1982)
Wheels Are Turnin' (1984)
Life as We Know It (1987)
The Earth, a Small Man, His Dog and a Chicken (1990)
Building the Bridge (1996)
Find Your Own Way Home (2007)
Not So Silent Night ... Christmas with REO Speedwagon (2009)
See also
List of artists who reached number one in the United States
References
External links
How REO Speedwagon Got Their Name
REO Speedwagon Live Photo Gallery
1967 establishments in Illinois
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Illinois
Musical groups established in 1967
Musical groups from Champaign, Illinois
Musical quintets | false | [
"Mainstream jazz is a term coined in the 1950s by music journalist Stanley Dance, who considered anything within the popular jazz of the Swing Era \"mainstream\", and did not include the bebop style.\n\nJazz in the mainstream \n\nAfter Dance defined mainstream jazz in the 1950s, the definition changed with the evolution and progression of jazz music. What was mainstream then would not be considered mainstream now. In a general sense, mainstream jazz can be considered what was most popular at the time: For example, during the Swing era, swing and big band music were in their prime and what target audiences were looking for. Although bebop was introduced into jazz during that time, audiences had not developed an ear for it.\n\nMainstream jazz musicians \nThe jazz musicians listed below were either considered \"mainstream\" musicians, or were influenced by mainstream musicians.\n\nSwing era \n Duke Ellington was an important influence on mainstream jazz; his music during the swing era was not known for breaking rules. \n Coleman Hawkins made significant contributions to big band music prior to introducing bebop to his style. \n Johnny Hodges was a member of Duke Ellington's Orchestra and became a familiar voice within the orchestra itself. \n Benny Carter was a major influence on the big band style. \n Roy Eldridge has been named one of the most influential jazz musicians both within the swing era and to the development of bebop. His trumpet playing was influenced by Louis Armstrong.\n\nMainstream jazz in popular culture \nIn the 1950s and 1960s, jazz was a mainstream part of pop culture. Jazz music was on the radio and Hollywood frequently incorporated jazz in television and films.\n\nReferences \n\n \nJazz genres",
"The discography of Aunty Disco Project, a Pakistani indie rock band, consists of one studio album, as well as numerous live albums, singles and music videos. The band was formed by lead guitarist and vocalist Omar Bilal Akhtar, along with bassist Imran Lodhi, guitarist Khawer Khan, drummer Omar Khalid and darbuka player Yasir Qureshi in 2006.\n\nThe band became quickly popular in the underground scene with their high energy live act and their performance of original songs, something that was very unusual for an unknown band to do in the local music scene. Within a short time, the band achieved mainstream success and garnered critical acclaim for their electrifying live performances. This was followed by the band working on their debut album in September 2006 at New Shadab Studios. The band released their self-titled debut album Aunty Disco Project in December 2007, independently, produced and written by the band themselves. The album achieved success as the band received wide acclaim and exposure alongside mainstream acts. After a 2-month hiatus, Aunty Disco Project made a comeback to the music industry with the release of their third music video, “Nazar”. The video, directed by Umer Adil was the bands' first high budget video and it got them widespread mainstream attention. The video was critically lauded and for the first time Aunty Disco Project was on the music channel charts. The song was included in The Musik's, Top 100 videos of 2008. Based on the success of this video, the band were nominated for “Best Breakthrough Performance” at the first MTV Music Awards in Pakistan.\n\nIn 2010, the band featured at the third season of the musical television show Coke Studio where the band performed their single “Sultanat”, which was a huge commercial success for the band. However, a year later, Aunty Disco Project through their official blog informed their fans that they would disband after their final concert that took place on June 25, 2011.\n\nAlbums\n\nStudio albums\n\nLive albums\n\nSingles\n\nMusic videos\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nOfficial website\nOfficial blog\nAunty Disco Project at YouTube\nAunty Disco Project at Facebook\nAunty Disco Project at Twitter\n\nDiscography\nDiscographies of Pakistani artists\nRock music group discographies"
]
|
[
"REO Speedwagon",
"Mainstream success",
"What accounted for the mainstream success of the band?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_e4db42ff500e43a8bc170416e7c47a5f_1 | Major achievements during this period? | 2 | REO Speedwagon's major achievements during their mainstream success? | REO Speedwagon | The stage was now set for the height of the band's popularity. On November 21, 1980, REO Speedwagon released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material. Hi Infidelity spawned four hit singles written by Richrath and Cronin, including the chart-topping "Keep On Loving You" (Cronin), plus "Take It on the Run" (#5) (Richrath), "In Your Letter" (#20) (Richrath), and "Don't Let Him Go" (#24) (Cronin), and remained on the charts for 65 weeks, 32 of which were spent in the top ten, including 15 weeks atop the Billboard 200. Hi Infidelity sold over 10 million copies and set the bar for rock bands across the country. The band's follow-up album, Good Trouble, was released in 1982. Although it was not as successful as its predecessor, the album performed moderately well commercially, featuring the hit singles "Keep the Fire Burnin'" (U.S. #7), "Sweet Time" (U.S. #26) and the Album Rock chart hit "The Key." The band came storming back two years later with Wheels Are Turnin', an album that included the #1 hit single "Can't Fight This Feeling" plus three more hits: "I Do' Wanna Know" (U.S. #29), "One Lonely Night" (U.S. #19), and "Live Every Moment" (U.S. #34). REO Speedwagon toured the US in 1985, including a sold-out concert in Madison, Wisconsin in May. On July 13, on the way to a show in Milwaukee, the band made a stop in Philadelphia to play at the US leg of Live Aid, which broke a record for number of viewers. They performed "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Roll With the Changes," which featured members of the Beach Boys, the band members' families, and Paul Shaffer on stage for backing vocals. 1987's Life as We Know It saw a decline in sales, but still managed to provide the band with the top-20 hits "That Ain't Love" (U.S. #16) and "In My Dreams" (U.S. #19). The Hits (1988) is a compilation album from REO Speedwagon. It contains new tracks "Here With Me" and "I Don't Want to Lose You." "Here with Me" cracked the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the top ten on the Adult Contemporary chart. They were the last songs recorded with Gary Richrath and Alan Gratzer CANNOTANSWER | On November 21, 1980, REO Speedwagon released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material. | REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. The group's best-selling album, Hi Infidelity (1980), contained four US top 40 hits and sold more than 10 million copies.
Over the course of their career, the band has sold more than 40 million records and has charted 13 top 40 hits, including the number ones "Keep On Loving You" and "Can't Fight This Feeling". REO Speedwagon's mainstream popularity waned in the late 1980s, but the band remains a popular live act.
History
Formation
In the autumn of 1966, Neal Doughty entered the electrical engineering program at the University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois, as a junior. On his first night, he met fellow student Alan Gratzer. They held an impromptu jam session in the basement of their Illinois Street Residence Hall dormitory and soon started a rock band. Gratzer had been a drummer since high school, and was playing in a local group on the weekends, while Doughty had learned some Beatles songs on his parents' piano.
Doughty began to follow Gratzer's band, eventually sitting in on a song or two. The keyboard player was the leader, but several other band members were unhappy with the situation. On the last day of the university's spring semester, guitarist Joe Matt called the band's leader and told him that he, drummer Gratzer, and bassist Mike Blair had decided to leave the band to start a new one with Doughty.
They made a list of songs to learn over the summer break, and Doughty landed a summer job to buy his first keyboard. On his Farfisa organ, he learned "Light My Fire" by The Doors. The members returned to school in the fall of 1967 and had their first rehearsal before classes started. They named the band REO Speedwagon, from the REO Speed Wagon, a 1915 truck that was designed by Ransom Eli Olds. Doughty had seen the name written across the blackboard when he walked into his History of Transportation class on the first day they had decided to look for a name. Rather than pronouncing REO as a single word as the motor company did , they chose to spell the word out, pronouncing each letter individually ("R-E-O"). An advertisement in the school newspaper produced their first job, a fraternity party that turned into a food fight. They continued to perform cover songs in campus bars, fraternity parties, and university events. The first lineup consisted of Doughty on keyboards, Gratzer on drums and vocals, Joe Matt on guitar and vocals, Mike Blair on bass and vocals.
In early 1968, Terry Luttrell became lead singer, and Bob Crownover joined as the guitar player, replacing Matt. When Mike Blair left the band in mid-1968, Gregg Philbin replaced Blair, Marty Shepard played trumpet and Joe McCabe played sax until McCabe moved to Southern Illinois University. Crownover played guitar for the group until mid-1969 when Bill Fiorio replaced him. Fiorio then departed in late 1969, eventually assuming the name Duke Tumatoe, and went on to form the All Star Frogs. Steve Scorfina (who would go on to found progressive rock/album-oriented rock band Pavlov's Dog) came aboard for over a year, composing with the band and performing live, before being replaced by Gary Richrath in late 1970.
Richrath was a Peoria, Illinois-based guitarist and prolific songwriter who brought fresh original material to the band. Richrath had driven 100 miles (160 km) to see the band and become a part of it. He is quoted as saying "I'm going to be a part of that band whether they like it or not", and then went about making it happen. With Richrath on board, the regional popularity of the band grew tremendously. The Midwestern United States was the original REO Speedwagon fan stronghold and is pivotal in this period of the band's history. They gained a major supporter in the St. Louis, Missouri-based radio station KSHE, whose status as one of America's most influential rock stations boosted their platform beyond the Midwest.
The band signed to Epic Records in 1971. Paul Leka, an East Coast record producer, brought the band to his recording studio in Bridgeport, Connecticut where it recorded original material for its first album. The lineup on the first album consisted of Richrath, Gratzer, Doughty, Philbin, and Luttrell.
Early years
With their equipment being hauled to dates in a friend's station wagon, REO played bars and clubs all over the Midwest. The band's debut album, R.E.O. Speedwagon, was released on Epic Records in 1971. The most popular track on this record was "157 Riverside Avenue". The title refers to the Westport, Connecticut address, where the band stayed while recording in Leka's studio in Bridgeport and remains an in-concert favorite.
Although the rest of the band's lineup remained stable, REO Speedwagon switched lead vocalists three times for their first three albums. Luttrell left the band in early 1972, eventually becoming the vocalist for Starcastle. He was replaced by Kevin Cronin. Cronin recorded one album with the band, 1972's R.E.O./T.W.O. but left the band during the recording sessions for 1973's Ridin' the Storm Out because of internal conflicts. Ridin' the Storm Out was completed with Michael Bryan Murphy on lead vocal, and it featured Neal Doughty's "wailing storm siren" synthesizer intro on the title track. Murphy stayed on for two more albums, Lost in a Dream and This Time We Mean It, before Cronin returned to the fold in January 1976 and recorded R.E.O., which was released that same year.
Cronin's return came after Greg X. Volz turned down the position for lead vocalist after becoming a Christian.
In 1977, REO convinced Epic Records that their strength was in their live performances. Epic agreed to let them produce their first live album, Live: You Get What You Play For, which was eventually certified platinum. That same year, the band moved to Los Angeles, California.
In 1977, bassist Gregg Philbin left the band. Depending upon which band member is expressing an opinion, it was either because Philbin was disenchanted with the new corporate-structure REO where Cronin and Richrath got bigger slices of the pie instead of the equal credit they once shared as a "garage band", or he was asked to leave over his lifestyle issues affecting the music quality. Philbin was replaced with another Champaign, Illinois musician, Centennial High School alumnus, Bruce Hall, to record You Can Tune a Piano but You Can't Tuna Fish. The album was released in 1978 and has received FM radio airplay over the years, thanks to songs like "Roll with the Changes" and "Time for Me to Fly". The album was REO's first to make the top 40, peaking at No. 29. The album sold over two million copies in the US, ultimately achieving double platinum status.
In 1979, the band took a turn back to hard rock with the release of Nine Lives.
Mainstream success
On November 21, 1980, Epic released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material. Hi Infidelity spawned four hit singles written by Richrath and Cronin, including the chart-topping "Keep On Loving You" (Cronin), plus "Take It on the Run" (#5) (Richrath), "In Your Letter" (#20) (Richrath), and "Don't Let Him Go" (#24) (Cronin), and remained on the charts for 65 weeks, 32 of which were spent in the top ten, including 15 weeks atop the Billboard 200. Hi Infidelity sold over 10 million copies.
The band's follow-up album, Good Trouble, was released in June 1982. Although it was not as successful as its predecessor, the album performed moderately well commercially, featuring the hit singles "Keep the Fire Burnin'" (U.S. #7), "Sweet Time" (U.S. #26) and the Album Rock chart hit "The Key."
Two years later, the band released Wheels Are Turnin', an album that included the #1 hit single "Can't Fight This Feeling" plus three more hits: "I Do' Wanna Know" (U.S. #29), "One Lonely Night" (U.S. #19), and "Live Every Moment" (U.S. #34).
REO Speedwagon toured the US in 1985, including a sold-out concert in Madison, Wisconsin in May. On July 13, on the way to a show in Milwaukee, the band made a stop in Philadelphia to play at the US leg of Live Aid, which broke a record for number of viewers. They performed "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Roll with the Changes" which featured members of the Beach Boys, the band members' families, and Paul Shaffer on stage for backing vocals.
1987's Life as We Know It saw a decline in sales, but still managed to provide the band with the top-20 hits "That Ain't Love" (U.S. #16) and "In My Dreams" (U.S. #19). The Hits is a 1988 compilation album which contained the new tracks "I Don't Want to Lose You" and "Here with Me". These were the last songs recorded with Gary Richrath and Alan Gratzer. "Here with Me" cracked the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 and the top ten on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Changes in the 1990s
By the late 1980s, the band's popularity was starting to decline. Original drummer Alan Gratzer left in September 1988 after he decided to retire from music to open a restaurant. In early 1989, Gary Richrath was fired after tensions between him and Kevin Cronin boiled over. Cronin had been playing in The Strolling Dudes, a jazz ensemble that included jazz trumpet player Rick Braun (who had co-written the abovementioned "Here with Me" with Cronin), Miles Joseph on lead guitar and Graham Lear on drums. Lear had already been invited to join REO in September 1988 as Gratzer's successor and Joseph was brought in as a temporary stand-in for Richrath. Back up singers Carla Day and Melanie Jackson were also added. This lineup did only one show, on January 7, 1989, in Viña del Mar, Chile, where it won the award for best group at the city's annual International Song Festival. After that, Miles Joseph and the back up singers were dropped in favor of former Ted Nugent guitarist Dave Amato (who was brought aboard in May 1989) and keyboardist/songwriter/producer Jesse Harms.
The 1990 release The Earth, a Small Man, His Dog and a Chicken, with Bryan Hitt (formerly of Wang Chung) on drums, was a commercial disappointment. The album produced only one, and - to date - the band's last Billboard Hot 100 single, "Love Is a Rock," which peaked at No. 65. Harms, disenchanted by the album's failure, left the group in early 1991.
Shortly after his departure, Richrath assembled former members of the Midwestern band Vancouver to form a namesake band, Richrath. After touring for several years, the Richrath band released Only the Strong Survive in 1992 on the GNP Crescendo label. Richrath (the band) continued to perform for several years before disbanding in the late 1990s. In September 1998, Gary Richrath briefly joined REO onstage at the County Fair in Los Angeles to play on the band's encore song, "157 Riverside Avenue". He then joined REO once again in Los Angeles in May 2000 for the same encore but no serious plans for a reunion ever materialized.
Having lost their recording contract with Epic, REO Speedwagon ended up releasing Building the Bridge (1996) on the Priority/Rhythm Safari label. When that label went bankrupt, the album was released on Castle Records, which also experienced financial troubles. REO Speedwagon ultimately self-financed this effort, which failed to chart. The title track did make R&R's AC Top 30 chart.
Revival of the hits
The commercial failure of the band's newer material with its revised lineup demanded a change in marketing strategy. As a consequence, Epic began re-releasing recordings from older albums with updated artwork and design.
Since 1995, the label has released over a dozen compilation albums featuring greatest hits, including 1999's The Ballads which features two new songs: "Just for You" (Cronin and Jim Peterik) and "Till The River's Run Dry" (Cronin). In 2000, REO teamed up with Styx for an appearance at Riverport Amphitheater in St. Louis, which was released as a live concert video Arch Allies: Live at Riverport. The REO portion of the show was released again under three separate titles: Live - Plus (2001), Live Plus 3 (2001) and Extended Versions (2001) (which was certified gold by the RIAA on April 26, 2006). REO once again teamed with Styx in 2003 for the Classic Rock's Main Event tour which also included another band from their common rock era, Journey.
2000–present
The band released a self-financed album entitled Find Your Own Way Home in April 2007. Though it did not chart as an album, it produced two singles "I Needed to Fall" (Cronin) and "Find Your Own Way Home" (Cronin) which appeared on Billboard's Adult Contemporary radio chart.
REO Speedwagon continues to tour regularly, performing mostly their classic hits. They teamed up with Styx to record a new single entitled "Can't Stop Rockin'", released in March 2009, as well as for a full tour that included special guest .38 Special.
In November 2009, REO Speedwagon released a Christmas album, Not So Silent Night...Christmas with REO Speedwagon. On December 2, the band released an online video game, Find Your Own Way Home, produced by digital design agency Curious Sense. The game was the first "downloadable casual game" produced with a rock band and was cited by numerous publications including The New York Times as an innovative marketing product for a music act. In mid-2010, the band — then touring with Pat Benatar — announced that it would release a 30th anniversary deluxe edition reissue of Hi Infidelity.
REO Speedwagon headlined on the M&I Classic Rock Stage at the Milwaukee Summerfest on June 30, 2011. On March 11, 2012, Kevin Cronin appeared on the Canadian reality TV series Star Académie. He sang a sampling of REO's hits with the show's singing finalists.
On November 22, 2013, they announced a benefit concert with Styx titled "Rock to the Rescue" to raise money for the affected families of the tornadoes in central Illinois. The concert was held on December 4, 2013, in Bloomington, Illinois. Richard Marx joined REO on stage for a joint performance of two of his hit songs. Gary Richrath reunited with REO one final time for a performance of "Ridin' the Storm Out" to end REO's set at the sold-out concert. Richrath stayed on stage to help with the encore of "With a Little Help From My Friends" along with REO, Styx, Richard Marx, and others. Richrath was originally from the town of East Peoria which was damaged during the storm. Families impacted by the storm and first responders sat near the stage for this special REO concert.
In early 2014, it was announced that REO Speedwagon and Chicago would be teaming up for 15 dates throughout 2014. Gary Richrath died on September 13, 2015, due to complications from surgery. In 2016 the band went on tour with Def Leppard and Tesla.
The band performed with Pitbull the song "Messin' Around" live on the ABC TV show Greatest Hits in 2016; that version of the song was also released as a single on iTunes. The band toured the UK arena circuit with Status Quo in December 2016. The band toured the US with Styx and Don Felder on the "United We Rock" tour, debuting June 20, 2017, at the Sunlight Supply Amphitheater. In 2017, the Hi Infidelity album received the Diamond Award for official U.S. sales of over 10 million copies. REO and Chicago teamed up once again in the summer of 2018 for a 30-city tour.
The band appeared in an episode in the third season of the American TV series Ozark, which was released on Netflix on March 27, 2020. After the appearance, four of REO's songs reentered the Billboard rock charts.
In 2021, REO Speedwagon was inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Illinois Rock & Roll Museum on Rt. 66 located in Joliet, IL. web|url=https://roadtorock.org
Band members
Current members
Neal Doughty – keyboards (1967–present)
Kevin Cronin – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards (1972–1973, 1976–present)
Bruce Hall – bass, backing and lead vocals (1977–present)
Dave Amato – lead guitar, backing vocals (1989–present)
Bryan Hitt – drums, percussion (1989–present)
Former members
Alan Gratzer – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1967–1988)
Joe Matt – lead guitar, lead vocals (1967–1968)
Mike Blair – bass, backing vocals (1967–1968)
Terry Luttrell – lead vocals (1968–1972)
Bob Crownover – lead guitar (1968–1969)
Gregg Philbin – bass, backing vocals (1968–1977)
Joe McCabe – saxophone (1968)
Marty Shepard – trumpet (1968)
Bill Fiorio – lead guitar (1969)
Steve Scorfina – lead guitar (1969–1970)
Gary Richrath – lead guitar, occasional vocals (1970–1989; died 2015)
Mike Murphy – lead vocals, occasional rhythm guitar (1973–1976)
Graham Lear – drums (1988–1989)
Miles Joseph – lead guitar (1989; died 2012)
Carla Day – backing vocals (1989)
Melanie Jackson – backing vocals (1989)
Jesse Harms – keyboards (1989–1991)
Discography
Studio albums
R.E.O. Speedwagon (1971)
R.E.O./T.W.O. (1972)
Ridin' the Storm Out (1973)
Lost in a Dream (1974)
This Time We Mean It (1975)
R.E.O. (1976)
You Can Tune a Piano, but You Can't Tuna Fish (1978)
Nine Lives (1979)
Hi Infidelity (1980)
Good Trouble (1982)
Wheels Are Turnin' (1984)
Life as We Know It (1987)
The Earth, a Small Man, His Dog and a Chicken (1990)
Building the Bridge (1996)
Find Your Own Way Home (2007)
Not So Silent Night ... Christmas with REO Speedwagon (2009)
See also
List of artists who reached number one in the United States
References
External links
How REO Speedwagon Got Their Name
REO Speedwagon Live Photo Gallery
1967 establishments in Illinois
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Illinois
Musical groups established in 1967
Musical groups from Champaign, Illinois
Musical quintets | false | [
"Certain time periods have been named \"golden ages\" where development in India flourished.The period of Gupta rule between 300 and 600 CE has been called the Golden Age of India for its advances in science and emphasis on classical Indian art and literature. Gupta rulers acquired much of the land previously held by the Mauryan Empire, and peace and trade flourished under their rule\n\nAncient India\n\nThe period between the 4th and 6th centuries CE is known as the Golden Age of India because of the considerable achievements of Indians in the fields of mathematics, astronomy, science, religion and philosophy during the Gupta Empire. The decimal numeral system, including the concept of zero, was invented in India during this period. The peace and prosperity created under the leadership of the Guptas enabled the pursuit of scientific and artistic endeavors in India. The Golden Age of India came to an end when the Hunas invaded the Gupta Empire in the 6th century CE.\n\nMedieval India\n\nSouth India in the 10th and 11th century CE under the imperial Cholas is considered as another Golden Age. The period saw extensive achievements in Dravidian architecture, Tamil literature, sculpture and bronze working, maritime conquests and trade. During Cholas the major South East Asia practice Hinduism, cholas influence was as far as Vietnam.\n\nIn the 13th and early 14th century CE under the Delhi Sultanate and in the 16th and 17th century CE under the Mughal Empire are considered Golden Ages, both economically and culturally. The periods saw extensive achievements in Indo-Islamic architecture, Indo-Persian culture, monuments, mosques, calligraphy, conquests, manufacturing and trade. During the Mughal era, the gross domestic product (GDP) of India in 1600 was estimated at 22% of the world economy, the second largest in the world, behind only Ming China but larger than Europe. By 1700, the GDP of Mughal India had risen to 24% of the world economy, the largest in the world, larger than both Qing China and Western Europe. The Mughal empire was producing about 25% of the world's industrial output up until the 18th century.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Gupta and Harsha: The Classical Age\n Frontline Article on Gupta period Art\n\nAncient India\nIndia",
"This is a list of the seasons played by OFK Titograd from 1950, when the club is founded. The club's achievements in all major national competitions are listed.\n\nSeasons in domestic competitions\n\nChampionship\n\nFinal placement by seasons\nFrom 1950, FK Mladost played seasons in domestic leagues of SFR Yugoslavia, FR Yugoslavia, Serbia and Montenegro and Montenegro. Below is a list of FK Mladost final placements by every single season.\nDuring the period 1960–1992, FK Mladost played in official competitions under the name OFK Titograd, which was again adopted in 2018.\n\nSee also\nFK Mladost Podgorica\nMontenegrin First League\nMontenegrin clubs in Yugoslav football competitions (1946–2006)\n\nSeasons\nLists of Montenegrin football club seasons"
]
|
[
"REO Speedwagon",
"Mainstream success",
"What accounted for the mainstream success of the band?",
"I don't know.",
"Major achievements during this period?",
"On November 21, 1980, REO Speedwagon released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material."
]
| C_e4db42ff500e43a8bc170416e7c47a5f_1 | Any awards or recognition during this time ? | 3 | Did REO SPeedwagon have any awards or recognition during their mainstream success? | REO Speedwagon | The stage was now set for the height of the band's popularity. On November 21, 1980, REO Speedwagon released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material. Hi Infidelity spawned four hit singles written by Richrath and Cronin, including the chart-topping "Keep On Loving You" (Cronin), plus "Take It on the Run" (#5) (Richrath), "In Your Letter" (#20) (Richrath), and "Don't Let Him Go" (#24) (Cronin), and remained on the charts for 65 weeks, 32 of which were spent in the top ten, including 15 weeks atop the Billboard 200. Hi Infidelity sold over 10 million copies and set the bar for rock bands across the country. The band's follow-up album, Good Trouble, was released in 1982. Although it was not as successful as its predecessor, the album performed moderately well commercially, featuring the hit singles "Keep the Fire Burnin'" (U.S. #7), "Sweet Time" (U.S. #26) and the Album Rock chart hit "The Key." The band came storming back two years later with Wheels Are Turnin', an album that included the #1 hit single "Can't Fight This Feeling" plus three more hits: "I Do' Wanna Know" (U.S. #29), "One Lonely Night" (U.S. #19), and "Live Every Moment" (U.S. #34). REO Speedwagon toured the US in 1985, including a sold-out concert in Madison, Wisconsin in May. On July 13, on the way to a show in Milwaukee, the band made a stop in Philadelphia to play at the US leg of Live Aid, which broke a record for number of viewers. They performed "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Roll With the Changes," which featured members of the Beach Boys, the band members' families, and Paul Shaffer on stage for backing vocals. 1987's Life as We Know It saw a decline in sales, but still managed to provide the band with the top-20 hits "That Ain't Love" (U.S. #16) and "In My Dreams" (U.S. #19). The Hits (1988) is a compilation album from REO Speedwagon. It contains new tracks "Here With Me" and "I Don't Want to Lose You." "Here with Me" cracked the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the top ten on the Adult Contemporary chart. They were the last songs recorded with Gary Richrath and Alan Gratzer CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. The group's best-selling album, Hi Infidelity (1980), contained four US top 40 hits and sold more than 10 million copies.
Over the course of their career, the band has sold more than 40 million records and has charted 13 top 40 hits, including the number ones "Keep On Loving You" and "Can't Fight This Feeling". REO Speedwagon's mainstream popularity waned in the late 1980s, but the band remains a popular live act.
History
Formation
In the autumn of 1966, Neal Doughty entered the electrical engineering program at the University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois, as a junior. On his first night, he met fellow student Alan Gratzer. They held an impromptu jam session in the basement of their Illinois Street Residence Hall dormitory and soon started a rock band. Gratzer had been a drummer since high school, and was playing in a local group on the weekends, while Doughty had learned some Beatles songs on his parents' piano.
Doughty began to follow Gratzer's band, eventually sitting in on a song or two. The keyboard player was the leader, but several other band members were unhappy with the situation. On the last day of the university's spring semester, guitarist Joe Matt called the band's leader and told him that he, drummer Gratzer, and bassist Mike Blair had decided to leave the band to start a new one with Doughty.
They made a list of songs to learn over the summer break, and Doughty landed a summer job to buy his first keyboard. On his Farfisa organ, he learned "Light My Fire" by The Doors. The members returned to school in the fall of 1967 and had their first rehearsal before classes started. They named the band REO Speedwagon, from the REO Speed Wagon, a 1915 truck that was designed by Ransom Eli Olds. Doughty had seen the name written across the blackboard when he walked into his History of Transportation class on the first day they had decided to look for a name. Rather than pronouncing REO as a single word as the motor company did , they chose to spell the word out, pronouncing each letter individually ("R-E-O"). An advertisement in the school newspaper produced their first job, a fraternity party that turned into a food fight. They continued to perform cover songs in campus bars, fraternity parties, and university events. The first lineup consisted of Doughty on keyboards, Gratzer on drums and vocals, Joe Matt on guitar and vocals, Mike Blair on bass and vocals.
In early 1968, Terry Luttrell became lead singer, and Bob Crownover joined as the guitar player, replacing Matt. When Mike Blair left the band in mid-1968, Gregg Philbin replaced Blair, Marty Shepard played trumpet and Joe McCabe played sax until McCabe moved to Southern Illinois University. Crownover played guitar for the group until mid-1969 when Bill Fiorio replaced him. Fiorio then departed in late 1969, eventually assuming the name Duke Tumatoe, and went on to form the All Star Frogs. Steve Scorfina (who would go on to found progressive rock/album-oriented rock band Pavlov's Dog) came aboard for over a year, composing with the band and performing live, before being replaced by Gary Richrath in late 1970.
Richrath was a Peoria, Illinois-based guitarist and prolific songwriter who brought fresh original material to the band. Richrath had driven 100 miles (160 km) to see the band and become a part of it. He is quoted as saying "I'm going to be a part of that band whether they like it or not", and then went about making it happen. With Richrath on board, the regional popularity of the band grew tremendously. The Midwestern United States was the original REO Speedwagon fan stronghold and is pivotal in this period of the band's history. They gained a major supporter in the St. Louis, Missouri-based radio station KSHE, whose status as one of America's most influential rock stations boosted their platform beyond the Midwest.
The band signed to Epic Records in 1971. Paul Leka, an East Coast record producer, brought the band to his recording studio in Bridgeport, Connecticut where it recorded original material for its first album. The lineup on the first album consisted of Richrath, Gratzer, Doughty, Philbin, and Luttrell.
Early years
With their equipment being hauled to dates in a friend's station wagon, REO played bars and clubs all over the Midwest. The band's debut album, R.E.O. Speedwagon, was released on Epic Records in 1971. The most popular track on this record was "157 Riverside Avenue". The title refers to the Westport, Connecticut address, where the band stayed while recording in Leka's studio in Bridgeport and remains an in-concert favorite.
Although the rest of the band's lineup remained stable, REO Speedwagon switched lead vocalists three times for their first three albums. Luttrell left the band in early 1972, eventually becoming the vocalist for Starcastle. He was replaced by Kevin Cronin. Cronin recorded one album with the band, 1972's R.E.O./T.W.O. but left the band during the recording sessions for 1973's Ridin' the Storm Out because of internal conflicts. Ridin' the Storm Out was completed with Michael Bryan Murphy on lead vocal, and it featured Neal Doughty's "wailing storm siren" synthesizer intro on the title track. Murphy stayed on for two more albums, Lost in a Dream and This Time We Mean It, before Cronin returned to the fold in January 1976 and recorded R.E.O., which was released that same year.
Cronin's return came after Greg X. Volz turned down the position for lead vocalist after becoming a Christian.
In 1977, REO convinced Epic Records that their strength was in their live performances. Epic agreed to let them produce their first live album, Live: You Get What You Play For, which was eventually certified platinum. That same year, the band moved to Los Angeles, California.
In 1977, bassist Gregg Philbin left the band. Depending upon which band member is expressing an opinion, it was either because Philbin was disenchanted with the new corporate-structure REO where Cronin and Richrath got bigger slices of the pie instead of the equal credit they once shared as a "garage band", or he was asked to leave over his lifestyle issues affecting the music quality. Philbin was replaced with another Champaign, Illinois musician, Centennial High School alumnus, Bruce Hall, to record You Can Tune a Piano but You Can't Tuna Fish. The album was released in 1978 and has received FM radio airplay over the years, thanks to songs like "Roll with the Changes" and "Time for Me to Fly". The album was REO's first to make the top 40, peaking at No. 29. The album sold over two million copies in the US, ultimately achieving double platinum status.
In 1979, the band took a turn back to hard rock with the release of Nine Lives.
Mainstream success
On November 21, 1980, Epic released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material. Hi Infidelity spawned four hit singles written by Richrath and Cronin, including the chart-topping "Keep On Loving You" (Cronin), plus "Take It on the Run" (#5) (Richrath), "In Your Letter" (#20) (Richrath), and "Don't Let Him Go" (#24) (Cronin), and remained on the charts for 65 weeks, 32 of which were spent in the top ten, including 15 weeks atop the Billboard 200. Hi Infidelity sold over 10 million copies.
The band's follow-up album, Good Trouble, was released in June 1982. Although it was not as successful as its predecessor, the album performed moderately well commercially, featuring the hit singles "Keep the Fire Burnin'" (U.S. #7), "Sweet Time" (U.S. #26) and the Album Rock chart hit "The Key."
Two years later, the band released Wheels Are Turnin', an album that included the #1 hit single "Can't Fight This Feeling" plus three more hits: "I Do' Wanna Know" (U.S. #29), "One Lonely Night" (U.S. #19), and "Live Every Moment" (U.S. #34).
REO Speedwagon toured the US in 1985, including a sold-out concert in Madison, Wisconsin in May. On July 13, on the way to a show in Milwaukee, the band made a stop in Philadelphia to play at the US leg of Live Aid, which broke a record for number of viewers. They performed "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Roll with the Changes" which featured members of the Beach Boys, the band members' families, and Paul Shaffer on stage for backing vocals.
1987's Life as We Know It saw a decline in sales, but still managed to provide the band with the top-20 hits "That Ain't Love" (U.S. #16) and "In My Dreams" (U.S. #19). The Hits is a 1988 compilation album which contained the new tracks "I Don't Want to Lose You" and "Here with Me". These were the last songs recorded with Gary Richrath and Alan Gratzer. "Here with Me" cracked the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 and the top ten on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Changes in the 1990s
By the late 1980s, the band's popularity was starting to decline. Original drummer Alan Gratzer left in September 1988 after he decided to retire from music to open a restaurant. In early 1989, Gary Richrath was fired after tensions between him and Kevin Cronin boiled over. Cronin had been playing in The Strolling Dudes, a jazz ensemble that included jazz trumpet player Rick Braun (who had co-written the abovementioned "Here with Me" with Cronin), Miles Joseph on lead guitar and Graham Lear on drums. Lear had already been invited to join REO in September 1988 as Gratzer's successor and Joseph was brought in as a temporary stand-in for Richrath. Back up singers Carla Day and Melanie Jackson were also added. This lineup did only one show, on January 7, 1989, in Viña del Mar, Chile, where it won the award for best group at the city's annual International Song Festival. After that, Miles Joseph and the back up singers were dropped in favor of former Ted Nugent guitarist Dave Amato (who was brought aboard in May 1989) and keyboardist/songwriter/producer Jesse Harms.
The 1990 release The Earth, a Small Man, His Dog and a Chicken, with Bryan Hitt (formerly of Wang Chung) on drums, was a commercial disappointment. The album produced only one, and - to date - the band's last Billboard Hot 100 single, "Love Is a Rock," which peaked at No. 65. Harms, disenchanted by the album's failure, left the group in early 1991.
Shortly after his departure, Richrath assembled former members of the Midwestern band Vancouver to form a namesake band, Richrath. After touring for several years, the Richrath band released Only the Strong Survive in 1992 on the GNP Crescendo label. Richrath (the band) continued to perform for several years before disbanding in the late 1990s. In September 1998, Gary Richrath briefly joined REO onstage at the County Fair in Los Angeles to play on the band's encore song, "157 Riverside Avenue". He then joined REO once again in Los Angeles in May 2000 for the same encore but no serious plans for a reunion ever materialized.
Having lost their recording contract with Epic, REO Speedwagon ended up releasing Building the Bridge (1996) on the Priority/Rhythm Safari label. When that label went bankrupt, the album was released on Castle Records, which also experienced financial troubles. REO Speedwagon ultimately self-financed this effort, which failed to chart. The title track did make R&R's AC Top 30 chart.
Revival of the hits
The commercial failure of the band's newer material with its revised lineup demanded a change in marketing strategy. As a consequence, Epic began re-releasing recordings from older albums with updated artwork and design.
Since 1995, the label has released over a dozen compilation albums featuring greatest hits, including 1999's The Ballads which features two new songs: "Just for You" (Cronin and Jim Peterik) and "Till The River's Run Dry" (Cronin). In 2000, REO teamed up with Styx for an appearance at Riverport Amphitheater in St. Louis, which was released as a live concert video Arch Allies: Live at Riverport. The REO portion of the show was released again under three separate titles: Live - Plus (2001), Live Plus 3 (2001) and Extended Versions (2001) (which was certified gold by the RIAA on April 26, 2006). REO once again teamed with Styx in 2003 for the Classic Rock's Main Event tour which also included another band from their common rock era, Journey.
2000–present
The band released a self-financed album entitled Find Your Own Way Home in April 2007. Though it did not chart as an album, it produced two singles "I Needed to Fall" (Cronin) and "Find Your Own Way Home" (Cronin) which appeared on Billboard's Adult Contemporary radio chart.
REO Speedwagon continues to tour regularly, performing mostly their classic hits. They teamed up with Styx to record a new single entitled "Can't Stop Rockin'", released in March 2009, as well as for a full tour that included special guest .38 Special.
In November 2009, REO Speedwagon released a Christmas album, Not So Silent Night...Christmas with REO Speedwagon. On December 2, the band released an online video game, Find Your Own Way Home, produced by digital design agency Curious Sense. The game was the first "downloadable casual game" produced with a rock band and was cited by numerous publications including The New York Times as an innovative marketing product for a music act. In mid-2010, the band — then touring with Pat Benatar — announced that it would release a 30th anniversary deluxe edition reissue of Hi Infidelity.
REO Speedwagon headlined on the M&I Classic Rock Stage at the Milwaukee Summerfest on June 30, 2011. On March 11, 2012, Kevin Cronin appeared on the Canadian reality TV series Star Académie. He sang a sampling of REO's hits with the show's singing finalists.
On November 22, 2013, they announced a benefit concert with Styx titled "Rock to the Rescue" to raise money for the affected families of the tornadoes in central Illinois. The concert was held on December 4, 2013, in Bloomington, Illinois. Richard Marx joined REO on stage for a joint performance of two of his hit songs. Gary Richrath reunited with REO one final time for a performance of "Ridin' the Storm Out" to end REO's set at the sold-out concert. Richrath stayed on stage to help with the encore of "With a Little Help From My Friends" along with REO, Styx, Richard Marx, and others. Richrath was originally from the town of East Peoria which was damaged during the storm. Families impacted by the storm and first responders sat near the stage for this special REO concert.
In early 2014, it was announced that REO Speedwagon and Chicago would be teaming up for 15 dates throughout 2014. Gary Richrath died on September 13, 2015, due to complications from surgery. In 2016 the band went on tour with Def Leppard and Tesla.
The band performed with Pitbull the song "Messin' Around" live on the ABC TV show Greatest Hits in 2016; that version of the song was also released as a single on iTunes. The band toured the UK arena circuit with Status Quo in December 2016. The band toured the US with Styx and Don Felder on the "United We Rock" tour, debuting June 20, 2017, at the Sunlight Supply Amphitheater. In 2017, the Hi Infidelity album received the Diamond Award for official U.S. sales of over 10 million copies. REO and Chicago teamed up once again in the summer of 2018 for a 30-city tour.
The band appeared in an episode in the third season of the American TV series Ozark, which was released on Netflix on March 27, 2020. After the appearance, four of REO's songs reentered the Billboard rock charts.
In 2021, REO Speedwagon was inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Illinois Rock & Roll Museum on Rt. 66 located in Joliet, IL. web|url=https://roadtorock.org
Band members
Current members
Neal Doughty – keyboards (1967–present)
Kevin Cronin – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards (1972–1973, 1976–present)
Bruce Hall – bass, backing and lead vocals (1977–present)
Dave Amato – lead guitar, backing vocals (1989–present)
Bryan Hitt – drums, percussion (1989–present)
Former members
Alan Gratzer – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1967–1988)
Joe Matt – lead guitar, lead vocals (1967–1968)
Mike Blair – bass, backing vocals (1967–1968)
Terry Luttrell – lead vocals (1968–1972)
Bob Crownover – lead guitar (1968–1969)
Gregg Philbin – bass, backing vocals (1968–1977)
Joe McCabe – saxophone (1968)
Marty Shepard – trumpet (1968)
Bill Fiorio – lead guitar (1969)
Steve Scorfina – lead guitar (1969–1970)
Gary Richrath – lead guitar, occasional vocals (1970–1989; died 2015)
Mike Murphy – lead vocals, occasional rhythm guitar (1973–1976)
Graham Lear – drums (1988–1989)
Miles Joseph – lead guitar (1989; died 2012)
Carla Day – backing vocals (1989)
Melanie Jackson – backing vocals (1989)
Jesse Harms – keyboards (1989–1991)
Discography
Studio albums
R.E.O. Speedwagon (1971)
R.E.O./T.W.O. (1972)
Ridin' the Storm Out (1973)
Lost in a Dream (1974)
This Time We Mean It (1975)
R.E.O. (1976)
You Can Tune a Piano, but You Can't Tuna Fish (1978)
Nine Lives (1979)
Hi Infidelity (1980)
Good Trouble (1982)
Wheels Are Turnin' (1984)
Life as We Know It (1987)
The Earth, a Small Man, His Dog and a Chicken (1990)
Building the Bridge (1996)
Find Your Own Way Home (2007)
Not So Silent Night ... Christmas with REO Speedwagon (2009)
See also
List of artists who reached number one in the United States
References
External links
How REO Speedwagon Got Their Name
REO Speedwagon Live Photo Gallery
1967 establishments in Illinois
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Illinois
Musical groups established in 1967
Musical groups from Champaign, Illinois
Musical quintets | false | [
"The United States Department of the Army offers a variety of awards, decorations and incentive programs to honor and recognize the contribution and efforts of its civilian workforce. Department of the Army civilian awards are governed by Army Regulation 672–20 Decorations, Awards, and Honors Incentive Awards.\n\nThere are three categories of recognition: monetary, honorary, and time-off.\n\nSuperior accomplishment awards \n Special Act or Service Award – A SASA is a cash award given to recognize a meritorious personal effort, act, service, scientific or other achievement accomplished within or outside assigned job responsibilities. All appropriated fund employees are eligible for this award. Cash awards range from $25 to $25,000, depending on the achievement being recognized. (An additional award exceeding $25,000 may be approved at the direction of the President.)\n On-the-Spot Cash Award – The OTS cash award is a small SASA ($25 to $250) which may be given by a supervisor for day to day accomplishments of subordinate employees.\n Time Off Award – Employees may be granted up to 80 hours of time off during a leave year without charge to leave or loss of pay as an award for achievements or performance contributing to the Army mission.\n Performance Award – A performance award is a monetary award given in recognition of high-level performance for a specific period. This award is used to recognize all appropriated fund employees, except Senior Executive Service (SES) employees. Performance awards will be computed as a percentage of pay with a maximum award of 10 percent of the employee’s base pay.\n\nValorous awards\nThe Secretary of the Army Award for Valor is awarded for acts of heroism or bravery connected with an Army employee or Army activity, or that in some way benefits the Army. Recipients will have distinguished themselves by exhibiting great courage or sacrifice involving heroism or bravery. The performance of the act must be a voluntary action above and beyond the call of duty. The act may be recognized if it is connected with an Army employee or Army activity, or if the Army in some way benefits from the act. Awards will be made only to recognize single acts of heroism or bravery. This award is not presented in recognition of activities or conflict with an armed enemy. The situation must have involved personal hazard or danger and the voluntary risk of life. Awards are not made solely for saving a life.\n\nHonorary awards \nHonorary awards are intended to be presented to Department of the Army civilian employees in recognition of noteworthy accomplishments. Honorary awards may be given to civilian employees at any time in their careers, including occasions such as retirement, reassignment, transfer, or separation, provided the individual’s accomplishments fully meet the criteria for the particular award.\n\nMedals (in order of precedence)\nDistinguished Civilian Service Medal\nSuperior Civilian Service Medal\nMeritorious Civilian Service Medal\nCivilian Service Commendation Medal (formerly known as the Commander's Award for Civilian Service)\nCivilian Service Achievement Medal\nCivilian Award for Humanitarian Service\nArmed Forces Civilian Service Medal\n\nOther Department of the Army honorary awards for civilian federal employees\n Patriotic Public Service Lapel Pin\n Certificate of Achievement\n Commendation Certificate\n Certificate of Appreciation\n Secretary of the Army Award for Outstanding Achievement in Materiel Acquisition\n Department of the Army Certificate of Promotion\n Award for Outstanding Service in the Army Senior Executive Service\n Awards for Outstanding Service in a Senior Level or Senior Scientific and Professional Position\n\nPublic service awards \nAwards for public service may be awarded to persons or groups who are not employed by the Army. Presidential appointees and non-career senior Army officials are eligible for these awards. Army civilian employees who are eligible for Army honorary awards, military personnel, and Army contractors are ineligible. These awards are in hierarchical order from the highest to the lowest.\n\n Distinguished Public Service Medal\n Superior Public Service Medal\n Meritorious Public Service Medal\n Public Service Commendation Medal\n Patriotic Public Service Lapel Pin\n Civilian Award for Humanitarian Service\n Certificate of Appreciation\n\nSee also \n Awards and decorations of the United States government\n\nReferences \n\nCivil awards and decorations of the United States",
"The American Library Association is a professional society for librarians and some other information service providers. Its awards program includes \"Books, Print & Media Awards\"; professional recognition within the library sciences; and scholarships, fellowships and grants. Some of the former are annual book awards with great public visibility.\n\nBook, print and media awards\nKey\n Award: Name of the award or list\n First: Year the honor was inaugurated (first awarded) \n Two years such as \"1958 –1966\" signify the honor has been discontinued and was last awarded in the latter year.\n Type: one of {Book, Career, Media, Print, Professional}\n Admin.: ALA Division responsible for the award\n Class: one of the following, if any\n Recommended lists (\"Best of ...\") = lists of multiple recommended works\n Youth Media Awards = honoring work(s) for children or young adults and/or their creators\n Libraries and librarianship = honoring work about libraries, etc.\n Mo.: Month of announcement\n\nGrants and fellowships\n\n ALA Grants and Fellowship awards.\n\nProfessional recognition awards\n\nALA Professional Recognition awards.\n\nJames Madison Award — administered by the Office for Government Relations, from 1989 annually honoring \"individuals or groups who have championed, protected and promoted public access to government information and the public's right to know at the national level\"\n\nScholarships\n\nALA Scholarships.\n\nSee also\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n ALA Awards Program\n\nALA"
]
|
[
"REO Speedwagon",
"Mainstream success",
"What accounted for the mainstream success of the band?",
"I don't know.",
"Major achievements during this period?",
"On November 21, 1980, REO Speedwagon released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material.",
"Any awards or recognition during this time ?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_e4db42ff500e43a8bc170416e7c47a5f_1 | How many albums sold? | 4 | How many albums did REO Speedwagon sell? | REO Speedwagon | The stage was now set for the height of the band's popularity. On November 21, 1980, REO Speedwagon released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material. Hi Infidelity spawned four hit singles written by Richrath and Cronin, including the chart-topping "Keep On Loving You" (Cronin), plus "Take It on the Run" (#5) (Richrath), "In Your Letter" (#20) (Richrath), and "Don't Let Him Go" (#24) (Cronin), and remained on the charts for 65 weeks, 32 of which were spent in the top ten, including 15 weeks atop the Billboard 200. Hi Infidelity sold over 10 million copies and set the bar for rock bands across the country. The band's follow-up album, Good Trouble, was released in 1982. Although it was not as successful as its predecessor, the album performed moderately well commercially, featuring the hit singles "Keep the Fire Burnin'" (U.S. #7), "Sweet Time" (U.S. #26) and the Album Rock chart hit "The Key." The band came storming back two years later with Wheels Are Turnin', an album that included the #1 hit single "Can't Fight This Feeling" plus three more hits: "I Do' Wanna Know" (U.S. #29), "One Lonely Night" (U.S. #19), and "Live Every Moment" (U.S. #34). REO Speedwagon toured the US in 1985, including a sold-out concert in Madison, Wisconsin in May. On July 13, on the way to a show in Milwaukee, the band made a stop in Philadelphia to play at the US leg of Live Aid, which broke a record for number of viewers. They performed "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Roll With the Changes," which featured members of the Beach Boys, the band members' families, and Paul Shaffer on stage for backing vocals. 1987's Life as We Know It saw a decline in sales, but still managed to provide the band with the top-20 hits "That Ain't Love" (U.S. #16) and "In My Dreams" (U.S. #19). The Hits (1988) is a compilation album from REO Speedwagon. It contains new tracks "Here With Me" and "I Don't Want to Lose You." "Here with Me" cracked the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the top ten on the Adult Contemporary chart. They were the last songs recorded with Gary Richrath and Alan Gratzer CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. The group's best-selling album, Hi Infidelity (1980), contained four US top 40 hits and sold more than 10 million copies.
Over the course of their career, the band has sold more than 40 million records and has charted 13 top 40 hits, including the number ones "Keep On Loving You" and "Can't Fight This Feeling". REO Speedwagon's mainstream popularity waned in the late 1980s, but the band remains a popular live act.
History
Formation
In the autumn of 1966, Neal Doughty entered the electrical engineering program at the University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois, as a junior. On his first night, he met fellow student Alan Gratzer. They held an impromptu jam session in the basement of their Illinois Street Residence Hall dormitory and soon started a rock band. Gratzer had been a drummer since high school, and was playing in a local group on the weekends, while Doughty had learned some Beatles songs on his parents' piano.
Doughty began to follow Gratzer's band, eventually sitting in on a song or two. The keyboard player was the leader, but several other band members were unhappy with the situation. On the last day of the university's spring semester, guitarist Joe Matt called the band's leader and told him that he, drummer Gratzer, and bassist Mike Blair had decided to leave the band to start a new one with Doughty.
They made a list of songs to learn over the summer break, and Doughty landed a summer job to buy his first keyboard. On his Farfisa organ, he learned "Light My Fire" by The Doors. The members returned to school in the fall of 1967 and had their first rehearsal before classes started. They named the band REO Speedwagon, from the REO Speed Wagon, a 1915 truck that was designed by Ransom Eli Olds. Doughty had seen the name written across the blackboard when he walked into his History of Transportation class on the first day they had decided to look for a name. Rather than pronouncing REO as a single word as the motor company did , they chose to spell the word out, pronouncing each letter individually ("R-E-O"). An advertisement in the school newspaper produced their first job, a fraternity party that turned into a food fight. They continued to perform cover songs in campus bars, fraternity parties, and university events. The first lineup consisted of Doughty on keyboards, Gratzer on drums and vocals, Joe Matt on guitar and vocals, Mike Blair on bass and vocals.
In early 1968, Terry Luttrell became lead singer, and Bob Crownover joined as the guitar player, replacing Matt. When Mike Blair left the band in mid-1968, Gregg Philbin replaced Blair, Marty Shepard played trumpet and Joe McCabe played sax until McCabe moved to Southern Illinois University. Crownover played guitar for the group until mid-1969 when Bill Fiorio replaced him. Fiorio then departed in late 1969, eventually assuming the name Duke Tumatoe, and went on to form the All Star Frogs. Steve Scorfina (who would go on to found progressive rock/album-oriented rock band Pavlov's Dog) came aboard for over a year, composing with the band and performing live, before being replaced by Gary Richrath in late 1970.
Richrath was a Peoria, Illinois-based guitarist and prolific songwriter who brought fresh original material to the band. Richrath had driven 100 miles (160 km) to see the band and become a part of it. He is quoted as saying "I'm going to be a part of that band whether they like it or not", and then went about making it happen. With Richrath on board, the regional popularity of the band grew tremendously. The Midwestern United States was the original REO Speedwagon fan stronghold and is pivotal in this period of the band's history. They gained a major supporter in the St. Louis, Missouri-based radio station KSHE, whose status as one of America's most influential rock stations boosted their platform beyond the Midwest.
The band signed to Epic Records in 1971. Paul Leka, an East Coast record producer, brought the band to his recording studio in Bridgeport, Connecticut where it recorded original material for its first album. The lineup on the first album consisted of Richrath, Gratzer, Doughty, Philbin, and Luttrell.
Early years
With their equipment being hauled to dates in a friend's station wagon, REO played bars and clubs all over the Midwest. The band's debut album, R.E.O. Speedwagon, was released on Epic Records in 1971. The most popular track on this record was "157 Riverside Avenue". The title refers to the Westport, Connecticut address, where the band stayed while recording in Leka's studio in Bridgeport and remains an in-concert favorite.
Although the rest of the band's lineup remained stable, REO Speedwagon switched lead vocalists three times for their first three albums. Luttrell left the band in early 1972, eventually becoming the vocalist for Starcastle. He was replaced by Kevin Cronin. Cronin recorded one album with the band, 1972's R.E.O./T.W.O. but left the band during the recording sessions for 1973's Ridin' the Storm Out because of internal conflicts. Ridin' the Storm Out was completed with Michael Bryan Murphy on lead vocal, and it featured Neal Doughty's "wailing storm siren" synthesizer intro on the title track. Murphy stayed on for two more albums, Lost in a Dream and This Time We Mean It, before Cronin returned to the fold in January 1976 and recorded R.E.O., which was released that same year.
Cronin's return came after Greg X. Volz turned down the position for lead vocalist after becoming a Christian.
In 1977, REO convinced Epic Records that their strength was in their live performances. Epic agreed to let them produce their first live album, Live: You Get What You Play For, which was eventually certified platinum. That same year, the band moved to Los Angeles, California.
In 1977, bassist Gregg Philbin left the band. Depending upon which band member is expressing an opinion, it was either because Philbin was disenchanted with the new corporate-structure REO where Cronin and Richrath got bigger slices of the pie instead of the equal credit they once shared as a "garage band", or he was asked to leave over his lifestyle issues affecting the music quality. Philbin was replaced with another Champaign, Illinois musician, Centennial High School alumnus, Bruce Hall, to record You Can Tune a Piano but You Can't Tuna Fish. The album was released in 1978 and has received FM radio airplay over the years, thanks to songs like "Roll with the Changes" and "Time for Me to Fly". The album was REO's first to make the top 40, peaking at No. 29. The album sold over two million copies in the US, ultimately achieving double platinum status.
In 1979, the band took a turn back to hard rock with the release of Nine Lives.
Mainstream success
On November 21, 1980, Epic released Hi Infidelity, which represented a change in sound, going from hard rock to more pop-oriented material. Hi Infidelity spawned four hit singles written by Richrath and Cronin, including the chart-topping "Keep On Loving You" (Cronin), plus "Take It on the Run" (#5) (Richrath), "In Your Letter" (#20) (Richrath), and "Don't Let Him Go" (#24) (Cronin), and remained on the charts for 65 weeks, 32 of which were spent in the top ten, including 15 weeks atop the Billboard 200. Hi Infidelity sold over 10 million copies.
The band's follow-up album, Good Trouble, was released in June 1982. Although it was not as successful as its predecessor, the album performed moderately well commercially, featuring the hit singles "Keep the Fire Burnin'" (U.S. #7), "Sweet Time" (U.S. #26) and the Album Rock chart hit "The Key."
Two years later, the band released Wheels Are Turnin', an album that included the #1 hit single "Can't Fight This Feeling" plus three more hits: "I Do' Wanna Know" (U.S. #29), "One Lonely Night" (U.S. #19), and "Live Every Moment" (U.S. #34).
REO Speedwagon toured the US in 1985, including a sold-out concert in Madison, Wisconsin in May. On July 13, on the way to a show in Milwaukee, the band made a stop in Philadelphia to play at the US leg of Live Aid, which broke a record for number of viewers. They performed "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Roll with the Changes" which featured members of the Beach Boys, the band members' families, and Paul Shaffer on stage for backing vocals.
1987's Life as We Know It saw a decline in sales, but still managed to provide the band with the top-20 hits "That Ain't Love" (U.S. #16) and "In My Dreams" (U.S. #19). The Hits is a 1988 compilation album which contained the new tracks "I Don't Want to Lose You" and "Here with Me". These were the last songs recorded with Gary Richrath and Alan Gratzer. "Here with Me" cracked the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 and the top ten on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Changes in the 1990s
By the late 1980s, the band's popularity was starting to decline. Original drummer Alan Gratzer left in September 1988 after he decided to retire from music to open a restaurant. In early 1989, Gary Richrath was fired after tensions between him and Kevin Cronin boiled over. Cronin had been playing in The Strolling Dudes, a jazz ensemble that included jazz trumpet player Rick Braun (who had co-written the abovementioned "Here with Me" with Cronin), Miles Joseph on lead guitar and Graham Lear on drums. Lear had already been invited to join REO in September 1988 as Gratzer's successor and Joseph was brought in as a temporary stand-in for Richrath. Back up singers Carla Day and Melanie Jackson were also added. This lineup did only one show, on January 7, 1989, in Viña del Mar, Chile, where it won the award for best group at the city's annual International Song Festival. After that, Miles Joseph and the back up singers were dropped in favor of former Ted Nugent guitarist Dave Amato (who was brought aboard in May 1989) and keyboardist/songwriter/producer Jesse Harms.
The 1990 release The Earth, a Small Man, His Dog and a Chicken, with Bryan Hitt (formerly of Wang Chung) on drums, was a commercial disappointment. The album produced only one, and - to date - the band's last Billboard Hot 100 single, "Love Is a Rock," which peaked at No. 65. Harms, disenchanted by the album's failure, left the group in early 1991.
Shortly after his departure, Richrath assembled former members of the Midwestern band Vancouver to form a namesake band, Richrath. After touring for several years, the Richrath band released Only the Strong Survive in 1992 on the GNP Crescendo label. Richrath (the band) continued to perform for several years before disbanding in the late 1990s. In September 1998, Gary Richrath briefly joined REO onstage at the County Fair in Los Angeles to play on the band's encore song, "157 Riverside Avenue". He then joined REO once again in Los Angeles in May 2000 for the same encore but no serious plans for a reunion ever materialized.
Having lost their recording contract with Epic, REO Speedwagon ended up releasing Building the Bridge (1996) on the Priority/Rhythm Safari label. When that label went bankrupt, the album was released on Castle Records, which also experienced financial troubles. REO Speedwagon ultimately self-financed this effort, which failed to chart. The title track did make R&R's AC Top 30 chart.
Revival of the hits
The commercial failure of the band's newer material with its revised lineup demanded a change in marketing strategy. As a consequence, Epic began re-releasing recordings from older albums with updated artwork and design.
Since 1995, the label has released over a dozen compilation albums featuring greatest hits, including 1999's The Ballads which features two new songs: "Just for You" (Cronin and Jim Peterik) and "Till The River's Run Dry" (Cronin). In 2000, REO teamed up with Styx for an appearance at Riverport Amphitheater in St. Louis, which was released as a live concert video Arch Allies: Live at Riverport. The REO portion of the show was released again under three separate titles: Live - Plus (2001), Live Plus 3 (2001) and Extended Versions (2001) (which was certified gold by the RIAA on April 26, 2006). REO once again teamed with Styx in 2003 for the Classic Rock's Main Event tour which also included another band from their common rock era, Journey.
2000–present
The band released a self-financed album entitled Find Your Own Way Home in April 2007. Though it did not chart as an album, it produced two singles "I Needed to Fall" (Cronin) and "Find Your Own Way Home" (Cronin) which appeared on Billboard's Adult Contemporary radio chart.
REO Speedwagon continues to tour regularly, performing mostly their classic hits. They teamed up with Styx to record a new single entitled "Can't Stop Rockin'", released in March 2009, as well as for a full tour that included special guest .38 Special.
In November 2009, REO Speedwagon released a Christmas album, Not So Silent Night...Christmas with REO Speedwagon. On December 2, the band released an online video game, Find Your Own Way Home, produced by digital design agency Curious Sense. The game was the first "downloadable casual game" produced with a rock band and was cited by numerous publications including The New York Times as an innovative marketing product for a music act. In mid-2010, the band — then touring with Pat Benatar — announced that it would release a 30th anniversary deluxe edition reissue of Hi Infidelity.
REO Speedwagon headlined on the M&I Classic Rock Stage at the Milwaukee Summerfest on June 30, 2011. On March 11, 2012, Kevin Cronin appeared on the Canadian reality TV series Star Académie. He sang a sampling of REO's hits with the show's singing finalists.
On November 22, 2013, they announced a benefit concert with Styx titled "Rock to the Rescue" to raise money for the affected families of the tornadoes in central Illinois. The concert was held on December 4, 2013, in Bloomington, Illinois. Richard Marx joined REO on stage for a joint performance of two of his hit songs. Gary Richrath reunited with REO one final time for a performance of "Ridin' the Storm Out" to end REO's set at the sold-out concert. Richrath stayed on stage to help with the encore of "With a Little Help From My Friends" along with REO, Styx, Richard Marx, and others. Richrath was originally from the town of East Peoria which was damaged during the storm. Families impacted by the storm and first responders sat near the stage for this special REO concert.
In early 2014, it was announced that REO Speedwagon and Chicago would be teaming up for 15 dates throughout 2014. Gary Richrath died on September 13, 2015, due to complications from surgery. In 2016 the band went on tour with Def Leppard and Tesla.
The band performed with Pitbull the song "Messin' Around" live on the ABC TV show Greatest Hits in 2016; that version of the song was also released as a single on iTunes. The band toured the UK arena circuit with Status Quo in December 2016. The band toured the US with Styx and Don Felder on the "United We Rock" tour, debuting June 20, 2017, at the Sunlight Supply Amphitheater. In 2017, the Hi Infidelity album received the Diamond Award for official U.S. sales of over 10 million copies. REO and Chicago teamed up once again in the summer of 2018 for a 30-city tour.
The band appeared in an episode in the third season of the American TV series Ozark, which was released on Netflix on March 27, 2020. After the appearance, four of REO's songs reentered the Billboard rock charts.
In 2021, REO Speedwagon was inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Illinois Rock & Roll Museum on Rt. 66 located in Joliet, IL. web|url=https://roadtorock.org
Band members
Current members
Neal Doughty – keyboards (1967–present)
Kevin Cronin – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards (1972–1973, 1976–present)
Bruce Hall – bass, backing and lead vocals (1977–present)
Dave Amato – lead guitar, backing vocals (1989–present)
Bryan Hitt – drums, percussion (1989–present)
Former members
Alan Gratzer – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1967–1988)
Joe Matt – lead guitar, lead vocals (1967–1968)
Mike Blair – bass, backing vocals (1967–1968)
Terry Luttrell – lead vocals (1968–1972)
Bob Crownover – lead guitar (1968–1969)
Gregg Philbin – bass, backing vocals (1968–1977)
Joe McCabe – saxophone (1968)
Marty Shepard – trumpet (1968)
Bill Fiorio – lead guitar (1969)
Steve Scorfina – lead guitar (1969–1970)
Gary Richrath – lead guitar, occasional vocals (1970–1989; died 2015)
Mike Murphy – lead vocals, occasional rhythm guitar (1973–1976)
Graham Lear – drums (1988–1989)
Miles Joseph – lead guitar (1989; died 2012)
Carla Day – backing vocals (1989)
Melanie Jackson – backing vocals (1989)
Jesse Harms – keyboards (1989–1991)
Discography
Studio albums
R.E.O. Speedwagon (1971)
R.E.O./T.W.O. (1972)
Ridin' the Storm Out (1973)
Lost in a Dream (1974)
This Time We Mean It (1975)
R.E.O. (1976)
You Can Tune a Piano, but You Can't Tuna Fish (1978)
Nine Lives (1979)
Hi Infidelity (1980)
Good Trouble (1982)
Wheels Are Turnin' (1984)
Life as We Know It (1987)
The Earth, a Small Man, His Dog and a Chicken (1990)
Building the Bridge (1996)
Find Your Own Way Home (2007)
Not So Silent Night ... Christmas with REO Speedwagon (2009)
See also
List of artists who reached number one in the United States
References
External links
How REO Speedwagon Got Their Name
REO Speedwagon Live Photo Gallery
1967 establishments in Illinois
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Illinois
Musical groups established in 1967
Musical groups from Champaign, Illinois
Musical quintets | false | [
"Played on Pepper is the third studio album by the Danish soft rock band Michael Learns to Rock. It was released on 28 August 1995 by Medley Records in Europe. The first single from the album was \"Someday\" (1995), followed by \"That's Why (You Go Away)\" (1995), \"How Many Hours\" (1996), \"Love Will Never Lie\" (1996).\n\nAs of May 1996, the album had sold 1 million copies worldwide, with 120,000 of them being sold in Denmark.\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nOfficial website\n\n1995 albums\nMichael Learns to Rock albums",
"Revelation Part 1: The Root of Life is the second studio album of Stephen Marley, released on 24 May 2011. The album won a Grammy Award in 2012 for Best Reggae Album.\n\nReception\nThe album debuted at No. 92 on Billboard 200, and No. 1 on Reggae Albums, selling around 5,000 in the first week. The album has sold 46,000 copies in the United States as of June 2016.\n\nTrack listing \n \"Made In Africa\" (featuring Wale & The Cast of Fela!)\n \"False Friends\"\n \"Break Us Apart\" (featuring Capleton)\n \"Can't Keep I Down\"\n \"No Cigarette Smoking\" (featuring Melanie Fiona)\n \"Freedom Time\"\n \"Jah Army\" (featuring Damian Marley & Buju Banton)\n \"Old Slaves\"\n \"Pale Moonlight (How Many Times)\"\n \"She Knows Now\"\n \"Selassie Is The Chapel\" (featuring Ziggy Marley)\n \"Tight Ship\" (featuring Damian Marley)\n \"Working Ways\" (featuring Spragga Benz)\n \"Now I Know\"\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\n2011 albums\nStephen Marley albums\nTuff Gong albums\nUniversal Records albums"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo"
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | Who took the famous photo? | 1 | Who took the famous photo of Y. A. Tittle? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | Morris Berman | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"Doug Ball is a Canadian photojournalist.\n\nFamous photos\n Robert Stanfield's fumble. Doug Ball 1974 photo of Conservative Leader/candidate fumbling a football is said to have cost him (and the Conservative Party) the election. The Canadian Press sent the picture across Canada where the photo was played on many front pages.\n Pierre Trudeau's pirouette. The 1977 photo show Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau doing a pirouette behind an oblivious Queen Elizabeth II at a G7 summit Conference in London, England. This photo is arguably the most famous photo of Trudeau. \"The picture, we have been led to believe, expresses his maverick anti-conformism, his democratic disdain for aristocratic pomp.\"\n\nReferences\n\nCanadian photojournalists\nCanadian photographers\nLiving people\nYear of birth missing (living people)",
"Disaster Girl is a widely shared photograph of a young girl staring into the camera while a house burns behind her.\n\nThe girl in the photo, Zoë Roth, was four years old when the photo was taken in 2005. It was sold for $470,000 at auction on April 29, 2021.\n\nThe Roth family lived near a fire station in Mebane, North Carolina, and as they watched a house being burned for training, Zoë's father, an amateur photographer, took her picture as she smiled in a way that suggested she had started the fire and was happy about it. Her father entered it into a photo contest in 2007 and it won. The photo became famous in 2008 when it won an Emotion Capture contest in JPG magazine. Zoë had given permission to use the image in educational material, but the photo had been used hundreds of times for various purposes without the Roths having control. After receiving an email in February 2021 suggesting she sell the meme as an NFT for as much as \"six figures\", Roth decided to sell the original copy. On April 17, 2021, Roth sold the photo, now an NFT, for the equivalent of US$486,716 to a collector identified only as @3FMusic. This allowed the family to retain copyright and 10 percent of proceeds when the NFT was resold.\n\nReferences\n\n2005 works\n2000s photographs\nInternet memes\nAlamance County, North Carolina"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo",
"Who took the famous photo?",
"Morris Berman"
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | When was the photo taken? | 2 | When was the famous photo of Y. A. Tittle taken? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | September 20, 1964, | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"Helicopter Shark is a composition of two photographs that gives the impression that a great white shark is leaping out of the water to attack military personnel climbing a suspended ladder attached to a Special Forces UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. The photo was widely circulated via an email in 2001, along with a claim that it had been chosen as \"National Geographic Photo of the Year\". The email in question was usually written in the following form: The photo is similar to an incident in the 1966 film Batman where a shark attacks Batman on a ladder from a helicopter. This raised suspicions that the photo in question was a hoax. National Geographic publicly disavowed the photo and the claimed award as a hoax.\n\nThe hoax has been discussed in various texts, including a marketing book to teach lessons about influence and a book on teaching critical thinking. The author Carmel Morris who was known to create and circulate many 'Photoshopped' shark attack images during this period has denied creating the helicopter shark image.\n\nThe final edited photo was created by combining a photograph of a HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter taken by Lance Cheung for the United States Air Force (USAF), and a photo taken by South African photographer Charles Maxwell. While the helicopter photo was in fact taken in front of the Golden Gate Bridge, the photo of the shark was taken in False Bay, South Africa.\n\nSee also\n Hoax\n Internet humor\n Internet phenomenon\n Photo editing\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nNational Geographic News article\nSwimming With the Sharks\nSan Francisco Bay Adventures article\nSnopes article on this photo\n\nInternet memes\nInternet hoaxes\nPhotography forgeries\n2001 hoaxes\nFictional sharks",
"Disaster Girl is a widely shared photograph of a young girl staring into the camera while a house burns behind her.\n\nThe girl in the photo, Zoë Roth, was four years old when the photo was taken in 2005. It was sold for $470,000 at auction on April 29, 2021.\n\nThe Roth family lived near a fire station in Mebane, North Carolina, and as they watched a house being burned for training, Zoë's father, an amateur photographer, took her picture as she smiled in a way that suggested she had started the fire and was happy about it. Her father entered it into a photo contest in 2007 and it won. The photo became famous in 2008 when it won an Emotion Capture contest in JPG magazine. Zoë had given permission to use the image in educational material, but the photo had been used hundreds of times for various purposes without the Roths having control. After receiving an email in February 2021 suggesting she sell the meme as an NFT for as much as \"six figures\", Roth decided to sell the original copy. On April 17, 2021, Roth sold the photo, now an NFT, for the equivalent of US$486,716 to a collector identified only as @3FMusic. This allowed the family to retain copyright and 10 percent of proceeds when the NFT was resold.\n\nReferences\n\n2005 works\n2000s photographs\nInternet memes\nAlamance County, North Carolina"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo",
"Who took the famous photo?",
"Morris Berman",
"When was the photo taken?",
"September 20, 1964,"
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | What was the photo of? | 3 | What was the famous photo of Y. A. Tittle of? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"Texts from Hillary was an internet meme that went viral in 2012, based on photographs of then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The photos show Clinton holding a BlackBerry phone, wearing sunglasses. A Tumblr blog added various captions under the photo, imagining what Clinton might have been texting, and paired them with a matching photo to represent her imagined conversation partner.\n\nMeme\nThe meme was based on two photographs of the same moment, from slightly different angles. One version of the photo was taken by Diane Walker from Time magazine, the other by Kevin Lamarque from the Associated Press. The photo was taken while Clinton was aboard a diplomatic trip to Libya.\n\nEmail controversy\nIn June 2016, a Freedom of Information Act deposition in a lawsuit by Judicial Watch, which was part of the Hillary Clinton email controversy, revealed that the photo caught the interest of State Department employees, who were inspired to investigate if Clinton was using a personal email account instead of an official state account.\n\nClinton used the photo as her Twitter avatar until a week after the controversy first broke.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n http://textsfromhillaryclinton.tumblr.com/\n\nCultural depictions of Hillary Clinton\nFreedom of information in the United States\nHillary Clinton\nHillary Clinton 2016 presidential campaign\nPolitical Internet memes",
"Photo Op is a 2005 photomontage of the British Prime Minister Tony Blair taking a selfie against a backdrop of burning oil. It was created by the collaborative kennardphillipps, consisting of the artists Peter Kennard and Cat Phillipps.\n\nkennardphillipps are an art collaborative who make works of art inspired by the 2003 invasion of Iraq. kennardphillipps consists of the artists Peter Kennard and Cat Phillipps, the pair use digital collage to campaign against war and capitalism. Photo Op was projected onto the Central Hall in Westminster during the Iraq Inquiry which was being held at the neighbouring Queen Elizabeth II Centre.\n\nThe art critic Jonathan Jones, writing in The Guardian in 2013, described Photo Op as \"the definitive work of art about the war\". Jones felt that \"Ten years on from that war's beginning, this manic digital collage states succinctly what a large number people feel and believe about Blair's responsibility for the chaos that ensued. It says in a nutshell what protesters claimed at the time and what has become a generally accepted version of history – that Tony Blair was a monster charging into Iraq without scruples. Look, there he is, taking a selfie in front of his handiwork\". Jones concluded that \"Art could not stop the war in Iraq. It can influence how that war is remembered. ... The image that stands as popular history is the one of Blair taking his \"maniacal selfie\" in front of the flames of devastation\".\n\nThe work was created with Photoshop using an image of Blair taking a selfie with Royal Navy cadets during the 2005 General Election campaign. The image of the cadets was replaced with a photograph of burning oil. kennardphillipps said of the work that it was \" ... born out of two years of hard work to pull down the propaganda machine\" and that they were trying to \"portray Iraq as it happened and not wait until afterwards and make a history painting\". The work was created with the intention that it be used by groups protesting the 31st G8 summit in July 2005 at Gleneagles Hotel in Scotland. Photo Op was subsequently displayed on placards carried by the Clandestine Insurgent Rebel Clown Army Group and was also on leaflets distributed at the DSEI in September 2005.\n\nPhoto Op was included in Banksy's Christmas Grotto installation on Oxford Street in London by the artist Banksy in November 2006, where it was prominently displayed facing the street. It was displayed at the Imperial War Museum North in the 2013 exhibition Catalyst: Contemporary Art and War. Photo Op was shown on the glass frontage of the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum during their 2013 exhibition of war art Caught in the Crossfire. The National Theatre adapted the image to advertise a performance of Bertolt Brecht's play Mother Courage and Her Children. The work is part of the collection of the National Portrait Gallery, London, the Scottish National Portrait Gallery and the Imperial War Museum. The National Portrait Gallery in London describe Photo Op as \"A powerful statement of dissent, [that] has become a defining image of Britain's involvement\" in the Iraq War.\n\nThe advertising company CBS Outdoor and JCDecaux refused to display the image on billboards that they owned to advertise the Imperial War Museum exhibition. CBS Outdoor said a poster featuring Photo Op was refused after consultation with the Committee of Advertising Practice. The committee advises companies on whether adverts may breach its code of conduct, with its code forbidding adverts that are likely to cause \"serious or widespread offence\" or misleading. kennardphillipps accused CBS Outdoor and JCDecaux of 'political censorship' in refusing to carry the advert.\n\nThe work is available to download from the artist's website free of charge and users are encouraged to create their own version of the piece.\n\nPhoto Op was extensively analysed by Alan Ingram in his 2019 book Geopolitics and the Event: Rethinking Britain's Iraq War Through Art.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nProjection of Photo Op during the Iraq Inquiry\n\n2005 works\nAnti-war works\nCollections of the National Portrait Gallery, London\nIraq War in popular culture\nCultural depictions of Tony Blair\nPortraits of politicians"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo",
"Who took the famous photo?",
"Morris Berman",
"When was the photo taken?",
"September 20, 1964,",
"What was the photo of?",
"of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette"
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | What was he doing in the picture? | 4 | What was Y. A. Tittle doing in the famous picture? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"The Secret Thoughts of Cats was written and illustrated by Steven Appleby, and first published in 1996. \n\nAlso known as the Infinite Subtlety of Cat Expressions, it focuses on the fact that cat expressions are always the same, no matter what the situation (apart from when asleep or dead). It has a picture of a cat with the same expression on every page, and a description of what it's thinking or doing underneath. It finishes with ‘Afterthoughts’ of cats, a selection of observations made on cat behaviour. The first page is a picture of cat hairs, the last, cat hairs on cushions.\nIt was written in memory of: Terry, Dibble, Sally, and for Jim.\n\n1996 books\nComedy books\nZoology books\nBooks about cats",
"What's a Nice Girl like You Doing in a Place like This? is a 1963 American black-and-white short comedy-drama film created by Martin Scorsese while he studied at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. It is a story about a writer who becomes obsessed with a picture on his wall. The film stars Zeph Michaelis, Mimi Stark, Sarah Braveman, Fred Sica, and Robert Uricola.\n\nThe work, shot using 16 mm film, features animations, montage, jump cuts, associative editing, and freeze-frame shots. Scorsese created it shortly after watching Federico Fellini's 1963 surrealist comedy-drama 8½. The negative was cut incorrectly by a student, so a professor asked Thelma Schoonmaker, who was also participating in the summer program, to help Scorsese. Commentators noted that the film has a connection to most of Scorsese's later projects, including Goodfellas (1990) and The Wolf of Wall Street (2013).\n\nThe film received positive critical reviews, the majority of which complimented its direction and editing. It was released in 1992 on a VHS compilation tape in the United Kingdom and was re-released in May 2020 in 4K resolution format by The Criterion Collection. It was honored at the 1965 National Student Film Festival with another Scorsese short film It's Not Just You, Murray! (1964).\n\nPlot \n\nA writer Algernon, moves into a new apartment. He purchases a picture of a boat on a lake from a persuasive salesman although he dislikes it. His friends tell him it is not particularly impressive to look at. After a few days, Algernon finds himself fixating on the image and finds it difficult to write and eat. He believes his obsession with the picture is a result of his intense sensitivity and vivid imagination and he has difficulty sleeping.\n\nAlgernon throws a party, where he meets a girl who distracts him from the photograph. He finds her very attractive but does not develop any obsessive feelings about the image around her. Algernon regains the ability to eat, write and sleep. His friends describe the girl as a \"real good catch\". He later decides to marry her, and they honeymoon at the 1964 New York World's Fair, which is still under construction. After their honeymoon, Algernon starts to write a book of confessions, and the girl paints pictures. However, after having a conversation with a psychoanalyst about his obsession with the image, Algernon becomes focused on another picture, depicting an ocean. His fixation on the new photograph leads him to feel trapped inside it.\n\nCast \n\nCredits adapted from the British Film Institute.\n Zeph Michaelis as Algernon 'Harry'\n Mimi Stark as a wife\n Sarah Braveman as an analyst\n Fred Sica as a friend\n Robert Uricola as the singer\n Martin Scorsese as a man in the picture\n\nThemes \nDirector Martin Scorsese said it was inspired by an Algernon Blackwood short story, Mel Brooks's 1963 short animated film The Critic, and French-Italian New Wave cinema. He created and directed the film after watching Federico Fellini's surrealist comedy-drama 8½ (1963) for the first time, which he listed as one of his favorite films. What's a Nice Girl like You Doing in a Place like This? depicts Algernon searching for his identity; which Scorsese would explore in his future works. Themes of Catholic guilt are evident when Algernon begins writing a book of confessions. Author Annette Wernblad noted that Algernon's ego was in \"grip of deadly fear\" and she compared Algernon to Norman Bates, a fictional character from Psycho created by Robert Bloch.\n\nBen Nyce describes it as \"a light-hearted treatment\" of self-destructive behavior. Author Lester Keyser said that Scorsese's \"yearning for sex\" leads to What's a Nice Girl like You Doing in a Place like This?, Who's That Knocking at My Door and Mean Streets. It was noted by author L. Grist that in certain respects Algernon's \"paralysing obsession\" with the image was making \"himself alienating\". He added that, however, his relationship with the man in the picture \"renders the photograph, a metaphoric mirror\". Grist also pointed out that there is a \"technical and logistical circumscription\" thus there are repeated use of filming locations, the minimum amount of dress, some scene having no light, \"setting-obscuring lighting and montages of stills\". When the film is showing Algernon using a typewriter, it was replicated from Shoot the Piano Player. Grist also said that he is aware of the fact man in the picture is Scorsese; in order to become part of the picture, he occupies \"a space analogous to that occupied by Scorsese\", so he becomes \"substitute\" of Scorsese. At the end of the film, the analyst tells that \"he only half existed to begin with\".\n\nProduction \n\nScorsese intended to become a priest, but failed out of seminary. Consequently, he joined the New York University's Washington Square College (now known as the College of Arts and Science). There he met professor Haig P. Manoogian, head of the Department of Television, Motion Pictures and Radio, who he was impressed by his passion and energy. He began to learn the fundamentals of filmmaking.\n\nIn 1963, Scorsese wrote and directed his first film What's a Nice Girl like You Doing in a Place like This? as part of New York University's summer program with the Edward L. Kingsley Foundation, the Screen Producers Guild and the Brown University Film Festival backing the project alongside Scorsese's professor, Haig P Manoogian who produced it. The film features music by Richard H. Coll, cinematography by James Newman, and editing by Robert Hunsicker and contains animation, montage, jump cuts, associative editing, and freeze-frame shots. The professor had motivated Scorsese to write an original script rather than relying on someone else to write the story. Though the film was intended initially to be in the horror genre it evolved into a comedy.\n\nThe film's negative was cut incorrectly by a student so a professor asked Thelma Schoonmaker, who was also participating in the summer program, to help Scorsese. Schoonmaker worked with him on his first feature film Who's That Knocking at My Door (1967) and in 1980, she won an Academy Award for Best Film Editing for Raging Bull (1980).\n\nScorsese says of the work: \"My little film had all the tricks and the fun of just putting pictures together in slow motion and fast motion and skills, and intercutting with mattes the way Truffaut would do in Jules and Jim. It had no depth at all, but it was a lot of fun. And I won a scholarship, so my father was able to use it for the tuition for the next year ... [the film is] a tale of pure paranoia.\" The film is nine minutes long, but the May 2020 re-release lasts ten minutes, two seconds.\n\nRelease, reception and legacy \n\nWhat's a Nice Girl like You Doing in a Place like This? was released in 1992 on the Scorsese x4 VHS compilation tape in the United Kingdom. On 26 May 2020, the film was released in a Blu-ray digital format by The Criterion Collection.\n\nMany critics complimented the work of the director, one cited that it was an \"early genius\" and the staff of the Austin Film Society said that \"you can sense the assurance and gifts of its young writer/director\". Vincent LoBrutto felt the film's title was a \"cliché\".Annette Wernblad claimed that \"like many of [Scorsese's] other films it is simultaneously absurdly humorous and deeply disturbing\". Scott Meslow of Mental Floss suggested that this film was \"briskly paced\". Peter Galvin writing for the Special Broadcasting Service believed that What's a Nice Girl like You Doing in a Place like This? was one of the inspiration for Goodfellas (1990). Aaron Baker described it as \"a hybrid work combining elements of popular entertainment such as Hollywood and vaudeville with a playful, New Wave sensibility\".\n\nThis work, along with Scorsese's second student project It's Not Just You, Murray! (1964), were honored at the 1965 National Student Film Festival. Jim Sangster said it has a connection to most of Scorsese's later films. Scorsese reexamined a man being trapped inside a picture in the 1990 Japanese-American magical realist Dreams, where he plays Vincent van Gogh who ventures into his painting Wheatfield with Crows. Sangster wrote that when Algernon moves his belongings to a new apartment, it is similar to a scene in David Fincher's 1999 drama Fight Club. Christopher Campbell of Business Insider said the film is Scorsese's \"earliest use of a narrator telling his life story in the first person\" and compared it to The Wolf of Wall Street (2013). According to Slant Magazine, the painting of an old man in a boat in this film, \"amusingly anticipates a painting that would be featured in Goodfellas\".\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n\n1963 directorial debut films\n1963 films\n1963 short films\nAmerican black-and-white films\nAmerican films\nEnglish-language films\nFilms set in New York (state)\nShort films directed by Martin Scorsese"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo",
"Who took the famous photo?",
"Morris Berman",
"When was the photo taken?",
"September 20, 1964,",
"What was the photo of?",
"of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette",
"What was he doing in the picture?",
"photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker"
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | Was he injured? | 5 | Was Y. A. Tittle injured on September 20, 1964? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | false | [
"Justin Currie (born September 19, 1993) is an American football safety and linebacker who is currently a free agent. He played college football at Western Michigan and was signed by the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 2015.\n\nProfessional career\n\nNew York Giants\nOn May 7, 2015, Currie was signed by the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent. He fractured his ankle in a preseason game against the Jaguars and spent his entire rookie year on injured reserve.\n\nOn September 3, 2016, Currie was released by the Giants.\n\nCleveland Browns\nOn December 7, 2016, Currie was signed to the Cleveland Browns' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Browns on January 2, 2017.\n\nOn August 23, 2017, Currie was waived/injured by the Browns after suffering an ankle injury in the team's second preseason game. He was re-signed by the Browns on November 21, 2017. He was waived on November 30, 2017 and was re-signed to the practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on December 8, 2017.\n\nOn August 31, 2018, Currie was waived/injured by the Browns and was placed on injured reserve. He was released on September 11, 2018.\n\nSeattle Seahawks\nOn October 23, 2018, Currie was signed to the Seattle Seahawks practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 7, 2019. He was waived/injured on August 31, 2019 and placed on injured reserve. He was waived from injured reserve on September 30.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nWestern Michigan Broncos bio\n\nLiving people\n1993 births\nAmerican football defensive backs\nCleveland Browns players\nNew York Giants players\nPeople from Big Rapids, Michigan\nPlayers of American football from Michigan\nSeattle Seahawks players\nSportspeople from Royal Oak, Michigan\nWestern Michigan Broncos football players",
"Blake Cashman (born May 10, 1996) is an American football linebacker for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Minnesota and was drafted by the Jets in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL Draft.\n\nProfessional career\nCashman was drafted by the New York Jets in the fifth round (157th overall) of the 2019 NFL Draft. He was placed on injured reserve on November 1, 2019.\n\nOn September 15, 2020, Cashman was placed on injured reserve after suffering a groin injury in Week 1. He was activated on October 17. On December 3, 2020, he was placed back on injured reserve after suffering a hamstring injury.\n\nOn September 14, 2021, Cashman was placed on injured reserve. He was activated on October 9, 2021. He was placed back on injured reserve after suffering a groin injury in Week 7.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nMinnesota Golden Gophers bio\n\n1996 births\nLiving people\nPeople from Eden Prairie, Minnesota\nPlayers of American football from Minnesota\nSportspeople from the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area\nAmerican football linebackers\nMinnesota Golden Gophers football players\nNew York Jets players"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo",
"Who took the famous photo?",
"Morris Berman",
"When was the photo taken?",
"September 20, 1964,",
"What was the photo of?",
"of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette",
"What was he doing in the picture?",
"photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker",
"Was he injured?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | What else happened with the photo? | 6 | Aside from being taken by Morris Berman, What else happened with the photo of Y. A. Tittle? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"What Really Happened to the Class of '65? is an American anthology drama television series produced and aired in 1977–1978, created by Tony Bill and written by Walter Koenig The series was inspired by the bestselling book What Really Happened to the Class of '65? by David Wallechinsky and Michael Medved. It was produced by George Eckstein.\n\nSummary \nThe drama of the show revolved around the main character, played by Tony Bill, who had graduated from the class of 1965 in Bret Harte High School, and who has now returned as a teacher to the school. The show would begin with his character opening up the old school photo book, flicking to a photo, and pondering what had happened to that particular student. The show would then show the story of that student, with Bill narrating.\n\nThe show featured music from the era, and was described as \"a cross breed between Happy Days and Peyton Place\" The show debuted at 10pm on NBC on December 8, 1977.\n\nGrant High School in Van Nuys was used as a filming location for the series.\n\nCast \nTony Bill played the main character, Sam Ashley. The rest of the cast of the show featured many of the mainstay actors of the 1970s, including Cliff De Young, Leslie Nielsen, John Ritter, Annette O'Toole, Meredith Baxter Birney, John Rubinstein, Jessica Walter, and Paul Burke.\n\nEpisode list\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n What Really Happened to the Class of '65? at The Classic TV Archive\n\n1977 American television series debuts\n1978 American television series endings\n1970s American anthology television series\n1970s American drama television series\n1970s American high school television series\nNBC original programming\nTelevision series based on books\nTelevision shows set in Los Angeles",
"Faces of Love is the second extended play by South Korean singer Suzy. It was released by JYP Entertainment and distributed by IRIVER on January 29, 2018. The extended play features seven original tracks including the title track \"Holiday\".\n\nBackground and release \nOn January 2, JYP Entertainment reviled that Suzy went to Los Angeles on January 1 to film her music video for her second mini album. On January 4, JYP announced that the artist will be releasing her second solo mini album on January 29 and will be dropping a pre-release track on January 22. On January 16, a prequel video of the mini album Faces of Love was released featuring Suzy showing different concepts to her tracks. The tracks titles of the mini album were unveiled on the same day along with the pre-release date of the track \"I'm in Love With Someone Else\". On January 17, a teaser of the pre-released track \"I'm in Love With Someone Else\" was released. On January 18, teaser photos of Suzy for the track \"I'm in Love With Someone Else\" were released. On January 19, teaser photos for the title track \"Holiday\" were released. On January 20, teaser photos for the track \"Midnight\" were released. On January 21, teaser photos for the track \"SObeR\" and additional teaser photos for \"Midnight\" were released. On January 22, \"I'm in Love With Someone Else\" was released along with a music video and a live video. A lyrics photo and a cover of the track were also released. On the same day, additional teaser photos of \"SObeR\" were released. On January 24, the first teaser of the title track \"Holiday\" was released. On the same day, additional photos of \"I'm in Love With Someone Else\" were released. On January 25, the second teaser of \"Holiday\" was released along with photo teasers. On January 26, the third teaser of \"Holiday\" was released. On the same day, the first poster of the mini album Faces of Love was released along with additional photo teasers of \"Holiday\". On January 28, album spoiler video was released and other photo teasers of the mini album. On January 29, the mini album was released along with the title track \"Holiday\".\n\nOn February 14, Suzy released a music video for her track \"SObeR\".\n\nPromotion \nOn January 29, Suzy held a press showcase where she talked about her second mini album Faces of Love and performed some of the tracks.\n\nSuzy started promoting the tracks \"Holiday\" and \"SObeR\" on South Korean music shows on February 2.\n\nTrack listing\n\nCharts\n\nSales\n\nReferences\n\nJYP Entertainment EPs\nKorean-language EPs\n2018 EPs"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo",
"Who took the famous photo?",
"Morris Berman",
"When was the photo taken?",
"September 20, 1964,",
"What was the photo of?",
"of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette",
"What was he doing in the picture?",
"photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker",
"Was he injured?",
"I don't know.",
"What else happened with the photo?",
"Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo,"
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | Why didn't they publish the photo? | 7 | Why didn't Post-Gazette editors publish the photo of Y. A. Tittle? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | failed to see the appeal of the image, | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"\"Why Didn't You Call Me\" is a song by American singer Macy Gray from her debut studio album, On How Life Is (1999). It was released on July 24, 2000, as the album's fourth and final single.\n\nRelease\n\"Why Didn't You Call Me\" became Gray's third consecutive top-10 entry on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 38. In the United States, the single reached number 25 on the Adult Top 40 chart and number 29 on the Top 40 Mainstream chart. However, the song missed the Billboard Hot 100, instead peakind at number seven on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.\n\n\"Why Didn't You Call Me\" was released on two CD formats in the UK. The CD single contained remixes of \"Why Didn't You Call Me\" and \"I've Committed Murder\", along with a live recording of \"I Can't Wait to Meetchu\".\n\nMusic video\nThe music video, which depicts Gray performing in a dimly-lit room and shows close-ups of dancers, received significant play on BET, MTV, and VH1. The video entered the top 10 on VH1's most-played video chart.\n\nTrack listings\nUK CD 1\n \"Why Didn't You Call Me\" (album version)\n \"I've Committed Murder\" (Gang Starr Remix featuring Mos Def)\n \"Why Didn't You Call Me\" (88-Keys Remix featuring Grafh)\n\nUK CD 2\n \"Why Didn't You Call Me\" (album version)\n \"I Can't Wait to Meetchu\" (live)\n \"Why Didn't You Call Me\" (The Black Eyed Peas Remix)\n \"Why Didn't You Call Me\" (music video)\n\nCharts\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\n1999 songs\n2000 singles\nEpic Records singles\nMacy Gray songs\nMusic videos directed by Hype Williams\nSongs written by Jeremy Ruzumna\nSongs written by Macy Gray",
"William M. Gallagher (February 26, 1923 – September 28, 1975) was an American photographer who won the 1953 Pulitzer Prize for Photography for his photograph of presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson II. Gallagher was a photographer for 27 years with the Flint Journal in Flint, Michigan.\n\nGallagher was born in Hiawatha, Kansas. In 1936 he moved to Flint and graduated from St. Matthew's High School in 1943. During World War II he served in the United States Army in the signal corps, medical corps, and air corps.\n\nGallagher earned his first camera while in high school by selling magazines. He began his professional photography career with the Sporting Digest in Flint in 1946. The following year he moved to the Flint Journal and within a few months became a staff photographer, a position he would hold until his death. Gallagher's colleagues described him as \"a boisterous, flamboyant character\" who had good relationships with local police and government officials. He was fond of pranks, once lighting a cherry bomb inside the police department and watching the officers scramble, while another time he commandeered a police helicopter while covering a story.\n\nGallagher snapped his Pulitzer-winning photo at a Labor Day rally in Flint Park. Democratic presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson was seated on a platform with Michigan Governor G. Mennen Williams. Gallagher, kneeling at the base of the platform, took a photo of Stevenson seated with his legs crossed, which revealed a hole in the bottom of his right shoe. Because of Gallagher's position, he had to take this photo without looking through the shutter first. Gallagher didn't take the photo seriously and didn't think the Journal would publish it since they endorsed Stevenson's Republican opponent Dwight D. Eisenhower, so he gave it to his editor saying \"I just finished this for the hell of it. I don't suppose a Republican paper would want to use it.\" However, the Journal ran the photo on the front page. The New York Times wrote that Gallagher's photo was \"one of the outstanding pictures of the campaign\", perhaps because it contrasted with Stevenson's serious, patrician image. Stevenson was sent an \"avalanche\" of shoes by people who saw the image and when Gallagher won the Pulitzer Stevenson sent him a telegram reading \"Glad to hear you won with a hole in one.\"\n\nGallagher died of meningitis at age 52.\n\nReferences\n\n1923 births\n1975 deaths\nAmerican photojournalists\nPulitzer Prize for Photography winners\nUnited States Army personnel of World War II\nPeople from Hiawatha, Kansas\nPeople from Flint, Michigan\nDeaths from meningitis"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo",
"Who took the famous photo?",
"Morris Berman",
"When was the photo taken?",
"September 20, 1964,",
"What was the photo of?",
"of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette",
"What was he doing in the picture?",
"photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker",
"Was he injured?",
"I don't know.",
"What else happened with the photo?",
"Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo,",
"Why didn't they publish the photo?",
"failed to see the appeal of the image,"
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | Who did publish the photo? | 8 | Who did publish the photo of Y. A. Tittle? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | Life magazine. | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"Chi (Italian for \"Who\") is an Italian weekly gossip magazine geared towards a female viewership published in Milan, Italy.\n\nHistory and profile\nChi was established in 1995. The magazine, published weekly, is based in Segrate, Milan. The publisher of the weekly is Arnoldo Mondadori Editore. The company is headed by Marina Berlusconi, Silvio Berlusconi’s older daughter. Alfonso Signorini is the editor of the weekly.\n\nIn 2004 the circulation of Chi was 524,482 copies. The magazine had a circulation of 503,984 copies in 2007. In 2010 its circulation was 403,599 copies.\n\nPhoto of Diana, Princess of Wales\nThe magazine came under criticism for publishing a picture of Diana, Princess of Wales, taken as she was dying. The photo, which is black-and-white, depicts Diana receiving oxygen in the wreckage of the vehicle in which she died on 31 August 1997. The picture was taken from the book Lady Diana : L'enquete criminelle by Jean-Michel Caradec'h. Despite the criticism, the editor of the magazine defended their decision to publish it.\n\nDuchess of Cambridge Photos\nOn 17 September 2012, the magazine published unauthorized photographs of the Duchess of Cambridge, wife of Britain's Prince William. The photos were said to have featured 26 photos of Kate Middleton \"in and out of a bikini\" while specifically featuring three topless photos of her. The nude photos were to be on the cover of Chi magazine for the week of 16 September 2012 featuring the caption \"The Queen is Nude!\".\n\nOn 12 February 2013, it was widely reported that the magazine had obtained more unauthorized photographs of Kate Middleton, this time of her on a private holiday in the Caribbean whilst pregnant, and plans to publish them. St James's Palace condemned the magazine for infringing on the Duchess' privacy. Indeed, the magazine did publish the photographs the following day.\n\nSee also\n List of magazines in Italy\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Chi: a completely new magazine hits newsstands, press release announcing the new publication\n\n1995 establishments in Italy\nCelebrity magazines\nItalian-language magazines\nMagazines established in 1995\nMagazines published in Milan\nWeekly magazines published in Italy\nWomen's magazines published in Italy",
"Sonnets from the Portuguese, written ca. 1845–1846 and published first in 1850, is a collection of 44 love sonnets written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. The collection was acclaimed and popular during the poet's lifetime and it remains so.\n\nTitle\nBarrett Browning was initially hesitant to publish the poems, believing they were too personal. However, her husband Robert Browning insisted they were the best sequence of English-language sonnets since Shakespeare's time and urged her to publish them. To offer the couple some privacy, she decided to publish them as if they were translations of foreign sonnets. She initially planned to title the collection \"Sonnets translated from the Bosnian\", but Browning proposed that she claim their source was Portuguese, probably because of her admiration for Camões and Robert's nickname for her: \"my little Portuguese\". The title is also a reference to Les Lettres Portugaises (1669).\n\nNumbers 33 and 43\nThe most famous poems from this collection are numbers 33 and 43:\n\nNumber 33\n\nNumber 43\n\nSee also\nThomas James Wise, who authenticated a forged edition.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n \n\nElizabeth Barrett Browning profile and sonnets at Poets.org\nReely's Poetry Pages Hear Sonnets 43 and 33\nA Different Slant of Light: The Art and Life of Adelaide Hanscom Leeson: The Sonnets from the Portuguese by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, a photo-illustration of The Sonnets from the Portuguese, includes select photo-illustrations.\n\nBritish poems\nSonnets\nVictorian poetry\n1850 poems\nPoetry by Elizabeth Barrett Browning\nEnglish poetry collections\nLove poems"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo",
"Who took the famous photo?",
"Morris Berman",
"When was the photo taken?",
"September 20, 1964,",
"What was the photo of?",
"of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette",
"What was he doing in the picture?",
"photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker",
"Was he injured?",
"I don't know.",
"What else happened with the photo?",
"Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo,",
"Why didn't they publish the photo?",
"failed to see the appeal of the image,",
"Who did publish the photo?",
"Life magazine."
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | When did they publish the photo? | 9 | When did Life Magazine publish the photo of Y. A. Tittle? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | October 2, 1964, | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"Sonnets from the Portuguese, written ca. 1845–1846 and published first in 1850, is a collection of 44 love sonnets written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. The collection was acclaimed and popular during the poet's lifetime and it remains so.\n\nTitle\nBarrett Browning was initially hesitant to publish the poems, believing they were too personal. However, her husband Robert Browning insisted they were the best sequence of English-language sonnets since Shakespeare's time and urged her to publish them. To offer the couple some privacy, she decided to publish them as if they were translations of foreign sonnets. She initially planned to title the collection \"Sonnets translated from the Bosnian\", but Browning proposed that she claim their source was Portuguese, probably because of her admiration for Camões and Robert's nickname for her: \"my little Portuguese\". The title is also a reference to Les Lettres Portugaises (1669).\n\nNumbers 33 and 43\nThe most famous poems from this collection are numbers 33 and 43:\n\nNumber 33\n\nNumber 43\n\nSee also\nThomas James Wise, who authenticated a forged edition.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n \n\nElizabeth Barrett Browning profile and sonnets at Poets.org\nReely's Poetry Pages Hear Sonnets 43 and 33\nA Different Slant of Light: The Art and Life of Adelaide Hanscom Leeson: The Sonnets from the Portuguese by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, a photo-illustration of The Sonnets from the Portuguese, includes select photo-illustrations.\n\nBritish poems\nSonnets\nVictorian poetry\n1850 poems\nPoetry by Elizabeth Barrett Browning\nEnglish poetry collections\nLove poems",
"A model release, known in similar contexts as a liability waiver, is a legal release typically signed by the subject of a photograph granting permission to publish the photograph in one form or another. The legal rights of the signatories in reference to the material is thereafter subject to the allowances and restrictions stated in the release, and also possibly in exchange for compensation paid to the photographed person. A model release is not needed for most photograph publication because of freedom of speech rights (which vary by country.) A model release is needed for publication where personality rights or privacy rights would otherwise be infringed.\n\nNo release is required for publication, as news, of a photo taken of an identifiable person when the person is in a public place. In general, no release is required for publication of a photo taken of an identifiable person when the person is in a public space unless the use is for trade or direct commercial use, which is defined as promoting a product, service, or idea. Publication of a photo of an identifiable person, even if taken when the person is in a public place, that implies endorsement, without a model release signed by that person, can result in civil liability for whoever publishes the photograph.\n\nNo model release is necessary to take a photograph. Rather, the model release applies to potential publication of the photograph. Liability rests solely with the publisher, except under special conditions. The photographer is typically not the publisher of the photograph, but normally licenses the photograph to someone else to publish. It is typical for the photographer to obtain the model release not merely because they are present at the time and can get it, but also because it gives them more opportunity to license the photograph later to a party who wishes to publish it.\n\nThe topic of model release forms and liability waivers is a legal area related to privacy that is separate from copyright. Also, the need for model releases pertains to public use of the photos: i.e., publishing them commercially. The act of taking a photo of someone in a public setting without a model release, or of viewing or non-commercially showing such a photo in private, generally does not create legal liability, at least in the United States.\n\nThe legal issues surrounding model releases are complex and vary by jurisdiction. Although the risk to photographers is virtually nil (so long as proper disclosures of the existence of a release, and its content is made to whoever licenses the photo for publication), the business need for having releases rises substantially if the main source of income from the photographer's work lies within industries that would require them (such as advertising). In short, photojournalists almost never need to obtain model releases for images they shoot for (or sell to) news or qualified editorial publications.\n\nPhotographers who also publish images may need releases to protect themselves, but there is a distinction between making an image available for sale (even via a website), which is not considered publication in a form that would require a release, and the use of the same image to promote a product or service in a way that would require a release.\n\nTypes of release \n Adult release: This is the form most commonly referred to as a \"model release\". The language of this release is normally intended for use by models over the age of majority.\n Minor release: This variant of the model release contains language referring to the model (who is a minor) in the third-person, and required signature by a parent or other legal guardian of the model. A release which is not signed by a parent or guardian may afford no legal protection to the publisher.\n Group release: This is a modified version of the adult release, which includes additional signature lines to accommodate use by multiple models or subjects in a single image.\n\nSee also \n Personality rights\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nBasics of model releases\n\nFurther reading \n \n\nPhotography\nLegal documents\nPersonality rights"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo",
"Who took the famous photo?",
"Morris Berman",
"When was the photo taken?",
"September 20, 1964,",
"What was the photo of?",
"of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette",
"What was he doing in the picture?",
"photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker",
"Was he injured?",
"I don't know.",
"What else happened with the photo?",
"Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo,",
"Why didn't they publish the photo?",
"failed to see the appeal of the image,",
"Who did publish the photo?",
"Life magazine.",
"When did they publish the photo?",
"October 2, 1964,"
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | What was the importance of the photo? | 10 | What was the importance of the famous photo of Y. A. Tittle? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | That was the end of the road, | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"The World Press Photo of the Year award is part of the World Press Photo Awards, organized by the Dutch foundation World Press Photo.\n\nIn addition to the World Press Photo of the Year, the jury composed of 10 members also assigns the World Press Photo Story of the Year award to the story that in that edition of the competition was most distinguished by photographic intensity and importance of the content. The creators of the 2 main awards receives a cash prize corresponding to €5,000.\n\nIn addition to the two main prizes, 3 single photo prizes and 3 story prizes are also awarded in each of the eight categories.\n\nThe World Press Photo of the Year is awarded to the image that \"... is not only the photojournalistic encapsulation of the year, but represents an issue, situation or event of great journalistic importance, and does so in a way that demonstrates an outstanding level of visual perception and creativity.\"\n\nInstead, the World Press Photo Story of the Year is awarded to the photographic story that explores a theme of social importance.\n\nList of Press Photos of the Year \nThe following is a list of all winners of the Press Photo of the Year, and information on the respective images.\n\nGallery\n\nSee also\n\n List of European art awards\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nTimeline of all contests and World Press Photo of the Year winners\n\nPhotojournalism awards\nAwards established in 1955\nDutch art awards\n1955 establishments in the Netherlands\nLists of photographs",
"Sirogojno is a village in Serbia located on Mt. Zlatibor.\n\nIn Sirogojno there is also an open-air museum, or \"ethno village\" known as the Old Village Museum (), covering nearly 5 hectares with authentic elements of ordinary life collected from all over the Zlatibor region from the 19th century. The ethno village displays a set of traditional wooden buildings, including a bakery, a dairy, and an inn, all in authentic form.\n\nThe village of Sirogojno was declared a Monument of Culture of Exceptional Importance in 1983, and it is protected by the Republic of Serbia.\n\nChurch of Saints Peter and Paul the Apostles\nThe Serbian Orthodox church in Sirogojno was built in 1764. It is dedicated to the apostles St. Peter and St. Paul, as is written on the royal doors beside the signature of icon painter Simeon Lazovic (Lazović). The village graveyard is located next to the church. The reconstruction of the original layout of the church in Sirogojno was based on special preserved manuscripts, protocols, records, and other historical sources.\n\nSee also\n\nMonument of Culture of Exceptional Importance\nTourism in Serbia\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nPhoto Gallery of the Sirogojno Old Village Museum\nThe Sirogojno Old Village Open-Air Museum, Official Site\nInformation on the Old Village Museum\nPhoto Gallery of Sirogojno\n\nZlatibor\nSpatial Cultural-Historical Units of Exceptional Importance\nArchitecture of Serbia\nPopulated places in Zlatibor District\nOpen-air museums in Serbia"
]
|
[
"Y. A. Tittle",
"Famous photo",
"Who took the famous photo?",
"Morris Berman",
"When was the photo taken?",
"September 20, 1964,",
"What was the photo of?",
"of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette",
"What was he doing in the picture?",
"photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker",
"Was he injured?",
"I don't know.",
"What else happened with the photo?",
"Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo,",
"Why didn't they publish the photo?",
"failed to see the appeal of the image,",
"Who did publish the photo?",
"Life magazine.",
"When did they publish the photo?",
"October 2, 1964,",
"What was the importance of the photo?",
"That was the end of the road,"
]
| C_5b410476d644423485b1e49432ed4194_0 | Did Tittle like the photo? | 11 | Did Y. A. Tittle like the famous photo of himself? | Y. A. Tittle | A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season. Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989. CANNOTANSWER | Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, | Yelberton Abraham Tittle Jr. (October 24, 1926 – October 8, 2017) was a professional American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, and Baltimore Colts, after spending two seasons with the Colts in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Known for his competitiveness, leadership, and striking profile, Tittle was the centerpiece of several prolific offenses throughout his 17-year professional career from 1948 to 1964.
Tittle played college football for Louisiana State University, where he was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) quarterback for the LSU Tigers football team. As a junior, he was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the infamous 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic—also known as the "Ice Bowl"—a scoreless tie between the Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks in a snowstorm. After college, he was drafted in the 1947 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, but he instead chose to play in the AAFC for the Colts.
With the Colts, Tittle was named the AAFC Rookie of the Year in 1948 after leading the team to the AAFC playoffs. After consecutive one-win seasons, the Colts franchise folded, which allowed Tittle to be drafted in the 1951 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Through ten seasons in San Francisco, he was invited to four Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown passes in 1955, and was named the NFL Player of the Year by the United Press in 1957. A groundbreaker, Tittle was part of the 49ers' famed Million Dollar Backfield, was the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is credited with having coined "alley-oop" as a sports term.
Considered washed-up, the 34-year-old Tittle was traded to the Giants following the 1960 season. Over the next four seasons, he won several individual awards, twice set the league single-season record for touchdown passesincluding a 1962 game with a combined 7 touchdown passes and 500-yards passing with a near perfect (151.4 out of 158.33) passer rating, and led the Giants to three straight NFL championship games. Although he was never able to deliver a championship to the team, Tittle's time in New York is regarded among the glory years of the franchise.
In his final season, Tittle was photographed bloodied and kneeling down in the end zone after a tackle by a defender left him helmetless. The photograph is considered one of the most iconic images in North American sports history. He retired as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and games played. Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, and his jersey number 14 is retired by the Giants.
Early years and college career
Born and raised in Marshall, Texas, to Alma Tittle (née Allen) and Yelberton Abraham Tittle Sr., Tittle aspired to be a quarterback from a young age. He spent hours in his backyard throwing a football through a tire swing, emulating his fellow Texan and boyhood idol, Sammy Baugh. Tittle played high school football at Marshall High School. In his senior year the team posted an undefeated record and reached the state finals.
After a recruiting battle between Louisiana State University and the University of Texas, Tittle chose to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and play for the LSU Tigers. He was part of a successful 1944 recruiting class under head coach Bernie Moore that included halfbacks Jim Cason, Dan Sandifer, and Ray Coates. Freshmen were eligible to play on the varsity during World War II, so Tittle saw playing time immediately. He later said the finest moment of his four years at LSU was beating Tulane as a freshman, a game in which he set a school record with 238 passing yards. It was one of two games the Tigers won that season.
Moore started Tittle at tailback in the single-wing formation his first year, but moved him to quarterback in the T formation during his sophomore season. As a junior in 1946, Tittle's three touchdown passes in a 41–27 rout of rival Tulane helped ensure LSU a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic. Known notoriously as the "Ice Bowl", the 1947 Cotton Bowl pitted LSU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in sub-freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field in Dallas, Texas. LSU moved the ball much better than the Razorbacks, but neither team was able to score, and the game ended in a scoreless tie. Tittle and Arkansas end Alton Baldwin shared the game's MVP award. Following the season, United Press International (UPI) placed Tittle on its All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) first-team.
UPI again named Tittle its first-team All-SEC quarterback in 1947. In Tittle's day of iron man football, he played on both offense and defense. While on defense during a 20–18 loss to SEC champion Ole Miss in his senior season, Tittle's belt buckle was torn off as he intercepted a pass from Charlie Conerly and broke a tackle. He ran down the sideline with one arm cradling the ball and the other holding up his pants. At the Ole Miss 20-yard line, as he attempted to stiff-arm a defender,(#87 Jack Odom), Tittle's pants fell and he tripped and fell onto his face. The fall kept him from scoring the game-winning touchdown.
In total, during his college career Tittle set school passing records with 162 completions out of 330 attempts for 2,525 yards and 23 touchdowns. He scored seven touchdowns himself as a runner. His passing totals remained unbroken until Bert Jones surpassed them in the 1970s.
Professional career
Baltimore Colts
Tittle was the sixth overall selection of the 1948 NFL Draft, taken by the Detroit Lions. However, Tittle instead began his professional career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference in 1948. That season, already being described as a "passing ace", he was unanimously recognized as the AAFC Rookie of the Year by UPI after passing for 2,739 yards and leading the Colts to the brink of an Eastern Division championship. After a 1–11 win–loss record in 1949, the Colts joined the National Football League in 1950. The team again posted a single win against eleven losses, and the franchise folded after the season due to financial difficulties. Players on the roster at the time of the fold were eligible to be drafted in the next NFL draft.
San Francisco 49ers
Tittle was then drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1951 NFL Draft after the Colts folded. While many players at the time were unable to play immediately due to military duties, Tittle had received a class IV-F exemption due to physical ailments, so he was able to join the 49ers roster that season. In 1951 and 1952, he shared time at quarterback with Frankie Albert. In 1953, his first full season as the 49ers' starter, he passed for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns and was invited to his first Pro Bowl. San Francisco finished with a 9–3 regular season record, which was good enough for second in the Western Conference, and led the league in points scored.
In 1954, the 49ers compiled their Million Dollar Backfield, which was composed of four future Hall of Famers: Tittle; fullbacks John Henry Johnson and Joe Perry; and halfback Hugh McElhenny. "It made quarterbacking so easy because I just get in the huddle and call anything and you have three Hall of Fame running backs ready to carry the ball," Tittle reminisced in 2006. The team had aspirations for a championship run, but injuries, including McElhenny's separated shoulder in the sixth game of the season, ended those hopes and the 49ers finished third in the Western Division. Tittle starred in his second straight Pro Bowl appearance as he threw two touchdown passes, including one to 49ers teammate Billy Wilson, who was named the game's MVP.
Tittle became the first professional football player featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he appeared on its 15th issue dated November 22, 1954, donning his 49ers uniform and helmet featuring an acrylic face mask distinct to the time period. The cover photo also shows a metal bracket on the side of Tittle's helmet which served to protect his face by preventing the helmet from caving in. The 1954 cover was the first of four Sports Illustrated covers he graced during his career.
Tittle led the NFL in touchdown passes for the first time in 1955, with 17, while also leading the league with 28 interceptions thrown. When the 49ers hired Frankie Albert as head coach in 1956, Tittle was pleased with the choice at first, figuring Albert would be a good mentor. However, the team lost four of its first five games, and Albert replaced Tittle with rookie Earl Morrall. After a loss to the Los Angeles Rams brought San Francisco's record to 1–6, Tittle regained the starting role and the team finished undefeated with one tie through the season's final five games.
In 1957, Tittle and receiver R. C. Owens devised a pass play in which Tittle tossed the ball high into the air and the Owens leapt to retrieve it, typically resulting in a long gain or a touchdown. Tittle dubbed the play the "alley-oop"—the first usage of the term in sports—and it was highly successful when utilized. The 49ers finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and hosted the Detroit Lions in the Western Conference playoff. Against the Lions, Tittle passed for 248 yards and tossed three touchdown passes—one each to Owens, McElhenny, and Wilson—but Detroit overcame a 20-point third quarter deficit to win 31–27. For the season, Tittle had a league-leading 63.1 completion percentage, threw for 2,157 yards and 13 touchdowns, and rushed for six more scores. He was deemed "pro player of the year" by a United Press poll of members of the National Football Writers Association. Additionally, he was named to his first All-Pro team and invited to his third Pro Bowl.
After a poor 1958 preseason by Tittle, Albert started John Brodie at quarterback for the 1958 season, a decision that proved unpopular with the fan base. Tittle came in to relieve Brodie in a week six game against the Lions, with ten minutes left in the game and the 49ers down 21–17. His appearance "drew a roar of approval from the crowd of 59,213," after which he drove the team downfield and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to McElhenny for the winning score. A right knee ligament injury against the Colts in week nine ended Tittle's season, and San Francisco finished with a 7–5 record, followed by Albert's resignation as coach. Tittle and Brodie continued to share time at quarterback over the next two seasons. In his fourth and final Pro Bowl game with the 49ers in 1959, Tittle completed 13 of 17 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown.
Under new head coach Red Hickey in 1960, the 49ers adopted the shotgun formation. The first implementation of the shotgun was in week nine against the Colts, with Brodie at quarterback while Tittle nursed a groin injury. The 49ers scored a season-high thirty points, and with Brodie in the shotgun won three of their last four games to salvage a winning season at 7–5. Though conflicted, Tittle decided to get into shape and prepare for the next season. He stated in his 2009 autobiography that at times he thought, "The hell with it. Quit this damned game. You have been at it too long anyway." But then another voice within him would say, "Come back for another year and show them you're still a good QB. Don't let them shotgun you out of football!" However, after the first preseason game of 1961, Hickey informed Tittle he had been traded to the New York Giants.
New York Giants
In mid-August 1961, the 49ers traded the 34-year-old Tittle to the New York Giants for second-year guard Lou Cordileone. Cordileone, the 12th overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft, was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y. A. Tittle? You're kidding," and later remarked that the Giants traded him for "a 42-year-old quarterback." Tittle's view of Cordileone was much the same, stating his dismay that the 49ers did not get a "name ballplayer" in return. He was also displeased with being traded to the East Coast, and said he would rather have been traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Already considered washed up, Tittle was intended by the Giants to share quarterback duties with 40-year-old Charlie Conerly, who had been with the team since 1948. The players at first remained loyal to Conerly, and treated Tittle with the cold shoulder. Tittle missed the season opener due to a back injury sustained before the season. His first game with New York came in week two, against the Steelers, in which he and Conerly each threw a touchdown pass in the Giants' 17–14 win. He became the team's primary starter for the remainder of the season and led the revitalized Giants to first place in the Eastern Conference. The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) awarded Tittle its Jim Thorpe Trophy as the NFL's players' choice of MVP. In the 1961 NFL Championship Game, the Giants were soundly defeated by Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers, as they were shut-out 37-0. Tittle completed six of 20 passes in the game and threw four interceptions.
In January 1962, Tittle stated his intention to retire following the 1962 season. After an off-season quarterback competition with Ralph Guglielmi, Tittle played and started in a career-high 14 games. He tied an NFL record by throwing seven touchdown passes in a game on October 28, 1962, in a 49–34 win over the Washington Redskins. Against the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season finale, Tittle threw six touchdown passes to set the single-season record with 33, which had been set the previous year by Sonny Jurgensen's 32. He earned player of the year honors from the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club, UPI, and The Sporting News, and finished just behind Green Bay's Jim Taylor in voting for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Giants again finished first in the Eastern Conference and faced the Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game. In frigid, windy conditions at Yankee Stadium and facing a constant pass rush from the Packers' front seven, Tittle completed only 18 of his 41 attempts in the game. The Packers won, 16–7, with New York's lone score coming on a blocked punt recovered in the end zone by Jim Collier.
Tittle returned to the Giants in 1963 and, at age 37, supplanted his single-season passing touchdowns record by throwing 36. He broke the record in the final game with three touchdowns against the Steelers, three days after being named NFL MVP by the AP. The Giants led the league in scoring by a wide margin, and for the third time in as many years clinched the Eastern Conference title. The Western champions were George Halas' Chicago Bears. The teams met in the 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field. In the second quarter, Tittle injured his knee on a tackle by Larry Morris, and required a novocaine shot at halftime to continue playing. After holding a 10–7 halftime lead, The Giants were shutout in the second half, during which Tittle threw four interceptions. Playing through the knee injury, he completed 11 of 29 passes in the game for 147 yards, a touchdown, and five interceptions as the Bears won 14–10.
The following year in 1964, Tittle's final season, the Giants went 2–10–2 (), the worst record in the 14-team league. In the second game of the year, against Pittsburgh, he was blindsided by defensive end John Baker. The tackle left Tittle with crushed cartilage in his ribs, a cracked sternum, and a concussion. However, he played in every game the rest of the season, but was relegated to a backup role later in the year. After throwing only ten touchdowns with 22 interceptions, he retired after the season at age 39, saying rookie quarterback Gary Wood not only "took my job away, but started to ask permission to date my daughter." Over 17 seasons as a professional, Tittle completed 2,427 out of 4,395 passes for 33,070 yards and 242 touchdowns, with 248 interceptions. He also rushed for 39 touchdowns.
Career statistics
Profile and playing style
Tittle threw the ball from a sidearm, almost underhand position, something novel at those times, though it was common practice in earlier decades. It was this seemingly underhand style that drew the curiosity and admiration of many fans. This, in tandem with his baldness—for which he was frequently referred to as the "Bald Eagle"—made him a very striking personality. Despite his throwing motion, he had a very strong and accurate arm with a quick release. His ability to read defenses made him one of the best screen passers in the NFL. He was a perfectionist and highly competitive, and he expected the same of his teammates. He possessed rare leadership and game-planning skills, and played with great enthusiasm even in his later years. "Tittle has the attitude of a high school kid, with the brain of a computer," said Giants teammate Frank Gifford. Baltimore Colts halfback Lenny Moore, when asked in 1963 to compare Tittle and Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, said:
I played with Tittle in the Pro Bowl two years ago, and I discovered he's quite a guy ... He and John, however, are entirely different types ... Tittle is a sort of 'con man' with his players ... he comes into a huddle and 'suggests' that maybe this or that will work on account of something he saw happen on a previous play ... The way he puts it, you're convinced it's a good idea and maybe it will work. John, now, he's a take-charge guy ... you what the other guy's going to do, what he's going to do, and what he wants you to do.
Tittle's most productive years came when he was well beyond his athletic prime. He credited his ability to improve with age to a feel for the game borne from years of league experience. "If you could learn it by studying movies, a good, smart college quarterback could learn all you've got to learn in three weeks and then come in and be as good as the old heads," he told Sports Illustrated in 1963. "But they can't."
Legacy
At the time of his retirement, Tittle held the following NFL records:
Tittle was the fourth player to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, when he did so in 1962 against the Redskins. He followed Sid Luckman (1943), Adrian Burk (1954), and George Blanda (1961). The feat has since been equaled by four more players: Joe Kapp (1969), Peyton Manning (2013), Nick Foles (2013), and Drew Brees (2015). Tittle, Manning and Foles did it without an interception. His 36 touchdown passes in 1963 set a record which stood for over two decades until it was surpassed by Dan Marino in 1984; as of 2016 it remains a Giants franchise record.
Despite record statistics and three straight championship game appearances, Tittle was never able to deliver a title to his team. His record as a starter in postseason games was 0–4. He threw four touchdown passes against 14 interceptions and had a passer rating of 33.8 in his postseason career, far below his regular season passer rating of 74.3. Seth Wickersham, writing for ESPN The Magazine in 2014, noted the dichotomy in the 1960s between two of New York's major sports franchises: "... Gifford, Huff and Tittle, a team of Hall of Famers known for losing championships as their peers on the Yankees—with whom they shared a stadium, a city, and many rounds of drinks—became renowned for winning them." The Giants struggled after Tittle's retirement, posting only two winning seasons from 1964 to 1980.
He made seven Pro Bowls, four first-team All-Pro teams, and four times was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player or Player of the Year: in 1957 and 1962 by the UPI; in 1961 by the NEA; and in 1963 by the AP and NEA. In a sports column in 1963, George Strickler for the Chicago Tribune remarked Tittle had "broken records that at one time appeared unassailable and he has been the hero of more second half rallies than Napoleon and the Harlem Globetrotters." He was featured on four Sports Illustrated covers: three during his playing career and one shortly after retirement. His first was with the 49ers in 1954. With the Giants, he graced covers in November 1961, and he was on the season preview issue for 1964; a two-page fold-out photo from the 1963 title game. Tittle was on a fourth cover in August 1965.
The trade of Tittle for Lou Cordileone is seen as one of the worst trades in 49ers history; it is considered one of the best trades in Giants franchise history. Cordileone played just one season in San Francisco.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the end zone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of American sports and journalism. Tittle, in his 17th and final season, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium. He suffered a concussion and cracked sternum on the play, but went on to play the rest of the season.
Post-Gazette editors declined to publish the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. It is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It became one of three photos to hang in the lobby of the National Press Photographers Association headquarters, alongside Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima and the Hindenburg disaster. A copy has hung in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A similar photo by Dozier Mobley of the Associated Press, which shows Tittle looking forward rather than down, was published in the October 2, 1964, issue of Life magazine. After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually grew to embrace it, putting the Mobley version on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over." Pittsburgh player John Baker, who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken, ran for sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina in 1978, and used the photo as a campaign tool. He was elected and went on to serve for 24 years. Tittle also held a fundraiser to assist Baker in his bid for a fourth term in 1989.
Honors
In recognition of his high school and college careers, respectively, Tittle was inducted to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame with its 1971 class, which included contemporaries Jim Brown, Norm Van Brocklin, the late Vince Lombardi, and former Giants teammate Andy Robustelli. By virtue of his membership in the pro hall of fame, he was automatically inducted as a charter member of the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Giants had originally retired the number 14 jersey in honor of Ward Cuff, but Tittle requested and was granted the jersey number by Giants owner Wellington Mara when he joined the team. It was retired again immediately following his retirement, and is now retired in honor of both players. In 2010, Tittle became a charter member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor.
Personal life
After his retirement, he rejoined the 49ers staff and served as an assistant coach before being hired by the Giants in 1970 as a quarterback mentor. During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season. After retiring, he founded his own company, Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services. Tittle appeared on the October 9, 1961 episode of To Tell the Truth as one of three challengers. Tittle claimed to be hair stylist-weekend pro wrestler Richard Smith. Tittle received one vote from the four Celebrity Panelists (Johnny Carson).
Until his death, Tittle resided in Atherton, California. His wife Minnette died in 2012. They had three sons: Michael, Patrick and John, and a daughter, Dianne Tittle de Laet. Their daughter is a harpist and poet, and in 1995 she published a biography of her father titled Giants & Heroes: A Daughter's Memories of Y. A. Tittle.
In his later life, Tittle suffered from severe dementia, which adversely affected his memory and limited his conversation to a handful of topics. Tittle died on October 8, 2017, at a hospital in Stanford, California, of natural causes.
List of 500-yard passing games in the National Football League
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
1926 births
2017 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
Deaths from dementia
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
LSU Tigers football players
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Neurological disease deaths in California
New York Giants players
People from Atherton, California
People from Marshall, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
San Francisco 49ers players
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"A tittle or superscript dot is a small distinguishing mark, such as a diacritic in the form of a dot on a lowercase i or j. The tittle is an integral part of the glyph of i and j, but diacritic dots can appear over other letters in various languages. In most languages, the tittle of i or j is omitted when a diacritic is placed in the tittle's usual position (as í or ĵ), but not when the diacritic appears elsewhere (as į, ɉ).\n\nUse\nThe word tittle is rarely used. One notable occurrence is in the King James Bible at Matthew 5:18: \"For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled\" (KJV). The quotation uses \"jot and tittle\" as examples of extremely small graphic details in \"the Law,\" presumably referring to the Hebrew text of the Torah. In English the phrase \"jot and tittle\" indicates that every small detail has received attention.\n\nThe Greek terms translated in English as \"jot\" and \"tittle\" in Matthew 5:18 are iota and keraia (). Iota is the smallest letter of the Greek alphabet (ι); the even smaller iota subscript was a medieval innovation. Alternatively, iota may represent yodh (י), the smallest letter of the Hebrew and Aramaic alphabets (to which iota is related). \"Keraia\" is a hook or serif, and in Matthew 5:18 may refer to Greek diacritics, or, if the reference is to the Hebrew text of the Torah, possibly refers to the pen strokes that distinguish between similar Hebrew letters, e.g., ב (Bet) versus כ (Kaph), or to ornamental pen strokes attached to certain Hebrew letters, or to the Hebrew letter Vav, since in Hebrew vav also means \"hook.\" \"Keraia\" in Matt. 5:18 cannot refer to vowel marks known as Niqqud which developed later than the date of Matthew's composition. Others have suggested that \"Keraia\" refers to markings in cursive scripts of languages derived from Aramaic, such as Syriac, written in Serṭā (, 'short line'). In printing modern Greek numerals a keraia is used.\n\nDotless and dotted i\n\nA number of alphabets use dotted and dotless I, both upper and lower case.\n\nIn the modern Turkish alphabet, the absence or presence of a tittle distinguishes two different letters representing two different phonemes: the letter \"I\" / \"ı\", with the absence of a tittle also on the lower case letter, represents the close back unrounded vowel , while \"İ\" / \"i\", with the inclusion of a tittle even on the capital letter, represents the close front unrounded vowel . This practice has carried over to several other Turkic languages, like the Azerbaijani alphabet, Crimean Tatar alphabet, and Tatar alphabet.\n\nIn some of the Dene languages of the Northwest Territories in Canada, specifically North Slavey, South Slavey, Tłı̨chǫ and Dëne Sųłıné, all instances of i are undotted to avoid confusion with tone-marked vowels í or ì. The other Dene language of the Northwest Territories, Gwich’in, always includes the tittle on lowercase i.\n\nThere is only one letter I in Irish, but i is undotted in the traditional uncial Gaelic script to avoid confusion of the tittle with the buailte overdot found over consonants. Modern texts replace the buailte with an h, and use the same antiqua-descendant fonts, which have a tittle, as other Latin-alphabet languages. However, bilingual road signs use dotless i in lowercase Irish text to better distinguish i from í. The letter \"j\" is not used in Irish other than in foreign words.\n\nIn most Latin-based orthographies, the lowercase letter i conventionally has its dot replaced when a diacritical mark atop the letter, such as an acute or grave accent, is placed. The tittle is sometimes retained in some languages. In some Baltic languages sources, the lowercase letter i sometimes retains a tittle when accented. In Vietnamese in the 17th century, the tittle is preserved atop ỉ and ị but not ì and í, as seen in the seminal quốc ngữ reference Dictionarium Annamiticum Lusitanum et Latinum. In modern Vietnamese, a tittle can be seen in ì, ỉ, ĩ, and í in cursive handwriting and some signage. This detail rarely occurs in computers and on the Internet, due to the obscurity of language-specific fonts. In any case, the tittle is always retained in ị.\n\nPhrases\n It is thought that the phrase \"to a T\" is derived from the word tittle because long before \"to a T\" became popular, the phrase \"to a tittle\" was used.\n The phrase \"to dot one's I's and cross one's T's\" is used figuratively to mean \"to put the finishing touches to\" or \"to be thorough\".\n\nReferences\n\nSources\nDictionary.com – Tittle\n\nExternal links\n\nHenry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon\n\"Tittle\" on Everything2\n\nDiacritics\nChristian terminology\nWriting systems",
"LaDonna Theresa Tittle (born March 13, 1946) is an American radio personality, actress and former model. Tittle is perhaps best known for her radio career from the mid–1970s until the early–2000s. Tittle most notable career stints were in Chicago at several stations; WBMX-FM, WJPC-AM alongside Tom Joyner and WGCI-AM. From 2018 until 2020, Tittle had a recurring role as Ethel Brown in the Showtime television series The Chi.\n\nBiography\n\nEarly life and education\nTittle was born the oldest of five children to Juanita (née Wiley; 1922–2000) and James Olden Tittle in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. Her mother owned a record shop and managed several businesses within the neighborhood. According to Tittle, Her mom served as part-time manager of WVON during the early 1960s. Her father was a businessman who owned several pool halls along East 47th street in the neighborhood. Sometime during her early childhood, Tittle and her brother attended school in Covert, Michigan. After her parents divorced in 1959, Tittle relocated to the Hyde Park neighborhood with her mother and siblings. As a child, Tittle sold candy at the Regal Theater during the late 1950s. During her teenage years, Tittle's family relocated to the Robert Taylor Homes public housing project; returning to the Bronzeville neighborhood. While a resident at Robert Taylor, Tittle began taking acting classes at the neighborhood club there. For high school, Tittle attended Dunbar Vocational High School; graduating in 1964. After high school, Tittle studied briefly at Loop College (now known as Harold Washington College) and later transferred to Chicago State University. At Chicago State University, Tittle majored in art education and drama with a minor in journalism; graduating in January 1971. Tittle was enrolled in the Master's of Art program at the Art Institute of Chicago shortly after graduating college but later dropped out.\n\nCareer\nPrior to graduating college, Tittle began doing modeling work with Shirley Hamilton Talent Inc along with the Mannequin Guild of Chicago. While working for Shirley Hamilton, Tittle modeled for department stores such as Marshall Fields. Tittle was offered a position to do public service announcements for WBEE-AM located in Harvey, Illinois; beginning her radio career in February 1971. Tittle later became a permeant radio personality for the station, playing jazz from 1PM until 2PM. During a break in her time at WBEE, Tittle temporarily moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin where she worked as a weekend radio personality at WNOV radio in 1972.\n\nTittle worked at WBEE radio station for two years, later returning to Chicago in May 1973. Shortly after returning to Chicago, Tittle became the midday and evening host of WBMX-FM radio, where R&B and soul music were showcased. Tittle started her career at the station reporting news and working overnight, eventually moving to weekday afternoons by 1974. Due to her growing popularity, Tittle was sought after by Johnson Publishing Company's WJPC-AM radio station. They offered to double her salary, an offer she accepted in 1978. Tittle co-hosted alongside Tom Joyner and DJ Bebe D'Banana, and later JoJo Bell. In April 1979, Tittle was featured as JET magazine's \"Beauty of the Week\" while wearing bathing suit made out of the radio station bumper stickers. Tittle began hosting the midday show from 10AM until 3PM, naming it \"Tittle In The Middle, Right In The Middle\" by April 1982. Tittle worked at WJPC until the station was sold in December 1989. Thereafter, Tittle worked part–time at WNUA-FM, a blues and smooth-jazz radio station located in Joliet, Illinois in 1991. After a year at WNUA, Tittle landed full–time work for Chicago's WGCI-AM in 1992. For the first few years, Tittle worked between the FM and AM stations until automated overnight broadcasts came into play, which resulted in her being laid off in 2000.\n\nAfter a year's hiatus from the public, Tittle launched The LaDonna Tittle TV/Radio Show on Chicago's CAN-TV in 2001. The show began as a platform to chat with entertainers until she decided to shift to cooking after viewing a soul food exhibit in 2003. Tittle also starred in R. Kelly's 2005 melodrama Trapped in the Closet, as Rosie the nosy neighbor. Tittle has received many Awards and Recognitions for her public community service, mentoring, educational self-esteem activities, and Culinary contributions. Tittle is \"radio-act-tive\"...\n\nPersonal life\nTittle was married once and had no children. Her only marriage was to Ronald Horton, a Vietnam army volunteer from 1967 until his death in 1973. Tittle dated John E. Johnson of the Johnson hair-care product family from the late–1970s until his death in 1981.\n\nReferences\n\n1946 births\nLiving people\nPeople from Chicago\nActresses from Chicago\nAfrican-American actresses\nAmerican television actresses\n20th-century American actresses\n21st-century American actresses\nRadio personalities from Chicago\n20th-century African-American women\n20th-century African-American people\n21st-century African-American women\n21st-century African-American people"
]
|
[
"Lea Salonga",
"1989-1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin"
]
| C_9b2f062c2492418abaa56a510248f79b_0 | Who is Miss Saigon? | 1 | Who is Miss Lea Salonga? | Lea Salonga | In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg's "On My Own" from Les Miserables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. She competed for the role with childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson. Salonga won the lead role, while Wilson was named her understudy and given the role of the bar girl Mimi. For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production. In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin. CANNOTANSWER | In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. | Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, , (; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipina singer and actress, best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplying the singing voices of two Disney Princesses (Jasmine and Mulan), and as a recording artist and television performer.
At age 18, she originated the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon in the West End and then reprised the role on Broadway, winning the Olivier and Theatre World Awards, and becoming the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award. Salonga is the first Filipino artist to sign with an international record label (Atlantic Records in 1993).
Salonga was the first actress of Asian descent to play the roles of Éponine and Fantine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway. She also portrayed Éponine and Fantine, respectively, in the musical's 10th and 25th anniversary concerts in London. She provided the singing voices of two official Disney Princesses: Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan in Mulan (1998). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011 for her work with The Walt Disney Company. Salonga starred as Mei-li in the 2002 Broadway version of Flower Drum Song. She has played numerous other stage, film and TV roles in the US, the Philippines and elsewhere. She has toured widely in the theatre roles and as a concert artist. From 2015 to 2016, she returned to Broadway in Allegiance, and from 2017 to 2019 she appeared in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island.
Life and career
1971–1989: Early life and career
Salonga was born in Ermita, Manila, to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner (1929–2016), and María Ligaya Alcantara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before moving to Manila. Her brother, Gerard Salonga, is a conductor.
She made her professional debut in 1978 at the age of seven in the musical The King and I with Repertory Philippines. She played the title role in Annie in 1980 and appeared in other productions such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, The Rose T, The Goodbye Girl (1982), Paper Moon (1983) and The Fantasticks (1988). In 1981, she recorded her first album, Small Voice, which was certified gold in the Philippines. In 1985, she and her brother took part in the eighth Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as the interpreters for the song entry titled "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La" which was composed by Tess Concepcion.
During the 1980s, Salonga also had several television projects through GMA Radio Television Arts where she worked as a child actor. After the success of her first album, from 1983 to 1985, she hosted her own musical television show, Love, Lea, and was a member of the cast of German Moreno's teen variety show That's Entertainment. She acted in films, which included the family-oriented Tropang Bulilit, Like Father, Like Son, Ninja Kids, Captain Barbell and Pik Pak Boom. As a young performer, Salonga received a Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination for Best Child Actress and three Aliw Awards for best child performer in 1980, 1981 and 1982. She released her second album, Lea, in 1988.
She also opened for, and performed with, international acts such as Menudo and Stevie Wonder in their concerts in Manila in 1985 and in 1988, respectively.
She finished her secondary education in 1988 at the O. B. Montessori Center in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila. She also attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program aimed at training musically talented children in music and stage movement. A college freshman studying biology at the Ateneo de Manila University when she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she intended to have a medical career. Later, in between jobs in New York, she took two courses at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus.
1989–1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin
In 1989, Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's "On My Own" from Les Misérables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. Salonga won the lead role, while her childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson was named her understudy and cast as the bar girl Mimi.
For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest winners of the award. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production.
In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.
1993–1996: Les Misérables, films and other musicals
In 1993, Salonga played the role of Éponine in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. She performed the song "A Whole New World" from Aladdin with Brad Kane at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the song won an Oscar, having already won a Golden Globe Award. That same year, she released her self-titled international debut album with Atlantic Records. In 1994, Salonga played in various musical theatre productions in the Philippines and Singapore, such as Sandy in Grease, Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady and the Witch in Into the Woods.
Back in the US in 1995, Salonga played the role of Geri Riordan, an 18-year-old adopted Vietnamese American child in the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Redwood Curtain, which starred John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels. She then flew back to the Philippines to star with Filipino matinée idol Aga Muhlach in the critically acclaimed film Sana Maulit Muli, which gave her a second Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination, this time for Best Actress. She played the role of Éponine in the 10th anniversary production of Les Mis called Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.
In 1996, Salonga was in Les Misérables once again as Éponine in the London production of the musical, then continued on to perform the role in the musical's US national tour. In the Philippines in 1999, and again in 2000, she played Sonia Walsk in They're Playing Our Song.
1997–2004: Recordings, concerts, TV and Flower Drum Song
From 1997 to 2000, Salonga did recordings and concerts in the Philippines and another engagement in London, in addition to a few returns to Miss Saigon in London and on Broadway. In 1997, she released I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (recordings from her childhood days) to gold sales in the Philippines. That recording was followed by Lea... In Love in 1998 and By Heart in 2000, with both albums reaching multiple platinum status in the Philippines. In 1998, she again lent her voice to a major Disney animated film, singing the title character in Mulan, also providing the character's singing voice in the 2004 sequel, Mulan II. At the age of 28, Salonga moved to New York City, purchasing her own apartment (which she still owns up to at least 2013). She participated in the 1998 tribute concert to Sir Cameron Mackintosh in London called "Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron MacKintosh", where she did numbers from several of his musicals. She also performed in four concerts: The Homecoming Concert, The Millennium Concert, The Best of Manila and Songs from the Screen – the last two being benefit shows. Salonga returned to Manila in Miss Saigon, staged at the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the end of 2000.
After a last stint in Miss Saigon for its closing on Broadway in 2001, Salonga recreated the role of Lien Hughes originally played by Ming-Na Wen in the soap opera As the World Turns. After completing her contract that year, she was asked to return to the role in 2003. She guested on Russell Watson's The Voice concert, narrated for the television special My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and appeared on the Christmas episode of the TV medical drama ER, playing a patient with lymphoma.
In 2002, Salonga returned to Broadway to play the leading role of Mei-li, a Chinese immigrant in a reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song opposite Jose Llana. This was after the reinvented musical had a run at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2001 with Salonga playing the role and in 2002 winning Lead Actress in a Musical from the Los Angeles theatre Ovation Awards. The Salonga-led Broadway revival cast album was nominated for a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album. Salonga's performance was received positively by theatre critics in New York, and she received a nomination for Distinguished Performance from the Drama League, among other honors. Between the 2001 Los Angeles and 2002 Broadway productions of Flower Drum Song, she performed in a non-musical theatrical production for the first time, playing the role of Catherine in the stage play Proof in Manila. This was followed by a major concert, The Broadway Concert, at the Philippine International Convention Center. She also sang at the 56th Tony Awards with Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Gallagher and Michele Lee in a number paying tribute to Richard Rodgers.
In 2003 to 2004, Salonga did her first "all-Filipino" concerts in Manila called Songs from Home, which later won her an Aliw Award as Entertainer of the Year. In 2003, she performed in several concerts at the Mohegan Sun hotel in Connecticut. This was followed by a Christmas concert in the Philippines, called Home for Christmas, and performances at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton, New Jersey, in 2004. Later in 2004, she played Lizzie in the Manila production of the musical Baby, which earned her another nomination from the Aliw Awards.
2005–2007: International ventures
In 2005, Salonga gave her first US concert tour. Later that year, she performed to a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Diverse City Theater Company. The same year, she received the Golden Artist Award at the 53rd FAMAS Awards in honor of her international achievements, performed during the grand opening of Hong Kong's Disneyland and recorded two songs on Daniel Rodriguez's album In the Presence. She also did voice work for Disney's English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro as Yasuko Kusakabe. Salonga wrote the foreword to Linda Marquart's "The Right Way to Sing" (2005). In 2006, at the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, Salonga concluded the closing ceremony with the song "Triumph of the One" before an audience of 50,000 people at the Khalifa Stadium.
In 2007, Salonga released her first studio album in seven years called Inspired, which was certified platinum in the Philippines She received the Order of Lakandula, with the rank of Commander (Komandante), from Philippine president Arroyo in recognition of using her talents to benefit Philippine society and foster cultural exchange. She has also received the Congressional Medal of Achievement from the House of Representatives of the Philippines. She returned to Broadway for another stint in the musical Les Misérables, this time as Fantine. Her rejoining the show boosted the musical's ticket sales. President Arroyo watched Salonga in this role, together with Filipino Americans Adam Jacobs as Marius and Ali Ewoldt as Cosette. Salonga received rave reviews and made it again to the short list of Broadway.com's Audience Award favorites as Best Replacement. During her tenure on Broadway that season, she appeared in Broadway on Broadway 2007 and Stars in the Alley 2007, spoke at the Broadway Artists Alliance Summer Intensives, guested on the Broadway musical 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and participated in Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS' 12th Annual Nothing Like a Dame event to benefit the women's health initiative of The Actors Fund. Right after doing Les Misérables, she performed in two events: at the US Military Academy Band's concert in West Point where she sang four songs and an encore and in her own concert at the Tarrytown Music Hall in New York. She was then busy with other concerts and musical events, including a Christmas presentation in Manila.
In 2008, Salonga gave concerts in the Philippines, California, Hawaii, Hong Kong, and Guam, and she played the title role in Broadway Asia Entertainment's international tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.
2008–2012: Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist and touring
On 3 July 2008, Salonga became a columnist in the Philippine Daily Inquirer with her column "Backstory" (Entertainment section), "Introducing: Lea Salonga, writer". Since then she has written numerous columns for the Inquirer. She performed in "Global Pop" at the Music Center on July 11, 2008. It was presented by The Blue Ribbon a group founded by Dorothy Chandler in 1968. Salonga gave a concert on July 11 at Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. That same year she received a special citation from the Awit Awards.
From late July 2008 to mid-2009, Salonga played the title role in the 30-week Asian tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which premiered in Manila. Salonga performed a series of concerts in North America in 2009 and was also asked to dance the Filipino novelty dances "Ocho-ocho" and "Spaghetti". The same year, Salonga advertised the Avon Products line of anti-aging skin care products Anew Rejuvenate in the Philippines. In June 2009, she sang at the 95th Anniversary Special of the Iglesia ni Cristo. Salonga sang Patriotic song "Bayan Ko" at the Requiem Mass for former President Corazon Aquino at Manila Cathedral. Salonga celebrated 20 years of Miss Saigon by performing in concerts called "Lea Salonga... Your Songs", at the Philippine International Convention Center Plenary Hall on December 11 and 12, 2009. Her brother, Gerard, was musical director.
From July to August 2010, Salonga played the role of Grizabella in the Manila run of the Asia-Pacific tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. In October, she played Fantine during the 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables, fifteen years after appearing in the 10th Anniversary as Eponine. The same year, she served as a celebrity judge for Avon Voices, Avon's first global, online singing talent search for women and songwriting competition for men and women.
Salonga was honored as a Disney Legend on August 19, 2011. She was one of the judges in the 60th Miss Universe 2011 Beauty Pageant in São Paulo, Brazil on 12 September 2011. Salonga, along with Darren Criss, sang "A Whole New World" to its composer, Alan Menken, as Menken was named the winner of the 2011 Maestro Award at the Billboard/Hollywood Reporter Film & TV Music Conference on October 24, 2011.
Salonga performed in a six-concert series titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites" in 2012 with the Palm Beach Pops. She starred in the first production of Allegiance, at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from September to October 2012. Salonga starred in the Philippine production of the comedy God of Carnage from July 2012 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Manila. She took on the same role at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore, in November 2012. Salonga joined the Candlelight Processional at Epcot in Walt Disney World as narrator on December 14 to 16, retelling the Christmas story accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and a mass choir.
2013–2018: The Voice of the Philippines and return to Broadway
In January 2013, Salonga took part on the 2013 season of Lincoln Center's American Songbook concert series at the Allen Room. In February in the Philippines, Salonga provided the theme song for TV5's reality singing competition Kanta Pilipinas and, together with Tyne Daly and Norm Lewis, she starred as Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Salonga headlined a concert series, "4 Stars One World of Broadway Musicals," in Tokyo Osaka in June, performing with Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess and Yu Shirota. She was one of the four coaches, together with apl.de.ap, Sarah Geronimo, and Bamboo Mañalac for the ABS-CBN program, The Voice of the Philippines, which premiered in June 2013. In December 2013, Salonga began a concert tour in the Philippines titled "Lea Salonga: Playlist" that celebrated her 35 years in show business. The concert series was extended to January 2014. Salonga wrote a book, Playlist: A Celebration of 35 Years, which she used as a souvenir program for the concerts.
In 2014, she returned for the second season of The Voice of the Philippines and also joined the new Philippine version of The Voice Kids, on which she has appeared for three seasons. Salonga recorded a song called "Wished That I Could Call You" that was included in the charity compilation album Children In Need, released in March 2014. Also in 2014–15, she toured in Asia and North America with Il Divo. In mid-2015, she headlined her own concert series in Australasia. Salonga reprised her role as Kei Kimura in the 2015–16 Broadway production of Allegiance. Charles Isherwood wrote in The New York Times of her performance: "Her voice retains its plush beauty, and her culminating first act solo, "Higher" ... is perhaps the show's musical highlight."
Salonga guest-starred on the April 2016 season finale of the American television series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. She played Helen Bechdel in the international premiere of Fun Home in November 2016 in Manila. A review in ABS-CBN News said that she "delivers a finely tuned performance, utilizing her prodigious stage presence to provide the cold and dark shadings to erstwhile peppy scenes with her subtle stares and held back emotions. ... [In] "Days by Days" ... she finally lets go of all the resentment and repressed anger of a woman stuck in a marriage built on a lie. Yet there is dignity in her breakdown ... Salonga pulls it off with such clarity, both musically and emotionally, that it's difficult not to be moved."
In 2016 she won two more Aliw Awards, one for Best Major Concert in a Foreign Venue and her second Entertainer of the Year award. The following year, Salonga was one of the coaches on The Voice Teens. Also in 2017, she released an album, Bahaghari: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines, with songs sung in several languages spoken in the Philippines. Salonga portrayed Erzulie in 2017–2018 in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island at Circle in the Square Theatre, where she received critical praise for her vocal performance. She returned to the show for its final performances in December 2018 and January 2019. Once on this Island was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
2019–present
Salonga appears as a Philippine immigrant, Aunt Gail, in the musical film Yellow Rose, which premiered at the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. She also toured North America and the UK that year. Later in 2019, she played Mrs. Lovett in a revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Manila and then Singapore. Critics praised her "crystalline tones that turned her numbers, especially 'By the Sea', into unexpected show-stoppers. ... [S]he disappears into this loud devil woman. This is by far the best musical theater outing of Salonga in the Philippines, post-Miss Saigon, and the very long wait was well worth it", and called her portrayal "a delirious hurricane of deviousness and devilry, sprinkled with lust ... one of the most accomplished stage creations we've seen this year ... a career high for the actress. Pangan [as Todd] simmers; Salonga is the explosive fire underneath." Between these two short runs, she gave concerts in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in November. On November 27, 2020, PBS Great Performances broadcast the Sydney Opera House concert.
Salonga is set to play a recurring character in Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. She also voices a character in Centaurworld.
Personal life
On January 10, 2004, Salonga married Robert Charles Chien, an American managing director of an entertainment software company in Los Angeles, California, of Chinese and Japanese heritage, whom she met while performing in Flower Drum Song. They have one daughter. Salonga is also an avid video game enthusiast. She resides in the Philippines and the United States.
On October 15, 2010, Salonga was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Voice and musical ability
Salonga has been praised for control over her vocals, which can evoke a wide array of emotion and soundscapes. In her popular music releases, Salonga has sung "simple love songs", which are common in Original Pilipino Music. In both Disney Princess singing roles, Jasmine and Mulan, Salonga uses head tones that reach up to F5.
Discography
Solo recordings
Small Voice (1981)
Lea (1988)
Lea Salonga (1993)
I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (1997)
Lea... In Love (1998)
By Heart (1999)
Lea Salonga: The Christmas Album (2000)
Songs from the Screen (2001)
Inspired (2007)
Lea Salonga: Your Songs (2010)
Bahaghari [Rainbow]: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines (2017)
Cast recordings
Miss Saigon (Original London Cast Recording) (1989)
Little Tramp (Studio Recording) (1992)
The King and I (Hollywood Studio Cast Recording) (1992)
Aladdin (Soundtrack Recording) (1992)
Mulan (Soundtrack Recording) (1998)
Making Tracks (Original Cast Recording) (2001)
Flower Drum Song (Revival Cast Recording) (2002)
Mulan II (Soundtrack Recording) (2005)
Dayo: Sa Mundo ng Elementalia (Soundtrack Recording) (2008)
Cinderella (Original International Tour Cast Recording) (2010)
Allegiance (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (2016)
Once on This Island (First Broadway Revival Cast Recording) (2018)
Video/Live recordings
Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh (1997)
Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 1 (2000)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 2 (2000)
The Broadway Concert (2002)
Songs from Home: Live Concert Recording (2004)
Les Misérables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary (2010)
The Journey So Far – Recorded Live at Cafe Carlyle (2011)
Live: Jazz at Lincoln Center (2016)
Blurred Lines (2017)
The Story of My Life: Lea Salonga Live from Manila (2019) with the BYU Chamber Orchestra
Lea Salonga in Concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2020)
Compilation albums
100% Lea Gives Her Best (2003)
The Ultimate OPM Collection (2007)
Featured recordings
Disney Princess: The Ultimate Song Collection (2004), for the song "If You Can Dream" (sung with Susan Logan, Grey Griffin, Jodi Benson, Paige O'Hara and Judy Kuhn)
Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007), for the songs "Peacock Princess" (sung with Gilbert Gottfried) and "I've Got My Eyes on You"
Shelldon (2008), for the song "It's a Brand New Day"
Sofia the First (2014), for the songs "The Ride of Our Lives" (episode 12: "Two to Tangu") and "Stronger that You Know" (episode 36: "Princesses To The Rescue")
Acting credits
Theatre
Film and television
References
External links
Salonga presenting an illustrated autobiography (2015)
1971 births
Living people
20th-century Filipino actresses
21st-century Filipino actresses
ABS-CBN personalities
Actresses from Pampanga
Arista Records artists
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Drama Desk Award winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Filipino child actresses
Filipino expatriates in the United States
20th-century Filipino women singers
Filipino musical theatre actresses
Filipino voice actresses
Fordham University alumni
Kapampangan people
Laurence Olivier Award winners
People from Angeles City
People from Manila
Recipients of the Order of Lakandula
Singers from Pampanga
That's Entertainment (Philippine TV series)
That's Entertainment Thursday Group Members
Tony Award winners
Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)
21st-century Filipino women singers | false | [
"Saigon is the former name of Ho Chi Minh City, the current most populous city in Vietnam. The Sài Gòn name is still used in Vietnamese lingo. \n\nSaigon may also refer to:\n\n Saigon (mango), a seedling race of mango cultivars \n Saigon (rapper) (born 1977), American hip hop artist\n Saigon (Grey novel), a 1982 novel by Anthony Grey\n Saigon (Killmaster novel), a 1964 Nick Carter novel\n Saigon (1948 film), a 1948 film starring Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake\n Off Limits (1988 film) or Saigon\n Saigon River, a river in Vietnam\n\nSee also\n Sai Kung District, a place in Hong Kong, with the same name in Chinese\n Miss Saigon, a 1989 musical\n Saigon cinnamon (Cinnamomum loureiroi), also known as Vietnamese cinnamon",
"The Miss Saigon controversy refers to the controversies surrounding the 1989 coming-of-age stage musical Miss Saigon.\n\n\n\nCasting controversy of 1990\nMiss Saigon has received criticism for what some have perceived as its racist or sexist overtones, including protests regarding its portrayal of Asians and women in general. Originally, Jonathan Pryce and Keith Burns, white actors playing Eurasian/Asian characters, wore eye prostheses and bronzing cream to make themselves look more Asian, which outraged some who drew comparisons to a \"minstrel show\". The American scholar Yutian Wong noted when Miss Saigon premiered on the West End in 1989, reviews in British newspapers such as The Daily Mail, The Times, and The Evening Standard were uniformly positive as British theater critics did not find anything objectionable about the musical, and the controversy about Miss Saigon only began in 1990 with the prospect of it appearing on Broadway, which Wong argued was because the United States has a much larger Asian population than does the United Kingdom.\n\nIn the London production of Miss Saigon, Lea Salonga originally starred as Kim, with Jonathan Pryce as the Engineer. When the production transferred from London to New York City, the Actors' Equity Association (AEA) refused to allow Pryce, a white actor, to portray the role of the Engineer, a Eurasian pimp, in the United States. The playwright David Henry Hwang and the actor B.D Wong wrote public letters of protest against Pryce's casting. Both Hwang and Wong had seen Miss Saigon on the West End of London, and felt Pryce's performance as the Engineer was demeaning to Asian people. As Alan Eisenberg, executive secretary of Actors' Equity explained: \"The casting of a Caucasian actor made up to appear Asian is an affront to the Asian community. The casting choice is especially disturbing when the casting of an Asian actor, in the role, would be an important and significant opportunity to break the usual pattern of casting Asians in minor roles.\" This ruling on 7 August 1990 led to criticism from many, including the British Actors' Equity Association, citing violations of the principles of artistic integrity and freedom. Producer Cameron Mackintosh threatened to cancel the show, despite massive advance ticket sales. On 2 August 1990, Iraq invaded and occupied Kuwait, leading to the United States to dispatch troops to Saudi Arabia on 8 August 1990, causing a crisis that led to the Gulf War of 1991. Despite the fact that the United States was on the brink of war with Iraq, the Miss Saigon casting controversy was the source of much public interest in 1990 as the Miss Saigon debate made it to the front pages of The New York Times 8 times in August 1990. The controversy was not limited to New York with the Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal all publishing editorials over the course of one week in August 1990 demanding that Pryce be cast as the Engineer on Broadway.\n\nThough there had been a large, well-publicised international search among Asian actresses to play Kim, there had been no equivalent search for Asian actors to play the major Asian male roles—specifically, those of the Engineer (Pryce) and Thuy (Keith Burns). The American scholar Angelica Pao noted that in the first production of Miss Saigon on the West End, Macintosh went out of his way to cast Asian actresses to play the Vietnamese women, arguing that this was necessary to provide authenticity, but he was content to cast white actors as Vietnamese men. However, others pointed out that since the Engineer's character was Eurasian (French-Vietnamese), they argued that Pryce was being discriminated against on the basis that he was Caucasian. Also, Pryce was considered by many in Europe to have \"star status,\" a clause that allows a well-known foreign actor to recreate a role on Broadway without an American casting call. After pressure from Mackintosh, the general public, and many of its own members, Actors' Equity reversed its decision. Pryce starred alongside Salonga and Willy Falk (as Chris) when the show opened on Broadway.\n\nDuring the production transfer from West End to Broadway, a lesser controversy erupted over Salonga's citizenship, as she was Filipina, and the AEA wanted to give priority to its own members, initially preventing her from reprising her role. However, Mackintosh was unable to find a satisfactory replacement for Salonga despite the extensive auditions that he conducted in several American and Canadian cities. An arbitrator reversed the AEA ruling a month later to allow Salonga to star.\n\nOrientalism, racism, and misogyny\nIn Miss Saigon, Vietnam is portrayed as a mysterious, exotic, sensuous place yet full of incomprehensible savagery and incredible “filth”. The opening chorus of the first song The Heat is On in Saigon begins with the lines: \"The heat is on in Saigon/The girls are hotter 'n hell/Tonight one of these slits will be Miss Saigon/God the tension is high/Not to mention the smell\". The prostitute heroine Kim is portrayed as the “Lotus Blossom” archetype, the innocent but sexually available, frail, mysterious, demure and submissive Asian beauty whose life is defined by her love for a white man, in this case the American Marine Chris Scott. The fact that every single Vietnamese female character in Miss Saigon is a prostitute, all but one of whom are \"Dragon Ladies\" who parade their bodies in string bikinis confirms the popular Western stereotype of Asian women as being ultra-sexualized. The second act of the play, set in Thailand, portrays Thai women as all engaging in prostitution, which further reinforces the stereotype. Kim is the only woman at the Dreamland brothel who does not walk around all the time in a string bikini. The American scholar Wong Yutian described Miss Saigon as promoting the image of \"...an effeminzed and infantized Asia serving as a low-budget whorehouse for the West\". The fact that the Vietnam war impoverished many Vietnamese people, and forced many women to turn to prostitution in order to survive is not mentioned in Miss Saigon, and establishments such as the fictional Dreamland brothel are portrayed as the norm in Vietnam. \n\nWong felt that the fact that prostitutes in Miss Saigon are mostly teenagers, which is justified under the grounds that most of the prostitutes in the Vietnam war were also teenagers, sending the message: \"Since Asian womanhood is undifferentiated from girlhood, teenage prostitution is a reasonable enough basis for a love story in which the conditions of Kim's occupation are easily overlooked and viewed as emotionally and economically normative\". In 1999, when Miss Saigon was closing in London, a new advertising campaign was launched on the Tube featuring posters reading \"You'll miss Saigon\" that showed an Asian woman wearing a military jacket that barely covered her breasts, which Wong felt sent the message that \"Asia equals prostitution\". The passivity and moral purity of Kim, who is utterly faithful towards Chris despite the fact that he abandoned her and their son in Vietnam and married an American woman Ellen seems to be suggesting that the proper place of an Asian woman is to be subservient towards a white man. Despite her profession as a prostitute, the 17-year-old Kim is portrayed as a virginal innocent, in need of Chris's protection from the cruel world of Saigon. Wong wrote that even when Kim complains about her situation that: \"...Chris is her savior from Asian-style patriarchy, a fate far worse than prostitution. Imperialist discourse locates the fantasy of sex with white men-and not feminism-as a liberatory ideology. Justifying prostitution justifies colonization in the service of rescuing Asian women from the cultural backwardness (Asian men)\". \n\nAt one point, Chris sings a song about Kim that is addressed both to her and Vietnam, suggesting that Kim is Vietnam. In the song Why, God, Why?, Chris sings: \"Who is that girl back in the rusty bed?/Why am I back in this filthy room?/Why is her voice ringing in my head?/Why am I high on her cheap perfume?/Vietnam/Hey look, I mean no offense/But why does nothing here make sense?\" Throughout Miss Saigon, both Kim and Vietnam are described by the American characters as a \"mystery\", which the American scholar Karen Shimakawa felt reflected racist and misogynic views about Asians and Asian women in particular. Shimakawa argued that the romance between the Marine Chris with Kim was intended as a message by Boublil and Schönberg about the legitimacy and justice of the Vietnam war with the submissive Kim looking up to Chris to protect and save her from her own people. Notably, the wedding between Chris and Kim is seen by the former as a mere spectacle for him to enjoy rather representing a binding commitment on his part to Kim, and he is very surprised to learn later on that Kim considers him to be her husband, an aspect of his character that he is not criticized for. Instead, Ellen explains to Kim that under American law she is Chris's wife, and Kim just merely accepts the supremacy of American law over Vietnamese law, which Shimakawa argued represents the viewpoint that Vietnam is merely just a place that provides exotic spectacles for Chris and other Americans to enjoy. For Chris, his marriage to Ellen is his \"real\" marriage because American law is the legitimate social regulatory force; his marriage to Kim is a \"pretty\" spectacle for him as he phrases it and he does not consider Kim to be his wife. Shimakawa argued that the character of Ellen-whose role in the musical is to support Chris and to be jealous of Kim-serves to allow Chris to \"...signify his Americanness as male, heterosexual, and unavailable to Kim as an avenue to U.S. citizenship (through marriage)\". \n\nThe idealized and passive character of Kim, who is portrayed as being the true Vietnam stands in marked contrast to the male Vietnamese characters. Thuy, the Viet Cong man who wants to marry Kim is portrayed as violent, jealous, cruel and possessive and whose interest in Kim is purely exploitative as opposed to Chris's love. Thuy is portrayed as a \"violent\" and \"barbaric\" man in contrast to Kim who is \"doggedly loyal and grateful to the United States\" sets up a contrast between the \"good\" Vietnam that the Americans sought to defend vs. the \"bad\" Vietnam that rejected them.. The character of the vicious, sleazy pimp Tran Van Dinh aka the Engineer is a Eurasian man whose sexuality is “…simply incomprehensible, illegible, indeterminate, even as it is spectacularly displayed”. Shimakawa described the Engineer as \"...simultaneously lascivious, sexually exploitative, pansexual and desexualized\". The Engineer had a French father and a Vietnamese mother, but throughout the musical it is always his “orientalness” that he displays. Shimakawa wrote “…the Engineer embodies an uncategorizable yet spectacular perversity-a condition that, the logic of the play suggests, is hereditary: it is the direct result of his racially and nationally mixed beginnings in prostitution and sexual debauchery”. Chris's best friend, the aptly named John, who is usually played by black actors as the character of John was envisioned by Boublil and Schönberg as African-American, is an enthusiastic patron of the women of the Dreamland brothel, thereby playing to the stereotype of black men as having an unrestrained, lascivious sexuality. Unlike the romantic Chris, John sees the women of the Dreamland brothel only as sex objects, and is much given to crude, macho boosting about his sexual prowess. Shimakawa argued that the way that John is portrayed as Chris's sidekick is meant to suggest through he is an American that he does not embody the ideal American in the same way as Chris does. \n\nIn contrast to these examples of flawed masculinity, the white Chris is portrayed as kind, gentle man with a genuine love and concern for Kim, who sings at one point: “I wanted to save her, protect her/Christ, I’m an American/How could I fail to do good?” Notably, Chris explains his relationship with Kim to Ellen not in terms of love despite the fact that he married her and fathered a child by her, but rather out of a paternalist and implicitly colonialist concern for someone from an inferior Third World country. The character of Chris is inspired by the character of Lieutenant Pinkerton in Madame Butterfly, but unlike the unpleasant and selfish Pinkerton, the character of Chris is shown to be without moral faults as Schönberg commented \"We didn't want Chris to be a bastard like Pinkerton\". Wong wrote that it was telling that Boublil in an interview stated that the principle problem for him with Madame Butterfly was the callous and cruel nature of Pinkerton, which he \"fixed\" by making Chris into a far more likeable and sympathetic character than Pinkerton. Shimakawa maintained that the Sun and the Moon theme song of Chris and Kim, which features the lyrics \"You are sunlight and I, the moon/Joined by the gods of fortune/Midnight and high noon/Sharing the sky\" is meant to emphasis the opposing nature of the East as embodied by Kim and the West as embodied by Chris. The fact that the high noon and midnight by definition cannot share the same sky illustrates the musical's point that Chris and Kim, however deep their love may be, cannot be together as a couple as they are from different worlds that do not belong together. Schönberg stated when he and Boublil were writing Miss Saigon that the governing principle was that \"the show is about East/West, male/female/, materialistic/fatalistic\". Shimakawa criticized this aspect of Miss Saigon with its suggestion that the divisions between \"East/West\" are mutually exclusive and always will be with the apparent message that Asians can never truly become citizens of Western nations. \n\nShimakawa wrote that the way it was the Eurasian characters of the Engineer and Tam are the only ones from Vietnam who actually make it to the United States with Kim committing suicide seems to be sending the message that Americanness is defined in the musical is at least partly in racial terms as notably \"...to the extent that Tam and other biracial children are contemplated as even potentially American, their ties to their Vietnamese mothers are severed\". In the song Bui-Doi, John leads a chorus that sings: \"They're called Bui-Doi/They are living reminders of all the good we failed to do/That's why we know deep in our hearts/That they are all our children too\". Shimakawa argued that \"the curiously passive lament for 'all the good we failed to do' preempts the question of U.S responsibility or even agency\" for the Vietnam war, suggesting that the war was a well intentioned effort that unfortunately failed to work out as it should had. Shimakawa noted in the song Bui-Doi there is no mention of the Vietnamese mothers of these children who are portrayed as being the exclusive responsibility of their American fathers, which appears to suggest that to become American the Vietnamese heritage of the bui-doi children must be suppressed as the musical seems to be arguing that a dual American-Vietnamese identity is impossible. Under American immigration law in the 1970s to 1980s, the bui-doi children were allowed to immigrate to the United States provided that they could prove that their fathers were American while the Vietnamese mothers of these children were excluded from coming to the United States. The perception in the United States that the Vietnamese mothers of the bui-doi children were all prostitutes led Congress to exclude them all as \"undesirable aliens\". This aspect of American immigration law is never criticized in Miss Saigon, and Kim herself comes to accept that it is only right and proper that the United States government exclude someone like herself from ever coming to America. The character of the Engineer who is sexually perverted and depraved in general seems to imply that immigration laws excluding Asians are in fact justified. \n\nThe question of accepting Vietnamese refugees was just as relevant in 1980s Britain as it was in the United States. Starting in 1978, a vast exodus of people known as the \"boat people\" started to flee Vietnam via boat, and many of them crossed the South China Sea to apply for asylum in the British colony of Hong Kong. British newspapers commonly called the refugees \"Vietnamese boat people\", but the term was something of a misnomer as the majority of the \"boat people\" were actually Hoa (ethnic Chinese) who suffered severely under Vietnam's Communist government. As was the case with the other nations of Southeast Asia, a disproportionate number of the middle class people in Vietnam were ethnic Chinese, who were widely disliked on the account of their success in business and the professions. On 17 February 1979, Vietnam's ancient archenemy China invaded, leading to a short and sharp war. Though Vietnam defeated China, the war pushed anti-Chinese feelings in Vietnam to a hysterical level, leading to most of the Hoa fleeing Vietnam. As Britain had ratified the Vienna convention, the British authorities in Hong Kong had to consider the refugee applications of the \"boat people\", and many of the \"boat people\" did end up settling in the United Kingdom. British tabloids stoked fears about the possibility of the \"Vietnamese boat people\" overwhelming Britain, and falsely stated that most of them were infected with leprosy, prompting a popular outcry to stop the \"boat people\" from coming to the United Kingdom. A British audience watching Miss Saigon in 1989 would had seen the unflattening picture of the Vietnamese characters as a confirmation of the fears inspired by the \"boat people\". \n\nShimakawa noted in the song The American Dream-where the Engineer fantasizes about life in the United States and where he is shown as having clearly absurd notions about what American life is like-underlines the musical's point that the Engineer might become an American citizen, but he can never truly become an American. Shimakawa wrote The American Dream is played for comic effect, but the message of the song is quite clear; that however much the Engineer wants to be an American, he is not and never can be \"one of us\". In The American Dream musical number, all of the lyrics sung by the Engineer as he fantasizes about American life relate only to his greed as he imagines America to be a land of boundless wealth that will make him very rich and he makes no mention whatsoever of American values like freedom and democracy as a reason to come to America. Wong felt that the message of The American Dream song was that Asian immigrants to America are only motivated by avarice and materialism whereas European immigrants are motivated by more idealistic motives such as the desire for freedom and democracy. The Engineer is a man who wants to escape from a Communist nation to the United States, yet the only motive that Miss Saigon gives him for wanting to flee is his greed, which was not how a man who wanted to escape from one of the Communist nations of Eastern Europe to the United States would have been portrayed.\n\nShimakawa wrote that in the musical, Vietnam only exists as a place that defines Americanness by way of contrast, noting in the song I'd Give My Life for You, which recreates the famous evacuation of the American embassy in Saigon in April 1975, the South Vietnamese chorus who are unable to board the Marine helicopters sing: \"No place, no home/No life, no hope/No change, no chance\". Shimakawa argued that in the musical's climax, Kim shoots herself, which she maintained sent the message that Kim, unlike her half-American son Tam, never could become an American citizen because as a Vietnamese woman she does not belong in the United States. Shimakawa further maintained that the way that Chris has a passionate romance with Kim, but ends up marrying the white woman Ellen, causing Kim to commit suicide, reflects a long-standing Western trope where Asian women serve as a love interest for a white Western man, but always end up conveniently committing suicide to free up the white man to marry or to stay married to a white woman. Shimakawa further criticized Boublil and Schönberg for using no Vietnamese instruments and music in Miss Saigon, instead using instruments from Japan and Indonesia which she argued represented the attitude that Vietnam was just an exotic locale in Asia that Westerners might have adventures in, not an entity in its own right with its own culture and history. Shimkawa argued that the musical's logo, a painting of a helicopter done in a manner highly evocative of Chinese calligraphy, reflected the musical's perspective that all Asian cultures were just \"mysterious aesthetics\" for Westerners as the viewpoint in Miss Saigon is that all of Asia, not just Vietnam, is \"...inscrutable and/or incomprehensible (although potentially aesthetically and sexually pleasurable), defining Americaness in opposition\". \n\nFinally, Shimakawa noted that the claim by Boublil and Schönberg as Frenchmen to have a special understanding of Vietnam because Vietnam is a former French colony went largely unchallenged by the British media when Miss Saigon premiered in London in 1989 and likewise by the American media when Miss Saigon made its debut in New York in 1991, which she argued reflected the tendency in the West to place a premium on white views of Asians over Asian views of themselves. In the 1991 book The Story of Miss Saigon by the Anglo-French journalist Edward Behr and the Canadian columnist Mark Steyn, the claim by Boublil and Schönberg as Frenchmen to have a special \"insider's knowledge\" of the Vietnamese is accepted as a fact, and Miss Saigon is portrayed as a historically accurate picture of the Vietnam war. The American scholar Yutian Wong complained about the first chapter of The Story of Miss Saigon written by Behr who covered the Vietnam war for Newsweek, where Behr confessed to sleeping with hundreds of Vietnamese prostitutes during his time in Saigon, experiences that convinced him that Miss Saigon was a realistic and accurate picture of Vietnam. Wong charged that Behr made very sweeping claims about Vietnamese women, a subject which he claimed to be an expert upon based solely upon his experiences with the prostitutes, which she felt to be very misleading perspective on Vietnam. Wong wrote that Behr's nostalgic and romanticized account of prostitution in Saigon was \"emptied of the violence, disease, abuse and humiliations suffered by the prostitutes themselves\" that made the brothels of Saigon sound positively benign and indeed romantic. Wong also argued that Behr's claim that Miss Saigon was not racist and sexist because in real life the U.S. servicemen had a profound respect for the prostitutes whose they used is contradicted by his statement that the slurs applied by the Marines to the prostitutes in Miss Saigon were merely \"realistic\", stating that the Marines in Vietnam did talk that way about Vietnamese women. In The Story of Miss Saigon, Behr wrote about the \"extreme youth\" of the prostitutes whose services he used, which led him to portray teenage prostitution in Vietnam as a charming coming-of-age ritual that led to moments of \"pure joy\" for the girls concerned. Wong wrote that as a woman, she found this statement to be very offensive. As part of their defense of Miss Saigon, Steyn in one of his chapters accused the Asian-American activists who protested against Miss Saigon of racism, whom he accused of a \"new tribalism\" that threatened \"a new era of conformity and sanctimoniousness\". Most of the Asian actresses and dancers that appeared in the original West End production of Miss Saigon in 1989 were Filipina and many were uncomfortable about the costumes they were expected to wear on stage together with the sexually explicit dance numbers they were expected to perform. Steyn and Behr argued that the reluctance of the Filipina performers was due to their Roman Catholicism, leading to Wong to write it seemed not to interest either Behr or Steyn \"...that the material might actually be racially and sexually offensive to Asian women\". \n\nThe Trinidadian-Canadian critic Richard Fung wrote in 1994: \"If Miss Saigon were the only show about sexually available Asian women and money-grubbing Asian men, it wouldn't be a stereotype and there would be no protest-negative portrayals per se are not a problem\". Fung argued that the way in which films, television and plays repeated such stereotypes ad nauseam had a damaging effect on the self-esteem of Asian-Americans, especially Asian-American women.\n\nReferences\n\nSources\n\nRace-related controversies in music\nRace-related controversies in theatre\n1990 controversies"
]
|
[
"Lea Salonga",
"1989-1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin",
"Who is Miss Saigon?",
"In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London."
]
| C_9b2f062c2492418abaa56a510248f79b_0 | How long did she protrat that positon? | 2 | How long did Lea Salonga protrat Miss Saigon positon? | Lea Salonga | In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg's "On My Own" from Les Miserables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. She competed for the role with childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson. Salonga won the lead role, while Wilson was named her understudy and given the role of the bar girl Mimi. For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production. In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin. CANNOTANSWER | When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, | Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, , (; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipina singer and actress, best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplying the singing voices of two Disney Princesses (Jasmine and Mulan), and as a recording artist and television performer.
At age 18, she originated the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon in the West End and then reprised the role on Broadway, winning the Olivier and Theatre World Awards, and becoming the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award. Salonga is the first Filipino artist to sign with an international record label (Atlantic Records in 1993).
Salonga was the first actress of Asian descent to play the roles of Éponine and Fantine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway. She also portrayed Éponine and Fantine, respectively, in the musical's 10th and 25th anniversary concerts in London. She provided the singing voices of two official Disney Princesses: Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan in Mulan (1998). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011 for her work with The Walt Disney Company. Salonga starred as Mei-li in the 2002 Broadway version of Flower Drum Song. She has played numerous other stage, film and TV roles in the US, the Philippines and elsewhere. She has toured widely in the theatre roles and as a concert artist. From 2015 to 2016, she returned to Broadway in Allegiance, and from 2017 to 2019 she appeared in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island.
Life and career
1971–1989: Early life and career
Salonga was born in Ermita, Manila, to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner (1929–2016), and María Ligaya Alcantara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before moving to Manila. Her brother, Gerard Salonga, is a conductor.
She made her professional debut in 1978 at the age of seven in the musical The King and I with Repertory Philippines. She played the title role in Annie in 1980 and appeared in other productions such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, The Rose T, The Goodbye Girl (1982), Paper Moon (1983) and The Fantasticks (1988). In 1981, she recorded her first album, Small Voice, which was certified gold in the Philippines. In 1985, she and her brother took part in the eighth Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as the interpreters for the song entry titled "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La" which was composed by Tess Concepcion.
During the 1980s, Salonga also had several television projects through GMA Radio Television Arts where she worked as a child actor. After the success of her first album, from 1983 to 1985, she hosted her own musical television show, Love, Lea, and was a member of the cast of German Moreno's teen variety show That's Entertainment. She acted in films, which included the family-oriented Tropang Bulilit, Like Father, Like Son, Ninja Kids, Captain Barbell and Pik Pak Boom. As a young performer, Salonga received a Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination for Best Child Actress and three Aliw Awards for best child performer in 1980, 1981 and 1982. She released her second album, Lea, in 1988.
She also opened for, and performed with, international acts such as Menudo and Stevie Wonder in their concerts in Manila in 1985 and in 1988, respectively.
She finished her secondary education in 1988 at the O. B. Montessori Center in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila. She also attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program aimed at training musically talented children in music and stage movement. A college freshman studying biology at the Ateneo de Manila University when she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she intended to have a medical career. Later, in between jobs in New York, she took two courses at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus.
1989–1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin
In 1989, Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's "On My Own" from Les Misérables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. Salonga won the lead role, while her childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson was named her understudy and cast as the bar girl Mimi.
For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest winners of the award. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production.
In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.
1993–1996: Les Misérables, films and other musicals
In 1993, Salonga played the role of Éponine in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. She performed the song "A Whole New World" from Aladdin with Brad Kane at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the song won an Oscar, having already won a Golden Globe Award. That same year, she released her self-titled international debut album with Atlantic Records. In 1994, Salonga played in various musical theatre productions in the Philippines and Singapore, such as Sandy in Grease, Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady and the Witch in Into the Woods.
Back in the US in 1995, Salonga played the role of Geri Riordan, an 18-year-old adopted Vietnamese American child in the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Redwood Curtain, which starred John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels. She then flew back to the Philippines to star with Filipino matinée idol Aga Muhlach in the critically acclaimed film Sana Maulit Muli, which gave her a second Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination, this time for Best Actress. She played the role of Éponine in the 10th anniversary production of Les Mis called Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.
In 1996, Salonga was in Les Misérables once again as Éponine in the London production of the musical, then continued on to perform the role in the musical's US national tour. In the Philippines in 1999, and again in 2000, she played Sonia Walsk in They're Playing Our Song.
1997–2004: Recordings, concerts, TV and Flower Drum Song
From 1997 to 2000, Salonga did recordings and concerts in the Philippines and another engagement in London, in addition to a few returns to Miss Saigon in London and on Broadway. In 1997, she released I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (recordings from her childhood days) to gold sales in the Philippines. That recording was followed by Lea... In Love in 1998 and By Heart in 2000, with both albums reaching multiple platinum status in the Philippines. In 1998, she again lent her voice to a major Disney animated film, singing the title character in Mulan, also providing the character's singing voice in the 2004 sequel, Mulan II. At the age of 28, Salonga moved to New York City, purchasing her own apartment (which she still owns up to at least 2013). She participated in the 1998 tribute concert to Sir Cameron Mackintosh in London called "Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron MacKintosh", where she did numbers from several of his musicals. She also performed in four concerts: The Homecoming Concert, The Millennium Concert, The Best of Manila and Songs from the Screen – the last two being benefit shows. Salonga returned to Manila in Miss Saigon, staged at the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the end of 2000.
After a last stint in Miss Saigon for its closing on Broadway in 2001, Salonga recreated the role of Lien Hughes originally played by Ming-Na Wen in the soap opera As the World Turns. After completing her contract that year, she was asked to return to the role in 2003. She guested on Russell Watson's The Voice concert, narrated for the television special My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and appeared on the Christmas episode of the TV medical drama ER, playing a patient with lymphoma.
In 2002, Salonga returned to Broadway to play the leading role of Mei-li, a Chinese immigrant in a reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song opposite Jose Llana. This was after the reinvented musical had a run at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2001 with Salonga playing the role and in 2002 winning Lead Actress in a Musical from the Los Angeles theatre Ovation Awards. The Salonga-led Broadway revival cast album was nominated for a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album. Salonga's performance was received positively by theatre critics in New York, and she received a nomination for Distinguished Performance from the Drama League, among other honors. Between the 2001 Los Angeles and 2002 Broadway productions of Flower Drum Song, she performed in a non-musical theatrical production for the first time, playing the role of Catherine in the stage play Proof in Manila. This was followed by a major concert, The Broadway Concert, at the Philippine International Convention Center. She also sang at the 56th Tony Awards with Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Gallagher and Michele Lee in a number paying tribute to Richard Rodgers.
In 2003 to 2004, Salonga did her first "all-Filipino" concerts in Manila called Songs from Home, which later won her an Aliw Award as Entertainer of the Year. In 2003, she performed in several concerts at the Mohegan Sun hotel in Connecticut. This was followed by a Christmas concert in the Philippines, called Home for Christmas, and performances at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton, New Jersey, in 2004. Later in 2004, she played Lizzie in the Manila production of the musical Baby, which earned her another nomination from the Aliw Awards.
2005–2007: International ventures
In 2005, Salonga gave her first US concert tour. Later that year, she performed to a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Diverse City Theater Company. The same year, she received the Golden Artist Award at the 53rd FAMAS Awards in honor of her international achievements, performed during the grand opening of Hong Kong's Disneyland and recorded two songs on Daniel Rodriguez's album In the Presence. She also did voice work for Disney's English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro as Yasuko Kusakabe. Salonga wrote the foreword to Linda Marquart's "The Right Way to Sing" (2005). In 2006, at the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, Salonga concluded the closing ceremony with the song "Triumph of the One" before an audience of 50,000 people at the Khalifa Stadium.
In 2007, Salonga released her first studio album in seven years called Inspired, which was certified platinum in the Philippines She received the Order of Lakandula, with the rank of Commander (Komandante), from Philippine president Arroyo in recognition of using her talents to benefit Philippine society and foster cultural exchange. She has also received the Congressional Medal of Achievement from the House of Representatives of the Philippines. She returned to Broadway for another stint in the musical Les Misérables, this time as Fantine. Her rejoining the show boosted the musical's ticket sales. President Arroyo watched Salonga in this role, together with Filipino Americans Adam Jacobs as Marius and Ali Ewoldt as Cosette. Salonga received rave reviews and made it again to the short list of Broadway.com's Audience Award favorites as Best Replacement. During her tenure on Broadway that season, she appeared in Broadway on Broadway 2007 and Stars in the Alley 2007, spoke at the Broadway Artists Alliance Summer Intensives, guested on the Broadway musical 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and participated in Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS' 12th Annual Nothing Like a Dame event to benefit the women's health initiative of The Actors Fund. Right after doing Les Misérables, she performed in two events: at the US Military Academy Band's concert in West Point where she sang four songs and an encore and in her own concert at the Tarrytown Music Hall in New York. She was then busy with other concerts and musical events, including a Christmas presentation in Manila.
In 2008, Salonga gave concerts in the Philippines, California, Hawaii, Hong Kong, and Guam, and she played the title role in Broadway Asia Entertainment's international tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.
2008–2012: Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist and touring
On 3 July 2008, Salonga became a columnist in the Philippine Daily Inquirer with her column "Backstory" (Entertainment section), "Introducing: Lea Salonga, writer". Since then she has written numerous columns for the Inquirer. She performed in "Global Pop" at the Music Center on July 11, 2008. It was presented by The Blue Ribbon a group founded by Dorothy Chandler in 1968. Salonga gave a concert on July 11 at Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. That same year she received a special citation from the Awit Awards.
From late July 2008 to mid-2009, Salonga played the title role in the 30-week Asian tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which premiered in Manila. Salonga performed a series of concerts in North America in 2009 and was also asked to dance the Filipino novelty dances "Ocho-ocho" and "Spaghetti". The same year, Salonga advertised the Avon Products line of anti-aging skin care products Anew Rejuvenate in the Philippines. In June 2009, she sang at the 95th Anniversary Special of the Iglesia ni Cristo. Salonga sang Patriotic song "Bayan Ko" at the Requiem Mass for former President Corazon Aquino at Manila Cathedral. Salonga celebrated 20 years of Miss Saigon by performing in concerts called "Lea Salonga... Your Songs", at the Philippine International Convention Center Plenary Hall on December 11 and 12, 2009. Her brother, Gerard, was musical director.
From July to August 2010, Salonga played the role of Grizabella in the Manila run of the Asia-Pacific tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. In October, she played Fantine during the 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables, fifteen years after appearing in the 10th Anniversary as Eponine. The same year, she served as a celebrity judge for Avon Voices, Avon's first global, online singing talent search for women and songwriting competition for men and women.
Salonga was honored as a Disney Legend on August 19, 2011. She was one of the judges in the 60th Miss Universe 2011 Beauty Pageant in São Paulo, Brazil on 12 September 2011. Salonga, along with Darren Criss, sang "A Whole New World" to its composer, Alan Menken, as Menken was named the winner of the 2011 Maestro Award at the Billboard/Hollywood Reporter Film & TV Music Conference on October 24, 2011.
Salonga performed in a six-concert series titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites" in 2012 with the Palm Beach Pops. She starred in the first production of Allegiance, at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from September to October 2012. Salonga starred in the Philippine production of the comedy God of Carnage from July 2012 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Manila. She took on the same role at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore, in November 2012. Salonga joined the Candlelight Processional at Epcot in Walt Disney World as narrator on December 14 to 16, retelling the Christmas story accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and a mass choir.
2013–2018: The Voice of the Philippines and return to Broadway
In January 2013, Salonga took part on the 2013 season of Lincoln Center's American Songbook concert series at the Allen Room. In February in the Philippines, Salonga provided the theme song for TV5's reality singing competition Kanta Pilipinas and, together with Tyne Daly and Norm Lewis, she starred as Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Salonga headlined a concert series, "4 Stars One World of Broadway Musicals," in Tokyo Osaka in June, performing with Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess and Yu Shirota. She was one of the four coaches, together with apl.de.ap, Sarah Geronimo, and Bamboo Mañalac for the ABS-CBN program, The Voice of the Philippines, which premiered in June 2013. In December 2013, Salonga began a concert tour in the Philippines titled "Lea Salonga: Playlist" that celebrated her 35 years in show business. The concert series was extended to January 2014. Salonga wrote a book, Playlist: A Celebration of 35 Years, which she used as a souvenir program for the concerts.
In 2014, she returned for the second season of The Voice of the Philippines and also joined the new Philippine version of The Voice Kids, on which she has appeared for three seasons. Salonga recorded a song called "Wished That I Could Call You" that was included in the charity compilation album Children In Need, released in March 2014. Also in 2014–15, she toured in Asia and North America with Il Divo. In mid-2015, she headlined her own concert series in Australasia. Salonga reprised her role as Kei Kimura in the 2015–16 Broadway production of Allegiance. Charles Isherwood wrote in The New York Times of her performance: "Her voice retains its plush beauty, and her culminating first act solo, "Higher" ... is perhaps the show's musical highlight."
Salonga guest-starred on the April 2016 season finale of the American television series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. She played Helen Bechdel in the international premiere of Fun Home in November 2016 in Manila. A review in ABS-CBN News said that she "delivers a finely tuned performance, utilizing her prodigious stage presence to provide the cold and dark shadings to erstwhile peppy scenes with her subtle stares and held back emotions. ... [In] "Days by Days" ... she finally lets go of all the resentment and repressed anger of a woman stuck in a marriage built on a lie. Yet there is dignity in her breakdown ... Salonga pulls it off with such clarity, both musically and emotionally, that it's difficult not to be moved."
In 2016 she won two more Aliw Awards, one for Best Major Concert in a Foreign Venue and her second Entertainer of the Year award. The following year, Salonga was one of the coaches on The Voice Teens. Also in 2017, she released an album, Bahaghari: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines, with songs sung in several languages spoken in the Philippines. Salonga portrayed Erzulie in 2017–2018 in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island at Circle in the Square Theatre, where she received critical praise for her vocal performance. She returned to the show for its final performances in December 2018 and January 2019. Once on this Island was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
2019–present
Salonga appears as a Philippine immigrant, Aunt Gail, in the musical film Yellow Rose, which premiered at the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. She also toured North America and the UK that year. Later in 2019, she played Mrs. Lovett in a revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Manila and then Singapore. Critics praised her "crystalline tones that turned her numbers, especially 'By the Sea', into unexpected show-stoppers. ... [S]he disappears into this loud devil woman. This is by far the best musical theater outing of Salonga in the Philippines, post-Miss Saigon, and the very long wait was well worth it", and called her portrayal "a delirious hurricane of deviousness and devilry, sprinkled with lust ... one of the most accomplished stage creations we've seen this year ... a career high for the actress. Pangan [as Todd] simmers; Salonga is the explosive fire underneath." Between these two short runs, she gave concerts in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in November. On November 27, 2020, PBS Great Performances broadcast the Sydney Opera House concert.
Salonga is set to play a recurring character in Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. She also voices a character in Centaurworld.
Personal life
On January 10, 2004, Salonga married Robert Charles Chien, an American managing director of an entertainment software company in Los Angeles, California, of Chinese and Japanese heritage, whom she met while performing in Flower Drum Song. They have one daughter. Salonga is also an avid video game enthusiast. She resides in the Philippines and the United States.
On October 15, 2010, Salonga was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Voice and musical ability
Salonga has been praised for control over her vocals, which can evoke a wide array of emotion and soundscapes. In her popular music releases, Salonga has sung "simple love songs", which are common in Original Pilipino Music. In both Disney Princess singing roles, Jasmine and Mulan, Salonga uses head tones that reach up to F5.
Discography
Solo recordings
Small Voice (1981)
Lea (1988)
Lea Salonga (1993)
I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (1997)
Lea... In Love (1998)
By Heart (1999)
Lea Salonga: The Christmas Album (2000)
Songs from the Screen (2001)
Inspired (2007)
Lea Salonga: Your Songs (2010)
Bahaghari [Rainbow]: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines (2017)
Cast recordings
Miss Saigon (Original London Cast Recording) (1989)
Little Tramp (Studio Recording) (1992)
The King and I (Hollywood Studio Cast Recording) (1992)
Aladdin (Soundtrack Recording) (1992)
Mulan (Soundtrack Recording) (1998)
Making Tracks (Original Cast Recording) (2001)
Flower Drum Song (Revival Cast Recording) (2002)
Mulan II (Soundtrack Recording) (2005)
Dayo: Sa Mundo ng Elementalia (Soundtrack Recording) (2008)
Cinderella (Original International Tour Cast Recording) (2010)
Allegiance (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (2016)
Once on This Island (First Broadway Revival Cast Recording) (2018)
Video/Live recordings
Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh (1997)
Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 1 (2000)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 2 (2000)
The Broadway Concert (2002)
Songs from Home: Live Concert Recording (2004)
Les Misérables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary (2010)
The Journey So Far – Recorded Live at Cafe Carlyle (2011)
Live: Jazz at Lincoln Center (2016)
Blurred Lines (2017)
The Story of My Life: Lea Salonga Live from Manila (2019) with the BYU Chamber Orchestra
Lea Salonga in Concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2020)
Compilation albums
100% Lea Gives Her Best (2003)
The Ultimate OPM Collection (2007)
Featured recordings
Disney Princess: The Ultimate Song Collection (2004), for the song "If You Can Dream" (sung with Susan Logan, Grey Griffin, Jodi Benson, Paige O'Hara and Judy Kuhn)
Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007), for the songs "Peacock Princess" (sung with Gilbert Gottfried) and "I've Got My Eyes on You"
Shelldon (2008), for the song "It's a Brand New Day"
Sofia the First (2014), for the songs "The Ride of Our Lives" (episode 12: "Two to Tangu") and "Stronger that You Know" (episode 36: "Princesses To The Rescue")
Acting credits
Theatre
Film and television
References
External links
Salonga presenting an illustrated autobiography (2015)
1971 births
Living people
20th-century Filipino actresses
21st-century Filipino actresses
ABS-CBN personalities
Actresses from Pampanga
Arista Records artists
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Drama Desk Award winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Filipino child actresses
Filipino expatriates in the United States
20th-century Filipino women singers
Filipino musical theatre actresses
Filipino voice actresses
Fordham University alumni
Kapampangan people
Laurence Olivier Award winners
People from Angeles City
People from Manila
Recipients of the Order of Lakandula
Singers from Pampanga
That's Entertainment (Philippine TV series)
That's Entertainment Thursday Group Members
Tony Award winners
Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)
21st-century Filipino women singers | true | [
"Qua v John Ford Morrison Solicitors [2003] ICR 482 (EAT) is a UK labour law case concerning emergency leave to care for children.\n\nFacts\nMrs Qua was absent for 17 days, because of her young son's medical problems. She had not told the employer quickly.\n\nThe Employment Tribunal held that she had not told the employer as soon as reasonably practicable and said how long she would be absent.\n\nJudgment\nCox J held that Mrs Qua had not done anything wrong, and ERA 1996 section 57A did not require the employee give daily updates about absence. He noted that even if the right to automatically unfair dismissal was lost because one did not comply with section 57A(2), then an employee who had been working over a year could still have an unfair dismissal claim. He added that the legislation only covers unforeseen emergencies, and employees cannot use the right to deal with regular occurrences, e.g. one day a week.\n\nSee also\n\nUK labour law\nUnfair dismissal\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nEmployment Appeal Tribunal cases\n2003 in case law\n2003 in British law",
"Andrea Pitzer is an American journalist, known for her books One Long Night: A Global History of Concentration Camps and The Secret History of Vladimir Nabokov.\n\nEarly life \n\nPitzer attended the Georgetown School of Foreign Service, where she says she studied nuclear negotiations and treaties. While at Harvard, she founded Nieman Storyboard.\n\nCareer \n\nPitzer was widely cited in 2019 over whether the camps where the United States Border authorities detained refugee claimants were or weren't canonical concentration camps. In particular, a tweet where Congressional Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez linked to an article in Esquire magazine, that extensively quoted Pitzer stirred widespread debate.\n\nPitzer was interviewed on All In with Chris Hayes, on the Border Patrol detention camps, on June 6, 2019. According to Pitzer, recognizable concentration camps were first used in Spanish Cuba, developed by General Valeriano Weyler during the Cuban War of Independence in the 1890s. She said that while the Nazi death camps were the best known concentration camps, they have been used around the world. She said she found that concentration camps were hard to close; how she found that authorities found them so convenient, that they were re-used for other groups. She cited how French camps first used to house refugees from the Spanish Civil War were later used by the Vichy French to house Jews rounded up to hand over to their Nazi occupiers, and a camp at the Guantanamo Naval Base to house Haitian and Cuban refugees was later used to house captives from Afghanistan. She said her book began when she \"looked to see how this idea, of rounding up a whole bunch of civilians - noncombatants - and putting them in detention, without trial... How did that get to be seen as a good idea?\"\n\nPitzer has criticized the detention of ethnic Uyghurs in China's Xinjiang territory, considering these to be concentration camps as well. She has criticized arbitrary arrests and detention in India, Myanmar, China, and the US as \"part of a single phenomenon\" which occurs when authoritarians get away with abuse of power.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Interview with Pitzer about her biography 'The Secret History of Vladimir Nabokov'\n\nAmerican women journalists\nLiving people\n21st-century American historians\n1968 births\n21st-century American women"
]
|
[
"Lea Salonga",
"1989-1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin",
"Who is Miss Saigon?",
"In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London.",
"How long did she protrat that positon?",
"When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim,"
]
| C_9b2f062c2492418abaa56a510248f79b_0 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | 3 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article other than Miss Saigon position?? | Lea Salonga | In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg's "On My Own" from Les Miserables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. She competed for the role with childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson. Salonga won the lead role, while Wilson was named her understudy and given the role of the bar girl Mimi. For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production. In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin. CANNOTANSWER | In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. | Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, , (; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipina singer and actress, best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplying the singing voices of two Disney Princesses (Jasmine and Mulan), and as a recording artist and television performer.
At age 18, she originated the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon in the West End and then reprised the role on Broadway, winning the Olivier and Theatre World Awards, and becoming the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award. Salonga is the first Filipino artist to sign with an international record label (Atlantic Records in 1993).
Salonga was the first actress of Asian descent to play the roles of Éponine and Fantine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway. She also portrayed Éponine and Fantine, respectively, in the musical's 10th and 25th anniversary concerts in London. She provided the singing voices of two official Disney Princesses: Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan in Mulan (1998). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011 for her work with The Walt Disney Company. Salonga starred as Mei-li in the 2002 Broadway version of Flower Drum Song. She has played numerous other stage, film and TV roles in the US, the Philippines and elsewhere. She has toured widely in the theatre roles and as a concert artist. From 2015 to 2016, she returned to Broadway in Allegiance, and from 2017 to 2019 she appeared in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island.
Life and career
1971–1989: Early life and career
Salonga was born in Ermita, Manila, to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner (1929–2016), and María Ligaya Alcantara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before moving to Manila. Her brother, Gerard Salonga, is a conductor.
She made her professional debut in 1978 at the age of seven in the musical The King and I with Repertory Philippines. She played the title role in Annie in 1980 and appeared in other productions such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, The Rose T, The Goodbye Girl (1982), Paper Moon (1983) and The Fantasticks (1988). In 1981, she recorded her first album, Small Voice, which was certified gold in the Philippines. In 1985, she and her brother took part in the eighth Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as the interpreters for the song entry titled "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La" which was composed by Tess Concepcion.
During the 1980s, Salonga also had several television projects through GMA Radio Television Arts where she worked as a child actor. After the success of her first album, from 1983 to 1985, she hosted her own musical television show, Love, Lea, and was a member of the cast of German Moreno's teen variety show That's Entertainment. She acted in films, which included the family-oriented Tropang Bulilit, Like Father, Like Son, Ninja Kids, Captain Barbell and Pik Pak Boom. As a young performer, Salonga received a Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination for Best Child Actress and three Aliw Awards for best child performer in 1980, 1981 and 1982. She released her second album, Lea, in 1988.
She also opened for, and performed with, international acts such as Menudo and Stevie Wonder in their concerts in Manila in 1985 and in 1988, respectively.
She finished her secondary education in 1988 at the O. B. Montessori Center in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila. She also attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program aimed at training musically talented children in music and stage movement. A college freshman studying biology at the Ateneo de Manila University when she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she intended to have a medical career. Later, in between jobs in New York, she took two courses at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus.
1989–1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin
In 1989, Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's "On My Own" from Les Misérables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. Salonga won the lead role, while her childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson was named her understudy and cast as the bar girl Mimi.
For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest winners of the award. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production.
In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.
1993–1996: Les Misérables, films and other musicals
In 1993, Salonga played the role of Éponine in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. She performed the song "A Whole New World" from Aladdin with Brad Kane at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the song won an Oscar, having already won a Golden Globe Award. That same year, she released her self-titled international debut album with Atlantic Records. In 1994, Salonga played in various musical theatre productions in the Philippines and Singapore, such as Sandy in Grease, Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady and the Witch in Into the Woods.
Back in the US in 1995, Salonga played the role of Geri Riordan, an 18-year-old adopted Vietnamese American child in the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Redwood Curtain, which starred John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels. She then flew back to the Philippines to star with Filipino matinée idol Aga Muhlach in the critically acclaimed film Sana Maulit Muli, which gave her a second Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination, this time for Best Actress. She played the role of Éponine in the 10th anniversary production of Les Mis called Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.
In 1996, Salonga was in Les Misérables once again as Éponine in the London production of the musical, then continued on to perform the role in the musical's US national tour. In the Philippines in 1999, and again in 2000, she played Sonia Walsk in They're Playing Our Song.
1997–2004: Recordings, concerts, TV and Flower Drum Song
From 1997 to 2000, Salonga did recordings and concerts in the Philippines and another engagement in London, in addition to a few returns to Miss Saigon in London and on Broadway. In 1997, she released I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (recordings from her childhood days) to gold sales in the Philippines. That recording was followed by Lea... In Love in 1998 and By Heart in 2000, with both albums reaching multiple platinum status in the Philippines. In 1998, she again lent her voice to a major Disney animated film, singing the title character in Mulan, also providing the character's singing voice in the 2004 sequel, Mulan II. At the age of 28, Salonga moved to New York City, purchasing her own apartment (which she still owns up to at least 2013). She participated in the 1998 tribute concert to Sir Cameron Mackintosh in London called "Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron MacKintosh", where she did numbers from several of his musicals. She also performed in four concerts: The Homecoming Concert, The Millennium Concert, The Best of Manila and Songs from the Screen – the last two being benefit shows. Salonga returned to Manila in Miss Saigon, staged at the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the end of 2000.
After a last stint in Miss Saigon for its closing on Broadway in 2001, Salonga recreated the role of Lien Hughes originally played by Ming-Na Wen in the soap opera As the World Turns. After completing her contract that year, she was asked to return to the role in 2003. She guested on Russell Watson's The Voice concert, narrated for the television special My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and appeared on the Christmas episode of the TV medical drama ER, playing a patient with lymphoma.
In 2002, Salonga returned to Broadway to play the leading role of Mei-li, a Chinese immigrant in a reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song opposite Jose Llana. This was after the reinvented musical had a run at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2001 with Salonga playing the role and in 2002 winning Lead Actress in a Musical from the Los Angeles theatre Ovation Awards. The Salonga-led Broadway revival cast album was nominated for a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album. Salonga's performance was received positively by theatre critics in New York, and she received a nomination for Distinguished Performance from the Drama League, among other honors. Between the 2001 Los Angeles and 2002 Broadway productions of Flower Drum Song, she performed in a non-musical theatrical production for the first time, playing the role of Catherine in the stage play Proof in Manila. This was followed by a major concert, The Broadway Concert, at the Philippine International Convention Center. She also sang at the 56th Tony Awards with Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Gallagher and Michele Lee in a number paying tribute to Richard Rodgers.
In 2003 to 2004, Salonga did her first "all-Filipino" concerts in Manila called Songs from Home, which later won her an Aliw Award as Entertainer of the Year. In 2003, she performed in several concerts at the Mohegan Sun hotel in Connecticut. This was followed by a Christmas concert in the Philippines, called Home for Christmas, and performances at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton, New Jersey, in 2004. Later in 2004, she played Lizzie in the Manila production of the musical Baby, which earned her another nomination from the Aliw Awards.
2005–2007: International ventures
In 2005, Salonga gave her first US concert tour. Later that year, she performed to a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Diverse City Theater Company. The same year, she received the Golden Artist Award at the 53rd FAMAS Awards in honor of her international achievements, performed during the grand opening of Hong Kong's Disneyland and recorded two songs on Daniel Rodriguez's album In the Presence. She also did voice work for Disney's English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro as Yasuko Kusakabe. Salonga wrote the foreword to Linda Marquart's "The Right Way to Sing" (2005). In 2006, at the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, Salonga concluded the closing ceremony with the song "Triumph of the One" before an audience of 50,000 people at the Khalifa Stadium.
In 2007, Salonga released her first studio album in seven years called Inspired, which was certified platinum in the Philippines She received the Order of Lakandula, with the rank of Commander (Komandante), from Philippine president Arroyo in recognition of using her talents to benefit Philippine society and foster cultural exchange. She has also received the Congressional Medal of Achievement from the House of Representatives of the Philippines. She returned to Broadway for another stint in the musical Les Misérables, this time as Fantine. Her rejoining the show boosted the musical's ticket sales. President Arroyo watched Salonga in this role, together with Filipino Americans Adam Jacobs as Marius and Ali Ewoldt as Cosette. Salonga received rave reviews and made it again to the short list of Broadway.com's Audience Award favorites as Best Replacement. During her tenure on Broadway that season, she appeared in Broadway on Broadway 2007 and Stars in the Alley 2007, spoke at the Broadway Artists Alliance Summer Intensives, guested on the Broadway musical 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and participated in Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS' 12th Annual Nothing Like a Dame event to benefit the women's health initiative of The Actors Fund. Right after doing Les Misérables, she performed in two events: at the US Military Academy Band's concert in West Point where she sang four songs and an encore and in her own concert at the Tarrytown Music Hall in New York. She was then busy with other concerts and musical events, including a Christmas presentation in Manila.
In 2008, Salonga gave concerts in the Philippines, California, Hawaii, Hong Kong, and Guam, and she played the title role in Broadway Asia Entertainment's international tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.
2008–2012: Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist and touring
On 3 July 2008, Salonga became a columnist in the Philippine Daily Inquirer with her column "Backstory" (Entertainment section), "Introducing: Lea Salonga, writer". Since then she has written numerous columns for the Inquirer. She performed in "Global Pop" at the Music Center on July 11, 2008. It was presented by The Blue Ribbon a group founded by Dorothy Chandler in 1968. Salonga gave a concert on July 11 at Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. That same year she received a special citation from the Awit Awards.
From late July 2008 to mid-2009, Salonga played the title role in the 30-week Asian tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which premiered in Manila. Salonga performed a series of concerts in North America in 2009 and was also asked to dance the Filipino novelty dances "Ocho-ocho" and "Spaghetti". The same year, Salonga advertised the Avon Products line of anti-aging skin care products Anew Rejuvenate in the Philippines. In June 2009, she sang at the 95th Anniversary Special of the Iglesia ni Cristo. Salonga sang Patriotic song "Bayan Ko" at the Requiem Mass for former President Corazon Aquino at Manila Cathedral. Salonga celebrated 20 years of Miss Saigon by performing in concerts called "Lea Salonga... Your Songs", at the Philippine International Convention Center Plenary Hall on December 11 and 12, 2009. Her brother, Gerard, was musical director.
From July to August 2010, Salonga played the role of Grizabella in the Manila run of the Asia-Pacific tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. In October, she played Fantine during the 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables, fifteen years after appearing in the 10th Anniversary as Eponine. The same year, she served as a celebrity judge for Avon Voices, Avon's first global, online singing talent search for women and songwriting competition for men and women.
Salonga was honored as a Disney Legend on August 19, 2011. She was one of the judges in the 60th Miss Universe 2011 Beauty Pageant in São Paulo, Brazil on 12 September 2011. Salonga, along with Darren Criss, sang "A Whole New World" to its composer, Alan Menken, as Menken was named the winner of the 2011 Maestro Award at the Billboard/Hollywood Reporter Film & TV Music Conference on October 24, 2011.
Salonga performed in a six-concert series titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites" in 2012 with the Palm Beach Pops. She starred in the first production of Allegiance, at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from September to October 2012. Salonga starred in the Philippine production of the comedy God of Carnage from July 2012 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Manila. She took on the same role at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore, in November 2012. Salonga joined the Candlelight Processional at Epcot in Walt Disney World as narrator on December 14 to 16, retelling the Christmas story accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and a mass choir.
2013–2018: The Voice of the Philippines and return to Broadway
In January 2013, Salonga took part on the 2013 season of Lincoln Center's American Songbook concert series at the Allen Room. In February in the Philippines, Salonga provided the theme song for TV5's reality singing competition Kanta Pilipinas and, together with Tyne Daly and Norm Lewis, she starred as Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Salonga headlined a concert series, "4 Stars One World of Broadway Musicals," in Tokyo Osaka in June, performing with Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess and Yu Shirota. She was one of the four coaches, together with apl.de.ap, Sarah Geronimo, and Bamboo Mañalac for the ABS-CBN program, The Voice of the Philippines, which premiered in June 2013. In December 2013, Salonga began a concert tour in the Philippines titled "Lea Salonga: Playlist" that celebrated her 35 years in show business. The concert series was extended to January 2014. Salonga wrote a book, Playlist: A Celebration of 35 Years, which she used as a souvenir program for the concerts.
In 2014, she returned for the second season of The Voice of the Philippines and also joined the new Philippine version of The Voice Kids, on which she has appeared for three seasons. Salonga recorded a song called "Wished That I Could Call You" that was included in the charity compilation album Children In Need, released in March 2014. Also in 2014–15, she toured in Asia and North America with Il Divo. In mid-2015, she headlined her own concert series in Australasia. Salonga reprised her role as Kei Kimura in the 2015–16 Broadway production of Allegiance. Charles Isherwood wrote in The New York Times of her performance: "Her voice retains its plush beauty, and her culminating first act solo, "Higher" ... is perhaps the show's musical highlight."
Salonga guest-starred on the April 2016 season finale of the American television series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. She played Helen Bechdel in the international premiere of Fun Home in November 2016 in Manila. A review in ABS-CBN News said that she "delivers a finely tuned performance, utilizing her prodigious stage presence to provide the cold and dark shadings to erstwhile peppy scenes with her subtle stares and held back emotions. ... [In] "Days by Days" ... she finally lets go of all the resentment and repressed anger of a woman stuck in a marriage built on a lie. Yet there is dignity in her breakdown ... Salonga pulls it off with such clarity, both musically and emotionally, that it's difficult not to be moved."
In 2016 she won two more Aliw Awards, one for Best Major Concert in a Foreign Venue and her second Entertainer of the Year award. The following year, Salonga was one of the coaches on The Voice Teens. Also in 2017, she released an album, Bahaghari: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines, with songs sung in several languages spoken in the Philippines. Salonga portrayed Erzulie in 2017–2018 in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island at Circle in the Square Theatre, where she received critical praise for her vocal performance. She returned to the show for its final performances in December 2018 and January 2019. Once on this Island was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
2019–present
Salonga appears as a Philippine immigrant, Aunt Gail, in the musical film Yellow Rose, which premiered at the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. She also toured North America and the UK that year. Later in 2019, she played Mrs. Lovett in a revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Manila and then Singapore. Critics praised her "crystalline tones that turned her numbers, especially 'By the Sea', into unexpected show-stoppers. ... [S]he disappears into this loud devil woman. This is by far the best musical theater outing of Salonga in the Philippines, post-Miss Saigon, and the very long wait was well worth it", and called her portrayal "a delirious hurricane of deviousness and devilry, sprinkled with lust ... one of the most accomplished stage creations we've seen this year ... a career high for the actress. Pangan [as Todd] simmers; Salonga is the explosive fire underneath." Between these two short runs, she gave concerts in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in November. On November 27, 2020, PBS Great Performances broadcast the Sydney Opera House concert.
Salonga is set to play a recurring character in Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. She also voices a character in Centaurworld.
Personal life
On January 10, 2004, Salonga married Robert Charles Chien, an American managing director of an entertainment software company in Los Angeles, California, of Chinese and Japanese heritage, whom she met while performing in Flower Drum Song. They have one daughter. Salonga is also an avid video game enthusiast. She resides in the Philippines and the United States.
On October 15, 2010, Salonga was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Voice and musical ability
Salonga has been praised for control over her vocals, which can evoke a wide array of emotion and soundscapes. In her popular music releases, Salonga has sung "simple love songs", which are common in Original Pilipino Music. In both Disney Princess singing roles, Jasmine and Mulan, Salonga uses head tones that reach up to F5.
Discography
Solo recordings
Small Voice (1981)
Lea (1988)
Lea Salonga (1993)
I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (1997)
Lea... In Love (1998)
By Heart (1999)
Lea Salonga: The Christmas Album (2000)
Songs from the Screen (2001)
Inspired (2007)
Lea Salonga: Your Songs (2010)
Bahaghari [Rainbow]: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines (2017)
Cast recordings
Miss Saigon (Original London Cast Recording) (1989)
Little Tramp (Studio Recording) (1992)
The King and I (Hollywood Studio Cast Recording) (1992)
Aladdin (Soundtrack Recording) (1992)
Mulan (Soundtrack Recording) (1998)
Making Tracks (Original Cast Recording) (2001)
Flower Drum Song (Revival Cast Recording) (2002)
Mulan II (Soundtrack Recording) (2005)
Dayo: Sa Mundo ng Elementalia (Soundtrack Recording) (2008)
Cinderella (Original International Tour Cast Recording) (2010)
Allegiance (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (2016)
Once on This Island (First Broadway Revival Cast Recording) (2018)
Video/Live recordings
Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh (1997)
Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 1 (2000)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 2 (2000)
The Broadway Concert (2002)
Songs from Home: Live Concert Recording (2004)
Les Misérables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary (2010)
The Journey So Far – Recorded Live at Cafe Carlyle (2011)
Live: Jazz at Lincoln Center (2016)
Blurred Lines (2017)
The Story of My Life: Lea Salonga Live from Manila (2019) with the BYU Chamber Orchestra
Lea Salonga in Concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2020)
Compilation albums
100% Lea Gives Her Best (2003)
The Ultimate OPM Collection (2007)
Featured recordings
Disney Princess: The Ultimate Song Collection (2004), for the song "If You Can Dream" (sung with Susan Logan, Grey Griffin, Jodi Benson, Paige O'Hara and Judy Kuhn)
Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007), for the songs "Peacock Princess" (sung with Gilbert Gottfried) and "I've Got My Eyes on You"
Shelldon (2008), for the song "It's a Brand New Day"
Sofia the First (2014), for the songs "The Ride of Our Lives" (episode 12: "Two to Tangu") and "Stronger that You Know" (episode 36: "Princesses To The Rescue")
Acting credits
Theatre
Film and television
References
External links
Salonga presenting an illustrated autobiography (2015)
1971 births
Living people
20th-century Filipino actresses
21st-century Filipino actresses
ABS-CBN personalities
Actresses from Pampanga
Arista Records artists
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Drama Desk Award winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Filipino child actresses
Filipino expatriates in the United States
20th-century Filipino women singers
Filipino musical theatre actresses
Filipino voice actresses
Fordham University alumni
Kapampangan people
Laurence Olivier Award winners
People from Angeles City
People from Manila
Recipients of the Order of Lakandula
Singers from Pampanga
That's Entertainment (Philippine TV series)
That's Entertainment Thursday Group Members
Tony Award winners
Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)
21st-century Filipino women singers | true | [
"Přírodní park Třebíčsko (before Oblast klidu Třebíčsko) is a natural park near Třebíč in the Czech Republic. There are many interesting plants. The park was founded in 1983.\n\nKobylinec and Ptáčovský kopeček\n\nKobylinec is a natural monument situated ca 0,5 km from the village of Trnava.\nThe area of this monument is 0,44 ha. Pulsatilla grandis can be found here and in the Ptáčovský kopeček park near Ptáčov near Třebíč. Both monuments are very popular for tourists.\n\nPonds\n\nIn the natural park there are some interesting ponds such as Velký Bor, Malý Bor, Buršík near Přeckov and a brook Březinka. Dams on the brook are examples of European beaver activity.\n\nSyenitové skály near Pocoucov\n\nSyenitové skály (rocks of syenit) near Pocoucov is one of famed locations. There are interesting granite boulders. The area of the reservation is 0,77 ha.\n\nExternal links\nParts of this article or all article was translated from Czech. The original article is :cs:Přírodní park Třebíčsko.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nNature near the village Trnava which is there\n\nTřebíč\nParks in the Czech Republic\nTourist attractions in the Vysočina Region",
"Damn Interesting is an independent website founded by Alan Bellows in 2005. The website presents true stories from science, history, and psychology, primarily as long-form articles, often illustrated with original artwork. Works are written by various authors, and published at irregular intervals. The website openly rejects advertising, relying on reader and listener donations to cover operating costs.\n\nAs of October 2012, each article is also published as a podcast under the same name. In November 2019, a second podcast was launched under the title Damn Interesting Week, featuring unscripted commentary on an assortment of news articles featured on the website's \"Curated Links\" section that week. In mid-2020, a third podcast called Damn Interesting Curio Cabinet began highlighting the website's periodic short-form articles in the same radioplay format as the original podcast.\n\nIn July 2009, Damn Interesting published the print book Alien Hand Syndrome through Workman Publishing. It contains some favorites from the site and some exclusive content.\n\nAwards and recognition \nIn August 2007, PC Magazine named Damn Interesting one of the \"Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites\".\nThe article \"The Zero-Armed Bandit\" by Alan Bellows won a 2015 Sidney Award from David Brooks in The New York Times.\nThe article \"Ghoulish Acts and Dastardly Deeds\" by Alan Bellows was cited as \"nonfiction journalism from 2017 that will stand the test of time\" by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.\nThe article \"Dupes and Duplicity\" by Jennifer Lee Noonan won a 2020 Sidney Award from David Brooks in the New York Times.\n\nAccusing The Dollop of plagiarism \n\nOn July 9, 2015, Bellows posted an open letter accusing The Dollop, a comedy podcast about history, of plagiarism due to their repeated use of verbatim text from Damn Interesting articles without permission or attribution. Dave Anthony, the writer of The Dollop, responded on reddit, admitting to using Damn Interesting content, but claiming that the use was protected by fair use, and that \"historical facts are not copyrightable.\" In an article about the controversy on Plagiarism Today, Jonathan Bailey concluded, \"Any way one looks at it, The Dollop failed its ethical obligations to all of the people, not just those writing for Damn Interesting, who put in the time, energy and expertise into writing the original content upon which their show is based.\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Official website\n\n2005 podcast debuts"
]
|
[
"Lea Salonga",
"1989-1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin",
"Who is Miss Saigon?",
"In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London.",
"How long did she protrat that positon?",
"When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People."
]
| C_9b2f062c2492418abaa56a510248f79b_0 | Did she win any other award? | 4 | Did Lea Salonga win any other award besidesnamed as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People? | Lea Salonga | In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg's "On My Own" from Les Miserables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. She competed for the role with childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson. Salonga won the lead role, while Wilson was named her understudy and given the role of the bar girl Mimi. For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production. In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin. CANNOTANSWER | the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards | Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, , (; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipina singer and actress, best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplying the singing voices of two Disney Princesses (Jasmine and Mulan), and as a recording artist and television performer.
At age 18, she originated the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon in the West End and then reprised the role on Broadway, winning the Olivier and Theatre World Awards, and becoming the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award. Salonga is the first Filipino artist to sign with an international record label (Atlantic Records in 1993).
Salonga was the first actress of Asian descent to play the roles of Éponine and Fantine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway. She also portrayed Éponine and Fantine, respectively, in the musical's 10th and 25th anniversary concerts in London. She provided the singing voices of two official Disney Princesses: Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan in Mulan (1998). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011 for her work with The Walt Disney Company. Salonga starred as Mei-li in the 2002 Broadway version of Flower Drum Song. She has played numerous other stage, film and TV roles in the US, the Philippines and elsewhere. She has toured widely in the theatre roles and as a concert artist. From 2015 to 2016, she returned to Broadway in Allegiance, and from 2017 to 2019 she appeared in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island.
Life and career
1971–1989: Early life and career
Salonga was born in Ermita, Manila, to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner (1929–2016), and María Ligaya Alcantara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before moving to Manila. Her brother, Gerard Salonga, is a conductor.
She made her professional debut in 1978 at the age of seven in the musical The King and I with Repertory Philippines. She played the title role in Annie in 1980 and appeared in other productions such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, The Rose T, The Goodbye Girl (1982), Paper Moon (1983) and The Fantasticks (1988). In 1981, she recorded her first album, Small Voice, which was certified gold in the Philippines. In 1985, she and her brother took part in the eighth Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as the interpreters for the song entry titled "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La" which was composed by Tess Concepcion.
During the 1980s, Salonga also had several television projects through GMA Radio Television Arts where she worked as a child actor. After the success of her first album, from 1983 to 1985, she hosted her own musical television show, Love, Lea, and was a member of the cast of German Moreno's teen variety show That's Entertainment. She acted in films, which included the family-oriented Tropang Bulilit, Like Father, Like Son, Ninja Kids, Captain Barbell and Pik Pak Boom. As a young performer, Salonga received a Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination for Best Child Actress and three Aliw Awards for best child performer in 1980, 1981 and 1982. She released her second album, Lea, in 1988.
She also opened for, and performed with, international acts such as Menudo and Stevie Wonder in their concerts in Manila in 1985 and in 1988, respectively.
She finished her secondary education in 1988 at the O. B. Montessori Center in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila. She also attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program aimed at training musically talented children in music and stage movement. A college freshman studying biology at the Ateneo de Manila University when she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she intended to have a medical career. Later, in between jobs in New York, she took two courses at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus.
1989–1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin
In 1989, Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's "On My Own" from Les Misérables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. Salonga won the lead role, while her childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson was named her understudy and cast as the bar girl Mimi.
For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest winners of the award. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production.
In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.
1993–1996: Les Misérables, films and other musicals
In 1993, Salonga played the role of Éponine in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. She performed the song "A Whole New World" from Aladdin with Brad Kane at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the song won an Oscar, having already won a Golden Globe Award. That same year, she released her self-titled international debut album with Atlantic Records. In 1994, Salonga played in various musical theatre productions in the Philippines and Singapore, such as Sandy in Grease, Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady and the Witch in Into the Woods.
Back in the US in 1995, Salonga played the role of Geri Riordan, an 18-year-old adopted Vietnamese American child in the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Redwood Curtain, which starred John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels. She then flew back to the Philippines to star with Filipino matinée idol Aga Muhlach in the critically acclaimed film Sana Maulit Muli, which gave her a second Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination, this time for Best Actress. She played the role of Éponine in the 10th anniversary production of Les Mis called Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.
In 1996, Salonga was in Les Misérables once again as Éponine in the London production of the musical, then continued on to perform the role in the musical's US national tour. In the Philippines in 1999, and again in 2000, she played Sonia Walsk in They're Playing Our Song.
1997–2004: Recordings, concerts, TV and Flower Drum Song
From 1997 to 2000, Salonga did recordings and concerts in the Philippines and another engagement in London, in addition to a few returns to Miss Saigon in London and on Broadway. In 1997, she released I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (recordings from her childhood days) to gold sales in the Philippines. That recording was followed by Lea... In Love in 1998 and By Heart in 2000, with both albums reaching multiple platinum status in the Philippines. In 1998, she again lent her voice to a major Disney animated film, singing the title character in Mulan, also providing the character's singing voice in the 2004 sequel, Mulan II. At the age of 28, Salonga moved to New York City, purchasing her own apartment (which she still owns up to at least 2013). She participated in the 1998 tribute concert to Sir Cameron Mackintosh in London called "Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron MacKintosh", where she did numbers from several of his musicals. She also performed in four concerts: The Homecoming Concert, The Millennium Concert, The Best of Manila and Songs from the Screen – the last two being benefit shows. Salonga returned to Manila in Miss Saigon, staged at the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the end of 2000.
After a last stint in Miss Saigon for its closing on Broadway in 2001, Salonga recreated the role of Lien Hughes originally played by Ming-Na Wen in the soap opera As the World Turns. After completing her contract that year, she was asked to return to the role in 2003. She guested on Russell Watson's The Voice concert, narrated for the television special My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and appeared on the Christmas episode of the TV medical drama ER, playing a patient with lymphoma.
In 2002, Salonga returned to Broadway to play the leading role of Mei-li, a Chinese immigrant in a reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song opposite Jose Llana. This was after the reinvented musical had a run at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2001 with Salonga playing the role and in 2002 winning Lead Actress in a Musical from the Los Angeles theatre Ovation Awards. The Salonga-led Broadway revival cast album was nominated for a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album. Salonga's performance was received positively by theatre critics in New York, and she received a nomination for Distinguished Performance from the Drama League, among other honors. Between the 2001 Los Angeles and 2002 Broadway productions of Flower Drum Song, she performed in a non-musical theatrical production for the first time, playing the role of Catherine in the stage play Proof in Manila. This was followed by a major concert, The Broadway Concert, at the Philippine International Convention Center. She also sang at the 56th Tony Awards with Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Gallagher and Michele Lee in a number paying tribute to Richard Rodgers.
In 2003 to 2004, Salonga did her first "all-Filipino" concerts in Manila called Songs from Home, which later won her an Aliw Award as Entertainer of the Year. In 2003, she performed in several concerts at the Mohegan Sun hotel in Connecticut. This was followed by a Christmas concert in the Philippines, called Home for Christmas, and performances at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton, New Jersey, in 2004. Later in 2004, she played Lizzie in the Manila production of the musical Baby, which earned her another nomination from the Aliw Awards.
2005–2007: International ventures
In 2005, Salonga gave her first US concert tour. Later that year, she performed to a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Diverse City Theater Company. The same year, she received the Golden Artist Award at the 53rd FAMAS Awards in honor of her international achievements, performed during the grand opening of Hong Kong's Disneyland and recorded two songs on Daniel Rodriguez's album In the Presence. She also did voice work for Disney's English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro as Yasuko Kusakabe. Salonga wrote the foreword to Linda Marquart's "The Right Way to Sing" (2005). In 2006, at the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, Salonga concluded the closing ceremony with the song "Triumph of the One" before an audience of 50,000 people at the Khalifa Stadium.
In 2007, Salonga released her first studio album in seven years called Inspired, which was certified platinum in the Philippines She received the Order of Lakandula, with the rank of Commander (Komandante), from Philippine president Arroyo in recognition of using her talents to benefit Philippine society and foster cultural exchange. She has also received the Congressional Medal of Achievement from the House of Representatives of the Philippines. She returned to Broadway for another stint in the musical Les Misérables, this time as Fantine. Her rejoining the show boosted the musical's ticket sales. President Arroyo watched Salonga in this role, together with Filipino Americans Adam Jacobs as Marius and Ali Ewoldt as Cosette. Salonga received rave reviews and made it again to the short list of Broadway.com's Audience Award favorites as Best Replacement. During her tenure on Broadway that season, she appeared in Broadway on Broadway 2007 and Stars in the Alley 2007, spoke at the Broadway Artists Alliance Summer Intensives, guested on the Broadway musical 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and participated in Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS' 12th Annual Nothing Like a Dame event to benefit the women's health initiative of The Actors Fund. Right after doing Les Misérables, she performed in two events: at the US Military Academy Band's concert in West Point where she sang four songs and an encore and in her own concert at the Tarrytown Music Hall in New York. She was then busy with other concerts and musical events, including a Christmas presentation in Manila.
In 2008, Salonga gave concerts in the Philippines, California, Hawaii, Hong Kong, and Guam, and she played the title role in Broadway Asia Entertainment's international tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.
2008–2012: Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist and touring
On 3 July 2008, Salonga became a columnist in the Philippine Daily Inquirer with her column "Backstory" (Entertainment section), "Introducing: Lea Salonga, writer". Since then she has written numerous columns for the Inquirer. She performed in "Global Pop" at the Music Center on July 11, 2008. It was presented by The Blue Ribbon a group founded by Dorothy Chandler in 1968. Salonga gave a concert on July 11 at Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. That same year she received a special citation from the Awit Awards.
From late July 2008 to mid-2009, Salonga played the title role in the 30-week Asian tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which premiered in Manila. Salonga performed a series of concerts in North America in 2009 and was also asked to dance the Filipino novelty dances "Ocho-ocho" and "Spaghetti". The same year, Salonga advertised the Avon Products line of anti-aging skin care products Anew Rejuvenate in the Philippines. In June 2009, she sang at the 95th Anniversary Special of the Iglesia ni Cristo. Salonga sang Patriotic song "Bayan Ko" at the Requiem Mass for former President Corazon Aquino at Manila Cathedral. Salonga celebrated 20 years of Miss Saigon by performing in concerts called "Lea Salonga... Your Songs", at the Philippine International Convention Center Plenary Hall on December 11 and 12, 2009. Her brother, Gerard, was musical director.
From July to August 2010, Salonga played the role of Grizabella in the Manila run of the Asia-Pacific tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. In October, she played Fantine during the 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables, fifteen years after appearing in the 10th Anniversary as Eponine. The same year, she served as a celebrity judge for Avon Voices, Avon's first global, online singing talent search for women and songwriting competition for men and women.
Salonga was honored as a Disney Legend on August 19, 2011. She was one of the judges in the 60th Miss Universe 2011 Beauty Pageant in São Paulo, Brazil on 12 September 2011. Salonga, along with Darren Criss, sang "A Whole New World" to its composer, Alan Menken, as Menken was named the winner of the 2011 Maestro Award at the Billboard/Hollywood Reporter Film & TV Music Conference on October 24, 2011.
Salonga performed in a six-concert series titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites" in 2012 with the Palm Beach Pops. She starred in the first production of Allegiance, at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from September to October 2012. Salonga starred in the Philippine production of the comedy God of Carnage from July 2012 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Manila. She took on the same role at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore, in November 2012. Salonga joined the Candlelight Processional at Epcot in Walt Disney World as narrator on December 14 to 16, retelling the Christmas story accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and a mass choir.
2013–2018: The Voice of the Philippines and return to Broadway
In January 2013, Salonga took part on the 2013 season of Lincoln Center's American Songbook concert series at the Allen Room. In February in the Philippines, Salonga provided the theme song for TV5's reality singing competition Kanta Pilipinas and, together with Tyne Daly and Norm Lewis, she starred as Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Salonga headlined a concert series, "4 Stars One World of Broadway Musicals," in Tokyo Osaka in June, performing with Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess and Yu Shirota. She was one of the four coaches, together with apl.de.ap, Sarah Geronimo, and Bamboo Mañalac for the ABS-CBN program, The Voice of the Philippines, which premiered in June 2013. In December 2013, Salonga began a concert tour in the Philippines titled "Lea Salonga: Playlist" that celebrated her 35 years in show business. The concert series was extended to January 2014. Salonga wrote a book, Playlist: A Celebration of 35 Years, which she used as a souvenir program for the concerts.
In 2014, she returned for the second season of The Voice of the Philippines and also joined the new Philippine version of The Voice Kids, on which she has appeared for three seasons. Salonga recorded a song called "Wished That I Could Call You" that was included in the charity compilation album Children In Need, released in March 2014. Also in 2014–15, she toured in Asia and North America with Il Divo. In mid-2015, she headlined her own concert series in Australasia. Salonga reprised her role as Kei Kimura in the 2015–16 Broadway production of Allegiance. Charles Isherwood wrote in The New York Times of her performance: "Her voice retains its plush beauty, and her culminating first act solo, "Higher" ... is perhaps the show's musical highlight."
Salonga guest-starred on the April 2016 season finale of the American television series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. She played Helen Bechdel in the international premiere of Fun Home in November 2016 in Manila. A review in ABS-CBN News said that she "delivers a finely tuned performance, utilizing her prodigious stage presence to provide the cold and dark shadings to erstwhile peppy scenes with her subtle stares and held back emotions. ... [In] "Days by Days" ... she finally lets go of all the resentment and repressed anger of a woman stuck in a marriage built on a lie. Yet there is dignity in her breakdown ... Salonga pulls it off with such clarity, both musically and emotionally, that it's difficult not to be moved."
In 2016 she won two more Aliw Awards, one for Best Major Concert in a Foreign Venue and her second Entertainer of the Year award. The following year, Salonga was one of the coaches on The Voice Teens. Also in 2017, she released an album, Bahaghari: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines, with songs sung in several languages spoken in the Philippines. Salonga portrayed Erzulie in 2017–2018 in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island at Circle in the Square Theatre, where she received critical praise for her vocal performance. She returned to the show for its final performances in December 2018 and January 2019. Once on this Island was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
2019–present
Salonga appears as a Philippine immigrant, Aunt Gail, in the musical film Yellow Rose, which premiered at the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. She also toured North America and the UK that year. Later in 2019, she played Mrs. Lovett in a revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Manila and then Singapore. Critics praised her "crystalline tones that turned her numbers, especially 'By the Sea', into unexpected show-stoppers. ... [S]he disappears into this loud devil woman. This is by far the best musical theater outing of Salonga in the Philippines, post-Miss Saigon, and the very long wait was well worth it", and called her portrayal "a delirious hurricane of deviousness and devilry, sprinkled with lust ... one of the most accomplished stage creations we've seen this year ... a career high for the actress. Pangan [as Todd] simmers; Salonga is the explosive fire underneath." Between these two short runs, she gave concerts in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in November. On November 27, 2020, PBS Great Performances broadcast the Sydney Opera House concert.
Salonga is set to play a recurring character in Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. She also voices a character in Centaurworld.
Personal life
On January 10, 2004, Salonga married Robert Charles Chien, an American managing director of an entertainment software company in Los Angeles, California, of Chinese and Japanese heritage, whom she met while performing in Flower Drum Song. They have one daughter. Salonga is also an avid video game enthusiast. She resides in the Philippines and the United States.
On October 15, 2010, Salonga was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Voice and musical ability
Salonga has been praised for control over her vocals, which can evoke a wide array of emotion and soundscapes. In her popular music releases, Salonga has sung "simple love songs", which are common in Original Pilipino Music. In both Disney Princess singing roles, Jasmine and Mulan, Salonga uses head tones that reach up to F5.
Discography
Solo recordings
Small Voice (1981)
Lea (1988)
Lea Salonga (1993)
I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (1997)
Lea... In Love (1998)
By Heart (1999)
Lea Salonga: The Christmas Album (2000)
Songs from the Screen (2001)
Inspired (2007)
Lea Salonga: Your Songs (2010)
Bahaghari [Rainbow]: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines (2017)
Cast recordings
Miss Saigon (Original London Cast Recording) (1989)
Little Tramp (Studio Recording) (1992)
The King and I (Hollywood Studio Cast Recording) (1992)
Aladdin (Soundtrack Recording) (1992)
Mulan (Soundtrack Recording) (1998)
Making Tracks (Original Cast Recording) (2001)
Flower Drum Song (Revival Cast Recording) (2002)
Mulan II (Soundtrack Recording) (2005)
Dayo: Sa Mundo ng Elementalia (Soundtrack Recording) (2008)
Cinderella (Original International Tour Cast Recording) (2010)
Allegiance (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (2016)
Once on This Island (First Broadway Revival Cast Recording) (2018)
Video/Live recordings
Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh (1997)
Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 1 (2000)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 2 (2000)
The Broadway Concert (2002)
Songs from Home: Live Concert Recording (2004)
Les Misérables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary (2010)
The Journey So Far – Recorded Live at Cafe Carlyle (2011)
Live: Jazz at Lincoln Center (2016)
Blurred Lines (2017)
The Story of My Life: Lea Salonga Live from Manila (2019) with the BYU Chamber Orchestra
Lea Salonga in Concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2020)
Compilation albums
100% Lea Gives Her Best (2003)
The Ultimate OPM Collection (2007)
Featured recordings
Disney Princess: The Ultimate Song Collection (2004), for the song "If You Can Dream" (sung with Susan Logan, Grey Griffin, Jodi Benson, Paige O'Hara and Judy Kuhn)
Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007), for the songs "Peacock Princess" (sung with Gilbert Gottfried) and "I've Got My Eyes on You"
Shelldon (2008), for the song "It's a Brand New Day"
Sofia the First (2014), for the songs "The Ride of Our Lives" (episode 12: "Two to Tangu") and "Stronger that You Know" (episode 36: "Princesses To The Rescue")
Acting credits
Theatre
Film and television
References
External links
Salonga presenting an illustrated autobiography (2015)
1971 births
Living people
20th-century Filipino actresses
21st-century Filipino actresses
ABS-CBN personalities
Actresses from Pampanga
Arista Records artists
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Drama Desk Award winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Filipino child actresses
Filipino expatriates in the United States
20th-century Filipino women singers
Filipino musical theatre actresses
Filipino voice actresses
Fordham University alumni
Kapampangan people
Laurence Olivier Award winners
People from Angeles City
People from Manila
Recipients of the Order of Lakandula
Singers from Pampanga
That's Entertainment (Philippine TV series)
That's Entertainment Thursday Group Members
Tony Award winners
Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)
21st-century Filipino women singers | true | [
"Alyssa Anne George (born 1985) is a pageant competitor from Minneapolis, Kansas who competed in the Miss America pageant in 2008.\n\nGeorge won the Miss Kansas 2007 title in a state pageant held in Pratt on June 10, 2007. She competed as Miss Sedgewick County, a local title she won in September 2006. She also won the swimsuit competition, the Instrumentalist Award and the Kansas State Ambassador Award.\n\nGeorge had previously competed at Miss Kansas 2004 and 2005. She did not win in either year, but did win a preliminary swimsuit award in 2004. George also competed at Miss Kansas USA 2006, where she made the top fifteen.\n\nDuring the remainder of the year 2007 she toured throughout the state of Kansas to talk about her platform \"Bullying: The Bystander Effect.\" She also competed in the Miss America 2008 contest in Las Vegas.\n\nGeorge graduated from Minneapolis High School and studied at the University of Kansas.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Miss Kansas official website\n Lawrence Journal World article with photo\n\n1985 births\nLiving people\nPeople from Minneapolis, Kansas\nMiss America 2008 delegates\nUniversity of Kansas alumni",
"Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer () is the highest award for female film playback singers in Bangladesh.\n\nHistory\nBangladesh National Film Award for best female playback singer has a long history. This is the most prominent award of Bangladeshi playback singing. Since the first film Mukh O Mukhosh (1956), playback started. The ratio of releasing films was relatively very low till 1970. Upon its independence from Pakistan in 1971, the film industry witnessed a remarkable inflation of films and songs. Bangladedesh film industry saw the emergence of honouring the best artistes annually. So, National Award stated to be offered in several categories, including best female singer's category.\n\nThe first award was received by Sabina Yasmin, the reigning \"Melody Queen of Bangladesh\" for Sujan Sakhi. The next year, Runa Laila achieved this feat for The Rain, released in both Urdu and Bengali. It was an unusual exploitation by any singer to achieve a National Award within only two years of debut. However, Runa Laila made this possible, by earning this award in 1976 whereas she made her debut just in 1974. The next year also, Runa won this. Runa Laila made history as she was the first ever Bangladeshi female singer to defend this award successfully (earlier Lata Mangeshkar of India won National Award consecutively in 1973 and 1975, 1974 no award was given). Later on, Sabina Yasmin would make this feat a record four times.\nIn 1978, Sabina Yasmin again earned National Award for Alangkar, she repeated in 1979 for Sundori and 1980 for Kosai. Thus she became the first and only singer to win a hat trick of National Awards. In 1981, not only in music, but also in every category was refrained from awards. In 1982, Mitali Mukherjee won. She later migrated to India and took Indian citizenship. Thus, she is the only Indian singer to win National Award of Bangladesh. In 1983, award was surrendered for the first time. Sabina Yasmin won two times in a row: 1984 and 1985. Sabina's elder sister, Nilufar Yasmin won this award in 1986. Thus, they became only Bangladeshi siblings to win National award in the same category. Sabina won again consecutive awards in 1986 and 1987. Thus, award went to the same family consecutively five times in the same family, a record to admire. The next year Runa Laila won this award and became the only singer with multiple awards except Sabina. The next year, veteran singer Shahnaz Rahmatullah claimed this award. In 1991 and 1992, Sabina consecutively won National Awards for the last time. The next two years saw Runa winning a fourth and Farida Parveen, a folk singer and non-playback singer to win award. Kanak Chapa won the awards in 1995, 2001 and 2008. She became one of the only three female singers to win multiple awards, the other two being giants as Sabina Yasmin and Runa Laila.\n\nList of winners\n\nRecords and statistics\n\nMultiple wins and nominations\nThe following individuals received two or more Best Female Playback Singer awards:\n\nSee also\n Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer\n Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Music Director\n Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Music Composer\n Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Lyrics\n\nReferences\n\nPlayback Singer Female\nBangladeshi music awards\nFilm music awards\nMusic awards honoring women"
]
|
[
"Lea Salonga",
"1989-1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin",
"Who is Miss Saigon?",
"In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London.",
"How long did she protrat that positon?",
"When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People.",
"Did she win any other award?",
"the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards"
]
| C_9b2f062c2492418abaa56a510248f79b_0 | When was she awarded these awards? | 5 | When was Lea Salonga awarded the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards? | Lea Salonga | In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg's "On My Own" from Les Miserables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. She competed for the role with childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson. Salonga won the lead role, while Wilson was named her understudy and given the role of the bar girl Mimi. For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production. In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin. CANNOTANSWER | 1991, | Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, , (; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipina singer and actress, best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplying the singing voices of two Disney Princesses (Jasmine and Mulan), and as a recording artist and television performer.
At age 18, she originated the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon in the West End and then reprised the role on Broadway, winning the Olivier and Theatre World Awards, and becoming the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award. Salonga is the first Filipino artist to sign with an international record label (Atlantic Records in 1993).
Salonga was the first actress of Asian descent to play the roles of Éponine and Fantine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway. She also portrayed Éponine and Fantine, respectively, in the musical's 10th and 25th anniversary concerts in London. She provided the singing voices of two official Disney Princesses: Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan in Mulan (1998). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011 for her work with The Walt Disney Company. Salonga starred as Mei-li in the 2002 Broadway version of Flower Drum Song. She has played numerous other stage, film and TV roles in the US, the Philippines and elsewhere. She has toured widely in the theatre roles and as a concert artist. From 2015 to 2016, she returned to Broadway in Allegiance, and from 2017 to 2019 she appeared in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island.
Life and career
1971–1989: Early life and career
Salonga was born in Ermita, Manila, to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner (1929–2016), and María Ligaya Alcantara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before moving to Manila. Her brother, Gerard Salonga, is a conductor.
She made her professional debut in 1978 at the age of seven in the musical The King and I with Repertory Philippines. She played the title role in Annie in 1980 and appeared in other productions such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, The Rose T, The Goodbye Girl (1982), Paper Moon (1983) and The Fantasticks (1988). In 1981, she recorded her first album, Small Voice, which was certified gold in the Philippines. In 1985, she and her brother took part in the eighth Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as the interpreters for the song entry titled "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La" which was composed by Tess Concepcion.
During the 1980s, Salonga also had several television projects through GMA Radio Television Arts where she worked as a child actor. After the success of her first album, from 1983 to 1985, she hosted her own musical television show, Love, Lea, and was a member of the cast of German Moreno's teen variety show That's Entertainment. She acted in films, which included the family-oriented Tropang Bulilit, Like Father, Like Son, Ninja Kids, Captain Barbell and Pik Pak Boom. As a young performer, Salonga received a Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination for Best Child Actress and three Aliw Awards for best child performer in 1980, 1981 and 1982. She released her second album, Lea, in 1988.
She also opened for, and performed with, international acts such as Menudo and Stevie Wonder in their concerts in Manila in 1985 and in 1988, respectively.
She finished her secondary education in 1988 at the O. B. Montessori Center in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila. She also attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program aimed at training musically talented children in music and stage movement. A college freshman studying biology at the Ateneo de Manila University when she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she intended to have a medical career. Later, in between jobs in New York, she took two courses at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus.
1989–1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin
In 1989, Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's "On My Own" from Les Misérables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. Salonga won the lead role, while her childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson was named her understudy and cast as the bar girl Mimi.
For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest winners of the award. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production.
In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.
1993–1996: Les Misérables, films and other musicals
In 1993, Salonga played the role of Éponine in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. She performed the song "A Whole New World" from Aladdin with Brad Kane at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the song won an Oscar, having already won a Golden Globe Award. That same year, she released her self-titled international debut album with Atlantic Records. In 1994, Salonga played in various musical theatre productions in the Philippines and Singapore, such as Sandy in Grease, Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady and the Witch in Into the Woods.
Back in the US in 1995, Salonga played the role of Geri Riordan, an 18-year-old adopted Vietnamese American child in the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Redwood Curtain, which starred John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels. She then flew back to the Philippines to star with Filipino matinée idol Aga Muhlach in the critically acclaimed film Sana Maulit Muli, which gave her a second Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination, this time for Best Actress. She played the role of Éponine in the 10th anniversary production of Les Mis called Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.
In 1996, Salonga was in Les Misérables once again as Éponine in the London production of the musical, then continued on to perform the role in the musical's US national tour. In the Philippines in 1999, and again in 2000, she played Sonia Walsk in They're Playing Our Song.
1997–2004: Recordings, concerts, TV and Flower Drum Song
From 1997 to 2000, Salonga did recordings and concerts in the Philippines and another engagement in London, in addition to a few returns to Miss Saigon in London and on Broadway. In 1997, she released I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (recordings from her childhood days) to gold sales in the Philippines. That recording was followed by Lea... In Love in 1998 and By Heart in 2000, with both albums reaching multiple platinum status in the Philippines. In 1998, she again lent her voice to a major Disney animated film, singing the title character in Mulan, also providing the character's singing voice in the 2004 sequel, Mulan II. At the age of 28, Salonga moved to New York City, purchasing her own apartment (which she still owns up to at least 2013). She participated in the 1998 tribute concert to Sir Cameron Mackintosh in London called "Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron MacKintosh", where she did numbers from several of his musicals. She also performed in four concerts: The Homecoming Concert, The Millennium Concert, The Best of Manila and Songs from the Screen – the last two being benefit shows. Salonga returned to Manila in Miss Saigon, staged at the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the end of 2000.
After a last stint in Miss Saigon for its closing on Broadway in 2001, Salonga recreated the role of Lien Hughes originally played by Ming-Na Wen in the soap opera As the World Turns. After completing her contract that year, she was asked to return to the role in 2003. She guested on Russell Watson's The Voice concert, narrated for the television special My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and appeared on the Christmas episode of the TV medical drama ER, playing a patient with lymphoma.
In 2002, Salonga returned to Broadway to play the leading role of Mei-li, a Chinese immigrant in a reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song opposite Jose Llana. This was after the reinvented musical had a run at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2001 with Salonga playing the role and in 2002 winning Lead Actress in a Musical from the Los Angeles theatre Ovation Awards. The Salonga-led Broadway revival cast album was nominated for a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album. Salonga's performance was received positively by theatre critics in New York, and she received a nomination for Distinguished Performance from the Drama League, among other honors. Between the 2001 Los Angeles and 2002 Broadway productions of Flower Drum Song, she performed in a non-musical theatrical production for the first time, playing the role of Catherine in the stage play Proof in Manila. This was followed by a major concert, The Broadway Concert, at the Philippine International Convention Center. She also sang at the 56th Tony Awards with Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Gallagher and Michele Lee in a number paying tribute to Richard Rodgers.
In 2003 to 2004, Salonga did her first "all-Filipino" concerts in Manila called Songs from Home, which later won her an Aliw Award as Entertainer of the Year. In 2003, she performed in several concerts at the Mohegan Sun hotel in Connecticut. This was followed by a Christmas concert in the Philippines, called Home for Christmas, and performances at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton, New Jersey, in 2004. Later in 2004, she played Lizzie in the Manila production of the musical Baby, which earned her another nomination from the Aliw Awards.
2005–2007: International ventures
In 2005, Salonga gave her first US concert tour. Later that year, she performed to a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Diverse City Theater Company. The same year, she received the Golden Artist Award at the 53rd FAMAS Awards in honor of her international achievements, performed during the grand opening of Hong Kong's Disneyland and recorded two songs on Daniel Rodriguez's album In the Presence. She also did voice work for Disney's English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro as Yasuko Kusakabe. Salonga wrote the foreword to Linda Marquart's "The Right Way to Sing" (2005). In 2006, at the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, Salonga concluded the closing ceremony with the song "Triumph of the One" before an audience of 50,000 people at the Khalifa Stadium.
In 2007, Salonga released her first studio album in seven years called Inspired, which was certified platinum in the Philippines She received the Order of Lakandula, with the rank of Commander (Komandante), from Philippine president Arroyo in recognition of using her talents to benefit Philippine society and foster cultural exchange. She has also received the Congressional Medal of Achievement from the House of Representatives of the Philippines. She returned to Broadway for another stint in the musical Les Misérables, this time as Fantine. Her rejoining the show boosted the musical's ticket sales. President Arroyo watched Salonga in this role, together with Filipino Americans Adam Jacobs as Marius and Ali Ewoldt as Cosette. Salonga received rave reviews and made it again to the short list of Broadway.com's Audience Award favorites as Best Replacement. During her tenure on Broadway that season, she appeared in Broadway on Broadway 2007 and Stars in the Alley 2007, spoke at the Broadway Artists Alliance Summer Intensives, guested on the Broadway musical 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and participated in Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS' 12th Annual Nothing Like a Dame event to benefit the women's health initiative of The Actors Fund. Right after doing Les Misérables, she performed in two events: at the US Military Academy Band's concert in West Point where she sang four songs and an encore and in her own concert at the Tarrytown Music Hall in New York. She was then busy with other concerts and musical events, including a Christmas presentation in Manila.
In 2008, Salonga gave concerts in the Philippines, California, Hawaii, Hong Kong, and Guam, and she played the title role in Broadway Asia Entertainment's international tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.
2008–2012: Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist and touring
On 3 July 2008, Salonga became a columnist in the Philippine Daily Inquirer with her column "Backstory" (Entertainment section), "Introducing: Lea Salonga, writer". Since then she has written numerous columns for the Inquirer. She performed in "Global Pop" at the Music Center on July 11, 2008. It was presented by The Blue Ribbon a group founded by Dorothy Chandler in 1968. Salonga gave a concert on July 11 at Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. That same year she received a special citation from the Awit Awards.
From late July 2008 to mid-2009, Salonga played the title role in the 30-week Asian tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which premiered in Manila. Salonga performed a series of concerts in North America in 2009 and was also asked to dance the Filipino novelty dances "Ocho-ocho" and "Spaghetti". The same year, Salonga advertised the Avon Products line of anti-aging skin care products Anew Rejuvenate in the Philippines. In June 2009, she sang at the 95th Anniversary Special of the Iglesia ni Cristo. Salonga sang Patriotic song "Bayan Ko" at the Requiem Mass for former President Corazon Aquino at Manila Cathedral. Salonga celebrated 20 years of Miss Saigon by performing in concerts called "Lea Salonga... Your Songs", at the Philippine International Convention Center Plenary Hall on December 11 and 12, 2009. Her brother, Gerard, was musical director.
From July to August 2010, Salonga played the role of Grizabella in the Manila run of the Asia-Pacific tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. In October, she played Fantine during the 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables, fifteen years after appearing in the 10th Anniversary as Eponine. The same year, she served as a celebrity judge for Avon Voices, Avon's first global, online singing talent search for women and songwriting competition for men and women.
Salonga was honored as a Disney Legend on August 19, 2011. She was one of the judges in the 60th Miss Universe 2011 Beauty Pageant in São Paulo, Brazil on 12 September 2011. Salonga, along with Darren Criss, sang "A Whole New World" to its composer, Alan Menken, as Menken was named the winner of the 2011 Maestro Award at the Billboard/Hollywood Reporter Film & TV Music Conference on October 24, 2011.
Salonga performed in a six-concert series titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites" in 2012 with the Palm Beach Pops. She starred in the first production of Allegiance, at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from September to October 2012. Salonga starred in the Philippine production of the comedy God of Carnage from July 2012 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Manila. She took on the same role at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore, in November 2012. Salonga joined the Candlelight Processional at Epcot in Walt Disney World as narrator on December 14 to 16, retelling the Christmas story accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and a mass choir.
2013–2018: The Voice of the Philippines and return to Broadway
In January 2013, Salonga took part on the 2013 season of Lincoln Center's American Songbook concert series at the Allen Room. In February in the Philippines, Salonga provided the theme song for TV5's reality singing competition Kanta Pilipinas and, together with Tyne Daly and Norm Lewis, she starred as Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Salonga headlined a concert series, "4 Stars One World of Broadway Musicals," in Tokyo Osaka in June, performing with Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess and Yu Shirota. She was one of the four coaches, together with apl.de.ap, Sarah Geronimo, and Bamboo Mañalac for the ABS-CBN program, The Voice of the Philippines, which premiered in June 2013. In December 2013, Salonga began a concert tour in the Philippines titled "Lea Salonga: Playlist" that celebrated her 35 years in show business. The concert series was extended to January 2014. Salonga wrote a book, Playlist: A Celebration of 35 Years, which she used as a souvenir program for the concerts.
In 2014, she returned for the second season of The Voice of the Philippines and also joined the new Philippine version of The Voice Kids, on which she has appeared for three seasons. Salonga recorded a song called "Wished That I Could Call You" that was included in the charity compilation album Children In Need, released in March 2014. Also in 2014–15, she toured in Asia and North America with Il Divo. In mid-2015, she headlined her own concert series in Australasia. Salonga reprised her role as Kei Kimura in the 2015–16 Broadway production of Allegiance. Charles Isherwood wrote in The New York Times of her performance: "Her voice retains its plush beauty, and her culminating first act solo, "Higher" ... is perhaps the show's musical highlight."
Salonga guest-starred on the April 2016 season finale of the American television series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. She played Helen Bechdel in the international premiere of Fun Home in November 2016 in Manila. A review in ABS-CBN News said that she "delivers a finely tuned performance, utilizing her prodigious stage presence to provide the cold and dark shadings to erstwhile peppy scenes with her subtle stares and held back emotions. ... [In] "Days by Days" ... she finally lets go of all the resentment and repressed anger of a woman stuck in a marriage built on a lie. Yet there is dignity in her breakdown ... Salonga pulls it off with such clarity, both musically and emotionally, that it's difficult not to be moved."
In 2016 she won two more Aliw Awards, one for Best Major Concert in a Foreign Venue and her second Entertainer of the Year award. The following year, Salonga was one of the coaches on The Voice Teens. Also in 2017, she released an album, Bahaghari: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines, with songs sung in several languages spoken in the Philippines. Salonga portrayed Erzulie in 2017–2018 in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island at Circle in the Square Theatre, where she received critical praise for her vocal performance. She returned to the show for its final performances in December 2018 and January 2019. Once on this Island was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
2019–present
Salonga appears as a Philippine immigrant, Aunt Gail, in the musical film Yellow Rose, which premiered at the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. She also toured North America and the UK that year. Later in 2019, she played Mrs. Lovett in a revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Manila and then Singapore. Critics praised her "crystalline tones that turned her numbers, especially 'By the Sea', into unexpected show-stoppers. ... [S]he disappears into this loud devil woman. This is by far the best musical theater outing of Salonga in the Philippines, post-Miss Saigon, and the very long wait was well worth it", and called her portrayal "a delirious hurricane of deviousness and devilry, sprinkled with lust ... one of the most accomplished stage creations we've seen this year ... a career high for the actress. Pangan [as Todd] simmers; Salonga is the explosive fire underneath." Between these two short runs, she gave concerts in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in November. On November 27, 2020, PBS Great Performances broadcast the Sydney Opera House concert.
Salonga is set to play a recurring character in Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. She also voices a character in Centaurworld.
Personal life
On January 10, 2004, Salonga married Robert Charles Chien, an American managing director of an entertainment software company in Los Angeles, California, of Chinese and Japanese heritage, whom she met while performing in Flower Drum Song. They have one daughter. Salonga is also an avid video game enthusiast. She resides in the Philippines and the United States.
On October 15, 2010, Salonga was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Voice and musical ability
Salonga has been praised for control over her vocals, which can evoke a wide array of emotion and soundscapes. In her popular music releases, Salonga has sung "simple love songs", which are common in Original Pilipino Music. In both Disney Princess singing roles, Jasmine and Mulan, Salonga uses head tones that reach up to F5.
Discography
Solo recordings
Small Voice (1981)
Lea (1988)
Lea Salonga (1993)
I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (1997)
Lea... In Love (1998)
By Heart (1999)
Lea Salonga: The Christmas Album (2000)
Songs from the Screen (2001)
Inspired (2007)
Lea Salonga: Your Songs (2010)
Bahaghari [Rainbow]: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines (2017)
Cast recordings
Miss Saigon (Original London Cast Recording) (1989)
Little Tramp (Studio Recording) (1992)
The King and I (Hollywood Studio Cast Recording) (1992)
Aladdin (Soundtrack Recording) (1992)
Mulan (Soundtrack Recording) (1998)
Making Tracks (Original Cast Recording) (2001)
Flower Drum Song (Revival Cast Recording) (2002)
Mulan II (Soundtrack Recording) (2005)
Dayo: Sa Mundo ng Elementalia (Soundtrack Recording) (2008)
Cinderella (Original International Tour Cast Recording) (2010)
Allegiance (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (2016)
Once on This Island (First Broadway Revival Cast Recording) (2018)
Video/Live recordings
Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh (1997)
Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 1 (2000)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 2 (2000)
The Broadway Concert (2002)
Songs from Home: Live Concert Recording (2004)
Les Misérables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary (2010)
The Journey So Far – Recorded Live at Cafe Carlyle (2011)
Live: Jazz at Lincoln Center (2016)
Blurred Lines (2017)
The Story of My Life: Lea Salonga Live from Manila (2019) with the BYU Chamber Orchestra
Lea Salonga in Concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2020)
Compilation albums
100% Lea Gives Her Best (2003)
The Ultimate OPM Collection (2007)
Featured recordings
Disney Princess: The Ultimate Song Collection (2004), for the song "If You Can Dream" (sung with Susan Logan, Grey Griffin, Jodi Benson, Paige O'Hara and Judy Kuhn)
Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007), for the songs "Peacock Princess" (sung with Gilbert Gottfried) and "I've Got My Eyes on You"
Shelldon (2008), for the song "It's a Brand New Day"
Sofia the First (2014), for the songs "The Ride of Our Lives" (episode 12: "Two to Tangu") and "Stronger that You Know" (episode 36: "Princesses To The Rescue")
Acting credits
Theatre
Film and television
References
External links
Salonga presenting an illustrated autobiography (2015)
1971 births
Living people
20th-century Filipino actresses
21st-century Filipino actresses
ABS-CBN personalities
Actresses from Pampanga
Arista Records artists
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Drama Desk Award winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Filipino child actresses
Filipino expatriates in the United States
20th-century Filipino women singers
Filipino musical theatre actresses
Filipino voice actresses
Fordham University alumni
Kapampangan people
Laurence Olivier Award winners
People from Angeles City
People from Manila
Recipients of the Order of Lakandula
Singers from Pampanga
That's Entertainment (Philippine TV series)
That's Entertainment Thursday Group Members
Tony Award winners
Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)
21st-century Filipino women singers | true | [
"Dalita Artin Avanesian (; born 19 September 1999, Tehran, Iran) is an Armenian singer, participant of Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2011. She is now a student in American University of Armenia majoring in Computer Sciences. She graduated from Management Department of \"European College in Armenia\".\nSimultaneously, she studies in the \"Jazz-Vocal Department\" of Yerevan Specialized Music School № 1 after Alexander Spendiaryan having already graduated from three departments of the latter; these being that of Classic Vocal, Piano and Guitar.\n\nHer songs and video clips, have been included in various musical collections, in CD, DVD versions. In November 2015 she released her first album \"Welcome to Armenia\", which was the name of her song in Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2011. When talking about her greatest passion – music, she has been awarded numerous diplomas of honors and certificates of appreciation by different ministries, including the RA Ministry of Education and Science, the RA Ministry of Culture, the RA Ministry of Diaspora and the Honorary Chairperson of the Armenian Foundation \"Grant Life\", the First Lady of Armenia for her humanitarian and public activities, good will and active participation in charity work.\n\nRecognition\nIn 2005 – Title \"Miss Yerevan\"\nIn 2005 – Participation in Nationwide Beauty contest \"Miss-Mister World\" and the title of \"Miss Armenia\".\nIn 2006 – The title of \"Miss Advertisement\" (since I have repeatedly been filmed in numerous advertisements since childhood)\nin 2007– The title of \"Miss Talent\".\nIn 2007 she became the laureate of \"Alexander Spendiaryan Nationwide Contest-Festival of Young Musician-Performers\". \nIn 2008 – Honorable member of \"Miss-Mister World\" International Organization.\nIn 2009 – The title \"Miss Top Model Armenia 2009\" and special award by Armenian famous boxer Alex Abraham.\nIn 2009 and 2010 she won the first place in \"Armenian Dance Olympiad\" and received a gold medal. \nIn 2009 she was awarded the first prize at Yerevan Municipality \"Golden Flute\" Contest-Festival. \nIn 2010 and 2011 she became the laureate of \"New Wave\" Contest. \nIn 2010 she participated in the Armenian pre-election phase of \"Junior Eurovision Song Contest\" and was included in top five singers.\nIn 2011 – she was awarded a prize and Diploma of Honor for the \"Best Hit\" nomination of the first \"Armenian National Children's Awards\". \nIn 2011 – she represented and hosted the first \"Junior Eurovision\" prestigious contest in Armenia. \nIn 2011 – she was awarded the \"Inspiration\" prize for \"Junior Eurovision 2011\" at \"Multiknik\" Children Music Awards. \nIn 2011 – she was granted the title and prize of \"Eurovision Ambassador\" at \"Golden Screen Awards\". \nIn 2011 – she participated in \"Armenian National Music Awards\" as guest young performer. \nIn 2012 – she was awarded the title and prize of \"Miss Perfection\" at \"Miss Student\" Contest-Festival. \nIn 2012 – she was awarded the title and prize of \"Stylish Teenage Singer\" at \"Style Screen\" Awards. \nIn 2013 – she participated in \"Armenian Music Awards\" held in Kremlin, Moscow, as guest young performer. \nIn 2013 – The song \"Mam Jan\" was awarded the \"Best Hit and Video Clip of the Year\" at \"Multiknik\" National Children Music Awards. \nOn 30 May 2014, the first solo concert of the teenage singer was held in Armenian Diaspora, in Lebanon. \nIn 2014 – she participated in International Youth Festival of Russian Culture \"Maltese Lyre\" on Malta and was awarded \"Golden microphone\".\nIn 2014– she was awarded the best main Actress of \"In the Camp\" movie for children and youth, at \"Multiknik\" Annual National Youth Music Awards. \nIn 2014– she was awarded \" the Best Young Singer of the year\" qualification at \"Armenia, Artsakh, Diaspora\" Awards .\nIn 2014 and 2015 – Diploma for the good will and active participation in charity works, at ArmAngel Awards.\nIn 2014 – Diploma for singing the anthem of film-project Fairytale-Film and participating in the video-clip of the said anthem. \nIn 2015 – Certificate for conducting the Second Republican Contest of Young Composers after Eduard Mirzoyan.\nIn 2015 – Diploma for the nomination The Best Song (Crazy Generation) awarded within the framework of From Doh to Doh on Armenian TV Channel H3.\nin 2015 – Certificate for the nomination The Best Singer of the New Generation within the framework of Ararat Awards. \nIn 2015 – Representing Armenia in \"Verdinote\" 33rd International Music Contest and winning the first prize \"Golder Note\".\nIn 2015 November 16 – Launch of the first CD called \"Welcome to Armenia\".\n\nCareer\nShe has been the host of the \"Children's News\" of \"Good Morning Armenia\" program broadcast by \"Armenian Second TV Channel\".\nFor a while she has been a correspondent of \"BoomBoomik Show\" broadcast by \"Kentron\" and \"ATV\" channels.\nIn 2010 she participated in the \"Hidden Talent\" Project of \"Shant\" TV Channel, managed to reach the semi-final and participated in the Gala Concert.\nAs far as her acting career is concerned, she was filmed in numerous episodes of Children's Mess (Shilashpot) program broadcast by \"Shant\" TV Channel. \nMoreover, she has been filmed in \"Charlie Show\" broadcast by Armenia TV Channel, representing the character of Charlita. \nAnother appearance of her on TV was within the framework of \"Kragin Serial\" broadcast by Armenia TV Channel.\nShe has also graduated from Theatre-Acting Studio of Artashes Aleksanyan and participated in the performance \"Armenian Cause is the Cause of Humanity\", where she was the youngest performer among the famous participating actors (representing the character of \"Water selling\" boy).\nShe had her own page entitled \"Dalita & Friends\" in youth journal \"Ես Yes\". \nShe was the host of \"Sunday with Dalita\" self-authored talk show on \"First Student Radio\" and \"Stars Life Internet TV\".\n\nFilmography\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Official Website\n official fun club Website\n Biography on esckaz.com\n\n1999 births\nLiving people\nJunior Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Armenia\nMusicians from Yerevan\nArmenian child singers\n21st-century Armenian women singers",
"Erika Cohn is an American movie director and producer.\n\nShe attended Chapman University and Hebrew University and earned degrees in Film Production, Middle Eastern Studies, and Acting Performance. Erika is also a photographer and a U.S. Ambassadorial Film Scholar in Israel and Palestine. Cohn is the founder of the Idle Wild Films, Inc. Company.\n\nMovie titles \nWhen the Voices Fade (2006)\n\nGiant Steps (2008)\n\nLa Guerrera (2008)\n\nGod in America (2010)\n\nIn Football We Trust (2015)\n\nThe Judge (2017)\n\nBelly of the Beast (2020)\n\nAwards and fellowships \nCohn and her films have been awarded Emmy and Peabody awards. She was awarded a Director’s Guild of America award for When the Voices Fade. She was recognized by Variety as a leading documentary filmmaker \"to watch in 2017.\" She was listed in DOC NYC's \"40 Under 40\" list for 2019. Her \"Win from Within\" series for Gatorade was nominated 2016 Webby award. In 2016 she was a National MediaMaker Fellow and was admitted to the CPB Producer’s Academy. In 2017 she was a Rauschenberg Foundation Artist as Activist Fellow.\n\nReferences \n\nLiving people\nAmerican women film directors\nAmerican documentary film directors\nWomen documentary filmmakers\nDirectors Guild of America Award winners\nAmerican film producers\nHebrew University of Jerusalem alumni\nYear of birth missing (living people)\nChapman University alumni\n21st-century American women"
]
|
[
"Lea Salonga",
"1989-1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin",
"Who is Miss Saigon?",
"In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London.",
"How long did she protrat that positon?",
"When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People.",
"Did she win any other award?",
"the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards",
"When was she awarded these awards?",
"1991,"
]
| C_9b2f062c2492418abaa56a510248f79b_0 | What part did she play in Aladdin? | 6 | What part did Lea Salonga play in Aladdin? | Lea Salonga | In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg's "On My Own" from Les Miserables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. She competed for the role with childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson. Salonga won the lead role, while Wilson was named her understudy and given the role of the bar girl Mimi. For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production. In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin. CANNOTANSWER | she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin. | Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, , (; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipina singer and actress, best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplying the singing voices of two Disney Princesses (Jasmine and Mulan), and as a recording artist and television performer.
At age 18, she originated the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon in the West End and then reprised the role on Broadway, winning the Olivier and Theatre World Awards, and becoming the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award. Salonga is the first Filipino artist to sign with an international record label (Atlantic Records in 1993).
Salonga was the first actress of Asian descent to play the roles of Éponine and Fantine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway. She also portrayed Éponine and Fantine, respectively, in the musical's 10th and 25th anniversary concerts in London. She provided the singing voices of two official Disney Princesses: Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan in Mulan (1998). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011 for her work with The Walt Disney Company. Salonga starred as Mei-li in the 2002 Broadway version of Flower Drum Song. She has played numerous other stage, film and TV roles in the US, the Philippines and elsewhere. She has toured widely in the theatre roles and as a concert artist. From 2015 to 2016, she returned to Broadway in Allegiance, and from 2017 to 2019 she appeared in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island.
Life and career
1971–1989: Early life and career
Salonga was born in Ermita, Manila, to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner (1929–2016), and María Ligaya Alcantara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before moving to Manila. Her brother, Gerard Salonga, is a conductor.
She made her professional debut in 1978 at the age of seven in the musical The King and I with Repertory Philippines. She played the title role in Annie in 1980 and appeared in other productions such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, The Rose T, The Goodbye Girl (1982), Paper Moon (1983) and The Fantasticks (1988). In 1981, she recorded her first album, Small Voice, which was certified gold in the Philippines. In 1985, she and her brother took part in the eighth Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as the interpreters for the song entry titled "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La" which was composed by Tess Concepcion.
During the 1980s, Salonga also had several television projects through GMA Radio Television Arts where she worked as a child actor. After the success of her first album, from 1983 to 1985, she hosted her own musical television show, Love, Lea, and was a member of the cast of German Moreno's teen variety show That's Entertainment. She acted in films, which included the family-oriented Tropang Bulilit, Like Father, Like Son, Ninja Kids, Captain Barbell and Pik Pak Boom. As a young performer, Salonga received a Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination for Best Child Actress and three Aliw Awards for best child performer in 1980, 1981 and 1982. She released her second album, Lea, in 1988.
She also opened for, and performed with, international acts such as Menudo and Stevie Wonder in their concerts in Manila in 1985 and in 1988, respectively.
She finished her secondary education in 1988 at the O. B. Montessori Center in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila. She also attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program aimed at training musically talented children in music and stage movement. A college freshman studying biology at the Ateneo de Manila University when she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she intended to have a medical career. Later, in between jobs in New York, she took two courses at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus.
1989–1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin
In 1989, Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's "On My Own" from Les Misérables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. Salonga won the lead role, while her childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson was named her understudy and cast as the bar girl Mimi.
For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest winners of the award. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production.
In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.
1993–1996: Les Misérables, films and other musicals
In 1993, Salonga played the role of Éponine in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. She performed the song "A Whole New World" from Aladdin with Brad Kane at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the song won an Oscar, having already won a Golden Globe Award. That same year, she released her self-titled international debut album with Atlantic Records. In 1994, Salonga played in various musical theatre productions in the Philippines and Singapore, such as Sandy in Grease, Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady and the Witch in Into the Woods.
Back in the US in 1995, Salonga played the role of Geri Riordan, an 18-year-old adopted Vietnamese American child in the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Redwood Curtain, which starred John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels. She then flew back to the Philippines to star with Filipino matinée idol Aga Muhlach in the critically acclaimed film Sana Maulit Muli, which gave her a second Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination, this time for Best Actress. She played the role of Éponine in the 10th anniversary production of Les Mis called Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.
In 1996, Salonga was in Les Misérables once again as Éponine in the London production of the musical, then continued on to perform the role in the musical's US national tour. In the Philippines in 1999, and again in 2000, she played Sonia Walsk in They're Playing Our Song.
1997–2004: Recordings, concerts, TV and Flower Drum Song
From 1997 to 2000, Salonga did recordings and concerts in the Philippines and another engagement in London, in addition to a few returns to Miss Saigon in London and on Broadway. In 1997, she released I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (recordings from her childhood days) to gold sales in the Philippines. That recording was followed by Lea... In Love in 1998 and By Heart in 2000, with both albums reaching multiple platinum status in the Philippines. In 1998, she again lent her voice to a major Disney animated film, singing the title character in Mulan, also providing the character's singing voice in the 2004 sequel, Mulan II. At the age of 28, Salonga moved to New York City, purchasing her own apartment (which she still owns up to at least 2013). She participated in the 1998 tribute concert to Sir Cameron Mackintosh in London called "Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron MacKintosh", where she did numbers from several of his musicals. She also performed in four concerts: The Homecoming Concert, The Millennium Concert, The Best of Manila and Songs from the Screen – the last two being benefit shows. Salonga returned to Manila in Miss Saigon, staged at the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the end of 2000.
After a last stint in Miss Saigon for its closing on Broadway in 2001, Salonga recreated the role of Lien Hughes originally played by Ming-Na Wen in the soap opera As the World Turns. After completing her contract that year, she was asked to return to the role in 2003. She guested on Russell Watson's The Voice concert, narrated for the television special My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and appeared on the Christmas episode of the TV medical drama ER, playing a patient with lymphoma.
In 2002, Salonga returned to Broadway to play the leading role of Mei-li, a Chinese immigrant in a reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song opposite Jose Llana. This was after the reinvented musical had a run at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2001 with Salonga playing the role and in 2002 winning Lead Actress in a Musical from the Los Angeles theatre Ovation Awards. The Salonga-led Broadway revival cast album was nominated for a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album. Salonga's performance was received positively by theatre critics in New York, and she received a nomination for Distinguished Performance from the Drama League, among other honors. Between the 2001 Los Angeles and 2002 Broadway productions of Flower Drum Song, she performed in a non-musical theatrical production for the first time, playing the role of Catherine in the stage play Proof in Manila. This was followed by a major concert, The Broadway Concert, at the Philippine International Convention Center. She also sang at the 56th Tony Awards with Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Gallagher and Michele Lee in a number paying tribute to Richard Rodgers.
In 2003 to 2004, Salonga did her first "all-Filipino" concerts in Manila called Songs from Home, which later won her an Aliw Award as Entertainer of the Year. In 2003, she performed in several concerts at the Mohegan Sun hotel in Connecticut. This was followed by a Christmas concert in the Philippines, called Home for Christmas, and performances at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton, New Jersey, in 2004. Later in 2004, she played Lizzie in the Manila production of the musical Baby, which earned her another nomination from the Aliw Awards.
2005–2007: International ventures
In 2005, Salonga gave her first US concert tour. Later that year, she performed to a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Diverse City Theater Company. The same year, she received the Golden Artist Award at the 53rd FAMAS Awards in honor of her international achievements, performed during the grand opening of Hong Kong's Disneyland and recorded two songs on Daniel Rodriguez's album In the Presence. She also did voice work for Disney's English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro as Yasuko Kusakabe. Salonga wrote the foreword to Linda Marquart's "The Right Way to Sing" (2005). In 2006, at the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, Salonga concluded the closing ceremony with the song "Triumph of the One" before an audience of 50,000 people at the Khalifa Stadium.
In 2007, Salonga released her first studio album in seven years called Inspired, which was certified platinum in the Philippines She received the Order of Lakandula, with the rank of Commander (Komandante), from Philippine president Arroyo in recognition of using her talents to benefit Philippine society and foster cultural exchange. She has also received the Congressional Medal of Achievement from the House of Representatives of the Philippines. She returned to Broadway for another stint in the musical Les Misérables, this time as Fantine. Her rejoining the show boosted the musical's ticket sales. President Arroyo watched Salonga in this role, together with Filipino Americans Adam Jacobs as Marius and Ali Ewoldt as Cosette. Salonga received rave reviews and made it again to the short list of Broadway.com's Audience Award favorites as Best Replacement. During her tenure on Broadway that season, she appeared in Broadway on Broadway 2007 and Stars in the Alley 2007, spoke at the Broadway Artists Alliance Summer Intensives, guested on the Broadway musical 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and participated in Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS' 12th Annual Nothing Like a Dame event to benefit the women's health initiative of The Actors Fund. Right after doing Les Misérables, she performed in two events: at the US Military Academy Band's concert in West Point where she sang four songs and an encore and in her own concert at the Tarrytown Music Hall in New York. She was then busy with other concerts and musical events, including a Christmas presentation in Manila.
In 2008, Salonga gave concerts in the Philippines, California, Hawaii, Hong Kong, and Guam, and she played the title role in Broadway Asia Entertainment's international tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.
2008–2012: Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist and touring
On 3 July 2008, Salonga became a columnist in the Philippine Daily Inquirer with her column "Backstory" (Entertainment section), "Introducing: Lea Salonga, writer". Since then she has written numerous columns for the Inquirer. She performed in "Global Pop" at the Music Center on July 11, 2008. It was presented by The Blue Ribbon a group founded by Dorothy Chandler in 1968. Salonga gave a concert on July 11 at Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. That same year she received a special citation from the Awit Awards.
From late July 2008 to mid-2009, Salonga played the title role in the 30-week Asian tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which premiered in Manila. Salonga performed a series of concerts in North America in 2009 and was also asked to dance the Filipino novelty dances "Ocho-ocho" and "Spaghetti". The same year, Salonga advertised the Avon Products line of anti-aging skin care products Anew Rejuvenate in the Philippines. In June 2009, she sang at the 95th Anniversary Special of the Iglesia ni Cristo. Salonga sang Patriotic song "Bayan Ko" at the Requiem Mass for former President Corazon Aquino at Manila Cathedral. Salonga celebrated 20 years of Miss Saigon by performing in concerts called "Lea Salonga... Your Songs", at the Philippine International Convention Center Plenary Hall on December 11 and 12, 2009. Her brother, Gerard, was musical director.
From July to August 2010, Salonga played the role of Grizabella in the Manila run of the Asia-Pacific tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. In October, she played Fantine during the 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables, fifteen years after appearing in the 10th Anniversary as Eponine. The same year, she served as a celebrity judge for Avon Voices, Avon's first global, online singing talent search for women and songwriting competition for men and women.
Salonga was honored as a Disney Legend on August 19, 2011. She was one of the judges in the 60th Miss Universe 2011 Beauty Pageant in São Paulo, Brazil on 12 September 2011. Salonga, along with Darren Criss, sang "A Whole New World" to its composer, Alan Menken, as Menken was named the winner of the 2011 Maestro Award at the Billboard/Hollywood Reporter Film & TV Music Conference on October 24, 2011.
Salonga performed in a six-concert series titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites" in 2012 with the Palm Beach Pops. She starred in the first production of Allegiance, at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from September to October 2012. Salonga starred in the Philippine production of the comedy God of Carnage from July 2012 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Manila. She took on the same role at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore, in November 2012. Salonga joined the Candlelight Processional at Epcot in Walt Disney World as narrator on December 14 to 16, retelling the Christmas story accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and a mass choir.
2013–2018: The Voice of the Philippines and return to Broadway
In January 2013, Salonga took part on the 2013 season of Lincoln Center's American Songbook concert series at the Allen Room. In February in the Philippines, Salonga provided the theme song for TV5's reality singing competition Kanta Pilipinas and, together with Tyne Daly and Norm Lewis, she starred as Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Salonga headlined a concert series, "4 Stars One World of Broadway Musicals," in Tokyo Osaka in June, performing with Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess and Yu Shirota. She was one of the four coaches, together with apl.de.ap, Sarah Geronimo, and Bamboo Mañalac for the ABS-CBN program, The Voice of the Philippines, which premiered in June 2013. In December 2013, Salonga began a concert tour in the Philippines titled "Lea Salonga: Playlist" that celebrated her 35 years in show business. The concert series was extended to January 2014. Salonga wrote a book, Playlist: A Celebration of 35 Years, which she used as a souvenir program for the concerts.
In 2014, she returned for the second season of The Voice of the Philippines and also joined the new Philippine version of The Voice Kids, on which she has appeared for three seasons. Salonga recorded a song called "Wished That I Could Call You" that was included in the charity compilation album Children In Need, released in March 2014. Also in 2014–15, she toured in Asia and North America with Il Divo. In mid-2015, she headlined her own concert series in Australasia. Salonga reprised her role as Kei Kimura in the 2015–16 Broadway production of Allegiance. Charles Isherwood wrote in The New York Times of her performance: "Her voice retains its plush beauty, and her culminating first act solo, "Higher" ... is perhaps the show's musical highlight."
Salonga guest-starred on the April 2016 season finale of the American television series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. She played Helen Bechdel in the international premiere of Fun Home in November 2016 in Manila. A review in ABS-CBN News said that she "delivers a finely tuned performance, utilizing her prodigious stage presence to provide the cold and dark shadings to erstwhile peppy scenes with her subtle stares and held back emotions. ... [In] "Days by Days" ... she finally lets go of all the resentment and repressed anger of a woman stuck in a marriage built on a lie. Yet there is dignity in her breakdown ... Salonga pulls it off with such clarity, both musically and emotionally, that it's difficult not to be moved."
In 2016 she won two more Aliw Awards, one for Best Major Concert in a Foreign Venue and her second Entertainer of the Year award. The following year, Salonga was one of the coaches on The Voice Teens. Also in 2017, she released an album, Bahaghari: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines, with songs sung in several languages spoken in the Philippines. Salonga portrayed Erzulie in 2017–2018 in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island at Circle in the Square Theatre, where she received critical praise for her vocal performance. She returned to the show for its final performances in December 2018 and January 2019. Once on this Island was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
2019–present
Salonga appears as a Philippine immigrant, Aunt Gail, in the musical film Yellow Rose, which premiered at the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. She also toured North America and the UK that year. Later in 2019, she played Mrs. Lovett in a revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Manila and then Singapore. Critics praised her "crystalline tones that turned her numbers, especially 'By the Sea', into unexpected show-stoppers. ... [S]he disappears into this loud devil woman. This is by far the best musical theater outing of Salonga in the Philippines, post-Miss Saigon, and the very long wait was well worth it", and called her portrayal "a delirious hurricane of deviousness and devilry, sprinkled with lust ... one of the most accomplished stage creations we've seen this year ... a career high for the actress. Pangan [as Todd] simmers; Salonga is the explosive fire underneath." Between these two short runs, she gave concerts in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in November. On November 27, 2020, PBS Great Performances broadcast the Sydney Opera House concert.
Salonga is set to play a recurring character in Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. She also voices a character in Centaurworld.
Personal life
On January 10, 2004, Salonga married Robert Charles Chien, an American managing director of an entertainment software company in Los Angeles, California, of Chinese and Japanese heritage, whom she met while performing in Flower Drum Song. They have one daughter. Salonga is also an avid video game enthusiast. She resides in the Philippines and the United States.
On October 15, 2010, Salonga was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Voice and musical ability
Salonga has been praised for control over her vocals, which can evoke a wide array of emotion and soundscapes. In her popular music releases, Salonga has sung "simple love songs", which are common in Original Pilipino Music. In both Disney Princess singing roles, Jasmine and Mulan, Salonga uses head tones that reach up to F5.
Discography
Solo recordings
Small Voice (1981)
Lea (1988)
Lea Salonga (1993)
I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (1997)
Lea... In Love (1998)
By Heart (1999)
Lea Salonga: The Christmas Album (2000)
Songs from the Screen (2001)
Inspired (2007)
Lea Salonga: Your Songs (2010)
Bahaghari [Rainbow]: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines (2017)
Cast recordings
Miss Saigon (Original London Cast Recording) (1989)
Little Tramp (Studio Recording) (1992)
The King and I (Hollywood Studio Cast Recording) (1992)
Aladdin (Soundtrack Recording) (1992)
Mulan (Soundtrack Recording) (1998)
Making Tracks (Original Cast Recording) (2001)
Flower Drum Song (Revival Cast Recording) (2002)
Mulan II (Soundtrack Recording) (2005)
Dayo: Sa Mundo ng Elementalia (Soundtrack Recording) (2008)
Cinderella (Original International Tour Cast Recording) (2010)
Allegiance (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (2016)
Once on This Island (First Broadway Revival Cast Recording) (2018)
Video/Live recordings
Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh (1997)
Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 1 (2000)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 2 (2000)
The Broadway Concert (2002)
Songs from Home: Live Concert Recording (2004)
Les Misérables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary (2010)
The Journey So Far – Recorded Live at Cafe Carlyle (2011)
Live: Jazz at Lincoln Center (2016)
Blurred Lines (2017)
The Story of My Life: Lea Salonga Live from Manila (2019) with the BYU Chamber Orchestra
Lea Salonga in Concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2020)
Compilation albums
100% Lea Gives Her Best (2003)
The Ultimate OPM Collection (2007)
Featured recordings
Disney Princess: The Ultimate Song Collection (2004), for the song "If You Can Dream" (sung with Susan Logan, Grey Griffin, Jodi Benson, Paige O'Hara and Judy Kuhn)
Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007), for the songs "Peacock Princess" (sung with Gilbert Gottfried) and "I've Got My Eyes on You"
Shelldon (2008), for the song "It's a Brand New Day"
Sofia the First (2014), for the songs "The Ride of Our Lives" (episode 12: "Two to Tangu") and "Stronger that You Know" (episode 36: "Princesses To The Rescue")
Acting credits
Theatre
Film and television
References
External links
Salonga presenting an illustrated autobiography (2015)
1971 births
Living people
20th-century Filipino actresses
21st-century Filipino actresses
ABS-CBN personalities
Actresses from Pampanga
Arista Records artists
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Drama Desk Award winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Filipino child actresses
Filipino expatriates in the United States
20th-century Filipino women singers
Filipino musical theatre actresses
Filipino voice actresses
Fordham University alumni
Kapampangan people
Laurence Olivier Award winners
People from Angeles City
People from Manila
Recipients of the Order of Lakandula
Singers from Pampanga
That's Entertainment (Philippine TV series)
That's Entertainment Thursday Group Members
Tony Award winners
Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)
21st-century Filipino women singers | true | [
"Aladdin, or the Wonderful Lamp is a play by Adam Oehlenschläger. The play was published in Poetiske Skrifter, bind 2 from 1805. \n\nThe play is based upon the story of Aladdin in One Thousand and One Nights.\n\nAladdin, or the Wonderful Lamp is part of the Danish Culture Canon, maintained by the Danish Ministry of Culture.\n\nExternal links \n Aladdin, eller Den forunderlige Lampe in the Archive for Danish literature \n Omtale af Aladdin, eller Den forunderlige Lampe in the Danish Culture Canon \n\nDanish Culture Canon\nDanish plays\n1805 plays",
"HMS Mutine was launched on 19 May 1825 at Plymouth, England as a Cherokee-class brig-sloop. She became a Falmouth packet until the navy sold her in 1841. She then became the whaler Aladdin, sailing first out of England and then out of Hobart. The government in Tasmania purchased her in 1885 to use as a powder hulk. It sold her in 1902 for breaking up.\n\nCareer\nFalmouth packet: In September 1826 Mutine was at Devonport being fitted out for the packet trade out of Falmouth. Thereafter she served for many years under the command of Lieutenant Richard Pawle. \n\nIn addition to sailing between Falmouth and North America, Mutine made voyages to the Mediterranean and to the West Indies. On 8 March 1827 Lloyd's List reported that Mutine had arrived at Falmouth from the Mediterranean having observed a fleet of Turkish warships off Cephalonia. \n\nIn August 1832 Mutine brought back to England 17,000 dollars salvaged from . Thetis had wrecked on 5 December 1830 off Cape Frio, Brazil. She had been carrying a cargo of bullion, two-thirds of which had subsequently been salvaged.\n\nDisposal: The \"Commissioners for executing the office of Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland\" offered Mutine, of 10 guns and 231 tons (bm), for sale on 13 May 1841. She did not sell and they offered her again on 27 May. She was sold on that day, without stores, for £740.\n\nWhaler: Messrs. Bennett of London purchased her and converted her into a whaler they named Aladdin. She first appeared in Lloyd's Register in 1841 with Bull, master, Bennett, owner, and trade London–South Seas.\n\nAladdin made one voyage for the Bennetts. Aladdin, J. Boon, master, sailed from England on 23 February 1842. The vessel was reported at anchor in a bay near Kupang, Timor in October 1842, with 16 barrels of whale oil aboard, where she had come to obtain provisions, which were \"abundant and cheap.\" She returned to England on 15 June 1846 with 278 casks of sperm oil and two casks of train oil, representing some 116 tons of oil.\n\nIn 1846 the Hobart entrepreneur, Charles Seal, sent one of his employees, Captain George McArthur, to London to purchase a replacement for one of his whalers recently lost at sea. McArthur purchased Aladdin and departed London on 5 September 1846. Aladdin reached Hobart on 15 January 1847 with 50 barrels of oil, having done a little fishing along the way. \n\nOn 18 December 1848. Aladdin became the stage for an unusual entertainment for the people of Hobart.\n\nAladdin made 31 whaling voyages out of Hobart. In 1860 Captain McArthur purchased her for £500. She was recoppered in 1867, when a cannonball was discovered embedded in the wood beneath her old copper skins. \n\nAlso in 1867 McArthur had forcibly to suppress a mutiny. He died in 1875 but the ship's new owners continued sailing Aladdin as a whaler. Her owners sold her to the Tasmanian government in 1885 or 1892 (sources differ).\n\nPowder hulk: The Tasmanian Government purchased Aladdin to use as a powder hulk and anchored her in the River Derwent in Hobart. During the 1898 celebration of the centenary of the Battle of the Nile she was decorated with flags, as it was mistakenly believed that she was the French brig La Mutine, renamed , which had served during that engagement.\n\nFate\n\nAladdin was sold for breaking up in 1902.\n\nNotes, citations, and references\nNotes\n\nCitations\n\nReferences\n \n \n \n\n1825 ships\nCherokee-class brig-sloops\nShips built in Plymouth, Devon\nWhaling ships\nPacket (sea transport)\nWhaling in Australia\nFalmouth Packets"
]
|
[
"Lea Salonga",
"1989-1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin",
"Who is Miss Saigon?",
"In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London.",
"How long did she protrat that positon?",
"When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People.",
"Did she win any other award?",
"the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards",
"When was she awarded these awards?",
"1991,",
"What part did she play in Aladdin?",
"she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin."
]
| C_9b2f062c2492418abaa56a510248f79b_0 | When was Aladdin released? | 7 | When was Aladdin released? | Lea Salonga | In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg's "On My Own" from Les Miserables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. She competed for the role with childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson. Salonga won the lead role, while Wilson was named her understudy and given the role of the bar girl Mimi. For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production. In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin. CANNOTANSWER | 1992, | Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, , (; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipina singer and actress, best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplying the singing voices of two Disney Princesses (Jasmine and Mulan), and as a recording artist and television performer.
At age 18, she originated the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon in the West End and then reprised the role on Broadway, winning the Olivier and Theatre World Awards, and becoming the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award. Salonga is the first Filipino artist to sign with an international record label (Atlantic Records in 1993).
Salonga was the first actress of Asian descent to play the roles of Éponine and Fantine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway. She also portrayed Éponine and Fantine, respectively, in the musical's 10th and 25th anniversary concerts in London. She provided the singing voices of two official Disney Princesses: Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan in Mulan (1998). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011 for her work with The Walt Disney Company. Salonga starred as Mei-li in the 2002 Broadway version of Flower Drum Song. She has played numerous other stage, film and TV roles in the US, the Philippines and elsewhere. She has toured widely in the theatre roles and as a concert artist. From 2015 to 2016, she returned to Broadway in Allegiance, and from 2017 to 2019 she appeared in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island.
Life and career
1971–1989: Early life and career
Salonga was born in Ermita, Manila, to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner (1929–2016), and María Ligaya Alcantara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before moving to Manila. Her brother, Gerard Salonga, is a conductor.
She made her professional debut in 1978 at the age of seven in the musical The King and I with Repertory Philippines. She played the title role in Annie in 1980 and appeared in other productions such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, The Rose T, The Goodbye Girl (1982), Paper Moon (1983) and The Fantasticks (1988). In 1981, she recorded her first album, Small Voice, which was certified gold in the Philippines. In 1985, she and her brother took part in the eighth Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as the interpreters for the song entry titled "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La" which was composed by Tess Concepcion.
During the 1980s, Salonga also had several television projects through GMA Radio Television Arts where she worked as a child actor. After the success of her first album, from 1983 to 1985, she hosted her own musical television show, Love, Lea, and was a member of the cast of German Moreno's teen variety show That's Entertainment. She acted in films, which included the family-oriented Tropang Bulilit, Like Father, Like Son, Ninja Kids, Captain Barbell and Pik Pak Boom. As a young performer, Salonga received a Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination for Best Child Actress and three Aliw Awards for best child performer in 1980, 1981 and 1982. She released her second album, Lea, in 1988.
She also opened for, and performed with, international acts such as Menudo and Stevie Wonder in their concerts in Manila in 1985 and in 1988, respectively.
She finished her secondary education in 1988 at the O. B. Montessori Center in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila. She also attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program aimed at training musically talented children in music and stage movement. A college freshman studying biology at the Ateneo de Manila University when she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she intended to have a medical career. Later, in between jobs in New York, she took two courses at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus.
1989–1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin
In 1989, Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's "On My Own" from Les Misérables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. Salonga won the lead role, while her childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson was named her understudy and cast as the bar girl Mimi.
For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest winners of the award. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production.
In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.
1993–1996: Les Misérables, films and other musicals
In 1993, Salonga played the role of Éponine in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. She performed the song "A Whole New World" from Aladdin with Brad Kane at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the song won an Oscar, having already won a Golden Globe Award. That same year, she released her self-titled international debut album with Atlantic Records. In 1994, Salonga played in various musical theatre productions in the Philippines and Singapore, such as Sandy in Grease, Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady and the Witch in Into the Woods.
Back in the US in 1995, Salonga played the role of Geri Riordan, an 18-year-old adopted Vietnamese American child in the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Redwood Curtain, which starred John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels. She then flew back to the Philippines to star with Filipino matinée idol Aga Muhlach in the critically acclaimed film Sana Maulit Muli, which gave her a second Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination, this time for Best Actress. She played the role of Éponine in the 10th anniversary production of Les Mis called Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.
In 1996, Salonga was in Les Misérables once again as Éponine in the London production of the musical, then continued on to perform the role in the musical's US national tour. In the Philippines in 1999, and again in 2000, she played Sonia Walsk in They're Playing Our Song.
1997–2004: Recordings, concerts, TV and Flower Drum Song
From 1997 to 2000, Salonga did recordings and concerts in the Philippines and another engagement in London, in addition to a few returns to Miss Saigon in London and on Broadway. In 1997, she released I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (recordings from her childhood days) to gold sales in the Philippines. That recording was followed by Lea... In Love in 1998 and By Heart in 2000, with both albums reaching multiple platinum status in the Philippines. In 1998, she again lent her voice to a major Disney animated film, singing the title character in Mulan, also providing the character's singing voice in the 2004 sequel, Mulan II. At the age of 28, Salonga moved to New York City, purchasing her own apartment (which she still owns up to at least 2013). She participated in the 1998 tribute concert to Sir Cameron Mackintosh in London called "Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron MacKintosh", where she did numbers from several of his musicals. She also performed in four concerts: The Homecoming Concert, The Millennium Concert, The Best of Manila and Songs from the Screen – the last two being benefit shows. Salonga returned to Manila in Miss Saigon, staged at the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the end of 2000.
After a last stint in Miss Saigon for its closing on Broadway in 2001, Salonga recreated the role of Lien Hughes originally played by Ming-Na Wen in the soap opera As the World Turns. After completing her contract that year, she was asked to return to the role in 2003. She guested on Russell Watson's The Voice concert, narrated for the television special My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and appeared on the Christmas episode of the TV medical drama ER, playing a patient with lymphoma.
In 2002, Salonga returned to Broadway to play the leading role of Mei-li, a Chinese immigrant in a reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song opposite Jose Llana. This was after the reinvented musical had a run at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2001 with Salonga playing the role and in 2002 winning Lead Actress in a Musical from the Los Angeles theatre Ovation Awards. The Salonga-led Broadway revival cast album was nominated for a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album. Salonga's performance was received positively by theatre critics in New York, and she received a nomination for Distinguished Performance from the Drama League, among other honors. Between the 2001 Los Angeles and 2002 Broadway productions of Flower Drum Song, she performed in a non-musical theatrical production for the first time, playing the role of Catherine in the stage play Proof in Manila. This was followed by a major concert, The Broadway Concert, at the Philippine International Convention Center. She also sang at the 56th Tony Awards with Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Gallagher and Michele Lee in a number paying tribute to Richard Rodgers.
In 2003 to 2004, Salonga did her first "all-Filipino" concerts in Manila called Songs from Home, which later won her an Aliw Award as Entertainer of the Year. In 2003, she performed in several concerts at the Mohegan Sun hotel in Connecticut. This was followed by a Christmas concert in the Philippines, called Home for Christmas, and performances at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton, New Jersey, in 2004. Later in 2004, she played Lizzie in the Manila production of the musical Baby, which earned her another nomination from the Aliw Awards.
2005–2007: International ventures
In 2005, Salonga gave her first US concert tour. Later that year, she performed to a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Diverse City Theater Company. The same year, she received the Golden Artist Award at the 53rd FAMAS Awards in honor of her international achievements, performed during the grand opening of Hong Kong's Disneyland and recorded two songs on Daniel Rodriguez's album In the Presence. She also did voice work for Disney's English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro as Yasuko Kusakabe. Salonga wrote the foreword to Linda Marquart's "The Right Way to Sing" (2005). In 2006, at the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, Salonga concluded the closing ceremony with the song "Triumph of the One" before an audience of 50,000 people at the Khalifa Stadium.
In 2007, Salonga released her first studio album in seven years called Inspired, which was certified platinum in the Philippines She received the Order of Lakandula, with the rank of Commander (Komandante), from Philippine president Arroyo in recognition of using her talents to benefit Philippine society and foster cultural exchange. She has also received the Congressional Medal of Achievement from the House of Representatives of the Philippines. She returned to Broadway for another stint in the musical Les Misérables, this time as Fantine. Her rejoining the show boosted the musical's ticket sales. President Arroyo watched Salonga in this role, together with Filipino Americans Adam Jacobs as Marius and Ali Ewoldt as Cosette. Salonga received rave reviews and made it again to the short list of Broadway.com's Audience Award favorites as Best Replacement. During her tenure on Broadway that season, she appeared in Broadway on Broadway 2007 and Stars in the Alley 2007, spoke at the Broadway Artists Alliance Summer Intensives, guested on the Broadway musical 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and participated in Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS' 12th Annual Nothing Like a Dame event to benefit the women's health initiative of The Actors Fund. Right after doing Les Misérables, she performed in two events: at the US Military Academy Band's concert in West Point where she sang four songs and an encore and in her own concert at the Tarrytown Music Hall in New York. She was then busy with other concerts and musical events, including a Christmas presentation in Manila.
In 2008, Salonga gave concerts in the Philippines, California, Hawaii, Hong Kong, and Guam, and she played the title role in Broadway Asia Entertainment's international tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.
2008–2012: Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist and touring
On 3 July 2008, Salonga became a columnist in the Philippine Daily Inquirer with her column "Backstory" (Entertainment section), "Introducing: Lea Salonga, writer". Since then she has written numerous columns for the Inquirer. She performed in "Global Pop" at the Music Center on July 11, 2008. It was presented by The Blue Ribbon a group founded by Dorothy Chandler in 1968. Salonga gave a concert on July 11 at Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. That same year she received a special citation from the Awit Awards.
From late July 2008 to mid-2009, Salonga played the title role in the 30-week Asian tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which premiered in Manila. Salonga performed a series of concerts in North America in 2009 and was also asked to dance the Filipino novelty dances "Ocho-ocho" and "Spaghetti". The same year, Salonga advertised the Avon Products line of anti-aging skin care products Anew Rejuvenate in the Philippines. In June 2009, she sang at the 95th Anniversary Special of the Iglesia ni Cristo. Salonga sang Patriotic song "Bayan Ko" at the Requiem Mass for former President Corazon Aquino at Manila Cathedral. Salonga celebrated 20 years of Miss Saigon by performing in concerts called "Lea Salonga... Your Songs", at the Philippine International Convention Center Plenary Hall on December 11 and 12, 2009. Her brother, Gerard, was musical director.
From July to August 2010, Salonga played the role of Grizabella in the Manila run of the Asia-Pacific tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. In October, she played Fantine during the 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables, fifteen years after appearing in the 10th Anniversary as Eponine. The same year, she served as a celebrity judge for Avon Voices, Avon's first global, online singing talent search for women and songwriting competition for men and women.
Salonga was honored as a Disney Legend on August 19, 2011. She was one of the judges in the 60th Miss Universe 2011 Beauty Pageant in São Paulo, Brazil on 12 September 2011. Salonga, along with Darren Criss, sang "A Whole New World" to its composer, Alan Menken, as Menken was named the winner of the 2011 Maestro Award at the Billboard/Hollywood Reporter Film & TV Music Conference on October 24, 2011.
Salonga performed in a six-concert series titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites" in 2012 with the Palm Beach Pops. She starred in the first production of Allegiance, at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from September to October 2012. Salonga starred in the Philippine production of the comedy God of Carnage from July 2012 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Manila. She took on the same role at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore, in November 2012. Salonga joined the Candlelight Processional at Epcot in Walt Disney World as narrator on December 14 to 16, retelling the Christmas story accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and a mass choir.
2013–2018: The Voice of the Philippines and return to Broadway
In January 2013, Salonga took part on the 2013 season of Lincoln Center's American Songbook concert series at the Allen Room. In February in the Philippines, Salonga provided the theme song for TV5's reality singing competition Kanta Pilipinas and, together with Tyne Daly and Norm Lewis, she starred as Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Salonga headlined a concert series, "4 Stars One World of Broadway Musicals," in Tokyo Osaka in June, performing with Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess and Yu Shirota. She was one of the four coaches, together with apl.de.ap, Sarah Geronimo, and Bamboo Mañalac for the ABS-CBN program, The Voice of the Philippines, which premiered in June 2013. In December 2013, Salonga began a concert tour in the Philippines titled "Lea Salonga: Playlist" that celebrated her 35 years in show business. The concert series was extended to January 2014. Salonga wrote a book, Playlist: A Celebration of 35 Years, which she used as a souvenir program for the concerts.
In 2014, she returned for the second season of The Voice of the Philippines and also joined the new Philippine version of The Voice Kids, on which she has appeared for three seasons. Salonga recorded a song called "Wished That I Could Call You" that was included in the charity compilation album Children In Need, released in March 2014. Also in 2014–15, she toured in Asia and North America with Il Divo. In mid-2015, she headlined her own concert series in Australasia. Salonga reprised her role as Kei Kimura in the 2015–16 Broadway production of Allegiance. Charles Isherwood wrote in The New York Times of her performance: "Her voice retains its plush beauty, and her culminating first act solo, "Higher" ... is perhaps the show's musical highlight."
Salonga guest-starred on the April 2016 season finale of the American television series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. She played Helen Bechdel in the international premiere of Fun Home in November 2016 in Manila. A review in ABS-CBN News said that she "delivers a finely tuned performance, utilizing her prodigious stage presence to provide the cold and dark shadings to erstwhile peppy scenes with her subtle stares and held back emotions. ... [In] "Days by Days" ... she finally lets go of all the resentment and repressed anger of a woman stuck in a marriage built on a lie. Yet there is dignity in her breakdown ... Salonga pulls it off with such clarity, both musically and emotionally, that it's difficult not to be moved."
In 2016 she won two more Aliw Awards, one for Best Major Concert in a Foreign Venue and her second Entertainer of the Year award. The following year, Salonga was one of the coaches on The Voice Teens. Also in 2017, she released an album, Bahaghari: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines, with songs sung in several languages spoken in the Philippines. Salonga portrayed Erzulie in 2017–2018 in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island at Circle in the Square Theatre, where she received critical praise for her vocal performance. She returned to the show for its final performances in December 2018 and January 2019. Once on this Island was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
2019–present
Salonga appears as a Philippine immigrant, Aunt Gail, in the musical film Yellow Rose, which premiered at the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. She also toured North America and the UK that year. Later in 2019, she played Mrs. Lovett in a revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Manila and then Singapore. Critics praised her "crystalline tones that turned her numbers, especially 'By the Sea', into unexpected show-stoppers. ... [S]he disappears into this loud devil woman. This is by far the best musical theater outing of Salonga in the Philippines, post-Miss Saigon, and the very long wait was well worth it", and called her portrayal "a delirious hurricane of deviousness and devilry, sprinkled with lust ... one of the most accomplished stage creations we've seen this year ... a career high for the actress. Pangan [as Todd] simmers; Salonga is the explosive fire underneath." Between these two short runs, she gave concerts in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in November. On November 27, 2020, PBS Great Performances broadcast the Sydney Opera House concert.
Salonga is set to play a recurring character in Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. She also voices a character in Centaurworld.
Personal life
On January 10, 2004, Salonga married Robert Charles Chien, an American managing director of an entertainment software company in Los Angeles, California, of Chinese and Japanese heritage, whom she met while performing in Flower Drum Song. They have one daughter. Salonga is also an avid video game enthusiast. She resides in the Philippines and the United States.
On October 15, 2010, Salonga was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Voice and musical ability
Salonga has been praised for control over her vocals, which can evoke a wide array of emotion and soundscapes. In her popular music releases, Salonga has sung "simple love songs", which are common in Original Pilipino Music. In both Disney Princess singing roles, Jasmine and Mulan, Salonga uses head tones that reach up to F5.
Discography
Solo recordings
Small Voice (1981)
Lea (1988)
Lea Salonga (1993)
I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (1997)
Lea... In Love (1998)
By Heart (1999)
Lea Salonga: The Christmas Album (2000)
Songs from the Screen (2001)
Inspired (2007)
Lea Salonga: Your Songs (2010)
Bahaghari [Rainbow]: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines (2017)
Cast recordings
Miss Saigon (Original London Cast Recording) (1989)
Little Tramp (Studio Recording) (1992)
The King and I (Hollywood Studio Cast Recording) (1992)
Aladdin (Soundtrack Recording) (1992)
Mulan (Soundtrack Recording) (1998)
Making Tracks (Original Cast Recording) (2001)
Flower Drum Song (Revival Cast Recording) (2002)
Mulan II (Soundtrack Recording) (2005)
Dayo: Sa Mundo ng Elementalia (Soundtrack Recording) (2008)
Cinderella (Original International Tour Cast Recording) (2010)
Allegiance (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (2016)
Once on This Island (First Broadway Revival Cast Recording) (2018)
Video/Live recordings
Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh (1997)
Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 1 (2000)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 2 (2000)
The Broadway Concert (2002)
Songs from Home: Live Concert Recording (2004)
Les Misérables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary (2010)
The Journey So Far – Recorded Live at Cafe Carlyle (2011)
Live: Jazz at Lincoln Center (2016)
Blurred Lines (2017)
The Story of My Life: Lea Salonga Live from Manila (2019) with the BYU Chamber Orchestra
Lea Salonga in Concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2020)
Compilation albums
100% Lea Gives Her Best (2003)
The Ultimate OPM Collection (2007)
Featured recordings
Disney Princess: The Ultimate Song Collection (2004), for the song "If You Can Dream" (sung with Susan Logan, Grey Griffin, Jodi Benson, Paige O'Hara and Judy Kuhn)
Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007), for the songs "Peacock Princess" (sung with Gilbert Gottfried) and "I've Got My Eyes on You"
Shelldon (2008), for the song "It's a Brand New Day"
Sofia the First (2014), for the songs "The Ride of Our Lives" (episode 12: "Two to Tangu") and "Stronger that You Know" (episode 36: "Princesses To The Rescue")
Acting credits
Theatre
Film and television
References
External links
Salonga presenting an illustrated autobiography (2015)
1971 births
Living people
20th-century Filipino actresses
21st-century Filipino actresses
ABS-CBN personalities
Actresses from Pampanga
Arista Records artists
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Drama Desk Award winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Filipino child actresses
Filipino expatriates in the United States
20th-century Filipino women singers
Filipino musical theatre actresses
Filipino voice actresses
Fordham University alumni
Kapampangan people
Laurence Olivier Award winners
People from Angeles City
People from Manila
Recipients of the Order of Lakandula
Singers from Pampanga
That's Entertainment (Philippine TV series)
That's Entertainment Thursday Group Members
Tony Award winners
Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)
21st-century Filipino women singers | true | [
"Aladdin is a Disney media franchise comprising a film series and additional media. It began with the 1992 American animated feature of the same name, which was based on the tale of the same name, and was directed by Ron Clements and John Musker. The success of the film led to two direct-to-video sequels, a television series (which had a crossover episode with Hercules: The Animated Series), a Broadway musical, a live-action film adaptation, various rides and themed areas in Disney's theme parks, several video games, and merchandise, among other related works. The franchise as a whole has EGOT-ed, meaning it has won the four biggest awards of American show business: the Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Awards.\n\nFilms\n\nAnimated films\n\nAladdin (1992)\n\nAladdin was released in 1992. The 31st Disney animated feature film was directed by John Musker and Ron Clements, and is based on the Arabic folktale of Aladdin and the Magic Lamp from the One Thousand and One Nights. The plot follows street urchin Aladdin as he attempts to gain the affection of Princess Jasmine after acquiring a magic lamp.\n\nThe Return of Jafar (1994)\n\nAladdin was followed by Disney's first direct-to-video sequel, The Return of Jafar in 1994. The plot mainly focused on Jafar seeking revenge on Aladdin. However, this time, with Iago on Aladdin's side, Abis Mal becomes Jafar's new henchman. Now, Aladdin and co. must find a way to thwart Jafar, with his limitless genie power.\n\nAladdin and the King of Thieves (1996)\n\nIn 1996, the second sequel to Aladdin, Aladdin and the King of Thieves was released on video. The story concludes as Aladdin and Jasmine are about to have their wedding and Aladdin discovers that his father is still alive, but is the leader of the Forty Thieves.\n\nMore Than a Peacock Princess (2007) \n\nIn 2005, screenwriter Robert Reece, who co-wrote Cinderella III: A Twist in Time and The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning, pitched a fourth Aladdin feature to DisneyToon Studios execs, although it never came to fruition. In 2007, DisneyToon Studios produced Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams, a crossover film with Sleeping Beauty. The second half of the film, More Than a Peacock Princess, follows Princess Jasmine, sometime after the events of Aladdin and the King of Thieves as she becomes tired and bored of her usual princess duties, and upon requesting more responsibility from her father, is assigned the role of Royal Assistant Educator.\n\nLive-action films\n\nAladdin (2019)\n\nOn October 10, 2016, Deadline reported that Disney was developing a live-action Aladdin movie, with John August writing the script and Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich producing. The site also reported that Guy Ritchie was in talks to direct the film. Filming began in July 2017 and continued through January 2018. On July 15, at the D23 Expo it was announced that Naomi Scott and Will Smith were cast as Princess Jasmine and Genie, respectively, along with newcomer Mena Massoud being cast as Aladdin. The film was released on May 24, 2019.\n\nUntitled Aladdin sequel (TBA)\nOn August 12, 2019, producer Dan Lin announced his enthusiasm for a sequel and revealed that Disney is in the early stages of developing a follow-up. The studio also hopes to bring back Guy Ritchie to direct and Will Smith to reprise his role as The Genie while also telling a story that's \"fresh and new\". On February 12, 2020, it was announced that Ritchie will be returning as director with Lin and Jonathan Eirich returning as producers. In addition, Ryan Halprin joined the film as executive producer.\n\nUntitled Prince Anders spin-off (TBA)\nOn December 6, 2019, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Disney was in the early stages of developing a spin-off of Aladdin for Disney+ centered on Prince Anders, tentatively titled Prince Anders, with Jordan Dunn and Michael Kvamme writing the script and Billy Magnussen reprising his role.\n\nGenies (TBA) Cancelled \nOn July 15, 2015, it was reported that a live-action prequel to Aladdin (2019) was in development under the title Genies. The new film will reportedly focus on genies and their realm and reveal how Aladdin's genie ended up in the lamp. The film was being written by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift. Tripp Vinson was to serve as a producer through Vinson Films.\n\nTelevision\n\nAladdin (1994–1995; 1999)\n\nShortly after The Return of Jafar, an animated series was produced. The episodes focused on Aladdin's adventures after the events of the second film.\n\nThe Aladdin characters later made a crossover with Hercules: The Animated Series, and were featured as guests in the television series House of Mouse and related works to those series—Jafar was the leader of the villains in Mickey's House of Villains.\n\nDescendants (2015–2019)\n\nDescendants is a live-action Disney Channel Original film series based on the lives of the children of various Disney heroes and villains when they attend the same prep school. Jafar appears in the first film as does his son, Jay, who additionally appears its two sequels.\n\nAgrabah\n\nAgrabah is a fictional sultanate that serves as the setting for the Aladdin franchise. Aladdin was initially intended to be set in the Iraqi city of Baghdad, but after the Gulf War happened, the name Agrabah was chosen as an approximate anagram of the name of the city of Baghdad.\n\nCast and characters\n\nList indicator(s)\n A dark gray cell indicates the character did not appear in that installment.\n An indicates a performer stood in as their character's singing voice.\n A indicates an actor or actress was not credited for their respective role.\n\nCrew\n\nReception\n\nBox office performance\n\nHome media performance\n\nCritical and audience response\n\nMusic\n\nVideo games\nAlong with the film release, three different video games based on Aladdin were released. Disney's Aladdin, an international co-production between Virgin Games and Walt Disney Feature Animation for the Genesis, was released in late 1993 and later ported to Nintendo Entertainment System, PC, Game Boy and Game Boy Color. That same year, Capcom released a Super NES game, also called Disney's Aladdin, which was ported to the Game Boy Advance in 2002. In 1994, SIMS released another game called Disney's Aladdin for the Game Gear and Master System. These video games based on the original Aladdin film earned in sales revenue.\n\nThe television series inspired another game by Argonaut Games, entitled Aladdin: Nasira's Revenge and released in 2000 for the PlayStation and PC. Also, in 2004 Vivendi Universal released Disney's Aladdin Chess Adventures, a chess computer game with the Aladdin license.\n\nThe Kingdom Hearts series features a playable Aladdin world known as Agrabah. In Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, the plotline is loosely related to the storyline of the original film. In Kingdom Hearts II, it is a mixture of Aladdin and The Return of Jafar. Genie is also a recurring summon in the series.\n\nAladdin, Jasmine, and the Genie appeared in the 2011 motion-controlled game, Kinect: Disneyland Adventures, as meet-and-greet characters. Aladdin was also referenced throughout the Disney Infinity series via power discs and in-game toys, with Aladdin and Jasmine being added to the series as playable characters in the series' second game, Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes.\n\nDisney's Aladdin by Virgin Games\n\nDisney's Aladdin was developed for the Mega Drive by Virgin Interactive's studio of Virgin Games USA and published by Sega in 1993. This was due to the fact that Sega had both obtained a license for publishing video games based on Disney's motion picture and established a collaboration deal with Disney's animation studios which was a first in the video game industry, so Sega of America tasked the Virgin Games USA development team with the programming duties because of their successful previous efforts with McDonald's Global Gladiators and 7 Up's Cool Spot. The game has been noted for its use of traditional animation, which was produced by Disney animators under the supervision of Virgin's animation staff, including animation producer Andy Luckey, technical director Paul Schmiedeke and animation director Mike Dietz, using an in-house \"Digicel\" process to compress the data onto the cartridge. The game also featured arrangements and original compositions composed by Donald S. Griffin.\n\nDisney's Aladdin by Capcom\n\n was developed for the Super NES and published by Capcom separately from Virgin's version, since Capcom still held Disney licensing rights for Nintendo consoles at the time of the film's release. Although the game is still a side-scrolling platformer, it is significantly different in both presentation and gameplay. Similarly following the movie's storyline, players control Aladdin as he jumps on enemies, vaults off stumps and performs various acrobatic feats to get through levels. Throughout the level, Aladdin can collect apples to throw at enemies and golden scarabs which unlock bonus stages. Throughout each level there are various diamonds (collecting all within a level also unlocking bonus stages), with players able to unlock an extra challenge if they collect 70 red diamonds. The game was later ported to the Game Boy Advance with extra stages, though all the songs based directly on the original movie were replaced with new music, possibly because of copyright reasons. It was also unofficially ported to the NES in 1995 by Hummer Team.\n\nDisney's Aladdin by SIMS\n\nDisney's Aladdin was developed by SIMS and published by Sega, and released in 1994 for the Game Gear worldwide and for the Master System in Europe. Sega went on to produce this game since they already had the necessary intellectual property licensing rights in order to publish the Virgin Interactive game on the Mega Drive/Genesis. The game is also significantly different in gameplay compared to its Mega Drive counterpart. There are three main types of level, chase levels in which Aladdin must outrun enemies while dodging obstacles, exploration levels in which Aladdin must carefully navigate traps and solve puzzles, similar to Prince of Persia, and carpet levels in which Aladdin rides his flying carpet. It also, unlike its 16-bit counterparts, fairly closely follow the plot of the movie, even including cut scenes containing entire dialogue scenes from the movie.\n\nAladdin the Series: Tower of Gold Adventure\nAladdin the Series: Tower of Gold Adventure is a handheld electronic game that was developed and published by Tiger Electronics in 1994 in the United States. It is based on the television series of the same name.\n\nDisney's Aladdin Activity Center\n\nDisney's Aladdin Activity Center is part of the Disney's Activity Center series.\n\nDisney's Aladdin Print Studio\n\nDisney's Aladdin Print Studio is part of the Disney's Print Studio series.\n\nDisney's Aladdin in Nasira's Revenge\n\nDisney's Aladdin in Nasira's Revenge is the Aladdin franchise video game which was developed for the PlayStation and PC by Argonaut Games and distributed by Disney Interactive in 2001. The game is set after the events of The Return of Jafar, during the television series, and before Aladdin and the King of Thieves. The legendary city of Agrabah is in trouble again: the evil sorceress Nasira (Jodi Benson) is out to avenge the death of her brother, the nefarious sorcerer Jafar (Jonathan Freeman). She begins her vengeful plot by taking over the palace with a spell and kidnapping Princess Jasmine (Linda Larkin) and the Sultan; she then commands the guard's captain Razoul (Jim Cummings) to bring Aladdin (Scott Weinger) to her. The treacherous Nasira believes that if she collects a set of ancient relics that are spread all over Agrabah she might be able to revive Jafar and take over the world, and so she uses her captives to force Aladdin into doing this job for her.\n\nDisney's Aladdin Pinball\nDisney's Aladdin Pinball is video game developed for Windows by Disney Interactive and published by Disney Online. It was released on July 11, 2005. The game consists of three separate pinball tables that can be traversed in a single game. They include The Market Place, The Cave of Wonders, and the Royal Palace.\n\nCritical reception\n\nAdaptations\n\nMusical theatre\n\nIn November 2010 Alan Menken confirmed that a musical theatre adaptation of the show is in the works with a book written by Chad Beguelin. The show premiered at the 5th Avenue Theatre from July 7–31, 2011. Jonathan Freeman, who voiced Jafar in the film, played the role in the stage adaptation. Adam Jacobs and Courtney Reed played Aladdin and Jasmine. Additional actors included Seán G. Griffin as the Sultan; Don Darryl Rivera as Iago; and, playing Omar, Babkak, and Kassim – a trio of characters originally conceived by the film's creators but not used – Andrew Keenan-Bolger, Brian Gonzales, and Brandon O'Neill. The show was also directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw. Another production of the musical played at the Muny Theatre in St. Louis from July 5–13, 2012. The musical premiered on Broadway on February 26, 2014 (in previews) and officially opened on March 20, 2014 at the New Amsterdam Theatre, taking the place of Mary Poppins. The musical had a pre-Broadway tryout at the Ed Mirvish Theatre in Toronto lasting from November 13, 2013 to January 12, 2014. Casey Nicholaw directed and choreographed, with Chad Beguelin writing the book and additional lyrics, Bob Crowley as the scene designer, and costume design by Gregg Barnes.\nAladdin the musical was also opened at Tokyo's Dentsu Shiki Theatre Umi in May 2015. It had its European premiere in December 2015 at the Stage Theatre Neue Flora in Hamburg. It opened in Sydney and London's West End in 2016.\n\nIn addition, a stage adaptation of the movie has been created for younger students, known as Disney's Aladdin Jr. Licensing and performing rights are currently being held by Music Theatre International. MTI licenses both a \"Kids\" version (which uses doubling to foster more of an ensemble feeling among young children) and a \"Dual Language\" version (which takes the Junior version and adds an element of half the characters speaking only in Spanish).\n\nA recording of the show will be release on Disney+ in 2022.\n\nNovels\nIn 2015 Disney Press launched a young adult novel series that retells Disney films but with certain elements changed. The first novel in the series is A Whole New World: A Twisted Tale, written by Liz Braswell, a dark fantasy which retells the film but with Jafar gaining control of the genie before Aladdin does.\n\nAttractions\n The Magic Carpets of Aladdin, a Dumbo the Flying Elephant-like ride (Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort; and Walt Disney Studios Park at Disneyland Resort Paris).\n Arabian Coast\n Le Passage Enchanté d'Aladdin\n Adventureland Bazaar\nThe film also inspired a Disney On Ice presentation, as well as the show Disney's Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular at Disney California Adventure Park.\n\nMeet and greets\nAladdin, Jasmine, Genie and the Sultan, and occasionally Jafar all appear as meetable characters in the Disney Parks and Resorts. They are all usually based in Adventureland.\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\n \nFilm series introduced in 1992\nWalt Disney Studios franchises",
"Aladdin Knowledge Systems (formerly and ) was a company that produced software for digital rights management and Internet security. The company was acquired by Safenet Inc, in 2009. Its corporate headquarters are located in Belcamp, MD.\n\nHistory\nAladdin Knowledge Systems was founded in 1985 by Jacob (Yanki) Margalit, when he was 23 years old; he was soon joined by his brother Dany Margalit, who took the responsibility for product development at the age of 18, while at the same time completing a Mathematics and Computer Science degree at Tel Aviv University. In its early years the company developed two product lines, an artificial intelligence package (which was dropped early on) and a hardware product to prevent unauthorized software copying, similar to digital rights management. Margalit raised just $10,000 as an initial capital for the company.\n\nThe digital rights management product became a success and by 1993 generated sales of $4,000,000. The same year that company had an initial public offering on NASDAQ raising $7,900,000. In 2004 the company's shares were also listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. By 2007 the company's annual revenues reached over $105 million. \n \nIn mid-2008, Vector Capital was attempting to purchase Aladdin. Vector initially offered $14.50 per share, but Aladdin's founder Margalit refused the offer arguing that the company was worth more. Aladdin's shareholders agreed on the merger in February 2009 at $11.50 per share, in cash. In March 2009, Vector Capital acquired Aladdin and officially merged it with SafeNet.\n\nCorporate timeline\n 1985 – Aladdin Knowledge Systems was established\n 1993 – Aladdin held an initial public offering\n 1996 – Aladdin acquired the German company FAST\n 1998 – Aladdin patented USB smart card-based authentication tokens\n 1998_Dec – Aladdin acquired the software protection business of EliaShim\n 1999 – Aladdin acquired the eSafe \"content security\" business of EliaShim\n 2000 – Aladdin acquired 10% of Comsec\n 2001 – Aladdin acquired the ESD assets of Preview Systems\n 2005 – Aladdin completed second offering – 2,000,000 shares with net proceeds of $39m\n 2009 – Aladdin was acquired by Vector Capital.\n 2010 – Aladdin was merged with Vector Capital's SafeNet.\n\nProducts\n\nDRM\n\nAladdin's HASP product line is a digital rights management (DRM) suite of protection and licensing software with 40% global market share, used by over 30,000 software publishers. It is used across many platforms (Windows, Linux, Mac).\n\nHASP, which stands for Hardware Against Software Piracy, was the company's first product and evolved into a complete digital rights management suite, that includes a software only option and a back office management application, in recent years also software as a service capability.\n\nInternet security\nIn the late 1990s the company started diversifying and began offering Internet security and network security products, offering two product lines:\n\nDigital identity management\n\neToken, portable device for two-factor authentication, pasdigital identity management, mainly deployed as a USB token.\n\nNetwork security\neSafe a line of integrated network security and content filtering products, protecting networks against cracked and pirated Internet-borne software.\n\nSee also\n Product activation\n License manager\n List of license managers\n Floating licensing\n Silicon Wadi\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n SafeNet Inc. Data Protection & Software Licensing website\n Content Security – eSafe\n eToken PASS – Aladdin Product\n Aladdin Knowledge Systems website\n\nInformation technology companies of Israel\nComputer security software companies\nCopyright enforcement companies\nSoftware licenses\nDigital rights management\nCompanies based in Petah Tikva\nCompanies formerly listed on the Nasdaq\nSoftware companies established in 1985\n1985 establishments in Israel"
]
|
[
"Lea Salonga",
"1989-1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin",
"Who is Miss Saigon?",
"In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London.",
"How long did she protrat that positon?",
"When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People.",
"Did she win any other award?",
"the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards",
"When was she awarded these awards?",
"1991,",
"What part did she play in Aladdin?",
"she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.",
"When was Aladdin released?",
"1992,"
]
| C_9b2f062c2492418abaa56a510248f79b_0 | Who was one of her producers? | 8 | Who was one of Lea Salonga producers? | Lea Salonga | In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg's "On My Own" from Les Miserables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. She competed for the role with childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson. Salonga won the lead role, while Wilson was named her understudy and given the role of the bar girl Mimi. For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production. In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, , (; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipina singer and actress, best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplying the singing voices of two Disney Princesses (Jasmine and Mulan), and as a recording artist and television performer.
At age 18, she originated the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon in the West End and then reprised the role on Broadway, winning the Olivier and Theatre World Awards, and becoming the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award. Salonga is the first Filipino artist to sign with an international record label (Atlantic Records in 1993).
Salonga was the first actress of Asian descent to play the roles of Éponine and Fantine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway. She also portrayed Éponine and Fantine, respectively, in the musical's 10th and 25th anniversary concerts in London. She provided the singing voices of two official Disney Princesses: Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan in Mulan (1998). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011 for her work with The Walt Disney Company. Salonga starred as Mei-li in the 2002 Broadway version of Flower Drum Song. She has played numerous other stage, film and TV roles in the US, the Philippines and elsewhere. She has toured widely in the theatre roles and as a concert artist. From 2015 to 2016, she returned to Broadway in Allegiance, and from 2017 to 2019 she appeared in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island.
Life and career
1971–1989: Early life and career
Salonga was born in Ermita, Manila, to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner (1929–2016), and María Ligaya Alcantara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before moving to Manila. Her brother, Gerard Salonga, is a conductor.
She made her professional debut in 1978 at the age of seven in the musical The King and I with Repertory Philippines. She played the title role in Annie in 1980 and appeared in other productions such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, The Rose T, The Goodbye Girl (1982), Paper Moon (1983) and The Fantasticks (1988). In 1981, she recorded her first album, Small Voice, which was certified gold in the Philippines. In 1985, she and her brother took part in the eighth Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as the interpreters for the song entry titled "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La" which was composed by Tess Concepcion.
During the 1980s, Salonga also had several television projects through GMA Radio Television Arts where she worked as a child actor. After the success of her first album, from 1983 to 1985, she hosted her own musical television show, Love, Lea, and was a member of the cast of German Moreno's teen variety show That's Entertainment. She acted in films, which included the family-oriented Tropang Bulilit, Like Father, Like Son, Ninja Kids, Captain Barbell and Pik Pak Boom. As a young performer, Salonga received a Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination for Best Child Actress and three Aliw Awards for best child performer in 1980, 1981 and 1982. She released her second album, Lea, in 1988.
She also opened for, and performed with, international acts such as Menudo and Stevie Wonder in their concerts in Manila in 1985 and in 1988, respectively.
She finished her secondary education in 1988 at the O. B. Montessori Center in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila. She also attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program aimed at training musically talented children in music and stage movement. A college freshman studying biology at the Ateneo de Manila University when she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she intended to have a medical career. Later, in between jobs in New York, she took two courses at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus.
1989–1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin
In 1989, Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's "On My Own" from Les Misérables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. Salonga won the lead role, while her childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson was named her understudy and cast as the bar girl Mimi.
For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest winners of the award. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production.
In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.
1993–1996: Les Misérables, films and other musicals
In 1993, Salonga played the role of Éponine in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. She performed the song "A Whole New World" from Aladdin with Brad Kane at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the song won an Oscar, having already won a Golden Globe Award. That same year, she released her self-titled international debut album with Atlantic Records. In 1994, Salonga played in various musical theatre productions in the Philippines and Singapore, such as Sandy in Grease, Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady and the Witch in Into the Woods.
Back in the US in 1995, Salonga played the role of Geri Riordan, an 18-year-old adopted Vietnamese American child in the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Redwood Curtain, which starred John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels. She then flew back to the Philippines to star with Filipino matinée idol Aga Muhlach in the critically acclaimed film Sana Maulit Muli, which gave her a second Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination, this time for Best Actress. She played the role of Éponine in the 10th anniversary production of Les Mis called Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.
In 1996, Salonga was in Les Misérables once again as Éponine in the London production of the musical, then continued on to perform the role in the musical's US national tour. In the Philippines in 1999, and again in 2000, she played Sonia Walsk in They're Playing Our Song.
1997–2004: Recordings, concerts, TV and Flower Drum Song
From 1997 to 2000, Salonga did recordings and concerts in the Philippines and another engagement in London, in addition to a few returns to Miss Saigon in London and on Broadway. In 1997, she released I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (recordings from her childhood days) to gold sales in the Philippines. That recording was followed by Lea... In Love in 1998 and By Heart in 2000, with both albums reaching multiple platinum status in the Philippines. In 1998, she again lent her voice to a major Disney animated film, singing the title character in Mulan, also providing the character's singing voice in the 2004 sequel, Mulan II. At the age of 28, Salonga moved to New York City, purchasing her own apartment (which she still owns up to at least 2013). She participated in the 1998 tribute concert to Sir Cameron Mackintosh in London called "Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron MacKintosh", where she did numbers from several of his musicals. She also performed in four concerts: The Homecoming Concert, The Millennium Concert, The Best of Manila and Songs from the Screen – the last two being benefit shows. Salonga returned to Manila in Miss Saigon, staged at the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the end of 2000.
After a last stint in Miss Saigon for its closing on Broadway in 2001, Salonga recreated the role of Lien Hughes originally played by Ming-Na Wen in the soap opera As the World Turns. After completing her contract that year, she was asked to return to the role in 2003. She guested on Russell Watson's The Voice concert, narrated for the television special My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and appeared on the Christmas episode of the TV medical drama ER, playing a patient with lymphoma.
In 2002, Salonga returned to Broadway to play the leading role of Mei-li, a Chinese immigrant in a reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song opposite Jose Llana. This was after the reinvented musical had a run at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2001 with Salonga playing the role and in 2002 winning Lead Actress in a Musical from the Los Angeles theatre Ovation Awards. The Salonga-led Broadway revival cast album was nominated for a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album. Salonga's performance was received positively by theatre critics in New York, and she received a nomination for Distinguished Performance from the Drama League, among other honors. Between the 2001 Los Angeles and 2002 Broadway productions of Flower Drum Song, she performed in a non-musical theatrical production for the first time, playing the role of Catherine in the stage play Proof in Manila. This was followed by a major concert, The Broadway Concert, at the Philippine International Convention Center. She also sang at the 56th Tony Awards with Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Gallagher and Michele Lee in a number paying tribute to Richard Rodgers.
In 2003 to 2004, Salonga did her first "all-Filipino" concerts in Manila called Songs from Home, which later won her an Aliw Award as Entertainer of the Year. In 2003, she performed in several concerts at the Mohegan Sun hotel in Connecticut. This was followed by a Christmas concert in the Philippines, called Home for Christmas, and performances at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton, New Jersey, in 2004. Later in 2004, she played Lizzie in the Manila production of the musical Baby, which earned her another nomination from the Aliw Awards.
2005–2007: International ventures
In 2005, Salonga gave her first US concert tour. Later that year, she performed to a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Diverse City Theater Company. The same year, she received the Golden Artist Award at the 53rd FAMAS Awards in honor of her international achievements, performed during the grand opening of Hong Kong's Disneyland and recorded two songs on Daniel Rodriguez's album In the Presence. She also did voice work for Disney's English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro as Yasuko Kusakabe. Salonga wrote the foreword to Linda Marquart's "The Right Way to Sing" (2005). In 2006, at the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, Salonga concluded the closing ceremony with the song "Triumph of the One" before an audience of 50,000 people at the Khalifa Stadium.
In 2007, Salonga released her first studio album in seven years called Inspired, which was certified platinum in the Philippines She received the Order of Lakandula, with the rank of Commander (Komandante), from Philippine president Arroyo in recognition of using her talents to benefit Philippine society and foster cultural exchange. She has also received the Congressional Medal of Achievement from the House of Representatives of the Philippines. She returned to Broadway for another stint in the musical Les Misérables, this time as Fantine. Her rejoining the show boosted the musical's ticket sales. President Arroyo watched Salonga in this role, together with Filipino Americans Adam Jacobs as Marius and Ali Ewoldt as Cosette. Salonga received rave reviews and made it again to the short list of Broadway.com's Audience Award favorites as Best Replacement. During her tenure on Broadway that season, she appeared in Broadway on Broadway 2007 and Stars in the Alley 2007, spoke at the Broadway Artists Alliance Summer Intensives, guested on the Broadway musical 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and participated in Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS' 12th Annual Nothing Like a Dame event to benefit the women's health initiative of The Actors Fund. Right after doing Les Misérables, she performed in two events: at the US Military Academy Band's concert in West Point where she sang four songs and an encore and in her own concert at the Tarrytown Music Hall in New York. She was then busy with other concerts and musical events, including a Christmas presentation in Manila.
In 2008, Salonga gave concerts in the Philippines, California, Hawaii, Hong Kong, and Guam, and she played the title role in Broadway Asia Entertainment's international tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.
2008–2012: Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist and touring
On 3 July 2008, Salonga became a columnist in the Philippine Daily Inquirer with her column "Backstory" (Entertainment section), "Introducing: Lea Salonga, writer". Since then she has written numerous columns for the Inquirer. She performed in "Global Pop" at the Music Center on July 11, 2008. It was presented by The Blue Ribbon a group founded by Dorothy Chandler in 1968. Salonga gave a concert on July 11 at Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. That same year she received a special citation from the Awit Awards.
From late July 2008 to mid-2009, Salonga played the title role in the 30-week Asian tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which premiered in Manila. Salonga performed a series of concerts in North America in 2009 and was also asked to dance the Filipino novelty dances "Ocho-ocho" and "Spaghetti". The same year, Salonga advertised the Avon Products line of anti-aging skin care products Anew Rejuvenate in the Philippines. In June 2009, she sang at the 95th Anniversary Special of the Iglesia ni Cristo. Salonga sang Patriotic song "Bayan Ko" at the Requiem Mass for former President Corazon Aquino at Manila Cathedral. Salonga celebrated 20 years of Miss Saigon by performing in concerts called "Lea Salonga... Your Songs", at the Philippine International Convention Center Plenary Hall on December 11 and 12, 2009. Her brother, Gerard, was musical director.
From July to August 2010, Salonga played the role of Grizabella in the Manila run of the Asia-Pacific tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. In October, she played Fantine during the 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables, fifteen years after appearing in the 10th Anniversary as Eponine. The same year, she served as a celebrity judge for Avon Voices, Avon's first global, online singing talent search for women and songwriting competition for men and women.
Salonga was honored as a Disney Legend on August 19, 2011. She was one of the judges in the 60th Miss Universe 2011 Beauty Pageant in São Paulo, Brazil on 12 September 2011. Salonga, along with Darren Criss, sang "A Whole New World" to its composer, Alan Menken, as Menken was named the winner of the 2011 Maestro Award at the Billboard/Hollywood Reporter Film & TV Music Conference on October 24, 2011.
Salonga performed in a six-concert series titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites" in 2012 with the Palm Beach Pops. She starred in the first production of Allegiance, at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from September to October 2012. Salonga starred in the Philippine production of the comedy God of Carnage from July 2012 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Manila. She took on the same role at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore, in November 2012. Salonga joined the Candlelight Processional at Epcot in Walt Disney World as narrator on December 14 to 16, retelling the Christmas story accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and a mass choir.
2013–2018: The Voice of the Philippines and return to Broadway
In January 2013, Salonga took part on the 2013 season of Lincoln Center's American Songbook concert series at the Allen Room. In February in the Philippines, Salonga provided the theme song for TV5's reality singing competition Kanta Pilipinas and, together with Tyne Daly and Norm Lewis, she starred as Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Salonga headlined a concert series, "4 Stars One World of Broadway Musicals," in Tokyo Osaka in June, performing with Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess and Yu Shirota. She was one of the four coaches, together with apl.de.ap, Sarah Geronimo, and Bamboo Mañalac for the ABS-CBN program, The Voice of the Philippines, which premiered in June 2013. In December 2013, Salonga began a concert tour in the Philippines titled "Lea Salonga: Playlist" that celebrated her 35 years in show business. The concert series was extended to January 2014. Salonga wrote a book, Playlist: A Celebration of 35 Years, which she used as a souvenir program for the concerts.
In 2014, she returned for the second season of The Voice of the Philippines and also joined the new Philippine version of The Voice Kids, on which she has appeared for three seasons. Salonga recorded a song called "Wished That I Could Call You" that was included in the charity compilation album Children In Need, released in March 2014. Also in 2014–15, she toured in Asia and North America with Il Divo. In mid-2015, she headlined her own concert series in Australasia. Salonga reprised her role as Kei Kimura in the 2015–16 Broadway production of Allegiance. Charles Isherwood wrote in The New York Times of her performance: "Her voice retains its plush beauty, and her culminating first act solo, "Higher" ... is perhaps the show's musical highlight."
Salonga guest-starred on the April 2016 season finale of the American television series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. She played Helen Bechdel in the international premiere of Fun Home in November 2016 in Manila. A review in ABS-CBN News said that she "delivers a finely tuned performance, utilizing her prodigious stage presence to provide the cold and dark shadings to erstwhile peppy scenes with her subtle stares and held back emotions. ... [In] "Days by Days" ... she finally lets go of all the resentment and repressed anger of a woman stuck in a marriage built on a lie. Yet there is dignity in her breakdown ... Salonga pulls it off with such clarity, both musically and emotionally, that it's difficult not to be moved."
In 2016 she won two more Aliw Awards, one for Best Major Concert in a Foreign Venue and her second Entertainer of the Year award. The following year, Salonga was one of the coaches on The Voice Teens. Also in 2017, she released an album, Bahaghari: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines, with songs sung in several languages spoken in the Philippines. Salonga portrayed Erzulie in 2017–2018 in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island at Circle in the Square Theatre, where she received critical praise for her vocal performance. She returned to the show for its final performances in December 2018 and January 2019. Once on this Island was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
2019–present
Salonga appears as a Philippine immigrant, Aunt Gail, in the musical film Yellow Rose, which premiered at the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. She also toured North America and the UK that year. Later in 2019, she played Mrs. Lovett in a revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Manila and then Singapore. Critics praised her "crystalline tones that turned her numbers, especially 'By the Sea', into unexpected show-stoppers. ... [S]he disappears into this loud devil woman. This is by far the best musical theater outing of Salonga in the Philippines, post-Miss Saigon, and the very long wait was well worth it", and called her portrayal "a delirious hurricane of deviousness and devilry, sprinkled with lust ... one of the most accomplished stage creations we've seen this year ... a career high for the actress. Pangan [as Todd] simmers; Salonga is the explosive fire underneath." Between these two short runs, she gave concerts in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in November. On November 27, 2020, PBS Great Performances broadcast the Sydney Opera House concert.
Salonga is set to play a recurring character in Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. She also voices a character in Centaurworld.
Personal life
On January 10, 2004, Salonga married Robert Charles Chien, an American managing director of an entertainment software company in Los Angeles, California, of Chinese and Japanese heritage, whom she met while performing in Flower Drum Song. They have one daughter. Salonga is also an avid video game enthusiast. She resides in the Philippines and the United States.
On October 15, 2010, Salonga was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Voice and musical ability
Salonga has been praised for control over her vocals, which can evoke a wide array of emotion and soundscapes. In her popular music releases, Salonga has sung "simple love songs", which are common in Original Pilipino Music. In both Disney Princess singing roles, Jasmine and Mulan, Salonga uses head tones that reach up to F5.
Discography
Solo recordings
Small Voice (1981)
Lea (1988)
Lea Salonga (1993)
I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (1997)
Lea... In Love (1998)
By Heart (1999)
Lea Salonga: The Christmas Album (2000)
Songs from the Screen (2001)
Inspired (2007)
Lea Salonga: Your Songs (2010)
Bahaghari [Rainbow]: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines (2017)
Cast recordings
Miss Saigon (Original London Cast Recording) (1989)
Little Tramp (Studio Recording) (1992)
The King and I (Hollywood Studio Cast Recording) (1992)
Aladdin (Soundtrack Recording) (1992)
Mulan (Soundtrack Recording) (1998)
Making Tracks (Original Cast Recording) (2001)
Flower Drum Song (Revival Cast Recording) (2002)
Mulan II (Soundtrack Recording) (2005)
Dayo: Sa Mundo ng Elementalia (Soundtrack Recording) (2008)
Cinderella (Original International Tour Cast Recording) (2010)
Allegiance (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (2016)
Once on This Island (First Broadway Revival Cast Recording) (2018)
Video/Live recordings
Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh (1997)
Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 1 (2000)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 2 (2000)
The Broadway Concert (2002)
Songs from Home: Live Concert Recording (2004)
Les Misérables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary (2010)
The Journey So Far – Recorded Live at Cafe Carlyle (2011)
Live: Jazz at Lincoln Center (2016)
Blurred Lines (2017)
The Story of My Life: Lea Salonga Live from Manila (2019) with the BYU Chamber Orchestra
Lea Salonga in Concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2020)
Compilation albums
100% Lea Gives Her Best (2003)
The Ultimate OPM Collection (2007)
Featured recordings
Disney Princess: The Ultimate Song Collection (2004), for the song "If You Can Dream" (sung with Susan Logan, Grey Griffin, Jodi Benson, Paige O'Hara and Judy Kuhn)
Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007), for the songs "Peacock Princess" (sung with Gilbert Gottfried) and "I've Got My Eyes on You"
Shelldon (2008), for the song "It's a Brand New Day"
Sofia the First (2014), for the songs "The Ride of Our Lives" (episode 12: "Two to Tangu") and "Stronger that You Know" (episode 36: "Princesses To The Rescue")
Acting credits
Theatre
Film and television
References
External links
Salonga presenting an illustrated autobiography (2015)
1971 births
Living people
20th-century Filipino actresses
21st-century Filipino actresses
ABS-CBN personalities
Actresses from Pampanga
Arista Records artists
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Drama Desk Award winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Filipino child actresses
Filipino expatriates in the United States
20th-century Filipino women singers
Filipino musical theatre actresses
Filipino voice actresses
Fordham University alumni
Kapampangan people
Laurence Olivier Award winners
People from Angeles City
People from Manila
Recipients of the Order of Lakandula
Singers from Pampanga
That's Entertainment (Philippine TV series)
That's Entertainment Thursday Group Members
Tony Award winners
Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)
21st-century Filipino women singers | false | [
"Wendy Finerman is an American film producer of nearly a dozen feature films.\n\nBiography\nFinerman was born to a Jewish family and raised in Beverly Hills, California. Her sister, Karen Finerman, is a hedgefund owner/trader in New York City and appears on CNBC's Fast Money.\n\nFinerman was one of three producers who won the Academy Award for Best Picture for Forrest Gump in 1994 and a BAFTA Award for Fairy Tale in 1998. She has also produced such popular films as The Fan, Stepmom, Drumline, and The Devil Wears Prada. Finerman was formerly married to producer Mark Canton and now is married to David Peterson. The mother of four children, she is a graduate of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and runs her own company, Wendy Finerman Productions.\n\nFilmography\nIn the films listed she was producer unless otherwise noted.\n\nFilm\n\nTelevision\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n\nLiving people\nAmerican film producers\n20th-century American Jews\nWharton School of the University of Pennsylvania alumni\nProducers who won the Best Picture Academy Award\nGolden Globe Award-winning producers\nAmerican women film producers\n1960 births\n21st-century American Jews\n20th-century American women\n21st-century American women",
"Sophia Lin is an American film producer. She is known for producing the 2011 film Take Shelter, for which she won Film Independent Spirit Awards' Piaget Producers Award.\n\nEarly life\nLin grew up in Livingston, New Jersey, where she attended Livingston High School and became involved in student theatre. She studied at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, majoring in film and television.\n\nCareer\nLin's first job on a feature film was as a script supervisor on the 1996 film Girls Town. She worked as a production manager on the second season of Strangers with Candy (2000), The Business of Strangers (2001), and Party Monster (2003), although she said her \"big break\" was working on All the Real Girls (2003), directed by David Gordon Green, since she met collaborators who would help her to find ongoing work in the film industry.\n\nIn 2009, writer–director Jeff Nichols, with whom Lin had previously worked on a failed project, sent her his script titled Take Shelter. Alongside Tyler Davidson, she agreed to produce the film, which was shot in 2010 and released in 2011. Take Shelter received numerous awards and nominations, and was selected by the National Board of Review as one of the top ten independent films of 2011. Lin personally won the Film Independent Spirit Awards' Piaget Producers Award, which, according to Film Independent, \"recognizes an emerging producer who demonstrates the creativity, tenacity, and vision required to produce quality independent films.\" Lin and Davidson went on to produce Craig Zobel's feature Compliance (2012) together. She executive-produced Camp X-Ray (2014) and produced Z for Zachariah (2015).\n\nVariety magazine named Lin as one of their \"10 Producers to Watch\" in 2011. The following year, she was named one of \"10 Producers Who Will Change Hollywood in 2012\" by TheWrap.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nAmerican film producers\nAmerican women film producers\nLivingston High School (New Jersey) alumni\nTisch School of the Arts alumni\nPeople from Livingston, New Jersey\nLiving people\nYear of birth missing (living people)"
]
|
[
"Lea Salonga",
"1989-1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin",
"Who is Miss Saigon?",
"In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London.",
"How long did she protrat that positon?",
"When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People.",
"Did she win any other award?",
"the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards",
"When was she awarded these awards?",
"1991,",
"What part did she play in Aladdin?",
"she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.",
"When was Aladdin released?",
"1992,",
"Who was one of her producers?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_9b2f062c2492418abaa56a510248f79b_0 | Who did she work along side of? | 9 | Who did Lea Salonga work along side of? | Lea Salonga | In 1989 Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg's "On My Own" from Les Miserables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. She competed for the role with childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson. Salonga won the lead role, while Wilson was named her understudy and given the role of the bar girl Mimi. For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production. In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin. CANNOTANSWER | She competed for the role with childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson. | Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, , (; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipina singer and actress, best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplying the singing voices of two Disney Princesses (Jasmine and Mulan), and as a recording artist and television performer.
At age 18, she originated the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon in the West End and then reprised the role on Broadway, winning the Olivier and Theatre World Awards, and becoming the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award. Salonga is the first Filipino artist to sign with an international record label (Atlantic Records in 1993).
Salonga was the first actress of Asian descent to play the roles of Éponine and Fantine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway. She also portrayed Éponine and Fantine, respectively, in the musical's 10th and 25th anniversary concerts in London. She provided the singing voices of two official Disney Princesses: Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan in Mulan (1998). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011 for her work with The Walt Disney Company. Salonga starred as Mei-li in the 2002 Broadway version of Flower Drum Song. She has played numerous other stage, film and TV roles in the US, the Philippines and elsewhere. She has toured widely in the theatre roles and as a concert artist. From 2015 to 2016, she returned to Broadway in Allegiance, and from 2017 to 2019 she appeared in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island.
Life and career
1971–1989: Early life and career
Salonga was born in Ermita, Manila, to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner (1929–2016), and María Ligaya Alcantara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before moving to Manila. Her brother, Gerard Salonga, is a conductor.
She made her professional debut in 1978 at the age of seven in the musical The King and I with Repertory Philippines. She played the title role in Annie in 1980 and appeared in other productions such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, The Rose T, The Goodbye Girl (1982), Paper Moon (1983) and The Fantasticks (1988). In 1981, she recorded her first album, Small Voice, which was certified gold in the Philippines. In 1985, she and her brother took part in the eighth Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as the interpreters for the song entry titled "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La" which was composed by Tess Concepcion.
During the 1980s, Salonga also had several television projects through GMA Radio Television Arts where she worked as a child actor. After the success of her first album, from 1983 to 1985, she hosted her own musical television show, Love, Lea, and was a member of the cast of German Moreno's teen variety show That's Entertainment. She acted in films, which included the family-oriented Tropang Bulilit, Like Father, Like Son, Ninja Kids, Captain Barbell and Pik Pak Boom. As a young performer, Salonga received a Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination for Best Child Actress and three Aliw Awards for best child performer in 1980, 1981 and 1982. She released her second album, Lea, in 1988.
She also opened for, and performed with, international acts such as Menudo and Stevie Wonder in their concerts in Manila in 1985 and in 1988, respectively.
She finished her secondary education in 1988 at the O. B. Montessori Center in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila. She also attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program aimed at training musically talented children in music and stage movement. A college freshman studying biology at the Ateneo de Manila University when she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she intended to have a medical career. Later, in between jobs in New York, she took two courses at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus.
1989–1992: Miss Saigon and Aladdin
In 1989, Salonga was selected to play Kim in the debut production of the musical Miss Saigon in London. Unable to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom, the producers scoured many countries looking for the lead. For her audition, the then 17-year-old Salonga chose to sing Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's "On My Own" from Les Misérables and was later asked to sing "Sun and Moon", impressing the audition panel. Salonga has sometimes credited "On My Own" as the starting point of her international career. Salonga won the lead role, while her childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines performer Monique Wilson was named her understudy and cast as the bar girl Mimi.
For her performance as Kim, Salonga won the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest winners of the award. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she again played the role of Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Tony Award. In 1993 and 1996, she returned to play Kim on Broadway. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End production, and in 2001, at the age of 29 and after finishing the Manila run of the musical, Salonga returned to Broadway to close that production.
In 1990, Salonga performed in a homecoming concert in Manila entitled A Miss Called Lea. She also received a Presidential Award of Merit from President Corazon Aquino. In 1991, she was named as one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 1992, she performed the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney's animated film Aladdin.
1993–1996: Les Misérables, films and other musicals
In 1993, Salonga played the role of Éponine in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. She performed the song "A Whole New World" from Aladdin with Brad Kane at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the song won an Oscar, having already won a Golden Globe Award. That same year, she released her self-titled international debut album with Atlantic Records. In 1994, Salonga played in various musical theatre productions in the Philippines and Singapore, such as Sandy in Grease, Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady and the Witch in Into the Woods.
Back in the US in 1995, Salonga played the role of Geri Riordan, an 18-year-old adopted Vietnamese American child in the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Redwood Curtain, which starred John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels. She then flew back to the Philippines to star with Filipino matinée idol Aga Muhlach in the critically acclaimed film Sana Maulit Muli, which gave her a second Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination, this time for Best Actress. She played the role of Éponine in the 10th anniversary production of Les Mis called Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.
In 1996, Salonga was in Les Misérables once again as Éponine in the London production of the musical, then continued on to perform the role in the musical's US national tour. In the Philippines in 1999, and again in 2000, she played Sonia Walsk in They're Playing Our Song.
1997–2004: Recordings, concerts, TV and Flower Drum Song
From 1997 to 2000, Salonga did recordings and concerts in the Philippines and another engagement in London, in addition to a few returns to Miss Saigon in London and on Broadway. In 1997, she released I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (recordings from her childhood days) to gold sales in the Philippines. That recording was followed by Lea... In Love in 1998 and By Heart in 2000, with both albums reaching multiple platinum status in the Philippines. In 1998, she again lent her voice to a major Disney animated film, singing the title character in Mulan, also providing the character's singing voice in the 2004 sequel, Mulan II. At the age of 28, Salonga moved to New York City, purchasing her own apartment (which she still owns up to at least 2013). She participated in the 1998 tribute concert to Sir Cameron Mackintosh in London called "Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron MacKintosh", where she did numbers from several of his musicals. She also performed in four concerts: The Homecoming Concert, The Millennium Concert, The Best of Manila and Songs from the Screen – the last two being benefit shows. Salonga returned to Manila in Miss Saigon, staged at the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the end of 2000.
After a last stint in Miss Saigon for its closing on Broadway in 2001, Salonga recreated the role of Lien Hughes originally played by Ming-Na Wen in the soap opera As the World Turns. After completing her contract that year, she was asked to return to the role in 2003. She guested on Russell Watson's The Voice concert, narrated for the television special My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and appeared on the Christmas episode of the TV medical drama ER, playing a patient with lymphoma.
In 2002, Salonga returned to Broadway to play the leading role of Mei-li, a Chinese immigrant in a reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song opposite Jose Llana. This was after the reinvented musical had a run at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2001 with Salonga playing the role and in 2002 winning Lead Actress in a Musical from the Los Angeles theatre Ovation Awards. The Salonga-led Broadway revival cast album was nominated for a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album. Salonga's performance was received positively by theatre critics in New York, and she received a nomination for Distinguished Performance from the Drama League, among other honors. Between the 2001 Los Angeles and 2002 Broadway productions of Flower Drum Song, she performed in a non-musical theatrical production for the first time, playing the role of Catherine in the stage play Proof in Manila. This was followed by a major concert, The Broadway Concert, at the Philippine International Convention Center. She also sang at the 56th Tony Awards with Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Gallagher and Michele Lee in a number paying tribute to Richard Rodgers.
In 2003 to 2004, Salonga did her first "all-Filipino" concerts in Manila called Songs from Home, which later won her an Aliw Award as Entertainer of the Year. In 2003, she performed in several concerts at the Mohegan Sun hotel in Connecticut. This was followed by a Christmas concert in the Philippines, called Home for Christmas, and performances at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton, New Jersey, in 2004. Later in 2004, she played Lizzie in the Manila production of the musical Baby, which earned her another nomination from the Aliw Awards.
2005–2007: International ventures
In 2005, Salonga gave her first US concert tour. Later that year, she performed to a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Diverse City Theater Company. The same year, she received the Golden Artist Award at the 53rd FAMAS Awards in honor of her international achievements, performed during the grand opening of Hong Kong's Disneyland and recorded two songs on Daniel Rodriguez's album In the Presence. She also did voice work for Disney's English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro as Yasuko Kusakabe. Salonga wrote the foreword to Linda Marquart's "The Right Way to Sing" (2005). In 2006, at the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, Salonga concluded the closing ceremony with the song "Triumph of the One" before an audience of 50,000 people at the Khalifa Stadium.
In 2007, Salonga released her first studio album in seven years called Inspired, which was certified platinum in the Philippines She received the Order of Lakandula, with the rank of Commander (Komandante), from Philippine president Arroyo in recognition of using her talents to benefit Philippine society and foster cultural exchange. She has also received the Congressional Medal of Achievement from the House of Representatives of the Philippines. She returned to Broadway for another stint in the musical Les Misérables, this time as Fantine. Her rejoining the show boosted the musical's ticket sales. President Arroyo watched Salonga in this role, together with Filipino Americans Adam Jacobs as Marius and Ali Ewoldt as Cosette. Salonga received rave reviews and made it again to the short list of Broadway.com's Audience Award favorites as Best Replacement. During her tenure on Broadway that season, she appeared in Broadway on Broadway 2007 and Stars in the Alley 2007, spoke at the Broadway Artists Alliance Summer Intensives, guested on the Broadway musical 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and participated in Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS' 12th Annual Nothing Like a Dame event to benefit the women's health initiative of The Actors Fund. Right after doing Les Misérables, she performed in two events: at the US Military Academy Band's concert in West Point where she sang four songs and an encore and in her own concert at the Tarrytown Music Hall in New York. She was then busy with other concerts and musical events, including a Christmas presentation in Manila.
In 2008, Salonga gave concerts in the Philippines, California, Hawaii, Hong Kong, and Guam, and she played the title role in Broadway Asia Entertainment's international tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.
2008–2012: Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist and touring
On 3 July 2008, Salonga became a columnist in the Philippine Daily Inquirer with her column "Backstory" (Entertainment section), "Introducing: Lea Salonga, writer". Since then she has written numerous columns for the Inquirer. She performed in "Global Pop" at the Music Center on July 11, 2008. It was presented by The Blue Ribbon a group founded by Dorothy Chandler in 1968. Salonga gave a concert on July 11 at Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. That same year she received a special citation from the Awit Awards.
From late July 2008 to mid-2009, Salonga played the title role in the 30-week Asian tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which premiered in Manila. Salonga performed a series of concerts in North America in 2009 and was also asked to dance the Filipino novelty dances "Ocho-ocho" and "Spaghetti". The same year, Salonga advertised the Avon Products line of anti-aging skin care products Anew Rejuvenate in the Philippines. In June 2009, she sang at the 95th Anniversary Special of the Iglesia ni Cristo. Salonga sang Patriotic song "Bayan Ko" at the Requiem Mass for former President Corazon Aquino at Manila Cathedral. Salonga celebrated 20 years of Miss Saigon by performing in concerts called "Lea Salonga... Your Songs", at the Philippine International Convention Center Plenary Hall on December 11 and 12, 2009. Her brother, Gerard, was musical director.
From July to August 2010, Salonga played the role of Grizabella in the Manila run of the Asia-Pacific tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. In October, she played Fantine during the 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables, fifteen years after appearing in the 10th Anniversary as Eponine. The same year, she served as a celebrity judge for Avon Voices, Avon's first global, online singing talent search for women and songwriting competition for men and women.
Salonga was honored as a Disney Legend on August 19, 2011. She was one of the judges in the 60th Miss Universe 2011 Beauty Pageant in São Paulo, Brazil on 12 September 2011. Salonga, along with Darren Criss, sang "A Whole New World" to its composer, Alan Menken, as Menken was named the winner of the 2011 Maestro Award at the Billboard/Hollywood Reporter Film & TV Music Conference on October 24, 2011.
Salonga performed in a six-concert series titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites" in 2012 with the Palm Beach Pops. She starred in the first production of Allegiance, at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from September to October 2012. Salonga starred in the Philippine production of the comedy God of Carnage from July 2012 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Manila. She took on the same role at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore, in November 2012. Salonga joined the Candlelight Processional at Epcot in Walt Disney World as narrator on December 14 to 16, retelling the Christmas story accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and a mass choir.
2013–2018: The Voice of the Philippines and return to Broadway
In January 2013, Salonga took part on the 2013 season of Lincoln Center's American Songbook concert series at the Allen Room. In February in the Philippines, Salonga provided the theme song for TV5's reality singing competition Kanta Pilipinas and, together with Tyne Daly and Norm Lewis, she starred as Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Salonga headlined a concert series, "4 Stars One World of Broadway Musicals," in Tokyo Osaka in June, performing with Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess and Yu Shirota. She was one of the four coaches, together with apl.de.ap, Sarah Geronimo, and Bamboo Mañalac for the ABS-CBN program, The Voice of the Philippines, which premiered in June 2013. In December 2013, Salonga began a concert tour in the Philippines titled "Lea Salonga: Playlist" that celebrated her 35 years in show business. The concert series was extended to January 2014. Salonga wrote a book, Playlist: A Celebration of 35 Years, which she used as a souvenir program for the concerts.
In 2014, she returned for the second season of The Voice of the Philippines and also joined the new Philippine version of The Voice Kids, on which she has appeared for three seasons. Salonga recorded a song called "Wished That I Could Call You" that was included in the charity compilation album Children In Need, released in March 2014. Also in 2014–15, she toured in Asia and North America with Il Divo. In mid-2015, she headlined her own concert series in Australasia. Salonga reprised her role as Kei Kimura in the 2015–16 Broadway production of Allegiance. Charles Isherwood wrote in The New York Times of her performance: "Her voice retains its plush beauty, and her culminating first act solo, "Higher" ... is perhaps the show's musical highlight."
Salonga guest-starred on the April 2016 season finale of the American television series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. She played Helen Bechdel in the international premiere of Fun Home in November 2016 in Manila. A review in ABS-CBN News said that she "delivers a finely tuned performance, utilizing her prodigious stage presence to provide the cold and dark shadings to erstwhile peppy scenes with her subtle stares and held back emotions. ... [In] "Days by Days" ... she finally lets go of all the resentment and repressed anger of a woman stuck in a marriage built on a lie. Yet there is dignity in her breakdown ... Salonga pulls it off with such clarity, both musically and emotionally, that it's difficult not to be moved."
In 2016 she won two more Aliw Awards, one for Best Major Concert in a Foreign Venue and her second Entertainer of the Year award. The following year, Salonga was one of the coaches on The Voice Teens. Also in 2017, she released an album, Bahaghari: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines, with songs sung in several languages spoken in the Philippines. Salonga portrayed Erzulie in 2017–2018 in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island at Circle in the Square Theatre, where she received critical praise for her vocal performance. She returned to the show for its final performances in December 2018 and January 2019. Once on this Island was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
2019–present
Salonga appears as a Philippine immigrant, Aunt Gail, in the musical film Yellow Rose, which premiered at the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. She also toured North America and the UK that year. Later in 2019, she played Mrs. Lovett in a revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Manila and then Singapore. Critics praised her "crystalline tones that turned her numbers, especially 'By the Sea', into unexpected show-stoppers. ... [S]he disappears into this loud devil woman. This is by far the best musical theater outing of Salonga in the Philippines, post-Miss Saigon, and the very long wait was well worth it", and called her portrayal "a delirious hurricane of deviousness and devilry, sprinkled with lust ... one of the most accomplished stage creations we've seen this year ... a career high for the actress. Pangan [as Todd] simmers; Salonga is the explosive fire underneath." Between these two short runs, she gave concerts in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in November. On November 27, 2020, PBS Great Performances broadcast the Sydney Opera House concert.
Salonga is set to play a recurring character in Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. She also voices a character in Centaurworld.
Personal life
On January 10, 2004, Salonga married Robert Charles Chien, an American managing director of an entertainment software company in Los Angeles, California, of Chinese and Japanese heritage, whom she met while performing in Flower Drum Song. They have one daughter. Salonga is also an avid video game enthusiast. She resides in the Philippines and the United States.
On October 15, 2010, Salonga was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Voice and musical ability
Salonga has been praised for control over her vocals, which can evoke a wide array of emotion and soundscapes. In her popular music releases, Salonga has sung "simple love songs", which are common in Original Pilipino Music. In both Disney Princess singing roles, Jasmine and Mulan, Salonga uses head tones that reach up to F5.
Discography
Solo recordings
Small Voice (1981)
Lea (1988)
Lea Salonga (1993)
I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing (1997)
Lea... In Love (1998)
By Heart (1999)
Lea Salonga: The Christmas Album (2000)
Songs from the Screen (2001)
Inspired (2007)
Lea Salonga: Your Songs (2010)
Bahaghari [Rainbow]: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines (2017)
Cast recordings
Miss Saigon (Original London Cast Recording) (1989)
Little Tramp (Studio Recording) (1992)
The King and I (Hollywood Studio Cast Recording) (1992)
Aladdin (Soundtrack Recording) (1992)
Mulan (Soundtrack Recording) (1998)
Making Tracks (Original Cast Recording) (2001)
Flower Drum Song (Revival Cast Recording) (2002)
Mulan II (Soundtrack Recording) (2005)
Dayo: Sa Mundo ng Elementalia (Soundtrack Recording) (2008)
Cinderella (Original International Tour Cast Recording) (2010)
Allegiance (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (2016)
Once on This Island (First Broadway Revival Cast Recording) (2018)
Video/Live recordings
Hey Mr. Producer: The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh (1997)
Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 1 (2000)
Lea Salonga Live Vol. 2 (2000)
The Broadway Concert (2002)
Songs from Home: Live Concert Recording (2004)
Les Misérables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary (2010)
The Journey So Far – Recorded Live at Cafe Carlyle (2011)
Live: Jazz at Lincoln Center (2016)
Blurred Lines (2017)
The Story of My Life: Lea Salonga Live from Manila (2019) with the BYU Chamber Orchestra
Lea Salonga in Concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2020)
Compilation albums
100% Lea Gives Her Best (2003)
The Ultimate OPM Collection (2007)
Featured recordings
Disney Princess: The Ultimate Song Collection (2004), for the song "If You Can Dream" (sung with Susan Logan, Grey Griffin, Jodi Benson, Paige O'Hara and Judy Kuhn)
Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007), for the songs "Peacock Princess" (sung with Gilbert Gottfried) and "I've Got My Eyes on You"
Shelldon (2008), for the song "It's a Brand New Day"
Sofia the First (2014), for the songs "The Ride of Our Lives" (episode 12: "Two to Tangu") and "Stronger that You Know" (episode 36: "Princesses To The Rescue")
Acting credits
Theatre
Film and television
References
External links
Salonga presenting an illustrated autobiography (2015)
1971 births
Living people
20th-century Filipino actresses
21st-century Filipino actresses
ABS-CBN personalities
Actresses from Pampanga
Arista Records artists
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Drama Desk Award winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Filipino child actresses
Filipino expatriates in the United States
20th-century Filipino women singers
Filipino musical theatre actresses
Filipino voice actresses
Fordham University alumni
Kapampangan people
Laurence Olivier Award winners
People from Angeles City
People from Manila
Recipients of the Order of Lakandula
Singers from Pampanga
That's Entertainment (Philippine TV series)
That's Entertainment Thursday Group Members
Tony Award winners
Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)
21st-century Filipino women singers | false | [
"Yi Bingheogak (1759-1824) (floruit 1809), was a Korean writer.\n\nEarly life\nShe was born in 1759 (when Yeongjo was in his 35th year of reign) to a family of scholars. Her father, Lee Chang Soo, was a gamsa (監司), who dealt with the administrative affairs of Pyongyang. Her mother was Ryu of Munhwa, aunt of writer Ryu hui who was known for his work Muntong (文通). Yi married writer Seo Yu Bon (徐有本) at the age of 15 in 1773. Seo's family on his maternal side was part of the political faction Soron. It is recorded in Seo's work Jwasosaninmunjip (左蘇山人文集) that Yi's talent in poetry was at a level where the two could exchange Chinese poetry with each other. Life grew harder for Yi as a result of Seo's early retirement amidst political troubles, so she cultivated a tea garden to get out of poverty. Her work Gyuhap chongseo was written then. After Seo died in 1822, she wrote Jeomyeongsa (絶命詞), a poem about the end of life (in this case her husband's) for her husband. She did not comb her hair or wash her face and remained in her house. She died in 1824 at age 66, 19 months after Seo's death.\n\nWorks\nShe published the women's encyclopedia Gyuhap chongseo about household tasks in 1809. She was one of very few published women in Joseon-dynasty Korea, alongside poet Seo Yeongsuhap (1753–1823), and Confucian philosopher Im Yunjidang.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n\n Pae-yong Y: Women in Korean History 한국 역사 속의 여성들\n\nKorean culture\nKorean calligraphers\n19th-century Korean women writers\nWomen calligraphers",
"Jacqueline Nearne MBE (27 May 1916 in Brighton, England – 15 August 1982 in London, England) was a secret agent for the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) in Nazi-occupied France during World War II.\n\nBiography\nShe was the elder daughter of an English father and a Spanish mother. She moved with her family to France in 1923. At the age of 18, she moved to Nice to work as a commercial travelling representative for an office equipment company. When France fell, she made her way to England via Portugal and Gibraltar.\n\nOn her arrival in England, she applied to the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) but was turned down as she had no experience of driving in the dark and on the left hand side of the road. In 1942, she was recruited into the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (the FANYs) alongside her younger sister Eileen. Her brother Francis also served in the SOE. Her brother did not pass training\n\nNearne's fluency in French quickly brought her to the attention of F Section, a branch of the SOE. She trained as a courier in mid-1942. She was also taught Morse code transmissions using a suitcase radio, which would help her in her work with the French Resistance. She was the first woman, along with Odette Sansom, to train at Training School 51 Ringway Parachute School. Odette Sansom did not undertake parachute training due to an injury to her back during phase one of her training. Also unlike her sister Eileen was not a trained wireless operator\n\nOn 25 January 1943, she was parachuted into France to work for the vast Stationer circuit in central France. Despite the risks of being exposed or betrayed she travelled by train. She maintained contact with the neighbouring 'Headmaster' network and other SOE networks in the Paris area. She carried spare parts for radios inside a cosmetics bag. After fifteen months in the field, she finally returned to Britain in April 1944 by means of Westland Lysander.\n\nAwards and honours\n\nShe was awarded the MBE in 1945.\n\nPost–war\nAfter the war, she looked after her sister, Eileen Nearne, in London. She then moved to New York City to work in the Protocol Department of the United Nations. In the 1950s, Brian Stonehouse painted a portrait of her which now hangs in the Special Forces Club in London.\n\nIn 1946, she played \"Cat\", a character based on herself, in the RAF's Film Unit production of Now It Can Be Told, which was later released to theatres in 1948 in a shorter version as School for Danger, a drama-documentary about the wartime training and deployment of SOE operatives. Appearing with Jacqueline was her SOE colleague, Captain Harry Rée.\n\nDeath\nNearne, who never married, died in 1982, aged 66, from cancer.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nInternet Movie Database bio\nJacqueline Nearne, Allied Spy, World War II, sameshield.com.\n\n1916 births\n1982 deaths\nFemale wartime spies\nMembers of the Order of the British Empire\nPeople from Brighton\nBritish Special Operations Executive personnel\nBritish people of French descent"
]
|
[
"Fiddler on the Roof",
"Original productions"
]
| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | Where were the original productions? | 1 | Where were the original productions for Fiddler on the Roof? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | the Imperial Theatre, | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | true | [
"Thursday Theatre is a UK television anthology series produced by and airing on the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) from 1964–1965. There were twenty-three episodes which included adaptations of the play, The Cocktail Party, by T. S. Eliot, and the novel, The Wings of the Dove, by Henry James. The productions ranged in duration from 75 to 95 minutes.\n\nGuest stars included John Hurt, Susannah York, Ralph Richardson, Patrick Macnee, Ron Moody and Margaret Whiting.\n\nProductions\nThis table is based on records in the BBC Genome archive of the Radio Times and the BFI database. Links to the original works from which the productions were adapted are provided in the Notes column, where available. The 13 productions missing from (or incomplete in) the archives are noted according to the TV Brain database.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nBritish drama television series\n1963 British television series debuts\n1964 British television series endings\n1960s British drama television series\nBlack-and-white British television shows\nEnglish-language television shows",
"Paramount+, formerly known as CBS All Access, is an over-the-top subscription video on demand service owned and operated by Paramount Streaming. The service offers original shows, content newly aired on CBS's broadcast properties, and content from Paramount Global's library, along with live streams of the main channel for the local CBS affiliate in the United States, where available.\n\nOriginal programming\n\nDrama\n\nComedy\n\nAnimation\n\nAdult animation\n\nKids & family\n\nUnscripted\n\nDocuseries\n\nReality\n\nVariety\n\nCo-productions\n\nContinuations\n\nSpecials\n\nRegional original programming \nThese shows are originals, because Paramount+ commissioned or acquired them and had their premiere on the service, but they are not available worldwide.\n\nEnglish language\n\nNon-English language\n\nPortuguese\n\nSpanish\n\nOriginal films\n\nFeature films\n\nSimultaneous releases \nThese films were released in theatres, but were made available on Paramount+ at the same time as their theatrical releases.\n\nDocumentaries\n\nSpecials\n\nUpcoming original programming\n\nDrama\n\nComedy\n\nAnimation\n\nKids & family\n\nUnscripted\n\nDocuseries\n\nReality\n\nVariety\n\nCo-productions\n\nContinuations\n\nRegional original programming \nThese shows are originals, because Paramount+ commissioned or acquired them and had their premiere on the service, but they are not available worldwide.\n\nEnglish language\n\nNon-English language\n\nGerman\n\nItalian\n\nPortuguese\n\nSpanish\n\nIn development\n\nUpcoming original films\n\nFeature films\n\nNotes\n\nReferences \n\nParamount+ original programming\nLists of television series by streaming service\nViacomCBS-related lists"
]
|
[
"Fiddler on the Roof",
"Original productions",
"Where were the original productions?",
"the Imperial Theatre,"
]
| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | What city was the Imperial Theatre in? | 2 | What city was the Imperial Theatre located in? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | Broadway | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | true | [
"Theatres for Russian tsars appeared as early as the 17th century, but only members of the Imperial family and their immediate circles could attend the performances.\n\nEmpress Elizabeth of Russia issued a Decree dated 30 August 1756, to establish a public Imperial troupe. The decree united in one system several different theatre companies, already existing. The theatre was given a mansion on Vasilievsky island, which housed a troupe headed by Fyodor Volkov. Alexander Sumarokov was appointed the Director of the theatre.\n\nThe troupe covered all theatrical arts: drama, ballet and opera. Every actor did what he could.\n\nIn 1801, the Moscow Imperial troupe appeared.\n\nPrivate theatre companies in Moscow and St. Petersburg were banned until 1882.\n\nThe Imperial troupe lasted until the Russian revolution of 1917.\n\nTheatres used by the St Petersburg Imperial troupe included:\n Home of opera at the edge of Neva (Невская першпектива; 1742–49)\n the Home of opera near the Summer Garden (Летний сад; 1750–63)\n the Theatre Free Russian or the theatre of Karl Knipper (founded in 1777; in 1783 is bought to imperial treasure; then called the Wooden City Theater (ru: Городской Деревянный театр) – on 1797)\n Hermitage Theatre (from 1785)\n the Imperial theater in the Gatchina Palace (to Paul I of Russia, the end of the 18th century)\n Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre (on 1784–1886)\n Imperial theatre of Petergof\n Alexandrinsky Theatre (from 1832; then the theatre became dramatic)\n Mikhaylovsky Theatre (from 1833)\n Mariinsky Theatre (from 1860)\n\nNotes \n\nTheatre in Russia",
"The Imperial Theatre, in Saint John, New Brunswick, was designed by Philadelphia architect Albert Westover and built in 1912 by the Imperial Theatre by the Keith-Albee-Orpheum Corporation vaudeville chain of New York City and their Canadian subsidiary, the Saint John Amusements Company Ltd. It opened to the public on September 19, 1913.\n\nOne of Canada's first comedy troupes, The Dumbbells staged several of their first shows there. Many early stars of silent film had their films played in the Imperial, such as Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Fatty Arbuckle, Greta Garbo, and Harold Lloyd.\n\nThe theatre was designed as a modern adaptation of the Italian Renaissance, and was used both for live vaudeville acts as well as \"talkies\". In 1929, it was renamed the Capitol Theatre, and like most vaudeville houses across the continent, became a cinema.\n\nFrom 1957 to 1982, the Imperial Theatre was used as a meeting space by the Full Gospel Assembly. In 1982 the Imperial was abandoned by the religious group.\n\nRenaissance of the Imperial Theatre\nIn the mid-1980s, a grass-roots campaign began to save the theatre began with a $1 down-payment (on a $1 million option to purchase the building, with the balance due within one year) by a local taxi driver. By the deadline, over $1.1 million had been raised, most of which was contributed by the citizens of Saint John. This is the reason for the high interest in the Imperial - every individual in the city owns a part of it. Seats in the theatre have the names of contributors.\n\nThe theatre has been restored to its 1913 glory, with the original mouldings and intricate plasterwork having been repaired or replicated. The interior of the Imperial has been faithfully re-created. The Imperial has been designated a National Historic Site of Canada.\n\nTechnical details \n\nImperial Theatre is a fully restored Victorian proscenium arch-type facility. The arch is a spectacular architectural feat, and frames the stage beautifully from all viewing positions. \n\nSTAGE DIMENSIONS\n\nProscenium arch\nwidth: 42’ - 6’\nheight: 26’ - 2’ (at centre line)\n\nCurtain line to\nupstage wall: 42’ - 0’\ndownstage apron: 3’ - 0’\nedge of pit elevator: 11’ - 0’\n\nCentre-line to\nstage left clear: 48’ - 6’\"\nstage right clear: 38’ - 3\"\n\nWing free height\nup stage left: 21’ - 6\"\ndown stage left: 27’ - 5\"\nstage right: 22’\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n Imperial Theatre site\n City of Saint John Historic Sites\n\nTheatres in New Brunswick\nBuildings and structures in Saint John, New Brunswick\nMusic venues in New Brunswick\nNational Historic Sites in New Brunswick\nItalianate architecture in Canada\nTourist attractions in Saint John, New Brunswick"
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| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | When did the production first open? | 3 | When did the production of Fiddler on the Roof first open? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | September 22, 1964, | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | true | [
"Open manufacturing, also known as open production, maker manufacturing, and with the slogan \"Design Global, Manufacture Local\" is a new model of socioeconomic production in which physical objects are produced in an open, collaborative and distributed manner and based on open design and open source principles.\n\nOpen manufacturing combines the following elements of a production process: new open production tools and methods (such as 3D printers), new value-based movements (such as the maker movement), new institutions and networks for manufacturing and production (such as FabLabs), and open source methods, software and protocols. \n\nOpen manufacturing may also include digital modeling and fabrication and computer numeric control (CNC) of the machines used for production through open source software and open source hardware.\n\nThe philosophy of open manufacturing is close to the open-source movement, but aims at the development of physical products rather than software. The term is linked to the notion of democratizing technology as embodied in the maker culture, the DIY ethic, the open source appropriate technology movement, the Fablab-network and other rooms for grassroot innovation such as hackerspaces.\n\nPrinciples \n\nThe openness of \"open manufacturing\" may relate to the nature of the product (open design), to the nature of the production machines and methods (e.g. open source 3D-printers, open source CNC), to the process of production and innovation (commons-based peer production / collaborative / distributed manufacturing), or to new forms of value creation (network-based bottom-up or hybrid versus business-centric top down). Jeremy Rifkin argues, that open production through 3D-printing \"will eventually and inevitably reduce marginal costs to near zero, eliminate profit, and make property exchange in markets unnecessary for many (though not all) products\".\n\nSocioeconomic implications \n\nThe following points are seen as key implications of open manufacturing:\n a democratization of (the means of) production, \n a decentralization of production and local value creation (global cooperation – local manufacturing), \n the possibility to produce high quality prototypes and products in small quantities at moderate (to increasingly low) prices, \n the closing of the gap between the formal and informal sector and opportunities for bottom-up open innovation, and \n a transition from consumer to producer for manufactured goods.\nIn the context of socioeconomic development, open manufacturing has been described as a path towards a more sustainable industrialization on a global scale, that promotes \"social sustainability\" and provides the opportunity to shift to a \"collaboration-oriented industrialization driven by stakeholders from countries with different development status connected in a global value creation at eye level\".\n\nFor developing countries, open production could notably lead to products more adapted to local problems and local markets and reduce dependencies on foreign goods, as vital products could be manufactured locally. In such a context, open manufacturing is strongly linked to the broader concept of Open Source Appropriate Technology movement.\n\nViews\nAccording to scholar Michel Bauwens, Open Manufacturing is \"the expansion of peer production to the world of physical production\".\n\nRedlich and Bruns define \"Open Production\" as \"a new form of coordination for production systems that implies a superior broker system coordinating the information and material flows between the stakeholders of production\", and which will encompass the entire value creation process for physical goods: development, manufacturing, sales, support etc.\n\nA policy paper commissioned by the European Commission uses the term \"maker manufacturing\" and positions it between social innovation, open source ICT and manufacturing.\n\nCriticism\n\nA number of factors are seen to hamper the broad-based application of the model of \"open manufacturing\" and / or to realize its positive implications for more sustainable global production pattern.\n\nThe first factor is the sustainability of commons-based peer production models: \"Empowerment happens only, if the participants are willing to share their knowledge with their colleagues. The participation of the actors cannot be guaranteed, thus there are many cases known, where participation could only be insufficiently realized\". Other problems include missing or inadequate systems of quality control, the persistent paradigm of high-volume manufacturing and its cost-efficiency, the lack of widely adopted platforms to share hardware designs, as well as challenges linked to the joint-ownership paradigm behind the open licences of open manufacturing and the fact, that hardware is much more difficult to share and to standardize than software.\n\nIn developing countries, a number of factors need to be considered in addition to the points above. Scholar Waldman-Brown names the following: lack of manufacturing expertise and informality of current SMMs in emerging markets as an obstacle to quality control for final products and raw material as well as universities and vocational training programs not apt to react rapidly enough to provide the necessary knowledge and qualifications.\n\nExamples \n\n Open Source Ecology, a project for designing and building open source industrial machines, fabricated by eXtreme Manufacturing\n RepRap Project, a project to create an open-source self-copying 3D printer.\nWikispeed, a automotive manufacturer that produces modular design cars using open source tools\n Local Motors : Applying open production to the field of transport and vehicles\n Sensorica, a hardware development network-organization using the open value network model.\n\nSee also \n\n Distributed manufacturing\n Open design\n Open source hardware\n Open Source\n Collaboration\n Commons-based peer production\n Open source appropriate technology\n Collaborative software development model\n Knowledge commons\n Co-creation\n Decentralized planning (economics)\n Mass collaboration\n Production for use\n Prosumer\n Gift economy\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n\n The Emergence of Open Design and Open Manufacturing Michel Bauwens, We Magazine Volume 2\n http://openmanufacturing.net/ Short introduction and online group.\n\nEconomic systems\nCollaboration\nFree software\n3D printing\nPublic commons\nManufacturing",
"\"The Death of Manolete\" was an American television play broadcast live on September 12, 1957, as part of the CBS television series, Playhouse 90. It was the first episode of the second season and featured Jack Palance in the role of Manolete. Producer Martin Manulis later called it \"the classic clinker of all time.\"\n\nPlot\nThe play told the story of the Spanish bullfighter Manolete. Manolete was the idol of Spain and had made four million dollars when he was killed in the bullring at age 30.\n\nCast\nThe cast included performances by:\n Jack Palance as Manolete\n Suzy Parker as Tani Morena (Manolete's mistress)\n Robert Middleton as Perea\n Ray Danton as Antonito\n Nehemiah Persoff as Camara (Manolete's manager)\n Esther Minciotti as Augustias\n\nProduction\nBarnaby Conrad approached producer Martin Manulis and director John Frankenheimer proposing to turn his upcoming book The Death of Manolete into a production for Playhouse 90. Manulis and Frankenheimer were both enthusiastic about the idea and decided to open the second season with the project. Unfortunately, Manulis later recalled, it turned out to be \"the classic clinker of all time.\" He cited several reasons for the failure:\n First, Manulis wondered how they thought they could shoot the climactic bullfight scene using a fake bull's head that was jerked up down by a couple of stagehands jerking lying just below the camera's view. Paul Monash, who adapted the book for television, also recalled the use of the fake bull's head as \"one great mistake.\"\n Second, Jack Palance's outfit was drooping at the back and made him look like an old man.\n Third, they could not find an actress willing to play the part of Manolete's mistress. They finally settled on Suzy Parker who had \"promised her mother she would never act and didn't break her promise.\"\n\nDespite the poor quality of the production, it drew attention when \"every comic in town\" did a parody of the program.\n\nBecause of the difficulties with presenting a bullfight on live television, the production relied heavily on film clips of Manolete's performances.\n\nReception\nIn The New York Times, Jack Gould wrote the production \"never deeply involved the viewer or gave a truly illuminating insight into the man.\" He did praise John Frankenheimer who \"technically integrated\" the newsreel scenes with the live scenes.\n\nCritic John Crosby called it \"large, noisy and disappointing.\" He also wrote that Suzy Parker could hardly be described as a good actress and \"should never open her mouth.\"\n\nIn the New York Daily News, Kay Gardell wrote that \"it was more a mood piece than an exciting drama\" and \"fell short of hitting a bull's-eye.\" However, she praised Palance's \"taut and terrifying\" portrayal of Manolete.\n\nReferences\n\n1957 American television episodes\nPlayhouse 90 (season 2) episodes\n1957 television plays"
]
|
[
"Fiddler on the Roof",
"Original productions",
"Where were the original productions?",
"the Imperial Theatre,",
"What city was the Imperial Theatre in?",
"Broadway",
"When did the production first open?",
"September 22, 1964,"
]
| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | How long did the original production run for? | 4 | How long did the original production of Fiddler on the Roof run for? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | true | [
"How a Black Man Feels is the fifth album by the rapper Schoolly D. It was released in 1991 via Capitol Records, his first album for the label. The album spawned three singles, \"Original Gangster\", “Where’d You Get That Funk From”, and “King of New York”.\n\nProduction\nKRS-One contributed to the production of the album.\n\nCritical reception\nTrouser Press wrote that \"other than the unfashionable stripped-down beats (complete with Run-DMC samples), Schoolly’s ugly and all-too-common gangsta threats ... sound like a sorry-ass imitation jackin’ for bucks.\"\n\nTrack listing\n“Run” – 4:12\n“Your Worst Nightmare” – 4:52\n“King of New York” – 4:35\n“Original Gangster” – 3:39\n“Die Nigger Die” – 4:56\n“Where’d You Get That Funk From” – 4:43\n“How a Black Man Feels” – 3:50\n“Just Another Killer” – 5:32\n“Peace to the Nation” – 4:45\n“Sometimes It’s Got to Be That Way” – 4:41\n\nReferences\n\n1991 albums\nCapitol Records albums\nSchoolly D albums",
"In economics, a cost function represents the minimum cost of producing a quantity of some good. The long-run cost curve is a cost function that models this minimum cost over time, meaning inputs are not fixed. Using the long-run cost curve, firms can scale their means of production to reduce the costs of producing the good.\n\nThere are three principal cost functions (or 'curves') used in microeconomic analysis:\n Long-run total cost (LRTC) is the cost function that represents the total cost of production for all goods produced.\n Long-run average cost (LRAC) is the cost function that represents the average cost per unit of producing some good.\n Long-run marginal cost (LRMC) is the cost function that represents the cost of producing one more unit of some good.\n\nThe idealized \"long run\" for a firm refers to the absence of time-based restrictions on what inputs (such as factors of production) a firm can employ in its production technology. For example, a firm cannot build an additional factory in the short run, but this restriction does not apply in the long run. Because forecasting introduces complexity, firms typically assume that the long-run costs are based on the technology, information, and prices that the firm faces currently. The long-run cost curve does not try to anticipate changes in the firm, the technology, or the industry. It only reflects how costs would be different if there were no constraints on changing the inputs in the current period.\n\nAn ideal cost curve assumes technical efficiency because a firm always has an incentive to be as technically efficient as possible. Firms have a variety of methods of using various amounts of inputs, and they select the lowest total cost method for any given amount of output (quantity produced). For example, if a micro-enterprise wanted to make a few pins, the cheapest way to do so might be to hire a jack-of-all-trades, buy a little scrap metal, and have him work on it at home. However, if a firm wanted to produce thousands of pins, the lowest total cost might be achieved by renting a factory, buying specialized equipment, and hiring an assembly line of factory workers to perform specialized actions at each stage of producing the pins. In the short run, the firm might not have time to rent a factory, buy specialized tools, and hire factory workers. In that case, the firm would not be able to achieve short-run minimum costs, but the long-run costs would be much less. The increase in choices about how to produce in the long run means that long-run costs are equal to or less than short run costs, ceteris paribus.\n\nThe term curves does not necessarily mean the cost function has any curvature. However, many economic models assume that cost curves are differentiable so that the LRMC is well-defined. Traditionally, cost curves have quantity on the horizontal axis of the graph and cost on the vertical axis.\n\nSee also\n Socially optimal firm size\n\nReferences\n\nCosts\nEconomics curves"
]
|
[
"Fiddler on the Roof",
"Original productions",
"Where were the original productions?",
"the Imperial Theatre,",
"What city was the Imperial Theatre in?",
"Broadway",
"When did the production first open?",
"September 22, 1964,",
"How long did the original production run for?",
"transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre"
]
| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | How many performances were completed in the original production? | 5 | How many performances were completed in the original production of Fiddler on the Roof? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | true | [
"Rusty Ross is an actor currently residing in New York City. In 2006, he appeared in the original cast of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! on Broadway, and reprised his role when the production returned in 2007. As the role of Professor, he recently completed the national tour of the Lincoln Center Theater production of South Pacific, which began performances in San Francisco in September 2009 and closed in Toronto in March 2011.\n\nInterviews\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nOfficial website at www.rustyross.com\nRusty Ross at the Internet Off-Broadway Database\n\nLiving people\nYear of birth missing (living people)",
"The Watsons is a play by Laura Wade adapted from the unfinished novel of the same name by Jane Austen.\n\nProduction \nThe play made its premiere at the Minerva Theatre in Chichester from 3 November to 1 December 2018. Following the production's success, it transferred to the Menier Chocolate Factory in London, running from 20 September to 16 November, 2019, with favourable reviews. \n\nIn the course of the play, at the point where Jane Austen’s original story breaks off, the dramatist comes onstage (played by an actor in the part of a maid) and enters into a protracted debate with the rebellious characters about how it should continue. The Guardian's reviewer commented that \"one of the play's many pleasures is its capacity to endlessly take us by surprise. We go in expecting a literary exercise and come out having seen a philosophical comedy\". Kathryn Hughes noted in The Times Literary Supplement how the play acknowledges Luigi Pirandello's Six Characters in Search of an Author as its precursor and how the modern audience is challenged to question its own escapism in indulging in yet another Regency drama. \n\nThe script has since been published by Oberon Books. It was announced in addition that the play was due to transfer to the Harold Pinter Theatre in London's West End in May 2020. However, performances had to be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, though the producers intend to remount the production at a later date.\n\nReferences \n\n2018 plays\nBritish plays\nPlays based on novels\nAdaptations of works by Jane Austen"
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"Where were the original productions?",
"the Imperial Theatre,",
"What city was the Imperial Theatre in?",
"Broadway",
"When did the production first open?",
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"transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre",
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"a record-setting total of 3,242 performances."
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| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | Who was in the cast? | 6 | Who was in the cast for Fiddler on the Roof? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde ( | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | true | [
"Julieta Cardinali (born October 21, 1977) is an Argentine film and television actress.\n\nCareer \nJulieta Cardinali began her career in television with the television show El show de Xuxa hosted by Xuxa. In 1995, she was part of the television program staff of Jugate con todo hosted by Cris Morena. In 1996, she was part of the cast of the television series Montaña rusa, otra vuelta. In 1997, she was part of the cast of the television series Sueltos. In 1997, she was part of the cast of the television series Como pan caliente. In 1997, she was part of the cast of the television series Naranja y media. In 1997, she was part of the cast of the television series Socios y más. In 1998, she was part of the cast of the television series Lo dijo papá. In 1998, she made her film debut, with the movie Buenos Aires me mata. From 1998 to 2000, she was part of the cast of the youth television series Verano del '98. In 2000, she acted in the movie Una noche con Sabrina Love. In 2001, she was part of the cast of the television series Los médicos de hoy. In 2001, she was part of the cast of the television series EnAmorArte. In 2001, she makes a small participation in the television series El Hacker 2001. In 2002, she was part of the cast of the television series Máximo corazón. In 2002, she was part of the cast of the television series Tiempo final. In 2002, she was part of the cast of the television series Maridos a domicilio. In 2002, she acted in the movie Valentín. In 2003, she was part of the cast of the television series Malandras. In 2003, she was part of the cast of the television series Disputas. In 2003, she acted in the movie El Nominado. In 2004, she was part of the cast of the television series Sangre fría. In 2004, she acted in the movie Un mundo menos peor. In 2005, she was part of the cast of the television series Numeral 15. In 2005, she acted in the movie Un Buda. In 2005, she acted in the movie La Suerte está echada. In 2006, she was part of the cast of the television series El tiempo no para. In 2006, she was part of the cast of the television series Soy tu fan. In 2007, she acted in the movie La Antena. In 2007, she acted in the movie ¿De quién es el portaligas?. In 2008, she acted in the movie 14, Fabian Road. In 2009, she was part of the cast of the television series Rosa, Violeta y Celeste. In 2009, she acted in the movie Tres deseos. In 2009, she acted in the movie El reclamo. In 2010, she was part of the cast of the television series Caín y Abel. In 2011, she was part of the cast of the television series Proyecto Aluvión. In 2012, she was part of the cast of the television series En terapia. In 2012, she acted in the movie Una cita, una fiesta y un gato negro. In 2013, she was part of the cast of the television series Farsantes. In 2013, she was the protagonist of the Spanish miniseries Carta a Eva. In 2013, she was part of the cast of the television series Lynch. In 2013, she acted in the movie Lectura según Justino. In 2014, she was part of the cast of the television series Señores Papis. In 2014, she acted in the movie Necrofobia. In 2014, she acted in the movie Los del suelo. In 2014, she acted in the movie El amor y otras historias. In 2015, she was part of the cast of the television series Viudas e hijos del Rock and Roll. In 2016, she was part of the cast of the television series Los ricos no piden permiso. In 2016, she was part of the cast of the television series Ultimátum. In 2016, she acted in the movie Ataúd blanco. In 2017, she acted in the movie Casi leyendas. In 2018, she was part of the cast of the television series Edha.\n\nPersonal life \nOn July 23, 2010, she married Andrés Calamaro, whom was her boyfriend for 5 years. On January 9, 2007, she gave birth to the couple's first child, a girl, whom they called Charo Calamaro Cardinali. The couple divorced in 2011.\n\nFilmography\n\nTelevision\n\nTelevision Programs\n\nMovies\n\nTheater\n\nAwards and Nominations\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n \n Julieta Cardinali interview at La Nación by Gabriela Navarra \n\n1977 births\nActresses from Buenos Aires\nArgentine film actresses\nLiving people",
"John Cragg (1767 – 17 July 1854) was an English ironmaster who ran a foundry in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. He was born in Warrington (then in the historic county of Lancashire, now in the ceremonial county of Cheshire). His business was the Merseyside Iron Foundry, which was located in Tithebarn Street, Liverpool. Cragg was an enthusiast in the use of prefabricated ironwork in the structure of buildings, and in the early 19th century became interested in building churches. He had been discussing building a church in Toxteth Park, Liverpool, and in 1809 plans had been drawn up for this by J. M. Gandy. This church was never built, but in 1812 Cragg met Thomas Rickman, and together they designed the three churches in Liverpool incorporating Cragg's cast iron elements. The first of these was St George's Church, Everton (1813–14). The exterior of this church is largely in stone, but the framework of its interior, including the galleries, and the window tracery are in cast iron. The ceilings consist of slate slabs supported by cast iron rafters, which are decorated with cast iron tracery. The second church resulting from this collaboration was St Michael's Church, Aigburth (1813–15), Here, in addition to the cast iron framework of the interior, and the window tracery, the parapets, battlements, pinnacles, hoodmoulds, the dado, and other details are also in cast iron. The area around the church, known as St Michael's Hamlet contains five villas containing many cast iron features. The third cast iron church was St Philip's Church (1815–16) in Hardman Street, Liverpool, which was closed in 1882 and demolished. Some cast iron fragments have been incorporated in the fabric of the block of buildings now occupying the site of the churchyard. Cragg died on 17 July 1854, aged 87, and was buried in St James Cemetery, Liverpool.\n\nSee also\nThe Iron Church\n\nReferences\nCitations\n\nSources\n\n1767 births\n1854 deaths\nBusinesspeople from Liverpool\nPeople from Warrington"
]
|
[
"Fiddler on the Roof",
"Original productions",
"Where were the original productions?",
"the Imperial Theatre,",
"What city was the Imperial Theatre in?",
"Broadway",
"When did the production first open?",
"September 22, 1964,",
"How long did the original production run for?",
"transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre",
"How many performances were completed in the original production?",
"a record-setting total of 3,242 performances.",
"Who was in the cast?",
"The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde ("
]
| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | Who else was in the cast? | 7 | Who else was in the cast for Fiddler on the Roof aside from Zero Mostel and Maria Karnilova? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | true | [
"Annemarie Wendl (26 December 1914, Trostberg, Upper Bavaria – 3 September 2006, Munich, Bavaria) was a German actress.\n\nCareer\n\nWendl was born into an upper-class family in Bavaria and began her training as an actress in Berlin at Lucie Höflich's seminar. \n\nAfterwards, she played classical roles on stage in Berlin, Bonn, Augsburg, Innsbruck, Munich, Bamberg and Ingolstadt. In her youth, she played \"all sentimental characters\", such as Faust's Gretchen and Emilia Galotti. Later she played character roles, such as Adelheid in Götz von Berlichingen, Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire, Maria Stuart in the play by Schiller and the title role in Brecht's Mother Courage. Her last theatrical works were The Widow in the Green Tree (1997) and Sanssouci in 2001.\n\nWendl began working in film in 1961 and made more than 35 films and TV productions. \n\nDuring her long career on the big screen, Wendl was seen in some of Rainer Werner Fassbinder's films (including I Only Want You To Love Me, 1976). Her television work includes series like Die fünfte Kolonne, Meister Eder und sein Pumuckl and Der Kommissar, where she made guest appearances in a few episodes.\n\nWendl was best known for her role as \"Else Kling\" in the German weekly soap opera Lindenstraße, which started in December 1985. She appeared in the first episode Herzlich Willkommen and remained in the series' cast until May 2006. Her character, Else Kling, lost her husband, Egon Kling, in a car accident in Paris, France in 1998. In the episode \"Abschied und Ankunft\" (#1069), Else Kling died.\n\nShe was called \"the nation's caretaker\" or also \"the nation's worst blabbermouth\" (due to her character's habit of unceasingly spreading gossip). She appeared in some commercials depicting Else Kling and sang rap songs. She published two CDs, Du Depp in 1993 and Else Goes Dance in 1995. Else Kling was often compared to J.R. Ewing.\n\nPersonal life\nPrivately, Wendl worked with young people and liked to wear fashionable clothes. On the Lindenstraße homepage her birthday was initially given as 26 December 1921 or 1922 until she turned 90 in 2004. An official correction was published, revealing that Wendl was somewhat older than her character (Else Kling was born on 14 May 1922, and died on 25 May 2006 at the age of 84).\n\nLast years and death\n\nIn 2005, Wendl suffered a stroke and had three bouts of pneumonia, which caused her to cease work on Lindenstraße. After her character's death, Wendl received coverage in the yellow press quite regularly, most notably about her health.\n\nWendl, who was married to Siegmar Kleinschmidt from 1942 until his death in 1944, lived in Munich and died at age 91 in 2006. \n\nShe was survived by her son. Her fellow actors from Lindenstrasse, including Marie-Luise Marjan, Bill Mockridge, and Hans W. Geißendörfer, attended her funeral.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n \n\n1914 births\n2006 deaths\nGerman film actresses\nGerman stage actresses\nGerman television actresses\nGerman soap opera actresses\n20th-century German actresses\n21st-century German actresses\nPeople from Traunstein (district)",
"Else Mayer (1891–1962) was a German nun and women's liberation activist during the period of first-wave feminism. She was one of the pioneers of the German Women's Liberation Movement. Together with Alexandra Bischoff she founded the Erlöserbund.\n\nBiography\nElse Mayer was the daughter of the German jeweler Victor Mayer. She spent her childhood and youth in the family business before she became a nun. After she visited several nunneries she decided to found her own, Erlöserbund, in 1916. With the support of her family she bought buildings in Bonn and started to support young female students who received housing from her.\n\nErlöserbund was closed in 2005 and reorganized as a charitable foundation. The Else Mayer Foundation presents an annual award, the Else Mayer Award, to applicants who are deemed to qualify as ideological successors to Else Mayer. The award is for 4000 euros. German Education Minister Annette Schavan was the inaugural recipient of this award in 2006. The German feminist Alice Schwarzer received the award in 2007.\n\nPublications \n\n The Else Mayer Foundation official Website \nThe Donation Else Mayer /\nElse Mayer Award \nBonn Newspaper\n\nReferences \n\nGerman Roman Catholic religious sisters and nuns\nGerman activists\nGerman women activists\nGerman women's rights activists\nFirst-wave feminism\nCatholic feminists\n1891 births\n1962 deaths\n20th-century Christian nuns"
]
|
[
"Fiddler on the Roof",
"Original productions",
"Where were the original productions?",
"the Imperial Theatre,",
"What city was the Imperial Theatre in?",
"Broadway",
"When did the production first open?",
"September 22, 1964,",
"How long did the original production run for?",
"transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre",
"How many performances were completed in the original production?",
"a record-setting total of 3,242 performances.",
"Who was in the cast?",
"The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (",
"Who else was in the cast?",
"Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary,"
]
| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | How much money did the production earn? | 8 | How much money did the production of Fiddler on the Roof earn? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | true | [
"The Firm is a game developed by Sunnyside Games, a Swiss game development company. The game mostly takes place inside an office building, where the player controls a stock trader, which buys or sells colored stock papers to earn money.\n\nGameplay \nThe game is a fast-paced arcade game and includes power-ups, different types of stocks, and score (money) earning. The player will fail if the stack of incoming stock papers reach the top of the screen. The player will get a screen that says \"Your FIRED!\" and how many stock papers they got correct in a row, then the stock trader jumps through the window. When the camera pans down, it shows the trader dead (from leaping through the window), a line of people, and how much money the player earned.\n\nPower-ups \nThe game includes 5 power-ups that do different things. The first available power up is the \"Vitamin\", which slows down time for a specific number of seconds. The other power-ups do various things, like auto-sort an amount of stock, give a money multiplier, or change top stocks to special ones. To get the power-ups, the player spends money in the \"Black Market\".\n\nAwards \nThe game has won a silver award from Pocket Gamer, and the Audience Choice Award from the Swiss Game Developers Association (SDGA) at the 2014 awards.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Sunnyside Games\n\nVideo games developed in Switzerland\nIOS games",
"The 1875 Kentucky Derby was the first running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 17, 1875. The first Kentucky Derby was a 1.5-mile race, and the traditional distance of 1.25 miles was not established until the 1896 Derby. Thirteen of the fifteen jockeys in the race, including winner Oliver Lewis, were African-American. Attendance was estimated at 10,000.\n\nThe winner was Aristides, by two lengths. His jockey was Oliver Lewis, his trainer was Ansel Williamson, and his owner was H.P. McGrath. Aristides' half-brother and stablemate Chesapeake also ran in the race. Both Aristides' jockey and trainer were black. Aristides's time of 2 minutes and 37.75 seconds was at the time a world record for the distance.\n\nThe present day Kentucky derby has seen a massive numbers increase since then. With the growth of the kentucky derby as of 2021; the derby, still held at the Churchhill Downs racetrack can see in-person attendance as high as 65,000 with an average of around 50,000 spectators. These numbers do not include Off-track spectators. One of the most beautiful parts of the kentucky derby is the journey it has undergone to become what it is today.\n\nFull results\n\nPayout\nThe winner received a purse of $2,850. The second-place finisher received $200.\n\nThe winner of the 2021 Derby received a $186,000 payout. A massive increase from earlier derbies.\n\nReferences\n\nCitations\n\nBibliography\n\n Home: Library of Congress. The Library of Congress. (n.d.), from https://www.loc.gov/\n atNickVega.(2021, May 1). 2021 Kentucky Derby: How much prize money the winning jockey will earn. CNBC, from https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/01/2021-kentucky-derby-how-much-prize-money-the-winning-jockey-will-earn.html\n Coleman, M. (2021, May 1). Medina spirit, Bob Baffert win 2021 Kentucky Derby. Sports Illustrated, from https://www.si.com/horse-racing/2021/05/01/medina-spirit-bob-baffert-2021-kentucky-derby-winner\n\n1875\nKentucky Derby\nDerby\nMay 1875 sports events"
]
|
[
"Fiddler on the Roof",
"Original productions",
"Where were the original productions?",
"the Imperial Theatre,",
"What city was the Imperial Theatre in?",
"Broadway",
"When did the production first open?",
"September 22, 1964,",
"How long did the original production run for?",
"transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre",
"How many performances were completed in the original production?",
"a record-setting total of 3,242 performances.",
"Who was in the cast?",
"The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (",
"Who else was in the cast?",
"Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary,",
"How much money did the production earn?",
"The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it."
]
| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | What was the total amount it earned? | 9 | What was the total amount Fiddler on the Roof earned? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | false | [
"The 2017–18 Montenegrin First League was the 12th season of the top-tier football in Montenegro. The season began on 5 August 2017 and ended on 26 May 2018. Budućnost Podgorica are the defending champions.\n\nThe league champions earned a place in the 2018–19 Champions League first qualifying round, and the second and third placed clubs earned a place in the 2018–19 Europa League first qualifying round. Since the third-placed Mladost Podgorica won the 2017–18 Montenegrin Cup which earned them the same spot in the Europa League, the spot was taken by the fourth-placed team.\n\nThere was one new club this season, Kom, who earned promotion from the Montenegrin Second League. Bokelj, Lovćen and Jedinstvo Bijelo Polje were relegated after the 2016–17 season, as the league's contestants amount was reduced from 12 clubs to 10.\n\nTeams\n\nLeague table\n\nResults\nThe ten clubs played each other four times for a total of 36 matches each.\n\nFirst half of season\n\nSecond half of season\n\nRelegation play-offs\n\nLovćen won 2–1 on aggregate.\n\nPetrovac won 5–2 on aggregate.\n\nTop scorers\n\nSee also \n Montenegrin First League\n 2017–18 Montenegrin Second League\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n UEFA\n\nMontenegrin First League seasons\nMonte\n1",
"In the Philippines, a number of stories have been published on the social website Wattpad and later been adapted for film or television.\n\nThe first film of this type to be released was Viva Films' Diary ng Panget. The story had been popular and the film was a box-office success. This was followed by Star Cinema's She's Dating the Gangster which also became a major hit upon release.\n\nHighest-grossing films\n \n\n Ex with Benefits earned with an estimated amount of ₱83,340,000 domestically, but due to inflation and the increase of currency exchange and the demand of movie tickets, the film earned an estimated amount of ₱100,670,00 domestically as of (2018 ₱). Same with Talk Back and You're Dead that earned ₱76,900,000 in the box-office but in 2018, the film garnered ₱96,600,000 domestically.\n\nFilms\n\nUpcoming films\n\nReferences\n\nPhilippine films"
]
|
[
"Fiddler on the Roof",
"Original productions",
"Where were the original productions?",
"the Imperial Theatre,",
"What city was the Imperial Theatre in?",
"Broadway",
"When did the production first open?",
"September 22, 1964,",
"How long did the original production run for?",
"transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre",
"How many performances were completed in the original production?",
"a record-setting total of 3,242 performances.",
"Who was in the cast?",
"The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (",
"Who else was in the cast?",
"Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary,",
"How much money did the production earn?",
"The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it.",
"What was the total amount it earned?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | Did the production win any awards? | 10 | Did the production of Fiddler on the Roof win any awards? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | true | [
"The Filmfare Award for Best Film is given by the Filmfare magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films.\n\nThe award was first given in 1954. Here is a list of the award winners and the nominees of the respective years. Each individual entry shows the title followed by the production company and the producer.\n\nYash Raj Films has produced 18 films that have been nominated, the most for any production house. It also shares the most wins at 4 along with Bimal Roy Productions and UTV Motion Pictures. While Yash Chopra has been the producer of most of the nominated and all the winning films of Yash Raj Films, Bimal Roy has been the producer of all the nominated films of Bimal Roy Productions, thus making them the producer with the most wins. Bimal Roy, Yash Chopra, and Sanjay Leela Bhansali have each directed 4 winning films, the most for any director. Aamir Khan has starred in 9 winning films which is the most for any actor in a leading role.\n\nWinners and nominees\n\n1950s\n\n1960s\n\n1970s\n\n1980s\n\n1990s\n\n2000s\n\n2010s\n\n2020s\n\nSpecial 50 Year Award\n\nIn 2005, Filmfare announced the best movie of the last 50 years as Sholay, although the film did not win the Filmfare Award for Best Film in its year of release.\n\nSee also\n Filmfare Critics Award for Best Movie\n Filmfare Awards\n Bollywood\n Cinema of India\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nFilmfare Awards Best Film\n\nF\nAwards for best film",
"Delferd Lynn Shores (born December 3, 1957) is an American film director and producer, television writer and producer, playwright and actor.\n\nBiography\nThe first play Shores wrote was Cheatin which premiered in 1984 in Los Angeles at The MainStage Theatre. His second play Daddy's Dyin': Who's Got the Will? saw a 1987 debut in Los Angeles at Theatre/Theater, running twenty-two months to critical acclaim. The comedic play was adapted for the 1990 film of the same title. Shores wrote the screenplay and executive produced the feature.\n\nPerhaps Shores' best known play is his fourth, Sordid Lives, which debuted in 1996 in Los Angeles. The comedy centered on the Texan Ingram family and touched on LGBT themes. In 1999 Shores wrote and directed the screen version of Sordid Lives. Eight years later Shores produced 12 prequel episodes of Sordid Lives: The Series which aired on American LGBT-interest cable channel Logo with a much-anticipated sequel, A Very Sordid Wedding, premiering in 2016 with a mixture of the film and series cast, with Levi Kreis, Emerson Collins, Katherine Bailess, T. Ashanti Mozelle, Dale Dickey, Whoopi Goldberg, Alec Mapa, and Carole Cook joining the cast.\n\nIn 2010, Shores debuted his play Yellow at the Coast Playhouse in West Hollywood. During that time, Shores lost his Hollywood Hills home to foreclosure. The play was his most critically acclaimed play, winning Best Production of the Year and Best Original Play from the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle (LADCC).\n\nShores has two daughters, Caroline and Rebecca, from a previous marriage to Kelley Alexander.\n\nWorks\n\nPlays and screenplays\n Cheatin'''\n Daddy's Dyin': Who's Got the Will? – 1990\n Daughters of the Lone Star State The Wilde Girls – 2001\n Sordid Lives Southern Baptist Sissies – 2000 (play)/2013 (film)\n The Trials and Tribulations of a Trailer Trash Housewife Yellow Blues for Willadean (screenplay – 2012)\n A Very Sordid Wedding (screenplay – 2015)\n\nTelevision\n Queer as Folk Dharma & Greg Ned and Stacy Touched by an Angel Maximum Bob Sordid Lives: The SeriesAwards and nominations\n Daddy's Dyin': Who's Got the Will? 1987 LA Weekly Theater Awards Best Production (Win)\n Best Playwriting (Win)\n For 10 Year Anniversary Revival – 1997 Robby Awards\n Best Production (Nomination)\n Best Director (Nomination)\n Sordid Lives Drama-Logue Awards\n Best Production (Win)\n Best Playwriting (Win)\n Best Direction (Win)\n LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards\n Best World Premiere (Nomination)\n LA Weekly Awards\n Best Direction (Nomination)\n Best Playwriting (Nomination)\n GLAAD Media Awards\n Outstanding LA Theatre Production (Nomination)\n Robby Awards\n Best Production (Nomination)\n Best Director (Nomination)\n Best Playwriting (Nomination)\n Cheatin\n Drama-Logue Awards\n Best Ensemble (Win)\n For African American Revival – 1997 NAACP Theater Awards\n Best Direction (Nomination)\n Drama-Logue Awards Best Direction (Win)\n Southern Baptist Sissies 2001 GLAAD Media Awards\n Outstanding LA Theatre Production (Win)\n 2000 LA Weekly Awards\n Best Direction (Win)\n 2000 Back Stage West Garland Awards\n Best Playwriting (Win)\n 2000 Robby Awards\n Best Production (win)\n Best Director (Win)\n Best Playwriting (Win)\n Sordid Lives Austin Gay & Lesbian International Film Festival\n Best Feature\n L.A. Outfest\n Audience Award Outstanding Soundtrack\n New York International Independent Film & Video Festival\n Best Feature Film\n Philadelphia International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival\n Audience Award Best Feature\n The Trials and Tribulations of a Trailer Trash Housewife 2003 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards\n Best Production (Win)\n Best World Premiere (Win)\n LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards (2003)\n Best World Premiere (Nomination)\n Best Director (Nomination)\n NAACP Theatre Awards\n Best Production (Win)\n Best Playwright (Win)\n Best Director (Nomination)\n Back Stage West Garland Awards\n Best Production (Win)\n Best Playwright (Win)\n Best Direction (Win)\n Best Music (Lyrics) (Nomination)\n LA Weekly'' Awards\n Best Playwright (Win)\n In 2006, Shores received a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n \n\n1957 births\n20th-century American dramatists and playwrights\nAmerican gay writers\nAmerican gay actors\nLGBT screenwriters\nLGBT people from Texas\nLiving people\nMale actors from Texas\nFilm directors from Texas\nLGBT dramatists and playwrights\nAmerican male dramatists and playwrights\n20th-century American male writers\nPeople from Winters, Texas\n21st-century LGBT people"
]
|
[
"Fiddler on the Roof",
"Original productions",
"Where were the original productions?",
"the Imperial Theatre,",
"What city was the Imperial Theatre in?",
"Broadway",
"When did the production first open?",
"September 22, 1964,",
"How long did the original production run for?",
"transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre",
"How many performances were completed in the original production?",
"a record-setting total of 3,242 performances.",
"Who was in the cast?",
"The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (",
"Who else was in the cast?",
"Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary,",
"How much money did the production earn?",
"The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it.",
"What was the total amount it earned?",
"I don't know.",
"Did the production win any awards?",
"it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including"
]
| C_8fe70c83b8e040a6ac8fbdb282660ac7_0 | What Tony awards did it win? | 11 | What Tony awards did Fiddler on the Roof win? | Fiddler on the Roof | Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to The Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Robbins - his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical. The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall." Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium. CANNOTANSWER | Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova. | Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.
The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.
Background
Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye (or Tevye the Dairyman) and his Daughters, a series of stories by Sholem Aleichem that he wrote in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century. It is also influenced by Life Is with People, by Mark Zborowski and Elizabeth Herzog. Aleichem wrote a dramatic adaptation of the stories that he left unfinished at his death, but which was produced in Yiddish in 1919 by the Yiddish Art Theater and made into a film in the 1930s. In the late 1950s, a musical based on the stories, called Tevye and his Daughters, was produced Off-Broadway by Arnold Perl. Rodgers and Hammerstein and then Mike Todd briefly considered bringing this musical to Broadway but dropped the idea.
Investors and some in the media worried that Fiddler on the Roof might be considered "too Jewish" to attract mainstream audiences. Other critics considered that it was too culturally sanitized, "middlebrow" and superficial; Philip Roth, writing in The New Yorker, called it shtetl kitsch. For example, it portrays the local Russian officer as sympathetic, instead of brutal and cruel, as Sholom Aleichem had described him. Aleichem's stories ended with Tevye alone, his wife dead and his daughters scattered; at the end of Fiddler, the family members are alive, and most are emigrating together to America. The show found the right balance for its time, even if not entirely authentic, to become "one of the first popular post-Holocaust depictions of the vanished world of Eastern European Jewry". Harold Prince replaced the original producer Fred Coe and brought in director/choreographer Jerome Robbins. The writers and Robbins considered naming the musical Tevye, before landing on a title suggested by various paintings by Marc Chagall (Green Violinist (1924), Le Mort (1924), The Fiddler (1912)) that also inspired the original set design. Contrary to popular belief, the "title of the musical does not refer to any specific painting".
During rehearsals, one of the stars, Jewish actor Zero Mostel, feuded with Robbins, whom he held in contempt, because Robbins had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and hid his Jewish heritage from the public. Other cast members also had run-ins with Robbins, who reportedly "abused the cast, drove the designers crazy [and] strained the good nature of Hal Prince".
Synopsis
Act I
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, explains the customs of the Jews in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka in 1905, where their lives are as precarious as the perch of a fiddler on a roof ("Tradition"). At Tevye's home, everyone is busy preparing for the Sabbath meal. His sharp-tongued wife, Golde, orders their daughters, Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze and Bielke, about their tasks. Yente, the village matchmaker, arrives to tell Golde that Lazar Wolf, the wealthy butcher, a widower older than Tevye, wants to wed Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. The next two daughters, Hodel and Chava, are excited about Yente's visit, but Tzeitel illustrates how it could have bad results ("Matchmaker, Matchmaker"). A girl from a poor family must take whatever husband Yente brings, but Tzeitel wants to marry her childhood friend, Motel the tailor.
Tevye is delivering milk, pulling the cart himself, as his horse is lame. He asks God: Whom would it hurt "If I Were a Rich Man"? The bookseller tells Tevye news from the outside world of pogroms and expulsions. A stranger, Perchik, hears their conversation and scolds them for doing nothing more than talk. The men dismiss Perchik as a radical, but Tevye invites him home for the Sabbath meal and offers him food and a room in exchange for tutoring his two youngest daughters. Golde tells Tevye to meet Lazar after the Sabbath but does not tell him why, knowing that Tevye does not like Lazar. Tzeitel is afraid that Yente will find her a husband before Motel asks Tevye for her hand. But Motel resists: he is afraid of Tevye's temper, and tradition says that a matchmaker arranges marriages. Motel is also very poor and is saving up to buy a sewing machine before he approaches Tevye, to show that he can support a wife. The family gathers for the "Sabbath Prayer".
After the Sabbath, Tevye meets Lazar for a drink at the village inn, assuming mistakenly that Lazar wants to buy his cow. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Tevye agrees to let Lazar marry Tzeitel – with a rich butcher, his daughter will never want for anything. All join in the celebration of Lazar's good fortune; even the Russian youths at the inn join in the celebration and show off their dancing skills ("To Life"). Outside the inn, Tevye happens upon the Russian Constable, who has jurisdiction over the Jews in the town. The Constable warns him that there is going to be a "little unofficial demonstration" in the coming weeks (a euphemism for a minor pogrom). The Constable has sympathy for the Jewish community but is powerless to prevent the violence.
The next morning, after Perchik's lessons with the younger sisters, Tevye's second daughter Hodel mocks Perchik's Marxist interpretation of a Bible story. He, in turn, criticizes her for hanging on to the old traditions of Judaism, noting that the world is changing. To illustrate this, he dances with her, defying the prohibition against opposite sexes dancing together. The two begin to fall in love. Later, a hungover Tevye announces that he has agreed that Tzeitel will marry Lazar Wolf. Golde is overjoyed, but Tzeitel is devastated and begs Tevye not to force her. Motel arrives and tells Tevye that he is the perfect match for Tzeitel and that he and Tzeitel gave each other a pledge to marry. He promises that Tzeitel will not starve as his wife. Tevye is stunned and outraged at this breach of tradition, but impressed at the timid tailor's display of backbone. After some soul-searching ("Tevye's Monologue"), Tevye agrees to let them marry, but he worries about how to break the news to Golde. An overjoyed Motel celebrates with Tzeitel ("Miracle of Miracles").
In bed with Golde, Tevye pretends to be waking from a nightmare. Golde offers to interpret his dream, and Tevye "describes" it ("Tevye's Dream"). Golde's grandmother Tzeitel returns from the grave to bless the marriage of her namesake, but to Motel, not to Lazar Wolf. Lazar's formidable late wife, Fruma-Sarah, rises from her grave to warn, in graphic terms, of severe retribution if Tzeitel marries Lazar. The superstitious Golde is terrified, and she quickly counsels that Tzeitel must marry Motel. While returning from town, Tevye's third daughter, the bookish Chava, is teased and intimidated by some gentile youths. One, Fyedka, protects her, dismissing the others. He offers Chava the loan of a book, and a secret relationship begins.
The wedding day of Tzeitel and Motel arrives, and all the Jews join the ceremony ("Sunrise, Sunset") and the celebration ("The Wedding Dance"). Lazar gives a fine gift, but an argument arises with Tevye over the broken agreement. Perchik ends the tiff by breaking another tradition: he crosses the barrier between the men and women to dance with Tevye's daughter Hodel. The celebration ends abruptly when a group of Russians rides into the village to perform the "demonstration". They disrupt the party, damaging the wedding gifts and wounding Perchik, who attempts to fight back, and wreak more destruction in the village. Tevye instructs his family to clean up the mess.
Act II
Months later, Perchik tells Hodel he must return to Kiev to work for the revolution. He proposes marriage, admitting that he loves her, and says that he will send for her. She agrees ("Now I Have Everything"). They tell Tevye that they are engaged, and he is appalled that they are flouting tradition by making their own match, especially as Perchik is leaving. When he forbids the marriage, Perchik and Hodel inform him that they do not seek his permission, only his blessing. After more soul searching, Tevye relents – the world is changing, and he must change with it ("Tevye's Rebuttal"). He informs the young couple that he gives them his blessing and his permission.
Tevye explains these events to an astonished Golde. "Love", he says, "it's the new style." Tevye asks Golde, despite their own arranged marriage, "Do You Love Me?" After dismissing Tevye's question as foolish, she eventually admits that, after 25 years of living and struggling together and raising five daughters, she does. Meanwhile, Yente tells Tzeitel that she saw Chava with Fyedka. News spreads quickly in Anatevka that Perchik has been arrested and exiled to Siberia ("The Rumor/I Just Heard"), and Hodel is determined to join him there. At the railway station, she explains to her father that her home is with her beloved, wherever he may be, although she will always love her family ("Far From the Home I Love").
Time passes. Motel has purchased a used sewing machine, and he and Tzeitel have had a baby. Chava finally gathers the courage to ask Tevye to allow her marriage to Fyedka. Again Tevye reaches deep into his soul, but marriage outside the Jewish faith is a line he will not cross. He forbids Chava to speak to Fyedka again. When Golde brings news that Chava has eloped with Fyedka, Tevye wonders where he went wrong ("Chavaleh Sequence"). Chava returns and tries to reason with him, but he refuses to speak to her and tells the rest of the family to consider her dead. Meanwhile, rumors are spreading of the Russians expelling Jews from their villages. While the villagers are gathered, the Constable arrives to tell everyone that they have three days to pack up and leave the town. In shock, they reminisce about "Anatevka" and how hard it will be to leave what has been their home for so long.
As the Jews leave Anatevka, Chava and Fyedka stop to tell her family that they are also leaving for Kraków, unwilling to remain among the people who could do such things to others. Tevye still will not talk to her, but when Tzeitel says goodbye to Chava, Tevye prompts her to add "God be with you." Motel and Tzeitel go to Poland as well but will join the rest of the family when they have saved up enough money. As Tevye, Golde and their two youngest daughters leave the village for America, the fiddler begins to play. Tevye beckons with a nod, and the fiddler follows them out of the village.
Musical numbers
Act I
"Prologue: Tradition" – Tevye and Company
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
"If I Were a Rich Man" – Tevye
"Sabbath Prayer" – Tevye, Golde, Company
"To Life" – Tevye, Lazar Wolf, Russian soloist and Men
"Tevye's Monologue" – Tevye
"Miracle of Miracles" – Motel
"Tevye's Dream" – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Rabbi, Fruma-Sarah and Company
"Sunrise, Sunset" – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and Company
"The Bottle Dance" – Instrumental
Act II
"Entr'acte" – Orchestra
"Now I Have Everything" – Perchik and Hodel
"Tevye's Rebuttal" – Tevye
"Do You Love Me?" – Tevye and Golde
"The Rumor/I Just Heard" – Yente and Villagers §
"Far From the Home I Love" – Hodel
"Chavaleh (Little Bird)" – Tevye
"Anatevka" – The Company
§ The 2004 revival featured a song for Yente and some women of the village (Rivka and Mirala) titled "Topsy Turvy", discussing the disappearing role of the matchmaker in society. The number replaced "The Rumor/I Just Heard".
Principal characters
All of the characters are Jewish, except as noted:
Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters. A firm supporter of the traditions of his faith, he finds many of his convictions tested by the actions of his three oldest daughters.
Golde, Tevye's sharp-tongued wife.
Tzeitel, their oldest daughter, about nineteen. She loves her childhood friend Motel and marries him, even though he's poor, begging her father not to force her to marry Lazar Wolf.
Hodel, their daughter, about seventeen. Intelligent and spirited, she falls in love with Perchik and later joins him in Siberia.
Chava, their daughter, about fifteen. A shy and bookish girl, who falls in love with Fyedka.
Motel Kamzoil, a poor but hardworking tailor who loves, and later marries, Tzeitel.
Perchik, a student revolutionary who comes to Anatevka and falls in love with Hodel. He leaves for Kiev, is arrested and exiled to Siberia.
Fyedka, a young Christian. He shares Chava's passion for reading and is outraged by the Russians' treatment of the Jews.
Lazar Wolf, the wealthy village butcher. Widower of Fruma-Sarah. Attempts to arrange a marriage for himself to Tzeitel.
Yente, the gossipy village matchmaker who matches Tzeitel and Lazar.
Grandma Tzeitel, Golde's dead grandmother, who rises from the grave in Tevye's "nightmare".
Fruma-Sarah, Lazar Wolf's dead wife, who also rises from the grave in the "nightmare".
Rabbi, the wise village leader.
Constable, the head of the local Russian police, a Christian.
Casts
Productions
Original productions
Following its tryout at Detroit's Fisher Theatre in July and August 1964, then Washington in August to September, the original Broadway production opened on September 22, 1964, at the Imperial Theatre, transferred in 1967 to the Majestic Theatre and in 1970 to the Broadway Theatre, and ran for a record-setting total of 3,242 performances. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins – his last original Broadway staging. The set, designed in the style of Marc Chagall's paintings, was by Boris Aronson. A colorful logo for the production, also inspired by Chagall's work, was designed by Tom Morrow. Chagall reportedly did not like the musical.
The cast included Zero Mostel as Tevye the milkman, Maria Karnilova as his wife Golde (each of whom won a Tony for their performances), Beatrice Arthur as Yente the matchmaker, Austin Pendleton as Motel, Bert Convy as Perchik the student revolutionary, Gino Conforti as the fiddler, and Julia Migenes as Hodel. Mostel ad-libbed increasingly as the run went on, "which drove the authors up the wall". Joanna Merlin originated the role of Tzeitel, which was later assumed by Bette Midler during the original run. Carol Sawyer was Fruma Sarah, Adrienne Barbeau took a turn as Hodel, and Pia Zadora played the youngest daughter, Bielke. Both Peg Murray and Dolores Wilson made extended appearances as Golde, while other stage actors who have played Tevye include Herschel Bernardi, Theodore Bikel and Harry Goz (in the original Broadway run), and Leonard Nimoy. Mostel's understudy in the original production, Paul Lipson, went on to appear as Tevye in more performances than any other actor (until Chaim Topol), clocking over 2,000 performances in the role in the original run and several revivals. Florence Stanley took over the role of Yente nine months into the run. The production earned $1,574 for every dollar invested in it. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Mostel and Karnilova.
The original London West End production opened on February 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre and played for 2,030 performances. It starred Topol as Tevye, a role he had previously played in Tel Aviv, and Miriam Karlin as Golde. Alfie Bass, Lex Goudsmit and Barry Martin eventually took over as Tevye. Topol later played Tevye in the 1971 film adaptation, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, and in several revivals over the next four decades. The show was revived in London for short seasons in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre and in 1994 at the London Palladium.
Broadway revivals
The first Broadway revival opened on December 28, 1976, and ran for 176 performances at the Winter Garden Theatre. Zero Mostel starred as Tevye. Robbins directed and choreographed. A second Broadway revival opened on July 9, 1981, and played for a limited run (53 performances) at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater. It starred Herschel Bernardi as Tevye and Karnilova as Golde. Other cast members included Liz Larsen, Fyvush Finkel, Lawrence Leritz and Paul Lipson. Robbins directed and choreographed. The third Broadway revival opened on November 18, 1990, and ran for 241 performances at the George Gershwin Theatre. Topol starred as Tevye, and Marcia Lewis was Golde. Robbins' production was reproduced by Ruth Mitchell and choreographer Sammy Dallas Bayes. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival.
A fourth Broadway revival opened on February 26, 2004, and ran for 36 previews and 781 performances at the Minskoff Theatre. Alfred Molina, and later Harvey Fierstein, starred as Tevye, and Randy Graff, and later Andrea Martin and Rosie O'Donnell, was Golde. Barbara Barrie and later Nancy Opel played Yente, Laura Michelle Kelly played Hodel and Lea Michele played Sprintze. It was directed by David Leveaux. This production replaced Yente's song "The Rumor" with a song for Yente and two other women called "Topsy-Turvy". The production was nominated for six Tonys but did not win any. In June 2014, to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, a gala celebration and reunion was held at the Town Hall in New York City to benefit National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, with appearances by many of the cast members of the various Broadway productions and the 1971 film, as well as Sheldon Harnick, Chita Rivera, Karen Ziemba, Joshua Bell, Jerry Zaks and others.
The fifth Broadway revival began previews on November 20 and opened on December 20, 2015, at the Broadway Theatre, with concept and choreography based on the original by Robbins. Bartlett Sher directed, and Hofesh Shechter choreographed. The cast starred Danny Burstein as Tevye, with Jessica Hecht as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Tzeitel, Adam Kantor as Motel, Ben Rappaport as Perchik, Samantha Massell as Hodel and Melanie Moore as Chava. Judy Kuhn replaced Hecht as Golde on November 22, 2016, for the last five weeks of the run. Designers include Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lighting). Initial reviews were mostly positive, finding Burstein and the show touching. The production was nominated for three Tony Awards but won none. It closed on December 31, 2016, after 463 performances.
London revivals
Fiddler was first revived in London in 1983 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre (a four-month season starring Topol) and again in 1994 at the London Palladium for two months and then on tour, again starring Topol, and directed and choreographed by Sammy Dallas Bayes, recreating the Robbins production.
After a two-month tryout at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, a London revival opened on May 19, 2007, at the Savoy Theatre starring Henry Goodman as Tevye, Beverley Klein as Golde, Alexandra Silber as Hodel, Damian Humbley as Perchik and Victor McGuire as Lazar Wolf. The production was directed by Lindsay Posner. Robbins' choreography was recreated by Sammy Dallas Bayes (who did the same for the 1990 Broadway revival), with additional choreography by Kate Flatt.
A revival played at the Menier Chocolate Factory from November 23, 2018, until March 9, 2019, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Andy Nyman as Tevye and Judy Kuhn as Golde. The production transferred to the Playhouse Theatre in the West End on March 21, 2019, with an official opening on March 27. Replacement players included Maria Friedman as Golde and Anita Dobson as Yente. The run closed on November 2, 2019.
Other UK productions
A 2003 national tour played for seven months, with a radical design, directed by Julian Woolford and choreographed by Chris Hocking. The production's minimalist set and costumes were monochromatic, and Fruma-Sarah was represented by a 12-foot puppet. This production was revived in 2008 starring Joe McGann.
The show toured the UK again in 2013 and 2014 starring Paul Michael Glaser as Tevye with direction and choreography by Craig Revel Horwood.
A revival played at Chichester Festival Theatre from July 10 to September 2, 2017, directed by Daniel Evans and starring Omid Djalili as Tevye and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Golde.
Australian productions
The original Australian production opened on June 16, 1967, at Her Majesty's Theatre in Sydney. It starred Hayes Gordon as Tevye and Brigid Lenihan as Golde. The production ran for two years. The first professional revival tour was staged by the Australian Opera in 1984 with Gordon again playing Tevye. A young Anthony Warlow played Fyedka.
In 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Topol recreated his role as Tevye in Australian productions, with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Wellington and Auckland. The musical was again revived in Melbourne and Sydney in 2015–2016 with Anthony Warlow as Tevye, Sigrid Thornton as Golde and Lior as Motel.
Other notable North American productions
Topol in 'Fiddler on the Roof': The Farewell Tour opened on January 20, 2009, in Wilmington, Delaware. Topol left the tour in November 2009 due to torn muscles. He was replaced by Harvey Fierstein and Theodore Bikel. The cast included Mary Stout, Susan Cella, Bill Nolte, Erik Liberman, Rena Strober, and Stephen Lee Anderson.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene mounted a Yiddish adaptation, Fidler Afn Dakh, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, under the direction of Joel Grey, with a translation by Shraga Friedman that was first used in a 1965 Israeli production. The cast included Jackie Hoffman as Yente, Steven Skybell as Tevye, Daniel Kahn as Pertshik, Stephanie Lynne Mason as Hodl and Raquel Nobile as Shprintze. Previews began on July 4, and opening night was July 15, 2018. The production played through the end of that year. It then transferred to Stage 42, an off-Broadway theatre, with Skybell, Hoffman, Mason and Nobile reprising their roles. Previews began February 11, with opening night on February 21, 2019. Musical staging was by Staś Kmieć (based on the original choreography by Robbins), with set design by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Ann Hould-Ward, sound by Dan Moses Schreier and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. The production closed on January 5, 2020. It won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.
International and amateur productions
The musical was an international hit, with early productions playing throughout Europe, in South America, Africa and Australia; 100 different productions were mounted in the former West Germany in the first three decades after the musical's premiere, and within five years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, 23 productions were staged in the former East Germany; and it was the longest-running musical ever seen in Tokyo. According to BroadwayWorld, the musical has been staged "in every metropolitan city in the world from Paris to Beijing."
A Hebrew language staging was produced in Tel Aviv by the Israeli impresario Giora Godik in the 1960s. This version was so successful that in 1965 Godik produced a Yiddish version translated by Shraga Friedman. A 2008 Hebrew-language production ran at the Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv for more than six years. It was directed by Moshe Kepten, choreographed by Dennis Courtney and starred Natan Datner.
Un violon sur le toît was produced in French at Paris's théâtre Marigny from November 1969 to May 1970, resuming from September to January 1971 (a total of 292 performances) with Ivan Rebroff as Tevye and Maria Murano as Golde. Another adaptation was produced in 2005 at the théâtre Comédia in Paris with Franck Vincent as Tevye and Isabelle Ferron as Golde. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival produced the musical from April to October 2013 at the Festival Theatre directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. It starred Scott Wentworth as Tevye. An Italian version, Il violinista sul tetto, with lyrics sung in Yiddish and the orchestra on stage also serving as chorus, was given a touring production in 2004, with Moni Ovadia as Tevye and director; it opened at Teatro Municipale Valli in Reggio Emilia.
The musical receives about 500 amateur productions a year in the US alone.
Film adaptations and recordings
A film version was released by United Artists in 1971, directed and produced by Norman Jewison, and Stein adapted his own book for the screenplay. Chaim Topol starred. The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics and became the highest-grossing film of 1971. Fiddler received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jewison, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Topol, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Leonard Frey (as Motel; in the original Broadway production, Frey was the rabbi's son). It won three, including best score/adaptation for arranger-conductor John Williams.
In the film version, the character of Yente is reduced, and Perchik's song to Hodel "Now I Have Everything" is cut and replaced by a scene in Kiev. The "Chagall color palette" of the original Broadway production was exchanged for a grittier, more realistic depiction of the village of Anatevka.
Theatre historian John Kenrick wrote that the original Broadway cast album released by RCA Victor in 1964, "shimmers – an essential recording in any show lover's collection", praising the cast. The remastered CD includes two recordings not on the original album, the bottle dance from the wedding scene and "Rumor" performed by Beatrice Arthur. In 2020, the recording was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Kenrick writes that while the original Broadway cast version is the clear first choice among recordings of this musical, he also likes the Columbia Records studio cast album with Bernardi as Tevye; the film soundtrack, although he feels that the pace drags a bit; and some of the numerous foreign versions, including the Israeli, German and Japanese casts.
MGM and producers Dan Jinks and Aaron Harnick are planning a new film adaptation of the musical, with Thomas Kail directing and co-producing, and Steven Levenson penning the screenplay.
Cultural influence
The musical's popularity has led to numerous references in popular media and elsewhere. A documentary film about the musical's history and legacy, Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles, was released in 2019.
Parodies
Parodies relating to the show have included Antenna on the Roof (Mad magazine #156, January 1973), which speculated about the lives of Tevye's descendants living in an assimilated 1970s suburban America. In the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Robin Williams parodies "Matchmaker". In a 1994 Animaniacs parody, Pigeon on the Roof, the Goodfeathers decide to marry their girlfriends; song parodies include "Scorsese" ("Tradition"), "Egg Hatcher" ("Matchmaker") and others. In 2001, the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society published a musical theatre and album parody called A Shoggoth on the Roof, which sets music from Fiddler to a story based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Spanish comedian and TV-host Jose Mota parodied "If I Were a Rich Man" with the song "Si no fuera rico" ("If I weren't a rich man") during his 2008 New Year's Eve special.
References to the musical on television have included a 2005 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "Jews and Chinese Food", involving a production of the musical. A skit by The Electric Company about a village fiddler with a fear of heights, so he is deemed "Fiddler on the Chair". In the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" (2003), William Shatner is depicted as playing Tevye in a scene from Fiddler. The second episode of Muppets Tonight, in 1996, featured Garth Brooks doing a piece of "If I were a Rich Man" in which he kicks several chickens off the roof. "The Rosie Show", a 1996 episode of The Nanny, parodied the dream scene, when Mr. Sheffield fakes a dream to convince Fran not to be a regular on a TV show. A 2011 episode of NBC's Community, entitled "Competitive Wine Tasting", included a parody titled Fiddla, Please! with an all-black cast dressed in Fiddler on the Roof costumes, singing "It's Hard to Be Jewish in Russia, Yo". Chabad.org kicked off their 2008 "To Life" telethon with a pastiche of the fiddle solo and bottle dance from the musical.
Broadway references have included Spamalot, where a "Grail dance" sends up the "bottle dance" in Fiddlers wedding scene. In 2001, Chicago's Improv Olympic produced a well-received parody, "The Roof Is on Fiddler", that used most of the original book of the musical but replaced the songs with 1980s pop songs. The original Broadway cast of the musical Avenue Q and the Broadway 2004 revival cast of Fiddler on the Roof collaborated for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit and produced an approximately 10-minute-long show, "Avenue Jew", that incorporated characters from both shows, including puppets.
Covers
Songs from the musical have been covered by notable artists. For example, in 1964, jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded the album Fiddler on the Roof, which featured jazz arrangements of eight songs from the musical. AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars and states "Cannonball plays near his peak; this is certainly the finest album by this particular sextet". That same year, Eydie Gormé released a single of "Matchmaker", and jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded the same tune for his album Movin' Wes. In 1999, Knitting Factory Records released Knitting on the Roof, a compilation CD featuring covers of Fiddler songs by alternative bands such as the Residents, Negativland, and the Magnetic Fields. Indie rock band Bright Eyes recorded an adaptation of "Sunrise, Sunset" on their 2000 album Fevers and Mirrors. Allmusic gave the album a favorable review, and the online music magazine Pitchfork Media ranked it at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. In 2005, Melbourne punk band Yidcore released a reworking of the entire show called Fiddling on Ya Roof.
Gwen Stefani and Eve covered "If I Were a Rich Man" as "Rich Girl" for Stefani's 2004 debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The song was inspired by the 1993 British Louchie Lou & Michie One ragga version of the same name. Stefani's version reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for over six months. It was certified gold by the RIAA and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. It was also covered in 2008 and 2009 by the Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle Dance" from Fiddler as a "recurring trademark", including at the Drum Corps International World Championships.
Other song versions
The song "Sunrise, Sunset" is often played at weddings, and in 2011 Sheldon Harnick wrote two versions of the song, suitable for same-sex weddings, with minor word changes. For example, for male couples, changes include "When did they grow to be so handsome".
Awards
Fiddlers original Broadway production in 1964 was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, and book, and Robbins won for best direction and choreography. Mostel and Karnilova won as best leading actor and best featured actress. In 1972, the show won a special Tony on becoming the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
Its revivals have also been honored. At the 1981 Tony Awards, Bernardi was nominated as best actor. Ten years later, the 1991 revival won for best revival, and Topol was nominated as best actor. The 2004 revival was nominated for six Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards but won none. The 2007 West End revival was nominated for Olivier Awards for best revival, and Goodman was nominated as best actor. The 2019 West End revival won the Olivier Award for best revival, and it received a further 7 nominations.
Notes
References
, p. 98
Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf
Further reading
Altman, Richard (1971). The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof. Crown Publishers.
Isenberg, Barbara (2014). Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical. New York: St. Martin's Press. .
Solomon, Alisa (2013). Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof. Metropolitan Books. .
External links
Fiddler on the Roof study guide
Fiddler on the Roof at Ovrtur
List of longest-running Broadway productions from Playbill
1964 musicals
Broadway musicals
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Jewish theatre
Musicals based on short fiction
Musicals by Joseph Stein
Musicals by Jerry Bock
Musicals by Sheldon Harnick
Musicals choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Tony Award for Best Musical
West End musicals
Yiddish culture
Plays set in the 1900s
Plays set in Russia
Jews and Judaism in fiction
Adaptations of works by Sholem Aleichem
Tony Award-winning musicals
United States National Recording Registry recordings | true | [
"Rita Moreno is a Puerto Rico-born American actress, singer, and dancer. With a career spanning nearly 80 years in the entertainment industry, Moreno is one of a few individuals to have won the four major annual American entertainment awards: an Oscar, an Emmy, a Grammy, and a Tony. She is also one of the few performers who have achieved the \"Triple Crown of Acting\", with individual competitive Academy, Emmy, and Tony awards for acting; she and Helen Hayes are the only two who have achieved both distinctions in their lifetimes. She has won numerous other awards, including various lifetime achievement awards and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, America's highest civilian honor. On March 28, 2019 Moreno received a Peabody Award.\n\nMajor associations\n\nAcademy Awards\n1 win out of 1 nomination\n\nBAFTA Awards\n1 nomination\n\nDaytime Emmy Awards\n4 nominations\n\nGolden Globe Awards\n1 win out of 3 nominations\n\nGrammy Awards\n1 win out of 2 nominations \n\nLatin Grammy Awards\n1 win out of 1 nominations\n\nPeabody Award\n1 win out of 1 nomination\n\nPrimetime Emmy Awards\n2 wins out of 6 nominations\n\nScreen Actors Guild Awards\n1 win out of 1 nomination\n\nTony Awards\n1 win out of 1 nomination\n\nOther associations\n\nALMA Awards\n4 wins out of 7 nominations\n\nCableACE Awards\n1 win out of 1 nomination\n\nCritics' Choice Television Awards\n3 nominations\n\nDrama Desk Awards\n2 nominations\n\nGold Derby Awards\n1 nomination\n\nImagen Foundation Awards\n2 nominations\n\nLaurel Awards\n1 win out of 1 nomination\n\nNAACP Image Awards\n3 nominations\n\nOFTA Awards\n2 wins out of 8 nominations\n\nSatellite Awards\n1 nomination\n\nLondon Film Critics' Circle \n1 nomination\n\nReferences\n\nMoreno, Rita",
"The Tony Award for Best Musical is given annually to the best new Broadway musical, as determined by Tony Award voters. The award is one of the ceremony's longest-standing awards, having been presented each year since 1949. The award goes to the producers of the winning musical. A musical is eligible for consideration in a given year if it has not previously been produced on Broadway and is not \"determined... to be a 'classic' or in the historical or popular repertoire\", otherwise it may be considered for Best Revival of a Musical.\n\nBest Musical is the final award presented at the Tony Awards ceremony. Excerpts from the musicals that are nominated for this award are usually performed during the ceremony before this award is presented.\n\nThis is a list of winners and nominations for the Tony Award for Best Musical.\n\nWinners and nominees\n\n1940s\n\n1950s\n\n1960s\n\n1970s\n\n1980s\n\n1990s\n\n2000s\n\n2010s\n\n2020s\n\nRecords\nAccumulated records as of 2019:\n The Producers has won the most Tonys, winning in 12 categories, including Best Musical. \n Hamilton is the most-nominated production in Tony history, with 16 nominations.\n The Sound of Music and Fiorello! are the only two musicals to date to have ever tied for the Best Musical award (in 1960).\n Passion is the shortest-running winner, with 280 performances.\n The Phantom of the Opera is the longest-running Best Musical winner, with 16 previews and 13,370 performances before performances were temporarily suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.\n Hallelujah, Baby! is the only show thus far to have won the Tony Award for Best Musical after closing.\n Fun Home is the first musical written entirely by a team of women to win the Tony Award for Best Musical.\n Kiss Me, Kate and Titanic are the only two shows to win the Tony Award for Best Musical without any Tony nominations in the acting categories. (In Kiss Me, Kate'''s case, only winners were announced that year, and only in the lead performance categories.)\n What is now the Richard Rodgers Theatre has housed more Best Musical winners than any other theater on Broadway: Guys and Dolls (1951), Damn Yankees (1956), Redhead (1959), How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1962), 1776 (1969), Raisin (1974), A Chorus Line (1976), Nine (1982), In the Heights (2008), and Hamilton (2016).The Mystery of Edwin Drood was the first winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical to be entirely written by one man, Rupert Holmes. Rent (by Jonathan Larson) and Hamilton (by Lin-Manuel Miranda) also achieved this feat. Hadestown'' is the first musical entirely written by one woman, Anaïs Mitchell, to win this award.\n The 74th Tony Awards (2020) is the first ceremony in which only jukebox musicals were nominated.\n\nSee also\n Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical\n Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical\n Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical\n List of Tony Award and Olivier Award winning musicals\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Tony Awards Official site\n Tony Awards at Internet Broadway database Listing\n Internet Broadway Database, See Awards\n Tony Awards at broadwayworld.com\n\n \nTony Awards\nMusical theatre awards\nAwards established in 1949\n1949 establishments in the United States"
]
|
[
"A.J. Styles",
"Feud with Jimmy Rave (2005-2006)"
]
| C_d2c9e27ab1824a4f92941899a5b6723e_1 | What happened in 2005? | 1 | What happened in 2005? | A.J. Styles | Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration: Part Two to wrestle Jimmy Rave, who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash (which he called the Rave Clash) from him, though he was unsuccessful in defeating Rave. During his feud with Rave and The Embassy, Styles formed an alliance with Generation Next, who were also feuding with The Embassy. At Glory by Honor IV, Styles defeated Rave with Mick Foley in his corner, with the stipulation that the loser could no longer use the Rave/Styles Clash in Ring of Honor. At This Means War, he defeated Generation Next leader Austin Aries, who was attacked by The Embassy following the show. At Vendetta, Styles had his final match against The Embassy when he, along with Austin Aries, Jack Evans and Matt Sydal were defeated by Abyss, Alex Shelley, Jimmy Rave, and Prince Nana in an eight-man tag match. Following his feud with The Embassy, Styles set his sights on winning a championship. At A Night of Tribute, Styles faced Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal in a three-way match, which Daniels won. On the first show of 2006, Styles wrestled and defeated Matt Sydal, after which the two agreed to form a tag team and challenge for the ROH Tag Team Championship, which were held by Sydal's Generation Next teammates Austin Aries and Roderick Strong. Before receiving a shot at the tag team title, Styles received a shot at the ROH World Championship when he was handpicked by Bryan Danielson, but he was unsuccessful. At the Fourth Anniversary Show, Styles and Sydal received their shot at the ROH Tag Team Championship, but were unable to defeat the champions. After an absence, Styles returned at Death Before Dishonor IV, defeating Davey Richards. Styles returned at Time to Man Up, losing to Samoa Joe. In a pre-taped promo, Styles said he would be taking several months off from ROH following the match; however, ROH commentators continually referred to the match as his final match and even played a special tribute to him after it. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | false | [
"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books",
"\"What Happened to Us\" is a song by Australian recording artist Jessica Mauboy, featuring English recording artist Jay Sean. It was written by Sean, Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim and Israel Cruz. \"What Happened to Us\" was leaked online in October 2010, and was released on 10 March 2011, as the third single from Mauboy's second studio album, Get 'Em Girls (2010). The song received positive reviews from critics.\n\nA remix of \"What Happened to Us\" made by production team OFM, was released on 11 April 2011. A different version of the song which features Stan Walker, was released on 29 May 2011. \"What Happened to Us\" charted on the ARIA Singles Chart at number 14 and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). An accompanying music video was directed by Mark Alston, and reminisces on a former relationship between Mauboy and Sean.\n\nProduction and release\n\n\"What Happened to Us\" was written by Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim, Israel Cruz and Jay Sean. It was produced by Skaller, Cruz, Rohaim and Bobby Bass. The song uses C, D, and B minor chords in the chorus. \"What Happened to Us\" was sent to contemporary hit radio in Australia on 14 February 2011. The cover art for the song was revealed on 22 February on Mauboy's official Facebook page. A CD release was available for purchase via her official website on 10 March, for one week only. It was released digitally the following day.\n\nReception\nMajhid Heath from ABC Online Indigenous called the song a \"Jordin Sparks-esque duet\", and wrote that it \"has a nice innocence to it that rings true to the experience of losing a first love.\" Chris Urankar from Nine to Five wrote that it as a \"mid-tempo duet ballad\" which signifies Mauboy's strength as a global player. On 21 March 2011, \"What Happened to Us\" debuted at number 30 on the ARIA Singles Chart, and peaked at number 14 the following week. The song was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), for selling 70,000 copies. \"What Happened to Us\" spent a total of ten weeks in the ARIA top fifty.\n\nMusic video\n\nBackground\nThe music video for the song was shot in the Elizabeth Bay House in Sydney on 26 November 2010. The video was shot during Sean's visit to Australia for the Summerbeatz tour. During an interview with The Daily Telegraph while on the set of the video, Sean said \"the song is sick! ... Jessica's voice is amazing and we're shooting [the video] in this ridiculously beautiful mansion overlooking the harbour.\" The video was directed by Mark Alston, who had previously directed the video for Mauboy's single \"Let Me Be Me\" (2009). It premiered on YouTube on 10 February 2011.\n\nSynopsis and reception\nThe video begins showing Mauboy who appears to be sitting on a yellow antique couch in a mansion, wearing a purple dress. As the video progresses, scenes of memories are displayed of Mauboy and her love interest, played by Sean, spending time there previously. It then cuts to the scenes where Sean appears in the main entrance room of the mansion. The final scene shows Mauboy outdoors in a gold dress, surrounded by green grass and trees. She is later joined by Sean who appears in a black suit and a white shirt, and together they sing the chorus of the song to each other. David Lim of Feed Limmy wrote that the video is \"easily the best thing our R&B princess has committed to film – ever\" and praised the \"mansion and wondrous interior décor\". He also commended Mauboy for choosing Australian talent to direct the video instead of American directors, which she had used for her previous two music videos. Since its release, the video has received over two million views on Vevo.\n\nLive performances\nMauboy performed \"What Happened to Us\" live for the first time during her YouTube Live Sessions program on 4 December 2010. She also appeared on Adam Hills in Gordon Street Tonight on 23 February 2011 for an interview and later performed the song. On 15 March 2011, Mauboy performed \"What Happened to Us\" on Sunrise. She also performed the song with Stan Walker during the Australian leg of Chris Brown's F.A.M.E. Tour in April 2011. Mauboy and Walker later performed \"What Happened to Us\" on Dancing with the Stars Australia on 29 May 2011. From November 2013 to February 2014, \"What Happened to Us\" was part of the set list of the To the End of the Earth Tour, Mauboy's second headlining tour of Australia, with Nathaniel Willemse singing Sean's part.\n\nTrack listing\n\nDigital download\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean – 3:19\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Sgt Slick Remix) – 6:33\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Just Witness Remix) – 3:45\n\nCD single\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Album Version) – 3:19\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Sgt Slick Remix) – 6:33\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (OFM Remix) – 3:39\n\nDigital download – Remix\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (OFM Remix) – 3:38\n\nDigital download\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Stan Walker – 3:20\n\nPersonnel\nSongwriting – Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim, Israel Cruz, Jay Sean\nProduction – Jeremy Skaller, Bobby Bass\nAdditional production – Israel Cruz, Khaled Rohaim\nLead vocals – Jessica Mauboy, Jay Sean\nMixing – Phil Tan\nAdditional mixing – Damien Lewis\nMastering – Tom Coyne \nSource:\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly chart\n\nYear-end chart\n\nCertification\n\nRadio dates and release history\n\nReferences\n\n2010 songs\n2011 singles\nJessica Mauboy songs\nJay Sean songs\nSongs written by Billy Steinberg\nSongs written by Jay Sean\nSongs written by Josh Alexander\nSongs written by Israel Cruz\nVocal duets\nSony Music Australia singles\nSongs written by Khaled Rohaim",
"The term \"allohistory\" may refer to:\n\nAlternate history, a form of historical fiction that speculates what would have happened had history gone differently\nCounterfactual history, this speculation used in a real-world setting\nUchronia, a form of historical fantasy that posits a fictional \"what may have happened\" (as in The Lord of the Rings)"
]
|
|
[
"A.J. Styles",
"Feud with Jimmy Rave (2005-2006)",
"What happened in 2005?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_d2c9e27ab1824a4f92941899a5b6723e_1 | What happened with Jimmy Rave? | 2 | What happened with Jimmy Rave in 2005? | A.J. Styles | Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration: Part Two to wrestle Jimmy Rave, who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash (which he called the Rave Clash) from him, though he was unsuccessful in defeating Rave. During his feud with Rave and The Embassy, Styles formed an alliance with Generation Next, who were also feuding with The Embassy. At Glory by Honor IV, Styles defeated Rave with Mick Foley in his corner, with the stipulation that the loser could no longer use the Rave/Styles Clash in Ring of Honor. At This Means War, he defeated Generation Next leader Austin Aries, who was attacked by The Embassy following the show. At Vendetta, Styles had his final match against The Embassy when he, along with Austin Aries, Jack Evans and Matt Sydal were defeated by Abyss, Alex Shelley, Jimmy Rave, and Prince Nana in an eight-man tag match. Following his feud with The Embassy, Styles set his sights on winning a championship. At A Night of Tribute, Styles faced Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal in a three-way match, which Daniels won. On the first show of 2006, Styles wrestled and defeated Matt Sydal, after which the two agreed to form a tag team and challenge for the ROH Tag Team Championship, which were held by Sydal's Generation Next teammates Austin Aries and Roderick Strong. Before receiving a shot at the tag team title, Styles received a shot at the ROH World Championship when he was handpicked by Bryan Danielson, but he was unsuccessful. At the Fourth Anniversary Show, Styles and Sydal received their shot at the ROH Tag Team Championship, but were unable to defeat the champions. After an absence, Styles returned at Death Before Dishonor IV, defeating Davey Richards. Styles returned at Time to Man Up, losing to Samoa Joe. In a pre-taped promo, Styles said he would be taking several months off from ROH following the match; however, ROH commentators continually referred to the match as his final match and even played a special tribute to him after it. CANNOTANSWER | Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration: | false | [
"The Rock 'n' Rave Infection was a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Lance Rock, Jimmy Rave, and managed by Christy Hemme.\n\nHistory\n\n2007\nLance Hoyt and Jimmy Rave made their debut as a team at No Surrender in the tag team gauntlet. On the following episode of iMPACT! Hoyt and Rave, accompanied by Christy Hemme (Hoyt's on screen girlfriend at the time), made their impact debut as a team. They wrestled regularly but continued losing. Hemme quickly grew tired of the losses and began complaining. The rift within the team continued to develop until Hemme claimed during an interview segment that she heard Rave call her a \"red snapper\". Rave insisted he was talking about fishing but Hemme thought otherwise telling Hoyt to \"make him get lost\", to which Hoyt said \"Jimmy's my boy, and you're gonna have to deal with it.\" Hemme replied by saying \"Your getting nothing tonight, NOTHING!\". It was during this interview that Rave first referred to the team of himself and Hoyt as \"The Rock 'n' Rave Infection\", which initially provoked an annoyed response from Hemme. There have been no problems with the trio since Rave and Rock accompanied Hemme to a match against Awesome Kong.\n\nOn the November 15, 2007 episode of iMPACT! the team scored their first major victory by upsetting LAX with help from Hemme, who was attacked after the match by a member of the \"Latino Nation\". Hoyt and Rave began feuding with LAX and Hemme continued to be harassed or attacked by the masked member of LAX. Hemme threatened to sue (kayfabe) TNA Management for male on female harassment.\n\n2008\nOn the first Impact! of 2008, TNA held gauntlets to determine the rankings of their divisions. In the tag team division, Hoyt and Rave were ranked number five and VKM were ranked number four, so one member from each team started the match. A member from Team 3D came out next, followed by someone from the Motor City Machine Guns and someone from LAX. Near the end of the match the two teams left were Motor City Machine Guns and The Rock 'n Rave Infection. The Motor City Machine Guns won the match so Hoyt and Rave were ranked number two in the division. At the Final Resolution pay-per-view, the teams ended their feud in a match won by LAX. After the match the mystery Latino Nation attacker low-blowed Hoyt and then unveiled herself as a woman named Salinas, therefore showing why they were not threatened by the lawsuit.\n\nAfter the LAX feud ended, the trio of Rave, Hoyt and Hemme developed a rock band gimmick, bringing out Guitar Hero game controllers to the ring, with Hemme acting like a frontwoman. They defeated other teams for the next few weeks, until they began feuding with the Motor City Machine Guns, losing three consecutive matches. On the April 3, 2008 edition of Impact! they participated in an eight-man tag team match against LAX and the Motor City Machine Guns. Hoyt and Rave were paired with Rellik and Black Reign and were called \"The Monsters of Rock\" in a backstage interview segment. \"The Monsters of Rock\" lost but then attacked the members of the winning team. Kaz intervened to try to stop the attack, but he was also attacked, which led to Super Eric entering the ring and stopping the attack. On May 1, 2008, they were eliminated from the Deuces Wild Tag Team Tournament in a first-round loss to A.J. Styles and Super Eric. The following week, Jimmy Rave defeated Curry Man in a six-man X division match. On the July 7, 2008 edition of Impact!, Hoyt changed his ring name to Lance Rock to give meaning to the team name hence Lance Rock and Jimmy Rave (Rock 'n Rave Infection) and both he and Rave defeated Matt Morgan.\n\nOn the October 16, 2008 edition of Impact!, Rock and Rave were attacked by Kurt Angle and were sent to the hospital. As Hemme attempted to leave the building and go to the hospital, The Beautiful People and Cute Kip confronted and insulted her, which led to the trio attacking her and performing the brown paper bag treatment on her. Hemme completed her face turn by defeating Velvet Sky on the October 23, 2008 edition of Impact!. Rave remained a heel in his subsequent matches while Rock was not featured on television. The team then participated in the \"Feast or Fired\" match at Final Resolution, but were unsuccessful in obtaining one of the four Feast or Fired briefcases. Soon afterwards, Hemme quietly separated from the team, turned face and became a singles wrestler as she began feuding with Knockout Champion Awesome Kong for the title.\n\nOn February 10, 2009, Rock was released from his contract and only one day later, Rave was also released. On February 26, 2009, Rock and Rave made their last appearance as a team on TNA when they accepted Beer Money, Inc.'s \"Off the Wagon Challenge\" for the TNA World Tag Team titles. The match ended when Roode pinned Rock, who then as per stipulation was forced out of TNA for good.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nOnline World Of Wrestling Profile\n\nRock 'n' Rave Infection, The",
"James Michael Guffey (December 8, 1982 – December 12, 2021), better known by the ring name Jimmy Rave, was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his time with Ring of Honor (ROH) and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA).\n\nEarly life\nJames Michael Guffey was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on December 8, 1982.\n\nProfessional wrestling career\n\nEarly career (1999–2005) \nTrained by Murder One, Guffey debuted in October 1999 as the masked Mr. XTC. He later adopted the ring name Jimmy Rave. Rave wrestled for numerous professional wrestling promotions on the independent circuit, amongst them Combat Zone Wrestling, Full Impact Pro and NWA Wildside, where he won both the NWA Wildside Junior Heavyweight Championship and the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship twice, toured Japan with the Dragon Gate promotion on two occasions and competed in the Best of the Super Juniors for New Japan Pro-Wrestling in 2008, and made several appearances with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling as well as an appearance on World Wrestling Entertainment's Sunday Night Heat program in March 2005 losing to Chris Masters.\n\nRing of Honor (2003–2007)\nRave debuted in Ring of Honor in 2003. He later became a member of The Embassy, a stable led by Prince Nana, and was nicknamed \"The Crown Jewel of the Embassy\".\n\nEarly on, Rave gained notoriety for having received excessive heel heat from ROH fans. In ROH it was common for fans to throw streamers over the wrestlers they support. Rave, however, had become a sort of cult recipient as fans threw rolls of toilet paper at him instead. ROH announced on November 6, 2006, that the throwing of toilet paper had been banned from all ROH shows after Jimmy Rave tried to attack a fan who threw a roll at him after his match.\n\nRave developed a habit of stealing other wrestlers finishers and claiming them as his own. An example would be when he began to use the Rave Clash, a copy of Styles' own Styles Clash, and said he invented it and that Styles stole it from him. After losing a match to Styles in ROH where the stipulation was the loser could no longer use their respective version of the move, Rave began to use the Greetings From Ghana, a copy of Triple H's Pedigree, as his new finisher and would again claim that he had in fact invented that move too.\n\nOn January 14, 2006, in Philadelphia, Rave and Alex Shelley of The Embassy attacked ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson after a successful title defense. At Tag Wars 2006, Rave, along with Shelley and Abyss, won the 2006 Trios Tournament. Rave used his title shot earned at the Tag Wars 2006, but came up short in his match with Danielson at the Fourth Anniversary Show.\n\nIn 2006, Rave had sporadically been tagging with Alex Shelley in search of the ROH Tag Team Titles, but after Shelley left the company in mid-year, Rave returned to singles action briefly. He found himself on the losing side of several encounters with Davey Richards. Soon Nana brought in a new tag partner, Sal Rinauro, and the two began working through the tag ranks.\n\nIn September 2006, Prince Nana announced his departure from Ring of Honor, ending The Embassy. Jimmy Rave would then go on a losing streak, until he scored a major upset by pinning ROH World Championship number one contender Homicide. The rest of the year and the early part of 2007, Rave feuded with Nigel McGuinness, culminating in a match on March 4, 2007, in Liverpool, England, where McGuinness finally managed to pin Rave in a Fight Without Honor to end the rivalry. Following the match, Rave was temporarily sidelined from in-ring action due to a broken jaw. In storyline the injury was credited with McGuinness hitting him with a lariat, but in reality Rave had broken his jaw a month earlier in a match against Samoa Joe. During his recuperation Rave was prescribed with pain medication, which later led to an addiction.\n\nOn May 22, 2007, it was announced that Rave had signed a contract with Ring of Honor. On August 2, 2007, however, it was announced that Rave had left both Ring of Honor and Full Impact Pro.\n\nTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling (2007–2009, 2011, 2013)\nIn August 2007 it was announced that Rave had signed a contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. He returned to the promotion at No Surrender on September 9, 2007, where he appeared alongside Christy Hemme and Lance Hoyt, later known as Lance Rock. The trio was subsequently named The Rock 'n Rave Infection, with Hemme, Rock and Rave adopting the mannerisms of a rock band and carrying Guitar Hero game controllers to the ring. He then became a jobber to the X Division, and the Tag Team division with Lance Rock, putting over such teams as Team 3D, LAX, Prince Justice Brotherhood and the Motor City Machine Guns. At Bound for Glory, Rave competed in the Reverse Battle Royal which was won by Eric Young. At Turning Point, Rave competed in the Feast or Fired but failed to win the match. At Final Resolution, The Rock 'n Rave Infection lost to The Latin American Xchange (Hernandez and Homicide). At Destination X, The Rock 'n Rave Infection lost a Three Way Tag Team match to determine number one contenders to the TNA World Tag Team Championship. At Lockdown, The Rock 'n Rave Infection competed in a Six Team Cuffed in the Cage match where they lost. At Sacrifice, Rave competed in a TerrorDome match which was won by Kaz. At No Surrender, The Rock 'n Rave Infection (Rave, Lane Rock and Christy Hemme) lost to Curry Man, Shark Boy, and Super Eric in a Six-person intergender tag team match.\n\nIn October 2008 Rave suffered a neck injury at Bound for Glory IV in the Steel Asylum match. The injury was minor as he quickly recovered and appeared at Turning Point and on Impact!. at Final Resolution, Rave competed in a Feast or Fired match but failed to win the match. At Genesis, Rave, Kiyoshi and Sonjay Dutt lost to Eric Young and The Latin American Xchange (Hernandez and Homicide) in a Six-man tag team elimination match.\n\nOn February 11, 2009, Rave was released from his TNA contract along with his former tag team partner, Lance Hoyt.\n\nOn June 13, 2011, at the tapings of the June 16 edition of Impact Wrestling, Rave made a one night return to TNA, losing to Austin Aries in a three–way first round match of a tournament for a TNA contract, which also included Kid Kash. On October 26, Rave defeated Kyle Matthews in a dark match at the Impact Wrestling tapings in Macon, Georgia. In December 2011, Rave took part in TNA's India project, Ring Ka King, where he worked as a trainer and wrestled in a tag team with Zema Ion. On January 12, 2013, Rave took part in the tapings of TNA's One Night Only: X-Travaganza special (aired on April 5, 2013), wrestling in a seven-man Xscape match, which was won by Christian York.\n\nReturn to ROH (2009, 2011, 2013)\n\nOn March 21, 2009, at ROH's seventh anniversary show, Rave made a surprise return to the company when Prince Nana announced him as Bison Smith's mystery tag team partner. Rave and Smith lost the tag match to Bryan Danielson and the also returning Colt Cabana when Cabana pinned Rave. Rave spent the rest of the year feuding with Grizzly Redwood and Necro Butcher. On September 19 Rave was defeated by Necro Butcher in a dog collar match and subsequently left the promotion. Rave later revealed that ROH released him due to his drug addiction.\n\nRave returned to Ring of Honor on December 16, 2011, appearing on an episode of the ROH Video Wire, challenging The Embassy's new Crown Jewel Tommaso Ciampa to a match at Final Battle 2011. At the pay-per-view on December 23, Rave was defeated following interference from members of the Embassy.\n\nOn March 2, 2013, Rave made his return for Ring of Honor at their 11th Anniversary Show iPPV, where he, Cliff Compton, Matt Hardy and Rhett Titus, revealed themselves as the newest members of S.C.U.M. by attacking numerous members of the ROH roster following the main event, joining Kevin Steen, Jimmy Jacobs, Rhino and Steve Corino as members of the group. On June 10, 2013, it was reported that Rave was once again done with ROH.\n\nIndependent circuit (2009–2020)\nJimmy Rave made his debut with Great Championship Wrestling on April 3, 2009, with a victory over his trainer, Murder One. Murder and Rave would subsequently battle throughout the summer, in a series of matches in which Rave finally defeated Murder for the GCW Heavyweight Championship. Of these battles, the July 16 street fight between the two that saw them brawl all over the GCW building, and the August 29 Mayhem in Milledgeville road show match, both stand out as two of the best matches the promotion had seen in over two years. Rave lost the championship belt in September to Johnny Swinger, who revealed himself to be plotting against Rave for months, while masquerading as a babyface. Rave would eventually regain the GCW Heavyweight championship a month later in October. His feud with Sal Rinauro, which began on May 14, 2009, with a hard-fought match that saw Rave win after 30 minutes of action, picked up once again, as Rinauro (returning from a hiatus from the organization) returned to challenge Rave for the GCW title on November 12, only to once again be defeated by him.\n\nRave also competed for Rampage Pro Wrestling (RPW), an organization overseen by former WWE referee Nick Patrick, and former Deep South Wrestling owner, Jody Hamilton, debuting in May 2009 and taking over head booker duties in June 2010. Rave continued to be one of the most popular stars there, defeating the likes of Adrian Hawkins, and Jeremy Vein, on his way up to contention for the heavyweight title, at the time held by Bull Buchanan. On December 6, 2009, he defeated Sal Rinauro to win the Rampage Pro Wrestling (RPW) Intercontinental Championship. He also went on to form the Jimmy Rave Approved stable, while working for RPW.\n\nIn January 2010 Rave suffered a broken nose, which would sideline him for six weeks, and as a result he was stripped of both the GCW Heavyweight and the RPW Intercontinental Titles.\n\nOn February 21, 2011, Dragon Gate USA announced that Rave would be making his debut for the promotion on April 1 in Burlington, North Carolina. In his debut Rave entered the Breakout Challenge Series, defeating Kyle Matthews, Lince Dorado and Sugar Dunkerton in his first round match. Later in the night, Rave was defeated in the finals of the tournament by Arik Cannon. On April 3 at Open the Ultimate Gate, Rave was defeated by Johnny Gargano in a singles match. On July 31, Rave was given the opportunity to wrestle for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, but was defeated by Adam Pearce in the four-way match, which also included Chance Prophet and Shaun Tempers.\n\nOn June 22, 2014, Rave made his debut for Atlanta Wrestling Entertainment (AWE), defeating Drew Adler. At AWE's To Be The Man! show on June 18, 2015, at The Masquerade, Rave participated in a 12-man tournament for the Georgia Wrestling Crown Championship. He won his opening three-way match against Kyle Matthews and Sugar Dunkerton, then defeated Raphael King in the semifinals and finally Chip Day in the finals to win the tournament and become the first ever GWC Champion. As GWC Champion, Rave made successful defenses against the likes of Cedric Alexander, Davey Richards, Gunner, Johnny Gargano, AR Fox, Sami Callihan and Tommaso Ciampa until losing the title to Martin Stone.\n\nPersonal life\nRave had two children from a previous marriage. At the time of his death in December 2021, he was living in Philadelphia with his fiancée and fellow wrestler Gabby Gilbert.\n\nGuffey had admitted to having past problems with drug addiction, which he blamed for his underwhelming performances in 2009. After leaving Ring of Honor, he checked into rehab and eventually got a job as the director of the Peer Support, Wellness and Respite Center in Bartow County, Georgia.\n\nGuffey announced his retirement via Twitter on November 28, 2020, due to an infection in his left arm that required amputation. On October 24, 2021, he tweeted that he had recently had both of his legs amputated due to an MRSA infection.\n\nDeath\nGuffey died at the age of 39 in Philadelphia on December 12, 2021.\n\nChampionships and accomplishments\nAtlanta Wrestling Entertainment\nGWC Championship Tournament (2015)\nCombat Zone Wrestling\nCZW Iron Man Championship (1 time)\nEmpire Wrestling Entertainment\nScenic City Invitational (2015)\nFull Impact Pro\nFIP Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Fast Eddie Vegas\nFIP Tag Team Championship tournament (2005)\nGreat Championship Wrestling\nGCW Heavyweight Championship (2 times)\nHardcore Championship Wrestling\nHCW Hardcore Championship (1 time)\nNational Wrestling Alliance\nNWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times)\nNWA Wildside\nNWA Wildside Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times)\nPeachstate Wrestling Alliance\nGeorgia Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)\nPWA Heritage Championship (1 time)\nPro Wrestling Illustrated\nRanked No. 181 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2009\nRampage Pro Wrestling\nRPW Intercontinental Championship (1 time)\nRing of Honor\nTrios Tournament (2006) – with Alex Shelley and Abyss\nSouthern Fried Championship Wrestling\nSFCW Phase One Championship (1 time)\nSTAR Pro Wrestling\nSTAR Heavyweight Championship (1 time)\nTwin States Wrestling\nTSW Championship (1 time)\n\nSee also\nList of premature professional wrestling deaths\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n Global Force Wrestling profile\n \n \n\n1982 births\n2021 deaths\nAmerican amputees\nAmerican male professional wrestlers\nProfessional wrestlers from Georgia (U.S. state)\nSportspeople from Atlanta",
"Baby Jane may refer to:\n\nBooks\n What Ever Happened to Baby Jane (novel), a 1960 novel by Henry Farrell\n Baby Jane, a novel by Finnish writer Sofi Oksanen\n\nPersons\n Baby Jane Holzer (Jane Bruckenfeld, 1940), American actress, and model for Andy Warhol appearing in Soap Opera (1964), Couch (1964), and Camp (1965)\n Juanita Quigley (1931–2017), American actress billed as \"Baby Jane\" in several early roles\n\nFilm, television and video games\n What Ever Happened to Baby Jane (1962 film), a film based on the novel, starring Bette Davis and Joan Crawford\n What Ever Happened to Baby Jane (1991 film), a remake based on the novel, starring Vanessa Redgrave and Lynn Redgrave\n Baby Jane Hudson, a character from the above work\n Baby Jane, a Splicer model in the video games BioShock and BioShock 2\n\nMusic\n\"Baby Jane\", song from Midnight Rave With The Pleazers EP written Dello, Cane\n \"Baby Jane\" (Rod Stewart song), 1983 \n \"Baby Jane\" (Dr. Feelgood song), 1977 \n Baby Jane (EP), an EP by Honey Is Cool\n Baby Jane, Christina Aguilera's alias for the 2006 album Back to Basics"
]
|
|
[
"A.J. Styles",
"Feud with Jimmy Rave (2005-2006)",
"What happened in 2005?",
"I don't know.",
"What happened with Jimmy Rave?",
"Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration:"
]
| C_d2c9e27ab1824a4f92941899a5b6723e_1 | Why did he feud with Jimmy? | 3 | Why did Styles feud with Jimmy? | A.J. Styles | Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration: Part Two to wrestle Jimmy Rave, who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash (which he called the Rave Clash) from him, though he was unsuccessful in defeating Rave. During his feud with Rave and The Embassy, Styles formed an alliance with Generation Next, who were also feuding with The Embassy. At Glory by Honor IV, Styles defeated Rave with Mick Foley in his corner, with the stipulation that the loser could no longer use the Rave/Styles Clash in Ring of Honor. At This Means War, he defeated Generation Next leader Austin Aries, who was attacked by The Embassy following the show. At Vendetta, Styles had his final match against The Embassy when he, along with Austin Aries, Jack Evans and Matt Sydal were defeated by Abyss, Alex Shelley, Jimmy Rave, and Prince Nana in an eight-man tag match. Following his feud with The Embassy, Styles set his sights on winning a championship. At A Night of Tribute, Styles faced Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal in a three-way match, which Daniels won. On the first show of 2006, Styles wrestled and defeated Matt Sydal, after which the two agreed to form a tag team and challenge for the ROH Tag Team Championship, which were held by Sydal's Generation Next teammates Austin Aries and Roderick Strong. Before receiving a shot at the tag team title, Styles received a shot at the ROH World Championship when he was handpicked by Bryan Danielson, but he was unsuccessful. At the Fourth Anniversary Show, Styles and Sydal received their shot at the ROH Tag Team Championship, but were unable to defeat the champions. After an absence, Styles returned at Death Before Dishonor IV, defeating Davey Richards. Styles returned at Time to Man Up, losing to Samoa Joe. In a pre-taped promo, Styles said he would be taking several months off from ROH following the match; however, ROH commentators continually referred to the match as his final match and even played a special tribute to him after it. CANNOTANSWER | who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash ( | false | [
"\"Little\" James 'Jimmy' Corkhill Jr. was a fictional character in the defunct Channel 4 soap opera Brookside. He was portrayed by George Christopher and first appeared between 1991 and 1992. Little Jimmy resented his father, Jimmy for a number of years having caught him having sex with his aunt, Val Walker.\n\nIn 1996, Little Jimmy returned to Brookside Close after spending time in a French prison for drug-related offences. On his release, he returned home, with Jimmy Corkhill (in a transit van on a ferry from France). Jimmy and Jackie were then determined to wean him off his addiction. This did not happen, and at a real low point for the Corkhills, Jimmy senior bowed to his son's wishes, who was going through cold turkey, and supplied him with a heroin fix. However, the catalyst for little Jimmy's fate was when mother, Jackie Corkhill discovered he had smuggled a large amount of heroin back into Britain, strapping it to his abdomen. In a fit of rage she then managed to get hold of it and flushed it down the toilet of the family home. A few months later, two gangster figures came looking for Jimmy, presumably to collect on the heroin that they had laid Jimmy on with. They met Ron Dixon at the Parade, who mistook them for plainclothes detectives and gave them the Corkhills' address. He did this with glee, in order to get back at Jimmy senior, who he had a long feud with. Little Jimmy's body was later found by his dad after being murdered by the drug dealers who were looking for him.\n\nIn November 1996, during a scene in which Little Jimmy breaks into the Dixons' house, the character was portrayed by another actor, Paul Sanders. This was due to the scene needing to be re-shot, and after regular actor George Christopher had left the show. The scene was filmed from behind and below the shoulders, leaving viewers to guess the identity of the burglar.\n\nReferences\n\nCorkhill, Jimmy Jr.\nCorkhill, Jimmy Jr.\nCorkhill, Jimmy Jr.",
"James Williams (born September 25, 1952) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring names \"Gorgeous Jimmy\" Garvin and Jimmy \"Jam\" Garvin. A member of The Fabulous Freebirds, Garvin is best known for his appearances with promotions including the American Wrestling Association, World Class Championship Wrestling, and World Championship Wrestling.\n\nEarly life\nWilliams grew up in Tampa, Florida, where he was an amateur wrestler.\n\nProfessional wrestling career\n\nEarly career (1968-1983)\nGarvin began his wrestling career in November 1968 at the age of 16 as Beau James. He soon took the name \"Gorgeous Jimmy\" Garvin and was given two kayfabe brothers, Terry and Ron Garvin, whom he briefly managed.\n\nHe toured the Mid-South and Florida territories from 1978 until 1983. In 1982, Garvin (while holding the NWA Florida Global Tag Team Championship with Big John Studd) won the NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship from Sweet Brown Sugar. As a reward, Garvin's manager, J.J. Dillon, presented him with a valet named Precious. The original Precious was not the same woman as Garvin's wife, Patti Williams, who would later assume the name Sunshine II then \"Precious\". During his title defenses, Garvin often became distracted by Precious and flaunted his good looks to impress her. This would cause his opponents to recover and attack him. Due to her quiet-but-distracting nature, Garvin quickly lost the NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship to Dusty Rhodes, while he and Studd lost the NWA Florida Global Tag Team Championship to Ron Bass and Barry Windham. Garvin then replaced the original Precious (whom he later claimed in a shoot interview with Wrestling Perspective had been causing problems outside the ring with his marriage to Patti) with his cousin, Sunshine, and joined World Class Championship Wrestling in 1983.\n\nWorld Class Championship Wrestling (1983-1984)\nAlong with his valet Sunshine, Garvin competed in WCCW as a heel, refusing to wrestle on live TV before he started a feud with beloved David Von Erich, which he lost and ended up spending a day with Sunshine on David's ranch, doing ranch type duties such as washing the five dogs owned by David (as he relaxed and shot skeet right over Jimmy and Sunshine's heads) and relocating several bales of hay without the use of a truck. However, towards the end of the day, Garvin drew the line at cleaning out the old horse barn and the two went at it.\n\nHe next moved on to feud with Chris Adams. Around this time, he introduced his wife, Patti, as \"Sunshine II\", who was supposed to work as an assistant to the original Sunshine. After the interference of Sunshine II cost Garvin to lose the WCCW Television Championship to Johnny Mantell in October 1983, Sunshine II blamed the original Sunshine for the botch. Garvin then fired the original Sunshine and renamed Sunshine II as \"Precious\" (not to be confused with his original valet of the same name). Precious and Sunshine (now aligned with Chris Adams) feuded while Garvin traded the NWA American Heavyweight Championship with Adams. During this time, the couples competed in mixed tag-team matches. Sunshine temporarily left WCCW in 1984 (with the storyline excuse that she had been injured by Garvin and Precious) and was replaced in the feud with her \"truck driving aunt\", Stella Mae French (Tanya West). Adams and Stella Mae continued to compete in mixed tag team matches against Garvin and Precious until they defeated them in a \"Loser Leaves Town\" cage match in July 1984. Garvin and Precious then left World Class for the American Wrestling Association. Garvin and Adams would revive their feud ten years later in the Global Wrestling Federation, but the promotion went out of business before that angle got off the ground.\n\nAmerican Wrestling Association (1984-1986)\nIn the AWA, he formed a tag team with \"Mr. Electricity\" Steve Regal and they won the World Tag Team Titles from The Road Warriors with the help of the Fabulous Freebirds. Their reign was short as they would lose them to the team of Curt Hennig and Scott Hall.\n\nJim Crockett Promotions/World Championship Wrestling (1986–1992)\n\nFeuds with Wahoo McDaniel, Brad Armstrong and Magnum T.A. (1986-1987) \nAfter losing the titles to Scott Hall and Curt Hennig in 1986 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, he went to the NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions. He debuted as a heel often taunting Wahoo McDaniel, calling him \"Yahoo.\" Garvin and McDaniel would feud throughout the summer and fall of 1986 in a series of \"Indian Strap\" matches. He also feuded with Brad Armstrong and was in the middle of a feud with Magnum T.A. when Magnum had the car wreck that would end his career.\n\nFeuds with The Midnight Express, Ric Flair, and Kevin Sullivan (1987-1988) \nIn 1987, Jimmy's \"brother\" Ron (Jimmy's real-life stepfather), was in a feud with Jim Cornette and his stable. During a match with Cornette's Midnight Express, Cornette threw fire in Ron's face. Several faces came out to help and then Jimmy ran out and helped take him to the back. Jimmy flew into a rage and stormed into the heel dressing room and brutally attacked Cornette and it took several wrestlers, heel and face, to pull him off of him. Jimmy and Ron's friend and partner Barry Windham then took Ron to the hospital.\n\nJimmy (and, by association, Precious) turned face and helped Ron feud with the Midnight Express. One of the bigger matches during that feud was when the two teams were matched against each other during the 1987 Jim Crockett Memorial Cup tag team tournament. The Midnight Express won by countout to advance.\n\nLater that year, Jimmy had one of the most memorable feuds in his career with Ric Flair, who was eyeing Precious. He sent her gifts and this provided a dramatic buildup for a big cage match between Flair and Jimmy during the 1987 Great American Bash stop in Greensboro, North Carolina for Flair's NWA World Title. The stipulation was added that if Flair won the match, he would get a date with Precious. During the match, Jimmy attempted a leap frog at one point but landed on one knee instead of his feet. Pain in the knee was \"sold\" by him during the rest of the match. This match got so heated that a fan actually attempted to climb into the cage to help Garvin. The fan was stopped by David Crockett, who was calling the match along with Tony Schiavone, right before the fan was about to get in. Flair ended up winning the match when he put Jimmy in the figure four leglock, Jimmy blacked out from the pain in his knee and his shoulders hit the mat for a count of three. Ron Garvin then entered the cage when the match was over and attacked Flair in order to defend Jimmy from further damage to his knee. When the date with Precious that Flair won occurred, Flair and James J. Dillon ended up being punched out by Ron Garvin, who was dressed in his \"Miss Atlanta Lively\" outfit. Just two months later, Ron successfully unseated Flair as NWA World Champion, holding on to the title until Starrcade '87 when Flair regained the belt.\n\nIn 1988, Garvin had a feud with Kevin Sullivan and his Varsity Club. This one was over Precious too but it was never made clear why Sullivan wanted her. He made references to her calling her \"Patti\" instead of Precious, possibly referring to the past somehow. Sullivan would stalk her and taunt her with papers in his robe, but they never revealed anything. Jimmy had some memorable matches during this feud including challenging Varsity Club member Mike Rotunda for the NWA World TV Title at Clash of the Champions I event during March of that year. Rotunda pinned Jimmy to retain the title.\n\nDuring the 1988 Great American Bash in Baltimore, Maryland held in July, Jimmy and Sullivan each captained 5 men teams opposing each other in the first ever \"Tower of Doom\" match. This match was actually a copied idea from World Class Championship Wrestling based out of Dallas, Texas who held a similar match a short while before this. It involved three cages stacked up on top of each other. A member of each team would start out climbing a ladder and facing off in the top cage. Every few minutes, new members from each team would enter the top cage in a similar fashion. Every so often, the doors between the cages would open for ten seconds allowing wrestlers to slip through to the next level. Jimmy's teammates consisted of Ron Garvin, Steve Williams, and the Road Warriors. They were victorious over Sullivan's team but the feud between Jimmy and Sullivan was not quite yet over.\n\nIn September 1988, Garvin left to sell a broken leg that he had gotten from Sullivan and Mike Rotunda. On the September 3 edition of NWA World Championship Wrestling from the TBS studios, Sullivan broke cement blocks over Jimmy's leg. Jim Ross commentating at the time yelled out \"He's breaking blocks all over his leg! Jesus!\"\n\nThe Fabulous Freebirds (1989-1992, 1994) \n\nGarvin returned to Jim Crockett Promotions, now known as World Championship Wrestling, in June 1989 minus Precious and became the newest member of the Fabulous Freebirds (he had been associated with the Freebirds since 1983) by winning the World Tag Team Titles with Michael Hayes at Clash of the Champions VII. The titles were won as part of a tournament for them that had been ongoing. That night, Hayes and Garvin scored victories over the Dynamic Dudes in the semifinals and the Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton & Stan Lane) in the finals. They feuded with the Midnight Express some more following that, as well as Rick & Scott Steiner. Garvin had worked in the past with Hayes, Buddy Roberts and Terry Gordy during the height of the Freebird-Von Erichs feud in World Class, and was always considered \"The fourth Freebird\".\nIn the fall of 1990, they also had a manager of sorts, \"Little Richard Marley\" (wrestler Rocky King), who lasted until Starrcade.\n\nIn February 1991, they added two managers, Big Daddy Dink & Diamond Dallas Page. In May 1991, they added a masked Freebird, Badstreet, and they feuded with The Young Pistols (Steve Armstrong & Tracy Smothers). By the summer of 1991, Badstreet and their managers were gone and the Freebirds had no direction. They briefly added Precious as their manager but she only made one appearance at WrestleWar '92. During this period, Hayes and Garvin won 2 World Tag Team titles, 1 World Six-Man Tag Team title (with Badstreet), and 2 United States Tag Team titles.\n\nFollowing the arrival of Bill Watts as Executive Vice President of WCW the Freebirds were targeted for what would become a wave of budget cuts. Following a loss of the United States tag-team titles to Dick Slater and The Barbarian, Garvin was split from Hayes. He wrestled The Barbarian in singles matches in August 1992 and also began teaming with Tom Zenk. His final match with the company came on the October 10th episode of The Power Hour when he partnered with Zenk to face Butch Reed and The Barbarian.\n\nWorld Wrestling Federation (1992)\nAfter leaving WCW in September 1992, Garvin received a tryout with the World Wrestling Federation. Garvin conducted an unaired interview segment at a television taping on October 26, 1992 in Springfield, Illinois where he insulted The Ultimate Maniacs (a team composed of The Ultimate Warrior and \"Macho Man\" Randy Savage) and predicted that all of the heels would win at the 1992 Survivor Series. Garvin did not sign with the company, and afterwards took a hiatus from pro wrestling, learning to become a commercial airline pilot.\n\nWorld Championship Wrestling (1994)\nIn February 1994, Garvin made one final appearance in WCW at SuperBrawl IV when he replaced Michael Hayes in a losing effort against Johnny B. Badd.\n\nGlobal Wrestling Federation (1994)\nAfter SuperBrawl IV, Garvin went to the Global Wrestling Federation (GWF), where he reformed the Freebirds with Terry Gordy and Hayes. He won the Tag Team Titles with Gordy in 1994. They were the last champions before the promotion folded in September 1994 and he retired shortly thereafter. Before the promotion folded, Garvin was scheduled to feud with Chris Adams over the GWF North American Heavyweight Championship.\n\nRetirement\nGarvin prominently appears in The Triumph and Tragedy of World Class Championship Wrestling DVD released by World Wrestling Entertainment in late 2007. The DVD was composed of interviews with former WCCW stars as well as footage and matches from various WCCW broadcasts.\n\nGarvin also appeared on an installment of \"Legends\" on WWE Classics on Demand discussing managers. Garvin spoke on a number of subjects, including the often contentious relationship between Sunshine, Precious and Missy Hyatt, as well as his own experiences as a manager.\n\nOn April 2, 2016, Garvin was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of The Fabulous Freebirds.\n\nPersonal life\nMarried in 1972, Williams and his wife Patti Williams (born January 1, 1955), better known as Precious, have two daughters- They are involved in a ministry for the poor and homeless.\n\nGarvin's stepfather is professional wrestler Ron Garvin.\n\nSince his retirement from professional wrestling, Garvin has become an Airline Transport Pilot working for NetJets.\n\nChampionships and accomplishments \nAmerican Wrestling Association\nAWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Steve Regal\nChampionship Wrestling from Florida\nNWA Florida Bahamian Championship (1 time)\nNWA Florida Global Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Big John Studd\nNWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (2 times)\nNWA Florida Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Steve Keirn (1 time) and Jack Brisco (1 time)\nNWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Florida version) (2 times)\nNWA United States Tag Team Championship (Florida version) (2 times) - with Killer Kox\nContinental Wrestling Association\nAWA Southern Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Bob Ellis\nGlobal Wrestling Federation\nGWF Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Terry Gordy\nNWA Tri-State - Mid-South Wrestling Association\nMid-South Louisiana Heavyweight Championship (1 time)\nNWA United States Tag Team Championship (Tri-State version) (1 time) - with Herb Calvert\nPro Wrestling Illustrated\nPWI ranked him No. 61 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 1992\nPWI ranked him No. 150 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the \"PWI Years\" in 2003\nWorld Championship Wrestling\nWCW United States Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Michael Hayes\nWCW World Six-Man Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Michael Hayes and Badstreet\nNWA (Mid-Atlantic)/WCW World Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Michael Hayes\nWorld Class Championship Wrestling\nNWA American Heavyweight Championship (4 times)\nNWA Texas Heavyweight Championship (2 times)\nWCCW Television Championship (1 time)\nWWE\nWWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2016)\n\nSee also \n The Fabulous Freebirds\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n \n \n\n1952 births\nAmerican male professional wrestlers\nCommercial aviators\nLiving people\nProfessional wrestlers from Florida\nProfessional wrestling managers and valets\nSportspeople from Tampa, Florida\nWWE Hall of Fame inductees",
"\"Marco\" is the tenth and final episode of the first season of the American television drama series Better Call Saul, the spinoff series of Breaking Bad. Written and directed by series co-creator Peter Gould, \"Marco\" aired on AMC in the United States on April 6, 2015. Outside of the United States, the episode premiered on streaming service Netflix in several countries.\n\nPlot\n\nOpening\nIn a flashback to 1992, Jimmy has been released from jail with Chuck's help. Jimmy agrees to Chuck's demand that he move to Albuquerque to live an honest life. Before leaving Cicero, Illinois, he goes to a favorite bar to say goodbye to Marco, his partner in crime.\n\nMain story\nJimmy gives the Sandpiper case to HHM and reveals he figured out Chuck was sabotaging his career. Howard apologizes for his involvement and gives Jimmy his $20,000 of counsel fee. Jimmy requests that Howard take over caring for Chuck.\n\nJimmy calls bingo at the local senior center. After an improbable string of numbers beginning with \"B\" he fixates on words beginning with that letter which remind him of Chuck. Jimmy rants about taking revenge in Illinois against someone named Chet by defecating through the sunroof of Chet's car (the \"Chicago Sunroof\") without realizing Chet's children were in the back seat. Facing the possibility of registering as a sex offender if convicted, Jimmy asked Chuck for help. Chuck got the charges dropped but Jimmy blames this event for their feud.\n\nJimmy returns to Cicero and reunites with Marco. They run a scam on an unsuspecting businessman, then spend several days running cons. At the end of the week, Jimmy explains he is an attorney and must return to Albuquerque to see to his clients. Marco convinces Jimmy to stay for one last con. While running the scam, Marco suffers a heart attack and dies. Jimmy inherits Marco's pinky ring, which he begins to wear even though it is too big.\n\nKim calls Jimmy to report the Sandpiper case has grown too big for HHM, requiring them to partner with Davis & Main. Because of Jimmy's rapport with the clients, D&M is interested in hiring him. Jimmy arranges to meet the D&M partners at the courthouse but changes his mind and drives away. He stops to ask Mike why they did not keep the money they took from the Kettlemans. Mike recalls Jimmy did not take it because he wanted to do the \"right thing\" and says he did not because Jimmy hired him to do a job and he did it. Jimmy assures Mike he will not make the same mistake again and drives off while humming \"Smoke on the Water\", the song Marco was humming just before he died.\n\nProduction \nThis episode was written and directed by series co-creator Peter Gould, who also wrote \"Uno\" and \"Mijo\" earlier this season.\n\nAccording to Gould, all the scams depicted in the episode are based on real-life cases.\n\nThe fictitious Equatorial Uqbar Orbis that Jimmy mentions during a scam is a reference to the Jorge Luis Borges story Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius.\n\nDuring the montage of scams, Marco speaks the line, \"Hey, kid, help me get my wife's car out of this bad neighborhood.\"\n\nIn the episode, a woman who slept with Jimmy after he tricked her into thinking he was Kevin Costner, realizes he is not. This is a reference to the Breaking Bad episode \"Abiquiu\", where Saul (Jimmy) tells Walter White, \"I once told a woman I was Kevin Costner, and it worked because I believed it.\"\n\nReception\n\nRatings \nUpon airing, the episode received 2.53 million American viewers, and an 18-49 rating of 1.2; including Live+7 ratings, the finale was watched by 5.76 million viewers, and had a 2.8 18-49 rating overall.\n\nCritical reception \nThe episode received a highly positive reception from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, based on 27 reviews, it received an 89% approval rating with an average score of 8.55 out of 10. The site's consensus reads, \"The investment into Better Call Saul's first season pays off with a finale that is at once comic and tragic, as Jimmy's conversion to Saul nears completion.\"\n\nRoth Cornet of IGN gave the episode a 9.0 rating, concluding, \"Better Call Saul gave us an exemplary first season of television. The finale brought us to the moment where Jimmy made the decision to abandon his attempt to walk a righteous path and, instead, give over to his baser drives and desires. A more open-ended conclusion may have felt more emotionally impactful. On the whole, though, this was a gorgeously designed and executed episode; one that leaves enough room for – what we hope will be – an equally extraordinary second season.\" The Telegraph rated the episode 4 out of 5 stars.\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n\"Marco\" at AMC\n\nBetter Call Saul (season 1) episodes\nTelevision episodes written by Peter Gould"
]
|
|
[
"A.J. Styles",
"Feud with Jimmy Rave (2005-2006)",
"What happened in 2005?",
"I don't know.",
"What happened with Jimmy Rave?",
"Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration:",
"Why did he feud with Jimmy?",
"who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash ("
]
| C_d2c9e27ab1824a4f92941899a5b6723e_1 | Whats the Styles Clash? | 4 | Whats the Styles Clash? | A.J. Styles | Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration: Part Two to wrestle Jimmy Rave, who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash (which he called the Rave Clash) from him, though he was unsuccessful in defeating Rave. During his feud with Rave and The Embassy, Styles formed an alliance with Generation Next, who were also feuding with The Embassy. At Glory by Honor IV, Styles defeated Rave with Mick Foley in his corner, with the stipulation that the loser could no longer use the Rave/Styles Clash in Ring of Honor. At This Means War, he defeated Generation Next leader Austin Aries, who was attacked by The Embassy following the show. At Vendetta, Styles had his final match against The Embassy when he, along with Austin Aries, Jack Evans and Matt Sydal were defeated by Abyss, Alex Shelley, Jimmy Rave, and Prince Nana in an eight-man tag match. Following his feud with The Embassy, Styles set his sights on winning a championship. At A Night of Tribute, Styles faced Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal in a three-way match, which Daniels won. On the first show of 2006, Styles wrestled and defeated Matt Sydal, after which the two agreed to form a tag team and challenge for the ROH Tag Team Championship, which were held by Sydal's Generation Next teammates Austin Aries and Roderick Strong. Before receiving a shot at the tag team title, Styles received a shot at the ROH World Championship when he was handpicked by Bryan Danielson, but he was unsuccessful. At the Fourth Anniversary Show, Styles and Sydal received their shot at the ROH Tag Team Championship, but were unable to defeat the champions. After an absence, Styles returned at Death Before Dishonor IV, defeating Davey Richards. Styles returned at Time to Man Up, losing to Samoa Joe. In a pre-taped promo, Styles said he would be taking several months off from ROH following the match; however, ROH commentators continually referred to the match as his final match and even played a special tribute to him after it. CANNOTANSWER | which he called the Rave Clash | false | [
"WHATS'ON is a professional scheduling software package for broadcasting and media companies, created by the Belgian company MEDIAGENIX. CEO of this company is Fabrice Macquignon (since 2020).\n\nHistory\nThe software was first created for the Vlaamse Televisie Maatschappij in 1992 as a scheduling system for linear TV.\n\nFeatures\nIn 1999 the system was extended to include radio scheduling. Version 20 of the package includes video on demand, video streaming, podcasting and theme channel support. WHATS'ON includes support for revenue share licence agreements and it introduces the first fully embedded workflow engine that will further optimize the data flow between Digital asset management systems, play-out suites and finance systems. It cannot be modified.\n\nMarket\nThe scheduling software is in use by public broadcasters such as Danish radio, beIN Sports, NRK, RTBF, TG4, Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep, Netherlands Public Broadcasting as well as by private broadcasters, including TV 2 (Denmark), TVN (Poland) and a number of stations from the SBS Broadcasting Group.\n\nIn total more than 400 channels in more than 18 countries are managed by WHATS’ON.\n\nWideOrbit distributes WHATS'ON in the USA.\n\nExternal links\nMEDIAGENIX Homepage\nWideOrbit Homepage\n\nReferences\n\nBusiness software",
"The results of the 2005 Whatsonstage.com Awards were:\n\nReferences\n\nBritish theatre awards\nWhats",
"The results of the 2007 Whatsonstage.com Awards were:\n\nReferences\n\nBritish theatre awards\nWhats"
]
|
|
[
"A.J. Styles",
"Feud with Jimmy Rave (2005-2006)",
"What happened in 2005?",
"I don't know.",
"What happened with Jimmy Rave?",
"Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration:",
"Why did he feud with Jimmy?",
"who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash (",
"Whats the Styles Clash?",
"which he called the Rave Clash"
]
| C_d2c9e27ab1824a4f92941899a5b6723e_1 | Did the two fight? | 5 | Did Styles and Rave fight? | A.J. Styles | Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration: Part Two to wrestle Jimmy Rave, who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash (which he called the Rave Clash) from him, though he was unsuccessful in defeating Rave. During his feud with Rave and The Embassy, Styles formed an alliance with Generation Next, who were also feuding with The Embassy. At Glory by Honor IV, Styles defeated Rave with Mick Foley in his corner, with the stipulation that the loser could no longer use the Rave/Styles Clash in Ring of Honor. At This Means War, he defeated Generation Next leader Austin Aries, who was attacked by The Embassy following the show. At Vendetta, Styles had his final match against The Embassy when he, along with Austin Aries, Jack Evans and Matt Sydal were defeated by Abyss, Alex Shelley, Jimmy Rave, and Prince Nana in an eight-man tag match. Following his feud with The Embassy, Styles set his sights on winning a championship. At A Night of Tribute, Styles faced Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal in a three-way match, which Daniels won. On the first show of 2006, Styles wrestled and defeated Matt Sydal, after which the two agreed to form a tag team and challenge for the ROH Tag Team Championship, which were held by Sydal's Generation Next teammates Austin Aries and Roderick Strong. Before receiving a shot at the tag team title, Styles received a shot at the ROH World Championship when he was handpicked by Bryan Danielson, but he was unsuccessful. At the Fourth Anniversary Show, Styles and Sydal received their shot at the ROH Tag Team Championship, but were unable to defeat the champions. After an absence, Styles returned at Death Before Dishonor IV, defeating Davey Richards. Styles returned at Time to Man Up, losing to Samoa Joe. In a pre-taped promo, Styles said he would be taking several months off from ROH following the match; however, ROH commentators continually referred to the match as his final match and even played a special tribute to him after it. CANNOTANSWER | he was unsuccessful in defeating Rave. | false | [
"Evander Holyfield vs. Ossie Ocasio was a professional boxing match contested on February 14, 1987 for the WBA and IBF cruiserweight title.\n\nBackground\nIn Evander Holyfield's previous fight, he had defeated Rickey Parkey by third round technical knockout to add the IBF cruiserweight title to the WBA version he had captured the previous year. On the undercard of the fight former WBA cruiserweight champions Ossie Ocasio and Dwight Muhammad Qawi would meet to determine the IBF's #1 contender, with both men having already signed a contract that guaranteed them a title match against the winner of the Holyfield–Parkey fight. Ocasio would earn a controversial majority decision victory despite spending most of the fight on the defensive, having avoided engaging Qawi, constantly backing away and clinching, leading the referee to eventually deduct a point for excessive holding. However, two judges scored the fight in favor of Ocasio with scores of 96–94 and 95–94 while the third had scored it a draw at 95–95. The decision was so controversial that the IBF decided to have Qawi keep their #1 ranking despite the loss. IBF president Robert W. Lee stated that they did so as they deemed the decision \"questionable.\" The IBF eventually allowed Ocasio to keep their #1 ranking and Qawi instead would meet former IBF cruiserweight Lee Roy Murphy on the undercard with the winner earning a title shot against the winner of the Holyfield–Ocasio fight.\n\nThe fight\nThe fight lasted into the 11th round, the longest of Holyfield's cruiserweight title defenses. Like he had in his previous fight with Qawi, Ocasio used a defensive approach while Holyfield served as the aggressor throughout and had won 8 of the 10 rounds on one judge's scorecard (100–92) and taken 9 on the other two scorecards (99–94). Holyfield would finally end the fight early in the 11th round when he dropped Ocasio with a left uppercut followed by a right hand. Ocasio was able to continue but Holyfield would continue to attack Ocasio and after Holyfield landed several unanswered combinations with Ocasio against the ropes, the referee stopped the fight and Holyfield was declared the winner by technical knockout at 1:24 of the round.\n\nFight card\n\nReferences\n\n1987 in boxing\nBoxing in France\nOcassio\nAugust 1987 sports events in the United States",
"C.J. Ross is a retired boxing judge who drew criticism for her scorecards in multiple high-profile fights.\n\nManny Pacquiao vs. Timothy Bradley\nAs a judge for the Manny Pacquiao vs. Timothy Bradley fight, Ross scored the bout for Bradley, 115–113. Her scorecard drew heavy criticism, since the other two judges split their respective scorecards, making the result a split decision in favor of Bradley.\n\nFloyd Mayweather vs. Canelo Álvarez\nAs a judge for the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Canelo Álvarez fight, Ross scored the bout a draw, 114-114. Her scorecard again drew heavy criticism and changed the outcome of the scoring from a unanimous decision to a majority decision. However, unlike the Pacquiao-Bradley fight, her scorecard did not change the win/loss upshot.\n\nRetirement\nAfter the Mayweather-Álvarez fight, Ross stepped down as a boxing judge.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n page on boxrec\n\nLiving people\nBoxing judges\nYear of birth missing (living people)",
"Gary Davies (born Gary Harding, 17 October 1982) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 2002 to 2012. He held the British bantamweight title in 2009.\n\nBoxing career\n\nEarly professional career\nDavies boxing career began on 1 June 2002, at the M.E.N. Arena when he was defeated by journeyman Steve Gethin by technical knock-out in the second round. His second fight on 5 October 2002, against Jason Thomas resulted in a first win and the year was topped off with a victory against Simon Chambers at the Liverpool Olympia. Davies did not fight at all in 2003 and in 2004 only fought once, winning against Furhan Rafiq. One more solitary fight in 2005 resulted in a second career loss for him, stopped in the fourth round at York Hall by Rocky Dean.\n\nOn 24 February 2006, Davies travelled to Scarborough and stopped Chris Hooper in the first round to win the Central Area super bantamweight belt, his first professional title. Despite never defending the title, Davies embarked upon a five fight unbeaten run. The run which included a draw against Barrington Brown and a second round stoppage of former British bantamweight champion Martin Power, resulted in Davies being given a shot at the full British title on 3 April 2009.\n\nBritish champion\nHis opponent for the vacant championship was Welshman, Matthew Edmonds at York Hall. Edmonds came into the contest with a record of 10–2 against Davies 8-2-1.. The title had been vacated by Ian Napa following a victory over Carmelo Ballone which saw him lift the European title. Davies eventually defeated Edmonds after knocking him down three times in the seventh round. The fight was televised on Friday Fight Night on Sky Sports. Davies lost the belt in his very first defence against former champion Ian Napa. Despite a close fight, Napa's experience fighting at championship level won the day with Davies cornermen left ruing mistakes made in the last two rounds of the fight which were to prove pivotal.\n\nComeback\nOn 19 March 2010, Davies returned to the ring and defeated another former British champion in Andy Bell. Bell, a former champion down at super flyweight level, was coming off a period of inactivity and a loss to unbeaten Paul Edwards. The fight did not hear the bell at the end of the first round, when following two knockdowns the referee ruled it off handing victory to Davies.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n Gary Davies profile at BritishBoxing.net\n\n \n \n\n1982 births\nLiving people\nEnglish male boxers\nBantamweight boxers\nSportspeople from St Helens, Merseyside"
]
|
|
[
"A.J. Styles",
"Feud with Jimmy Rave (2005-2006)",
"What happened in 2005?",
"I don't know.",
"What happened with Jimmy Rave?",
"Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration:",
"Why did he feud with Jimmy?",
"who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash (",
"Whats the Styles Clash?",
"which he called the Rave Clash",
"Did the two fight?",
"he was unsuccessful in defeating Rave."
]
| C_d2c9e27ab1824a4f92941899a5b6723e_1 | What happened after that? | 6 | What happened after Styles lost to Rave in 2005? | A.J. Styles | Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration: Part Two to wrestle Jimmy Rave, who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash (which he called the Rave Clash) from him, though he was unsuccessful in defeating Rave. During his feud with Rave and The Embassy, Styles formed an alliance with Generation Next, who were also feuding with The Embassy. At Glory by Honor IV, Styles defeated Rave with Mick Foley in his corner, with the stipulation that the loser could no longer use the Rave/Styles Clash in Ring of Honor. At This Means War, he defeated Generation Next leader Austin Aries, who was attacked by The Embassy following the show. At Vendetta, Styles had his final match against The Embassy when he, along with Austin Aries, Jack Evans and Matt Sydal were defeated by Abyss, Alex Shelley, Jimmy Rave, and Prince Nana in an eight-man tag match. Following his feud with The Embassy, Styles set his sights on winning a championship. At A Night of Tribute, Styles faced Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal in a three-way match, which Daniels won. On the first show of 2006, Styles wrestled and defeated Matt Sydal, after which the two agreed to form a tag team and challenge for the ROH Tag Team Championship, which were held by Sydal's Generation Next teammates Austin Aries and Roderick Strong. Before receiving a shot at the tag team title, Styles received a shot at the ROH World Championship when he was handpicked by Bryan Danielson, but he was unsuccessful. At the Fourth Anniversary Show, Styles and Sydal received their shot at the ROH Tag Team Championship, but were unable to defeat the champions. After an absence, Styles returned at Death Before Dishonor IV, defeating Davey Richards. Styles returned at Time to Man Up, losing to Samoa Joe. In a pre-taped promo, Styles said he would be taking several months off from ROH following the match; however, ROH commentators continually referred to the match as his final match and even played a special tribute to him after it. CANNOTANSWER | Rave and The Embassy, Styles formed an alliance with Generation Next, | false | [
"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books",
"What Happened to Jones may refer to:\n What Happened to Jones (1897 play), a play by George Broadhurst\n What Happened to Jones (1915 film), a lost silent film\n What Happened to Jones (1920 film), a lost silent film\n What Happened to Jones (1926 film), a silent film comedy",
"What Happened may refer to:\n\n What Happened (Clinton book), 2017 book by Hillary Clinton\n What Happened (McClellan book), 2008 autobiography by Scott McClellan\n \"What Happened\", a song by Sublime from the album 40oz. to Freedom\n \"What Happened\", an episode of One Day at a Time (2017 TV series)\n\nSee also\nWhat's Happening (disambiguation)"
]
|
|
[
"A.J. Styles",
"Feud with Jimmy Rave (2005-2006)",
"What happened in 2005?",
"I don't know.",
"What happened with Jimmy Rave?",
"Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration:",
"Why did he feud with Jimmy?",
"who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash (",
"Whats the Styles Clash?",
"which he called the Rave Clash",
"Did the two fight?",
"he was unsuccessful in defeating Rave.",
"What happened after that?",
"Rave and The Embassy, Styles formed an alliance with Generation Next,"
]
| C_d2c9e27ab1824a4f92941899a5b6723e_1 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | 7 | Are there any other interesting aspects about the article besides Styles fued with Rave and their matches? | A.J. Styles | Styles returned to Ring of Honor at the Third Anniversary Celebration: Part Two to wrestle Jimmy Rave, who accused him of stealing the Styles Clash (which he called the Rave Clash) from him, though he was unsuccessful in defeating Rave. During his feud with Rave and The Embassy, Styles formed an alliance with Generation Next, who were also feuding with The Embassy. At Glory by Honor IV, Styles defeated Rave with Mick Foley in his corner, with the stipulation that the loser could no longer use the Rave/Styles Clash in Ring of Honor. At This Means War, he defeated Generation Next leader Austin Aries, who was attacked by The Embassy following the show. At Vendetta, Styles had his final match against The Embassy when he, along with Austin Aries, Jack Evans and Matt Sydal were defeated by Abyss, Alex Shelley, Jimmy Rave, and Prince Nana in an eight-man tag match. Following his feud with The Embassy, Styles set his sights on winning a championship. At A Night of Tribute, Styles faced Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal in a three-way match, which Daniels won. On the first show of 2006, Styles wrestled and defeated Matt Sydal, after which the two agreed to form a tag team and challenge for the ROH Tag Team Championship, which were held by Sydal's Generation Next teammates Austin Aries and Roderick Strong. Before receiving a shot at the tag team title, Styles received a shot at the ROH World Championship when he was handpicked by Bryan Danielson, but he was unsuccessful. At the Fourth Anniversary Show, Styles and Sydal received their shot at the ROH Tag Team Championship, but were unable to defeat the champions. After an absence, Styles returned at Death Before Dishonor IV, defeating Davey Richards. Styles returned at Time to Man Up, losing to Samoa Joe. In a pre-taped promo, Styles said he would be taking several months off from ROH following the match; however, ROH commentators continually referred to the match as his final match and even played a special tribute to him after it. CANNOTANSWER | Following his feud with The Embassy, Styles set his sights on winning a championship. | false | [
"Přírodní park Třebíčsko (before Oblast klidu Třebíčsko) is a natural park near Třebíč in the Czech Republic. There are many interesting plants. The park was founded in 1983.\n\nKobylinec and Ptáčovský kopeček\n\nKobylinec is a natural monument situated ca 0,5 km from the village of Trnava.\nThe area of this monument is 0,44 ha. Pulsatilla grandis can be found here and in the Ptáčovský kopeček park near Ptáčov near Třebíč. Both monuments are very popular for tourists.\n\nPonds\n\nIn the natural park there are some interesting ponds such as Velký Bor, Malý Bor, Buršík near Přeckov and a brook Březinka. Dams on the brook are examples of European beaver activity.\n\nSyenitové skály near Pocoucov\n\nSyenitové skály (rocks of syenit) near Pocoucov is one of famed locations. There are interesting granite boulders. The area of the reservation is 0,77 ha.\n\nExternal links\nParts of this article or all article was translated from Czech. The original article is :cs:Přírodní park Třebíčsko.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nNature near the village Trnava which is there\n\nTřebíč\nParks in the Czech Republic\nTourist attractions in the Vysočina Region",
"Damn Interesting is an independent website founded by Alan Bellows in 2005. The website presents true stories from science, history, and psychology, primarily as long-form articles, often illustrated with original artwork. Works are written by various authors, and published at irregular intervals. The website openly rejects advertising, relying on reader and listener donations to cover operating costs.\n\nAs of October 2012, each article is also published as a podcast under the same name. In November 2019, a second podcast was launched under the title Damn Interesting Week, featuring unscripted commentary on an assortment of news articles featured on the website's \"Curated Links\" section that week. In mid-2020, a third podcast called Damn Interesting Curio Cabinet began highlighting the website's periodic short-form articles in the same radioplay format as the original podcast.\n\nIn July 2009, Damn Interesting published the print book Alien Hand Syndrome through Workman Publishing. It contains some favorites from the site and some exclusive content.\n\nAwards and recognition \nIn August 2007, PC Magazine named Damn Interesting one of the \"Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites\".\nThe article \"The Zero-Armed Bandit\" by Alan Bellows won a 2015 Sidney Award from David Brooks in The New York Times.\nThe article \"Ghoulish Acts and Dastardly Deeds\" by Alan Bellows was cited as \"nonfiction journalism from 2017 that will stand the test of time\" by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.\nThe article \"Dupes and Duplicity\" by Jennifer Lee Noonan won a 2020 Sidney Award from David Brooks in the New York Times.\n\nAccusing The Dollop of plagiarism \n\nOn July 9, 2015, Bellows posted an open letter accusing The Dollop, a comedy podcast about history, of plagiarism due to their repeated use of verbatim text from Damn Interesting articles without permission or attribution. Dave Anthony, the writer of The Dollop, responded on reddit, admitting to using Damn Interesting content, but claiming that the use was protected by fair use, and that \"historical facts are not copyrightable.\" In an article about the controversy on Plagiarism Today, Jonathan Bailey concluded, \"Any way one looks at it, The Dollop failed its ethical obligations to all of the people, not just those writing for Damn Interesting, who put in the time, energy and expertise into writing the original content upon which their show is based.\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Official website\n\n2005 podcast debuts",
"This article is about the demographic features of the population of Saint Mary's, including population density, internet access, crime rate, and other aspects of the population.\n\nPopulation \nAccording to the 2011 census the population of Saint Mary was 7,341.\n\nOther demographics statistics (2011)\n\nCensus Data (2011)\n\nIndividual\n\nHousehold \nThere are 2,512 households in Saint Mary Parish.\n\nSee also\nDemographics of Antigua and Barbuda\n\nReferences\n\nAntigua and Barbuda Christians\nDemographics of Antigua and Barbuda"
]
|
|
[
"Neal McCoy",
"1990-2000: Atlantic Records"
]
| C_9a8de494ac20410197429216336c5831_1 | What happened with Atlantic Records in 1990? | 1 | What happened with Atlantic Records in 1990? | Neal McCoy | He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' hit song from 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows." A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58. Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released No Doubt About It in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5. CANNOTANSWER | He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, | Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. (born July 30, 1958), known professionally as Neal McCoy, is an American country music singer. He has released 10 studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio. Although he first charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1988, he did not reach the top 40 for the first time until 1992's "Where Forever Begins", which peaked at number 40. McCoy broke through two years later with the back-to-back number one singles "No Doubt About It" and "Wink" from his platinum-certified album No Doubt About It. Although he has not topped the country charts since, his commercial success continued into the mid to late 1990s with two more platinum albums and a gold album, as well as six more top 10 hits. A ninth top 10 hit, the number 10 "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", came in 2005 from his self-released That's Life.
Early life
Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. was born on July 30, 1958, in Jacksonville, Texas, to a Filipino American mother and Irish-American father. Inspired by the variety of music that his parents listened to, which included country, rock, disco and R&B, McGaughey first sang in his church choir before founding an R&B band. He later switched his focus to country music, performing in various bars and clubs in Texas. McGaughey, after attending junior college near his hometown, found work selling shoes at a shopping mall. In the early 1980s, he met his wife, Melinda, at the store.
After winning a 1981 talent contest hosted by Janie Fricke, he secured a spot as an opening act for Charley Pride.
Musical career
Crediting himself as Neal McGoy, a phonetic spelling of his surname, he signed to the independent 16th Avenue Records label in 1988. He released the singles "That's How Much I Love You" and "That's American", and although the former reached No. 85 on the country charts, he did not release an album for the label. He continued to tour as an opening act for Pride until 1990, the same year that the 16th Avenue label closed.
1990–2000: Atlantic Records
He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' #1 Hot 100 hit from late 1986-early 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows."
A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58.
Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released his breakthrough album, No Doubt About It, in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5.
Mid-Late 1990s
You Gotta Love That, his fourth album, also received a platinum certification and it produced four singles: "For a Change", "They're Playin' Our Song" and the title track (respectively the first, second, and fourth singles) all peaked at No. 3, while "If I Was a Drinkin' Man" reached No. 16.
McCoy's self-titled fifth studio album began a decline in his chart momentum. Although it was certified gold, Neal McCoy accounted for only one Top Ten hit in a cover of The Casinos' 1967 doo-wop single "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye". The next two singles — "Going, Going, Gone" and "That Woman of Mine" — both peaked at No. 35. Also in 1996, he sang guest vocals on the multi-artist charity single "Hope", the proceeds of which went to the T. J. Martell Foundation's cancer research. After "That Woman of Mine", he reached No. 5 with "The Shake", the only new song on his first Greatest Hits package, which reprised nine of his greatest hits to that point and also earned platinum certification.
Be Good at It, his sixth studio release, followed in 1998. This was his first album since Where Forever Begins not to include a Top Ten hit. The title track, "If You Can't Be Good, Be Good at It", was the highest-peaking single release from it at No. 22, followed by "Party On", which became his first single since 1992 to miss Top 40 entirely. After it came the No. 29 "Love Happens Like That." McCoy made a second appearance on a multi-artist charity single that same year, as one of several collaborators on "One Heart at a Time", a song written by Victoria Shaw to benefit cystic fibrosis research.
In 1999, McCoy released his final album for Atlantic, The Life of the Party. It only accounted for two singles: the Phil Vassar co-write "I Was" at No. 37 and "The Girls of Summer" at No. 42. He, Tracy Byrd, and T. Graham Brown also sang guest vocals on "Now That's Awesome", a song featuring snippets of a Bill Engvall comedy sketch, found on Engvall's Now That's Awesome album. This single peaked at No. 59.
2000–04: Warner Bros. Records and SEA Records
Due to the closure of Atlantic Records' Nashville division in mid-2000, McCoy's next album, 24-7-365, was issued via Giant Records. It included the singles "Forever Works for Me (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)", "Every Man for Himself", and "Beatin' It In", at No. 38, No. 37, and No. 41 respectively. In late 2000, he released a Christmas medley consisting of "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", which reached number 74 based on seasonal airplay. After Giant closed as well, he moved again to Warner Bros. Records, where he recorded The Luckiest Man in the World. Although the title track entered the country charts and peaked at number 46, the album itself was not released, and McCoy exited Warner Bros. by the end of the year. He signed with an independent label called SEA Records in 2004, and was slated to release a single for it in the middle of the year, but he left the label without releasing anything.
2005–07
In 2005, Neal McCoy and his manager Karen Kane founded a label called 903 Music. His first single for his own label was "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", which reached the Top 10 on the Hot Country Songs chart in 2005. The song served as the lead-off to his 2005 album That's Life. Also included on the album were a cover of Charley Pride's "You're My Jamaica", a song preceded by a spoken-word intro from United States Army general Tommy Franks, and a studio version of "Hillbilly Rap", which he had performed in concert since the early 1990s. McCoy's next single release, "The Last of a Dying Breed", peaked at 36.
Darryl Worley and the Drew Davis Band were signed to 903 as well. Worley released his 2006 album Here and Now on 903, which produced the top 40 hits "Nothin' but a Love Thang" and "I Just Came Back from a War". In May 2007, McCoy announced that the label had filed for bankruptcy and closed its doors.
In Summer of 2007, Neal could be seen showing off his comedic chops on local TV commercials in the Waco, Texas market for Mike Craig Chevrolet Pontiac Buick in Marlin, Texas. The commercials continued for approximately one year. In one of them Neal acts like a puppet in the hands of the branch manager of the Mike Craig dealership in Hillsboro, Texas.
2008–13: The Very Best of Neal McCoy, XII, and Pride
In 2008, Rhino Records issued a compilation album entitled The Very Best of Neal McCoy. This album reprised most of his biggest chart hits to that point, and it included the new recording "Rednecktified", which was released as a single but did not chart. Later that same year, he issued another single, "For the Troops", which also failed to chart. McCoy released a book titled New Mountain to Climb in 2011, which coincided with the release of a single of the same name.
In April 2011, McCoy signed with Blaster Music. He released his twelfth album, XII, for the label on March 6, 2012. Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert co-produced the album with Brent Rowan, and sang backing vocals on its lead-off single "A-OK".
A year later, McCoy released Pride: A Tribute to Charley Pride via Slate Creek Records, under the production of Garth Fundis. The album features guest appearances from Darius Rucker, Trace Adkins, and Raul Malo of The Mavericks. To promote the album, McCoy and Pride filmed a video for "Kaw-Liga", which was co-written and originally recorded by Hank Williams before Pride covered it in 1969.
Personal life
McCoy has been married to Melinda since 1980. The two met when McCoy was working at a shoe store in a local mall. The couple have two children, a son and a daughter.
McCoy is also the head of a charity called the East Texas Angel Network, which helps provide money for families of seriously ill children.
McCoy resides in Longview, Texas.
Discography
References
External links
Official Website
1958 births
American country singer-songwriters
American musicians of Filipino descent
American people of Irish descent
Living people
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Lon Morris College alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Giant Records (Warner) artists
16th Avenue Records artists
Warner Records artists
People from Jacksonville, Texas
Country musicians from Texas | true | [
"Barry Edward Beckett (February 4, 1943 – June 10, 2009) was an American keyboardist, session musician, record producer, and studio founder. He is best known for his work with David Hood, Jimmy Johnson, and Roger Hawkins, his bandmates in the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, which performed with numerous notable artists on their studio albums and helped define the \"Muscle Shoals sound\".\n\nAmong the artists Beckett recorded with were Bob Dylan, Boz Scaggs, Paul Simon, Rod Stewart, Duane Allman, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, Dire Straits, The Proclaimers and Phish. He was also briefly a member of the band Traffic.\n\nBiography\nBorn in Birmingham, Alabama, Beckett rose to prominence as a member of the rhythm section at the Muscle Shoals studio in Sheffield, Alabama, of which he was one of the founders in 1969. As a founding member of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section (also known as the Swampers), he helped define what became known as the Muscle Shoals sound. In addition, the studio produced such chart-making hits as \"Torn Between Two Lovers\" by Mary MacGregor and the Sanford-Townsend Band's \"Smoke from a Distant Fire\".\n\nIn 1973, Beckett took to the road in the expanded lineup of Traffic; recordings from this tour were released on the band's live album On the Road.\n\nBeckett was co-producing with Jerry Wexler when, in 1979, Bob Dylan called on Wexler to produce the sessions for the album Slow Train Coming. Beckett not only co-produced the album but played piano and organ throughout. (He did not go on the road as a gospel tours musician behind Dylan, but he was back in the studio with him in February 1980 to co-produce, again with Wexler, the album Saved, on which he was replaced on keyboards by Spooner Oldham and Terry Young after the session of February 12, 1980, and so plays only on the album’s title track, \"Solid Rock\", \"What Can I Do for You?\" and \"Satisfied Mind\". On the album liner notes Beckett is billed as co-producer and as \"special guest artist\".\n\nBeckett moved to Nashville in 1982 to become A & R country music director for Warner Bros. Records and co-produced Williams, Jr.'s records with Jim Ed Norman. Beckett produced records independently after leaving Warner Bros. Records.\n\nHe also played on Paul Simon's albums There Goes Rhymin' Simon and Still Crazy After All These Years, which reached number 1 on the Billboard 200 pop chart.Beckett died from complications of a stroke at his home in Hendersonville, Tennessee, aged 66.\n\nAwards and honors\n In 1995, Beckett was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame as a member of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section.\n\n Collaborations \nWith Solomon Burke\n Proud Mary (Ola, 1969)\n\nWith Etta James\n Tell Mama (Cadet Records, 1968)\n Seven Year Itch (Island Records, 1988)\n Stickin' to My Guns (Island Records, 1990)\n Love's Been Rough on Me (Private Music, 1997)\n\nWith Bob Seger\n Back in '72 (Reprise Records, 1973)\n Beautiful Loser (Capitol Records, 1975)\n Night Moves (Capitol Records, 1976)\n Stranger in Town (Capitol Records, 1978)\n Against the Wind (Capitol Records, 1980)\n The Distance (Capitol Records, 1982)\n The Fire Inside (Capitol Records, 1991)\n\nWith Joan Baez\n Honest Lullaby (Portrait Records, 1979)\n\nWith Feargal Sharkey\n Songs from the Mardi Gras (Virgin Records, 1991)\n\nWith William Bell\n Wow... (Stax Records, 1971)\n Phases of Reality (Stax Records, 1972)\n\nWith Julian Lennon\n Valotte (Atlantic Records, 1984)\n\nWith Cher\n 3614 Jackson Highway (Atco Records, 1969)\n\nWith Vince Gill\n When I Call Your Name (MCA Records, 1989)\n Pocket Full of Gold (MCA Records, 1991)\n When Love Finds You (MCA Records, 1994)\n\nWith Kim Carnes\n Sailin' (A&M Records, 1976)\n\nWith Boz Scaggs\n Boz Scaggs (Atlantic Records, 1969)\n My Time (Columbia Records, 1972)\n Some Change (Virgin Records, 1994)\n\nWith Mary MacGregor\n Torn Between Two Lovers (Ariola Records, 1976)\n\nWith Mark Knopfler\n Golden Heart (Vertigo Records, 1996)\n\nWith John P. Hammond\n Southern Fried (Atlantic Records, 1971)\n\nWith Mavis Staples\n Mavis Staples (Volt Records, 1969)\n Only for the Lonely (Volt Records, 1970)\n Oh What a Feeling (Warner Bros. Records, 1979)\n\nWith Wilson Pickett\n Hey Jude (Atlantic Records, 1969)\n Right On (Atlantic Records, 1970)\n Don't Knock My Love (Atlantic Records, 1971)\n\nWith Paul Anka\n Feelings (United Artists Records, 1975)\n\nWith John Michael Montgomery\n What I Do the Best (Atlantic Records, 1996)\n\nWith Steve Cropper\n Night After Night (MCA Records, 1982)\n\nWith Eddie Rabbitt\n Loveline (Elektra Records, 1979)\n\nWith Dee Dee Bridgewater\n Dee Dee Bridgewater (Atlantic Records, 1976)\n\nWith Albert King\n Lovejoy (Stax Records, 1971)\n\nWith Paul Simon\n There Goes Rhymin' Simon (Columbia Records, 1973)\n Still Crazy After All These Years (Columbia Records, 1975)\n\nWith Wendy Waldman\n Gypsy Symphony (Warner Bros. Records, 1974)\n\nWith Wynonna Judd\n Wynonna (Curb Records, 1992)\n Tell Me Why (Curb Records, 1993)\n\nWith Levon Helm\n Levon Helm (ABC Records, 1978)\n Levon Helm (Capitol Records, 1982)\n\nWith Trace Adkins\n Dreamin' Out Loud (Capitol Records, 1996)\n\nWith Aretha Franklin\n This Girl's in Love with You (Atlantic Records, 1970)\n Spirit in the Dark (Atlantic Records, 1970)\n\nWith Candi Staton\n Candi (Warner Bros. Records, 1974)\n His Hands (Honest Records, 2006)\n\nWith Donovan\n Lady of the Stars (RCA Records, 1984)\n\nWith Dolly Parton\n White Limozeen (Columbia Records, 1989)\n\nWith John Prine\n Storm Windows (Asylum Records, 1980)\n\nWith Aaron Neville\n The Tattoeed Heart (A&M Records, 1995)\n\nWith Kenny Chesney\n All I Need to Know (BNA Records, 1995)\n Me and You (BNA, 1996)\n\nWith Joe Cocker\n Luxury You Can Afford (Asylum Records, 1978)\n\nWith Ronnie Hawkins\n Ronnie Hawkins (Cotillion Records, 1970)\n\nWith Lulu\n New Routes (Atlantic Records, 1970)\n\nWith Beth Nielsen Chapman\n Hearing It First (Capitol Records, 1980)\n\nWith Dion DiMucci\n Velvet and Steel (Epic Records, 1986)\n\nWith Ilse DeLange\n World of Hurt (Warner Bros. Records, 1998)\n\nWith Dion DiMucci\n Velvet and Steel (DaySpring Records, 1987)\n\nWith Chely Wright\n Woman in the Moon (Mercury Records, 1994)\n\nWith Odetta\n Odetta Sings (Polydor Records, 1970)\n\nWith Laura Nyro\n Christmas and the Beads of Sweat (Columbia Records, 1970)\n\nWith Johnny Rivers\n The Road (Atlantic Records, 1974)\n\nWith Bob Dylan\n Slow Train Coming (Columbia Records, 1979)\n Saved (Columbia Records, 1980)\n\nWith Peabo Bryson\n Peabo (Bullet Records, 1976)\n\nWith Ricky Van Shelton\n A Bridge I Didn't Burn (Columbia Records, 1993)\n\nWith J. J. Cale\n Really (A&M Records, 1972)\n\nWith Art Garfunkel\n Breakaway (Columbia Records, 1975)\n Watermark (Columbia Records, 1977)\n\nWith Rosanne Cash\n King's Record Shop (Columbia Records, 1987)\n\nWith Michael Martin Murphey\n Tonight We Ride (Warner Bros. Records, 1986)\n\nWith José Feliciano \n Sweet Soul Music (Private Stock Records, 1976)\n\nWith Cat Stevens\n Izitso (A&M Records, 1977)\n\nWith Leon Russell\n Leon Russell and the Shelter People (Shelter Records, 1971)\n\nWith Rod Stewart\n Atlantic Crossing (Warner Bros. Records, 1975)\n A Night on the Town (Warner Bros. Records, 1976)\n\nWith Glenn Frey\n The Allnighter (MCA Records, 1984)\n Soul Searchin' (MCA Records, 1988)\n\nWith Linda Ronstadt\n Linda Ronstadt (Capitol Records, 1971)\n\nWith Rodney Crowell\n Diamonds & Dirt (Columbia Records, 1988)\n Keys to the Highway (Columbia Records, 1989)\n Life Is Messy'' (Columbia Records, 1992)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1943 births\n2009 deaths\nAmerican rock keyboardists\nAmerican rock pianists\nAmerican male pianists\nAmerican soul keyboardists\nAmerican organists\nAmerican male organists\nAmerican rhythm and blues keyboardists\nRhythm and blues pianists\nRamsay High School alumni\nRecord producers from Alabama\nMuscle Shoals Rhythm Section members\nMusicians from Birmingham, Alabama\n20th-century American keyboardists\nAmerican session musicians\n20th-century organists\n20th-century American male musicians\n20th-century American pianists",
"Roger G. Hawkins (October 16, 1945 – May 20, 2021) was an American drummer best known for playing as part of the studio backing band known as the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section (also known as the Swampers) of Alabama.\n\nBiography\nHawkins's drumming can be heard on dozens of hit singles, including tracks by Percy Sledge (\"When a Man Loves a Woman\"), Aretha Franklin (\"Respect\", \"I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You)\" etc.), Wilson Pickett (\"Mustang Sally\", \"Land of 1000 Dances\"), The Staple Singers, Johnnie Taylor, Bobby Womack, Clarence Carter, Etta James, Duane Allman, Joe Cocker, Paul Simon, Bob Seger, Bonnie Bramlett, Bobby \"Blue\" Bland, Boz Scaggs, Albert King, Traffic, Rod Stewart, Dan Penn, Lulu, and Willie Nelson. He also recorded with Eric Clapton in the early 80's.\n\nHawkins died at age 75 at his home in Sheffield, Alabama. Hawkins had suffered from numerous health problems including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.\n\nTop 40 US Hits\n\nCollaborations \n\nWith Paul Anka\n Feelings (United Artists Records, 1975)\n\nWith Patti Austin\n Body Language (CTI Records, 1980)\n In My Life (CTI Records, 1983)\n\nWith Joan Baez\n Honest Lullaby (Portrait Records, 1979)\n\nWith William Bell\n Wow... (Stax Records, 1971)\n Phases of Reality (Stax Records, 1972)\n\nWith Bonnie Bramlett \n Lady's Choice (Capricorn Records, 1976)\n\nWith Jimmy Buffett\n Beach House on the Moon (Island Records, 1999)\n\nWith Solomon Burke\n Proud Mary (Ola, 1969)\n\nWith Dee Dee Bridgewater\n Dee Dee Bridgewater (Atlantic Records, 1976)\n\nWith Shirley Brown\n Joy & Pain (Malaco Records, 1993)\n\nWith Peabo Bryson\n Peabo (Bullet Records, 1976)\n\nWith J. J. Cale\n Really (A&M Records, 1972)\n\nWith Kim Carnes\n Sailin' (A&M Records, 1976)\n\nWith Clarence Carter\n This is Clarence Carter (Atlantic Records, 1968)\n\nWith Beth Nielsen Chapman\n Hearing It First (Capitol Records, 1980)\n\nWith Cher\n 3614 Jackson Highway (Atco Records, 1969)\n\nWith Eric Clapton\n Money and Cigarettes (Warner Bros. Records, 1983)\n\nWith Jimmy Cliff\n Another Cycle featuring Sitting in Limbo (Island Records 1971)\n\nWith Joe Cocker\n Luxury You Can Afford (Asylum Records, 1978)\n\nWith Ry Cooder\n Boomer's Story (Reprise Records, 1972)\n\nWith Steve Cropper\n Night After Night (MCA Records, 1982)\n\nWith Gail Davies\n The Game (Warner Bros. Records, 1980)\n\nWith José Feliciano \n Sweet Soul Music (Private Stock Records, 1976)\n\nWith Aretha Franklin\n Aretha Arrives (Rhino Records, 1967)\n Lady Soul (Rhino Records, 1968)\n Aretha Now (Atlantic Records, 1968)\n Soul '69 (Atlantic Records, 1969)\n This Girl's in Love with You (Atlantic Records, 1970)\n Spirit in the Dark (Atlantic Records, 1970)\n Hey Now Hey (The Other Side of the Sky) (Atlantic Records, 1973)\n\nWith Glenn Frey\n No Fun Aloud (Asylum Records, 1982)\n The Allnighter (MCA Records, 1984)\n Soul Searchin' (MCA Records, 1988)\n\nWith Art Garfunkel\n Breakaway (Columbia Records, 1975)\n Watermark (Columbia Records, 1977)\n\nWith Ronnie Hawkins\n Ronnie Hawkins (Cotillion Records, 1970)\n\nWith Levon Helm\n Levon Helm (ABC Records, 1978)\n Levon Helm (Capitol Records, 1982)\n\nWith Loleatta Holloway\n Loleatta Holloway (Goldon Mind Records, 1979)\n Love Sensation (Goldon Mind Records, 1980)\n\nWith Etta James\n Tell Mama (Cadet Records, 1968)\n Seven Year Itch (Island Records, 1988)\n Stickin' to My Guns (Island Records, 1990)\n The Right Time (Elektra Records, 1992)\n\nWith Albert King\n Lovejoy (Stax Records, 1971)\n\nWith Julian Lennon\n Valotte (Atlantic Records, 1984)\n\nWith Lulu\n New Routes (Atlantic Records, 1970)\n\nWith Mary MacGregor\n Torn Between Two Lovers (Ariola Records, 1976)\n\nWith Laura Nyro\n Christmas and the Beads of Sweat (Columbia Records, 1970)\n\nWith Dan Penn\n Nobody's Fool (Bell Records, 1973)\n Do Right Man (Sire Records, 1994)\n Blue Nite Lounge (Dandy Records, 2000)\n Something About the Night (Dandy Records, 2016)\n\nWith Wilson Pickett\n The Exciting Wilson Pickett (Atlantic Records, 1966)\n The Wicked Pickett (Atlantic Records, 1967)\n The Sound of Wilson Pickett (Atlantic Records, 1967)\n Hey Jude (Atlantic Records, 1969)\n Right On (Atlantic Records, 1970)\n Don't Knock My Love (Atlantic Records, 1971)\n Funky Situation (Big Tree Records, 1978)\n\nWith Eddie Rabbitt\n Loveline (Elektra Records, 1979)\n\nWith Helen Reddy\n Take What You Find (Capitol Records, 1980)\n\nWith Johnny Rivers\n The Road (Atlantic Records, 1974)\n Borrowed Time (RSO Records, 1980)\n\nWith Linda Ronstadt\n Linda Ronstadt (Capitol Records, 1971)\n\nWith Leon Russell\n Leon Russell and the Shelter People (Shelter Records, 1971)\n\nWith Boz Scaggs\n Boz Scaggs (Atlantic Records, 1969)\n My Time (Columbia Records, 1972)\n\nWith Bob Seger\n Smokin' O.P.'s (Reprise Records, 1972)\n Back in '72 (Reprise Records, 1973)\n Beautiful Loser (Capitol Records, 1975)\n Night Moves (Capitol Records, 1976)\n Stranger in Town (Capitol Records, 1978)\n Against the Wind (Capitol Records, 1980)\n The Distance (Capitol Records, 1982)\n\nWith Paul Simon\n There Goes Rhymin' Simon (Columbia Records, 1973)\n Still Crazy After All These Years (Columbia Records, 1975)\n\nWith Mavis Staples\n Mavis Staples (Volt Records, 1969)\n Only for the Lonely (Volt Records, 1970)\n Oh What a Feeling (Warner Bros. Records, 1979)\n\nWith Candi Staton\n Candi (Warner Bros. Records, 1974)\n\nWith Cat Stevens\n Izitso (A&M Records, 1977)\n\nWith Rod Stewart\n Atlantic Crossing (Warner Bros. Records, 1975)\n A Night on the Town (Warner Bros. Records, 1976)\n\nWith Wendy Waldman\n Gypsy Symphony (Warner Bros. Records, 1974)\n\nWith Tony Joe White\n The Train I'm On (Warner Brothers, 1972)\n Closer to the Truth (Festival Records, 1991)\n\nWith Bobby Womack\n Communication (United Artists Records, 1971)\n Understanding (United Artists Records, 1972)\n Facts of Life (United Artists Records, 1973)\n Lookin' for a Love Again (United Artists Records, 1974)\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n biography at DrummerWorld.com\n \n \n\n1945 births\n2021 deaths\nPeople from Mishawaka, Indiana\nMusicians from Indiana\nAmerican rock drummers\nTraffic (band) members\nMuscle Shoals Rhythm Section members\nRhythm and blues drummers\nAmerican session musicians\nSoul drummers\n20th-century American drummers\nAmerican male drummers\nDeaths from lung disease"
]
|
[
"Neal McCoy",
"1990-2000: Atlantic Records",
"What happened with Atlantic Records in 1990?",
"He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request,"
]
| C_9a8de494ac20410197429216336c5831_1 | Why did he have to change his surname? | 2 | Why did Neal McCoy have to change his surname? | Neal McCoy | He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' hit song from 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows." A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58. Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released No Doubt About It in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5. CANNOTANSWER | McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. | Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. (born July 30, 1958), known professionally as Neal McCoy, is an American country music singer. He has released 10 studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio. Although he first charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1988, he did not reach the top 40 for the first time until 1992's "Where Forever Begins", which peaked at number 40. McCoy broke through two years later with the back-to-back number one singles "No Doubt About It" and "Wink" from his platinum-certified album No Doubt About It. Although he has not topped the country charts since, his commercial success continued into the mid to late 1990s with two more platinum albums and a gold album, as well as six more top 10 hits. A ninth top 10 hit, the number 10 "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", came in 2005 from his self-released That's Life.
Early life
Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. was born on July 30, 1958, in Jacksonville, Texas, to a Filipino American mother and Irish-American father. Inspired by the variety of music that his parents listened to, which included country, rock, disco and R&B, McGaughey first sang in his church choir before founding an R&B band. He later switched his focus to country music, performing in various bars and clubs in Texas. McGaughey, after attending junior college near his hometown, found work selling shoes at a shopping mall. In the early 1980s, he met his wife, Melinda, at the store.
After winning a 1981 talent contest hosted by Janie Fricke, he secured a spot as an opening act for Charley Pride.
Musical career
Crediting himself as Neal McGoy, a phonetic spelling of his surname, he signed to the independent 16th Avenue Records label in 1988. He released the singles "That's How Much I Love You" and "That's American", and although the former reached No. 85 on the country charts, he did not release an album for the label. He continued to tour as an opening act for Pride until 1990, the same year that the 16th Avenue label closed.
1990–2000: Atlantic Records
He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' #1 Hot 100 hit from late 1986-early 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows."
A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58.
Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released his breakthrough album, No Doubt About It, in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5.
Mid-Late 1990s
You Gotta Love That, his fourth album, also received a platinum certification and it produced four singles: "For a Change", "They're Playin' Our Song" and the title track (respectively the first, second, and fourth singles) all peaked at No. 3, while "If I Was a Drinkin' Man" reached No. 16.
McCoy's self-titled fifth studio album began a decline in his chart momentum. Although it was certified gold, Neal McCoy accounted for only one Top Ten hit in a cover of The Casinos' 1967 doo-wop single "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye". The next two singles — "Going, Going, Gone" and "That Woman of Mine" — both peaked at No. 35. Also in 1996, he sang guest vocals on the multi-artist charity single "Hope", the proceeds of which went to the T. J. Martell Foundation's cancer research. After "That Woman of Mine", he reached No. 5 with "The Shake", the only new song on his first Greatest Hits package, which reprised nine of his greatest hits to that point and also earned platinum certification.
Be Good at It, his sixth studio release, followed in 1998. This was his first album since Where Forever Begins not to include a Top Ten hit. The title track, "If You Can't Be Good, Be Good at It", was the highest-peaking single release from it at No. 22, followed by "Party On", which became his first single since 1992 to miss Top 40 entirely. After it came the No. 29 "Love Happens Like That." McCoy made a second appearance on a multi-artist charity single that same year, as one of several collaborators on "One Heart at a Time", a song written by Victoria Shaw to benefit cystic fibrosis research.
In 1999, McCoy released his final album for Atlantic, The Life of the Party. It only accounted for two singles: the Phil Vassar co-write "I Was" at No. 37 and "The Girls of Summer" at No. 42. He, Tracy Byrd, and T. Graham Brown also sang guest vocals on "Now That's Awesome", a song featuring snippets of a Bill Engvall comedy sketch, found on Engvall's Now That's Awesome album. This single peaked at No. 59.
2000–04: Warner Bros. Records and SEA Records
Due to the closure of Atlantic Records' Nashville division in mid-2000, McCoy's next album, 24-7-365, was issued via Giant Records. It included the singles "Forever Works for Me (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)", "Every Man for Himself", and "Beatin' It In", at No. 38, No. 37, and No. 41 respectively. In late 2000, he released a Christmas medley consisting of "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", which reached number 74 based on seasonal airplay. After Giant closed as well, he moved again to Warner Bros. Records, where he recorded The Luckiest Man in the World. Although the title track entered the country charts and peaked at number 46, the album itself was not released, and McCoy exited Warner Bros. by the end of the year. He signed with an independent label called SEA Records in 2004, and was slated to release a single for it in the middle of the year, but he left the label without releasing anything.
2005–07
In 2005, Neal McCoy and his manager Karen Kane founded a label called 903 Music. His first single for his own label was "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", which reached the Top 10 on the Hot Country Songs chart in 2005. The song served as the lead-off to his 2005 album That's Life. Also included on the album were a cover of Charley Pride's "You're My Jamaica", a song preceded by a spoken-word intro from United States Army general Tommy Franks, and a studio version of "Hillbilly Rap", which he had performed in concert since the early 1990s. McCoy's next single release, "The Last of a Dying Breed", peaked at 36.
Darryl Worley and the Drew Davis Band were signed to 903 as well. Worley released his 2006 album Here and Now on 903, which produced the top 40 hits "Nothin' but a Love Thang" and "I Just Came Back from a War". In May 2007, McCoy announced that the label had filed for bankruptcy and closed its doors.
In Summer of 2007, Neal could be seen showing off his comedic chops on local TV commercials in the Waco, Texas market for Mike Craig Chevrolet Pontiac Buick in Marlin, Texas. The commercials continued for approximately one year. In one of them Neal acts like a puppet in the hands of the branch manager of the Mike Craig dealership in Hillsboro, Texas.
2008–13: The Very Best of Neal McCoy, XII, and Pride
In 2008, Rhino Records issued a compilation album entitled The Very Best of Neal McCoy. This album reprised most of his biggest chart hits to that point, and it included the new recording "Rednecktified", which was released as a single but did not chart. Later that same year, he issued another single, "For the Troops", which also failed to chart. McCoy released a book titled New Mountain to Climb in 2011, which coincided with the release of a single of the same name.
In April 2011, McCoy signed with Blaster Music. He released his twelfth album, XII, for the label on March 6, 2012. Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert co-produced the album with Brent Rowan, and sang backing vocals on its lead-off single "A-OK".
A year later, McCoy released Pride: A Tribute to Charley Pride via Slate Creek Records, under the production of Garth Fundis. The album features guest appearances from Darius Rucker, Trace Adkins, and Raul Malo of The Mavericks. To promote the album, McCoy and Pride filmed a video for "Kaw-Liga", which was co-written and originally recorded by Hank Williams before Pride covered it in 1969.
Personal life
McCoy has been married to Melinda since 1980. The two met when McCoy was working at a shoe store in a local mall. The couple have two children, a son and a daughter.
McCoy is also the head of a charity called the East Texas Angel Network, which helps provide money for families of seriously ill children.
McCoy resides in Longview, Texas.
Discography
References
External links
Official Website
1958 births
American country singer-songwriters
American musicians of Filipino descent
American people of Irish descent
Living people
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Lon Morris College alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Giant Records (Warner) artists
16th Avenue Records artists
Warner Records artists
People from Jacksonville, Texas
Country musicians from Texas | true | [
"When a person (traditionally the wife in many cultures) assumes the family name of their spouse, in some countries that name replaces the person's previous surname, which in the case of the wife is called the maiden name (birth name is also used as a gender-neutral or masculine substitute for maiden name), whereas a married name is a family name or surname adopted by a person upon marriage.\n\nIn some jurisdictions, changing one's name requires a legal procedure. Nevertheless, in some jurisdictions anyone who either marries or divorces may change their name. Due to increasing security and identification needs, even where it is legal, changing one's name without a legal procedure is now rarely accepted except (especially for women) at marriage. Traditionally, in the Anglophone West only women change their names on marriage, but in some instances men may change their last names upon marriage as well, including same-sex couples.\n\nIn the remainder of this article, birth name, family name, surname, married name and maiden name refer to patrilineal surnames unless explicitly described as referring to matrilineal surnames.\n\nEnglish-speaking world\nDue to the widespread practice of women changing their names at marriage, they encounter little difficulty doing so without a legal procedure in those jurisdictions that permit it.\n\nThis process is expedited for newly married women in that their marriage certificate, in combination with identification using their married name, is usually accepted as evidence of the change, due to the widespread custom, but the process still requires approaching every contact who uses the old name and asking them to use the new. Unless the statutes where the marriage occurred specify that a name change may occur at marriage (in which case the marriage certificate indicates the new name), the courts have officially recognized that such a change is a result of the common law right of a person (man, woman, and sometimes child) to change their name.\n\nThere were some early cases in the United States that held that under common law, a woman was required to take her husband's name, but newer cases overturned that (see \"Retain the birth name\" below). Currently, American women do not have to change their names by law. Lindon v. First National Bank, 10 F. 894 (W.D. Pa. 1882), is one of the very earliest precedent-setting US federal court cases involving common law name change. A woman who had changed her last name to one that was not her husband's original surname was trying to claim control over her inheritance. The court ruled in her favor. This set forth many things. By common law, one may lawfully change their name and be \"known and recognized\" by that new name. Also, one may enter into any kinds of contracts in their new adopted name. Contracts include employment (see Coppage v. Kansas 236 U.S. 1), and one can be recognized legally in court in their new name. In 1967 in Erie Exchange v. Lane, 246 Md. 55 (1967) the Maryland Court of Appeals held that a married woman can lawfully adopt an assumed name, even if it is not her birth name or the name of her lawful husband, without legal proceedings.\n\nHowever, men encounter more difficulties in changing their last names. In the United States, only eight states provide for an official name change for a man as part of their marriage process, and in others a man may petition a court or—where not prohibited—change his name without a legal procedure (though government agencies sometimes do not recognize this procedure for men).\n\nCommon options\n\nUse husband's family name\nIn the past, a woman in England usually assumed her new husband's family name (or surname) after marriage; often she was compelled to do so under coverture laws. Assuming the husband's surname remains common practice today in the United Kingdom (although there is no law that states the name must be changed) and in other countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Gibraltar, Falkland Islands, India, Philippines, the English-speaking provinces of Canada and the United States.\n\nIn some communities in India, spouses and children take the father's first name or proper name.\n\nOften there are interesting variations of name adoption, including family name adoption. In Massachusetts, for instance, a Harvard study in 2004 found that about 87% of college-educated women take their husbands' name on marriage, down from a peak before 1975 of over 90%, but up from about 80% in 1990. The same study found women with a college degree were \"two to four times (depending on age) more likely to retain their surname\" than those without a college degree.\n\nIn the lowlands of Scotland in the 16th century, married women did not change their surnames, but today it is common practice to do so.\n\nUsually, the children of these marriages are given their father's surname. Some families (mainly in the USA) have a custom of using the mother's maiden name as a middle name for one of the children—Franklin Delano Roosevelt received his middle name in this way or even as a first name. An example from Britain is Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Spessard Holland, a former Governor of Florida and former Senator, whose mother's maiden name was Virginia Spessard, received his first name in this way.\n\nRetain the birth name\nWomen who keep their own surname after marriage may do so for a number of reasons:\n They see no reason to change their name, much like men often see no reason to change theirs.\n Objection to the one-sidedness of this tradition.\n Being the last member of their family with that surname.\n To avoid the hassle of paperwork related to their change of name.\n Wishing to retain their identity.\n Preferring their last name to their spouse's last name.\n To avoid professional ramifications.\n\nThe American suffragist and abolitionist Lucy Stone (1818–1893) made a national issue of a married woman's right to keep her own surname (as she herself did upon marriage) as part of her efforts for women's rights in the U.S. Women who choose to keep their prior names have been called \"Lucy Stoners\". In 1879, when Boston women were granted the franchise in school elections, Stone registered to vote. But officials would not allow her to vote unless she added \"Blackwell\", her husband's last name, to her signature. This she refused to do, and so she was not able to vote. She did not challenge the action in a court of law.\n\nThe Lucy Stone League, named after her, was founded in 1921 by Ruth Hale; it was the first group to fight for women to be allowed to keep their maiden name after marriage—and to use it legally. Ruth Hale challenged in federal court that any government edict that would not recognize a married woman (such as herself) by the name she chose to use. In May 1921 Hale obtained a real estate deed issued in her birth name rather than her married name, Mrs. Heywood Broun.\n\nIn 1925 Doris Fleischman became the first married woman in the United States to receive a passport in her own name. But by the early 1930s the Lucy Stone League was inactive.\n\nIn People ex rel. Rago v. Lipsky, 63 N.E.2d 642 (Ill. 1945), the Appellate Court of Illinois, First District did not allow a married woman to stay registered to vote under her birth name, due to \"the long-established custom, policy and rule of the common law among English-speaking peoples whereby a woman's name is changed by marriage and her husband's surname becomes as a matter of law her surname.\"\n\nIn 1950, Jane Grant and 22 former members restarted the Lucy Stone League; its first meeting was on 22 March 1950 in New York City. Grant promptly won the Census Bureau's agreement that a married woman could use her birth surname as her official or real name in the census. (The New York Times, 10 April 1950).\n\nIn the 1950s and 1960s, the League widened its focus to include all discrimination against women in the USA; the League was a forerunner of the National Organization for Women.\n\nIn State ex rel. Krupa v. Green, 177 N.E.2d 616 (Ohio 1961), the Ohio appellate court allowed a married woman to register to vote in her birth name which she had openly and solely used, and been well known to use, before her marriage, and held that she could use that name as a candidate for public office.\n\nIn 1972 in Stuart v. Board of Elections, 266 Md. 440, 446, on the question of whether a wife could register to vote in her birth name rather than her husband's last name, the Maryland Court of Appeals held, \"[A] married woman's surname does not become that of her husband where, as here, she evidences a clear intent to consistently and nonfraudulently use her birth given name subsequent to her marriage.\"\n\nIn the 1970s the Olympia Brown League was founded to help women's name rights in Milwaukee, in response to a court decision against women seeking to keep their maiden names upon marriage; Olympia Brown had kept hers upon her marriage in 1873. Specifically, the case with that court decision was Kruzel v. Podell (1975), in which the Supreme Court of Wisconsin decided that a woman upon marriage adopts the last name of her husband by customarily using that name after marriage, but also stated that no law required her to.\n\nIn 1975 in Dunn v. Palermo, the Supreme Court of Tennessee held that \"in this jurisdiction a woman, upon marriage, has a freedom of choice. She may elect to retain her own surname or she may adopt the surname of her husband. The choice is hers. We hold that a person's legal name is that given at birth, or as voluntarily changed by either spouse at the time of marriage, or as changed by affirmative acts as provided under the Constitution and laws of the State of Tennessee. So long as a person's name remains constant and consistent, and unless and until changed in the prescribed manner, and absent any fraudulent or legally impermissible intent, the State has no legitimate concern.\"\n\nA new version of the Lucy Stone League was started in 1997, again focused on name equality.\n\nThe American laws and cases noted above do not include all the relevant American laws and cases regarding maiden names. Currently, American women do not have to change their names by law.\n\nJoin both names (hyphenation)\n\nIt is less common for women, especially in the US and Canada, to add their spouse's name and their own birth name.\n\nName blending\nAlthough less common than name joining, a growing trend is the blending of two surnames upon marriage. This means adding parts of the two names. An example is Dawn O'Porter.\n\nBirth name as middle name\nExamples are Amy Coney Barrett, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sandra Day O'Connor, and Kim Kardashian West.\n\nChildren\nIn the United States, some states or areas have laws that restrict what surname a child may have. For example, Tennessee allows a child to be given a surname that does not include that of the father only upon \"the concurrent submission of a sworn application to that effect signed by both parents.\"\n\nLegal status of male name changes at marriage\nIn 2007, Michael Buday and Diana Bijon enlisted the American Civil Liberties Union and filed a discrimination lawsuit against the state of California. According to the ACLU, the obstacles facing a husband who wishes to adopt his wife's last name violated the equal protection clause provided by the 14th Amendment of the Constitution. At the time of the lawsuit, only the states of Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Massachusetts, New York and North Dakota explicitly allowed a man to change his name through marriage with the same ease as a woman. As a result of the lawsuit, the Name Equality Act of 2007 was passed to allow either spouse to change their name, using their marriage license as the means of the change; the law took effect in 2009.\n\nIn 2013, Florida resident Lazaro Dinh had his licence revoked by the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles for adopting his wife Hanh Dinh's surname. Subsequently, the licence was restored and the Department acknowledged their error.\n\nFeminism and preserving one's personal name\n(Also see \"Retain the birth name\" above.)\n \nThe feminist Lucy Stone (1818–1893) made a national issue of a married woman's right to keep her own surname (as she herself did upon marriage) as part of her efforts for women's rights in the U.S. Because of her, women who choose not to use their husbands' surnames have been called \"Lucy Stoners\".\n\nThe feminist Elizabeth Cady Stanton took her husband's surname as part of her own, signing herself Elizabeth Cady Stanton or E. Cady Stanton, but she refused to be addressed as Mrs. Henry B. Stanton. She wrote in 1847 that \"the custom of calling women Mrs. John This and Mrs. Tom That and colored men Sambo and Zip Coon, is founded on the principle that white men are lords of all.\" Later, when addressing the judiciary committee of the state legislature of New York in 1860 in a speech called \"A Slave's Appeal\", she stated in part, \"The negro [slave] has no name. He is Cuffy Douglas or Cuffy Brooks, just whose Cuffy he may chance to be. The woman has no name. She is Mrs. Richard Roe or Mrs. John Doe, just whose Mrs. she may chance to be.\" \n \nThe feminist Jane Grant, co-founder of The New Yorker, wrote in 1943 of her efforts to keep her name despite her marriage, as well as other women's experiences with their maiden names regarding military service, passports, voting, and business.\n\nMore recently, the feminist Jill Filipovic's opposition to name change for women who marry was published in The Guardian in 2013 as \"Why should married women change their names? Let men change theirs\", and cited as recommended reading on the social construction of gender in Critical Encounters in Secondary English: Teaching Literacy Theory to Adolescents by Deborah Appleman (2014). Filipovic married Ty Lohrer McCormick in 2018, and kept her last name upon marriage.\n\nUse as security question\nOne's mother's maiden name has been a common security question in banking since at least the 1980s.\n\nCanada\n\nIn most of Canada, either partner may informally assume the spouse's surname after marriage, so long as it is not for the purposes of fraud. The same is true for people in common-law relationships, in some provinces. This is not considered a legal name change in most provinces, excluding British Columbia. For federal purposes, such as a Canadian passport, Canadians may also assume their partner's surname if they are in a common-law relationship. In the province of British Columbia, people have to undergo a legal name change if they want to use a combined surname after marriage. Their marriage certificate is considered proof of their new name.\n\nThe custom in Québec was similar to the one in France until 1981. Women would traditionally go by their husband's surname in daily life, but their maiden name remained their legal name. Since the passage of a 1981 provincial law intended to promote gender equality, as outlined in the Québec Charter of Rights, no change may be made to a person's name without the authorization of the registrar of civil status or the authorization of the court. Newlyweds who wish to change their names upon marriage must therefore go through the same procedure as those changing their names for other reasons. The registrar of civil status may authorize a name change if:\n\nthe name the person generally uses does not correspond to the name on their birth certificate,\nthe name is of foreign origin or too difficult to pronounce or write in its original form, or \nthe name invites ridicule or has become infamous.\n\nThis law does not make it legal for a woman to change her name immediately upon marriage, as marriage is not listed among the reasons for a name change.\n\nSpanish-speaking world\nSpouses keep their original surnames. Following Spanish naming customs, a person's name consists of a given name (simple or composite) followed by two family names (surnames), the father's and the mother's. Any children whom a couple have together, take both first-surnames, so if \"José Gómez Hevia\" and \"María Reyes García\" had a child named \"Andrés\", the resulting name would be \"Andrés Gómez Reyes\".\n\nLaw 11/1981 in Spain, enacted in 1981, declared among other things that children, on turning 18, now had a legal option to choose whether their father's or mother's surname came first. If a family did not exercise an option to change the order of the names in their surname, the law defaulted to the father's surname as the first.\n\nAlso in Spain, a 1995 reform in the law allows the parents to choose whether the father's or the mother's surname goes first, although this order must be the same for all their children. For instance, the name of the son of the couple in the example above could be \"Andrés Gómez Reyes\" or \"Andrés Reyes Gómez\".\n\nIn some Spanish-American countries it is customary for women to unofficially add the husband's first surname after her own, for social purposes such as invitation letters or event announcements. The couple above may introduce themselves as José Gómez Hevia and María Reyes de Gómez. It is also common to name, in formal settings, the wife of a man as \"señora de \", followed by her husband's first surname.\n\nPortuguese-speaking world\nWives usually assume the family name of their spouse, although there is a recent trend of women keeping their maiden names. Following Portuguese naming customs, a person's name consists of a given name (simple or composite) followed by two family names (surnames), the mother's and the father's. Any children whom a couple have together, take both second-surnames.\n\nOther European countries\n\nAustria\nIn Austria, since 1 April 2013, marriage does not automatically change a woman's name; therefore a name change can only take place upon legal application. Before that date, the default was for a married woman's name to be changed to that of her husband, unless she legally applied to opt out of this.\n\nFrance\nIn France, by executive decision since 2011 and by law since 2013, any married person may officially use their spouse's name as a common name by substituting or compounding it to their own. Before this it was common for married women to use their husband's name in everyday life but this had no legal recognition.\n\nA common name does not replace a person's family name as written on their birth certificate.\n\nFrom 4 March 2002 to 4 December 2009, children given both parents' names had to have them separated by a double dash (ex: Dupont--Clairemont). On 4 December 2009, the Conseil d'État ruled that a space can be used instead of the double dash. As a result, forms asking for the family name (nom de famille) do so on two lines (\"1ère partie: ..... \", \"2e partie: ....\")\n\nGermany\nIn Germany, since 1977, a woman may adopt her husband's surname or a man may adopt his wife's surname. One of them may use a name combined from both surnames. The remaining single name is the \"family name\" (Ehename), which will be the surname of the children. If a man and woman both decide to keep and use their birth names after the wedding (no combined name), they shall declare one of those names the \"family name\". A combined name is not possible as a family name, but, since 2005, it has been possible to have a double name as a family name if one already had a double name, and the partner adopts that name. Double names then must be hyphenated. All family members must use that double name.\n\nGreece\nSince 1983, when Greece adopted a new marriage law which guaranteed gender equality between the spouses, women in Greece are required to keep their birth names for their whole lives.\n\nItaly\nSpouses keep their original surnames. According to the Italian Civil Code (article 143 bis), a woman who marries keeps her surname and has the option of adding her husband's surname after hers. Non-Italian citizens getting married in Italy will not have their surname changed in Italy. However, brides or grooms can request their surname change in their home country.\n\nNetherlands\nIn the Netherlands, persons who have been married in the Netherlands or entered into a registered partnership will remain registered under their birth name. They are, however, permitted to use their partner's last name for social purposes or join both names. Upon marriage or registered partnership, one may also indicate how one would like to be addressed by registering one's choice at the Municipal Basis Administration (Gemeentelijke Basis Administratie) (although the birth name does not change). One may choose to be called by one's own name, one's partner's name, one's own name followed by one's partner's name (hyphenated), or one's partner's name followed by their own name (hyphenated). Both men and women may make this choice upon registering to get married or entering into a registered partnership. If the marriage or registered partnership ends, one may continue to use the ex-partner's last surname unless the ex-partner disagrees and requests the court to forbid the use of the ex-partner's surname.\n\nBefore the birth or adoption of a first child, married parents may choose the child's surname (mother's or father's but not both). If no choice is made, the child automatically bears the father's surname. Any further children will also go by this name. If the parents are not married, the children will automatically have their mother's name unless otherwise indicated.\n\nRussia\nThere is a widespread, though not universal, custom for a newly married wife to adopt the husband's family name. However, as Russia is not a common law country, any name change requires a formal procedure including an official application to the civil acts registrar. As the same registrar also records marriages, for the convenience sake it is often done during the marriage proceedings, as governed by the Federal Law #143-FZ \"On Civil State Acts\", and the couple's marriage certificate has an option of having one common family name, or both spouses going by their original surname. However, the law is entirely gender neutral, and the couple may adopt either of their surnames (a husband adopting his wife's family name is an uncommon but by no means unheard-of practice, which is generally accepted and carries little to no social stigma), or even a completely different one. The law also recognizes the couple's right to use the combined family name, and for the either of the spouses to reclaim their original surname in the case the marriage is dissolved.\n\nAsian countries\n\nChina\nTraditionally, unlike in English-speaking countries, a married woman keeps her name unchanged, without adopting her husband's surname. In mainland China a child inherits their father's surname as a norm, though the marriage law explicitly states that a child may use either parent's surname. It is also common for two children born to the same parents to take different surnames, one after the father and the other after the mother. It is also possible, though far less common, for a child to combine both parents' surnames.\n\nHong Kong\nDue to British influence, some people in Hong Kong have also adopted the tradition of women changing their English last name, or prepending their husband's Chinese surname to their own in official occasions or business cards but rarely on resident identification or travel documents. Amongst the Chinese diaspora overseas, especially in Southeast Asia, women rarely legally adopt their spouse's surname.\n\nIran\nIt became mandatory in 1918 to use surnames in Iran, and only in this time, the heads of families had the right to choose their family members' (including the wife) surname. It is stated in the article four of the law on Civil Registration in 1925, that \"Everybody should choose his/her own name. The wife... maintains her family name that was called by.\" The same thing has been restated in the article three of the law on Civil Registration in 1928. There is not much difference in the article 38 of the law on Civil Registration in 1940, but there is another article (43) that says \"If the couple separate legally, maintaining husband's surname is allowed if the husband allows, and if the husband has taken wife's family name, maintaining wife's surname is allowed if the wife allows.\" In the last related article (the article 42 of the law on Civil Registration in 1976) the same thing is said about wife's surname change, but it is silent about husband's surname change.\nCurrently, it is very unusual that either spouse change his/her surname after marriage in Iran.\n\nJapan\nJapanese law does not recognize married couples who have different surnames as lawful husband and wife, which means that 96% of married Japanese women take their husband's surname. In 2015, the Japanese Supreme Court upheld the name-change law, ruling that it was not unconstitutional, noting that women could informally use their maiden names, and stating that it was the parliamentarians who should decide on whether to pass new legislation on separate spousal names.\n\nKorea (North and South Korea)\nTraditionally, Korean women keep their family names after their marriage, while their children usually take the father's surname. Korea used to be relatively gender equal as of inheritance and familial duties up until at least the late 17th century. Often, family genealogy books would keep track of the daughters and their spouses and offspring too. As such, it was the norm for women to keep their maiden name and they were considered to be part of the family even after marriage. Before modern times, people were very conscious of familial values and their own family identities. It is therefore traditional for Korean women keep their surnames after marriage, based on traditional reasoning that it is what they inherited from their parents and ancestors. Colloquially, Koreans consider the name of an individual as a singular entity, and changing the family name syllable would make the name sound strange with the other syllables of the given name. \nNowadays, women still keep their names after marriage. Children can have either parent's surname, but it is customary to use the father's surname.\n\nPhilippines\n\nThe Civil Code provides several options for married women on what surname to take upon marriage:\n keep her middle name (maternal surname) and add her husband's surname to the maiden name (e.g. Maria Isabella Flores Garcia-Dimaculangan/Ma. Isabella F. Garcia-Dimaculangan);\n take the husband's surname and make her maiden name the middle name (Maria Isabella Garcia Dimaculangan/Ma. Isabella G. Dimaculangan);\n take the husband's full name, with a prefix to indicate that she is his wife (e.g. Mrs./Ms. Dimaculangan)\n\nA woman may also keep her maiden name, as Philippine law does not require a woman to take her husband's surname at marriage. This is commonly done for professional reasons, as a woman may want to retain her name among her business contacts or audience.\n\nThe Civil Code also states that children as the result of the marriage will take the mother's middle name (maiden surname) and the father's surname. To illustrate this, the children of a married couple named Maria Josefa Lopez Mañego-Luansing and Juan Candido Luansing will take the middle name Mañego and the surname Luansing, so, one daughter with a given name of Juliana will be named Juliana Mañego Luansing.\n\nMarried women in professional circles (e.g. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Korina Sanchez-Roxas, Vilma Santos-Recto) typically join their maiden and married surnames in both professional and legal use (e.g. Maria Isabella Flores Garcia-Dimaculangan/Ma. Isabella F. Garcia-Dimaculangan). This allows them to be identified as married, and keep track of their professional achievements without being confused for being two different individual (e.g. Maria Isabella Flores Garcia/Ma. Isabella F. Garcia, as against Maria Isabella Garcia Dimaculangan/Ma. Isabella G. Dimaculangan)\n\nAn older scheme based on Spanish naming customs add the particle de (\"of\") between the maiden and married surnames (e.g. Maria Isabella Garcia de Dimaculangan or Ma. Isabella G. de Dimaculangan). This tradition is no longer common.\n\nTaiwan\nTaiwanese women generally keep their surnames after marriage, while their children may inherit either the father's or the mother's. It is, however, legal to take the spouse's surname. Some older women have the husband's surname tagged on to theirs, as was common in the early to mid-20th century.\n\nThailand\nA Thai wife who adopted her husband's surname due to the old law requiring it, can also change back to her original surname.\n\nTurkey\nSince 2014, women in Turkey are allowed to keep their birth names alone for their whole life instead of using their husbands' names. Previously, the Turkish Code of Civil Law, Article 187, required a married woman to use her husband's surname; or else to use her birth name in front of her husband's name by giving a written application to the marriage officer or the civil registry office. In 2014, the Constitutional Court ruled that prohibiting married women from retaining only maiden names is a violation of their rights.\n\nVietnam\nIn Vietnamese culture, women keep their family names once they marry, whilst the progeny tend to keep the father's family name, although names can often be combined from father's and mother's family name e.g. Nguyễn Lê, Phạm Vũ, Kim Lý etc.\n\nGenealogy\nGenealogists often also make note of all surnames used by a person during their lifetime (such as those acquired from birth parents, those assigned at birth when the father is unknown or not acknowledged, those acquired at marriage, and those acquired at a remarriage). For example, an illegitimate male child abandoned at birth in Italy or in other European countries will receive no surname from either of his birth parents but, instead, will be assigned a surname—often invented from one of the three kingdoms of nature, e.g., mineral (\"Pietra\"), vegetable (\"Rosa\") or animal (\"Leoni\"), or otherwise according to custom within a locality, such as \"Esposito\" (meaning \"abandoned\") or \"Casa Grande\" (referring to the \"Domo Magna,\" e.g., the ospizio [hospital] where abandoned).\n\nSee also\n\nDouble-barrelled name\nGalton–Watson process\nGiven name\nLucy Stone League\nMatriname\nMatronymic\nName change\nPatrilineality\nPatronymic\nSpanish naming customs\nSurname\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nWhy should women change their names on getting married? – a history of name changing upon marriage in the UK and in the US\n\nSurname\nNames\n\npt:Nome de batismo",
"Keidser is a surname and \"soldier name\" originally from Scania in Sweden. Bearers of the family name now live all over the world, notably in Sweden, Denmark, USA and Australia.\n\nOrigin \nThe first bearer of the name was Johan Persson Kediser (born 1871 and dead 1930) who was a Swedish soldier at Hoby Company in the Scanian Hussar Regiment. As part of the allotment system his croft (in Swedish: \"Soldattorp\") belonged to (and was financed by) Åkerlund Rote in Uppåkra Socken. He joined the military in 1890 and was honorably discharged in 1912. In the military service he was given the name Keidser and he later took that as his family name, passing it on to his children. The name is as such classified as a Swedish \"soldier name\". \n\nSwedish military names are usually describing in nature (quick, hard, tall, brave, drunkard etc) or related to tools of war (sword, spear, shield, helmet, dagger, cannon etc). However the name Keidser is none of that. Soldier names could also typically derive from the name of the Rote the was outfitted by, and as such the name usually followed the croft. Similar Swedish soldier names (Kejser, Keiser etc) has been derived from Rote names that has the Swedish word for emperor (Swedish: Kejsare) as part of the name, like \"Kejsarkulla\" (meaning \"Emperor hill\"). However that do not seem to be the case here either as the Rote is called Åkerlund (meaning \"field grove\"). Johan Persson is also the only soldier in Sweden that have been given that particular name, according to searches in the Central Soldier Register. In these regards the name is unique. \n\nOne can only speculate why he was given that particular name as no known sources remain to tell reasoning behind the name. However the pronunciation of it in the Scanian dialect is strikingly close to the German surname Kaiser and/or the Dutch surname Keizer, both deriving from the German imperial title title Kaiser. Even if the name did derive from the German title Kaiser the reason why Johan Persson was given that name remains a mystery. Perhaps an officer thought he looked like the Kaiser at the time or perhaps an officer thought him arrogant like an emperor - who knows.\n\nAll who bear the name today, alone or in conjugation with another surname, are descendants of Johan Persson Kediser, have married someone who is or is adopted by someone who is. Except for one; who got the name when his mother married a man named Keidser and chose to keep it after their divorce even though his mother did not.\n\nNotable people with the surname Keidser \nCurt Keidser, American drummer\nGitte Keidser, Danish/Australian Senior Researcher and Professor, focusing in Hearing, Hearing loss and Hearing aid.\nMaj Keidser, Swedish politician\nWilly Keidser, Swedish actor\n\nReferences \n\nSurnames"
]
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[
"Neal McCoy",
"1990-2000: Atlantic Records",
"What happened with Atlantic Records in 1990?",
"He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request,",
"Why did he have to change his surname?",
"McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy."
]
| C_9a8de494ac20410197429216336c5831_1 | What was one of the things he first produced when he signed with them? | 3 | What was one of the things Neal McCoy first produced when he signed with Atlantic Records? | Neal McCoy | He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' hit song from 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows." A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58. Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released No Doubt About It in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5. CANNOTANSWER | His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. | Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. (born July 30, 1958), known professionally as Neal McCoy, is an American country music singer. He has released 10 studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio. Although he first charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1988, he did not reach the top 40 for the first time until 1992's "Where Forever Begins", which peaked at number 40. McCoy broke through two years later with the back-to-back number one singles "No Doubt About It" and "Wink" from his platinum-certified album No Doubt About It. Although he has not topped the country charts since, his commercial success continued into the mid to late 1990s with two more platinum albums and a gold album, as well as six more top 10 hits. A ninth top 10 hit, the number 10 "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", came in 2005 from his self-released That's Life.
Early life
Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. was born on July 30, 1958, in Jacksonville, Texas, to a Filipino American mother and Irish-American father. Inspired by the variety of music that his parents listened to, which included country, rock, disco and R&B, McGaughey first sang in his church choir before founding an R&B band. He later switched his focus to country music, performing in various bars and clubs in Texas. McGaughey, after attending junior college near his hometown, found work selling shoes at a shopping mall. In the early 1980s, he met his wife, Melinda, at the store.
After winning a 1981 talent contest hosted by Janie Fricke, he secured a spot as an opening act for Charley Pride.
Musical career
Crediting himself as Neal McGoy, a phonetic spelling of his surname, he signed to the independent 16th Avenue Records label in 1988. He released the singles "That's How Much I Love You" and "That's American", and although the former reached No. 85 on the country charts, he did not release an album for the label. He continued to tour as an opening act for Pride until 1990, the same year that the 16th Avenue label closed.
1990–2000: Atlantic Records
He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' #1 Hot 100 hit from late 1986-early 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows."
A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58.
Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released his breakthrough album, No Doubt About It, in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5.
Mid-Late 1990s
You Gotta Love That, his fourth album, also received a platinum certification and it produced four singles: "For a Change", "They're Playin' Our Song" and the title track (respectively the first, second, and fourth singles) all peaked at No. 3, while "If I Was a Drinkin' Man" reached No. 16.
McCoy's self-titled fifth studio album began a decline in his chart momentum. Although it was certified gold, Neal McCoy accounted for only one Top Ten hit in a cover of The Casinos' 1967 doo-wop single "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye". The next two singles — "Going, Going, Gone" and "That Woman of Mine" — both peaked at No. 35. Also in 1996, he sang guest vocals on the multi-artist charity single "Hope", the proceeds of which went to the T. J. Martell Foundation's cancer research. After "That Woman of Mine", he reached No. 5 with "The Shake", the only new song on his first Greatest Hits package, which reprised nine of his greatest hits to that point and also earned platinum certification.
Be Good at It, his sixth studio release, followed in 1998. This was his first album since Where Forever Begins not to include a Top Ten hit. The title track, "If You Can't Be Good, Be Good at It", was the highest-peaking single release from it at No. 22, followed by "Party On", which became his first single since 1992 to miss Top 40 entirely. After it came the No. 29 "Love Happens Like That." McCoy made a second appearance on a multi-artist charity single that same year, as one of several collaborators on "One Heart at a Time", a song written by Victoria Shaw to benefit cystic fibrosis research.
In 1999, McCoy released his final album for Atlantic, The Life of the Party. It only accounted for two singles: the Phil Vassar co-write "I Was" at No. 37 and "The Girls of Summer" at No. 42. He, Tracy Byrd, and T. Graham Brown also sang guest vocals on "Now That's Awesome", a song featuring snippets of a Bill Engvall comedy sketch, found on Engvall's Now That's Awesome album. This single peaked at No. 59.
2000–04: Warner Bros. Records and SEA Records
Due to the closure of Atlantic Records' Nashville division in mid-2000, McCoy's next album, 24-7-365, was issued via Giant Records. It included the singles "Forever Works for Me (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)", "Every Man for Himself", and "Beatin' It In", at No. 38, No. 37, and No. 41 respectively. In late 2000, he released a Christmas medley consisting of "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", which reached number 74 based on seasonal airplay. After Giant closed as well, he moved again to Warner Bros. Records, where he recorded The Luckiest Man in the World. Although the title track entered the country charts and peaked at number 46, the album itself was not released, and McCoy exited Warner Bros. by the end of the year. He signed with an independent label called SEA Records in 2004, and was slated to release a single for it in the middle of the year, but he left the label without releasing anything.
2005–07
In 2005, Neal McCoy and his manager Karen Kane founded a label called 903 Music. His first single for his own label was "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", which reached the Top 10 on the Hot Country Songs chart in 2005. The song served as the lead-off to his 2005 album That's Life. Also included on the album were a cover of Charley Pride's "You're My Jamaica", a song preceded by a spoken-word intro from United States Army general Tommy Franks, and a studio version of "Hillbilly Rap", which he had performed in concert since the early 1990s. McCoy's next single release, "The Last of a Dying Breed", peaked at 36.
Darryl Worley and the Drew Davis Band were signed to 903 as well. Worley released his 2006 album Here and Now on 903, which produced the top 40 hits "Nothin' but a Love Thang" and "I Just Came Back from a War". In May 2007, McCoy announced that the label had filed for bankruptcy and closed its doors.
In Summer of 2007, Neal could be seen showing off his comedic chops on local TV commercials in the Waco, Texas market for Mike Craig Chevrolet Pontiac Buick in Marlin, Texas. The commercials continued for approximately one year. In one of them Neal acts like a puppet in the hands of the branch manager of the Mike Craig dealership in Hillsboro, Texas.
2008–13: The Very Best of Neal McCoy, XII, and Pride
In 2008, Rhino Records issued a compilation album entitled The Very Best of Neal McCoy. This album reprised most of his biggest chart hits to that point, and it included the new recording "Rednecktified", which was released as a single but did not chart. Later that same year, he issued another single, "For the Troops", which also failed to chart. McCoy released a book titled New Mountain to Climb in 2011, which coincided with the release of a single of the same name.
In April 2011, McCoy signed with Blaster Music. He released his twelfth album, XII, for the label on March 6, 2012. Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert co-produced the album with Brent Rowan, and sang backing vocals on its lead-off single "A-OK".
A year later, McCoy released Pride: A Tribute to Charley Pride via Slate Creek Records, under the production of Garth Fundis. The album features guest appearances from Darius Rucker, Trace Adkins, and Raul Malo of The Mavericks. To promote the album, McCoy and Pride filmed a video for "Kaw-Liga", which was co-written and originally recorded by Hank Williams before Pride covered it in 1969.
Personal life
McCoy has been married to Melinda since 1980. The two met when McCoy was working at a shoe store in a local mall. The couple have two children, a son and a daughter.
McCoy is also the head of a charity called the East Texas Angel Network, which helps provide money for families of seriously ill children.
McCoy resides in Longview, Texas.
Discography
References
External links
Official Website
1958 births
American country singer-songwriters
American musicians of Filipino descent
American people of Irish descent
Living people
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Lon Morris College alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Giant Records (Warner) artists
16th Avenue Records artists
Warner Records artists
People from Jacksonville, Texas
Country musicians from Texas | true | [
"The discography of Joe Nichols, an American country music singer, consists of twenty seven singles and nine studio albums.\n\nAt age 19, he made his debut in 1996 with a self-titled album on the independent Intersound label. It was not until the release of his 2002 single \"The Impossible\" on the Universal South Records (now Show Dog-Universal Music) label that Nichols first reached Top 40 on the country charts. The single, which peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts, was followed by the release of his platinum-certified second album, Man with a Memory, released in 2002. This album also produced the Number One single \"Brokenheartsville\".\n\nNichols followed up Man with a Memory in 2004 with Revelation (which included the Top Five hit \"What's a Guy Gotta Do\"), and an album of Christmas music entitled A Traditional Christmas. His fourth album, 2005's gold-certified III, produced the Number One single \"Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off\". Real Things followed in 2007, and Old Things New, which produced Nichols' third Number One hit in \"Gimmie That Girl\", was released in 2009. Following the release of Old Things New, Nichols' label went through a merge to become Show-Dog Universal Music, through which he released his seventh album, It's All Good, in 2011. It produced only one chart single in \"Take It Off\" (which failed to reach the Top 20), and he parted ways with his label.\n\nIn late 2012, Nichols was signed to Red Bow Records, as the flagship artist for the new label. Under Red Bow, Nichols released his eighth album, 2013's Crickets. To date, it has produced two Number One hits in \"Sunny and 75\" and \"Yeah\".\n\nStudio albums\n\n1990s and 2000s\n\n2010s-Present\n\nChristmas albums\n\nCompilation albums\n\nSingles\n\n1990s\n\n2000s\n\n2010s-Present\n\nOther singles\n\nFeatured singles\n\nOther charted songs\n\nOther appearances\n\nMusic videos\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nCountry music discographies\n \n \nDiscographies of American artists",
"Take Time is the third extended play by Gyroscope and was released in May 2002. The five-track EP was recorded at Studio Couch in Perth, Western Australia earlier that year and was produced and engineered by Shaun O'Callaghan.\n\nHistory\n\nTake Time was recorded by Gyroscope at Studio Couch in Perth, Western Australia early in 2002 and was produced and engineered by Shaun O'Callaghan. It was issued on 19 May 2002.\n\nFollowing the release of their compilation album, Injuring Yourself Whilst Making Music, in 2001 the group went on hiatus, while their drummer, Rob Nassif, went to Canada to study for six months. Upon his return, they signed a deal with Fremantle-based independent record label, Redline Records (owned by local band, Jebediah). The first track written upon their resumption was \"I've Been Struck by Lightning Once... So What's the Chance of It Happening Again?\" – Daniel Sanders, their lead singer, had literally been struck by lightning whilst he was out fishing with the band's manager.\n\nIn support of the appearance of Take Time they undertook a national tour backing Jebediah throughout July and August. In October 2002 Juice Magazine listed Gyroscope as one of the next big things along with The Vines, Jet and the Datsuns. At the end of that year Gyroscope won a WAMi Award for 'Most Popular Local Original Punk Act'.\n\nThe success of Take Time led to a deal with Festival/Mushroom, which signed the band in 2003.\n\nThe band's debut music video was for \"Save the Last Match\" and was produced by Andrew Miller.\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Gyroscope web site\n\n2002 EPs\nGyroscope (band) albums"
]
|
[
"Neal McCoy",
"1990-2000: Atlantic Records",
"What happened with Atlantic Records in 1990?",
"He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request,",
"Why did he have to change his surname?",
"McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy.",
"What was one of the things he first produced when he signed with them?",
"His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year."
]
| C_9a8de494ac20410197429216336c5831_1 | Was that album well received? | 4 | Was the album by Neal McCoy well received? | Neal McCoy | He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' hit song from 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows." A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58. Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released No Doubt About It in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5. CANNOTANSWER | None of the three singles made the country Top 40, | Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. (born July 30, 1958), known professionally as Neal McCoy, is an American country music singer. He has released 10 studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio. Although he first charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1988, he did not reach the top 40 for the first time until 1992's "Where Forever Begins", which peaked at number 40. McCoy broke through two years later with the back-to-back number one singles "No Doubt About It" and "Wink" from his platinum-certified album No Doubt About It. Although he has not topped the country charts since, his commercial success continued into the mid to late 1990s with two more platinum albums and a gold album, as well as six more top 10 hits. A ninth top 10 hit, the number 10 "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", came in 2005 from his self-released That's Life.
Early life
Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. was born on July 30, 1958, in Jacksonville, Texas, to a Filipino American mother and Irish-American father. Inspired by the variety of music that his parents listened to, which included country, rock, disco and R&B, McGaughey first sang in his church choir before founding an R&B band. He later switched his focus to country music, performing in various bars and clubs in Texas. McGaughey, after attending junior college near his hometown, found work selling shoes at a shopping mall. In the early 1980s, he met his wife, Melinda, at the store.
After winning a 1981 talent contest hosted by Janie Fricke, he secured a spot as an opening act for Charley Pride.
Musical career
Crediting himself as Neal McGoy, a phonetic spelling of his surname, he signed to the independent 16th Avenue Records label in 1988. He released the singles "That's How Much I Love You" and "That's American", and although the former reached No. 85 on the country charts, he did not release an album for the label. He continued to tour as an opening act for Pride until 1990, the same year that the 16th Avenue label closed.
1990–2000: Atlantic Records
He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' #1 Hot 100 hit from late 1986-early 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows."
A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58.
Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released his breakthrough album, No Doubt About It, in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5.
Mid-Late 1990s
You Gotta Love That, his fourth album, also received a platinum certification and it produced four singles: "For a Change", "They're Playin' Our Song" and the title track (respectively the first, second, and fourth singles) all peaked at No. 3, while "If I Was a Drinkin' Man" reached No. 16.
McCoy's self-titled fifth studio album began a decline in his chart momentum. Although it was certified gold, Neal McCoy accounted for only one Top Ten hit in a cover of The Casinos' 1967 doo-wop single "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye". The next two singles — "Going, Going, Gone" and "That Woman of Mine" — both peaked at No. 35. Also in 1996, he sang guest vocals on the multi-artist charity single "Hope", the proceeds of which went to the T. J. Martell Foundation's cancer research. After "That Woman of Mine", he reached No. 5 with "The Shake", the only new song on his first Greatest Hits package, which reprised nine of his greatest hits to that point and also earned platinum certification.
Be Good at It, his sixth studio release, followed in 1998. This was his first album since Where Forever Begins not to include a Top Ten hit. The title track, "If You Can't Be Good, Be Good at It", was the highest-peaking single release from it at No. 22, followed by "Party On", which became his first single since 1992 to miss Top 40 entirely. After it came the No. 29 "Love Happens Like That." McCoy made a second appearance on a multi-artist charity single that same year, as one of several collaborators on "One Heart at a Time", a song written by Victoria Shaw to benefit cystic fibrosis research.
In 1999, McCoy released his final album for Atlantic, The Life of the Party. It only accounted for two singles: the Phil Vassar co-write "I Was" at No. 37 and "The Girls of Summer" at No. 42. He, Tracy Byrd, and T. Graham Brown also sang guest vocals on "Now That's Awesome", a song featuring snippets of a Bill Engvall comedy sketch, found on Engvall's Now That's Awesome album. This single peaked at No. 59.
2000–04: Warner Bros. Records and SEA Records
Due to the closure of Atlantic Records' Nashville division in mid-2000, McCoy's next album, 24-7-365, was issued via Giant Records. It included the singles "Forever Works for Me (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)", "Every Man for Himself", and "Beatin' It In", at No. 38, No. 37, and No. 41 respectively. In late 2000, he released a Christmas medley consisting of "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", which reached number 74 based on seasonal airplay. After Giant closed as well, he moved again to Warner Bros. Records, where he recorded The Luckiest Man in the World. Although the title track entered the country charts and peaked at number 46, the album itself was not released, and McCoy exited Warner Bros. by the end of the year. He signed with an independent label called SEA Records in 2004, and was slated to release a single for it in the middle of the year, but he left the label without releasing anything.
2005–07
In 2005, Neal McCoy and his manager Karen Kane founded a label called 903 Music. His first single for his own label was "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", which reached the Top 10 on the Hot Country Songs chart in 2005. The song served as the lead-off to his 2005 album That's Life. Also included on the album were a cover of Charley Pride's "You're My Jamaica", a song preceded by a spoken-word intro from United States Army general Tommy Franks, and a studio version of "Hillbilly Rap", which he had performed in concert since the early 1990s. McCoy's next single release, "The Last of a Dying Breed", peaked at 36.
Darryl Worley and the Drew Davis Band were signed to 903 as well. Worley released his 2006 album Here and Now on 903, which produced the top 40 hits "Nothin' but a Love Thang" and "I Just Came Back from a War". In May 2007, McCoy announced that the label had filed for bankruptcy and closed its doors.
In Summer of 2007, Neal could be seen showing off his comedic chops on local TV commercials in the Waco, Texas market for Mike Craig Chevrolet Pontiac Buick in Marlin, Texas. The commercials continued for approximately one year. In one of them Neal acts like a puppet in the hands of the branch manager of the Mike Craig dealership in Hillsboro, Texas.
2008–13: The Very Best of Neal McCoy, XII, and Pride
In 2008, Rhino Records issued a compilation album entitled The Very Best of Neal McCoy. This album reprised most of his biggest chart hits to that point, and it included the new recording "Rednecktified", which was released as a single but did not chart. Later that same year, he issued another single, "For the Troops", which also failed to chart. McCoy released a book titled New Mountain to Climb in 2011, which coincided with the release of a single of the same name.
In April 2011, McCoy signed with Blaster Music. He released his twelfth album, XII, for the label on March 6, 2012. Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert co-produced the album with Brent Rowan, and sang backing vocals on its lead-off single "A-OK".
A year later, McCoy released Pride: A Tribute to Charley Pride via Slate Creek Records, under the production of Garth Fundis. The album features guest appearances from Darius Rucker, Trace Adkins, and Raul Malo of The Mavericks. To promote the album, McCoy and Pride filmed a video for "Kaw-Liga", which was co-written and originally recorded by Hank Williams before Pride covered it in 1969.
Personal life
McCoy has been married to Melinda since 1980. The two met when McCoy was working at a shoe store in a local mall. The couple have two children, a son and a daughter.
McCoy is also the head of a charity called the East Texas Angel Network, which helps provide money for families of seriously ill children.
McCoy resides in Longview, Texas.
Discography
References
External links
Official Website
1958 births
American country singer-songwriters
American musicians of Filipino descent
American people of Irish descent
Living people
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Lon Morris College alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Giant Records (Warner) artists
16th Avenue Records artists
Warner Records artists
People from Jacksonville, Texas
Country musicians from Texas | true | [
"Strange Fruit is the second solo album by Trijntje Oosterhuis and was released on 22 March 2004 on Blue Note records. Trijntje's solo debut album was well received, and consisted mainly of pop ballads not reflective of her personal fondness for jazz.\n\nDuring 2003 Trijntje made a tour with the Amsterdam Sinfonietta and the Houdini's playing covers of Billie Holiday and George Gershwin. Trijntje decided to record the 7 January 2003 concert in the Concertzaal in Tilburg and the 8 January 2003 concert in Stadsgehoorzaal in Leiden and release it as an album. The album was named after Billie Holiday's song \"Strange Fruit.\"\n\nStrange Fruit was very well received, received critical acclaim, with Trijntje gaining notoriety beyond The Netherlands. It was released outside the Netherlands under the artist name Traincha. The album has been certified two times Platinum and peaked at number 2 on the Dutch album charts.\n\nTrack listing\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Official site\n\nTrijntje Oosterhuis albums\n2004 live albums\nBlue Note Records live albums",
"Música de Rua (Portuguese for \"Street Music\") is the third album by Brazilian axé and MPB singer Daniela Mercury, released in 1994 in Brazil and on October 11, 1994 in North America and Europe through Sony Music.\n\nMúsica de Rua was released right after the massive success of Mercury's previous album, O Canto da Cidade (1992). It was very well received by the public, having sold over one million copies (achieving a diamond certification) and spreading two number-one singles (\"Música de Rua\" e \"O Reggae e o Mar\"). However, Música de Rua was not very well received by the critics who pointed out that the album sounded too similar to Mercury's previous and accused it of being a copycat of her own work. Música de Rua was Mercury's most authorial work until the release of Canibália in 2009.\n\nTrack listing\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nAbout the album in Mercury's official website\n[ A review of the album] at Allmusic\n\n1994 albums\nDaniela Mercury albums\nAlbums produced by Liminha"
]
|
[
"Neal McCoy",
"1990-2000: Atlantic Records",
"What happened with Atlantic Records in 1990?",
"He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request,",
"Why did he have to change his surname?",
"McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy.",
"What was one of the things he first produced when he signed with them?",
"His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year.",
"Was that album well received?",
"None of the three singles made the country Top 40,"
]
| C_9a8de494ac20410197429216336c5831_1 | Why weren't the 3 singles well received by the public? | 5 | Why weren't the 3 singles by Neal McCoy well received by the public? | Neal McCoy | He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' hit song from 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows." A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58. Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released No Doubt About It in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. (born July 30, 1958), known professionally as Neal McCoy, is an American country music singer. He has released 10 studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio. Although he first charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1988, he did not reach the top 40 for the first time until 1992's "Where Forever Begins", which peaked at number 40. McCoy broke through two years later with the back-to-back number one singles "No Doubt About It" and "Wink" from his platinum-certified album No Doubt About It. Although he has not topped the country charts since, his commercial success continued into the mid to late 1990s with two more platinum albums and a gold album, as well as six more top 10 hits. A ninth top 10 hit, the number 10 "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", came in 2005 from his self-released That's Life.
Early life
Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. was born on July 30, 1958, in Jacksonville, Texas, to a Filipino American mother and Irish-American father. Inspired by the variety of music that his parents listened to, which included country, rock, disco and R&B, McGaughey first sang in his church choir before founding an R&B band. He later switched his focus to country music, performing in various bars and clubs in Texas. McGaughey, after attending junior college near his hometown, found work selling shoes at a shopping mall. In the early 1980s, he met his wife, Melinda, at the store.
After winning a 1981 talent contest hosted by Janie Fricke, he secured a spot as an opening act for Charley Pride.
Musical career
Crediting himself as Neal McGoy, a phonetic spelling of his surname, he signed to the independent 16th Avenue Records label in 1988. He released the singles "That's How Much I Love You" and "That's American", and although the former reached No. 85 on the country charts, he did not release an album for the label. He continued to tour as an opening act for Pride until 1990, the same year that the 16th Avenue label closed.
1990–2000: Atlantic Records
He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' #1 Hot 100 hit from late 1986-early 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows."
A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58.
Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released his breakthrough album, No Doubt About It, in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5.
Mid-Late 1990s
You Gotta Love That, his fourth album, also received a platinum certification and it produced four singles: "For a Change", "They're Playin' Our Song" and the title track (respectively the first, second, and fourth singles) all peaked at No. 3, while "If I Was a Drinkin' Man" reached No. 16.
McCoy's self-titled fifth studio album began a decline in his chart momentum. Although it was certified gold, Neal McCoy accounted for only one Top Ten hit in a cover of The Casinos' 1967 doo-wop single "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye". The next two singles — "Going, Going, Gone" and "That Woman of Mine" — both peaked at No. 35. Also in 1996, he sang guest vocals on the multi-artist charity single "Hope", the proceeds of which went to the T. J. Martell Foundation's cancer research. After "That Woman of Mine", he reached No. 5 with "The Shake", the only new song on his first Greatest Hits package, which reprised nine of his greatest hits to that point and also earned platinum certification.
Be Good at It, his sixth studio release, followed in 1998. This was his first album since Where Forever Begins not to include a Top Ten hit. The title track, "If You Can't Be Good, Be Good at It", was the highest-peaking single release from it at No. 22, followed by "Party On", which became his first single since 1992 to miss Top 40 entirely. After it came the No. 29 "Love Happens Like That." McCoy made a second appearance on a multi-artist charity single that same year, as one of several collaborators on "One Heart at a Time", a song written by Victoria Shaw to benefit cystic fibrosis research.
In 1999, McCoy released his final album for Atlantic, The Life of the Party. It only accounted for two singles: the Phil Vassar co-write "I Was" at No. 37 and "The Girls of Summer" at No. 42. He, Tracy Byrd, and T. Graham Brown also sang guest vocals on "Now That's Awesome", a song featuring snippets of a Bill Engvall comedy sketch, found on Engvall's Now That's Awesome album. This single peaked at No. 59.
2000–04: Warner Bros. Records and SEA Records
Due to the closure of Atlantic Records' Nashville division in mid-2000, McCoy's next album, 24-7-365, was issued via Giant Records. It included the singles "Forever Works for Me (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)", "Every Man for Himself", and "Beatin' It In", at No. 38, No. 37, and No. 41 respectively. In late 2000, he released a Christmas medley consisting of "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", which reached number 74 based on seasonal airplay. After Giant closed as well, he moved again to Warner Bros. Records, where he recorded The Luckiest Man in the World. Although the title track entered the country charts and peaked at number 46, the album itself was not released, and McCoy exited Warner Bros. by the end of the year. He signed with an independent label called SEA Records in 2004, and was slated to release a single for it in the middle of the year, but he left the label without releasing anything.
2005–07
In 2005, Neal McCoy and his manager Karen Kane founded a label called 903 Music. His first single for his own label was "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", which reached the Top 10 on the Hot Country Songs chart in 2005. The song served as the lead-off to his 2005 album That's Life. Also included on the album were a cover of Charley Pride's "You're My Jamaica", a song preceded by a spoken-word intro from United States Army general Tommy Franks, and a studio version of "Hillbilly Rap", which he had performed in concert since the early 1990s. McCoy's next single release, "The Last of a Dying Breed", peaked at 36.
Darryl Worley and the Drew Davis Band were signed to 903 as well. Worley released his 2006 album Here and Now on 903, which produced the top 40 hits "Nothin' but a Love Thang" and "I Just Came Back from a War". In May 2007, McCoy announced that the label had filed for bankruptcy and closed its doors.
In Summer of 2007, Neal could be seen showing off his comedic chops on local TV commercials in the Waco, Texas market for Mike Craig Chevrolet Pontiac Buick in Marlin, Texas. The commercials continued for approximately one year. In one of them Neal acts like a puppet in the hands of the branch manager of the Mike Craig dealership in Hillsboro, Texas.
2008–13: The Very Best of Neal McCoy, XII, and Pride
In 2008, Rhino Records issued a compilation album entitled The Very Best of Neal McCoy. This album reprised most of his biggest chart hits to that point, and it included the new recording "Rednecktified", which was released as a single but did not chart. Later that same year, he issued another single, "For the Troops", which also failed to chart. McCoy released a book titled New Mountain to Climb in 2011, which coincided with the release of a single of the same name.
In April 2011, McCoy signed with Blaster Music. He released his twelfth album, XII, for the label on March 6, 2012. Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert co-produced the album with Brent Rowan, and sang backing vocals on its lead-off single "A-OK".
A year later, McCoy released Pride: A Tribute to Charley Pride via Slate Creek Records, under the production of Garth Fundis. The album features guest appearances from Darius Rucker, Trace Adkins, and Raul Malo of The Mavericks. To promote the album, McCoy and Pride filmed a video for "Kaw-Liga", which was co-written and originally recorded by Hank Williams before Pride covered it in 1969.
Personal life
McCoy has been married to Melinda since 1980. The two met when McCoy was working at a shoe store in a local mall. The couple have two children, a son and a daughter.
McCoy is also the head of a charity called the East Texas Angel Network, which helps provide money for families of seriously ill children.
McCoy resides in Longview, Texas.
Discography
References
External links
Official Website
1958 births
American country singer-songwriters
American musicians of Filipino descent
American people of Irish descent
Living people
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Lon Morris College alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Giant Records (Warner) artists
16th Avenue Records artists
Warner Records artists
People from Jacksonville, Texas
Country musicians from Texas | false | [
"\"We Weren't Crazy\" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Josh Gracin. It was released in October 2007 as the third single and title track from his album We Weren't Crazy. The song, which Gracin wrote with Bobby Pinson and Tony Lopacinski, is Gracin's fourth top ten hit on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, with a peak of number ten, as well as his first top ten since \"Stay With Me (Brass Bed)\", which peaked at number five on October 22, 2005.\n\nContent\n\"We Weren't Crazy\" is a moderate up-tempo in which the narrator describes his adult years: starting with a move to California with his lover, then raising children and having a family of his own. In the chorus, he states that he and she, though they may have been \"living for the moment\", \"loving blind [and] borderline reckless\", they \"weren't crazy\" for starting their family the way they did.\n\nCritical reception\nJim Malec from The 9513 gave the song a thumbs-up rating. Although he said that the lyrics weren't \"brilliant or groundbreaking\", he added that Gracin's voice and \"infectious chorus\" made it a song that \"does what it does well\". Thom Jurek of AllMusic cited the song as a standout on his review of the album as well.\n\nMusic video\nThe music video shows clips from Josh Gracin's life, and was directed by Stephen Shepherd.\n\nChart performance\nThe song debuted at number 51 on the Hot Country Songs chart dated November 3, 2007, and entered the Top 40 on the chart week of January 12, 2008. The song reached a peak of number ten in August 2008 after 40 weeks on the charts, one of the longest climbs to reach the top ten.\n\nEnd of year charts\n\nReferences\n\n2007 singles\n2007 songs\nJosh Gracin songs\nSongs written by Bobby Pinson\nLyric Street Records singles\nSong recordings produced by Brett James",
"\"Favorite State of Mind\" is a song recorded by American country music artist Josh Gracin. It was released in February 2006 as the first single from his second album, We Weren't Crazy. The song was written by Marcel and Blair Daly.\n\nCritical reception\nThe song received a favorable review from Chuck Taylor of Billboard, who wrote that it is \"a rousing, party-hardy jukebox directive, targeting fans who enjoy an embossed familiarity with classic giddy-up country.\"\n\nMusic video\nThe music video was directed by Roman White and premiered in April 2006.\n\nChart performance\nThe song debuted at number 56 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for the week of March 11, 2006.\n\nReferences\n\n2006 singles\n2006 songs\nJosh Gracin songs\nLyric Street Records singles\nMusic videos directed by Roman White\nSongs written by Blair Daly\nSongs written by Marcel (singer)"
]
|
[
"Neal McCoy",
"1990-2000: Atlantic Records",
"What happened with Atlantic Records in 1990?",
"He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request,",
"Why did he have to change his surname?",
"McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy.",
"What was one of the things he first produced when he signed with them?",
"His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year.",
"Was that album well received?",
"None of the three singles made the country Top 40,",
"Why weren't the 3 singles well received by the public?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_9a8de494ac20410197429216336c5831_1 | Did he your during this time at all? | 6 | Did Neal McCoy tour during1990's? | Neal McCoy | He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' hit song from 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows." A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58. Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released No Doubt About It in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. (born July 30, 1958), known professionally as Neal McCoy, is an American country music singer. He has released 10 studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio. Although he first charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1988, he did not reach the top 40 for the first time until 1992's "Where Forever Begins", which peaked at number 40. McCoy broke through two years later with the back-to-back number one singles "No Doubt About It" and "Wink" from his platinum-certified album No Doubt About It. Although he has not topped the country charts since, his commercial success continued into the mid to late 1990s with two more platinum albums and a gold album, as well as six more top 10 hits. A ninth top 10 hit, the number 10 "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", came in 2005 from his self-released That's Life.
Early life
Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. was born on July 30, 1958, in Jacksonville, Texas, to a Filipino American mother and Irish-American father. Inspired by the variety of music that his parents listened to, which included country, rock, disco and R&B, McGaughey first sang in his church choir before founding an R&B band. He later switched his focus to country music, performing in various bars and clubs in Texas. McGaughey, after attending junior college near his hometown, found work selling shoes at a shopping mall. In the early 1980s, he met his wife, Melinda, at the store.
After winning a 1981 talent contest hosted by Janie Fricke, he secured a spot as an opening act for Charley Pride.
Musical career
Crediting himself as Neal McGoy, a phonetic spelling of his surname, he signed to the independent 16th Avenue Records label in 1988. He released the singles "That's How Much I Love You" and "That's American", and although the former reached No. 85 on the country charts, he did not release an album for the label. He continued to tour as an opening act for Pride until 1990, the same year that the 16th Avenue label closed.
1990–2000: Atlantic Records
He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' #1 Hot 100 hit from late 1986-early 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows."
A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58.
Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released his breakthrough album, No Doubt About It, in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5.
Mid-Late 1990s
You Gotta Love That, his fourth album, also received a platinum certification and it produced four singles: "For a Change", "They're Playin' Our Song" and the title track (respectively the first, second, and fourth singles) all peaked at No. 3, while "If I Was a Drinkin' Man" reached No. 16.
McCoy's self-titled fifth studio album began a decline in his chart momentum. Although it was certified gold, Neal McCoy accounted for only one Top Ten hit in a cover of The Casinos' 1967 doo-wop single "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye". The next two singles — "Going, Going, Gone" and "That Woman of Mine" — both peaked at No. 35. Also in 1996, he sang guest vocals on the multi-artist charity single "Hope", the proceeds of which went to the T. J. Martell Foundation's cancer research. After "That Woman of Mine", he reached No. 5 with "The Shake", the only new song on his first Greatest Hits package, which reprised nine of his greatest hits to that point and also earned platinum certification.
Be Good at It, his sixth studio release, followed in 1998. This was his first album since Where Forever Begins not to include a Top Ten hit. The title track, "If You Can't Be Good, Be Good at It", was the highest-peaking single release from it at No. 22, followed by "Party On", which became his first single since 1992 to miss Top 40 entirely. After it came the No. 29 "Love Happens Like That." McCoy made a second appearance on a multi-artist charity single that same year, as one of several collaborators on "One Heart at a Time", a song written by Victoria Shaw to benefit cystic fibrosis research.
In 1999, McCoy released his final album for Atlantic, The Life of the Party. It only accounted for two singles: the Phil Vassar co-write "I Was" at No. 37 and "The Girls of Summer" at No. 42. He, Tracy Byrd, and T. Graham Brown also sang guest vocals on "Now That's Awesome", a song featuring snippets of a Bill Engvall comedy sketch, found on Engvall's Now That's Awesome album. This single peaked at No. 59.
2000–04: Warner Bros. Records and SEA Records
Due to the closure of Atlantic Records' Nashville division in mid-2000, McCoy's next album, 24-7-365, was issued via Giant Records. It included the singles "Forever Works for Me (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)", "Every Man for Himself", and "Beatin' It In", at No. 38, No. 37, and No. 41 respectively. In late 2000, he released a Christmas medley consisting of "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", which reached number 74 based on seasonal airplay. After Giant closed as well, he moved again to Warner Bros. Records, where he recorded The Luckiest Man in the World. Although the title track entered the country charts and peaked at number 46, the album itself was not released, and McCoy exited Warner Bros. by the end of the year. He signed with an independent label called SEA Records in 2004, and was slated to release a single for it in the middle of the year, but he left the label without releasing anything.
2005–07
In 2005, Neal McCoy and his manager Karen Kane founded a label called 903 Music. His first single for his own label was "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", which reached the Top 10 on the Hot Country Songs chart in 2005. The song served as the lead-off to his 2005 album That's Life. Also included on the album were a cover of Charley Pride's "You're My Jamaica", a song preceded by a spoken-word intro from United States Army general Tommy Franks, and a studio version of "Hillbilly Rap", which he had performed in concert since the early 1990s. McCoy's next single release, "The Last of a Dying Breed", peaked at 36.
Darryl Worley and the Drew Davis Band were signed to 903 as well. Worley released his 2006 album Here and Now on 903, which produced the top 40 hits "Nothin' but a Love Thang" and "I Just Came Back from a War". In May 2007, McCoy announced that the label had filed for bankruptcy and closed its doors.
In Summer of 2007, Neal could be seen showing off his comedic chops on local TV commercials in the Waco, Texas market for Mike Craig Chevrolet Pontiac Buick in Marlin, Texas. The commercials continued for approximately one year. In one of them Neal acts like a puppet in the hands of the branch manager of the Mike Craig dealership in Hillsboro, Texas.
2008–13: The Very Best of Neal McCoy, XII, and Pride
In 2008, Rhino Records issued a compilation album entitled The Very Best of Neal McCoy. This album reprised most of his biggest chart hits to that point, and it included the new recording "Rednecktified", which was released as a single but did not chart. Later that same year, he issued another single, "For the Troops", which also failed to chart. McCoy released a book titled New Mountain to Climb in 2011, which coincided with the release of a single of the same name.
In April 2011, McCoy signed with Blaster Music. He released his twelfth album, XII, for the label on March 6, 2012. Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert co-produced the album with Brent Rowan, and sang backing vocals on its lead-off single "A-OK".
A year later, McCoy released Pride: A Tribute to Charley Pride via Slate Creek Records, under the production of Garth Fundis. The album features guest appearances from Darius Rucker, Trace Adkins, and Raul Malo of The Mavericks. To promote the album, McCoy and Pride filmed a video for "Kaw-Liga", which was co-written and originally recorded by Hank Williams before Pride covered it in 1969.
Personal life
McCoy has been married to Melinda since 1980. The two met when McCoy was working at a shoe store in a local mall. The couple have two children, a son and a daughter.
McCoy is also the head of a charity called the East Texas Angel Network, which helps provide money for families of seriously ill children.
McCoy resides in Longview, Texas.
Discography
References
External links
Official Website
1958 births
American country singer-songwriters
American musicians of Filipino descent
American people of Irish descent
Living people
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Lon Morris College alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Giant Records (Warner) artists
16th Avenue Records artists
Warner Records artists
People from Jacksonville, Texas
Country musicians from Texas | false | [
"It's Time for Love is an album by the R&B crooner Teddy Pendergrass. It did quite well, peaking at #19 on the Billboard albums chart and #6 on the R&B album charts. It also spawned three singles: \"I Can't Live Without Your Love\" (1981, peaked at #10 R&B), \"You're My Latest, My Greatest Inspiration\" (1982, #43 US, #4 R&B) and \"Nine Times Out of Ten/The Gift of Love\" (1982, #31 R&B). This was the last album released by Pendergrass before being paralyzed in a car accident the following year.\n\nTrack listing\nAll tracks composed by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, except where indicated.\n\n \"I Can't Live Without Your Love\" (Huff, Cecil Womack) 3:01\n \"You're My Latest, My Greatest Inspiration\" 5:23\n \"Nine Times Out of Ten\" 4:13\n \"Keep On Lovin' Me\" (Ken Williams) 4:38\n \"It's Time for Love\" 5:58\n \"She's Over Me\" (Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil) 3:52\n \"I Can't Leave Your Love Alone\" 4:43\n \"You Must Live On\" 3:49\n\nCharts\n\nSingles\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n It's Time for Love at Discogs\n\nTeddy Pendergrass albums\n1981 albums\nAlbums produced by Kenneth Gamble\nAlbums produced by Leon Huff\nAlbums recorded at Sigma Sound Studios\nPhiladelphia International Records albums",
"In Your House 3 (retroactively titled In Your House 3: Triple Header) was the third In Your House professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It took place on September 24, 1995, at the Saginaw Civic Center in Saginaw, Michigan. The PPV portion of the show featured six matches in total, while four dark matches also occurred. With the launch of the WWE Network in 2014, the PPV section became available to subscribers to view on demand.\n\nThe main event of the show featured all three active championships in the WWF at the time being defended. The WWF World Heavyweight Champion Diesel teamed up with the WWF Intercontinental Champion Shawn Michaels and they were slated to take on the reigning WWF World Tag Team Champions Yokozuna and Owen Hart in a match where the person who was pinned would lose the championship. As part of the storyline the WWF replaced Owen Hart with The British Bulldog, due to Hart's wife being in labor. In the end Owen Hart did appear at the show and was pinned to end the match, but since he was not deemed the legal man in the match, the next night on Raw, the WWF World Tag Team Championship was awarded back to Hart and Yokozuna.\n\nIn Your House 3 was the first WWF PPV of the Monday Night Wars era of September 4, 1995, to March 26, 2001. During this time, WWF's Raw and World Championship Wrestling's Nitro competed for ratings in a weekly Monday night time slot, now widely seen as the \"golden age\" of pro-wrestling.\n\nProduction\n\nBackground\nIn Your House was a series of monthly pay-per-view (PPV) shows first produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) in May 1995. They aired when the promotion was not holding one of its then-five major PPVs (WrestleMania, King of the Ring, SummerSlam, Survivor Series, and Royal Rumble), and were sold at a lower cost. This third In Your House event took place on September 24, 1995, at the Saginaw Civic Center in Saginaw, Michigan. While this event was originally known simply as In Your House 3, it was later retroactively renamed as In Your House 3: Triple Header. This retroactive renaming of the show was based on the event featuring all three active championships in the WWF at the time being defended: the WWF World Heavyweight Championship, the WWF Intercontinental Championship, and the WWF World Tag Team Championship.\n\nStorylines\nThe professional wrestling matches at In Your House 3 featured professional wrestlers performing as characters in scripted events pre-determined by the hosting promotion, World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Storylines between the characters played out on WWF's primary television programs, Monday Night Raw.\n\nEvent\nIn the main event, three championships were on the line: Diesel's WWF World Heavyweight Championship, Shawn Michaels' WWF Intercontinental Championship, and Yokozuna and Owen Hart's WWF World Tag Team Championship. If Diesel had been pinned, he would have lost the WWF World Heavyweight Championship and if Michaels had been pinned he would have lost the Intercontinental Championship. On the night of the show, the WWF announced that the British Bulldog had to replace Owen Hart in the match, as Hart was with his wife at the hospital, as she was giving birth to their second child. Near the end of the match. it was revealed that this was just a storyline as Owen Hart rushed to the ring in full wrestling gear and interfered in the match. Moments later, Diesel pinned Owen Hart to win the match and supposedly win the tag team championship, but it was later announced that while Diesel and Michaels did win the match, they did not win the tag team championship, as Owen Hart was not the legal man in the match.\n\nAftermath\nThe following month's In Your House, In Your House 4 on October 22, 1995, saw Diesel successfully defend the WWF World Heavyweight Championship against the British Bulldog, concluding the feud that had been building since the Bulldog turned on Diesel in August of that year. At the same show, it was revealed that Shawn Michaels was unable to compete after being in a fight with a number of Marines and he had to forfeit the WWF Intercontinental Championship to Dean Douglas. Yokozuna and Owen Hart were given the tag team championship belts back after In Your House 3, but lost them to The Smoking Gunns (Billy Gunn and Bart Gunn) a short time later.\n\nResults\n\nOther on-screen personnel\n\nReferences\n\n03\nProfessional wrestling in Michigan\n1995 in Michigan\nEvents in Michigan\n1995 WWF pay-per-view events\nSeptember 1995 events in the United States"
]
|
[
"Neal McCoy",
"1990-2000: Atlantic Records",
"What happened with Atlantic Records in 1990?",
"He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request,",
"Why did he have to change his surname?",
"McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy.",
"What was one of the things he first produced when he signed with them?",
"His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year.",
"Was that album well received?",
"None of the three singles made the country Top 40,",
"Why weren't the 3 singles well received by the public?",
"I don't know.",
"Did he your during this time at all?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_9a8de494ac20410197429216336c5831_1 | Did he work with anyone on these albums? | 7 | Did Neal McCoy work with anyone on None of the three singles? | Neal McCoy | He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' hit song from 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows." A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58. Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released No Doubt About It in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5. CANNOTANSWER | Working with producer Barry Beckett for | Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. (born July 30, 1958), known professionally as Neal McCoy, is an American country music singer. He has released 10 studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio. Although he first charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1988, he did not reach the top 40 for the first time until 1992's "Where Forever Begins", which peaked at number 40. McCoy broke through two years later with the back-to-back number one singles "No Doubt About It" and "Wink" from his platinum-certified album No Doubt About It. Although he has not topped the country charts since, his commercial success continued into the mid to late 1990s with two more platinum albums and a gold album, as well as six more top 10 hits. A ninth top 10 hit, the number 10 "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", came in 2005 from his self-released That's Life.
Early life
Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. was born on July 30, 1958, in Jacksonville, Texas, to a Filipino American mother and Irish-American father. Inspired by the variety of music that his parents listened to, which included country, rock, disco and R&B, McGaughey first sang in his church choir before founding an R&B band. He later switched his focus to country music, performing in various bars and clubs in Texas. McGaughey, after attending junior college near his hometown, found work selling shoes at a shopping mall. In the early 1980s, he met his wife, Melinda, at the store.
After winning a 1981 talent contest hosted by Janie Fricke, he secured a spot as an opening act for Charley Pride.
Musical career
Crediting himself as Neal McGoy, a phonetic spelling of his surname, he signed to the independent 16th Avenue Records label in 1988. He released the singles "That's How Much I Love You" and "That's American", and although the former reached No. 85 on the country charts, he did not release an album for the label. He continued to tour as an opening act for Pride until 1990, the same year that the 16th Avenue label closed.
1990–2000: Atlantic Records
He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' #1 Hot 100 hit from late 1986-early 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows."
A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58.
Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released his breakthrough album, No Doubt About It, in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5.
Mid-Late 1990s
You Gotta Love That, his fourth album, also received a platinum certification and it produced four singles: "For a Change", "They're Playin' Our Song" and the title track (respectively the first, second, and fourth singles) all peaked at No. 3, while "If I Was a Drinkin' Man" reached No. 16.
McCoy's self-titled fifth studio album began a decline in his chart momentum. Although it was certified gold, Neal McCoy accounted for only one Top Ten hit in a cover of The Casinos' 1967 doo-wop single "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye". The next two singles — "Going, Going, Gone" and "That Woman of Mine" — both peaked at No. 35. Also in 1996, he sang guest vocals on the multi-artist charity single "Hope", the proceeds of which went to the T. J. Martell Foundation's cancer research. After "That Woman of Mine", he reached No. 5 with "The Shake", the only new song on his first Greatest Hits package, which reprised nine of his greatest hits to that point and also earned platinum certification.
Be Good at It, his sixth studio release, followed in 1998. This was his first album since Where Forever Begins not to include a Top Ten hit. The title track, "If You Can't Be Good, Be Good at It", was the highest-peaking single release from it at No. 22, followed by "Party On", which became his first single since 1992 to miss Top 40 entirely. After it came the No. 29 "Love Happens Like That." McCoy made a second appearance on a multi-artist charity single that same year, as one of several collaborators on "One Heart at a Time", a song written by Victoria Shaw to benefit cystic fibrosis research.
In 1999, McCoy released his final album for Atlantic, The Life of the Party. It only accounted for two singles: the Phil Vassar co-write "I Was" at No. 37 and "The Girls of Summer" at No. 42. He, Tracy Byrd, and T. Graham Brown also sang guest vocals on "Now That's Awesome", a song featuring snippets of a Bill Engvall comedy sketch, found on Engvall's Now That's Awesome album. This single peaked at No. 59.
2000–04: Warner Bros. Records and SEA Records
Due to the closure of Atlantic Records' Nashville division in mid-2000, McCoy's next album, 24-7-365, was issued via Giant Records. It included the singles "Forever Works for Me (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)", "Every Man for Himself", and "Beatin' It In", at No. 38, No. 37, and No. 41 respectively. In late 2000, he released a Christmas medley consisting of "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", which reached number 74 based on seasonal airplay. After Giant closed as well, he moved again to Warner Bros. Records, where he recorded The Luckiest Man in the World. Although the title track entered the country charts and peaked at number 46, the album itself was not released, and McCoy exited Warner Bros. by the end of the year. He signed with an independent label called SEA Records in 2004, and was slated to release a single for it in the middle of the year, but he left the label without releasing anything.
2005–07
In 2005, Neal McCoy and his manager Karen Kane founded a label called 903 Music. His first single for his own label was "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", which reached the Top 10 on the Hot Country Songs chart in 2005. The song served as the lead-off to his 2005 album That's Life. Also included on the album were a cover of Charley Pride's "You're My Jamaica", a song preceded by a spoken-word intro from United States Army general Tommy Franks, and a studio version of "Hillbilly Rap", which he had performed in concert since the early 1990s. McCoy's next single release, "The Last of a Dying Breed", peaked at 36.
Darryl Worley and the Drew Davis Band were signed to 903 as well. Worley released his 2006 album Here and Now on 903, which produced the top 40 hits "Nothin' but a Love Thang" and "I Just Came Back from a War". In May 2007, McCoy announced that the label had filed for bankruptcy and closed its doors.
In Summer of 2007, Neal could be seen showing off his comedic chops on local TV commercials in the Waco, Texas market for Mike Craig Chevrolet Pontiac Buick in Marlin, Texas. The commercials continued for approximately one year. In one of them Neal acts like a puppet in the hands of the branch manager of the Mike Craig dealership in Hillsboro, Texas.
2008–13: The Very Best of Neal McCoy, XII, and Pride
In 2008, Rhino Records issued a compilation album entitled The Very Best of Neal McCoy. This album reprised most of his biggest chart hits to that point, and it included the new recording "Rednecktified", which was released as a single but did not chart. Later that same year, he issued another single, "For the Troops", which also failed to chart. McCoy released a book titled New Mountain to Climb in 2011, which coincided with the release of a single of the same name.
In April 2011, McCoy signed with Blaster Music. He released his twelfth album, XII, for the label on March 6, 2012. Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert co-produced the album with Brent Rowan, and sang backing vocals on its lead-off single "A-OK".
A year later, McCoy released Pride: A Tribute to Charley Pride via Slate Creek Records, under the production of Garth Fundis. The album features guest appearances from Darius Rucker, Trace Adkins, and Raul Malo of The Mavericks. To promote the album, McCoy and Pride filmed a video for "Kaw-Liga", which was co-written and originally recorded by Hank Williams before Pride covered it in 1969.
Personal life
McCoy has been married to Melinda since 1980. The two met when McCoy was working at a shoe store in a local mall. The couple have two children, a son and a daughter.
McCoy is also the head of a charity called the East Texas Angel Network, which helps provide money for families of seriously ill children.
McCoy resides in Longview, Texas.
Discography
References
External links
Official Website
1958 births
American country singer-songwriters
American musicians of Filipino descent
American people of Irish descent
Living people
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Lon Morris College alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Giant Records (Warner) artists
16th Avenue Records artists
Warner Records artists
People from Jacksonville, Texas
Country musicians from Texas | true | [
"With Days Like This As Cheap As Chewing Gum, Why Would Anyone Want To Work? is the third offering from English indie band Hot Club De Paris. It was released on Moshi Moshi records on hand numbered limited 10\" vinyl and digital formats.\n\nTrack listing\nAll of the videos of six songs maybe add all of the songs list on With Days Like This as Cheap as Chewing Gum, Why Would Anyone Want to Work?, he produced by Amelia Robona.\nDance A Ragged Dance\nFuck You, The Truth!\nDog Tired At The Spring Dance Marathon\nThey Shoot Horses Don't They?\nNoses Blazing\nExtra Time, Sudden Death\n\nReferences\n\nHot Club de Paris albums\n2010 EPs",
"It's Christmas Again is an album by the American jazz drummer Max Roach recorded in 1984 for the Italian Soul Note label.\n\nCritical reception\n\nThe Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 2½ stars stating, \"It's Christmas Again is a project that for many did not work, but no matter how you slice it, an intriguing aside to Roach's discography. As he often mixed words with jazz, this is less ambitious than previous works, but could be looked upon as more than a little ambiguous, and certainly a cynical view of a time of the year that should be joyous, but for many is difficult.\" The Penguin Guide to Jazz commented on the albums links with other material from around the same time: \"anyone familiar with this period or who takes the time to listen to these Soul Notes in a structured way will find a great deal of cross-fertilization going on\".\n\nTrack listing\nAll compositions by Max Roach\n \"It's Christmas Again\" – 20:41\n \"Christina\" – 21:12\n\nPersonnel\n Max Roach – drums, keyboards, percussion, vibraphone, voice\n Cecil Bridgewater – trumpet\n Tony Scott – clarinet (track 2)\n Lee Konitz – alto saxophone (track 2)\n Odean Pope – tenor saxophone, voice\n Tomaso Lama – guitar (track 2)\n Tyrone Brown – electric bass guitar\n\nReferences\n\nBlack Saint/Soul Note albums\nMax Roach albums\n1984 albums"
]
|
[
"Neal McCoy",
"1990-2000: Atlantic Records",
"What happened with Atlantic Records in 1990?",
"He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request,",
"Why did he have to change his surname?",
"McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy.",
"What was one of the things he first produced when he signed with them?",
"His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year.",
"Was that album well received?",
"None of the three singles made the country Top 40,",
"Why weren't the 3 singles well received by the public?",
"I don't know.",
"Did he your during this time at all?",
"I don't know.",
"Did he work with anyone on these albums?",
"Working with producer Barry Beckett for"
]
| C_9a8de494ac20410197429216336c5831_1 | What did they work on together? | 8 | What did Neal McCoy and Barry Beckett work on together? | Neal McCoy | He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' hit song from 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows." A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58. Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released No Doubt About It in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5. CANNOTANSWER | No Doubt About It in 1994. | Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. (born July 30, 1958), known professionally as Neal McCoy, is an American country music singer. He has released 10 studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio. Although he first charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1988, he did not reach the top 40 for the first time until 1992's "Where Forever Begins", which peaked at number 40. McCoy broke through two years later with the back-to-back number one singles "No Doubt About It" and "Wink" from his platinum-certified album No Doubt About It. Although he has not topped the country charts since, his commercial success continued into the mid to late 1990s with two more platinum albums and a gold album, as well as six more top 10 hits. A ninth top 10 hit, the number 10 "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", came in 2005 from his self-released That's Life.
Early life
Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. was born on July 30, 1958, in Jacksonville, Texas, to a Filipino American mother and Irish-American father. Inspired by the variety of music that his parents listened to, which included country, rock, disco and R&B, McGaughey first sang in his church choir before founding an R&B band. He later switched his focus to country music, performing in various bars and clubs in Texas. McGaughey, after attending junior college near his hometown, found work selling shoes at a shopping mall. In the early 1980s, he met his wife, Melinda, at the store.
After winning a 1981 talent contest hosted by Janie Fricke, he secured a spot as an opening act for Charley Pride.
Musical career
Crediting himself as Neal McGoy, a phonetic spelling of his surname, he signed to the independent 16th Avenue Records label in 1988. He released the singles "That's How Much I Love You" and "That's American", and although the former reached No. 85 on the country charts, he did not release an album for the label. He continued to tour as an opening act for Pride until 1990, the same year that the 16th Avenue label closed.
1990–2000: Atlantic Records
He then signed to Atlantic Records in 1990, changing his surname to McCoy per the label's request, as fans had already begun to refer to him as McCoy. His debut album, At This Moment, was released that year. None of the three singles made the country Top 40, although the lead-off single "If I Built You a Fire" was a Top 20 country hit in Canada. The other two releases were the title track, a cover of Billy Vera and the Beaters' #1 Hot 100 hit from late 1986-early 1987, and "This Time I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me", which was co-written by Earl Thomas Conley and originally recorded by Conway Twitty. McCoy continued touring and developed a "reputation for exciting, freewheeling live shows."
A second album for Atlantic, Where Forever Begins, followed in 1992. This album produced his first American Top 40 country hit in its No. 40-peaking title track, followed by "There Ain't Nothin' I Don't Like About You" at No. 57, and "Now I Pray for Rain" at No. 26. The album was also his first entry on Top Country Albums, at No. 58.
Working with producer Barry Beckett for the first time, McCoy released his breakthrough album, No Doubt About It, in 1994. The album produced his only number 1 country hits in its title track and "Wink", both of which also made minor entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The album also earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and gold certification from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). Its final single was "The City Put the Country Back in Me" at No. 5.
Mid-Late 1990s
You Gotta Love That, his fourth album, also received a platinum certification and it produced four singles: "For a Change", "They're Playin' Our Song" and the title track (respectively the first, second, and fourth singles) all peaked at No. 3, while "If I Was a Drinkin' Man" reached No. 16.
McCoy's self-titled fifth studio album began a decline in his chart momentum. Although it was certified gold, Neal McCoy accounted for only one Top Ten hit in a cover of The Casinos' 1967 doo-wop single "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye". The next two singles — "Going, Going, Gone" and "That Woman of Mine" — both peaked at No. 35. Also in 1996, he sang guest vocals on the multi-artist charity single "Hope", the proceeds of which went to the T. J. Martell Foundation's cancer research. After "That Woman of Mine", he reached No. 5 with "The Shake", the only new song on his first Greatest Hits package, which reprised nine of his greatest hits to that point and also earned platinum certification.
Be Good at It, his sixth studio release, followed in 1998. This was his first album since Where Forever Begins not to include a Top Ten hit. The title track, "If You Can't Be Good, Be Good at It", was the highest-peaking single release from it at No. 22, followed by "Party On", which became his first single since 1992 to miss Top 40 entirely. After it came the No. 29 "Love Happens Like That." McCoy made a second appearance on a multi-artist charity single that same year, as one of several collaborators on "One Heart at a Time", a song written by Victoria Shaw to benefit cystic fibrosis research.
In 1999, McCoy released his final album for Atlantic, The Life of the Party. It only accounted for two singles: the Phil Vassar co-write "I Was" at No. 37 and "The Girls of Summer" at No. 42. He, Tracy Byrd, and T. Graham Brown also sang guest vocals on "Now That's Awesome", a song featuring snippets of a Bill Engvall comedy sketch, found on Engvall's Now That's Awesome album. This single peaked at No. 59.
2000–04: Warner Bros. Records and SEA Records
Due to the closure of Atlantic Records' Nashville division in mid-2000, McCoy's next album, 24-7-365, was issued via Giant Records. It included the singles "Forever Works for Me (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)", "Every Man for Himself", and "Beatin' It In", at No. 38, No. 37, and No. 41 respectively. In late 2000, he released a Christmas medley consisting of "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", which reached number 74 based on seasonal airplay. After Giant closed as well, he moved again to Warner Bros. Records, where he recorded The Luckiest Man in the World. Although the title track entered the country charts and peaked at number 46, the album itself was not released, and McCoy exited Warner Bros. by the end of the year. He signed with an independent label called SEA Records in 2004, and was slated to release a single for it in the middle of the year, but he left the label without releasing anything.
2005–07
In 2005, Neal McCoy and his manager Karen Kane founded a label called 903 Music. His first single for his own label was "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On", which reached the Top 10 on the Hot Country Songs chart in 2005. The song served as the lead-off to his 2005 album That's Life. Also included on the album were a cover of Charley Pride's "You're My Jamaica", a song preceded by a spoken-word intro from United States Army general Tommy Franks, and a studio version of "Hillbilly Rap", which he had performed in concert since the early 1990s. McCoy's next single release, "The Last of a Dying Breed", peaked at 36.
Darryl Worley and the Drew Davis Band were signed to 903 as well. Worley released his 2006 album Here and Now on 903, which produced the top 40 hits "Nothin' but a Love Thang" and "I Just Came Back from a War". In May 2007, McCoy announced that the label had filed for bankruptcy and closed its doors.
In Summer of 2007, Neal could be seen showing off his comedic chops on local TV commercials in the Waco, Texas market for Mike Craig Chevrolet Pontiac Buick in Marlin, Texas. The commercials continued for approximately one year. In one of them Neal acts like a puppet in the hands of the branch manager of the Mike Craig dealership in Hillsboro, Texas.
2008–13: The Very Best of Neal McCoy, XII, and Pride
In 2008, Rhino Records issued a compilation album entitled The Very Best of Neal McCoy. This album reprised most of his biggest chart hits to that point, and it included the new recording "Rednecktified", which was released as a single but did not chart. Later that same year, he issued another single, "For the Troops", which also failed to chart. McCoy released a book titled New Mountain to Climb in 2011, which coincided with the release of a single of the same name.
In April 2011, McCoy signed with Blaster Music. He released his twelfth album, XII, for the label on March 6, 2012. Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert co-produced the album with Brent Rowan, and sang backing vocals on its lead-off single "A-OK".
A year later, McCoy released Pride: A Tribute to Charley Pride via Slate Creek Records, under the production of Garth Fundis. The album features guest appearances from Darius Rucker, Trace Adkins, and Raul Malo of The Mavericks. To promote the album, McCoy and Pride filmed a video for "Kaw-Liga", which was co-written and originally recorded by Hank Williams before Pride covered it in 1969.
Personal life
McCoy has been married to Melinda since 1980. The two met when McCoy was working at a shoe store in a local mall. The couple have two children, a son and a daughter.
McCoy is also the head of a charity called the East Texas Angel Network, which helps provide money for families of seriously ill children.
McCoy resides in Longview, Texas.
Discography
References
External links
Official Website
1958 births
American country singer-songwriters
American musicians of Filipino descent
American people of Irish descent
Living people
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Lon Morris College alumni
Atlantic Records artists
Giant Records (Warner) artists
16th Avenue Records artists
Warner Records artists
People from Jacksonville, Texas
Country musicians from Texas | false | [
"\"What Did I Do to You?\" is a song recorded by British singer Lisa Stansfield for her 1989 album, Affection. It was written by Stansfield, Ian Devaney and Andy Morris, and produced by Devaney and Morris. The song was released as the fourth European single on 30 April 1990. It included three previously unreleased songs written by Stansfield, Devaney and Morris: \"My Apple Heart,\" \"Lay Me Down\" and \"Something's Happenin'.\" \"What Did I Do to You?\" was remixed by Mark Saunders and by the Grammy Award-winning American house music DJ and producer, David Morales. The single became a top forty hit in the European countries reaching number eighteen in Finland, number twenty in Ireland and number twenty-five in the United Kingdom. \"What Did I Do to You?\" was also released in Japan.\n\nIn 2014, the remixes of \"What Did I Do to You?\" were included on the deluxe 2CD + DVD re-release of Affection and on People Hold On ... The Remix Anthology. They were also featured on The Collection 1989–2003 box set (2014), including previously unreleased Red Zone Mix by David Morales.\n\nCritical reception\nThe song received positive reviews from music critics. Matthew Hocter from Albumism viewed it as a \"upbeat offering\". David Giles from Music Week said it is \"beautifully performed\" by Stansfield. A reviewer from Reading Eagle wrote that \"What Did I Do to You?\" \"would be right at home on the \"Saturday Night Fever\" soundtrack.\"\n\nMusic video\nA music video was produced to promote the single, directed by Philip Richardson, who had previously directed the videos for \"All Around the World\" and \"Live Together\". It features Stansfield with her kiss curls, dressed in a white outfit and performing with her band on a stage in front of a jumping audience. The video was later published on Stansfield's official YouTube channel in November 2009. It has amassed more than 1,6 million views as of October 2021.\n\nTrack listings\n\n European/UK 7\" single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Mark Saunders Remix Edit) – 4:20\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:59\n\n European/UK/Japanese CD single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Mark Saunders Remix Edit) – 4:20\n\"My Apple Heart\" – 5:19\n\"Lay Me Down\" – 4:17\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:59\n\n UK 10\" single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Mark Saunders Remix) – 5:52\n\"My Apple Heart\" – 5:19\n\"Lay Me Down\" – 4:17\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:59\n\n European/UK 12\" single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Morales Mix) – 7:59\n\"My Apple Heart\" – 4:22\n\"Lay Me Down\" – 3:19\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:15\n\n UK 12\" promotional single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Morales Mix) – 7:59\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Anti Poll Tax Dub) – 6:31\n\n Other remixes\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Red Zone Mix) – 7:45\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\nLisa Stansfield songs\n1990 singles\nSongs written by Lisa Stansfield\n1989 songs\nArista Records singles\nSongs written by Ian Devaney\nSongs written by Andy Morris (musician)",
"{{Infobox song\n| name = I Know What You Did Last Summer\n| cover = Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello - I Know What You Did Last Summer.png\n| alt =\n| border = yes\n| type = single\n| artist = Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello\n| album = Handwritten (Revisited)'\n| released = \n| recorded = 2015\n| studio =\n| venue =\n| genre = Pop\n| length = 3:43\n| label = Island\n| writer = \n| producer = \n| chronology = Shawn Mendes\n| prev_title = Stitches\n| prev_year = 2015\n| next_title = Treat You Better\n| next_year = 2016\n| misc = \n\n}}\n\n\"I Know What You Did Last Summer\" is a song by Canadian singer Shawn Mendes and Cuban-American singer Camila Cabello. The song serves as Cabello's debut single as a solo artist and was released as the lead single from the reissue of Mendes' debut studio album, Handwritten Revisited (2015), via Island Records on November 18, 2015. It reached the top 20 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and on the Canadian Hot 100. Mendes and Cabello promoted the song with several televised performances, including on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and at the 2016 People's Choice Awards. Mendes and Cabello later collaborated on \"Señorita\" in June 2019.\n\nBackground and composition\n\"I Know What You Did Last Summer\" was written backstage spontaneously on one of Taylor Swift's The 1989 World Tour stops, in which Mendes was an opening act and Cabello was the surprise guest as part of the group Fifth Harmony. \"We were just backstage. There were like 100 people in my dressing room at the time, and it was madness back there, but I had this guitar and I was just jamming out, and we basically wrote a pre-chorus and a chorus in like 30 minutes,\" Mendes said in a video released about the making of this song. \"And we planned to go into the studio, and it was like an 11-hour studio session where we finished writing the song.\" After a live performance on Live with Kelly and Michael, Cabello said, \"We were just kind of jamming out. We weren’t really just writing a song. We kind of started spitting out melodies and put lyrics to it; I don't think we knew we had a song.\"\n\nThe artists co-wrote \"I Know What You Did Last Summer\" with its producers Ido Zmishlany and Noel Zancanella, with Bill Withers receiving songwriting credits for the sampling of his 1971 single \"Ain't No Sunshine\" and Ryan Tedder also receiving songwriting credits. Cabello described \"I Know What You Did Last Summer\" as a \"conversation between two people in a relationship where it's dying, but nobody wants to admit that it's dying.\" The song is sung in A minor, and set in common time with a tempo of 114 bpm.\n\nCommercial performance\n\"I Know What You Did Last Summer\" debuted at number ninety-seven on Billboard Hot 100 for the chart dated December 5, 2015 and jumped to number fifty-five on the following week. On the week ending January 9, 2016, the song jumped from number forty-six to number thirty-three. The song has since peaked at number twenty for the chart dated January 30, 2016, becoming Mendes' second top 20 single, after \"Stitches\", which peaked at number four on October 31, 2015.\n\nMusic video\nA music video for the song was released on November 20, 2015, and was directed by Ryan Pallotta. In the video, Mendes and Cabello, ages 17 and 18 respectively at the time of the making of the song and filming of the video, are seen walking through a dark and desolated landscape. They keep trying to walk towards each other but aren't moving. They are seen weathering a sandstorm, followed by a snowstorm and a rainstorm which culminates in a standoff of sorts. The music video has over 355 million views and 3.5 million likes as of September 2019.\n\nLive performances\nMendes and Cabello's first televised performance of \"I Know What You Did Last Summer\" was on Live with Kelly and Michael on November 20, 2015. They also performed the song on The Late Late Show with James Corden on November 23, 2015, and at Pitbull's New Year's Revolution on December 31, 2015, in Miami, Florida. Mendes and Cabello performed the track again on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on January 4, 2016.\n\nPreceded by a performance of \"Stitches\", Mendes and Cabello sang \"I Know What You Did Last Summer\" at the 2016 People's Choice Awards. They also performed together on The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' on February 15, 2016.\nMendes and Cabello performed the track again at the Radio City Music Hall on March 5, 2016, in New York.\n\nMendes and Cabello also performed the track while on the 2015 iHeartRadio Jingle Ball tour in December, on the following dates: 1, 4, 11, 16, 18 and 19.\n\nMendes has added the single to his setlist on his ongoing tour, Shawn Mendes: The Tour, as a medley with \"Señorita\"—which Cabello also features in—and \"Mutual\". The single was also added to his setlist on his first solo concert tour, Shawn Mendes World Tour.\n\nTrack listings \nDigital download\n\"I Know What You Did Last Summer\" – 3:43\n\nDigital download – Radio Edit\n\"I Know What You Did Last Summer\" (Radio Edit) – 3:11\n\nAccolades\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nReferences\n\n2015 singles\n2015 songs\nShawn Mendes songs\nCamila Cabello songs\nSongs written by Noel Zancanella\nSongs written by Camila Cabello\nSongs written by Bill Withers\nSongs written by Shawn Mendes\nSongs written by Ido Zmishlany\nSong recordings produced by Noel Zancanella\nIsland Records singles\nMale–female vocal duets\nSongs about seasons"
]
|
[
"Ministry (band)",
"Formation and early days (1981-1982)"
]
| C_b9830aff6a7d45679abd89a5b02167c1_1 | what happened in 1981 | 1 | what happened with ministry ( band) in 1981 | Ministry (band) | Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Al Jourgensen went from Denver to Chicago, in order to study in University of Illinois. Jourgensen was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend Shannon Rose Riley, and soon after joined a post-punk/new wave band Special Affect, replacing Tom Hoffman on a guitar and accompanying to vocalist Frank Nardiello (Groovie Mann of My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult), drummer Harry Rushakoff (Concrete Blonde) and bassist Marty Sorenson. Following Special Affect's split, Jourgensen formed The Carmichaels, the short-lived band which featured Ben Krug, Tom Krug and Tom Wall (all of The Imports), and did numerous shows, including the one performed on April 30, 1981 with the local experimental band ONO as an opening act. In this time Jourgensen had also met Jim Nash and Danny Flesher, the co-founders and the co-owners of the indie record label Wax Trax! Records who recommended him as a touring guitarist for a drag performer Divine. After playing a few concerts with the latter, Jourgensen--then living within an African-American neighborhood--had begun to write and record the songs in his apartment, using a newly-bought ARP Omni synthesizer, a drum machine, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder. At one point, he had presented a demo to Jim Nash, who had favored it and offered Jourgensen to record a single, as well as to form a touring band, certainly titled Ministry. The first line-up of Ministry, assembled by Jourgensen, consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; initially, Jourgensen didn't want to perform vocals, but embarked on after he had auditioned twelve singers "who all sucked." Nash had paid a recording session for the band at Hedden West studios, with the help of an English-born sound engineer Iain Burgess. According to former Dead Kennedys singer and Alternative Tentacles owner Jello Biafra, Ministry's debut record was intended to be seven-inch single featuring the song "Overkill" with B-side "I'm Falling"; eventually, a twelve-inch single with "I'm Falling" and instrumental track "Primental" on A-side, backed with song "Cold Life" on B-side, came out in late 1981 on Wax Trax! in the US. In March of the following year, the single was licensed by a British label Situation Two, with "Cold Life" as A-side. Ministry had performed their debut concert on the New Year Eve of 1982 in a Chicago-based club Misfits, and commenced a tour through the East Coast and the mid-West, supporting on occasions for the English bands Medium Medium, A Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, and Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, "I'm Falling / Cold Life" single had found success in the UK and the US, reaching No. 45 in the Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart with approximately 10,000 copies as of September 1982, and thus scoring Wax Trax!' first hit. CANNOTANSWER | Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Al Jourgensen went from Denver to Chicago, in order to study in University of Illinois. | Ministry is an American industrial metal band founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1981 by producer, singer and instrumentalist Al Jourgensen. Originally a synth-pop outfit, Ministry evolved into one of the pioneers of industrial metal in the late 1980s. The band's lineup has changed frequently, leaving Jourgensen as the sole original member left in Ministry. Musicians who have contributed to the band's studio or live activities include vocalists Nivek Ogre, Chris Connelly, Gibby Haynes, Burton C. Bell and Jello Biafra, guitarists Mike Scaccia and Tommy Victor, bassists Paul Barker, Paul Raven, Jason Christopher, Tony Campos and Paul D'Amour, drummers Bill Rieflin, Martin Atkins, Rey Washam, Max Brody, Joey Jordison and Roy Mayorga, keyboardist John Bechdel, and rappers and producers DJ Swamp and Arabian Prince.
Ministry attained commercial success in the late 1980s and early 1990s with three of their studio albums: The Land of Rape and Honey (1988), The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989) and Psalm 69 (1992). The first two were certified gold while Psalm 69 was certified platinum by the RIAA. Psalm 69 was followed by Filth Pig (1996), which was a stylistic departure for the band, and earned Ministry its highest chart position on the Billboard 200 at number nineteen, although it was met with mixed reception by critics and marked the beginning of the band's commercial decline. The lackluster response to their next album, Dark Side of the Spoon (1999), resulted in Warner Bros. dropping Ministry from the label and the group entered an extended hiatus in early 2000s, when Jourgensen entered rehab after years of substance abuse.
Following Jourgensen's recovery, Ministry resurfaced in 2003 with Animositisomina, which turned out to be their last album with Paul Barker, who had left the band early the next year after nearly two decades as an official member. Ministry returned to their thrash/industrial style of Psalm 69 and released three albums critical of then-President of the United States, George W. Bush, dubbed the "Bush Trilogy": Houses of the Molé (2004), Rio Grande Blood (2006) and The Last Sucker (2007); these albums effectively revitalized the band's commercial viability. Although The Last Sucker was initially intended to be the band's final album, Ministry reformed in 2011 and released Relapse in the following year. On December 23, 2012, longtime guitar contributor Mike Scaccia died of a heart attack, and he was posthumously featured in the next Ministry album, From Beer to Eternity (2013), which was again supposed to be their last album, as Jourgensen thought his death was the end of the band. Despite this, Ministry has since released two more albums: AmeriKKKant (2018) and Moral Hygiene (2021), and they are working on new material for a sixteenth studio album as of October 2021.
The band has been nominated for six Grammy Awards and has performed at several music festivals, including the second annual Lollapalooza tour in 1992, co-headlining Big Day Out in 1995 and performing at Wacken Open Air thrice (in 2006, 2012 and 2016).
History
Formation and early days (1981–1982)
Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Jourgensen moved from Denver to Chicago to attend the University of Illinois at Chicago. He was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend, and in 1979 he replaced Tom Hoffmann on guitars in Special Affect, a post-punk group which featured vocalist Frank Nardiello (Groovie Mann of My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult), drummer Harry Rushakoff (Concrete Blonde) and bassist Marty Sorenson. Following Special Affect's split in 1980, Jourgensen formed a short-lived band called The Silly Carmichaels, which featured members of The Imports and played two shows.
In 1981, Jourgensen met Jim Nash and Danny Flesher, co-founders and co-owners of the indie record label and shop Wax Trax! Records who recommended him as a touring guitarist for Divine. After playing a few concerts with the latter, Jourgensen began to write and record songs in his apartment, using a newly bought ARP Omni synthesizer, a drum machine, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder. He presented a demo to Jim Nash, who suggested Jourgensen record a single and form a touring band, which Jourgensen decided to call Ministry.
The first line-up of Ministry consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; Jourgensen auditioned several singers, all of whom were unsatisfactory, so he decided to perform vocals himself. Nash purchased recording sessions at Hedden West studios which resulted in a twelve-inch single featuring "I'm Falling" and instrumental track "Primental" on the A-side, with the song "Cold Life" on the B-side. The record was co-produced by Jay O'Roarke and Iain Burgess and released in late 1981 on Wax Trax! in the US. In March 1982, the single was licensed by British label Situation Two, with "Cold Life" as the A-side.
Ministry performed their debut concert on New Year's Eve 1982 in the Chicago club Misfits, and, in the spring, commenced a tour of the Northeast and the Midwest, supporting Medium Medium, A Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, and Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, the "I'm Falling / Cold Life" single reached No. 45 in the Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart with approximately 10,000 copies as of September 1982, and thus scoring Wax Trax!' first hit.
With Sympathy and later Wax Trax! singles (1983–1985)
The band's initial success drew the attention of Arista Records founder and chief executive Clive Davis, who offered them a deal, promising to make them "the next Joy Division"—a promise that Jourgensen later considered to be misleading. Signing a six-figure, two-album deal, the band—with Jourgensen and George comprising the official line-up—moved to record at the Synchro Sound studios in Boston, with producers Vince Ely (former drummer of Psychedelic Furs) and Ian Taylor (former assistant of Roy Thomas Baker), as well as keyboardists Roberts and Davis as session musicians.
A 12-inch single containing the song "Same Old Madness" was recorded and planned for release, along with its accompanying music video. However, "Same Old Madness"—both the song and video—did not surface until 2014; instead, "Work for Love" was released in January 1983 and peaked No. 20 on the Hot Dance/Disco chart. Ministry's debut album, entitled With Sympathy (also known as Work for Love in Europe), was finished around this time and issued in May, reaching No. 94 in the Billboard 200. On release, the album was supported by two more singles—"Revenge" (with a music video partially reworked from "Same Old Madness") and "I Wanted to Tell Her" (a reworked version of "Primental"), and a supporting concert tour with The Police during the North American leg of their Synchronicity tour. During this time, Jourgensen met the members of Seattle-based band The Blackouts—namely bassist Paul Barker and drummer Bill Rieflin, as well their then-manager Patty Marsh, who later became Jourgensen's wife from 1984 to 1995.
In spite of With Sympathys success, Jourgensen's relations with Arista were acrimonious. Eventually, Jourgensen sent a demo tape featuring a cover version of Roxy Music's song "Same Old Scene" before parting ways with Arista, suing the latter for violating contractual obligations. Since then, Jourgensen has expressed dislike for the With Sympathy-era, often providing different (and widely conflicting) explanations for his antipathy. In a 2004 interview, conducted by Mark Prindle, Jourgensen said that after signing with Arista, all artistic control of Ministry was "handed over" to other writers and producers. In his 2013 autobiography, Jourgensen gave a different explanation, saying that he was pressured by Arista management into producing his existing songs in the then-popular synthpop style, as a means of making them more commercially palatable. However, in the 1980s, Jourgensen said that when he discovered hardcore music, his musical direction simply changed; Jourgensen reiterated this point in 2012, and again in 2018. In 2019, he stated that the record was "fine", only that it could have been a lot better without interference from the record company. In 2021, Jourgensen resurrected the story that Arista took full control of the production and songwriting process, made Jourgensen cut his hair and bought him a wardrobe of sharkskin suits, and this time added the label wanted Ministry to sound like Wham! (a band who were not successful in the US until 1984-one year after With Sympathy had been released). Jourgensen assumes a false English accent for all of the album's songs, for which he also later expressed great dislike, though Patty Marsh stated in a 2013 interview "...the English accent thing was more an homage to the bands he loved than anything else. He was not trying to come off as British. The Stones used a southern accent and no one crawled up their ass for it.", an explanation Jourgensen himself had also given in a prior, 1983 interview with Richard Skinner.
Departed from Arista, Jourgensen returned with Ministry on Wax Trax! in mid-1984. While working as a cashier in the Wax Trax! store, he continued to record new material. In Autumn 1984, Ministry embarked on a new tour with a renewed line-up, supported by Belgian industrial dance act Front 242. During this tour, Sire Records co-owner Seymour Stein attended several gigs, offering the band a new deal; Jourgensen, recalling his negative experience with Arista, repeatedly declined, but eventually agreed to sign on the condition that Sire would provide resources to support the Wax Trax! imprint; as Jourgensen put it, "it was kind of a personal sacrifice to keep that company rolling and allow them to keep signing bands." George left Ministry soon after this tour, disagreeing with Jourgensen over increased use of drum machines, and went on to form the short-lived band Colortone, and, much later, to pursue a record engineering career. Ministry released several singles throughout the Summer of 1985—"All Day", "(Every Day Is) Halloween" and "The Nature of Love", as well as a reissue of "Cold Life"—which were cited as marking Jourgensen's first attempt at injecting industrial elements into Ministry's sound. Initially the B-side on "All Day" single, "... Halloween" became viewed as a goth anthem similar to Bauhaus' "Bela Lugosi's Dead"; "The Nature of Love", which came out in June 1985, became Ministry's final single on Wax Trax!; in July 1985, the band was shown as signed to Sire Records.
Twitch (1985–1987)
Ministry debuted on Sire/Warner Bros. in late 1985 with the single "Over the Shoulder", preceding the release of the band's second studio album, Twitch, in March 1986. Twitch was recorded and mixed largely at Southern Studios in London and Hansa Tonstudio in West Berlin during 1985, with the On-U Sound Records owner Adrian Sherwood and Jourgensen sharing co-production duties. Despite the contribution of several others (namely Belgian singer Luc van Acker and Sherwood's acquaintance Keith LeBlanc), the album's material was mainly performed by Jourgensen, listed as the band's sole member. Some material, recorded during the Twitch sessions, was later used for LeBlanc's and Sherwood's other projects, most prominently LeBlanc's solo album Major Malfunction.
On release, Twitch hit No. 194 in Billboard 200, and was supported by a US and Canadian tour. Jourgensen assembled a new touring line-up, featuring Roland Barker on keyboards, Paul Barker on bass and Bill Rieflin on drums.; . Twitch received mixed reviews, with a music critic Robert Christgau stating, "Chicago's Anglodisco clones meet Anglodisco renegade Adrian Sherwood and promptly improve themselves by trading in wimpy on arty"; nevertheless, the album came to be viewed as a pivotal point in the band's discography, as it signaled ongoing changes in Ministry's sound. In later publications, Jourgensen credited Sherwood with giving his music an aggressive edge and providing production advice, but considered the record "so Adrian Sherwood-influenced."
Breakthrough success (1988–1993)
After Twitch, Paul Barker became Jourgensen's primary collaborator in Ministry; until his departure, he was the only person credited as a member of the band other than Jourgensen. Jourgensen then made another significant change to Ministry's sound when he resumed playing electric guitar. With Rieflin on drums, Ministry recorded The Land of Rape and Honey (1988). The album continued their success in the underground music scene. The Land of Rape and Honey made use of synthesizers, keyboards, tape loops, jackhammering drum machines, dialogue excerpted from movies, unconventional electronic processing, and, in parts, heavy distorted electric guitar and bass.
The album was supported by a tour in 1988 and the singles and music videos for "Stigmata" and "Flashback". "Stigmata" was also used in a key scene in Richard Stanley's 1990 film Hardware, although the band shown performing the song was Gwar.
The follow-up album, The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste, was released in 1989. Due to the complex nature of the album's drumming, a second drummer, Martin Atkins (formerly of Public Image Ltd. and Killing Joke), was hired. In addition to Atkins, a ten piece touring line-up was formed, consisting of Chris Connelly (keyboards and vocals), Skinny Puppy vocalist Nivek Ogre (vocals and keyboards), Joe Kelly (vocals and backing vocals) and guitarists Mike Scaccia, Terry Roberts, and William Tucker, with Jourgensen, Paul Barker and Rieflin serving as the group's core members. This tour was documented on In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up. Two opening tracks, "Burning Inside" and "Thieves", were released as a commercial single; "Burning Inside" was accompanied by a music video.
After completing the Revolting Cocks tour in early 1991, Jourgensen and his bandmates began work on a follow-up to The Mind ... at Chicago Trax! studios, amidst problems brought on by growing substance abuse. During these initial sessions, Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers recorded vocals for what became "Jesus Built My Hotrod", which hit No. 19 in the Modern Rock Tracks chart with approximately 128,000 copies as of mid-July 1992; considered Ministry's first and biggest commercial hit, it built significant anticipation for their upcoming album, then titled The Tapes of Wrath. In an attempt to distance themselves from drugs and find fresh perspective, the band relocated from Chicago to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, to record at Royal Recorders studios for ten weeks. After considering the Wisconsin sessions a "washout", they returned to Chicago to complete the album – now entitled Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs, after a chapter from Aleister Crowley's The Book of Lies – by early May 1992, with only nine of about thirty songs written being chosen to feature. The album was influenced by speed and thrash metal, often being described as their fastest record by fans and critics. It was released on July 14, 1992 and peaked at No. 27 on the Billboard 200 chart. Soon after, Ministry was invited to headline the second Lollapalooza tour with Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Soundgarden, among others, before commencing a tour of Europe and the US, with Helmet and Sepultura as supporting acts.
Middle years, turmoil and Jourgensen's drug addiction (1994–2001)
In October 1994, Ministry performed at the eighth Bridge School Benefit charity concert, with sets of cover songs (most prominently Bob Dylan's "Lay Lady Lay") and one original song, "Paisley", which was intended to be on their next album. After constructing a studio in Austin, Texas in 1993, the band proceeded to record a new album in July 1994. After refusing to perform drums on a cover version of "Lay Lady Lay", Rieflin parted ways with Jourgensen midway through the recording process. Along with newly recruited Rey Washam (formerly of Scratch Acid, Didjits, and Rapeman) who performed the rest of the album's drum work, Ministry performed as one of the headliners for Australia and New Zealand's Big Day Out touring festival in January 1995. In spite of their growing success, Ministry was nearly derailed by drug problems and a series of arrests followed in August 1995. Completed at Chicago Trax Studios, Filth Pig was released in 1996. Musically, Filth Pig was more heavy metal than industrial, with synthesizers and samples mostly stripped from a mix that focused on conventional hard rock instrumentation.
The album's songs were played mostly at slower tempos than those on their previous three LPs, giving it an almost doom metal feel. Filth Pig was supported with the singles/videos "Reload", "The Fall", "Lay Lady Lay" and "Brick Windows" and with a tour in 1996 (the live performances were later anthologized on the Sphinctour album and DVD in 2002). Jourgensen has subsequently said that he was severely depressed during this period, that Filth Pig reflects this, and that he dislikes performing music from Filth Pig.
Ministry recorded their final studio album for Warner Bros. Records, Dark Side of the Spoon (1999), which they dedicated to William Tucker, who committed suicide earlier that year. For Dark Side of the Spoon, Ministry tried to diversify their sound by adding some melodic and synthetic touches to their usual electro-metal sound, along with some jazz influences, but the album was not well received, critically or commercially. However, the single "Bad Blood" appeared on the soundtrack album of The Matrix and was nominated for a 2000 Grammy award. During this period, Jourgensen had an infected toe amputated after accidentally stepping on a discarded hypodermic needle.
In the summer of 2000, Ministry was invited to that year's Ozzfest; amidst a management changeover, they were dropped from the bill and replaced by Soulfly.
After Ministry were dropped from Warner Bros. in 2000, the label issued the 2001 collection Greatest Fits, which featured a new song, "What About Us?". Ministry would later perform the song in a cameo appearance in the Steven Spielberg film AI: Artificial Intelligence. In 2000–2002, disputes with Warner Bros. Records resulted in the planned live albums Live Psalm 69, Sphinctour and ClittourUS on Ipecac Recordings being canceled. Sphinctour was released on Sanctuary Records.
Jourgensen's recovery from drug addiction and comeback (2001–2007)
Around 2001, Jourgensen almost lost his arm when he was bitten by a venomous spider. By his own admission, Jourgensen was suicidal during this period and decided to call an acquaintance he had met years earlier; the acquaintance, Angelina Luckacin, helped Jourgensen give up his massive substance habit, which included heroin and cocaine "speedballs", crack, LSD, various pharmaceuticals and as many as two full bottles of Bushmills whiskey per day (Luckacin and Jourgensen married soon after). Jourgensen and Barker, along with Max Brody who had joined as a saxophone player for the 1999 tour, focused on developing songs for a new record during 2001 and 2002, with the band issuing Animositisomina on Sanctuary Records in 2003. The sound was strongly heavy metal with voice effects, though it featured an almost-pop cover of Magazine's "The Light Pours Out Of Me". Animositisomina, compared to previous releases, sold poorly and singles for "Animosity" and "Piss" were canceled before they could be released.
Barker announced his departure from Ministry in January 2004. He stated that the trigger was his father dying while the band was wrapping up a summer tour in Europe, and also stated that his family life was his main focus at that particular time. Lukacin stated in 2013 that Jourgensen fell out with Barker over the band's finances. Jourgensen continued Ministry with Mike Scaccia and various other musicians.
For Ministry's next album, Jourgensen released the song "No W", a song critical of then-U.S. President George W. Bush; an alternate version of the track was placed on the multi-performer compilation Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1. The follow-up LP, Houses of the Molé (2004), contained the most explicitly political lyrics Jourgensen had yet written, with songs played more crudely than on previous recordings, giving the album the most metal-oriented sound of their career. In 2006, the band released Rio Grande Blood, an LP on Jourgensen's own 13th Planet Records. With Prong's Tommy Victor and Killing Joke's Paul Raven, the album featured an even heavier thrash metal sound drawing comparison to Slayer. The single "Lieslieslies" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance at the 49th annual Grammy Awards. It, along with another song on the album, "The Great Satan", is also available as a downloadable content song for the 2008 video game Rock Band 2. In July 2007, the band released Rio Grande Dub, an album featuring remixes from the band's 2006 Rio Grande Blood album.
What Jourgensen expected to be Ministry's "final" album, The Last Sucker was released on September 18, 2007.
Paul Raven died on October 20, 2007, a month and two-days after the release of The Last Sucker, suffering an apparent heart attack shortly after arriving in Europe to commence recording for the French industrial band Treponem Pal near the Swiss border.
Breakup and posthumous releases (2008–2011)
Jourgensen remixed and co-produced Spyder Baby's "Bitter", which was released by Blind Prophecy Records in early 2008.
A song titled "Keys to the City", which became the theme song for the Chicago Blackhawks, was released on March 5, 2008. In addition to this single, two albums of covers/remixes, Cover Up (April 1, 2008) and Undercover (December 6, 2010) were released. All of these releases are credited to Ministry and Co-Conspirators''', since they feature collaborations between Jourgensen and other musicians.
Ministry's "farewell" tour, the "C-U-LaTour", started its North American leg on March 26, 2008 with Meshuggah performing as special guests and Hemlock as an opening act. They played their final North American shows in Chicago on May 10 and 12, 2008. The final date on the international leg of the tour was at the Tripod in Dublin, Ireland on July 18, 2008. During the performance, Jourgensen repeatedly reaffirmed it would indeed be the last Ministry show. Due to a large demand for tickets, an extra gig was added at the Tripod on July 19, 2008. The band again played to a full house. Ministry's final song at this show (and ostensibly their last live performance) was a rendition of their cover version of "What a Wonderful World".Adios ... Puta Madres, a live album featuring material culled from the tour, was released in 2009 on CD and DVD.
A documentary film called Fix: The Ministry Movie was planned for release sometime in 2010. However, the release date was pushed back to early 2011. Eventually, it premiered at the Chicago International Movies & Music Festival. Jourgensen sued the filmmaker, Doug Freel, for failing to fulfill a portion of the contract giving Jourgensen approval over the final cut, along with "thousands of dollars". The lawsuit was dropped in July 2011. On July 21, the film was screened privately at the Music Box Theater in Los Angeles.
Reunion, Relapse, death of Mike Scaccia and From Beer to Eternity (2011–2015)
On August 7, 2011, Ministry announced they would reform and would play at Germany's Wacken Open Air festival, set to take place on August 2–4, 2012. The reunion lineup featured Al Jourgensen on vocals, Mike Scaccia and Tommy Victor on guitar, Aaron Rossi on drums, John Bechdel on keyboards, and Tony Campos on bass.
Jourgensen told Metal Hammer in August 2011 that Ministry was working on a new album called Relapse, which they hoped to release by Christmas. Regarding the sound of the new material, he explained, "We've only got five songs to go. I've been listening to it the last couple of weeks and I wasn't really in the mood, I was just taking it as a joke. Just to pass the time at first but [Mikey's] raving about it. It's like, dude c'mon, this is not about Bush, so ... that part's over. The ulcers are gone and Bush is gone so it's time for something new. I think this is actually gonna wind up being the fastest and heaviest record I've ever done. Just because we did it as anti-therapy therapy against the country music we would just take days off and thrash faster than I've done in a long time, faster than Mikey's done in a long time. He just did a Rigor Mortis tour and said it was easy compared to this Ministry stuff so it's gonna be brutal and it's gonna freak a lot of people out."
Ministry announced on their website that they entered the studio on September 1, 2011 with engineer Sammy D'Ambruoso to begin recording their new album. During the third webisode featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the making of Relapse, a release date of March 23, 2012 was announced.
On December 23, 2011, Ministry released "99 Percenters", the first single from Relapse, and began streaming it on their Facebook page two days later. On February 24, 2012, Ministry released a second single, "Double Tap", which was included in the April 2012 issue of the Metal Hammer magazine. On March 23, 2012, Relapse was released; it was supported with "Defibrillatour", a concert tour which lasted from that year's June to August.
On December 23, 2012, guitarist Mike Scaccia died following an on-stage heart attack, while playing with his other band, Rigor Mortis. In an interview with Noisey in March 2013, Jourgensen announced that Ministry would break up again, explaining that he did not want to carry on without Scaccia. He explained, "Mikey was my best friend in the world and there's no Ministry without him. But I know the music we recorded together during the last weeks of his life had to be released to honor him. So after his funeral, I locked myself in my studio and turned the songs we had recorded into the best and last Ministry record anyone will ever hear. I can't do it without Mikey and I don't want to. So yes, this will be Ministry's last album." The album, titled From Beer to Eternity, was released on September 6, 2013. Jourgensen stated that Ministry would tour in support of From Beer to Eternity, but would not record any more albums.
AmeriKKKant, Moral Hygiene and upcoming sixteenth studio album (2016–present)
In an April 2016 interview with Loudwire, Jourgensen stated that Ministry would make a follow-up to From Beer to Eternity "if the circumstances are right." When asked in July about the possibility of a new album, Jourgensen stated, "When I was asked [before], it was after Mikey passed and the entire media immediately starts asking me what is going to happen to Ministry. He wasn't even buried yet. I thought, 'Fuck you.' I was really pissed and really angry. I said, 'Fuck Ministry and fuck you for asking.' They want to comment on Ministry when my best friend had died. It's been more than two years now, and I got more ideas and I have done albums with Mikey and have done them without him. It's time to get another record out. I have a bunch of songs written in my head. I wanted to have time to mourn before people start asking me about touring dates. It was sick. I was bombarded and email boxes were overloaded with 'what are you going to do now?' It was kind of creepy."
By February 2017, Ministry had begun working on their fourteenth studio album, titled AmeriKKKant. The album, released on March 9, 2018, includes guest appearances from Burton C. Bell of Fear Factory, former N.W.A member Arabian Prince, DJ Swamp and Lord of the Cello. During their performance at the Blackest of the Black Fest in Silverado, California in May 2017, Ministry debuted their first song in four years, "Antifa", which, at the time, was expected to appear on AmeriKKKant.
In an October 2018 interview with Billboard magazine, Jourgensen revealed that he had begun working on new material for Ministry's fifteenth studio album. He explained, "I have to get as many albums as I can done while Trump is still president, and then what am I going to do: write those crappy albums that I write while Democrats are president?" A month later, media reports noted that Jourgensen had reconnected with Barker after 15 years, hinting that the two might collaborate once again on the upcoming Ministry album.
In a 2019 interview with Revolver magazine, Jourgensen reaffirmed that he had been working on new material since 2018, and revealed that he had hired Paul D'Amour (formerly of Tool) as the new bassist of Ministry. The band – alongside Primus and Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals – opened for Slayer on the final North American leg of their farewell tour, which took place in November 2019.
In December 2019, the band released a visual history coffee table book, Ministry: Prescripture, with author Aaron Tanner.
In January 2020, Ministry announced the "Industrial Strength Tour" would start in 2020, with drummer London May of Samhain, which would feature both KMFDM and Front Line Assembly as guests. The tour was to begin on 1 July and extend until August. In May 2020, the band announced that they postponed all dates on the Industrial Strength Tour until 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 25–date tour, with KMFDM and Front Line Assembly, was scheduled to take place in March and April 2021; the trek was once again postponed to the fall of 2021, this time with Helmet replacing KMFDM, who were unable to partake in the tour because of restrictions caused by the COVID in their native Germany. On September 24, 2021, Ministry announced that The Industrial Strength tour had been postponed once more because of the pandemic, with the tour now scheduled to take place in March and April 2022, and the Melvins and Corrosion of Conformity replacing Front Line Assembly and Helmet as special guests.
On January 17, 2020, Billboard released an exposé on guitar player Sin Quirin, detailing accounts of Quirin's alleged behavior including sexual relationships with underage females while touring in San Antonio, TX, Portland, OR, and Tacoma, WA, in the early 2000s. In May 2021, Quirin announced via Facebook that he was leaving Ministry.
On March 24, 2020, longtime drummer Bill Rieflin died of cancer, which had been kept private. His death was announced the next day by Robert Fripp of King Crimson via Facebook.
On April 24, 2020, one month after Rieflin's passing, Ministry released their first song in two-and-a-half years, "Alert Level", which was expected to appear on the band's then-upcoming fifteenth studio album.
In May 2021, the band announced that drummer Roy Mayorga has rejoined the band.
On July 8, 2021, Ministry released "Good Trouble" as the first single from their fifteenth studio album Moral Hygiene, which was released on October 1.
About two weeks after the release of Moral Hygiene, Jourgensen revealed that another Ministry album "will be out in 6-8 months."
Artistry
Ministry's experimentation, stylistic variation and changes during its career cross several genres of popular music. Alternative rock subgenres such as industrial rock and industrial metal are umbrella terms predominantly used to describe the band's career in general. Ministry has been classified under many other genres, including EBM/industrial dance, techno-rock, hard rock, heavy metal, speed metal, thrash metal, and electro-industrial; their early output has been categorised as new wave, synth-pop, dance-pop, electronic dance, and dark wave. In the April 1989 issue of Spin Magazine, an author Michael Corcoran labelled the band as "industrial disco"; in 1994, writer Simon Glickman used this term as well. AllMusic's Steve Huey states that, previous to Nine Inch Nails' rise to mainstream popularity, "Ministry did more than any other band to popularize industrial dance music, injecting large doses of punky, over-the-top aggression and roaring heavy metal guitar riffs that helped their music find favor with metal and alternative audiences outside of industrial's cult fan base." Despite frequent descriptions of the band's music as industrial,; . Jourgensen disputed the use of this tag in several publications since the early 1990s, preferring instead to identify his style as "aggro", and, much later "industrious".
Despite Jourgensen's dislike of touring, Ministry are noted for their live performances, featuring extended versions of songs (as evidenced on In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up) and disturbing visual imagery. MTV also recognized the band as an influential heavy metal act, highlighting the use of sampling during their heyday. Alternative Press included Ministry in their 1996 list of 100 underground inspirations of the past 20 years, stating that they merged "metal, samples, synths, and the 100-mph sound of urban paranoia, they pretty much created industrial music as we know it."
Related projects
Jourgensen, with former and current bandmates, has been active in a number of musical projects besides Ministry. Foremost of these was the Revolting Cocks, founded by Jourgensen, Richard 23 and Luc van Acker during Ministry and Front 242's tour in 1984. Since its formation, the band has released a number of records, and has gone through several line-up changes. 1000 Homo DJs, a project purposed for outtakes from The Land of Rape and Honey and The Mind ... , has recorded a cover of Black Sabbath's "Supernaut", featuring Nine Inch Nails frontman and one-time Revolting Cocks touring member Trent Reznor. PTP, a project led by Jourgensen and Barker, included the assistance from Nivek Ogre on one occasion, and Connelly on another, and notably provided the song "Show Me Your Spine" featured in Paul Verhoeven's 1987 film RoboCop. Other notable projects include Pailhead with Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat and Fugazi, Lard with former Dead Kennedys lead singer Jello Biafra, and Acid Horse with Cabaret Voltaire members Richard H. Kirk and Stephen Mallinder. Buck Satan and the 666 Shooters, a country project led by Jourgensen, released the sole album, Bikers Welcome Ladies Drink Free, in 2012 through 13th Planet Records. Surgical Meth Machine, a speed metal project originally tributed to guitarist Mike Scaccia
Barker has released several solo recordings under various monikers, including Age of Reason and Chicks & Speed: Futurism as Lead into Gold in 1990, The Perfect Pair as Flowering Blight in 2008, and Fix This!!!, an accompanying soundtrack of Fix: The Ministry Movie, under his own name in 2012. Through the 2000s, Barker formed Pink Anvil with Max Brody and U.S.S.A. with the Jesus Lizard guitarist Duane Denison. Brody and Scaccia have also released materials as Goobersmoochers via Brody's Bandcamp site.
Members
Current members
Al Jourgensen – lead vocals, guitars, keyboards, programming, harmonica, bandolin, production (1981–present)
John Bechdel – keyboards (2006–2008, 2011–present)
Cesar Soto – guitars, backing vocals (2015–present)
Paul D'Amour – bass (2019–present)
Roy Mayorga – drums (2016–2017, 2021–present)
Monte Pittman – guitars (2014, 2021–present)
Former members
Keyboards
John Davis – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1982; died 2005)
Robert Roberts – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1983)
Duane Buford – keyboards (1994–1999)
DJ Swamp – turntables (2017–2018)
Drums
Stephen George – drums (1981–1984)
Bill Rieflin – drums, keyboards, guitar (1986–1994; died 2020)
Rey Washam – drums (1994–1999, 2003)
Max Brody – drums, saxophone (1999–2004)
Aaron Rossi – drums (2008, 2011–2016)
Derek Abrams – drums (2017–2019)
London May – drums (2020–2021)
Guitar
Mike Scaccia – guitars (1989–1995, 2003–2006, 2011–2012; died 2012)
Louis Svitek – guitars (1992–1999, 2003)
Zlatko Hukic – guitars (1996–1999)
Tommy Victor – guitars (2004–2008, 2011–2012)
Sin Quirin – guitars, bass, keyboards (2007–2008, 2012–2021)
Bass
Brad Hallen – bass (1983–1984)
Paul Barker – bass, keyboards, programming, production, vocals (1986–2003)
Paul Raven – bass, keyboards (2005–2007; died 2007)
Jason Christopher – bass, backing vocals (2016–2017)
Tony Campos – bass, backing vocals (2008, 2011–2015, 2017–2019)
Additional/touring musicians
Keyboards
Paul Taylor – keyboards (1981)
Mark Pothier – keyboards, backing vocals (1983)
Doug Chamberlin – keyboards, backing vocals (1983–1984)
Patty Jourgensen – keyboards, backing vocals (1984)
John Soroka – keyboards, backing vocals, percussion (1984)
Roland Barker – keyboards (1986, 1992–1993), saxophone (1986)
Sarolta DeFaltay – keyboards, backing vocals (1986)
Marston Daley – keyboards (1987)
Michael Balch – keyboards, programming (1991–1992)
Darrell James – keyboards (2003–2004)
Guitar
William Tucker – guitar (1989–1990; died 1999)
Terry Roberts – guitar, backing vocals (1989–1990)
Michel Bassin – guitar (1992)
Sam Ladwig – guitar (1992)
Rick Valles – guitar (2004)
Drums
Jeff Ward – drums (1988; died 1993)
Martin Atkins – drums (1989–1990)
Tia Sprocket – drums (2003; died 2017)
Mark Baker – drums (2004–2005)
Joey Jordison – drums (2006; died 2021)
Thomas Holtgreve – drums (2017)
Bass
Martin Sorenson – bass (1981–1982)
Casey Orr – bass (1992, 2012)
John Monte – bass (2004)
Eddy Garcia – bass (2004)
Vocals
Audrey Stanzler – vocals (1981–1982)
Shay Jones – vocals (1982–1983)
Yvonne Gage – vocals (1983–1984)
Chris Connelly – vocals (1989–1990, 1992–1993), keyboards (1989–1990)
Nivek Ogre – vocals (1988–1990)
Joe Kelly – vocals (1989–1990)
Marco Neves – vocals (1992)
Burton C. Bell – vocals (2008, 2018)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
With Sympathy (1983)
Twitch (1986)
The Land of Rape and Honey (1988)
The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989)
Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs (1992)
Filth Pig (1996)
Dark Side of the Spoon (1999)
Animositisomina (2003)
Houses of the Molé (2004)
Rio Grande Blood (2006)
The Last Sucker (2007)
Relapse (2012)
From Beer to Eternity (2013)
AmeriKKKant (2018)
Moral Hygiene'' (2021)
Tours
With Sympathy Tour, 1983
Wax Trax! Singles Tour, 1984
Twitch Tour, 1986–1987
The Land of Rape and Honey Tour, 1988
The Mind Tour, 1989–1990
Lollapalooza 1992
Psalm 69 Tour, 1992–1994
Big Day Out, 1995
Sphinctour, 1996
ClitourUS, 1999
Fornicatour, 2003
Evil Doer Tour, 2004–2005
MasterBaTour, 2006
C-U-LaTour, 2008
DeFiBriLaTouR / Relapse Tour, 2012
From Beer to EternaTour, 2015
Death Grips and Ministry US Tour 2017
The AmeriKKKan Tour, 2018
EU/UK Summer Tour, 2019
Industrial Strength Tour, 2022 (initially scheduled to take place in summer 2020, later rescheduled to fall 2021 and then spring 2022 due to COVID-19)
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Ministry @ prongs.org
1981 establishments in Illinois
American industrial metal musical groups
American industrial music groups
Rock music groups from Illinois
Arista Records artists
Heavy metal musical groups from Illinois
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups disestablished in 2008
Musical groups reestablished in 2011
Musical groups from Chicago
Nuclear Blast artists
Political music groups
Sire Records artists
Situation Two artists
Warner Records artists
Wax Trax! Records artists | false | [
"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books",
"\"What Happened to Us\" is a song by Australian recording artist Jessica Mauboy, featuring English recording artist Jay Sean. It was written by Sean, Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim and Israel Cruz. \"What Happened to Us\" was leaked online in October 2010, and was released on 10 March 2011, as the third single from Mauboy's second studio album, Get 'Em Girls (2010). The song received positive reviews from critics.\n\nA remix of \"What Happened to Us\" made by production team OFM, was released on 11 April 2011. A different version of the song which features Stan Walker, was released on 29 May 2011. \"What Happened to Us\" charted on the ARIA Singles Chart at number 14 and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). An accompanying music video was directed by Mark Alston, and reminisces on a former relationship between Mauboy and Sean.\n\nProduction and release\n\n\"What Happened to Us\" was written by Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim, Israel Cruz and Jay Sean. It was produced by Skaller, Cruz, Rohaim and Bobby Bass. The song uses C, D, and B minor chords in the chorus. \"What Happened to Us\" was sent to contemporary hit radio in Australia on 14 February 2011. The cover art for the song was revealed on 22 February on Mauboy's official Facebook page. A CD release was available for purchase via her official website on 10 March, for one week only. It was released digitally the following day.\n\nReception\nMajhid Heath from ABC Online Indigenous called the song a \"Jordin Sparks-esque duet\", and wrote that it \"has a nice innocence to it that rings true to the experience of losing a first love.\" Chris Urankar from Nine to Five wrote that it as a \"mid-tempo duet ballad\" which signifies Mauboy's strength as a global player. On 21 March 2011, \"What Happened to Us\" debuted at number 30 on the ARIA Singles Chart, and peaked at number 14 the following week. The song was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), for selling 70,000 copies. \"What Happened to Us\" spent a total of ten weeks in the ARIA top fifty.\n\nMusic video\n\nBackground\nThe music video for the song was shot in the Elizabeth Bay House in Sydney on 26 November 2010. The video was shot during Sean's visit to Australia for the Summerbeatz tour. During an interview with The Daily Telegraph while on the set of the video, Sean said \"the song is sick! ... Jessica's voice is amazing and we're shooting [the video] in this ridiculously beautiful mansion overlooking the harbour.\" The video was directed by Mark Alston, who had previously directed the video for Mauboy's single \"Let Me Be Me\" (2009). It premiered on YouTube on 10 February 2011.\n\nSynopsis and reception\nThe video begins showing Mauboy who appears to be sitting on a yellow antique couch in a mansion, wearing a purple dress. As the video progresses, scenes of memories are displayed of Mauboy and her love interest, played by Sean, spending time there previously. It then cuts to the scenes where Sean appears in the main entrance room of the mansion. The final scene shows Mauboy outdoors in a gold dress, surrounded by green grass and trees. She is later joined by Sean who appears in a black suit and a white shirt, and together they sing the chorus of the song to each other. David Lim of Feed Limmy wrote that the video is \"easily the best thing our R&B princess has committed to film – ever\" and praised the \"mansion and wondrous interior décor\". He also commended Mauboy for choosing Australian talent to direct the video instead of American directors, which she had used for her previous two music videos. Since its release, the video has received over two million views on Vevo.\n\nLive performances\nMauboy performed \"What Happened to Us\" live for the first time during her YouTube Live Sessions program on 4 December 2010. She also appeared on Adam Hills in Gordon Street Tonight on 23 February 2011 for an interview and later performed the song. On 15 March 2011, Mauboy performed \"What Happened to Us\" on Sunrise. She also performed the song with Stan Walker during the Australian leg of Chris Brown's F.A.M.E. Tour in April 2011. Mauboy and Walker later performed \"What Happened to Us\" on Dancing with the Stars Australia on 29 May 2011. From November 2013 to February 2014, \"What Happened to Us\" was part of the set list of the To the End of the Earth Tour, Mauboy's second headlining tour of Australia, with Nathaniel Willemse singing Sean's part.\n\nTrack listing\n\nDigital download\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean – 3:19\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Sgt Slick Remix) – 6:33\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Just Witness Remix) – 3:45\n\nCD single\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Album Version) – 3:19\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Sgt Slick Remix) – 6:33\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (OFM Remix) – 3:39\n\nDigital download – Remix\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (OFM Remix) – 3:38\n\nDigital download\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Stan Walker – 3:20\n\nPersonnel\nSongwriting – Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim, Israel Cruz, Jay Sean\nProduction – Jeremy Skaller, Bobby Bass\nAdditional production – Israel Cruz, Khaled Rohaim\nLead vocals – Jessica Mauboy, Jay Sean\nMixing – Phil Tan\nAdditional mixing – Damien Lewis\nMastering – Tom Coyne \nSource:\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly chart\n\nYear-end chart\n\nCertification\n\nRadio dates and release history\n\nReferences\n\n2010 songs\n2011 singles\nJessica Mauboy songs\nJay Sean songs\nSongs written by Billy Steinberg\nSongs written by Jay Sean\nSongs written by Josh Alexander\nSongs written by Israel Cruz\nVocal duets\nSony Music Australia singles\nSongs written by Khaled Rohaim"
]
|
[
"Ministry (band)",
"Formation and early days (1981-1982)",
"what happened in 1981",
"Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Al Jourgensen went from Denver to Chicago, in order to study in University of Illinois."
]
| C_b9830aff6a7d45679abd89a5b02167c1_1 | what did he study? | 2 | what did Al Jourgensen study? | Ministry (band) | Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Al Jourgensen went from Denver to Chicago, in order to study in University of Illinois. Jourgensen was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend Shannon Rose Riley, and soon after joined a post-punk/new wave band Special Affect, replacing Tom Hoffman on a guitar and accompanying to vocalist Frank Nardiello (Groovie Mann of My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult), drummer Harry Rushakoff (Concrete Blonde) and bassist Marty Sorenson. Following Special Affect's split, Jourgensen formed The Carmichaels, the short-lived band which featured Ben Krug, Tom Krug and Tom Wall (all of The Imports), and did numerous shows, including the one performed on April 30, 1981 with the local experimental band ONO as an opening act. In this time Jourgensen had also met Jim Nash and Danny Flesher, the co-founders and the co-owners of the indie record label Wax Trax! Records who recommended him as a touring guitarist for a drag performer Divine. After playing a few concerts with the latter, Jourgensen--then living within an African-American neighborhood--had begun to write and record the songs in his apartment, using a newly-bought ARP Omni synthesizer, a drum machine, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder. At one point, he had presented a demo to Jim Nash, who had favored it and offered Jourgensen to record a single, as well as to form a touring band, certainly titled Ministry. The first line-up of Ministry, assembled by Jourgensen, consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; initially, Jourgensen didn't want to perform vocals, but embarked on after he had auditioned twelve singers "who all sucked." Nash had paid a recording session for the band at Hedden West studios, with the help of an English-born sound engineer Iain Burgess. According to former Dead Kennedys singer and Alternative Tentacles owner Jello Biafra, Ministry's debut record was intended to be seven-inch single featuring the song "Overkill" with B-side "I'm Falling"; eventually, a twelve-inch single with "I'm Falling" and instrumental track "Primental" on A-side, backed with song "Cold Life" on B-side, came out in late 1981 on Wax Trax! in the US. In March of the following year, the single was licensed by a British label Situation Two, with "Cold Life" as A-side. Ministry had performed their debut concert on the New Year Eve of 1982 in a Chicago-based club Misfits, and commenced a tour through the East Coast and the mid-West, supporting on occasions for the English bands Medium Medium, A Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, and Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, "I'm Falling / Cold Life" single had found success in the UK and the US, reaching No. 45 in the Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart with approximately 10,000 copies as of September 1982, and thus scoring Wax Trax!' first hit. CANNOTANSWER | Jourgensen was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend Shannon Rose Riley, and soon after joined a post-punk | Ministry is an American industrial metal band founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1981 by producer, singer and instrumentalist Al Jourgensen. Originally a synth-pop outfit, Ministry evolved into one of the pioneers of industrial metal in the late 1980s. The band's lineup has changed frequently, leaving Jourgensen as the sole original member left in Ministry. Musicians who have contributed to the band's studio or live activities include vocalists Nivek Ogre, Chris Connelly, Gibby Haynes, Burton C. Bell and Jello Biafra, guitarists Mike Scaccia and Tommy Victor, bassists Paul Barker, Paul Raven, Jason Christopher, Tony Campos and Paul D'Amour, drummers Bill Rieflin, Martin Atkins, Rey Washam, Max Brody, Joey Jordison and Roy Mayorga, keyboardist John Bechdel, and rappers and producers DJ Swamp and Arabian Prince.
Ministry attained commercial success in the late 1980s and early 1990s with three of their studio albums: The Land of Rape and Honey (1988), The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989) and Psalm 69 (1992). The first two were certified gold while Psalm 69 was certified platinum by the RIAA. Psalm 69 was followed by Filth Pig (1996), which was a stylistic departure for the band, and earned Ministry its highest chart position on the Billboard 200 at number nineteen, although it was met with mixed reception by critics and marked the beginning of the band's commercial decline. The lackluster response to their next album, Dark Side of the Spoon (1999), resulted in Warner Bros. dropping Ministry from the label and the group entered an extended hiatus in early 2000s, when Jourgensen entered rehab after years of substance abuse.
Following Jourgensen's recovery, Ministry resurfaced in 2003 with Animositisomina, which turned out to be their last album with Paul Barker, who had left the band early the next year after nearly two decades as an official member. Ministry returned to their thrash/industrial style of Psalm 69 and released three albums critical of then-President of the United States, George W. Bush, dubbed the "Bush Trilogy": Houses of the Molé (2004), Rio Grande Blood (2006) and The Last Sucker (2007); these albums effectively revitalized the band's commercial viability. Although The Last Sucker was initially intended to be the band's final album, Ministry reformed in 2011 and released Relapse in the following year. On December 23, 2012, longtime guitar contributor Mike Scaccia died of a heart attack, and he was posthumously featured in the next Ministry album, From Beer to Eternity (2013), which was again supposed to be their last album, as Jourgensen thought his death was the end of the band. Despite this, Ministry has since released two more albums: AmeriKKKant (2018) and Moral Hygiene (2021), and they are working on new material for a sixteenth studio album as of October 2021.
The band has been nominated for six Grammy Awards and has performed at several music festivals, including the second annual Lollapalooza tour in 1992, co-headlining Big Day Out in 1995 and performing at Wacken Open Air thrice (in 2006, 2012 and 2016).
History
Formation and early days (1981–1982)
Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Jourgensen moved from Denver to Chicago to attend the University of Illinois at Chicago. He was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend, and in 1979 he replaced Tom Hoffmann on guitars in Special Affect, a post-punk group which featured vocalist Frank Nardiello (Groovie Mann of My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult), drummer Harry Rushakoff (Concrete Blonde) and bassist Marty Sorenson. Following Special Affect's split in 1980, Jourgensen formed a short-lived band called The Silly Carmichaels, which featured members of The Imports and played two shows.
In 1981, Jourgensen met Jim Nash and Danny Flesher, co-founders and co-owners of the indie record label and shop Wax Trax! Records who recommended him as a touring guitarist for Divine. After playing a few concerts with the latter, Jourgensen began to write and record songs in his apartment, using a newly bought ARP Omni synthesizer, a drum machine, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder. He presented a demo to Jim Nash, who suggested Jourgensen record a single and form a touring band, which Jourgensen decided to call Ministry.
The first line-up of Ministry consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; Jourgensen auditioned several singers, all of whom were unsatisfactory, so he decided to perform vocals himself. Nash purchased recording sessions at Hedden West studios which resulted in a twelve-inch single featuring "I'm Falling" and instrumental track "Primental" on the A-side, with the song "Cold Life" on the B-side. The record was co-produced by Jay O'Roarke and Iain Burgess and released in late 1981 on Wax Trax! in the US. In March 1982, the single was licensed by British label Situation Two, with "Cold Life" as the A-side.
Ministry performed their debut concert on New Year's Eve 1982 in the Chicago club Misfits, and, in the spring, commenced a tour of the Northeast and the Midwest, supporting Medium Medium, A Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, and Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, the "I'm Falling / Cold Life" single reached No. 45 in the Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart with approximately 10,000 copies as of September 1982, and thus scoring Wax Trax!' first hit.
With Sympathy and later Wax Trax! singles (1983–1985)
The band's initial success drew the attention of Arista Records founder and chief executive Clive Davis, who offered them a deal, promising to make them "the next Joy Division"—a promise that Jourgensen later considered to be misleading. Signing a six-figure, two-album deal, the band—with Jourgensen and George comprising the official line-up—moved to record at the Synchro Sound studios in Boston, with producers Vince Ely (former drummer of Psychedelic Furs) and Ian Taylor (former assistant of Roy Thomas Baker), as well as keyboardists Roberts and Davis as session musicians.
A 12-inch single containing the song "Same Old Madness" was recorded and planned for release, along with its accompanying music video. However, "Same Old Madness"—both the song and video—did not surface until 2014; instead, "Work for Love" was released in January 1983 and peaked No. 20 on the Hot Dance/Disco chart. Ministry's debut album, entitled With Sympathy (also known as Work for Love in Europe), was finished around this time and issued in May, reaching No. 94 in the Billboard 200. On release, the album was supported by two more singles—"Revenge" (with a music video partially reworked from "Same Old Madness") and "I Wanted to Tell Her" (a reworked version of "Primental"), and a supporting concert tour with The Police during the North American leg of their Synchronicity tour. During this time, Jourgensen met the members of Seattle-based band The Blackouts—namely bassist Paul Barker and drummer Bill Rieflin, as well their then-manager Patty Marsh, who later became Jourgensen's wife from 1984 to 1995.
In spite of With Sympathys success, Jourgensen's relations with Arista were acrimonious. Eventually, Jourgensen sent a demo tape featuring a cover version of Roxy Music's song "Same Old Scene" before parting ways with Arista, suing the latter for violating contractual obligations. Since then, Jourgensen has expressed dislike for the With Sympathy-era, often providing different (and widely conflicting) explanations for his antipathy. In a 2004 interview, conducted by Mark Prindle, Jourgensen said that after signing with Arista, all artistic control of Ministry was "handed over" to other writers and producers. In his 2013 autobiography, Jourgensen gave a different explanation, saying that he was pressured by Arista management into producing his existing songs in the then-popular synthpop style, as a means of making them more commercially palatable. However, in the 1980s, Jourgensen said that when he discovered hardcore music, his musical direction simply changed; Jourgensen reiterated this point in 2012, and again in 2018. In 2019, he stated that the record was "fine", only that it could have been a lot better without interference from the record company. In 2021, Jourgensen resurrected the story that Arista took full control of the production and songwriting process, made Jourgensen cut his hair and bought him a wardrobe of sharkskin suits, and this time added the label wanted Ministry to sound like Wham! (a band who were not successful in the US until 1984-one year after With Sympathy had been released). Jourgensen assumes a false English accent for all of the album's songs, for which he also later expressed great dislike, though Patty Marsh stated in a 2013 interview "...the English accent thing was more an homage to the bands he loved than anything else. He was not trying to come off as British. The Stones used a southern accent and no one crawled up their ass for it.", an explanation Jourgensen himself had also given in a prior, 1983 interview with Richard Skinner.
Departed from Arista, Jourgensen returned with Ministry on Wax Trax! in mid-1984. While working as a cashier in the Wax Trax! store, he continued to record new material. In Autumn 1984, Ministry embarked on a new tour with a renewed line-up, supported by Belgian industrial dance act Front 242. During this tour, Sire Records co-owner Seymour Stein attended several gigs, offering the band a new deal; Jourgensen, recalling his negative experience with Arista, repeatedly declined, but eventually agreed to sign on the condition that Sire would provide resources to support the Wax Trax! imprint; as Jourgensen put it, "it was kind of a personal sacrifice to keep that company rolling and allow them to keep signing bands." George left Ministry soon after this tour, disagreeing with Jourgensen over increased use of drum machines, and went on to form the short-lived band Colortone, and, much later, to pursue a record engineering career. Ministry released several singles throughout the Summer of 1985—"All Day", "(Every Day Is) Halloween" and "The Nature of Love", as well as a reissue of "Cold Life"—which were cited as marking Jourgensen's first attempt at injecting industrial elements into Ministry's sound. Initially the B-side on "All Day" single, "... Halloween" became viewed as a goth anthem similar to Bauhaus' "Bela Lugosi's Dead"; "The Nature of Love", which came out in June 1985, became Ministry's final single on Wax Trax!; in July 1985, the band was shown as signed to Sire Records.
Twitch (1985–1987)
Ministry debuted on Sire/Warner Bros. in late 1985 with the single "Over the Shoulder", preceding the release of the band's second studio album, Twitch, in March 1986. Twitch was recorded and mixed largely at Southern Studios in London and Hansa Tonstudio in West Berlin during 1985, with the On-U Sound Records owner Adrian Sherwood and Jourgensen sharing co-production duties. Despite the contribution of several others (namely Belgian singer Luc van Acker and Sherwood's acquaintance Keith LeBlanc), the album's material was mainly performed by Jourgensen, listed as the band's sole member. Some material, recorded during the Twitch sessions, was later used for LeBlanc's and Sherwood's other projects, most prominently LeBlanc's solo album Major Malfunction.
On release, Twitch hit No. 194 in Billboard 200, and was supported by a US and Canadian tour. Jourgensen assembled a new touring line-up, featuring Roland Barker on keyboards, Paul Barker on bass and Bill Rieflin on drums.; . Twitch received mixed reviews, with a music critic Robert Christgau stating, "Chicago's Anglodisco clones meet Anglodisco renegade Adrian Sherwood and promptly improve themselves by trading in wimpy on arty"; nevertheless, the album came to be viewed as a pivotal point in the band's discography, as it signaled ongoing changes in Ministry's sound. In later publications, Jourgensen credited Sherwood with giving his music an aggressive edge and providing production advice, but considered the record "so Adrian Sherwood-influenced."
Breakthrough success (1988–1993)
After Twitch, Paul Barker became Jourgensen's primary collaborator in Ministry; until his departure, he was the only person credited as a member of the band other than Jourgensen. Jourgensen then made another significant change to Ministry's sound when he resumed playing electric guitar. With Rieflin on drums, Ministry recorded The Land of Rape and Honey (1988). The album continued their success in the underground music scene. The Land of Rape and Honey made use of synthesizers, keyboards, tape loops, jackhammering drum machines, dialogue excerpted from movies, unconventional electronic processing, and, in parts, heavy distorted electric guitar and bass.
The album was supported by a tour in 1988 and the singles and music videos for "Stigmata" and "Flashback". "Stigmata" was also used in a key scene in Richard Stanley's 1990 film Hardware, although the band shown performing the song was Gwar.
The follow-up album, The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste, was released in 1989. Due to the complex nature of the album's drumming, a second drummer, Martin Atkins (formerly of Public Image Ltd. and Killing Joke), was hired. In addition to Atkins, a ten piece touring line-up was formed, consisting of Chris Connelly (keyboards and vocals), Skinny Puppy vocalist Nivek Ogre (vocals and keyboards), Joe Kelly (vocals and backing vocals) and guitarists Mike Scaccia, Terry Roberts, and William Tucker, with Jourgensen, Paul Barker and Rieflin serving as the group's core members. This tour was documented on In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up. Two opening tracks, "Burning Inside" and "Thieves", were released as a commercial single; "Burning Inside" was accompanied by a music video.
After completing the Revolting Cocks tour in early 1991, Jourgensen and his bandmates began work on a follow-up to The Mind ... at Chicago Trax! studios, amidst problems brought on by growing substance abuse. During these initial sessions, Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers recorded vocals for what became "Jesus Built My Hotrod", which hit No. 19 in the Modern Rock Tracks chart with approximately 128,000 copies as of mid-July 1992; considered Ministry's first and biggest commercial hit, it built significant anticipation for their upcoming album, then titled The Tapes of Wrath. In an attempt to distance themselves from drugs and find fresh perspective, the band relocated from Chicago to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, to record at Royal Recorders studios for ten weeks. After considering the Wisconsin sessions a "washout", they returned to Chicago to complete the album – now entitled Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs, after a chapter from Aleister Crowley's The Book of Lies – by early May 1992, with only nine of about thirty songs written being chosen to feature. The album was influenced by speed and thrash metal, often being described as their fastest record by fans and critics. It was released on July 14, 1992 and peaked at No. 27 on the Billboard 200 chart. Soon after, Ministry was invited to headline the second Lollapalooza tour with Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Soundgarden, among others, before commencing a tour of Europe and the US, with Helmet and Sepultura as supporting acts.
Middle years, turmoil and Jourgensen's drug addiction (1994–2001)
In October 1994, Ministry performed at the eighth Bridge School Benefit charity concert, with sets of cover songs (most prominently Bob Dylan's "Lay Lady Lay") and one original song, "Paisley", which was intended to be on their next album. After constructing a studio in Austin, Texas in 1993, the band proceeded to record a new album in July 1994. After refusing to perform drums on a cover version of "Lay Lady Lay", Rieflin parted ways with Jourgensen midway through the recording process. Along with newly recruited Rey Washam (formerly of Scratch Acid, Didjits, and Rapeman) who performed the rest of the album's drum work, Ministry performed as one of the headliners for Australia and New Zealand's Big Day Out touring festival in January 1995. In spite of their growing success, Ministry was nearly derailed by drug problems and a series of arrests followed in August 1995. Completed at Chicago Trax Studios, Filth Pig was released in 1996. Musically, Filth Pig was more heavy metal than industrial, with synthesizers and samples mostly stripped from a mix that focused on conventional hard rock instrumentation.
The album's songs were played mostly at slower tempos than those on their previous three LPs, giving it an almost doom metal feel. Filth Pig was supported with the singles/videos "Reload", "The Fall", "Lay Lady Lay" and "Brick Windows" and with a tour in 1996 (the live performances were later anthologized on the Sphinctour album and DVD in 2002). Jourgensen has subsequently said that he was severely depressed during this period, that Filth Pig reflects this, and that he dislikes performing music from Filth Pig.
Ministry recorded their final studio album for Warner Bros. Records, Dark Side of the Spoon (1999), which they dedicated to William Tucker, who committed suicide earlier that year. For Dark Side of the Spoon, Ministry tried to diversify their sound by adding some melodic and synthetic touches to their usual electro-metal sound, along with some jazz influences, but the album was not well received, critically or commercially. However, the single "Bad Blood" appeared on the soundtrack album of The Matrix and was nominated for a 2000 Grammy award. During this period, Jourgensen had an infected toe amputated after accidentally stepping on a discarded hypodermic needle.
In the summer of 2000, Ministry was invited to that year's Ozzfest; amidst a management changeover, they were dropped from the bill and replaced by Soulfly.
After Ministry were dropped from Warner Bros. in 2000, the label issued the 2001 collection Greatest Fits, which featured a new song, "What About Us?". Ministry would later perform the song in a cameo appearance in the Steven Spielberg film AI: Artificial Intelligence. In 2000–2002, disputes with Warner Bros. Records resulted in the planned live albums Live Psalm 69, Sphinctour and ClittourUS on Ipecac Recordings being canceled. Sphinctour was released on Sanctuary Records.
Jourgensen's recovery from drug addiction and comeback (2001–2007)
Around 2001, Jourgensen almost lost his arm when he was bitten by a venomous spider. By his own admission, Jourgensen was suicidal during this period and decided to call an acquaintance he had met years earlier; the acquaintance, Angelina Luckacin, helped Jourgensen give up his massive substance habit, which included heroin and cocaine "speedballs", crack, LSD, various pharmaceuticals and as many as two full bottles of Bushmills whiskey per day (Luckacin and Jourgensen married soon after). Jourgensen and Barker, along with Max Brody who had joined as a saxophone player for the 1999 tour, focused on developing songs for a new record during 2001 and 2002, with the band issuing Animositisomina on Sanctuary Records in 2003. The sound was strongly heavy metal with voice effects, though it featured an almost-pop cover of Magazine's "The Light Pours Out Of Me". Animositisomina, compared to previous releases, sold poorly and singles for "Animosity" and "Piss" were canceled before they could be released.
Barker announced his departure from Ministry in January 2004. He stated that the trigger was his father dying while the band was wrapping up a summer tour in Europe, and also stated that his family life was his main focus at that particular time. Lukacin stated in 2013 that Jourgensen fell out with Barker over the band's finances. Jourgensen continued Ministry with Mike Scaccia and various other musicians.
For Ministry's next album, Jourgensen released the song "No W", a song critical of then-U.S. President George W. Bush; an alternate version of the track was placed on the multi-performer compilation Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1. The follow-up LP, Houses of the Molé (2004), contained the most explicitly political lyrics Jourgensen had yet written, with songs played more crudely than on previous recordings, giving the album the most metal-oriented sound of their career. In 2006, the band released Rio Grande Blood, an LP on Jourgensen's own 13th Planet Records. With Prong's Tommy Victor and Killing Joke's Paul Raven, the album featured an even heavier thrash metal sound drawing comparison to Slayer. The single "Lieslieslies" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance at the 49th annual Grammy Awards. It, along with another song on the album, "The Great Satan", is also available as a downloadable content song for the 2008 video game Rock Band 2. In July 2007, the band released Rio Grande Dub, an album featuring remixes from the band's 2006 Rio Grande Blood album.
What Jourgensen expected to be Ministry's "final" album, The Last Sucker was released on September 18, 2007.
Paul Raven died on October 20, 2007, a month and two-days after the release of The Last Sucker, suffering an apparent heart attack shortly after arriving in Europe to commence recording for the French industrial band Treponem Pal near the Swiss border.
Breakup and posthumous releases (2008–2011)
Jourgensen remixed and co-produced Spyder Baby's "Bitter", which was released by Blind Prophecy Records in early 2008.
A song titled "Keys to the City", which became the theme song for the Chicago Blackhawks, was released on March 5, 2008. In addition to this single, two albums of covers/remixes, Cover Up (April 1, 2008) and Undercover (December 6, 2010) were released. All of these releases are credited to Ministry and Co-Conspirators''', since they feature collaborations between Jourgensen and other musicians.
Ministry's "farewell" tour, the "C-U-LaTour", started its North American leg on March 26, 2008 with Meshuggah performing as special guests and Hemlock as an opening act. They played their final North American shows in Chicago on May 10 and 12, 2008. The final date on the international leg of the tour was at the Tripod in Dublin, Ireland on July 18, 2008. During the performance, Jourgensen repeatedly reaffirmed it would indeed be the last Ministry show. Due to a large demand for tickets, an extra gig was added at the Tripod on July 19, 2008. The band again played to a full house. Ministry's final song at this show (and ostensibly their last live performance) was a rendition of their cover version of "What a Wonderful World".Adios ... Puta Madres, a live album featuring material culled from the tour, was released in 2009 on CD and DVD.
A documentary film called Fix: The Ministry Movie was planned for release sometime in 2010. However, the release date was pushed back to early 2011. Eventually, it premiered at the Chicago International Movies & Music Festival. Jourgensen sued the filmmaker, Doug Freel, for failing to fulfill a portion of the contract giving Jourgensen approval over the final cut, along with "thousands of dollars". The lawsuit was dropped in July 2011. On July 21, the film was screened privately at the Music Box Theater in Los Angeles.
Reunion, Relapse, death of Mike Scaccia and From Beer to Eternity (2011–2015)
On August 7, 2011, Ministry announced they would reform and would play at Germany's Wacken Open Air festival, set to take place on August 2–4, 2012. The reunion lineup featured Al Jourgensen on vocals, Mike Scaccia and Tommy Victor on guitar, Aaron Rossi on drums, John Bechdel on keyboards, and Tony Campos on bass.
Jourgensen told Metal Hammer in August 2011 that Ministry was working on a new album called Relapse, which they hoped to release by Christmas. Regarding the sound of the new material, he explained, "We've only got five songs to go. I've been listening to it the last couple of weeks and I wasn't really in the mood, I was just taking it as a joke. Just to pass the time at first but [Mikey's] raving about it. It's like, dude c'mon, this is not about Bush, so ... that part's over. The ulcers are gone and Bush is gone so it's time for something new. I think this is actually gonna wind up being the fastest and heaviest record I've ever done. Just because we did it as anti-therapy therapy against the country music we would just take days off and thrash faster than I've done in a long time, faster than Mikey's done in a long time. He just did a Rigor Mortis tour and said it was easy compared to this Ministry stuff so it's gonna be brutal and it's gonna freak a lot of people out."
Ministry announced on their website that they entered the studio on September 1, 2011 with engineer Sammy D'Ambruoso to begin recording their new album. During the third webisode featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the making of Relapse, a release date of March 23, 2012 was announced.
On December 23, 2011, Ministry released "99 Percenters", the first single from Relapse, and began streaming it on their Facebook page two days later. On February 24, 2012, Ministry released a second single, "Double Tap", which was included in the April 2012 issue of the Metal Hammer magazine. On March 23, 2012, Relapse was released; it was supported with "Defibrillatour", a concert tour which lasted from that year's June to August.
On December 23, 2012, guitarist Mike Scaccia died following an on-stage heart attack, while playing with his other band, Rigor Mortis. In an interview with Noisey in March 2013, Jourgensen announced that Ministry would break up again, explaining that he did not want to carry on without Scaccia. He explained, "Mikey was my best friend in the world and there's no Ministry without him. But I know the music we recorded together during the last weeks of his life had to be released to honor him. So after his funeral, I locked myself in my studio and turned the songs we had recorded into the best and last Ministry record anyone will ever hear. I can't do it without Mikey and I don't want to. So yes, this will be Ministry's last album." The album, titled From Beer to Eternity, was released on September 6, 2013. Jourgensen stated that Ministry would tour in support of From Beer to Eternity, but would not record any more albums.
AmeriKKKant, Moral Hygiene and upcoming sixteenth studio album (2016–present)
In an April 2016 interview with Loudwire, Jourgensen stated that Ministry would make a follow-up to From Beer to Eternity "if the circumstances are right." When asked in July about the possibility of a new album, Jourgensen stated, "When I was asked [before], it was after Mikey passed and the entire media immediately starts asking me what is going to happen to Ministry. He wasn't even buried yet. I thought, 'Fuck you.' I was really pissed and really angry. I said, 'Fuck Ministry and fuck you for asking.' They want to comment on Ministry when my best friend had died. It's been more than two years now, and I got more ideas and I have done albums with Mikey and have done them without him. It's time to get another record out. I have a bunch of songs written in my head. I wanted to have time to mourn before people start asking me about touring dates. It was sick. I was bombarded and email boxes were overloaded with 'what are you going to do now?' It was kind of creepy."
By February 2017, Ministry had begun working on their fourteenth studio album, titled AmeriKKKant. The album, released on March 9, 2018, includes guest appearances from Burton C. Bell of Fear Factory, former N.W.A member Arabian Prince, DJ Swamp and Lord of the Cello. During their performance at the Blackest of the Black Fest in Silverado, California in May 2017, Ministry debuted their first song in four years, "Antifa", which, at the time, was expected to appear on AmeriKKKant.
In an October 2018 interview with Billboard magazine, Jourgensen revealed that he had begun working on new material for Ministry's fifteenth studio album. He explained, "I have to get as many albums as I can done while Trump is still president, and then what am I going to do: write those crappy albums that I write while Democrats are president?" A month later, media reports noted that Jourgensen had reconnected with Barker after 15 years, hinting that the two might collaborate once again on the upcoming Ministry album.
In a 2019 interview with Revolver magazine, Jourgensen reaffirmed that he had been working on new material since 2018, and revealed that he had hired Paul D'Amour (formerly of Tool) as the new bassist of Ministry. The band – alongside Primus and Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals – opened for Slayer on the final North American leg of their farewell tour, which took place in November 2019.
In December 2019, the band released a visual history coffee table book, Ministry: Prescripture, with author Aaron Tanner.
In January 2020, Ministry announced the "Industrial Strength Tour" would start in 2020, with drummer London May of Samhain, which would feature both KMFDM and Front Line Assembly as guests. The tour was to begin on 1 July and extend until August. In May 2020, the band announced that they postponed all dates on the Industrial Strength Tour until 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 25–date tour, with KMFDM and Front Line Assembly, was scheduled to take place in March and April 2021; the trek was once again postponed to the fall of 2021, this time with Helmet replacing KMFDM, who were unable to partake in the tour because of restrictions caused by the COVID in their native Germany. On September 24, 2021, Ministry announced that The Industrial Strength tour had been postponed once more because of the pandemic, with the tour now scheduled to take place in March and April 2022, and the Melvins and Corrosion of Conformity replacing Front Line Assembly and Helmet as special guests.
On January 17, 2020, Billboard released an exposé on guitar player Sin Quirin, detailing accounts of Quirin's alleged behavior including sexual relationships with underage females while touring in San Antonio, TX, Portland, OR, and Tacoma, WA, in the early 2000s. In May 2021, Quirin announced via Facebook that he was leaving Ministry.
On March 24, 2020, longtime drummer Bill Rieflin died of cancer, which had been kept private. His death was announced the next day by Robert Fripp of King Crimson via Facebook.
On April 24, 2020, one month after Rieflin's passing, Ministry released their first song in two-and-a-half years, "Alert Level", which was expected to appear on the band's then-upcoming fifteenth studio album.
In May 2021, the band announced that drummer Roy Mayorga has rejoined the band.
On July 8, 2021, Ministry released "Good Trouble" as the first single from their fifteenth studio album Moral Hygiene, which was released on October 1.
About two weeks after the release of Moral Hygiene, Jourgensen revealed that another Ministry album "will be out in 6-8 months."
Artistry
Ministry's experimentation, stylistic variation and changes during its career cross several genres of popular music. Alternative rock subgenres such as industrial rock and industrial metal are umbrella terms predominantly used to describe the band's career in general. Ministry has been classified under many other genres, including EBM/industrial dance, techno-rock, hard rock, heavy metal, speed metal, thrash metal, and electro-industrial; their early output has been categorised as new wave, synth-pop, dance-pop, electronic dance, and dark wave. In the April 1989 issue of Spin Magazine, an author Michael Corcoran labelled the band as "industrial disco"; in 1994, writer Simon Glickman used this term as well. AllMusic's Steve Huey states that, previous to Nine Inch Nails' rise to mainstream popularity, "Ministry did more than any other band to popularize industrial dance music, injecting large doses of punky, over-the-top aggression and roaring heavy metal guitar riffs that helped their music find favor with metal and alternative audiences outside of industrial's cult fan base." Despite frequent descriptions of the band's music as industrial,; . Jourgensen disputed the use of this tag in several publications since the early 1990s, preferring instead to identify his style as "aggro", and, much later "industrious".
Despite Jourgensen's dislike of touring, Ministry are noted for their live performances, featuring extended versions of songs (as evidenced on In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up) and disturbing visual imagery. MTV also recognized the band as an influential heavy metal act, highlighting the use of sampling during their heyday. Alternative Press included Ministry in their 1996 list of 100 underground inspirations of the past 20 years, stating that they merged "metal, samples, synths, and the 100-mph sound of urban paranoia, they pretty much created industrial music as we know it."
Related projects
Jourgensen, with former and current bandmates, has been active in a number of musical projects besides Ministry. Foremost of these was the Revolting Cocks, founded by Jourgensen, Richard 23 and Luc van Acker during Ministry and Front 242's tour in 1984. Since its formation, the band has released a number of records, and has gone through several line-up changes. 1000 Homo DJs, a project purposed for outtakes from The Land of Rape and Honey and The Mind ... , has recorded a cover of Black Sabbath's "Supernaut", featuring Nine Inch Nails frontman and one-time Revolting Cocks touring member Trent Reznor. PTP, a project led by Jourgensen and Barker, included the assistance from Nivek Ogre on one occasion, and Connelly on another, and notably provided the song "Show Me Your Spine" featured in Paul Verhoeven's 1987 film RoboCop. Other notable projects include Pailhead with Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat and Fugazi, Lard with former Dead Kennedys lead singer Jello Biafra, and Acid Horse with Cabaret Voltaire members Richard H. Kirk and Stephen Mallinder. Buck Satan and the 666 Shooters, a country project led by Jourgensen, released the sole album, Bikers Welcome Ladies Drink Free, in 2012 through 13th Planet Records. Surgical Meth Machine, a speed metal project originally tributed to guitarist Mike Scaccia
Barker has released several solo recordings under various monikers, including Age of Reason and Chicks & Speed: Futurism as Lead into Gold in 1990, The Perfect Pair as Flowering Blight in 2008, and Fix This!!!, an accompanying soundtrack of Fix: The Ministry Movie, under his own name in 2012. Through the 2000s, Barker formed Pink Anvil with Max Brody and U.S.S.A. with the Jesus Lizard guitarist Duane Denison. Brody and Scaccia have also released materials as Goobersmoochers via Brody's Bandcamp site.
Members
Current members
Al Jourgensen – lead vocals, guitars, keyboards, programming, harmonica, bandolin, production (1981–present)
John Bechdel – keyboards (2006–2008, 2011–present)
Cesar Soto – guitars, backing vocals (2015–present)
Paul D'Amour – bass (2019–present)
Roy Mayorga – drums (2016–2017, 2021–present)
Monte Pittman – guitars (2014, 2021–present)
Former members
Keyboards
John Davis – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1982; died 2005)
Robert Roberts – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1983)
Duane Buford – keyboards (1994–1999)
DJ Swamp – turntables (2017–2018)
Drums
Stephen George – drums (1981–1984)
Bill Rieflin – drums, keyboards, guitar (1986–1994; died 2020)
Rey Washam – drums (1994–1999, 2003)
Max Brody – drums, saxophone (1999–2004)
Aaron Rossi – drums (2008, 2011–2016)
Derek Abrams – drums (2017–2019)
London May – drums (2020–2021)
Guitar
Mike Scaccia – guitars (1989–1995, 2003–2006, 2011–2012; died 2012)
Louis Svitek – guitars (1992–1999, 2003)
Zlatko Hukic – guitars (1996–1999)
Tommy Victor – guitars (2004–2008, 2011–2012)
Sin Quirin – guitars, bass, keyboards (2007–2008, 2012–2021)
Bass
Brad Hallen – bass (1983–1984)
Paul Barker – bass, keyboards, programming, production, vocals (1986–2003)
Paul Raven – bass, keyboards (2005–2007; died 2007)
Jason Christopher – bass, backing vocals (2016–2017)
Tony Campos – bass, backing vocals (2008, 2011–2015, 2017–2019)
Additional/touring musicians
Keyboards
Paul Taylor – keyboards (1981)
Mark Pothier – keyboards, backing vocals (1983)
Doug Chamberlin – keyboards, backing vocals (1983–1984)
Patty Jourgensen – keyboards, backing vocals (1984)
John Soroka – keyboards, backing vocals, percussion (1984)
Roland Barker – keyboards (1986, 1992–1993), saxophone (1986)
Sarolta DeFaltay – keyboards, backing vocals (1986)
Marston Daley – keyboards (1987)
Michael Balch – keyboards, programming (1991–1992)
Darrell James – keyboards (2003–2004)
Guitar
William Tucker – guitar (1989–1990; died 1999)
Terry Roberts – guitar, backing vocals (1989–1990)
Michel Bassin – guitar (1992)
Sam Ladwig – guitar (1992)
Rick Valles – guitar (2004)
Drums
Jeff Ward – drums (1988; died 1993)
Martin Atkins – drums (1989–1990)
Tia Sprocket – drums (2003; died 2017)
Mark Baker – drums (2004–2005)
Joey Jordison – drums (2006; died 2021)
Thomas Holtgreve – drums (2017)
Bass
Martin Sorenson – bass (1981–1982)
Casey Orr – bass (1992, 2012)
John Monte – bass (2004)
Eddy Garcia – bass (2004)
Vocals
Audrey Stanzler – vocals (1981–1982)
Shay Jones – vocals (1982–1983)
Yvonne Gage – vocals (1983–1984)
Chris Connelly – vocals (1989–1990, 1992–1993), keyboards (1989–1990)
Nivek Ogre – vocals (1988–1990)
Joe Kelly – vocals (1989–1990)
Marco Neves – vocals (1992)
Burton C. Bell – vocals (2008, 2018)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
With Sympathy (1983)
Twitch (1986)
The Land of Rape and Honey (1988)
The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989)
Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs (1992)
Filth Pig (1996)
Dark Side of the Spoon (1999)
Animositisomina (2003)
Houses of the Molé (2004)
Rio Grande Blood (2006)
The Last Sucker (2007)
Relapse (2012)
From Beer to Eternity (2013)
AmeriKKKant (2018)
Moral Hygiene'' (2021)
Tours
With Sympathy Tour, 1983
Wax Trax! Singles Tour, 1984
Twitch Tour, 1986–1987
The Land of Rape and Honey Tour, 1988
The Mind Tour, 1989–1990
Lollapalooza 1992
Psalm 69 Tour, 1992–1994
Big Day Out, 1995
Sphinctour, 1996
ClitourUS, 1999
Fornicatour, 2003
Evil Doer Tour, 2004–2005
MasterBaTour, 2006
C-U-LaTour, 2008
DeFiBriLaTouR / Relapse Tour, 2012
From Beer to EternaTour, 2015
Death Grips and Ministry US Tour 2017
The AmeriKKKan Tour, 2018
EU/UK Summer Tour, 2019
Industrial Strength Tour, 2022 (initially scheduled to take place in summer 2020, later rescheduled to fall 2021 and then spring 2022 due to COVID-19)
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Ministry @ prongs.org
1981 establishments in Illinois
American industrial metal musical groups
American industrial music groups
Rock music groups from Illinois
Arista Records artists
Heavy metal musical groups from Illinois
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups disestablished in 2008
Musical groups reestablished in 2011
Musical groups from Chicago
Nuclear Blast artists
Political music groups
Sire Records artists
Situation Two artists
Warner Records artists
Wax Trax! Records artists | false | [
"The Predator is the third EP by American metalcore band Ice Nine Kills and was self-released by the band on January 15, 2013. The EP debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart.\n\nIt is the only album to feature Steve Koch as bassist and backup singer after his departure in 2013, and the last album to feature Justin Morrow as rhythm guitarist; he would switch to bass guitar and backing vocals (on live performance only) while still playing rhythm guitar in studio in 2013.\n\nThe tracks \"The Coffin Is Moving\" and \"What I Never Learned in Study Hall\" later would be featured on the band's 2014 album The Predator Becomes the Prey.\n\nThe track \"What I Never Learned in Study Hall\" was later re-recorded acoustically for Take Action. Vol. 11 making it similar to the song's predecessors \"What I Really Learned in Study Hall\" and \"What I Should Have Learned in Study Hall\". Unlike the original version, the acoustic version did not feature Tyler Carter as guest vocalist, but instead featured former Kid's Jackson Summer vocalist Kate Ellen Dean.\n\nTrack listing\n\nPersonnel \n Spencer Charnas - lead vocals, piano on \"A Reptile's Dysfunction\"\n Justin \"JD\" DeBlieck - lead guitar, lead vocals\n Justin Morrow - rhythm guitar\n Steve Koch - bass guitar, backing vocals\n Connor Sullivan - drums\n Steve Sopchak - producer, engineer, mixing\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\n2013 EPs\nIce Nine Kills EPs\nSelf-released EPs",
"Homeric psychology is a field of study with regards to the psychology of ancient Greek culture no later than Mycenaean Greece, around 1700–1200 BCE, during the Homeric epic poems (specifically the Illiad and the Odyssey).\n\nHistory of Homeric psychology\nThe first scholar to present a theory was Bruno Snell in his 1953 book, originally in German. His argument was that the ancient Greek individual did not have a sense of self, and that later the Greek culture \"self-realized\" or \"discovered\" what we consider to be the modern \"intellect\".\n\nLater, Eric Robertson Dodds in 1951, wrote how ancient Greek thought may have been irrational, as compared to modern \"rational\" culture. In this Dodds' theory, the Greeks may have known that an individual did things, but the reason an individual did things were attributed to divine externalities, such as gods or daemons.\n\nJulian Jaynes proposed a theory in 1976. He stipulated that Greek consciousness emerged from the use of special words related to cognition. Some of Jaynes' findings were empirically supported in a 2021 study by Boban Dedović, a psychohistorian. The study compared the word counts of mental language between thirty-four versions of the Iliad and Odyssey.\n\nReferences \n\nConsciousness studies\nPhilosophy of mind\nPhilology\nCognitive psychology\nHistorical linguistics\nArguments in philosophy of mind"
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"Jourgensen was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend Shannon Rose Riley, and soon after joined a post-punk"
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| C_b9830aff6a7d45679abd89a5b02167c1_1 | joined a post-punk what? | 3 | Al Jourgensen joined a post-punk what? | Ministry (band) | Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Al Jourgensen went from Denver to Chicago, in order to study in University of Illinois. Jourgensen was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend Shannon Rose Riley, and soon after joined a post-punk/new wave band Special Affect, replacing Tom Hoffman on a guitar and accompanying to vocalist Frank Nardiello (Groovie Mann of My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult), drummer Harry Rushakoff (Concrete Blonde) and bassist Marty Sorenson. Following Special Affect's split, Jourgensen formed The Carmichaels, the short-lived band which featured Ben Krug, Tom Krug and Tom Wall (all of The Imports), and did numerous shows, including the one performed on April 30, 1981 with the local experimental band ONO as an opening act. In this time Jourgensen had also met Jim Nash and Danny Flesher, the co-founders and the co-owners of the indie record label Wax Trax! Records who recommended him as a touring guitarist for a drag performer Divine. After playing a few concerts with the latter, Jourgensen--then living within an African-American neighborhood--had begun to write and record the songs in his apartment, using a newly-bought ARP Omni synthesizer, a drum machine, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder. At one point, he had presented a demo to Jim Nash, who had favored it and offered Jourgensen to record a single, as well as to form a touring band, certainly titled Ministry. The first line-up of Ministry, assembled by Jourgensen, consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; initially, Jourgensen didn't want to perform vocals, but embarked on after he had auditioned twelve singers "who all sucked." Nash had paid a recording session for the band at Hedden West studios, with the help of an English-born sound engineer Iain Burgess. According to former Dead Kennedys singer and Alternative Tentacles owner Jello Biafra, Ministry's debut record was intended to be seven-inch single featuring the song "Overkill" with B-side "I'm Falling"; eventually, a twelve-inch single with "I'm Falling" and instrumental track "Primental" on A-side, backed with song "Cold Life" on B-side, came out in late 1981 on Wax Trax! in the US. In March of the following year, the single was licensed by a British label Situation Two, with "Cold Life" as A-side. Ministry had performed their debut concert on the New Year Eve of 1982 in a Chicago-based club Misfits, and commenced a tour through the East Coast and the mid-West, supporting on occasions for the English bands Medium Medium, A Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, and Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, "I'm Falling / Cold Life" single had found success in the UK and the US, reaching No. 45 in the Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart with approximately 10,000 copies as of September 1982, and thus scoring Wax Trax!' first hit. CANNOTANSWER | new wave band Special Affect, | Ministry is an American industrial metal band founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1981 by producer, singer and instrumentalist Al Jourgensen. Originally a synth-pop outfit, Ministry evolved into one of the pioneers of industrial metal in the late 1980s. The band's lineup has changed frequently, leaving Jourgensen as the sole original member left in Ministry. Musicians who have contributed to the band's studio or live activities include vocalists Nivek Ogre, Chris Connelly, Gibby Haynes, Burton C. Bell and Jello Biafra, guitarists Mike Scaccia and Tommy Victor, bassists Paul Barker, Paul Raven, Jason Christopher, Tony Campos and Paul D'Amour, drummers Bill Rieflin, Martin Atkins, Rey Washam, Max Brody, Joey Jordison and Roy Mayorga, keyboardist John Bechdel, and rappers and producers DJ Swamp and Arabian Prince.
Ministry attained commercial success in the late 1980s and early 1990s with three of their studio albums: The Land of Rape and Honey (1988), The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989) and Psalm 69 (1992). The first two were certified gold while Psalm 69 was certified platinum by the RIAA. Psalm 69 was followed by Filth Pig (1996), which was a stylistic departure for the band, and earned Ministry its highest chart position on the Billboard 200 at number nineteen, although it was met with mixed reception by critics and marked the beginning of the band's commercial decline. The lackluster response to their next album, Dark Side of the Spoon (1999), resulted in Warner Bros. dropping Ministry from the label and the group entered an extended hiatus in early 2000s, when Jourgensen entered rehab after years of substance abuse.
Following Jourgensen's recovery, Ministry resurfaced in 2003 with Animositisomina, which turned out to be their last album with Paul Barker, who had left the band early the next year after nearly two decades as an official member. Ministry returned to their thrash/industrial style of Psalm 69 and released three albums critical of then-President of the United States, George W. Bush, dubbed the "Bush Trilogy": Houses of the Molé (2004), Rio Grande Blood (2006) and The Last Sucker (2007); these albums effectively revitalized the band's commercial viability. Although The Last Sucker was initially intended to be the band's final album, Ministry reformed in 2011 and released Relapse in the following year. On December 23, 2012, longtime guitar contributor Mike Scaccia died of a heart attack, and he was posthumously featured in the next Ministry album, From Beer to Eternity (2013), which was again supposed to be their last album, as Jourgensen thought his death was the end of the band. Despite this, Ministry has since released two more albums: AmeriKKKant (2018) and Moral Hygiene (2021), and they are working on new material for a sixteenth studio album as of October 2021.
The band has been nominated for six Grammy Awards and has performed at several music festivals, including the second annual Lollapalooza tour in 1992, co-headlining Big Day Out in 1995 and performing at Wacken Open Air thrice (in 2006, 2012 and 2016).
History
Formation and early days (1981–1982)
Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Jourgensen moved from Denver to Chicago to attend the University of Illinois at Chicago. He was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend, and in 1979 he replaced Tom Hoffmann on guitars in Special Affect, a post-punk group which featured vocalist Frank Nardiello (Groovie Mann of My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult), drummer Harry Rushakoff (Concrete Blonde) and bassist Marty Sorenson. Following Special Affect's split in 1980, Jourgensen formed a short-lived band called The Silly Carmichaels, which featured members of The Imports and played two shows.
In 1981, Jourgensen met Jim Nash and Danny Flesher, co-founders and co-owners of the indie record label and shop Wax Trax! Records who recommended him as a touring guitarist for Divine. After playing a few concerts with the latter, Jourgensen began to write and record songs in his apartment, using a newly bought ARP Omni synthesizer, a drum machine, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder. He presented a demo to Jim Nash, who suggested Jourgensen record a single and form a touring band, which Jourgensen decided to call Ministry.
The first line-up of Ministry consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; Jourgensen auditioned several singers, all of whom were unsatisfactory, so he decided to perform vocals himself. Nash purchased recording sessions at Hedden West studios which resulted in a twelve-inch single featuring "I'm Falling" and instrumental track "Primental" on the A-side, with the song "Cold Life" on the B-side. The record was co-produced by Jay O'Roarke and Iain Burgess and released in late 1981 on Wax Trax! in the US. In March 1982, the single was licensed by British label Situation Two, with "Cold Life" as the A-side.
Ministry performed their debut concert on New Year's Eve 1982 in the Chicago club Misfits, and, in the spring, commenced a tour of the Northeast and the Midwest, supporting Medium Medium, A Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, and Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, the "I'm Falling / Cold Life" single reached No. 45 in the Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart with approximately 10,000 copies as of September 1982, and thus scoring Wax Trax!' first hit.
With Sympathy and later Wax Trax! singles (1983–1985)
The band's initial success drew the attention of Arista Records founder and chief executive Clive Davis, who offered them a deal, promising to make them "the next Joy Division"—a promise that Jourgensen later considered to be misleading. Signing a six-figure, two-album deal, the band—with Jourgensen and George comprising the official line-up—moved to record at the Synchro Sound studios in Boston, with producers Vince Ely (former drummer of Psychedelic Furs) and Ian Taylor (former assistant of Roy Thomas Baker), as well as keyboardists Roberts and Davis as session musicians.
A 12-inch single containing the song "Same Old Madness" was recorded and planned for release, along with its accompanying music video. However, "Same Old Madness"—both the song and video—did not surface until 2014; instead, "Work for Love" was released in January 1983 and peaked No. 20 on the Hot Dance/Disco chart. Ministry's debut album, entitled With Sympathy (also known as Work for Love in Europe), was finished around this time and issued in May, reaching No. 94 in the Billboard 200. On release, the album was supported by two more singles—"Revenge" (with a music video partially reworked from "Same Old Madness") and "I Wanted to Tell Her" (a reworked version of "Primental"), and a supporting concert tour with The Police during the North American leg of their Synchronicity tour. During this time, Jourgensen met the members of Seattle-based band The Blackouts—namely bassist Paul Barker and drummer Bill Rieflin, as well their then-manager Patty Marsh, who later became Jourgensen's wife from 1984 to 1995.
In spite of With Sympathys success, Jourgensen's relations with Arista were acrimonious. Eventually, Jourgensen sent a demo tape featuring a cover version of Roxy Music's song "Same Old Scene" before parting ways with Arista, suing the latter for violating contractual obligations. Since then, Jourgensen has expressed dislike for the With Sympathy-era, often providing different (and widely conflicting) explanations for his antipathy. In a 2004 interview, conducted by Mark Prindle, Jourgensen said that after signing with Arista, all artistic control of Ministry was "handed over" to other writers and producers. In his 2013 autobiography, Jourgensen gave a different explanation, saying that he was pressured by Arista management into producing his existing songs in the then-popular synthpop style, as a means of making them more commercially palatable. However, in the 1980s, Jourgensen said that when he discovered hardcore music, his musical direction simply changed; Jourgensen reiterated this point in 2012, and again in 2018. In 2019, he stated that the record was "fine", only that it could have been a lot better without interference from the record company. In 2021, Jourgensen resurrected the story that Arista took full control of the production and songwriting process, made Jourgensen cut his hair and bought him a wardrobe of sharkskin suits, and this time added the label wanted Ministry to sound like Wham! (a band who were not successful in the US until 1984-one year after With Sympathy had been released). Jourgensen assumes a false English accent for all of the album's songs, for which he also later expressed great dislike, though Patty Marsh stated in a 2013 interview "...the English accent thing was more an homage to the bands he loved than anything else. He was not trying to come off as British. The Stones used a southern accent and no one crawled up their ass for it.", an explanation Jourgensen himself had also given in a prior, 1983 interview with Richard Skinner.
Departed from Arista, Jourgensen returned with Ministry on Wax Trax! in mid-1984. While working as a cashier in the Wax Trax! store, he continued to record new material. In Autumn 1984, Ministry embarked on a new tour with a renewed line-up, supported by Belgian industrial dance act Front 242. During this tour, Sire Records co-owner Seymour Stein attended several gigs, offering the band a new deal; Jourgensen, recalling his negative experience with Arista, repeatedly declined, but eventually agreed to sign on the condition that Sire would provide resources to support the Wax Trax! imprint; as Jourgensen put it, "it was kind of a personal sacrifice to keep that company rolling and allow them to keep signing bands." George left Ministry soon after this tour, disagreeing with Jourgensen over increased use of drum machines, and went on to form the short-lived band Colortone, and, much later, to pursue a record engineering career. Ministry released several singles throughout the Summer of 1985—"All Day", "(Every Day Is) Halloween" and "The Nature of Love", as well as a reissue of "Cold Life"—which were cited as marking Jourgensen's first attempt at injecting industrial elements into Ministry's sound. Initially the B-side on "All Day" single, "... Halloween" became viewed as a goth anthem similar to Bauhaus' "Bela Lugosi's Dead"; "The Nature of Love", which came out in June 1985, became Ministry's final single on Wax Trax!; in July 1985, the band was shown as signed to Sire Records.
Twitch (1985–1987)
Ministry debuted on Sire/Warner Bros. in late 1985 with the single "Over the Shoulder", preceding the release of the band's second studio album, Twitch, in March 1986. Twitch was recorded and mixed largely at Southern Studios in London and Hansa Tonstudio in West Berlin during 1985, with the On-U Sound Records owner Adrian Sherwood and Jourgensen sharing co-production duties. Despite the contribution of several others (namely Belgian singer Luc van Acker and Sherwood's acquaintance Keith LeBlanc), the album's material was mainly performed by Jourgensen, listed as the band's sole member. Some material, recorded during the Twitch sessions, was later used for LeBlanc's and Sherwood's other projects, most prominently LeBlanc's solo album Major Malfunction.
On release, Twitch hit No. 194 in Billboard 200, and was supported by a US and Canadian tour. Jourgensen assembled a new touring line-up, featuring Roland Barker on keyboards, Paul Barker on bass and Bill Rieflin on drums.; . Twitch received mixed reviews, with a music critic Robert Christgau stating, "Chicago's Anglodisco clones meet Anglodisco renegade Adrian Sherwood and promptly improve themselves by trading in wimpy on arty"; nevertheless, the album came to be viewed as a pivotal point in the band's discography, as it signaled ongoing changes in Ministry's sound. In later publications, Jourgensen credited Sherwood with giving his music an aggressive edge and providing production advice, but considered the record "so Adrian Sherwood-influenced."
Breakthrough success (1988–1993)
After Twitch, Paul Barker became Jourgensen's primary collaborator in Ministry; until his departure, he was the only person credited as a member of the band other than Jourgensen. Jourgensen then made another significant change to Ministry's sound when he resumed playing electric guitar. With Rieflin on drums, Ministry recorded The Land of Rape and Honey (1988). The album continued their success in the underground music scene. The Land of Rape and Honey made use of synthesizers, keyboards, tape loops, jackhammering drum machines, dialogue excerpted from movies, unconventional electronic processing, and, in parts, heavy distorted electric guitar and bass.
The album was supported by a tour in 1988 and the singles and music videos for "Stigmata" and "Flashback". "Stigmata" was also used in a key scene in Richard Stanley's 1990 film Hardware, although the band shown performing the song was Gwar.
The follow-up album, The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste, was released in 1989. Due to the complex nature of the album's drumming, a second drummer, Martin Atkins (formerly of Public Image Ltd. and Killing Joke), was hired. In addition to Atkins, a ten piece touring line-up was formed, consisting of Chris Connelly (keyboards and vocals), Skinny Puppy vocalist Nivek Ogre (vocals and keyboards), Joe Kelly (vocals and backing vocals) and guitarists Mike Scaccia, Terry Roberts, and William Tucker, with Jourgensen, Paul Barker and Rieflin serving as the group's core members. This tour was documented on In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up. Two opening tracks, "Burning Inside" and "Thieves", were released as a commercial single; "Burning Inside" was accompanied by a music video.
After completing the Revolting Cocks tour in early 1991, Jourgensen and his bandmates began work on a follow-up to The Mind ... at Chicago Trax! studios, amidst problems brought on by growing substance abuse. During these initial sessions, Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers recorded vocals for what became "Jesus Built My Hotrod", which hit No. 19 in the Modern Rock Tracks chart with approximately 128,000 copies as of mid-July 1992; considered Ministry's first and biggest commercial hit, it built significant anticipation for their upcoming album, then titled The Tapes of Wrath. In an attempt to distance themselves from drugs and find fresh perspective, the band relocated from Chicago to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, to record at Royal Recorders studios for ten weeks. After considering the Wisconsin sessions a "washout", they returned to Chicago to complete the album – now entitled Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs, after a chapter from Aleister Crowley's The Book of Lies – by early May 1992, with only nine of about thirty songs written being chosen to feature. The album was influenced by speed and thrash metal, often being described as their fastest record by fans and critics. It was released on July 14, 1992 and peaked at No. 27 on the Billboard 200 chart. Soon after, Ministry was invited to headline the second Lollapalooza tour with Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Soundgarden, among others, before commencing a tour of Europe and the US, with Helmet and Sepultura as supporting acts.
Middle years, turmoil and Jourgensen's drug addiction (1994–2001)
In October 1994, Ministry performed at the eighth Bridge School Benefit charity concert, with sets of cover songs (most prominently Bob Dylan's "Lay Lady Lay") and one original song, "Paisley", which was intended to be on their next album. After constructing a studio in Austin, Texas in 1993, the band proceeded to record a new album in July 1994. After refusing to perform drums on a cover version of "Lay Lady Lay", Rieflin parted ways with Jourgensen midway through the recording process. Along with newly recruited Rey Washam (formerly of Scratch Acid, Didjits, and Rapeman) who performed the rest of the album's drum work, Ministry performed as one of the headliners for Australia and New Zealand's Big Day Out touring festival in January 1995. In spite of their growing success, Ministry was nearly derailed by drug problems and a series of arrests followed in August 1995. Completed at Chicago Trax Studios, Filth Pig was released in 1996. Musically, Filth Pig was more heavy metal than industrial, with synthesizers and samples mostly stripped from a mix that focused on conventional hard rock instrumentation.
The album's songs were played mostly at slower tempos than those on their previous three LPs, giving it an almost doom metal feel. Filth Pig was supported with the singles/videos "Reload", "The Fall", "Lay Lady Lay" and "Brick Windows" and with a tour in 1996 (the live performances were later anthologized on the Sphinctour album and DVD in 2002). Jourgensen has subsequently said that he was severely depressed during this period, that Filth Pig reflects this, and that he dislikes performing music from Filth Pig.
Ministry recorded their final studio album for Warner Bros. Records, Dark Side of the Spoon (1999), which they dedicated to William Tucker, who committed suicide earlier that year. For Dark Side of the Spoon, Ministry tried to diversify their sound by adding some melodic and synthetic touches to their usual electro-metal sound, along with some jazz influences, but the album was not well received, critically or commercially. However, the single "Bad Blood" appeared on the soundtrack album of The Matrix and was nominated for a 2000 Grammy award. During this period, Jourgensen had an infected toe amputated after accidentally stepping on a discarded hypodermic needle.
In the summer of 2000, Ministry was invited to that year's Ozzfest; amidst a management changeover, they were dropped from the bill and replaced by Soulfly.
After Ministry were dropped from Warner Bros. in 2000, the label issued the 2001 collection Greatest Fits, which featured a new song, "What About Us?". Ministry would later perform the song in a cameo appearance in the Steven Spielberg film AI: Artificial Intelligence. In 2000–2002, disputes with Warner Bros. Records resulted in the planned live albums Live Psalm 69, Sphinctour and ClittourUS on Ipecac Recordings being canceled. Sphinctour was released on Sanctuary Records.
Jourgensen's recovery from drug addiction and comeback (2001–2007)
Around 2001, Jourgensen almost lost his arm when he was bitten by a venomous spider. By his own admission, Jourgensen was suicidal during this period and decided to call an acquaintance he had met years earlier; the acquaintance, Angelina Luckacin, helped Jourgensen give up his massive substance habit, which included heroin and cocaine "speedballs", crack, LSD, various pharmaceuticals and as many as two full bottles of Bushmills whiskey per day (Luckacin and Jourgensen married soon after). Jourgensen and Barker, along with Max Brody who had joined as a saxophone player for the 1999 tour, focused on developing songs for a new record during 2001 and 2002, with the band issuing Animositisomina on Sanctuary Records in 2003. The sound was strongly heavy metal with voice effects, though it featured an almost-pop cover of Magazine's "The Light Pours Out Of Me". Animositisomina, compared to previous releases, sold poorly and singles for "Animosity" and "Piss" were canceled before they could be released.
Barker announced his departure from Ministry in January 2004. He stated that the trigger was his father dying while the band was wrapping up a summer tour in Europe, and also stated that his family life was his main focus at that particular time. Lukacin stated in 2013 that Jourgensen fell out with Barker over the band's finances. Jourgensen continued Ministry with Mike Scaccia and various other musicians.
For Ministry's next album, Jourgensen released the song "No W", a song critical of then-U.S. President George W. Bush; an alternate version of the track was placed on the multi-performer compilation Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1. The follow-up LP, Houses of the Molé (2004), contained the most explicitly political lyrics Jourgensen had yet written, with songs played more crudely than on previous recordings, giving the album the most metal-oriented sound of their career. In 2006, the band released Rio Grande Blood, an LP on Jourgensen's own 13th Planet Records. With Prong's Tommy Victor and Killing Joke's Paul Raven, the album featured an even heavier thrash metal sound drawing comparison to Slayer. The single "Lieslieslies" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance at the 49th annual Grammy Awards. It, along with another song on the album, "The Great Satan", is also available as a downloadable content song for the 2008 video game Rock Band 2. In July 2007, the band released Rio Grande Dub, an album featuring remixes from the band's 2006 Rio Grande Blood album.
What Jourgensen expected to be Ministry's "final" album, The Last Sucker was released on September 18, 2007.
Paul Raven died on October 20, 2007, a month and two-days after the release of The Last Sucker, suffering an apparent heart attack shortly after arriving in Europe to commence recording for the French industrial band Treponem Pal near the Swiss border.
Breakup and posthumous releases (2008–2011)
Jourgensen remixed and co-produced Spyder Baby's "Bitter", which was released by Blind Prophecy Records in early 2008.
A song titled "Keys to the City", which became the theme song for the Chicago Blackhawks, was released on March 5, 2008. In addition to this single, two albums of covers/remixes, Cover Up (April 1, 2008) and Undercover (December 6, 2010) were released. All of these releases are credited to Ministry and Co-Conspirators''', since they feature collaborations between Jourgensen and other musicians.
Ministry's "farewell" tour, the "C-U-LaTour", started its North American leg on March 26, 2008 with Meshuggah performing as special guests and Hemlock as an opening act. They played their final North American shows in Chicago on May 10 and 12, 2008. The final date on the international leg of the tour was at the Tripod in Dublin, Ireland on July 18, 2008. During the performance, Jourgensen repeatedly reaffirmed it would indeed be the last Ministry show. Due to a large demand for tickets, an extra gig was added at the Tripod on July 19, 2008. The band again played to a full house. Ministry's final song at this show (and ostensibly their last live performance) was a rendition of their cover version of "What a Wonderful World".Adios ... Puta Madres, a live album featuring material culled from the tour, was released in 2009 on CD and DVD.
A documentary film called Fix: The Ministry Movie was planned for release sometime in 2010. However, the release date was pushed back to early 2011. Eventually, it premiered at the Chicago International Movies & Music Festival. Jourgensen sued the filmmaker, Doug Freel, for failing to fulfill a portion of the contract giving Jourgensen approval over the final cut, along with "thousands of dollars". The lawsuit was dropped in July 2011. On July 21, the film was screened privately at the Music Box Theater in Los Angeles.
Reunion, Relapse, death of Mike Scaccia and From Beer to Eternity (2011–2015)
On August 7, 2011, Ministry announced they would reform and would play at Germany's Wacken Open Air festival, set to take place on August 2–4, 2012. The reunion lineup featured Al Jourgensen on vocals, Mike Scaccia and Tommy Victor on guitar, Aaron Rossi on drums, John Bechdel on keyboards, and Tony Campos on bass.
Jourgensen told Metal Hammer in August 2011 that Ministry was working on a new album called Relapse, which they hoped to release by Christmas. Regarding the sound of the new material, he explained, "We've only got five songs to go. I've been listening to it the last couple of weeks and I wasn't really in the mood, I was just taking it as a joke. Just to pass the time at first but [Mikey's] raving about it. It's like, dude c'mon, this is not about Bush, so ... that part's over. The ulcers are gone and Bush is gone so it's time for something new. I think this is actually gonna wind up being the fastest and heaviest record I've ever done. Just because we did it as anti-therapy therapy against the country music we would just take days off and thrash faster than I've done in a long time, faster than Mikey's done in a long time. He just did a Rigor Mortis tour and said it was easy compared to this Ministry stuff so it's gonna be brutal and it's gonna freak a lot of people out."
Ministry announced on their website that they entered the studio on September 1, 2011 with engineer Sammy D'Ambruoso to begin recording their new album. During the third webisode featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the making of Relapse, a release date of March 23, 2012 was announced.
On December 23, 2011, Ministry released "99 Percenters", the first single from Relapse, and began streaming it on their Facebook page two days later. On February 24, 2012, Ministry released a second single, "Double Tap", which was included in the April 2012 issue of the Metal Hammer magazine. On March 23, 2012, Relapse was released; it was supported with "Defibrillatour", a concert tour which lasted from that year's June to August.
On December 23, 2012, guitarist Mike Scaccia died following an on-stage heart attack, while playing with his other band, Rigor Mortis. In an interview with Noisey in March 2013, Jourgensen announced that Ministry would break up again, explaining that he did not want to carry on without Scaccia. He explained, "Mikey was my best friend in the world and there's no Ministry without him. But I know the music we recorded together during the last weeks of his life had to be released to honor him. So after his funeral, I locked myself in my studio and turned the songs we had recorded into the best and last Ministry record anyone will ever hear. I can't do it without Mikey and I don't want to. So yes, this will be Ministry's last album." The album, titled From Beer to Eternity, was released on September 6, 2013. Jourgensen stated that Ministry would tour in support of From Beer to Eternity, but would not record any more albums.
AmeriKKKant, Moral Hygiene and upcoming sixteenth studio album (2016–present)
In an April 2016 interview with Loudwire, Jourgensen stated that Ministry would make a follow-up to From Beer to Eternity "if the circumstances are right." When asked in July about the possibility of a new album, Jourgensen stated, "When I was asked [before], it was after Mikey passed and the entire media immediately starts asking me what is going to happen to Ministry. He wasn't even buried yet. I thought, 'Fuck you.' I was really pissed and really angry. I said, 'Fuck Ministry and fuck you for asking.' They want to comment on Ministry when my best friend had died. It's been more than two years now, and I got more ideas and I have done albums with Mikey and have done them without him. It's time to get another record out. I have a bunch of songs written in my head. I wanted to have time to mourn before people start asking me about touring dates. It was sick. I was bombarded and email boxes were overloaded with 'what are you going to do now?' It was kind of creepy."
By February 2017, Ministry had begun working on their fourteenth studio album, titled AmeriKKKant. The album, released on March 9, 2018, includes guest appearances from Burton C. Bell of Fear Factory, former N.W.A member Arabian Prince, DJ Swamp and Lord of the Cello. During their performance at the Blackest of the Black Fest in Silverado, California in May 2017, Ministry debuted their first song in four years, "Antifa", which, at the time, was expected to appear on AmeriKKKant.
In an October 2018 interview with Billboard magazine, Jourgensen revealed that he had begun working on new material for Ministry's fifteenth studio album. He explained, "I have to get as many albums as I can done while Trump is still president, and then what am I going to do: write those crappy albums that I write while Democrats are president?" A month later, media reports noted that Jourgensen had reconnected with Barker after 15 years, hinting that the two might collaborate once again on the upcoming Ministry album.
In a 2019 interview with Revolver magazine, Jourgensen reaffirmed that he had been working on new material since 2018, and revealed that he had hired Paul D'Amour (formerly of Tool) as the new bassist of Ministry. The band – alongside Primus and Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals – opened for Slayer on the final North American leg of their farewell tour, which took place in November 2019.
In December 2019, the band released a visual history coffee table book, Ministry: Prescripture, with author Aaron Tanner.
In January 2020, Ministry announced the "Industrial Strength Tour" would start in 2020, with drummer London May of Samhain, which would feature both KMFDM and Front Line Assembly as guests. The tour was to begin on 1 July and extend until August. In May 2020, the band announced that they postponed all dates on the Industrial Strength Tour until 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 25–date tour, with KMFDM and Front Line Assembly, was scheduled to take place in March and April 2021; the trek was once again postponed to the fall of 2021, this time with Helmet replacing KMFDM, who were unable to partake in the tour because of restrictions caused by the COVID in their native Germany. On September 24, 2021, Ministry announced that The Industrial Strength tour had been postponed once more because of the pandemic, with the tour now scheduled to take place in March and April 2022, and the Melvins and Corrosion of Conformity replacing Front Line Assembly and Helmet as special guests.
On January 17, 2020, Billboard released an exposé on guitar player Sin Quirin, detailing accounts of Quirin's alleged behavior including sexual relationships with underage females while touring in San Antonio, TX, Portland, OR, and Tacoma, WA, in the early 2000s. In May 2021, Quirin announced via Facebook that he was leaving Ministry.
On March 24, 2020, longtime drummer Bill Rieflin died of cancer, which had been kept private. His death was announced the next day by Robert Fripp of King Crimson via Facebook.
On April 24, 2020, one month after Rieflin's passing, Ministry released their first song in two-and-a-half years, "Alert Level", which was expected to appear on the band's then-upcoming fifteenth studio album.
In May 2021, the band announced that drummer Roy Mayorga has rejoined the band.
On July 8, 2021, Ministry released "Good Trouble" as the first single from their fifteenth studio album Moral Hygiene, which was released on October 1.
About two weeks after the release of Moral Hygiene, Jourgensen revealed that another Ministry album "will be out in 6-8 months."
Artistry
Ministry's experimentation, stylistic variation and changes during its career cross several genres of popular music. Alternative rock subgenres such as industrial rock and industrial metal are umbrella terms predominantly used to describe the band's career in general. Ministry has been classified under many other genres, including EBM/industrial dance, techno-rock, hard rock, heavy metal, speed metal, thrash metal, and electro-industrial; their early output has been categorised as new wave, synth-pop, dance-pop, electronic dance, and dark wave. In the April 1989 issue of Spin Magazine, an author Michael Corcoran labelled the band as "industrial disco"; in 1994, writer Simon Glickman used this term as well. AllMusic's Steve Huey states that, previous to Nine Inch Nails' rise to mainstream popularity, "Ministry did more than any other band to popularize industrial dance music, injecting large doses of punky, over-the-top aggression and roaring heavy metal guitar riffs that helped their music find favor with metal and alternative audiences outside of industrial's cult fan base." Despite frequent descriptions of the band's music as industrial,; . Jourgensen disputed the use of this tag in several publications since the early 1990s, preferring instead to identify his style as "aggro", and, much later "industrious".
Despite Jourgensen's dislike of touring, Ministry are noted for their live performances, featuring extended versions of songs (as evidenced on In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up) and disturbing visual imagery. MTV also recognized the band as an influential heavy metal act, highlighting the use of sampling during their heyday. Alternative Press included Ministry in their 1996 list of 100 underground inspirations of the past 20 years, stating that they merged "metal, samples, synths, and the 100-mph sound of urban paranoia, they pretty much created industrial music as we know it."
Related projects
Jourgensen, with former and current bandmates, has been active in a number of musical projects besides Ministry. Foremost of these was the Revolting Cocks, founded by Jourgensen, Richard 23 and Luc van Acker during Ministry and Front 242's tour in 1984. Since its formation, the band has released a number of records, and has gone through several line-up changes. 1000 Homo DJs, a project purposed for outtakes from The Land of Rape and Honey and The Mind ... , has recorded a cover of Black Sabbath's "Supernaut", featuring Nine Inch Nails frontman and one-time Revolting Cocks touring member Trent Reznor. PTP, a project led by Jourgensen and Barker, included the assistance from Nivek Ogre on one occasion, and Connelly on another, and notably provided the song "Show Me Your Spine" featured in Paul Verhoeven's 1987 film RoboCop. Other notable projects include Pailhead with Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat and Fugazi, Lard with former Dead Kennedys lead singer Jello Biafra, and Acid Horse with Cabaret Voltaire members Richard H. Kirk and Stephen Mallinder. Buck Satan and the 666 Shooters, a country project led by Jourgensen, released the sole album, Bikers Welcome Ladies Drink Free, in 2012 through 13th Planet Records. Surgical Meth Machine, a speed metal project originally tributed to guitarist Mike Scaccia
Barker has released several solo recordings under various monikers, including Age of Reason and Chicks & Speed: Futurism as Lead into Gold in 1990, The Perfect Pair as Flowering Blight in 2008, and Fix This!!!, an accompanying soundtrack of Fix: The Ministry Movie, under his own name in 2012. Through the 2000s, Barker formed Pink Anvil with Max Brody and U.S.S.A. with the Jesus Lizard guitarist Duane Denison. Brody and Scaccia have also released materials as Goobersmoochers via Brody's Bandcamp site.
Members
Current members
Al Jourgensen – lead vocals, guitars, keyboards, programming, harmonica, bandolin, production (1981–present)
John Bechdel – keyboards (2006–2008, 2011–present)
Cesar Soto – guitars, backing vocals (2015–present)
Paul D'Amour – bass (2019–present)
Roy Mayorga – drums (2016–2017, 2021–present)
Monte Pittman – guitars (2014, 2021–present)
Former members
Keyboards
John Davis – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1982; died 2005)
Robert Roberts – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1983)
Duane Buford – keyboards (1994–1999)
DJ Swamp – turntables (2017–2018)
Drums
Stephen George – drums (1981–1984)
Bill Rieflin – drums, keyboards, guitar (1986–1994; died 2020)
Rey Washam – drums (1994–1999, 2003)
Max Brody – drums, saxophone (1999–2004)
Aaron Rossi – drums (2008, 2011–2016)
Derek Abrams – drums (2017–2019)
London May – drums (2020–2021)
Guitar
Mike Scaccia – guitars (1989–1995, 2003–2006, 2011–2012; died 2012)
Louis Svitek – guitars (1992–1999, 2003)
Zlatko Hukic – guitars (1996–1999)
Tommy Victor – guitars (2004–2008, 2011–2012)
Sin Quirin – guitars, bass, keyboards (2007–2008, 2012–2021)
Bass
Brad Hallen – bass (1983–1984)
Paul Barker – bass, keyboards, programming, production, vocals (1986–2003)
Paul Raven – bass, keyboards (2005–2007; died 2007)
Jason Christopher – bass, backing vocals (2016–2017)
Tony Campos – bass, backing vocals (2008, 2011–2015, 2017–2019)
Additional/touring musicians
Keyboards
Paul Taylor – keyboards (1981)
Mark Pothier – keyboards, backing vocals (1983)
Doug Chamberlin – keyboards, backing vocals (1983–1984)
Patty Jourgensen – keyboards, backing vocals (1984)
John Soroka – keyboards, backing vocals, percussion (1984)
Roland Barker – keyboards (1986, 1992–1993), saxophone (1986)
Sarolta DeFaltay – keyboards, backing vocals (1986)
Marston Daley – keyboards (1987)
Michael Balch – keyboards, programming (1991–1992)
Darrell James – keyboards (2003–2004)
Guitar
William Tucker – guitar (1989–1990; died 1999)
Terry Roberts – guitar, backing vocals (1989–1990)
Michel Bassin – guitar (1992)
Sam Ladwig – guitar (1992)
Rick Valles – guitar (2004)
Drums
Jeff Ward – drums (1988; died 1993)
Martin Atkins – drums (1989–1990)
Tia Sprocket – drums (2003; died 2017)
Mark Baker – drums (2004–2005)
Joey Jordison – drums (2006; died 2021)
Thomas Holtgreve – drums (2017)
Bass
Martin Sorenson – bass (1981–1982)
Casey Orr – bass (1992, 2012)
John Monte – bass (2004)
Eddy Garcia – bass (2004)
Vocals
Audrey Stanzler – vocals (1981–1982)
Shay Jones – vocals (1982–1983)
Yvonne Gage – vocals (1983–1984)
Chris Connelly – vocals (1989–1990, 1992–1993), keyboards (1989–1990)
Nivek Ogre – vocals (1988–1990)
Joe Kelly – vocals (1989–1990)
Marco Neves – vocals (1992)
Burton C. Bell – vocals (2008, 2018)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
With Sympathy (1983)
Twitch (1986)
The Land of Rape and Honey (1988)
The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989)
Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs (1992)
Filth Pig (1996)
Dark Side of the Spoon (1999)
Animositisomina (2003)
Houses of the Molé (2004)
Rio Grande Blood (2006)
The Last Sucker (2007)
Relapse (2012)
From Beer to Eternity (2013)
AmeriKKKant (2018)
Moral Hygiene'' (2021)
Tours
With Sympathy Tour, 1983
Wax Trax! Singles Tour, 1984
Twitch Tour, 1986–1987
The Land of Rape and Honey Tour, 1988
The Mind Tour, 1989–1990
Lollapalooza 1992
Psalm 69 Tour, 1992–1994
Big Day Out, 1995
Sphinctour, 1996
ClitourUS, 1999
Fornicatour, 2003
Evil Doer Tour, 2004–2005
MasterBaTour, 2006
C-U-LaTour, 2008
DeFiBriLaTouR / Relapse Tour, 2012
From Beer to EternaTour, 2015
Death Grips and Ministry US Tour 2017
The AmeriKKKan Tour, 2018
EU/UK Summer Tour, 2019
Industrial Strength Tour, 2022 (initially scheduled to take place in summer 2020, later rescheduled to fall 2021 and then spring 2022 due to COVID-19)
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Ministry @ prongs.org
1981 establishments in Illinois
American industrial metal musical groups
American industrial music groups
Rock music groups from Illinois
Arista Records artists
Heavy metal musical groups from Illinois
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups disestablished in 2008
Musical groups reestablished in 2011
Musical groups from Chicago
Nuclear Blast artists
Political music groups
Sire Records artists
Situation Two artists
Warner Records artists
Wax Trax! Records artists | false | [
"Dance-punk (also known as disco-punk, punk-funk or techno-punk) is a post-punk subgenre that emerged in the late 1970s, and is closely associated with the disco, post-disco and new wave movements.\n\nPredecessors\nMany groups in the post-punk era adopted a more danceable style. These bands were influenced by funk, disco, afrobeat, and other dance music popular at the time (as well as being anticipated by some artists from 1970s including Sparks, James Chance and The Contortions and Iggy Pop). Influential bands from the 1980s included Talking Heads, Public Image Ltd., New Order, Gang of Four, Pigbag, the Clash, A Certain Ratio, the Pop Group, Maximum Joy, Minutemen, and Red Hot Chili Peppers. New York City dance-punk included Defunkt, Material, James Chance and the Contortions, Cristina Monet, Bush Tetras, ESG, and Liquid Liquid. German punk singer Nina Hagen had an underground dance hit in 1983 with \"New York / N.Y.\", which mixed her searing punk (and opera) vocals with funky disco beats and simple rap routine.\n\nContemporary dance-punk\nDance-punk was revived among some bands of the garage rock/post-punk revival in the early years of the new millennium, particularly acts such as LCD Soundsystem, Clinic, Death from Above 1979, !!!, Hockey, Liars, Franz Ferdinand, Hot Hot Heat, Foals, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Bloc Party, Kasabian, You Say Party, the Faint, Arctic Monkeys, the Rapture, Shout Out Out Out Out, and Radio 4, joined by dance-oriented acts who adopted rock sounds such as Out Hud. In the early 2000s Washington, D.C. had a popular and notable punk-funk scene, inspired by Fugazi, post-punk, and go-go acts like Trouble Funk and Rare Essence, including bands like Q and Not U, Black Eyes, and Baltimore's Oxes, Double Dagger, and Dope Body. In Britain the combination of indie with dance-punk was dubbed new rave in publicity for Klaxons and the term was picked up and applied by the NME to bands including Trash Fashion, New Young Pony Club, Hadouken!, Late of the Pier, Test Icicles, and Shitdisco forming a scene with a similar visual aesthetic to earlier raves.\n\nSee also\nList of dance-punk artists\nArt punk\nElectropunk\nElectronic rock\n\nReferences\n\nBibliography\nReynolds, Simon. \"Mutant Disco and Punk-Funk: Crosstown Traffic in Early Eighties New York (and Beyond ...).\" Rip It Up and Start Again: Post-punk 1978-84. London: Faber and Faber, Ltd., 2005.\n\n \nPost-disco\nFusion music genres\nAmerican styles of music\nEnglish styles of music\nBritish rock music genres",
"Punk 45: There Is No Such Thing As Society (subtitled: Get A Job, Get A Car, Get A Bed, Get Drunk! Underground Punk in the UK 1977-81, Vol.2) is a 2014 compilation album cataloguing punk and post-punk music from the United Kingdom released between 1977 and 1981. It was released by Soul Jazz Records and received positive reviews from AllMusic, Record Collector and The Times.\n\nMusic and content\nPunk 45: There Is No Such Thing As Society is a compilation that was a follow-up to Soul Jazz Records' album Punk 45: Underground Punk in the United States of America, Vol. 1 (2013). This album focuses on punk rock and post-punk music released between 1977 and 1981 that was not as popular as other groups of the era such as The Clash and The Sex Pistols.\n\nRelease\nPunk 45: There Is No Such Thing As Society was released by Soul Jazz Records on January 24, 2014, on vinyl and compact disc. A third album in the Punk 45 series was released in 2014 cataloguing proto-punk music titled Punk 45: Sick on You! One Way Spit!\n\nReception\n\nTim Peacock of Record Collector praised the compilation, calling it \"a fine balance between the seminal, the obscure and the downright arcane.\" and that the album could not compete with the book Punk 45 released by Soul Jazz, \"but it’s still nigh-on essential\".\nAneet Nijar of AllMusic also praised the album, stating that \"What makes this compilation so engaging is that the songs evoke images of a '70s Britain behest by strikes, rolling blackouts, Margaret Thatcher, and general disillusionment with the establishment alongside the genuine musical ingenuity and drive of the artists featured. By successfully capturing this spirit of discontent and the subsequent creativity that nurtured it, this collection is a brilliant snapshot of the rise of U.K. punk and post-punk and the explosive cultural shift that followed.\" Will Hodgkinson of The Times gave the album a four out of five, stating that the album \"proves what diamonds in the rough those singles so often were.\"\n\nTrack listing\n The Users – \"Sick of You\" (3:24)\n The Art Attacks – \"Neutron Bomb\" (2:47)\n Johnny Moped – \"Incendiary\" (2:47)\n The Jermz – \"Powercut\" (1:48)\n The Mekons – \"32 Weeks\" (1:38)\n The Rings – \"I Wanna Be Free\" (2:49)\n The Now – \"Development Corporations\" (3:09)\n The Killjoys – \"Johnny Won't Get to Heaven\" (2:44)\n Disturbed – \"I Don't Believe\" (4:25)\n Television Personalities – \"Part Time Punks\" (2:38)\n Puncture – \"Mucky Pup\" (2:04)\n The Lines – \"White Night\" (3:24)\n The Scabs – \"Leave Me Alone\" (2:47)\n The Cravats – \"You're Driving Me\" (4:51)\n Swell Maps – \"Real Shocks\" (2:16)\n The Nerves – \"TV Adverts\" (2:46)\n Eric Random – \"23 Skidoo\" (3:17)\n 'O' Level – \"East Sheen\" (3:01)\n Josef K – \"Radio Drill Time\" (4:03)\n The Cigarettes – \"They're Back Again, Here They Come\" (3:56)\n The Shapes – \"Wot's For Lunch Mum\" (1:30)\n The Freeze – \"For J.P.S.\" (2:13)\n Roses are Red – \"Can't Understand\" (3:05)\n The Prefects – \"Going Through the Motions\" (4:56)\n\nReferences\n\nSources\n \n \n \n \n\n2014 compilation albums\nSoul Jazz Records compilation albums\nPost-punk compilation albums\nPunk rock compilation albums"
]
|
[
"Ministry (band)",
"Formation and early days (1981-1982)",
"what happened in 1981",
"Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Al Jourgensen went from Denver to Chicago, in order to study in University of Illinois.",
"what did he study?",
"Jourgensen was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend Shannon Rose Riley, and soon after joined a post-punk",
"joined a post-punk what?",
"new wave band Special Affect,"
]
| C_b9830aff6a7d45679abd89a5b02167c1_1 | did they do well? | 4 | did Al Jourgensen and Ministry do well? | Ministry (band) | Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Al Jourgensen went from Denver to Chicago, in order to study in University of Illinois. Jourgensen was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend Shannon Rose Riley, and soon after joined a post-punk/new wave band Special Affect, replacing Tom Hoffman on a guitar and accompanying to vocalist Frank Nardiello (Groovie Mann of My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult), drummer Harry Rushakoff (Concrete Blonde) and bassist Marty Sorenson. Following Special Affect's split, Jourgensen formed The Carmichaels, the short-lived band which featured Ben Krug, Tom Krug and Tom Wall (all of The Imports), and did numerous shows, including the one performed on April 30, 1981 with the local experimental band ONO as an opening act. In this time Jourgensen had also met Jim Nash and Danny Flesher, the co-founders and the co-owners of the indie record label Wax Trax! Records who recommended him as a touring guitarist for a drag performer Divine. After playing a few concerts with the latter, Jourgensen--then living within an African-American neighborhood--had begun to write and record the songs in his apartment, using a newly-bought ARP Omni synthesizer, a drum machine, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder. At one point, he had presented a demo to Jim Nash, who had favored it and offered Jourgensen to record a single, as well as to form a touring band, certainly titled Ministry. The first line-up of Ministry, assembled by Jourgensen, consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; initially, Jourgensen didn't want to perform vocals, but embarked on after he had auditioned twelve singers "who all sucked." Nash had paid a recording session for the band at Hedden West studios, with the help of an English-born sound engineer Iain Burgess. According to former Dead Kennedys singer and Alternative Tentacles owner Jello Biafra, Ministry's debut record was intended to be seven-inch single featuring the song "Overkill" with B-side "I'm Falling"; eventually, a twelve-inch single with "I'm Falling" and instrumental track "Primental" on A-side, backed with song "Cold Life" on B-side, came out in late 1981 on Wax Trax! in the US. In March of the following year, the single was licensed by a British label Situation Two, with "Cold Life" as A-side. Ministry had performed their debut concert on the New Year Eve of 1982 in a Chicago-based club Misfits, and commenced a tour through the East Coast and the mid-West, supporting on occasions for the English bands Medium Medium, A Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, and Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, "I'm Falling / Cold Life" single had found success in the UK and the US, reaching No. 45 in the Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart with approximately 10,000 copies as of September 1982, and thus scoring Wax Trax!' first hit. CANNOTANSWER | did numerous shows, | Ministry is an American industrial metal band founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1981 by producer, singer and instrumentalist Al Jourgensen. Originally a synth-pop outfit, Ministry evolved into one of the pioneers of industrial metal in the late 1980s. The band's lineup has changed frequently, leaving Jourgensen as the sole original member left in Ministry. Musicians who have contributed to the band's studio or live activities include vocalists Nivek Ogre, Chris Connelly, Gibby Haynes, Burton C. Bell and Jello Biafra, guitarists Mike Scaccia and Tommy Victor, bassists Paul Barker, Paul Raven, Jason Christopher, Tony Campos and Paul D'Amour, drummers Bill Rieflin, Martin Atkins, Rey Washam, Max Brody, Joey Jordison and Roy Mayorga, keyboardist John Bechdel, and rappers and producers DJ Swamp and Arabian Prince.
Ministry attained commercial success in the late 1980s and early 1990s with three of their studio albums: The Land of Rape and Honey (1988), The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989) and Psalm 69 (1992). The first two were certified gold while Psalm 69 was certified platinum by the RIAA. Psalm 69 was followed by Filth Pig (1996), which was a stylistic departure for the band, and earned Ministry its highest chart position on the Billboard 200 at number nineteen, although it was met with mixed reception by critics and marked the beginning of the band's commercial decline. The lackluster response to their next album, Dark Side of the Spoon (1999), resulted in Warner Bros. dropping Ministry from the label and the group entered an extended hiatus in early 2000s, when Jourgensen entered rehab after years of substance abuse.
Following Jourgensen's recovery, Ministry resurfaced in 2003 with Animositisomina, which turned out to be their last album with Paul Barker, who had left the band early the next year after nearly two decades as an official member. Ministry returned to their thrash/industrial style of Psalm 69 and released three albums critical of then-President of the United States, George W. Bush, dubbed the "Bush Trilogy": Houses of the Molé (2004), Rio Grande Blood (2006) and The Last Sucker (2007); these albums effectively revitalized the band's commercial viability. Although The Last Sucker was initially intended to be the band's final album, Ministry reformed in 2011 and released Relapse in the following year. On December 23, 2012, longtime guitar contributor Mike Scaccia died of a heart attack, and he was posthumously featured in the next Ministry album, From Beer to Eternity (2013), which was again supposed to be their last album, as Jourgensen thought his death was the end of the band. Despite this, Ministry has since released two more albums: AmeriKKKant (2018) and Moral Hygiene (2021), and they are working on new material for a sixteenth studio album as of October 2021.
The band has been nominated for six Grammy Awards and has performed at several music festivals, including the second annual Lollapalooza tour in 1992, co-headlining Big Day Out in 1995 and performing at Wacken Open Air thrice (in 2006, 2012 and 2016).
History
Formation and early days (1981–1982)
Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Jourgensen moved from Denver to Chicago to attend the University of Illinois at Chicago. He was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend, and in 1979 he replaced Tom Hoffmann on guitars in Special Affect, a post-punk group which featured vocalist Frank Nardiello (Groovie Mann of My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult), drummer Harry Rushakoff (Concrete Blonde) and bassist Marty Sorenson. Following Special Affect's split in 1980, Jourgensen formed a short-lived band called The Silly Carmichaels, which featured members of The Imports and played two shows.
In 1981, Jourgensen met Jim Nash and Danny Flesher, co-founders and co-owners of the indie record label and shop Wax Trax! Records who recommended him as a touring guitarist for Divine. After playing a few concerts with the latter, Jourgensen began to write and record songs in his apartment, using a newly bought ARP Omni synthesizer, a drum machine, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder. He presented a demo to Jim Nash, who suggested Jourgensen record a single and form a touring band, which Jourgensen decided to call Ministry.
The first line-up of Ministry consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; Jourgensen auditioned several singers, all of whom were unsatisfactory, so he decided to perform vocals himself. Nash purchased recording sessions at Hedden West studios which resulted in a twelve-inch single featuring "I'm Falling" and instrumental track "Primental" on the A-side, with the song "Cold Life" on the B-side. The record was co-produced by Jay O'Roarke and Iain Burgess and released in late 1981 on Wax Trax! in the US. In March 1982, the single was licensed by British label Situation Two, with "Cold Life" as the A-side.
Ministry performed their debut concert on New Year's Eve 1982 in the Chicago club Misfits, and, in the spring, commenced a tour of the Northeast and the Midwest, supporting Medium Medium, A Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, and Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, the "I'm Falling / Cold Life" single reached No. 45 in the Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart with approximately 10,000 copies as of September 1982, and thus scoring Wax Trax!' first hit.
With Sympathy and later Wax Trax! singles (1983–1985)
The band's initial success drew the attention of Arista Records founder and chief executive Clive Davis, who offered them a deal, promising to make them "the next Joy Division"—a promise that Jourgensen later considered to be misleading. Signing a six-figure, two-album deal, the band—with Jourgensen and George comprising the official line-up—moved to record at the Synchro Sound studios in Boston, with producers Vince Ely (former drummer of Psychedelic Furs) and Ian Taylor (former assistant of Roy Thomas Baker), as well as keyboardists Roberts and Davis as session musicians.
A 12-inch single containing the song "Same Old Madness" was recorded and planned for release, along with its accompanying music video. However, "Same Old Madness"—both the song and video—did not surface until 2014; instead, "Work for Love" was released in January 1983 and peaked No. 20 on the Hot Dance/Disco chart. Ministry's debut album, entitled With Sympathy (also known as Work for Love in Europe), was finished around this time and issued in May, reaching No. 94 in the Billboard 200. On release, the album was supported by two more singles—"Revenge" (with a music video partially reworked from "Same Old Madness") and "I Wanted to Tell Her" (a reworked version of "Primental"), and a supporting concert tour with The Police during the North American leg of their Synchronicity tour. During this time, Jourgensen met the members of Seattle-based band The Blackouts—namely bassist Paul Barker and drummer Bill Rieflin, as well their then-manager Patty Marsh, who later became Jourgensen's wife from 1984 to 1995.
In spite of With Sympathys success, Jourgensen's relations with Arista were acrimonious. Eventually, Jourgensen sent a demo tape featuring a cover version of Roxy Music's song "Same Old Scene" before parting ways with Arista, suing the latter for violating contractual obligations. Since then, Jourgensen has expressed dislike for the With Sympathy-era, often providing different (and widely conflicting) explanations for his antipathy. In a 2004 interview, conducted by Mark Prindle, Jourgensen said that after signing with Arista, all artistic control of Ministry was "handed over" to other writers and producers. In his 2013 autobiography, Jourgensen gave a different explanation, saying that he was pressured by Arista management into producing his existing songs in the then-popular synthpop style, as a means of making them more commercially palatable. However, in the 1980s, Jourgensen said that when he discovered hardcore music, his musical direction simply changed; Jourgensen reiterated this point in 2012, and again in 2018. In 2019, he stated that the record was "fine", only that it could have been a lot better without interference from the record company. In 2021, Jourgensen resurrected the story that Arista took full control of the production and songwriting process, made Jourgensen cut his hair and bought him a wardrobe of sharkskin suits, and this time added the label wanted Ministry to sound like Wham! (a band who were not successful in the US until 1984-one year after With Sympathy had been released). Jourgensen assumes a false English accent for all of the album's songs, for which he also later expressed great dislike, though Patty Marsh stated in a 2013 interview "...the English accent thing was more an homage to the bands he loved than anything else. He was not trying to come off as British. The Stones used a southern accent and no one crawled up their ass for it.", an explanation Jourgensen himself had also given in a prior, 1983 interview with Richard Skinner.
Departed from Arista, Jourgensen returned with Ministry on Wax Trax! in mid-1984. While working as a cashier in the Wax Trax! store, he continued to record new material. In Autumn 1984, Ministry embarked on a new tour with a renewed line-up, supported by Belgian industrial dance act Front 242. During this tour, Sire Records co-owner Seymour Stein attended several gigs, offering the band a new deal; Jourgensen, recalling his negative experience with Arista, repeatedly declined, but eventually agreed to sign on the condition that Sire would provide resources to support the Wax Trax! imprint; as Jourgensen put it, "it was kind of a personal sacrifice to keep that company rolling and allow them to keep signing bands." George left Ministry soon after this tour, disagreeing with Jourgensen over increased use of drum machines, and went on to form the short-lived band Colortone, and, much later, to pursue a record engineering career. Ministry released several singles throughout the Summer of 1985—"All Day", "(Every Day Is) Halloween" and "The Nature of Love", as well as a reissue of "Cold Life"—which were cited as marking Jourgensen's first attempt at injecting industrial elements into Ministry's sound. Initially the B-side on "All Day" single, "... Halloween" became viewed as a goth anthem similar to Bauhaus' "Bela Lugosi's Dead"; "The Nature of Love", which came out in June 1985, became Ministry's final single on Wax Trax!; in July 1985, the band was shown as signed to Sire Records.
Twitch (1985–1987)
Ministry debuted on Sire/Warner Bros. in late 1985 with the single "Over the Shoulder", preceding the release of the band's second studio album, Twitch, in March 1986. Twitch was recorded and mixed largely at Southern Studios in London and Hansa Tonstudio in West Berlin during 1985, with the On-U Sound Records owner Adrian Sherwood and Jourgensen sharing co-production duties. Despite the contribution of several others (namely Belgian singer Luc van Acker and Sherwood's acquaintance Keith LeBlanc), the album's material was mainly performed by Jourgensen, listed as the band's sole member. Some material, recorded during the Twitch sessions, was later used for LeBlanc's and Sherwood's other projects, most prominently LeBlanc's solo album Major Malfunction.
On release, Twitch hit No. 194 in Billboard 200, and was supported by a US and Canadian tour. Jourgensen assembled a new touring line-up, featuring Roland Barker on keyboards, Paul Barker on bass and Bill Rieflin on drums.; . Twitch received mixed reviews, with a music critic Robert Christgau stating, "Chicago's Anglodisco clones meet Anglodisco renegade Adrian Sherwood and promptly improve themselves by trading in wimpy on arty"; nevertheless, the album came to be viewed as a pivotal point in the band's discography, as it signaled ongoing changes in Ministry's sound. In later publications, Jourgensen credited Sherwood with giving his music an aggressive edge and providing production advice, but considered the record "so Adrian Sherwood-influenced."
Breakthrough success (1988–1993)
After Twitch, Paul Barker became Jourgensen's primary collaborator in Ministry; until his departure, he was the only person credited as a member of the band other than Jourgensen. Jourgensen then made another significant change to Ministry's sound when he resumed playing electric guitar. With Rieflin on drums, Ministry recorded The Land of Rape and Honey (1988). The album continued their success in the underground music scene. The Land of Rape and Honey made use of synthesizers, keyboards, tape loops, jackhammering drum machines, dialogue excerpted from movies, unconventional electronic processing, and, in parts, heavy distorted electric guitar and bass.
The album was supported by a tour in 1988 and the singles and music videos for "Stigmata" and "Flashback". "Stigmata" was also used in a key scene in Richard Stanley's 1990 film Hardware, although the band shown performing the song was Gwar.
The follow-up album, The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste, was released in 1989. Due to the complex nature of the album's drumming, a second drummer, Martin Atkins (formerly of Public Image Ltd. and Killing Joke), was hired. In addition to Atkins, a ten piece touring line-up was formed, consisting of Chris Connelly (keyboards and vocals), Skinny Puppy vocalist Nivek Ogre (vocals and keyboards), Joe Kelly (vocals and backing vocals) and guitarists Mike Scaccia, Terry Roberts, and William Tucker, with Jourgensen, Paul Barker and Rieflin serving as the group's core members. This tour was documented on In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up. Two opening tracks, "Burning Inside" and "Thieves", were released as a commercial single; "Burning Inside" was accompanied by a music video.
After completing the Revolting Cocks tour in early 1991, Jourgensen and his bandmates began work on a follow-up to The Mind ... at Chicago Trax! studios, amidst problems brought on by growing substance abuse. During these initial sessions, Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers recorded vocals for what became "Jesus Built My Hotrod", which hit No. 19 in the Modern Rock Tracks chart with approximately 128,000 copies as of mid-July 1992; considered Ministry's first and biggest commercial hit, it built significant anticipation for their upcoming album, then titled The Tapes of Wrath. In an attempt to distance themselves from drugs and find fresh perspective, the band relocated from Chicago to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, to record at Royal Recorders studios for ten weeks. After considering the Wisconsin sessions a "washout", they returned to Chicago to complete the album – now entitled Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs, after a chapter from Aleister Crowley's The Book of Lies – by early May 1992, with only nine of about thirty songs written being chosen to feature. The album was influenced by speed and thrash metal, often being described as their fastest record by fans and critics. It was released on July 14, 1992 and peaked at No. 27 on the Billboard 200 chart. Soon after, Ministry was invited to headline the second Lollapalooza tour with Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Soundgarden, among others, before commencing a tour of Europe and the US, with Helmet and Sepultura as supporting acts.
Middle years, turmoil and Jourgensen's drug addiction (1994–2001)
In October 1994, Ministry performed at the eighth Bridge School Benefit charity concert, with sets of cover songs (most prominently Bob Dylan's "Lay Lady Lay") and one original song, "Paisley", which was intended to be on their next album. After constructing a studio in Austin, Texas in 1993, the band proceeded to record a new album in July 1994. After refusing to perform drums on a cover version of "Lay Lady Lay", Rieflin parted ways with Jourgensen midway through the recording process. Along with newly recruited Rey Washam (formerly of Scratch Acid, Didjits, and Rapeman) who performed the rest of the album's drum work, Ministry performed as one of the headliners for Australia and New Zealand's Big Day Out touring festival in January 1995. In spite of their growing success, Ministry was nearly derailed by drug problems and a series of arrests followed in August 1995. Completed at Chicago Trax Studios, Filth Pig was released in 1996. Musically, Filth Pig was more heavy metal than industrial, with synthesizers and samples mostly stripped from a mix that focused on conventional hard rock instrumentation.
The album's songs were played mostly at slower tempos than those on their previous three LPs, giving it an almost doom metal feel. Filth Pig was supported with the singles/videos "Reload", "The Fall", "Lay Lady Lay" and "Brick Windows" and with a tour in 1996 (the live performances were later anthologized on the Sphinctour album and DVD in 2002). Jourgensen has subsequently said that he was severely depressed during this period, that Filth Pig reflects this, and that he dislikes performing music from Filth Pig.
Ministry recorded their final studio album for Warner Bros. Records, Dark Side of the Spoon (1999), which they dedicated to William Tucker, who committed suicide earlier that year. For Dark Side of the Spoon, Ministry tried to diversify their sound by adding some melodic and synthetic touches to their usual electro-metal sound, along with some jazz influences, but the album was not well received, critically or commercially. However, the single "Bad Blood" appeared on the soundtrack album of The Matrix and was nominated for a 2000 Grammy award. During this period, Jourgensen had an infected toe amputated after accidentally stepping on a discarded hypodermic needle.
In the summer of 2000, Ministry was invited to that year's Ozzfest; amidst a management changeover, they were dropped from the bill and replaced by Soulfly.
After Ministry were dropped from Warner Bros. in 2000, the label issued the 2001 collection Greatest Fits, which featured a new song, "What About Us?". Ministry would later perform the song in a cameo appearance in the Steven Spielberg film AI: Artificial Intelligence. In 2000–2002, disputes with Warner Bros. Records resulted in the planned live albums Live Psalm 69, Sphinctour and ClittourUS on Ipecac Recordings being canceled. Sphinctour was released on Sanctuary Records.
Jourgensen's recovery from drug addiction and comeback (2001–2007)
Around 2001, Jourgensen almost lost his arm when he was bitten by a venomous spider. By his own admission, Jourgensen was suicidal during this period and decided to call an acquaintance he had met years earlier; the acquaintance, Angelina Luckacin, helped Jourgensen give up his massive substance habit, which included heroin and cocaine "speedballs", crack, LSD, various pharmaceuticals and as many as two full bottles of Bushmills whiskey per day (Luckacin and Jourgensen married soon after). Jourgensen and Barker, along with Max Brody who had joined as a saxophone player for the 1999 tour, focused on developing songs for a new record during 2001 and 2002, with the band issuing Animositisomina on Sanctuary Records in 2003. The sound was strongly heavy metal with voice effects, though it featured an almost-pop cover of Magazine's "The Light Pours Out Of Me". Animositisomina, compared to previous releases, sold poorly and singles for "Animosity" and "Piss" were canceled before they could be released.
Barker announced his departure from Ministry in January 2004. He stated that the trigger was his father dying while the band was wrapping up a summer tour in Europe, and also stated that his family life was his main focus at that particular time. Lukacin stated in 2013 that Jourgensen fell out with Barker over the band's finances. Jourgensen continued Ministry with Mike Scaccia and various other musicians.
For Ministry's next album, Jourgensen released the song "No W", a song critical of then-U.S. President George W. Bush; an alternate version of the track was placed on the multi-performer compilation Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1. The follow-up LP, Houses of the Molé (2004), contained the most explicitly political lyrics Jourgensen had yet written, with songs played more crudely than on previous recordings, giving the album the most metal-oriented sound of their career. In 2006, the band released Rio Grande Blood, an LP on Jourgensen's own 13th Planet Records. With Prong's Tommy Victor and Killing Joke's Paul Raven, the album featured an even heavier thrash metal sound drawing comparison to Slayer. The single "Lieslieslies" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance at the 49th annual Grammy Awards. It, along with another song on the album, "The Great Satan", is also available as a downloadable content song for the 2008 video game Rock Band 2. In July 2007, the band released Rio Grande Dub, an album featuring remixes from the band's 2006 Rio Grande Blood album.
What Jourgensen expected to be Ministry's "final" album, The Last Sucker was released on September 18, 2007.
Paul Raven died on October 20, 2007, a month and two-days after the release of The Last Sucker, suffering an apparent heart attack shortly after arriving in Europe to commence recording for the French industrial band Treponem Pal near the Swiss border.
Breakup and posthumous releases (2008–2011)
Jourgensen remixed and co-produced Spyder Baby's "Bitter", which was released by Blind Prophecy Records in early 2008.
A song titled "Keys to the City", which became the theme song for the Chicago Blackhawks, was released on March 5, 2008. In addition to this single, two albums of covers/remixes, Cover Up (April 1, 2008) and Undercover (December 6, 2010) were released. All of these releases are credited to Ministry and Co-Conspirators''', since they feature collaborations between Jourgensen and other musicians.
Ministry's "farewell" tour, the "C-U-LaTour", started its North American leg on March 26, 2008 with Meshuggah performing as special guests and Hemlock as an opening act. They played their final North American shows in Chicago on May 10 and 12, 2008. The final date on the international leg of the tour was at the Tripod in Dublin, Ireland on July 18, 2008. During the performance, Jourgensen repeatedly reaffirmed it would indeed be the last Ministry show. Due to a large demand for tickets, an extra gig was added at the Tripod on July 19, 2008. The band again played to a full house. Ministry's final song at this show (and ostensibly their last live performance) was a rendition of their cover version of "What a Wonderful World".Adios ... Puta Madres, a live album featuring material culled from the tour, was released in 2009 on CD and DVD.
A documentary film called Fix: The Ministry Movie was planned for release sometime in 2010. However, the release date was pushed back to early 2011. Eventually, it premiered at the Chicago International Movies & Music Festival. Jourgensen sued the filmmaker, Doug Freel, for failing to fulfill a portion of the contract giving Jourgensen approval over the final cut, along with "thousands of dollars". The lawsuit was dropped in July 2011. On July 21, the film was screened privately at the Music Box Theater in Los Angeles.
Reunion, Relapse, death of Mike Scaccia and From Beer to Eternity (2011–2015)
On August 7, 2011, Ministry announced they would reform and would play at Germany's Wacken Open Air festival, set to take place on August 2–4, 2012. The reunion lineup featured Al Jourgensen on vocals, Mike Scaccia and Tommy Victor on guitar, Aaron Rossi on drums, John Bechdel on keyboards, and Tony Campos on bass.
Jourgensen told Metal Hammer in August 2011 that Ministry was working on a new album called Relapse, which they hoped to release by Christmas. Regarding the sound of the new material, he explained, "We've only got five songs to go. I've been listening to it the last couple of weeks and I wasn't really in the mood, I was just taking it as a joke. Just to pass the time at first but [Mikey's] raving about it. It's like, dude c'mon, this is not about Bush, so ... that part's over. The ulcers are gone and Bush is gone so it's time for something new. I think this is actually gonna wind up being the fastest and heaviest record I've ever done. Just because we did it as anti-therapy therapy against the country music we would just take days off and thrash faster than I've done in a long time, faster than Mikey's done in a long time. He just did a Rigor Mortis tour and said it was easy compared to this Ministry stuff so it's gonna be brutal and it's gonna freak a lot of people out."
Ministry announced on their website that they entered the studio on September 1, 2011 with engineer Sammy D'Ambruoso to begin recording their new album. During the third webisode featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the making of Relapse, a release date of March 23, 2012 was announced.
On December 23, 2011, Ministry released "99 Percenters", the first single from Relapse, and began streaming it on their Facebook page two days later. On February 24, 2012, Ministry released a second single, "Double Tap", which was included in the April 2012 issue of the Metal Hammer magazine. On March 23, 2012, Relapse was released; it was supported with "Defibrillatour", a concert tour which lasted from that year's June to August.
On December 23, 2012, guitarist Mike Scaccia died following an on-stage heart attack, while playing with his other band, Rigor Mortis. In an interview with Noisey in March 2013, Jourgensen announced that Ministry would break up again, explaining that he did not want to carry on without Scaccia. He explained, "Mikey was my best friend in the world and there's no Ministry without him. But I know the music we recorded together during the last weeks of his life had to be released to honor him. So after his funeral, I locked myself in my studio and turned the songs we had recorded into the best and last Ministry record anyone will ever hear. I can't do it without Mikey and I don't want to. So yes, this will be Ministry's last album." The album, titled From Beer to Eternity, was released on September 6, 2013. Jourgensen stated that Ministry would tour in support of From Beer to Eternity, but would not record any more albums.
AmeriKKKant, Moral Hygiene and upcoming sixteenth studio album (2016–present)
In an April 2016 interview with Loudwire, Jourgensen stated that Ministry would make a follow-up to From Beer to Eternity "if the circumstances are right." When asked in July about the possibility of a new album, Jourgensen stated, "When I was asked [before], it was after Mikey passed and the entire media immediately starts asking me what is going to happen to Ministry. He wasn't even buried yet. I thought, 'Fuck you.' I was really pissed and really angry. I said, 'Fuck Ministry and fuck you for asking.' They want to comment on Ministry when my best friend had died. It's been more than two years now, and I got more ideas and I have done albums with Mikey and have done them without him. It's time to get another record out. I have a bunch of songs written in my head. I wanted to have time to mourn before people start asking me about touring dates. It was sick. I was bombarded and email boxes were overloaded with 'what are you going to do now?' It was kind of creepy."
By February 2017, Ministry had begun working on their fourteenth studio album, titled AmeriKKKant. The album, released on March 9, 2018, includes guest appearances from Burton C. Bell of Fear Factory, former N.W.A member Arabian Prince, DJ Swamp and Lord of the Cello. During their performance at the Blackest of the Black Fest in Silverado, California in May 2017, Ministry debuted their first song in four years, "Antifa", which, at the time, was expected to appear on AmeriKKKant.
In an October 2018 interview with Billboard magazine, Jourgensen revealed that he had begun working on new material for Ministry's fifteenth studio album. He explained, "I have to get as many albums as I can done while Trump is still president, and then what am I going to do: write those crappy albums that I write while Democrats are president?" A month later, media reports noted that Jourgensen had reconnected with Barker after 15 years, hinting that the two might collaborate once again on the upcoming Ministry album.
In a 2019 interview with Revolver magazine, Jourgensen reaffirmed that he had been working on new material since 2018, and revealed that he had hired Paul D'Amour (formerly of Tool) as the new bassist of Ministry. The band – alongside Primus and Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals – opened for Slayer on the final North American leg of their farewell tour, which took place in November 2019.
In December 2019, the band released a visual history coffee table book, Ministry: Prescripture, with author Aaron Tanner.
In January 2020, Ministry announced the "Industrial Strength Tour" would start in 2020, with drummer London May of Samhain, which would feature both KMFDM and Front Line Assembly as guests. The tour was to begin on 1 July and extend until August. In May 2020, the band announced that they postponed all dates on the Industrial Strength Tour until 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 25–date tour, with KMFDM and Front Line Assembly, was scheduled to take place in March and April 2021; the trek was once again postponed to the fall of 2021, this time with Helmet replacing KMFDM, who were unable to partake in the tour because of restrictions caused by the COVID in their native Germany. On September 24, 2021, Ministry announced that The Industrial Strength tour had been postponed once more because of the pandemic, with the tour now scheduled to take place in March and April 2022, and the Melvins and Corrosion of Conformity replacing Front Line Assembly and Helmet as special guests.
On January 17, 2020, Billboard released an exposé on guitar player Sin Quirin, detailing accounts of Quirin's alleged behavior including sexual relationships with underage females while touring in San Antonio, TX, Portland, OR, and Tacoma, WA, in the early 2000s. In May 2021, Quirin announced via Facebook that he was leaving Ministry.
On March 24, 2020, longtime drummer Bill Rieflin died of cancer, which had been kept private. His death was announced the next day by Robert Fripp of King Crimson via Facebook.
On April 24, 2020, one month after Rieflin's passing, Ministry released their first song in two-and-a-half years, "Alert Level", which was expected to appear on the band's then-upcoming fifteenth studio album.
In May 2021, the band announced that drummer Roy Mayorga has rejoined the band.
On July 8, 2021, Ministry released "Good Trouble" as the first single from their fifteenth studio album Moral Hygiene, which was released on October 1.
About two weeks after the release of Moral Hygiene, Jourgensen revealed that another Ministry album "will be out in 6-8 months."
Artistry
Ministry's experimentation, stylistic variation and changes during its career cross several genres of popular music. Alternative rock subgenres such as industrial rock and industrial metal are umbrella terms predominantly used to describe the band's career in general. Ministry has been classified under many other genres, including EBM/industrial dance, techno-rock, hard rock, heavy metal, speed metal, thrash metal, and electro-industrial; their early output has been categorised as new wave, synth-pop, dance-pop, electronic dance, and dark wave. In the April 1989 issue of Spin Magazine, an author Michael Corcoran labelled the band as "industrial disco"; in 1994, writer Simon Glickman used this term as well. AllMusic's Steve Huey states that, previous to Nine Inch Nails' rise to mainstream popularity, "Ministry did more than any other band to popularize industrial dance music, injecting large doses of punky, over-the-top aggression and roaring heavy metal guitar riffs that helped their music find favor with metal and alternative audiences outside of industrial's cult fan base." Despite frequent descriptions of the band's music as industrial,; . Jourgensen disputed the use of this tag in several publications since the early 1990s, preferring instead to identify his style as "aggro", and, much later "industrious".
Despite Jourgensen's dislike of touring, Ministry are noted for their live performances, featuring extended versions of songs (as evidenced on In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up) and disturbing visual imagery. MTV also recognized the band as an influential heavy metal act, highlighting the use of sampling during their heyday. Alternative Press included Ministry in their 1996 list of 100 underground inspirations of the past 20 years, stating that they merged "metal, samples, synths, and the 100-mph sound of urban paranoia, they pretty much created industrial music as we know it."
Related projects
Jourgensen, with former and current bandmates, has been active in a number of musical projects besides Ministry. Foremost of these was the Revolting Cocks, founded by Jourgensen, Richard 23 and Luc van Acker during Ministry and Front 242's tour in 1984. Since its formation, the band has released a number of records, and has gone through several line-up changes. 1000 Homo DJs, a project purposed for outtakes from The Land of Rape and Honey and The Mind ... , has recorded a cover of Black Sabbath's "Supernaut", featuring Nine Inch Nails frontman and one-time Revolting Cocks touring member Trent Reznor. PTP, a project led by Jourgensen and Barker, included the assistance from Nivek Ogre on one occasion, and Connelly on another, and notably provided the song "Show Me Your Spine" featured in Paul Verhoeven's 1987 film RoboCop. Other notable projects include Pailhead with Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat and Fugazi, Lard with former Dead Kennedys lead singer Jello Biafra, and Acid Horse with Cabaret Voltaire members Richard H. Kirk and Stephen Mallinder. Buck Satan and the 666 Shooters, a country project led by Jourgensen, released the sole album, Bikers Welcome Ladies Drink Free, in 2012 through 13th Planet Records. Surgical Meth Machine, a speed metal project originally tributed to guitarist Mike Scaccia
Barker has released several solo recordings under various monikers, including Age of Reason and Chicks & Speed: Futurism as Lead into Gold in 1990, The Perfect Pair as Flowering Blight in 2008, and Fix This!!!, an accompanying soundtrack of Fix: The Ministry Movie, under his own name in 2012. Through the 2000s, Barker formed Pink Anvil with Max Brody and U.S.S.A. with the Jesus Lizard guitarist Duane Denison. Brody and Scaccia have also released materials as Goobersmoochers via Brody's Bandcamp site.
Members
Current members
Al Jourgensen – lead vocals, guitars, keyboards, programming, harmonica, bandolin, production (1981–present)
John Bechdel – keyboards (2006–2008, 2011–present)
Cesar Soto – guitars, backing vocals (2015–present)
Paul D'Amour – bass (2019–present)
Roy Mayorga – drums (2016–2017, 2021–present)
Monte Pittman – guitars (2014, 2021–present)
Former members
Keyboards
John Davis – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1982; died 2005)
Robert Roberts – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1983)
Duane Buford – keyboards (1994–1999)
DJ Swamp – turntables (2017–2018)
Drums
Stephen George – drums (1981–1984)
Bill Rieflin – drums, keyboards, guitar (1986–1994; died 2020)
Rey Washam – drums (1994–1999, 2003)
Max Brody – drums, saxophone (1999–2004)
Aaron Rossi – drums (2008, 2011–2016)
Derek Abrams – drums (2017–2019)
London May – drums (2020–2021)
Guitar
Mike Scaccia – guitars (1989–1995, 2003–2006, 2011–2012; died 2012)
Louis Svitek – guitars (1992–1999, 2003)
Zlatko Hukic – guitars (1996–1999)
Tommy Victor – guitars (2004–2008, 2011–2012)
Sin Quirin – guitars, bass, keyboards (2007–2008, 2012–2021)
Bass
Brad Hallen – bass (1983–1984)
Paul Barker – bass, keyboards, programming, production, vocals (1986–2003)
Paul Raven – bass, keyboards (2005–2007; died 2007)
Jason Christopher – bass, backing vocals (2016–2017)
Tony Campos – bass, backing vocals (2008, 2011–2015, 2017–2019)
Additional/touring musicians
Keyboards
Paul Taylor – keyboards (1981)
Mark Pothier – keyboards, backing vocals (1983)
Doug Chamberlin – keyboards, backing vocals (1983–1984)
Patty Jourgensen – keyboards, backing vocals (1984)
John Soroka – keyboards, backing vocals, percussion (1984)
Roland Barker – keyboards (1986, 1992–1993), saxophone (1986)
Sarolta DeFaltay – keyboards, backing vocals (1986)
Marston Daley – keyboards (1987)
Michael Balch – keyboards, programming (1991–1992)
Darrell James – keyboards (2003–2004)
Guitar
William Tucker – guitar (1989–1990; died 1999)
Terry Roberts – guitar, backing vocals (1989–1990)
Michel Bassin – guitar (1992)
Sam Ladwig – guitar (1992)
Rick Valles – guitar (2004)
Drums
Jeff Ward – drums (1988; died 1993)
Martin Atkins – drums (1989–1990)
Tia Sprocket – drums (2003; died 2017)
Mark Baker – drums (2004–2005)
Joey Jordison – drums (2006; died 2021)
Thomas Holtgreve – drums (2017)
Bass
Martin Sorenson – bass (1981–1982)
Casey Orr – bass (1992, 2012)
John Monte – bass (2004)
Eddy Garcia – bass (2004)
Vocals
Audrey Stanzler – vocals (1981–1982)
Shay Jones – vocals (1982–1983)
Yvonne Gage – vocals (1983–1984)
Chris Connelly – vocals (1989–1990, 1992–1993), keyboards (1989–1990)
Nivek Ogre – vocals (1988–1990)
Joe Kelly – vocals (1989–1990)
Marco Neves – vocals (1992)
Burton C. Bell – vocals (2008, 2018)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
With Sympathy (1983)
Twitch (1986)
The Land of Rape and Honey (1988)
The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989)
Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs (1992)
Filth Pig (1996)
Dark Side of the Spoon (1999)
Animositisomina (2003)
Houses of the Molé (2004)
Rio Grande Blood (2006)
The Last Sucker (2007)
Relapse (2012)
From Beer to Eternity (2013)
AmeriKKKant (2018)
Moral Hygiene'' (2021)
Tours
With Sympathy Tour, 1983
Wax Trax! Singles Tour, 1984
Twitch Tour, 1986–1987
The Land of Rape and Honey Tour, 1988
The Mind Tour, 1989–1990
Lollapalooza 1992
Psalm 69 Tour, 1992–1994
Big Day Out, 1995
Sphinctour, 1996
ClitourUS, 1999
Fornicatour, 2003
Evil Doer Tour, 2004–2005
MasterBaTour, 2006
C-U-LaTour, 2008
DeFiBriLaTouR / Relapse Tour, 2012
From Beer to EternaTour, 2015
Death Grips and Ministry US Tour 2017
The AmeriKKKan Tour, 2018
EU/UK Summer Tour, 2019
Industrial Strength Tour, 2022 (initially scheduled to take place in summer 2020, later rescheduled to fall 2021 and then spring 2022 due to COVID-19)
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Ministry @ prongs.org
1981 establishments in Illinois
American industrial metal musical groups
American industrial music groups
Rock music groups from Illinois
Arista Records artists
Heavy metal musical groups from Illinois
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups disestablished in 2008
Musical groups reestablished in 2011
Musical groups from Chicago
Nuclear Blast artists
Political music groups
Sire Records artists
Situation Two artists
Warner Records artists
Wax Trax! Records artists | false | [
"Follow Me is the second album of Dutch singer Do.\n\nIt did well in the Netherlands, debuting at #8 in the Mega Top 100 (album chart).\n\nAlbum information\nAfter her successful debut album Do she began working on her second album with her best friend and musical partner Glenn Corneille. They made a basis for the next album but Glenn Corneille died in a car disaster. However, Do needed to go on, so she started again where she left off.\n\nThe album contains 12 songs. Do co-wrote 3 songs; Love Me, Tune Into Me and When Everything is Gone. It features several different music genres, such as Pop, Jazz, Gospel and Country.\n\nTrack listing\n\nChart positions\n\nReferences\n.\n\n2006 albums\nDo (singer) albums\nSony BMG albums",
"Do-support (or do-insertion), in English grammar, is the use of the auxiliary verb do, including its inflected forms does and did, to form negated clauses and questions as well as other constructions in which subject–auxiliary inversion is required.\n\nThe verb \"do\" can be used as an auxiliary even in simple declarative sentences, and it usually serves to add emphasis, as in \"I did shut the fridge.\" However, in the negated and inverted clauses referred to above, it is used because the conventions of Modern English syntax permit these constructions only when an auxiliary is present. It is not idiomatic in Modern English to add the negating word not to a lexical verb with finite form; not can be added only to an auxiliary or copular verb. For example, the sentence I am not with the copula be is fully idiomatic, but I know not with a finite lexical verb, while grammatical, is archaic. If there is no other auxiliary present when negation is required, the auxiliary do is used to produce a form like I do not (don't) know. The same applies in clauses requiring inversion, including most questions: inversion must involve the subject and an auxiliary verb so it is not idiomatic to say Know you him?; today's English usually substitutes Do you know him?\n\nDo-support is not used when there is already an auxiliary or copular verb present or with non-finite verb forms (infinitives and participles). It is sometimes used with subjunctive forms. Furthermore, the use of do as an auxiliary should be distinguished from the use of do as a normal lexical verb, as in They do their homework.\n\nCommon uses\nDo-support appears to accommodate a number of varying grammatical constructions:\nquestion formation,\nthe appearance of the negation not, and\nnegative inversion.\nThese constructions often cannot occur without do-support or the presence of some other auxiliary verb.\n\nIn questions\nThe presence of an auxiliary (or copular) verb allows subject–auxiliary inversion to take place, as is required in most interrogative sentences in English. If there is already an auxiliary or copula present, do-support is not required when forming questions:\n\n He will laugh. → Will he laugh? (the auxiliary will inverts with the subject he)\n She is at home. → Is she at home? (the copula is inverts with the subject she)\n\nThis applies not only in yes–no questions but also in questions formed using interrogative words:\n\n When will he laugh?\n\nHowever, if there is no auxiliary or copula present, inversion requires the introduction of an auxiliary in the form of do-support:\n\n I know. → Do I know? (Compare: *Know I?)\n He laughs. → Does he laugh? (Compare: *Laughs he?)\n She came home. → Did she come home? (Compare: *Came she home?)\n\nThe finite (inflected) verb is now the auxiliary do; the following verb is a bare infinitive which does not inflect: does he laugh? (not laughs); did she come? (not came).\n\nIn negated questions, the negating word not may appear either following the subject, or attached to the auxiliary in the contracted form n't. That applies both to do-support and to other auxiliaries:\n\n Why are you not playing? / Why aren't you playing?\n Do you not want to try? / Don't you want to try?\n\nThe above principles do not apply to wh-questions if the interrogative word is the subject or part of the subject. Then, there is no inversion and so there is no need for do-support: Who lives here?, Whose dog bit you?\n\nThe verb have, in the sense of possession, is sometimes used without do-support as if it were an auxiliary, but this is considered dated. The version with do-support is also correct:\n\n Have you any idea what is going on here?\n Do you have any idea what is going on here?\n (Have you got any idea what is going on here? – the order is similar to the first example, but have is an auxiliary verb here)\n\nFor elliptical questions and tag questions, see the elliptical sentences section below.\n\nWith not\nIn the same way that the presence of an auxiliary allows question formation, the appearance of the negating word not is allowed as well. Then too, if no other auxiliary or copular verb is present, do-support is required.\n\n He will laugh. → He will not laugh. (not attaches to the auxiliary will)\n She laughs. → She does not laugh. (not attaches to the added auxiliary does)\n\nIn the second sentence, do-support is required because idiomatic Modern English does not allow forms like *She laughs not. The verb have, in the sense of possession, is sometimes negated thus:\n\n I haven't the foggiest idea.\n\nMost combinations of auxiliary/copula plus not have a contracted form ending in -n't, such as isn't, won't, etc. The relevant contractions for negations formed using do-support are don't, doesn't and didn't. Such forms are used very frequently in informal English.\n\nDo-support is required for negated imperatives even when the verb is the copula be:\n\nDo not do that.\nDon't be silly.\n\nHowever, there is no do-support with non-finite, as they are negated by a preceding not:\n\nIt would be a crime not to help him (the infinitive to help is negated)\nNot knowing what else to do, I stood my ground (the present participle knowing is negated)\nNot eating vegetables can harm your health (the gerund eating is negated)\n\nWith subjunctive verb forms, as a present subjunctive, do is infrequently used for negation, which is frequently considered ambiguous or incorrect because it resembles the indicative. The usual method to negate the present subjunctive is to precede the verb with a not, especially if the verb is be (as do-support with it, whether it be indicative or subjunctive, is ungrammatical):\n\nI suggest that he not receive any more funding (the present subjunctive receive is negated)\nIt is important that he not be there (the present subjunctive be is negated)\n\nAs a past subjunctive, however, did is needed for negation (unless the verb is be, whose past subjunctive is were):\n\nI wish that he did not know it\nI wish that he were not here\n\nThe negation in the examples negates the non-finite predicate. Compare the following competing formulations:\n\nI did not try to laugh. vs. I tried not to laugh.\nThey do not want to go. vs. They want not to go.\n\nThere are two predicates in each of the verb chains in the sentences. Do-support is needed when the higher of the two is negated; it is not needed to negate the lower nonfinite predicate.\n\nFor negated questions, see the questions section above. For negated elliptical sentences, see the elliptical sentences section below.\n\nNegative inversion\nThe same principles as for question formation apply to other clauses in which subject–auxiliary inversion is required, particularly after negative expressions and expressions involving only (negative inversion):\n\n Never did he run that fast again. (wrong: *Never he did run that fast again. *Never ran he that fast again.)\n Only here do I feel at home. (wrong: *Only here feel I at home.)\n\nFurther uses\nIn addition to providing do-support in questions and negated clauses as described above, the auxiliary verb do can also be used in clauses that do not require do-support. In such cases, do-support may appear for pragmatic reasons.\n\nFor emphasis\nThe auxiliary generally appears for purposes of emphasis, for instance to establish a contrast or to express a correction:\n Did Bill eat his breakfast? Yes, he did eat his breakfast (did emphasizes the positive answer, which may be unexpected).\n Bill doesn't sing, then. No, he does sing (does emphasizes the correction of the previous statement).\n\nAs before, the main verb following the auxiliary becomes a bare infinitive, which is not inflected (one cannot say *did ate or *does sings in the above examples).\n\nAs with typical do-support, that usage of do does not occur with other auxiliaries or a copular verb. Then, emphasis can be obtained by adding stress to the auxiliary or copular:\n\n Would you take the risk? Yes, I would take the risk.\n Bill isn't singing, then. No, he is singing.\n\n(Some auxiliaries, such as can, change their pronunciation when stressed; see Weak and strong forms in English.)\n\nIn negative sentences, emphasis can be obtained by adding stress either to the negating word (if used in full) or to the contracted form ending in n't. That applies whether or not do-support is used:\n\n I wouldn't (or would not) take the risk.\n They don't (or do not) appear on the list.\n\nEmphatic do can also be used with imperatives, including with the copula be:\n\n Do take care! Do be careful!\n\nIn elliptical sentences\nThe auxiliary do is also used in various types of elliptical sentences, where the main verb is omitted (it can be said to be \"understood\", usually because it would be the same verb as was used in a preceding sentence or clause). That includes the following types:\n\nTag questions:\n He plays well, doesn't he?\n You don't like Sara, do you?\nElliptical questions:\n I like pasta. Do you?\n I went to the party. Why didn't you?\nElliptical statements:\n They swam, but I didn't.\n He looks smart, and so do you.\n You fell asleep, and I did, too.\n\nSuch uses include cases that do-support would have been used in a complete clause (questions, negatives, inversion) but also cases that (as in the last example) the complete clause would normally have been constructed without do (I fell asleep too). In such instances do may be said to be acting as a pro-verb since it effectively takes the place of a verb or verb phrase: did substitutes for fell asleep.\n\nAs in the principal cases of do-support, do does not normally occur when there is already an auxiliary or copula present; the auxiliary or copula is retained in the elliptical sentence:\n\nHe is playing well, isn't he?\nI can cook pasta. Can you?\nYou should get some sleep, and I should too.\n\nHowever, it is possible to use do as a pro-verb (see below section #Pro-verbs & Do-so Substitution even after auxiliaries in some dialects:\n\nHave you put the shelf up yet? I haven't done (or I haven't), but I will do (or I will).\n(However it is not normally used in this way as a to-infinitive: Have you put the shelf up? I plan to, rather than *I plan to do; or as a passive participle: Was it built? Yes, it was, not *Yes, it was done.)\n\nPro-verbal uses of do are also found in the imperative: Please do. Don't!\n\nPro-verbs and do-so substitution\nThe phrases do so and do what for questions are pro-verb forms in English. They can be used as substitutes for verbs in x-bar theory grammar to test verb phrase completeness. Bare infinitives forms often are used in place of the missing pro-verb forms.\n\nExamples from Santorini and Kroch:\n\nTests for constituenthood of a verb-phrase in X'-grammar\nThe do so construction can be used to test if a verb-phrase is a constituent phrase in X'-grammar by substitution similarly to how other pro-forms can be used to test for noun-phrases, etc.\n\nIn X-bar theory, the verb-phrase projects three bar-levels such as this:\n\n VP\n / \\\n ZP X'\n / \\\n X' YP\n |\n X \n |\n head\n\nWith a simple sentence:\n\n S\n |\n VP\n / \\\n / \\\n / \\\n / \\\n NP \\\n / \\ \\ \n DP N' V'\n | | / \\\nThe children / \\\n / \\\n V' PP\n / \\ /_\\\n / \\ with gusto\n V NP\n | /_\\\n ate the pizza\n\nHere again exemplified by Santorini and Kroch, do so substitution for testing constituent verb phrases in the above sample sentence:\n\n S\n |\n VP\n / \\\n / \\\n / \\\n / \\\n NP \\\n / \\ \\ \n DP N' V'\n | | / \\\nThe children / \\\n / \\\n V' PP\n / \\ /_\\\n / \\ with gusto\n V NP\n | /_\\\n did so the pizza\n\nUse of do as main verb\nApart from its uses as an auxiliary, the verb do (with its inflected forms does, did, done, doing) can be used as an ordinary lexical verb (main verb):\n\nDo your homework!\nWhat are you doing?\n\nLike other non-auxiliary verbs, do cannot be directly negated with not and cannot participate in inversion so it may itself require do-support, with both auxiliary and lexical instances of do appearing together:\n\n They didn't do the laundry on Sunday. (did is the auxiliary, do is the main verb)\n Why do you do karate? (the first do is the auxiliary, the second is the main verb)\n How do you do? (a set phrase used as a polite greeting)\n\nMeaning contribution\nIn the various cases seen above that require do-support, the auxiliary verb do makes no apparent contribution to the meaning of the sentence so it is sometimes called a dummy auxiliary. Historically, however, in Middle English, auxiliary do apparently had a meaning contribution, serving as a marker of aspect (probably perfective aspect, but in some cases, the meaning may have been imperfective). In Early Modern English, the semantic value was lost, and the usage of forms with do began to approximate that found today.\n\nOrigins\n\nSome form of auxiliary \"do\" occurs in all West Germanic languages except Afrikaans. It is generally accepted that the past tense of Germanic weak verbs (in English, -ed) was formed from a combination of the infinitive with a past tense form of \"do\", as exemplified in Gothic. The origins of the construction in English are debated: some scholars argue it was already present in Old English, but not written due to stigmatization. Scholars disagree whether the construction arose from the use of \"do\" as a lexical verb in its own right, or whether periphrastic \"do\" arose from a causative meaning of the verb or vice versa. Examples of auxiliary \"do\" in Old English writing appear to be limited to its use in a causative sense, which is parallel to the earliest uses in other West Germanic languages. Others argue that the construction arose either via the influence of Celtic speakers or that the construction arose as a form of creolization when native speakers addressed foreigners and children.\n\nSee also\n\nEnglish verbs\nEnglish clause syntax\nIntensifier\n\nReferences\n\nEnglish grammar\nWord order\nSyntax\nGenerative syntax"
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"what happened in 1981",
"Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Al Jourgensen went from Denver to Chicago, in order to study in University of Illinois.",
"what did he study?",
"Jourgensen was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend Shannon Rose Riley, and soon after joined a post-punk",
"joined a post-punk what?",
"new wave band Special Affect,",
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"did numerous shows,"
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| C_b9830aff6a7d45679abd89a5b02167c1_1 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | 5 | Are there any other interesting aspects aside from Jourgensen about this article? | Ministry (band) | Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Al Jourgensen went from Denver to Chicago, in order to study in University of Illinois. Jourgensen was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend Shannon Rose Riley, and soon after joined a post-punk/new wave band Special Affect, replacing Tom Hoffman on a guitar and accompanying to vocalist Frank Nardiello (Groovie Mann of My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult), drummer Harry Rushakoff (Concrete Blonde) and bassist Marty Sorenson. Following Special Affect's split, Jourgensen formed The Carmichaels, the short-lived band which featured Ben Krug, Tom Krug and Tom Wall (all of The Imports), and did numerous shows, including the one performed on April 30, 1981 with the local experimental band ONO as an opening act. In this time Jourgensen had also met Jim Nash and Danny Flesher, the co-founders and the co-owners of the indie record label Wax Trax! Records who recommended him as a touring guitarist for a drag performer Divine. After playing a few concerts with the latter, Jourgensen--then living within an African-American neighborhood--had begun to write and record the songs in his apartment, using a newly-bought ARP Omni synthesizer, a drum machine, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder. At one point, he had presented a demo to Jim Nash, who had favored it and offered Jourgensen to record a single, as well as to form a touring band, certainly titled Ministry. The first line-up of Ministry, assembled by Jourgensen, consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; initially, Jourgensen didn't want to perform vocals, but embarked on after he had auditioned twelve singers "who all sucked." Nash had paid a recording session for the band at Hedden West studios, with the help of an English-born sound engineer Iain Burgess. According to former Dead Kennedys singer and Alternative Tentacles owner Jello Biafra, Ministry's debut record was intended to be seven-inch single featuring the song "Overkill" with B-side "I'm Falling"; eventually, a twelve-inch single with "I'm Falling" and instrumental track "Primental" on A-side, backed with song "Cold Life" on B-side, came out in late 1981 on Wax Trax! in the US. In March of the following year, the single was licensed by a British label Situation Two, with "Cold Life" as A-side. Ministry had performed their debut concert on the New Year Eve of 1982 in a Chicago-based club Misfits, and commenced a tour through the East Coast and the mid-West, supporting on occasions for the English bands Medium Medium, A Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, and Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, "I'm Falling / Cold Life" single had found success in the UK and the US, reaching No. 45 in the Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart with approximately 10,000 copies as of September 1982, and thus scoring Wax Trax!' first hit. CANNOTANSWER | The first line-up of Ministry, assembled by Jourgensen, consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; | Ministry is an American industrial metal band founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1981 by producer, singer and instrumentalist Al Jourgensen. Originally a synth-pop outfit, Ministry evolved into one of the pioneers of industrial metal in the late 1980s. The band's lineup has changed frequently, leaving Jourgensen as the sole original member left in Ministry. Musicians who have contributed to the band's studio or live activities include vocalists Nivek Ogre, Chris Connelly, Gibby Haynes, Burton C. Bell and Jello Biafra, guitarists Mike Scaccia and Tommy Victor, bassists Paul Barker, Paul Raven, Jason Christopher, Tony Campos and Paul D'Amour, drummers Bill Rieflin, Martin Atkins, Rey Washam, Max Brody, Joey Jordison and Roy Mayorga, keyboardist John Bechdel, and rappers and producers DJ Swamp and Arabian Prince.
Ministry attained commercial success in the late 1980s and early 1990s with three of their studio albums: The Land of Rape and Honey (1988), The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989) and Psalm 69 (1992). The first two were certified gold while Psalm 69 was certified platinum by the RIAA. Psalm 69 was followed by Filth Pig (1996), which was a stylistic departure for the band, and earned Ministry its highest chart position on the Billboard 200 at number nineteen, although it was met with mixed reception by critics and marked the beginning of the band's commercial decline. The lackluster response to their next album, Dark Side of the Spoon (1999), resulted in Warner Bros. dropping Ministry from the label and the group entered an extended hiatus in early 2000s, when Jourgensen entered rehab after years of substance abuse.
Following Jourgensen's recovery, Ministry resurfaced in 2003 with Animositisomina, which turned out to be their last album with Paul Barker, who had left the band early the next year after nearly two decades as an official member. Ministry returned to their thrash/industrial style of Psalm 69 and released three albums critical of then-President of the United States, George W. Bush, dubbed the "Bush Trilogy": Houses of the Molé (2004), Rio Grande Blood (2006) and The Last Sucker (2007); these albums effectively revitalized the band's commercial viability. Although The Last Sucker was initially intended to be the band's final album, Ministry reformed in 2011 and released Relapse in the following year. On December 23, 2012, longtime guitar contributor Mike Scaccia died of a heart attack, and he was posthumously featured in the next Ministry album, From Beer to Eternity (2013), which was again supposed to be their last album, as Jourgensen thought his death was the end of the band. Despite this, Ministry has since released two more albums: AmeriKKKant (2018) and Moral Hygiene (2021), and they are working on new material for a sixteenth studio album as of October 2021.
The band has been nominated for six Grammy Awards and has performed at several music festivals, including the second annual Lollapalooza tour in 1992, co-headlining Big Day Out in 1995 and performing at Wacken Open Air thrice (in 2006, 2012 and 2016).
History
Formation and early days (1981–1982)
Ministry's origins date to 1978, when Jourgensen moved from Denver to Chicago to attend the University of Illinois at Chicago. He was introduced to the local underground scene by his then-girlfriend, and in 1979 he replaced Tom Hoffmann on guitars in Special Affect, a post-punk group which featured vocalist Frank Nardiello (Groovie Mann of My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult), drummer Harry Rushakoff (Concrete Blonde) and bassist Marty Sorenson. Following Special Affect's split in 1980, Jourgensen formed a short-lived band called The Silly Carmichaels, which featured members of The Imports and played two shows.
In 1981, Jourgensen met Jim Nash and Danny Flesher, co-founders and co-owners of the indie record label and shop Wax Trax! Records who recommended him as a touring guitarist for Divine. After playing a few concerts with the latter, Jourgensen began to write and record songs in his apartment, using a newly bought ARP Omni synthesizer, a drum machine, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder. He presented a demo to Jim Nash, who suggested Jourgensen record a single and form a touring band, which Jourgensen decided to call Ministry.
The first line-up of Ministry consisted of keyboardists Robert Roberts and John Davis, bassist Sorenson, and drummer Stephen George; Jourgensen auditioned several singers, all of whom were unsatisfactory, so he decided to perform vocals himself. Nash purchased recording sessions at Hedden West studios which resulted in a twelve-inch single featuring "I'm Falling" and instrumental track "Primental" on the A-side, with the song "Cold Life" on the B-side. The record was co-produced by Jay O'Roarke and Iain Burgess and released in late 1981 on Wax Trax! in the US. In March 1982, the single was licensed by British label Situation Two, with "Cold Life" as the A-side.
Ministry performed their debut concert on New Year's Eve 1982 in the Chicago club Misfits, and, in the spring, commenced a tour of the Northeast and the Midwest, supporting Medium Medium, A Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, and Depeche Mode. Meanwhile, the "I'm Falling / Cold Life" single reached No. 45 in the Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart with approximately 10,000 copies as of September 1982, and thus scoring Wax Trax!' first hit.
With Sympathy and later Wax Trax! singles (1983–1985)
The band's initial success drew the attention of Arista Records founder and chief executive Clive Davis, who offered them a deal, promising to make them "the next Joy Division"—a promise that Jourgensen later considered to be misleading. Signing a six-figure, two-album deal, the band—with Jourgensen and George comprising the official line-up—moved to record at the Synchro Sound studios in Boston, with producers Vince Ely (former drummer of Psychedelic Furs) and Ian Taylor (former assistant of Roy Thomas Baker), as well as keyboardists Roberts and Davis as session musicians.
A 12-inch single containing the song "Same Old Madness" was recorded and planned for release, along with its accompanying music video. However, "Same Old Madness"—both the song and video—did not surface until 2014; instead, "Work for Love" was released in January 1983 and peaked No. 20 on the Hot Dance/Disco chart. Ministry's debut album, entitled With Sympathy (also known as Work for Love in Europe), was finished around this time and issued in May, reaching No. 94 in the Billboard 200. On release, the album was supported by two more singles—"Revenge" (with a music video partially reworked from "Same Old Madness") and "I Wanted to Tell Her" (a reworked version of "Primental"), and a supporting concert tour with The Police during the North American leg of their Synchronicity tour. During this time, Jourgensen met the members of Seattle-based band The Blackouts—namely bassist Paul Barker and drummer Bill Rieflin, as well their then-manager Patty Marsh, who later became Jourgensen's wife from 1984 to 1995.
In spite of With Sympathys success, Jourgensen's relations with Arista were acrimonious. Eventually, Jourgensen sent a demo tape featuring a cover version of Roxy Music's song "Same Old Scene" before parting ways with Arista, suing the latter for violating contractual obligations. Since then, Jourgensen has expressed dislike for the With Sympathy-era, often providing different (and widely conflicting) explanations for his antipathy. In a 2004 interview, conducted by Mark Prindle, Jourgensen said that after signing with Arista, all artistic control of Ministry was "handed over" to other writers and producers. In his 2013 autobiography, Jourgensen gave a different explanation, saying that he was pressured by Arista management into producing his existing songs in the then-popular synthpop style, as a means of making them more commercially palatable. However, in the 1980s, Jourgensen said that when he discovered hardcore music, his musical direction simply changed; Jourgensen reiterated this point in 2012, and again in 2018. In 2019, he stated that the record was "fine", only that it could have been a lot better without interference from the record company. In 2021, Jourgensen resurrected the story that Arista took full control of the production and songwriting process, made Jourgensen cut his hair and bought him a wardrobe of sharkskin suits, and this time added the label wanted Ministry to sound like Wham! (a band who were not successful in the US until 1984-one year after With Sympathy had been released). Jourgensen assumes a false English accent for all of the album's songs, for which he also later expressed great dislike, though Patty Marsh stated in a 2013 interview "...the English accent thing was more an homage to the bands he loved than anything else. He was not trying to come off as British. The Stones used a southern accent and no one crawled up their ass for it.", an explanation Jourgensen himself had also given in a prior, 1983 interview with Richard Skinner.
Departed from Arista, Jourgensen returned with Ministry on Wax Trax! in mid-1984. While working as a cashier in the Wax Trax! store, he continued to record new material. In Autumn 1984, Ministry embarked on a new tour with a renewed line-up, supported by Belgian industrial dance act Front 242. During this tour, Sire Records co-owner Seymour Stein attended several gigs, offering the band a new deal; Jourgensen, recalling his negative experience with Arista, repeatedly declined, but eventually agreed to sign on the condition that Sire would provide resources to support the Wax Trax! imprint; as Jourgensen put it, "it was kind of a personal sacrifice to keep that company rolling and allow them to keep signing bands." George left Ministry soon after this tour, disagreeing with Jourgensen over increased use of drum machines, and went on to form the short-lived band Colortone, and, much later, to pursue a record engineering career. Ministry released several singles throughout the Summer of 1985—"All Day", "(Every Day Is) Halloween" and "The Nature of Love", as well as a reissue of "Cold Life"—which were cited as marking Jourgensen's first attempt at injecting industrial elements into Ministry's sound. Initially the B-side on "All Day" single, "... Halloween" became viewed as a goth anthem similar to Bauhaus' "Bela Lugosi's Dead"; "The Nature of Love", which came out in June 1985, became Ministry's final single on Wax Trax!; in July 1985, the band was shown as signed to Sire Records.
Twitch (1985–1987)
Ministry debuted on Sire/Warner Bros. in late 1985 with the single "Over the Shoulder", preceding the release of the band's second studio album, Twitch, in March 1986. Twitch was recorded and mixed largely at Southern Studios in London and Hansa Tonstudio in West Berlin during 1985, with the On-U Sound Records owner Adrian Sherwood and Jourgensen sharing co-production duties. Despite the contribution of several others (namely Belgian singer Luc van Acker and Sherwood's acquaintance Keith LeBlanc), the album's material was mainly performed by Jourgensen, listed as the band's sole member. Some material, recorded during the Twitch sessions, was later used for LeBlanc's and Sherwood's other projects, most prominently LeBlanc's solo album Major Malfunction.
On release, Twitch hit No. 194 in Billboard 200, and was supported by a US and Canadian tour. Jourgensen assembled a new touring line-up, featuring Roland Barker on keyboards, Paul Barker on bass and Bill Rieflin on drums.; . Twitch received mixed reviews, with a music critic Robert Christgau stating, "Chicago's Anglodisco clones meet Anglodisco renegade Adrian Sherwood and promptly improve themselves by trading in wimpy on arty"; nevertheless, the album came to be viewed as a pivotal point in the band's discography, as it signaled ongoing changes in Ministry's sound. In later publications, Jourgensen credited Sherwood with giving his music an aggressive edge and providing production advice, but considered the record "so Adrian Sherwood-influenced."
Breakthrough success (1988–1993)
After Twitch, Paul Barker became Jourgensen's primary collaborator in Ministry; until his departure, he was the only person credited as a member of the band other than Jourgensen. Jourgensen then made another significant change to Ministry's sound when he resumed playing electric guitar. With Rieflin on drums, Ministry recorded The Land of Rape and Honey (1988). The album continued their success in the underground music scene. The Land of Rape and Honey made use of synthesizers, keyboards, tape loops, jackhammering drum machines, dialogue excerpted from movies, unconventional electronic processing, and, in parts, heavy distorted electric guitar and bass.
The album was supported by a tour in 1988 and the singles and music videos for "Stigmata" and "Flashback". "Stigmata" was also used in a key scene in Richard Stanley's 1990 film Hardware, although the band shown performing the song was Gwar.
The follow-up album, The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste, was released in 1989. Due to the complex nature of the album's drumming, a second drummer, Martin Atkins (formerly of Public Image Ltd. and Killing Joke), was hired. In addition to Atkins, a ten piece touring line-up was formed, consisting of Chris Connelly (keyboards and vocals), Skinny Puppy vocalist Nivek Ogre (vocals and keyboards), Joe Kelly (vocals and backing vocals) and guitarists Mike Scaccia, Terry Roberts, and William Tucker, with Jourgensen, Paul Barker and Rieflin serving as the group's core members. This tour was documented on In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up. Two opening tracks, "Burning Inside" and "Thieves", were released as a commercial single; "Burning Inside" was accompanied by a music video.
After completing the Revolting Cocks tour in early 1991, Jourgensen and his bandmates began work on a follow-up to The Mind ... at Chicago Trax! studios, amidst problems brought on by growing substance abuse. During these initial sessions, Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers recorded vocals for what became "Jesus Built My Hotrod", which hit No. 19 in the Modern Rock Tracks chart with approximately 128,000 copies as of mid-July 1992; considered Ministry's first and biggest commercial hit, it built significant anticipation for their upcoming album, then titled The Tapes of Wrath. In an attempt to distance themselves from drugs and find fresh perspective, the band relocated from Chicago to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, to record at Royal Recorders studios for ten weeks. After considering the Wisconsin sessions a "washout", they returned to Chicago to complete the album – now entitled Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs, after a chapter from Aleister Crowley's The Book of Lies – by early May 1992, with only nine of about thirty songs written being chosen to feature. The album was influenced by speed and thrash metal, often being described as their fastest record by fans and critics. It was released on July 14, 1992 and peaked at No. 27 on the Billboard 200 chart. Soon after, Ministry was invited to headline the second Lollapalooza tour with Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Soundgarden, among others, before commencing a tour of Europe and the US, with Helmet and Sepultura as supporting acts.
Middle years, turmoil and Jourgensen's drug addiction (1994–2001)
In October 1994, Ministry performed at the eighth Bridge School Benefit charity concert, with sets of cover songs (most prominently Bob Dylan's "Lay Lady Lay") and one original song, "Paisley", which was intended to be on their next album. After constructing a studio in Austin, Texas in 1993, the band proceeded to record a new album in July 1994. After refusing to perform drums on a cover version of "Lay Lady Lay", Rieflin parted ways with Jourgensen midway through the recording process. Along with newly recruited Rey Washam (formerly of Scratch Acid, Didjits, and Rapeman) who performed the rest of the album's drum work, Ministry performed as one of the headliners for Australia and New Zealand's Big Day Out touring festival in January 1995. In spite of their growing success, Ministry was nearly derailed by drug problems and a series of arrests followed in August 1995. Completed at Chicago Trax Studios, Filth Pig was released in 1996. Musically, Filth Pig was more heavy metal than industrial, with synthesizers and samples mostly stripped from a mix that focused on conventional hard rock instrumentation.
The album's songs were played mostly at slower tempos than those on their previous three LPs, giving it an almost doom metal feel. Filth Pig was supported with the singles/videos "Reload", "The Fall", "Lay Lady Lay" and "Brick Windows" and with a tour in 1996 (the live performances were later anthologized on the Sphinctour album and DVD in 2002). Jourgensen has subsequently said that he was severely depressed during this period, that Filth Pig reflects this, and that he dislikes performing music from Filth Pig.
Ministry recorded their final studio album for Warner Bros. Records, Dark Side of the Spoon (1999), which they dedicated to William Tucker, who committed suicide earlier that year. For Dark Side of the Spoon, Ministry tried to diversify their sound by adding some melodic and synthetic touches to their usual electro-metal sound, along with some jazz influences, but the album was not well received, critically or commercially. However, the single "Bad Blood" appeared on the soundtrack album of The Matrix and was nominated for a 2000 Grammy award. During this period, Jourgensen had an infected toe amputated after accidentally stepping on a discarded hypodermic needle.
In the summer of 2000, Ministry was invited to that year's Ozzfest; amidst a management changeover, they were dropped from the bill and replaced by Soulfly.
After Ministry were dropped from Warner Bros. in 2000, the label issued the 2001 collection Greatest Fits, which featured a new song, "What About Us?". Ministry would later perform the song in a cameo appearance in the Steven Spielberg film AI: Artificial Intelligence. In 2000–2002, disputes with Warner Bros. Records resulted in the planned live albums Live Psalm 69, Sphinctour and ClittourUS on Ipecac Recordings being canceled. Sphinctour was released on Sanctuary Records.
Jourgensen's recovery from drug addiction and comeback (2001–2007)
Around 2001, Jourgensen almost lost his arm when he was bitten by a venomous spider. By his own admission, Jourgensen was suicidal during this period and decided to call an acquaintance he had met years earlier; the acquaintance, Angelina Luckacin, helped Jourgensen give up his massive substance habit, which included heroin and cocaine "speedballs", crack, LSD, various pharmaceuticals and as many as two full bottles of Bushmills whiskey per day (Luckacin and Jourgensen married soon after). Jourgensen and Barker, along with Max Brody who had joined as a saxophone player for the 1999 tour, focused on developing songs for a new record during 2001 and 2002, with the band issuing Animositisomina on Sanctuary Records in 2003. The sound was strongly heavy metal with voice effects, though it featured an almost-pop cover of Magazine's "The Light Pours Out Of Me". Animositisomina, compared to previous releases, sold poorly and singles for "Animosity" and "Piss" were canceled before they could be released.
Barker announced his departure from Ministry in January 2004. He stated that the trigger was his father dying while the band was wrapping up a summer tour in Europe, and also stated that his family life was his main focus at that particular time. Lukacin stated in 2013 that Jourgensen fell out with Barker over the band's finances. Jourgensen continued Ministry with Mike Scaccia and various other musicians.
For Ministry's next album, Jourgensen released the song "No W", a song critical of then-U.S. President George W. Bush; an alternate version of the track was placed on the multi-performer compilation Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1. The follow-up LP, Houses of the Molé (2004), contained the most explicitly political lyrics Jourgensen had yet written, with songs played more crudely than on previous recordings, giving the album the most metal-oriented sound of their career. In 2006, the band released Rio Grande Blood, an LP on Jourgensen's own 13th Planet Records. With Prong's Tommy Victor and Killing Joke's Paul Raven, the album featured an even heavier thrash metal sound drawing comparison to Slayer. The single "Lieslieslies" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance at the 49th annual Grammy Awards. It, along with another song on the album, "The Great Satan", is also available as a downloadable content song for the 2008 video game Rock Band 2. In July 2007, the band released Rio Grande Dub, an album featuring remixes from the band's 2006 Rio Grande Blood album.
What Jourgensen expected to be Ministry's "final" album, The Last Sucker was released on September 18, 2007.
Paul Raven died on October 20, 2007, a month and two-days after the release of The Last Sucker, suffering an apparent heart attack shortly after arriving in Europe to commence recording for the French industrial band Treponem Pal near the Swiss border.
Breakup and posthumous releases (2008–2011)
Jourgensen remixed and co-produced Spyder Baby's "Bitter", which was released by Blind Prophecy Records in early 2008.
A song titled "Keys to the City", which became the theme song for the Chicago Blackhawks, was released on March 5, 2008. In addition to this single, two albums of covers/remixes, Cover Up (April 1, 2008) and Undercover (December 6, 2010) were released. All of these releases are credited to Ministry and Co-Conspirators''', since they feature collaborations between Jourgensen and other musicians.
Ministry's "farewell" tour, the "C-U-LaTour", started its North American leg on March 26, 2008 with Meshuggah performing as special guests and Hemlock as an opening act. They played their final North American shows in Chicago on May 10 and 12, 2008. The final date on the international leg of the tour was at the Tripod in Dublin, Ireland on July 18, 2008. During the performance, Jourgensen repeatedly reaffirmed it would indeed be the last Ministry show. Due to a large demand for tickets, an extra gig was added at the Tripod on July 19, 2008. The band again played to a full house. Ministry's final song at this show (and ostensibly their last live performance) was a rendition of their cover version of "What a Wonderful World".Adios ... Puta Madres, a live album featuring material culled from the tour, was released in 2009 on CD and DVD.
A documentary film called Fix: The Ministry Movie was planned for release sometime in 2010. However, the release date was pushed back to early 2011. Eventually, it premiered at the Chicago International Movies & Music Festival. Jourgensen sued the filmmaker, Doug Freel, for failing to fulfill a portion of the contract giving Jourgensen approval over the final cut, along with "thousands of dollars". The lawsuit was dropped in July 2011. On July 21, the film was screened privately at the Music Box Theater in Los Angeles.
Reunion, Relapse, death of Mike Scaccia and From Beer to Eternity (2011–2015)
On August 7, 2011, Ministry announced they would reform and would play at Germany's Wacken Open Air festival, set to take place on August 2–4, 2012. The reunion lineup featured Al Jourgensen on vocals, Mike Scaccia and Tommy Victor on guitar, Aaron Rossi on drums, John Bechdel on keyboards, and Tony Campos on bass.
Jourgensen told Metal Hammer in August 2011 that Ministry was working on a new album called Relapse, which they hoped to release by Christmas. Regarding the sound of the new material, he explained, "We've only got five songs to go. I've been listening to it the last couple of weeks and I wasn't really in the mood, I was just taking it as a joke. Just to pass the time at first but [Mikey's] raving about it. It's like, dude c'mon, this is not about Bush, so ... that part's over. The ulcers are gone and Bush is gone so it's time for something new. I think this is actually gonna wind up being the fastest and heaviest record I've ever done. Just because we did it as anti-therapy therapy against the country music we would just take days off and thrash faster than I've done in a long time, faster than Mikey's done in a long time. He just did a Rigor Mortis tour and said it was easy compared to this Ministry stuff so it's gonna be brutal and it's gonna freak a lot of people out."
Ministry announced on their website that they entered the studio on September 1, 2011 with engineer Sammy D'Ambruoso to begin recording their new album. During the third webisode featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the making of Relapse, a release date of March 23, 2012 was announced.
On December 23, 2011, Ministry released "99 Percenters", the first single from Relapse, and began streaming it on their Facebook page two days later. On February 24, 2012, Ministry released a second single, "Double Tap", which was included in the April 2012 issue of the Metal Hammer magazine. On March 23, 2012, Relapse was released; it was supported with "Defibrillatour", a concert tour which lasted from that year's June to August.
On December 23, 2012, guitarist Mike Scaccia died following an on-stage heart attack, while playing with his other band, Rigor Mortis. In an interview with Noisey in March 2013, Jourgensen announced that Ministry would break up again, explaining that he did not want to carry on without Scaccia. He explained, "Mikey was my best friend in the world and there's no Ministry without him. But I know the music we recorded together during the last weeks of his life had to be released to honor him. So after his funeral, I locked myself in my studio and turned the songs we had recorded into the best and last Ministry record anyone will ever hear. I can't do it without Mikey and I don't want to. So yes, this will be Ministry's last album." The album, titled From Beer to Eternity, was released on September 6, 2013. Jourgensen stated that Ministry would tour in support of From Beer to Eternity, but would not record any more albums.
AmeriKKKant, Moral Hygiene and upcoming sixteenth studio album (2016–present)
In an April 2016 interview with Loudwire, Jourgensen stated that Ministry would make a follow-up to From Beer to Eternity "if the circumstances are right." When asked in July about the possibility of a new album, Jourgensen stated, "When I was asked [before], it was after Mikey passed and the entire media immediately starts asking me what is going to happen to Ministry. He wasn't even buried yet. I thought, 'Fuck you.' I was really pissed and really angry. I said, 'Fuck Ministry and fuck you for asking.' They want to comment on Ministry when my best friend had died. It's been more than two years now, and I got more ideas and I have done albums with Mikey and have done them without him. It's time to get another record out. I have a bunch of songs written in my head. I wanted to have time to mourn before people start asking me about touring dates. It was sick. I was bombarded and email boxes were overloaded with 'what are you going to do now?' It was kind of creepy."
By February 2017, Ministry had begun working on their fourteenth studio album, titled AmeriKKKant. The album, released on March 9, 2018, includes guest appearances from Burton C. Bell of Fear Factory, former N.W.A member Arabian Prince, DJ Swamp and Lord of the Cello. During their performance at the Blackest of the Black Fest in Silverado, California in May 2017, Ministry debuted their first song in four years, "Antifa", which, at the time, was expected to appear on AmeriKKKant.
In an October 2018 interview with Billboard magazine, Jourgensen revealed that he had begun working on new material for Ministry's fifteenth studio album. He explained, "I have to get as many albums as I can done while Trump is still president, and then what am I going to do: write those crappy albums that I write while Democrats are president?" A month later, media reports noted that Jourgensen had reconnected with Barker after 15 years, hinting that the two might collaborate once again on the upcoming Ministry album.
In a 2019 interview with Revolver magazine, Jourgensen reaffirmed that he had been working on new material since 2018, and revealed that he had hired Paul D'Amour (formerly of Tool) as the new bassist of Ministry. The band – alongside Primus and Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals – opened for Slayer on the final North American leg of their farewell tour, which took place in November 2019.
In December 2019, the band released a visual history coffee table book, Ministry: Prescripture, with author Aaron Tanner.
In January 2020, Ministry announced the "Industrial Strength Tour" would start in 2020, with drummer London May of Samhain, which would feature both KMFDM and Front Line Assembly as guests. The tour was to begin on 1 July and extend until August. In May 2020, the band announced that they postponed all dates on the Industrial Strength Tour until 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 25–date tour, with KMFDM and Front Line Assembly, was scheduled to take place in March and April 2021; the trek was once again postponed to the fall of 2021, this time with Helmet replacing KMFDM, who were unable to partake in the tour because of restrictions caused by the COVID in their native Germany. On September 24, 2021, Ministry announced that The Industrial Strength tour had been postponed once more because of the pandemic, with the tour now scheduled to take place in March and April 2022, and the Melvins and Corrosion of Conformity replacing Front Line Assembly and Helmet as special guests.
On January 17, 2020, Billboard released an exposé on guitar player Sin Quirin, detailing accounts of Quirin's alleged behavior including sexual relationships with underage females while touring in San Antonio, TX, Portland, OR, and Tacoma, WA, in the early 2000s. In May 2021, Quirin announced via Facebook that he was leaving Ministry.
On March 24, 2020, longtime drummer Bill Rieflin died of cancer, which had been kept private. His death was announced the next day by Robert Fripp of King Crimson via Facebook.
On April 24, 2020, one month after Rieflin's passing, Ministry released their first song in two-and-a-half years, "Alert Level", which was expected to appear on the band's then-upcoming fifteenth studio album.
In May 2021, the band announced that drummer Roy Mayorga has rejoined the band.
On July 8, 2021, Ministry released "Good Trouble" as the first single from their fifteenth studio album Moral Hygiene, which was released on October 1.
About two weeks after the release of Moral Hygiene, Jourgensen revealed that another Ministry album "will be out in 6-8 months."
Artistry
Ministry's experimentation, stylistic variation and changes during its career cross several genres of popular music. Alternative rock subgenres such as industrial rock and industrial metal are umbrella terms predominantly used to describe the band's career in general. Ministry has been classified under many other genres, including EBM/industrial dance, techno-rock, hard rock, heavy metal, speed metal, thrash metal, and electro-industrial; their early output has been categorised as new wave, synth-pop, dance-pop, electronic dance, and dark wave. In the April 1989 issue of Spin Magazine, an author Michael Corcoran labelled the band as "industrial disco"; in 1994, writer Simon Glickman used this term as well. AllMusic's Steve Huey states that, previous to Nine Inch Nails' rise to mainstream popularity, "Ministry did more than any other band to popularize industrial dance music, injecting large doses of punky, over-the-top aggression and roaring heavy metal guitar riffs that helped their music find favor with metal and alternative audiences outside of industrial's cult fan base." Despite frequent descriptions of the band's music as industrial,; . Jourgensen disputed the use of this tag in several publications since the early 1990s, preferring instead to identify his style as "aggro", and, much later "industrious".
Despite Jourgensen's dislike of touring, Ministry are noted for their live performances, featuring extended versions of songs (as evidenced on In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up) and disturbing visual imagery. MTV also recognized the band as an influential heavy metal act, highlighting the use of sampling during their heyday. Alternative Press included Ministry in their 1996 list of 100 underground inspirations of the past 20 years, stating that they merged "metal, samples, synths, and the 100-mph sound of urban paranoia, they pretty much created industrial music as we know it."
Related projects
Jourgensen, with former and current bandmates, has been active in a number of musical projects besides Ministry. Foremost of these was the Revolting Cocks, founded by Jourgensen, Richard 23 and Luc van Acker during Ministry and Front 242's tour in 1984. Since its formation, the band has released a number of records, and has gone through several line-up changes. 1000 Homo DJs, a project purposed for outtakes from The Land of Rape and Honey and The Mind ... , has recorded a cover of Black Sabbath's "Supernaut", featuring Nine Inch Nails frontman and one-time Revolting Cocks touring member Trent Reznor. PTP, a project led by Jourgensen and Barker, included the assistance from Nivek Ogre on one occasion, and Connelly on another, and notably provided the song "Show Me Your Spine" featured in Paul Verhoeven's 1987 film RoboCop. Other notable projects include Pailhead with Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat and Fugazi, Lard with former Dead Kennedys lead singer Jello Biafra, and Acid Horse with Cabaret Voltaire members Richard H. Kirk and Stephen Mallinder. Buck Satan and the 666 Shooters, a country project led by Jourgensen, released the sole album, Bikers Welcome Ladies Drink Free, in 2012 through 13th Planet Records. Surgical Meth Machine, a speed metal project originally tributed to guitarist Mike Scaccia
Barker has released several solo recordings under various monikers, including Age of Reason and Chicks & Speed: Futurism as Lead into Gold in 1990, The Perfect Pair as Flowering Blight in 2008, and Fix This!!!, an accompanying soundtrack of Fix: The Ministry Movie, under his own name in 2012. Through the 2000s, Barker formed Pink Anvil with Max Brody and U.S.S.A. with the Jesus Lizard guitarist Duane Denison. Brody and Scaccia have also released materials as Goobersmoochers via Brody's Bandcamp site.
Members
Current members
Al Jourgensen – lead vocals, guitars, keyboards, programming, harmonica, bandolin, production (1981–present)
John Bechdel – keyboards (2006–2008, 2011–present)
Cesar Soto – guitars, backing vocals (2015–present)
Paul D'Amour – bass (2019–present)
Roy Mayorga – drums (2016–2017, 2021–present)
Monte Pittman – guitars (2014, 2021–present)
Former members
Keyboards
John Davis – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1982; died 2005)
Robert Roberts – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1983)
Duane Buford – keyboards (1994–1999)
DJ Swamp – turntables (2017–2018)
Drums
Stephen George – drums (1981–1984)
Bill Rieflin – drums, keyboards, guitar (1986–1994; died 2020)
Rey Washam – drums (1994–1999, 2003)
Max Brody – drums, saxophone (1999–2004)
Aaron Rossi – drums (2008, 2011–2016)
Derek Abrams – drums (2017–2019)
London May – drums (2020–2021)
Guitar
Mike Scaccia – guitars (1989–1995, 2003–2006, 2011–2012; died 2012)
Louis Svitek – guitars (1992–1999, 2003)
Zlatko Hukic – guitars (1996–1999)
Tommy Victor – guitars (2004–2008, 2011–2012)
Sin Quirin – guitars, bass, keyboards (2007–2008, 2012–2021)
Bass
Brad Hallen – bass (1983–1984)
Paul Barker – bass, keyboards, programming, production, vocals (1986–2003)
Paul Raven – bass, keyboards (2005–2007; died 2007)
Jason Christopher – bass, backing vocals (2016–2017)
Tony Campos – bass, backing vocals (2008, 2011–2015, 2017–2019)
Additional/touring musicians
Keyboards
Paul Taylor – keyboards (1981)
Mark Pothier – keyboards, backing vocals (1983)
Doug Chamberlin – keyboards, backing vocals (1983–1984)
Patty Jourgensen – keyboards, backing vocals (1984)
John Soroka – keyboards, backing vocals, percussion (1984)
Roland Barker – keyboards (1986, 1992–1993), saxophone (1986)
Sarolta DeFaltay – keyboards, backing vocals (1986)
Marston Daley – keyboards (1987)
Michael Balch – keyboards, programming (1991–1992)
Darrell James – keyboards (2003–2004)
Guitar
William Tucker – guitar (1989–1990; died 1999)
Terry Roberts – guitar, backing vocals (1989–1990)
Michel Bassin – guitar (1992)
Sam Ladwig – guitar (1992)
Rick Valles – guitar (2004)
Drums
Jeff Ward – drums (1988; died 1993)
Martin Atkins – drums (1989–1990)
Tia Sprocket – drums (2003; died 2017)
Mark Baker – drums (2004–2005)
Joey Jordison – drums (2006; died 2021)
Thomas Holtgreve – drums (2017)
Bass
Martin Sorenson – bass (1981–1982)
Casey Orr – bass (1992, 2012)
John Monte – bass (2004)
Eddy Garcia – bass (2004)
Vocals
Audrey Stanzler – vocals (1981–1982)
Shay Jones – vocals (1982–1983)
Yvonne Gage – vocals (1983–1984)
Chris Connelly – vocals (1989–1990, 1992–1993), keyboards (1989–1990)
Nivek Ogre – vocals (1988–1990)
Joe Kelly – vocals (1989–1990)
Marco Neves – vocals (1992)
Burton C. Bell – vocals (2008, 2018)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
With Sympathy (1983)
Twitch (1986)
The Land of Rape and Honey (1988)
The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989)
Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs (1992)
Filth Pig (1996)
Dark Side of the Spoon (1999)
Animositisomina (2003)
Houses of the Molé (2004)
Rio Grande Blood (2006)
The Last Sucker (2007)
Relapse (2012)
From Beer to Eternity (2013)
AmeriKKKant (2018)
Moral Hygiene'' (2021)
Tours
With Sympathy Tour, 1983
Wax Trax! Singles Tour, 1984
Twitch Tour, 1986–1987
The Land of Rape and Honey Tour, 1988
The Mind Tour, 1989–1990
Lollapalooza 1992
Psalm 69 Tour, 1992–1994
Big Day Out, 1995
Sphinctour, 1996
ClitourUS, 1999
Fornicatour, 2003
Evil Doer Tour, 2004–2005
MasterBaTour, 2006
C-U-LaTour, 2008
DeFiBriLaTouR / Relapse Tour, 2012
From Beer to EternaTour, 2015
Death Grips and Ministry US Tour 2017
The AmeriKKKan Tour, 2018
EU/UK Summer Tour, 2019
Industrial Strength Tour, 2022 (initially scheduled to take place in summer 2020, later rescheduled to fall 2021 and then spring 2022 due to COVID-19)
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Ministry @ prongs.org
1981 establishments in Illinois
American industrial metal musical groups
American industrial music groups
Rock music groups from Illinois
Arista Records artists
Heavy metal musical groups from Illinois
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups disestablished in 2008
Musical groups reestablished in 2011
Musical groups from Chicago
Nuclear Blast artists
Political music groups
Sire Records artists
Situation Two artists
Warner Records artists
Wax Trax! Records artists | false | [
"Přírodní park Třebíčsko (before Oblast klidu Třebíčsko) is a natural park near Třebíč in the Czech Republic. There are many interesting plants. The park was founded in 1983.\n\nKobylinec and Ptáčovský kopeček\n\nKobylinec is a natural monument situated ca 0,5 km from the village of Trnava.\nThe area of this monument is 0,44 ha. Pulsatilla grandis can be found here and in the Ptáčovský kopeček park near Ptáčov near Třebíč. Both monuments are very popular for tourists.\n\nPonds\n\nIn the natural park there are some interesting ponds such as Velký Bor, Malý Bor, Buršík near Přeckov and a brook Březinka. Dams on the brook are examples of European beaver activity.\n\nSyenitové skály near Pocoucov\n\nSyenitové skály (rocks of syenit) near Pocoucov is one of famed locations. There are interesting granite boulders. The area of the reservation is 0,77 ha.\n\nExternal links\nParts of this article or all article was translated from Czech. The original article is :cs:Přírodní park Třebíčsko.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nNature near the village Trnava which is there\n\nTřebíč\nParks in the Czech Republic\nTourist attractions in the Vysočina Region",
"Damn Interesting is an independent website founded by Alan Bellows in 2005. The website presents true stories from science, history, and psychology, primarily as long-form articles, often illustrated with original artwork. Works are written by various authors, and published at irregular intervals. The website openly rejects advertising, relying on reader and listener donations to cover operating costs.\n\nAs of October 2012, each article is also published as a podcast under the same name. In November 2019, a second podcast was launched under the title Damn Interesting Week, featuring unscripted commentary on an assortment of news articles featured on the website's \"Curated Links\" section that week. In mid-2020, a third podcast called Damn Interesting Curio Cabinet began highlighting the website's periodic short-form articles in the same radioplay format as the original podcast.\n\nIn July 2009, Damn Interesting published the print book Alien Hand Syndrome through Workman Publishing. It contains some favorites from the site and some exclusive content.\n\nAwards and recognition \nIn August 2007, PC Magazine named Damn Interesting one of the \"Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites\".\nThe article \"The Zero-Armed Bandit\" by Alan Bellows won a 2015 Sidney Award from David Brooks in The New York Times.\nThe article \"Ghoulish Acts and Dastardly Deeds\" by Alan Bellows was cited as \"nonfiction journalism from 2017 that will stand the test of time\" by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.\nThe article \"Dupes and Duplicity\" by Jennifer Lee Noonan won a 2020 Sidney Award from David Brooks in the New York Times.\n\nAccusing The Dollop of plagiarism \n\nOn July 9, 2015, Bellows posted an open letter accusing The Dollop, a comedy podcast about history, of plagiarism due to their repeated use of verbatim text from Damn Interesting articles without permission or attribution. Dave Anthony, the writer of The Dollop, responded on reddit, admitting to using Damn Interesting content, but claiming that the use was protected by fair use, and that \"historical facts are not copyrightable.\" In an article about the controversy on Plagiarism Today, Jonathan Bailey concluded, \"Any way one looks at it, The Dollop failed its ethical obligations to all of the people, not just those writing for Damn Interesting, who put in the time, energy and expertise into writing the original content upon which their show is based.\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Official website\n\n2005 podcast debuts"
]
|
[
"Hattie McDaniel",
"Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar"
]
| C_f7cf3aff90f0448485ddd74b2d1cafa7_0 | WHat did this lead him to | 1 | What did the Oscar lead Hattie McDaniel to? | Hattie McDaniel | The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009. In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s. In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of the Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar was likely returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the 5 1/2" x 6" plaque. CANNOTANSWER | The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. | Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first African American to win an Oscar. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975, and in 2006 she became the first black Oscar winner honored with a U.S. postage stamp. In 2010, she was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. In addition to acting, McDaniel recorded 16 blues sides between 1926 and 1929 and was a radio performer and television personality; she was the first black woman to sing on radio in the United States. Although she appeared in over 300 films, she received screen credits for only 83.
McDaniel experienced racism and racial segregation throughout her career, and notably was unable to attend the premiere of Gone with the Wind in Atlanta because it was held at a whites-only theater. At the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, she sat at a segregated table at the side of the room. In 1952, McDaniel died due to breast cancer. Her final wish to be buried in Hollywood Cemetery was denied due to the graveyard being restricted to whites only at the time.
Early life
McDaniel, the youngest of 13 children, was born in 1893 to formerly-enslaved parents in Wichita, Kansas. Her mother, Susan Holbert, was a singer of gospel music, and her father, Henry McDaniel, fought in the Civil War with the 122nd United States Colored Troops. In 1900, the family moved to Colorado, living first in Fort Collins and then in Denver, where Hattie attended Denver East High School (1908-1910) and in 1908 entered a contest sponsored by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, reciting "Convict Joe", later claiming she had won first place. Her brother, Sam McDaniel, played the butler in the 1948 Three Stooges' short film Heavenly Daze. Her sister Etta McDaniel was also an actress.
Career
Early work and acting beginnings
McDaniel was a songwriter as well as a performer. She honed her songwriting skills while working with her brother Otis McDaniel's carnival company, a minstrel show. McDaniel and her sister Etta Goff launched an all-female minstrel show in 1914 called the McDaniel Sisters Company. After the death of her brother Otis in 1916, the troupe began to lose money, and Hattie did not get her next big break until 1920. From 1920 to 1925, she appeared with Professor George Morrison's Melody Hounds, a black touring ensemble. In the mid-1920s, she embarked on a radio career, singing with the Melody Hounds on station KOA in Denver. From 1926 to 1929, she recorded many of her songs for Okeh Records and Paramount Records in Chicago. McDaniel recorded seven sessions: one in the summer of 1926 on the rare Kansas City label Meritt; four sessions in Chicago for Okeh from late 1926 to late 1927 (of the 10 sides recorded, only four were issued), and two sessions in Chicago for Paramount in March 1929.
After the stock market crashed in 1929, McDaniel could only find work as a washroom attendant at Sam Pick's Club Madrid near Milwaukee. Despite the owner's reluctance to let her perform, she was eventually allowed to take the stage and soon became a regular performer.
In 1931, McDaniel moved to Los Angeles to join her brother Sam, and sisters Etta and Orlena. When she could not get film work, she took jobs as a maid or cook. Sam was working on a KNX radio program, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour, and was able to get his sister a spot. She performed on radio as "Hi-Hat Hattie", a bossy maid who often "forgets her place". Her show became popular, but her salary was so low that she had to keep working as a maid. She made her first film appearance in The Golden West (1932), in which she played a maid. Her second appearance came in the highly successful Mae West film I'm No Angel (1933), in which she played one of the maids with whom West camped it up backstage. She received several other uncredited film roles in the early 1930s, often singing in choruses. In 1934, McDaniel joined the Screen Actors Guild. She began to attract attention and landed larger film roles, which began to win her screen credits. Fox Film Corporation put her under contract to appear in The Little Colonel (1935), with Shirley Temple, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Lionel Barrymore.
Judge Priest (1934), directed by John Ford and starring Will Rogers, was the first film in which she played a major role. She had a leading part in the film and demonstrated her singing talent, including a duet with Rogers. McDaniel and Rogers became friends during filming. In 1935, McDaniel had prominent roles, as a slovenly maid in Alice Adams (RKO Pictures); a comic part as Jean Harlow's maid and traveling companion in China Seas (MGM) (McDaniels's first film with Clark Gable); and as the maid Isabella in Murder by Television, with Béla Lugosi. She appeared in the 1938 film Vivacious Lady, starring James Stewart and Ginger Rogers. McDaniel had a featured role as Queenie in the 1936 film Show Boat (Universal Pictures), starring Allan Jones and Irene Dunne, in which she sang a verse of Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man with Dunne, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, and a black chorus. She and Robeson sang "I Still Suits Me", written for the film by Kern and Hammerstein. After Show Boat, she had major roles in MGM's Saratoga (1937), starring Jean Harlow and Clark Gable; The Shopworn Angel (1938), with Margaret Sullavan; and The Mad Miss Manton (1938), starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She had a minor role in the Carole Lombard–Frederic March film Nothing Sacred (1937), in which she played the wife of a shoeshine man (Troy Brown) masquerading as a sultan.
McDaniel was a friend of many of Hollywood's most popular stars, including Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Bette Davis, Shirley Temple, Henry Fonda, Ronald Reagan, Olivia de Havilland, and Clark Gable. She starred with de Havilland and Gable in Gone with the Wind (1939). Around this time, she was criticized by members of the black community for the roles she accepted and for pursuing roles aggressively rather than rocking the Hollywood boat. For example, in The Little Colonel (1935), she played one of the servants longing to return to the Old South, but her portrayal of Malena in RKO Pictures's Alice Adams angered white Southern audiences, because she stole several scenes from the film's white star, Katharine Hepburn. McDaniel ultimately became best known for playing a sassy, opinionated maid.
Gone with the Wind
The competition to win the part of Mammy in Gone with the Wind was almost as fierce as that for Scarlett O'Hara. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt wrote to film producer David O. Selznick to ask that her own maid, Elizabeth McDuffie, be given the part. McDaniel did not think she would be chosen because she had earned her reputation as a comic actress. One source claimed that Clark Gable recommended that the role be given to McDaniel; in any case, she went to her audition dressed in an authentic maid's uniform and won the part.
Upon hearing of the planned film adaptation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) fought hard to require the film's producer and director to delete racial epithets from the movie (in particular the offensive slur "nigger") and to alter scenes that might be incendiary and that, in their view, were historically inaccurate. Of particular concern was a scene from the novel in which black men attack Scarlett O'Hara, after which the Ku Klux Klan, with its long history of provoking terror on black communities, is presented as a savior. Throughout the South, black men were being lynched based upon false allegations they had harmed white women. That attack scene was altered, and some offensive language was modified, but another epithet, "darkie", remained in the film, and the film's message with respect to slavery remained essentially the same. Consistent with the book, the film's screenplay also referred to poor whites as "white trash", and it ascribed these words equally to characters black and white.
Loew's Grand Theater on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia was selected by the studio as the site for the Friday, December 15, 1939, premiere of Gone with the Wind. Studio head David O. Selznick asked that McDaniel be permitted to attend, but MGM advised him not to, because of Georgia's segregation laws. Clark Gable threatened to boycott the Atlanta premiere unless McDaniel were allowed to attend, but McDaniel convinced him to attend anyway.
Most of Atlanta's 300,000 citizens crowded the route of the seven-mile (11 km) motorcade that carried the film's other stars and executives from the airport to the Georgian Terrace Hotel, where they stayed. While Jim Crow laws kept McDaniel from the Atlanta premiere, she did attend the film's Hollywood debut on December 28, 1939. Upon Selznick's insistence, her picture was also featured prominently in the program.
Reception and 1939 Academy Awards
For her performance as the house servant who repeatedly scolds her owner's daughter, Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), and scoffs at Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), McDaniel won the 1939 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first black actor to have been nominated and win an Oscar. "I loved Mammy," McDaniel said when speaking to the white press about the character. "I think I understood her because my own grandmother worked on a plantation not unlike Tara." Her role in Gone with the Wind had alarmed some whites in the South; there were complaints that in the film she had been too "familiar" with her white owners. At least one writer pointed out that McDaniel's character did not significantly depart from Mammy's persona in Margaret Mitchell's novel, and that in both the film and the book, the much younger Scarlett speaks to Mammy in ways that would be deemed inappropriate for a Southern teenager of that era to speak to a much older white person, and that neither the book nor the film hints of the existence of Mammy's own children (dead or alive), her own family (dead or alive), a real name, or her desires to have anything other than a life at Tara, serving on a slave plantation. Moreover, while Mammy scolds the younger Scarlett, she never crosses Mrs. O'Hara, the more senior white woman in the household. Some critics felt that McDaniel not only accepted the roles but also in her statements to the press acquiesced in Hollywood's stereotypes, providing fuel for critics of those who were fighting for black civil rights. Later, when McDaniel tried to take her "Mammy" character on a road show, black audiences did not prove receptive.
While many black people were happy over McDaniel's personal victory, they also viewed it as bittersweet. They believed Gone With the Wind celebrated the slave system and condemned the forces that destroyed it. For them, the unique accolade McDaniel had won suggested that only those who did not protest Hollywood's systemic use of racial stereotypes could find work and success there.
The Twelfth Academy Awards took place at the Coconut Grove Restaurant of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. It was preceded by a banquet in the same room. Louella Parsons, an American gossip columnist, wrote about Oscar night, February 29, 1940:
McDaniel received a plaque-style Oscar, approximately by , the type awarded to all Best Supporting Actors and Actresses at that time. She and her escort were required to sit at a segregated table for two at the far wall of the room; her white agent, William Meiklejohn, sat at the same table. The hotel had a strict no-blacks policy, but allowed McDaniel in as a favor. The discrimination continued after the award ceremony as well as her white co-stars went to a "no-blacks" club, where McDaniel was also denied entry. Another black woman did not win an Oscar again for 50 years, with Whoopi Goldberg winning Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ghost. Weeks prior to McDaniel winning her Oscar, there was even more controversy. David Selznick, the producer of Gone With the Wind, omitted the faces of all the black actors on the posters advertising the movie in the South. None of the black cast members were allowed to attend the premiere for the movie.
Gone with the Wind won eight Academy Awards. It was later named by the American Film Institute (AFI) as number four among the top 100 American films of all time in the 1998 ranking and number six in the 2007 ranking.
Final works
In the Warner Bros. film In This Our Life (1942), starring Bette Davis and directed by John Huston, McDaniel once again played a domestic, but one who confronts racial issues when her son, a law student, is wrongly accused of manslaughter. McDaniel was in the same studio's Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943), with Humphrey Bogart and Bette Davis. In its review of the film, Time wrote that McDaniel was comic relief in an otherwise "grim study," writing, "Hattie McDaniel, whose bubbling, blaring good humor more than redeems the roaring bad taste of a Harlem number called Ice Cold Katie". McDaniel continued to play maids during the war years for Warners in The Male Animal (1942) and United Artists' Since You Went Away (1944), but her feistiness was toned down to reflect the era's somber news. She also played the maid in Song of the South (1946) for Disney.
She made her last film appearances in Mickey (1948) and Family Honeymoon (1949), where that same year, she appeared on the live CBS television program The Ed Wynn Show. She remained active on radio and television in her final years, becoming the first black actor to star in her own radio show with the comedy series Beulah. She also starred in the television version of the show, replacing Ethel Waters after the first season. (Waters had apparently expressed concerns over stereotypes in the role.) Beulah was a hit, however, and earned McDaniel $2,000 per week; however, the show was controversial. In 1951, the United States Army ceased broadcasting Beulah in Asia because troops complained that the show perpetuated negative stereotypes of black men as shiftless and lazy and interfered with the ability of black troops to perform their mission. After filming a handful of episodes, however, McDaniel learned she had breast cancer. By the spring of 1952, she was too ill to work and was replaced by Louise Beavers.
Personal life
Marriages
McDaniel married Howard Hickman on January 19, 1911, in Denver, Colorado. He died in 1915. Her second husband, George Langford, died of a gunshot wound in January 1925, soon after she married him and while her career was on the rise.
She married James Lloyd Crawford, a real estate salesman, on March 21, 1941, in Tucson, Arizona. According to Donald Bogle, in his book Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams, McDaniel happily confided to gossip columnist Hedda Hopper in 1945 that she was pregnant. McDaniel began buying baby clothes and set up a nursery in her house. Her plans were shattered when she suffered a false pregnancy and fell into a depression. She never had any children. She divorced Crawford in 1945, after four and a half years of marriage. Crawford had been jealous of her career success, she said.
She married Larry Williams, an interior decorator, on June 11, 1949, in Yuma, Arizona, but divorced him in 1950 after testifying that their five months together had been marred by "arguing and fussing." McDaniel broke down in tears when she testified that her husband tried to provoke dissension in the cast of her radio show and otherwise interfered with her work. "I haven't gotten over it yet," she said. "I got so I couldn't sleep. I couldn't concentrate on my lines."
Community service
During World War II, she served as chairman of the Negro Division of the Hollywood Victory Committee, providing entertainment for soldiers stationed at military bases. (The US military was segregated, and black entertainers were not allowed to serve on white entertainment committees.) She elicited the help of a friend, the actor Leigh Whipper, and other black entertainers for her committee. She made numerous personal appearances at military hospitals, threw parties, and performed at United Service Organizations (USO) shows and war bond rallies to raise funds to support the war on behalf of the Victory Committee. Bette Davis was the only white member of McDaniel's acting troupe to perform for black regiments; Lena Horne and Ethel Waters also participated. McDaniel was also a member of American Women's Voluntary Services.
She joined the actor Clarence Muse, one of the first black members of the Screen Actors Guild, in an NBC radio broadcast to raise funds for Red Cross relief programs for Americans that had been displaced by devastating floods, and she gained a reputation for generosity, lending money to friends and strangers alike.
Death
In August 1950, McDaniel suffered a heart ailment and entered Temple Hospital in semi-critical condition. She was released in October to recuperate at home, and she was cited by United Press on January 3, 1951, as showing "slight improvement in her recovery from a mild stroke."
McDaniel died of breast cancer at age 59 on October 26, 1952, in the hospital on the grounds of the Motion Picture House in Woodland Hills, California. She was survived by her brother Sam McDaniel. Thousands of mourners turned out to celebrate her life and achievements. In her will, McDaniel wrote,
Hollywood Cemetery, on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, is the resting place of movie stars such as Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino. Its owner at the time, Jules Roth, refused to allow her to be buried there, because, at the time of McDaniel's death, the cemetery practiced racial segregation and would not accept the remains of black people for burial. Her second choice was Rosedale Cemetery (now known as Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery), where she lies today.
In 1999, Tyler Cassity, the new owner of the Hollywood Cemetery (renamed the Hollywood Forever Cemetery), offered to have McDaniel re-interred there. Her family did not wish to disturb her remains and declined the offer. Instead, Hollywood Forever Cemetery built a large cenotaph on the lawn overlooking its lake. It is one of Hollywood's most popular tourist attractions.
McDaniel's last will and testament of December 1951 bequeathed her Oscar to Howard University, where she had been honored by the students with a luncheon after she had won her Oscar. At the time of her death, McDaniel would have had few options. Very few white institutions in that day preserved black history. Historically, black colleges had been where such artifacts were placed. Despite evidence McDaniel had earned an excellent income as an actress, her final estate was less than $10,000. The IRS claimed the estate owed more than $11,000 in taxes. In the end, the probate court ordered all of her property, including her Oscar, sold to pay off creditors. Years later, the Oscar turned up where McDaniel wanted it to be: Howard University, where, according to reports, it was displayed in a glass case in the university's drama department. However, it appears to have gone missing from Howard in the 60's or 70's and has never been recovered.
Reception and impact
Initial controversies
As her fame grew, McDaniel faced growing criticism from some members of the black community. Groups such as the NAACP complained that Hollywood stereotypes not only restricted black actors to servant roles but often portrayed them as lazy, dim-witted, satisfied with lowly positions, or violent. In addition to addressing the studios, they called upon actors, and especially leading black actors, to pressure studios to offer more substantive roles and at least not pander to stereotypes. They also argued that these portrayals were unfair as well as inaccurate and that, coupled with segregation and other forms of discrimination, such stereotypes were making it difficult for all black people, not only actors, to overcome racism and succeed in the entertainment industry. Some attacked McDaniel for being an "Uncle Tom"—a person willing to advance personally by perpetuating racial stereotypes or being an agreeable agent of offensive racial restrictions. McDaniel characterized these challenges as class-based biases against domestics, a claim that white columnists seemed to accept. She reportedly said, "Why should I complain about making $700 a week playing a maid? If I didn't, I'd be making $7 a week being one."
McDaniel may also have been criticized because, unlike many other black entertainers, she was not associated with civil rights protests and was largely absent from efforts to establish a commercial base for independent black films. She did not join the Negro Actors Guild of America until 1947, late in her career. McDaniel hired one of the few white agents who would represent black actors at the time, William Meiklejohn, to advance her career. Evidence suggests her avoidance of political controversy was deliberate. When columnist Hedda Hopper sent her Richard Nixon placards and asked McDaniel to distribute them, McDaniel declined, replying she had long ago decided to stay out of politics. "Beulah is everybody's friend," she said. Since she was earning a living honestly, she added, she should not be criticized for accepting such work as was offered. Her critics, especially Walter White of the NAACP, claimed that she and other actors who agreed to portray stereotypes were not a neutral force but rather willing agents of black oppression.
McDaniel and other black actresses and actors feared that their roles would evaporate if the NAACP and other Hollywood critics complained too loudly. She blamed these critics for hindering her career and sought the help of allies of doubtful reputation. After speaking with McDaniel, Hopper claimed that McDaniel's career troubles were not the result of racism but had been caused by McDaniel's "own people".
Achievements and legacy
McDaniel has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood: one at 6933 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to radio and one at 1719 Vine Street for motion pictures. In 1975, she was inducted posthumously into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame.
In 1994 the actress and singer Karla Burns, notably the first black performer to win a Laurence Olivier Award, launched her one-woman show Hi-Hat-Hattie (written by Larry Parr), about McDaniel's life. Burns went on to perform the role in several other cities through 2018, including Off-Broadway and the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre in California.
In 2002, McDaniel's legacy was celebrated in American Movie Classics's (AMC) film Beyond Tara, The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel (2001), produced and directed by Madison D. Lacy and hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. This one-hour special depicted McDaniel's struggles and triumphs in the presence of rampant racism and brutal adversity. The film won the 2001–2002 Daytime Emmy Award, presented on May 17, 2002, for Outstanding Special Class Special.
McDaniel was the 29th inductee in the Black Heritage Series by the United States Postal Service. Her 39-cent stamp was released on January 29, 2006, featuring a 1941 photograph of McDaniel in the dress she wore to accept the Academy Award in 1940. The ceremony took place at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where the Hattie McDaniel collection includes photographs of McDaniel and other family members as well as scripts and other documents.
In 2004 Rita Dove, the first black U.S. poet laureate, published her poem "Hattie McDaniel Arrives at the Coconut Grove" in The New Yorker and has since presented it frequently during her poetry readings as well as on YouTube.
In the 2020 Netflix mini-series Hollywood a fictionalised Hattie McDaniel is played by Queen Latifah.
Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar
The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in The Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in The Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.
In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Precious, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar.
In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of The Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar had likely been returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the award.
West Adams Heights homeowners' covenant case victory
McDaniel was the most famous of the black homeowners who helped to organize the black Historic West Adams neighborhood residents who saved their homes. Loren Miller, an attorney and the owner and publisher of the California Eagle newspaper, represented the minority homeowners in their restrictive covenant case. In 1944, Miller won the case Fairchild v Rainers, a decision in favor of a black family in Pasadena, California, which had bought a nonrestricted lot but was still sued by white neighbors.
Time magazine, in its issue of December 17, 1945, reported:
McDaniel had purchased her white, two-story, seventeen-room house in 1942. The house included a large living room, dining room, drawing room, den, butler's pantry, kitchen, service porch, library, four bedrooms and a basement. McDaniel had a yearly Hollywood party. Everyone knew that the king of Hollywood, Clark Gable, could always be found at McDaniel's parties.
Filmography
Film
Features
Short films
Mickey's Rescue (1934) as Maid (uncredited)
Fate's Fathead (1934) as Mandy - the Maid (uncredited)
The Chases of Pimple Street (1934) as Hattie, Gertrude's Maid (uncredited)
Anniversary Trouble (1935) as Mandy, the Maid
Okay Toots! (1935) as Hattie - the Maid (uncredited)
Wig-Wag (1935) as Cook (uncredited)
The Four Star Boarder (1935) as Maid (uncredited)
Arbor Day (1936) as Buckwheat's Mother
Termites of 1938 (Three Stooges) (1938)
Radio
Station KOA, Denver, Melony Hounds (1926)
Station KNX, Los Angeles, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour (1931)
CBS Network, The Beulah Show (1947)
McDaniel was a semi-regular on the radio program Amos 'n' Andy, first as Andy's demanding landlady. In one episode they nearly marry. Andy was out for her money, aided and abetted by the Kingfish, who gives his wife's diamond ring to present to McDaniel as an engagement ring. The scheme blows up in their faces when Sapphire decides to throw a party to celebrate. Andy desperately tries to conceal the ring from Sapphire. In frustration and growing anger, McDaniel says to Andy, "Andy, sweetheart, darlin'. Is you gonna let go of my hand or does I have to pop you??!!" This episode aired on NBC in June 1944. She played a similar character, "Sadie Simpson", in several later episodes.
Discography
Hattie McDaniel recorded infrequently as a singer. In addition to the musical numbers over her long career in films, she recorded for Okeh Records, Paramount, and the small Kansas City, Missouri label Merrit. All of her known recordings (some of which were never issued) were recorded in the 1920s.
See also
List of African-American firsts
List of black Academy Award winners and nominees
List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
References
Bibliography
Hopper, Hedda. "Hattie Hates Nobody". Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1947.
Jackson, Carlton. Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel. Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1990.
Mitchell, Lisa. "More Than a Mammy". Hollywood Studio Magazine, April 1979.
Salamon, Julie. "The Courage to Rise Above Mammyness". New York Times, August 6, 2001.
Watts, Jill. Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2005.
Talk of the Nation. Jill Watts, interview, audio
Young, Al. "I'd Rather Play a Maid Than Be One". New York Times, October 15, 1989.
Zeigler, Ronny. "Hattie McDaniel: '(I'd) ... rather play a maid.'" N.Y. Amsterdam News, April 28, 1979.
Further reading
Carter, W. Burlette, [ Finding the Oscar] (January 6, 2012). Howard Law Journal, Vol. 55, No. 1, 2011; GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2012-2; GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2012-2.
HISTORY This Week. The Legacy of an Oscar 02/10/2020 W. Burlette Carter and Jill Watts
External links
Hattie and Sam McDaniel papers at Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
1893 births
1952 deaths
20th-century American actresses
20th-century American comedians
Actors from Wichita, Kansas
Actresses from Kansas
African-American actresses
African-American female comedians
African-American women singer-songwriters
African-American radio personalities
American film actresses
American radio actresses
American television actresses
American women comedians
American blues singer-songwriters
Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winners
Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery
Comedians from California
Comedians from Kansas
Deaths from breast cancer
Deaths from cancer in California
Musicians from Wichita, Kansas
Okeh Records artists
Paramount Pictures contract players
People from South Los Angeles
People from West Adams, Los Angeles
RKO Pictures contract players
20th-century African-American women singers
Singer-songwriters from Kansas | true | [
"\"The Bourgeois Blues\" is a blues song by American folk and blues musician Lead Belly. It was written in June 1937 in response to the discrimination and segregation that he faced during a visit to Washington, D.C. to record for Alan Lomax. It rails against racism, the Jim Crow laws, and the conditions of contemporary African Americans in the southern United States. The song was recorded in December 1938 for the Library of Congress and re-recorded in 1939 for commercial release.\n\n\"The Bourgeois Blues\" is regarded as one of Lead Belly's best original works, but it also drew controversy. There is doubt over the song's authorship, with some scholars contending that Lead Belly was unlikely to have written a work in a genre new to him without a collaborator. Questions have been raised over his role in the American Communist Party and whether he and the song were used to further the party's political goals.\n\nBackground and creation\n\nMost music historians date the writing of \"The Bourgeois Blues\" to Lead Belly's June 1937 trip to Washington, D.C., when he was invited by the folklorist Alan Lomax to record for the Library of Congress's folk music collection. On the first night Lead Belly and his wife Martha spent in the city, they encountered racially discriminatory Jim Crow laws similar to those found in their native Louisiana: most hotels refused to rent rooms to African Americans and the few that would were either full or refused to serve him because he was with a white man (Lomax). Lomax, in some versions of the story described as an unnamed \"white friend\", offered to let the couple stay for the night in his apartment near the Supreme Court Building. The next morning, Lead Belly awoke to Lomax arguing with his landlord about the presence of a black man, with the landlord threatening to call the police.\n\nWhile in Washington, Lead Belly encountered several other incidents of segregation that are believed to have contributed to the impetus of the song. For instance, when Lead Belly, Lomax, and their wives wanted to go out to dinner together, they discovered that it was impossible for the mixed race group to find a restaurant that would serve them. Lead Belly was told that if he returned later without Lomax, he would be served.\n\nIn response to one of these incidents, a friend of Lead Belly's, variously identified as either Lomax or Mary Elizabeth Barnicle joked that Washington was a \"bourgeois town.\" Though Lead Belly did not know what the word \"bourgeois\" meant, he was fascinated by the sound of it, and after its meaning was explained to him he decided to incorporate it into a song about the trip. The song came together quickly; one account claims that it only took a few hours for Lead Belly to write it. Lomax liked it because it was partly based on what happened in his apartment.\n\nLyrics, themes and music\n\n\"The Bourgeois Blues\" is a blues-style protest song that criticizes the culture of Washington, DC. It protests against both the city's Jim Crow laws and the racism of its white population. Its structure includes several verses and a refrain that declares that the speaker is going to \"spread the news all around\" about the racial issues plaguing the city. The song, particularly in the refrain, conflates race and economics by referring to Caucasians as \"bourgeois\".\n\nThe first two verses speak of the segregation that Lead Belly encountered in Washington DC: the first recounts the fact that during the trip, Lead Belly was \"turned down\" wherever he tried to get served due to his race, while the second recounts the argument between Lomax and his landlord over Lead Belly staying in his apartment. The third verse sarcastically cites \"the home of the brave, the land of the Free\", juxtaposed with the mistreatment he received at the hands of white people in Washington, DC. The fourth verse speaks of the racism of the white population of the city, leading to the song's end, which suggests that African Americans boycott buying homes in the district.\n\nThe song's tone implies that the speaker feels powerless against the discrimination and racism that he encounters; despite this, by \"spreading the news\" of his poor treatment in a song, the speaker uses what power he has to tell both southern African Americans and northern whites that the status quo is deeply flawed and that something needs to change.\n\n\"The Bourgeois Blues\" follows a traditional twelve-bar blues format. It is written in time but annotated to note that the song rhythmically should swing at medium shuffle. The song was written in B. It uses twelve measures with verses one to four repeating, followed by the final two verses and a coda.\n\nRecordings and adaptions\nLead Belly first recorded \"The Bourgeois Blues\" in December 1938 in New York City, for donation to the Library of Congress. He re-recorded the song in April 1939 for Musicraft Records, for release the same year as a 78 rpm record. The version that was commercially released features Lead Belly singing and playing the twelve-string guitar without any other accompaniment.\n\nThe song has been covered and reinterpreted by a variety of artists including Pete Seeger, Ry Cooder, Taj Mahal, and Hans Theessink. Seeger recorded and released both live and studio versions of the song on several of his albums. In Australia, the song was reworked as \"Canberra Blues\" by The Bitter Lemons, an R&B band. The lyrics speak of the problems faced by young Australians in the Australian Capital Territory in the 1960s. Theessink adapted the song to his style of European blues for the album Journey On in 1997.\n\nThe Fall covered the song on their 2001 album Are You Are Missing Winner. In 2006 Billy Bragg reworked the song as \"Bush War Blues\", a topical protest song about the Iraq War. In one verse, he claims that the Iraq War was not for democracy but instead was to \"make the world safe for Halliburton\". In another, he takes on the Christian right, asking where the moderates are. Finally, Bragg chides the United States government for not dealing with poverty at home before going to war.\n\nLegacy\n\"The Bourgeois Blues\" is one of Lead Belly's most famous songs and is remembered as his most \"heartfelt protest song\". There is disagreement among music scholars as to its importance. Robert Springer claims that the song is \"peripheral\" to the wider study of the blues, while Lawson points to it as a watershed in the way African Americans see themselves in the fabric of the United States. There is debate over the relationship between the song and radical politics. After its release, it became popular with left-wing political groups. Lead Belly was invited to perform at Camp Unity, the Communist Party USA's summer retreat, and the FBI subsequently opened a file on him in the 1940s. This led to the accusations that the Communists were taking advantage of him and using him as a platform. The party claims, to the contrary, that they were some of the few people who respected him and gave him a chance to perform.\n\nJeff Todd Titon and several other writers have suggested that Lead Belly had significant help with its authorship and claim it is not a genuine protest song. This theory stems from the idea that Lead Belly did not have a history of protest music before he was discovered by Lomax. Since the music that Lomax recorded was sold to northerners sympathetic to Civil Rights, it has been suggested that Lomax helped him write a song attractive to a white audience. Lead Belly admitted that the term \"bourgeois\" was unfamiliar to him, and it seems out of place compared to the vocabulary of his past work.\n\nReferences\n\nFootnotes\n\nBibliography\n\nExternal links\nOriginal Library of Congress recording\n\n1937 songs\nLead Belly songs\nSongs written by Lead Belly\nSongs against racism and xenophobia\nBlues songs",
"Bumper Offer is a 2009 Telugu film action comedy romance film directed by Jaya Ravindra. The film stars Sairam Shankar and Bindu Madhavi in the lead roles. The music of the film was composed by Raghu Kunche. The film released on 23 October 2009. Puri Jagannadh produced this film apart from writing the story and the dialogues. The movie was a commercial success. The film was remade in Bengali as Loveria and in Bengali Bangladesh in 2022 as Shoshurbari Zindabad 2 starring Bappy Chowdhury, Apu Biswas, Sadek Bachchu and Afzal Sharif.\n\nPlot\nSai (Sairam Shankar) completes his education and wastes his time. He refuses to marry as her mother Ramanamma (Kovai Sarala) wanted to put some responsibility on him. Sai\"s father Rao is a clerk with a real estate firm run by Surya Prakash (Sayaji Shinde).\n\nOnce, Surya Prakash\"s daughter Aiswarya (Bindu Madhavi) breaks the leg of Sai mistaking him to be someone who tried to tease her. This makes him lose his heart to Aiswarya. After a few turn of events, Aiswarya too falls flat for Sai. But this irks Surya Prakash who tried to thrash both Rao and Sai black and blue. Aiswarya reaches the spot and warns that she would shoot herself if any harm is done to them.\nSurya Prakash budges to the situation and gives an offer to Sai to earn at least five per cent value of his assets and marry Aiswarya. But the latter refuses the offer saying that he is giving another bumper offer to Surya Prakash that he would make him lose his entire property and assets and pull him down to the earth and make him equal to their family to catch the hand of Aiswarya.\n\nWhat plans did Sai make to make Surya Prakash bankrupt? What happens to the love between Sai and Aiswarya? Who is Mallikarjun and what kind of help or harm did he do to Sai? Did Sai emerge victorious in teaching a lesson to Surya Prakash? Answers to all these questions form part of the climax.\n\nCast\n\n Sairam Shankar as Sai\n Bindu Madhavi as Aishwarya\n Sayaji Shinde as Surya Prakash, Aishwarya's father\n Rani as Aishwarya's mother\n Brahmanandam as Viswanath\n Dharmavarapu Subrahmanyam\n MS Narayana\n Ali as Bhairava\n Kovai Sarala as Ramanamma, Sai's mother\n Chandra Mohan as Rao, Sai's father\n Jaya Prakash Reddy\n Venu Madhav as Mitravinda\n Supreeth as Mallikharjun\n Khayyum as Khayyum, Sai's friend\n Shankar Melkote as Doctor\n Gundu Sudarshan\n Master Bharath\n Sravan\n Anand\n Vamsi\n Chinna\n Kiranmayi\n Chaitanya\n\nSoundtrack\n\nMusic of the film was launched at a function organized in Prasad Labs on the night of 11 September 2009.\n\nRaghu Kunche composed the music. making his debut as a music director. He won the Nandi Special Jury Award for Music Director in the year 2009.\n\nAwards\nRaghu Kunche won Nandi Special Jury Award for Best Singer - \"Enduke Ramanamma\" Song\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nSee also\n Telugu films of 2009\n\n2009 films\nIndian films\nTelugu-language films\nTelugu films remade in other languages\n2000s Telugu-language films\nIndian action comedy films\n2009 action comedy films"
]
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[
"Hattie McDaniel",
"Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar",
"WHat did this lead him to",
"The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown."
]
| C_f7cf3aff90f0448485ddd74b2d1cafa7_0 | What did this bring about | 2 | What did Hattie McDaniel bring about? | Hattie McDaniel | The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009. In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s. In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of the Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar was likely returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the 5 1/2" x 6" plaque. CANNOTANSWER | In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. | Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first African American to win an Oscar. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975, and in 2006 she became the first black Oscar winner honored with a U.S. postage stamp. In 2010, she was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. In addition to acting, McDaniel recorded 16 blues sides between 1926 and 1929 and was a radio performer and television personality; she was the first black woman to sing on radio in the United States. Although she appeared in over 300 films, she received screen credits for only 83.
McDaniel experienced racism and racial segregation throughout her career, and notably was unable to attend the premiere of Gone with the Wind in Atlanta because it was held at a whites-only theater. At the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, she sat at a segregated table at the side of the room. In 1952, McDaniel died due to breast cancer. Her final wish to be buried in Hollywood Cemetery was denied due to the graveyard being restricted to whites only at the time.
Early life
McDaniel, the youngest of 13 children, was born in 1893 to formerly-enslaved parents in Wichita, Kansas. Her mother, Susan Holbert, was a singer of gospel music, and her father, Henry McDaniel, fought in the Civil War with the 122nd United States Colored Troops. In 1900, the family moved to Colorado, living first in Fort Collins and then in Denver, where Hattie attended Denver East High School (1908-1910) and in 1908 entered a contest sponsored by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, reciting "Convict Joe", later claiming she had won first place. Her brother, Sam McDaniel, played the butler in the 1948 Three Stooges' short film Heavenly Daze. Her sister Etta McDaniel was also an actress.
Career
Early work and acting beginnings
McDaniel was a songwriter as well as a performer. She honed her songwriting skills while working with her brother Otis McDaniel's carnival company, a minstrel show. McDaniel and her sister Etta Goff launched an all-female minstrel show in 1914 called the McDaniel Sisters Company. After the death of her brother Otis in 1916, the troupe began to lose money, and Hattie did not get her next big break until 1920. From 1920 to 1925, she appeared with Professor George Morrison's Melody Hounds, a black touring ensemble. In the mid-1920s, she embarked on a radio career, singing with the Melody Hounds on station KOA in Denver. From 1926 to 1929, she recorded many of her songs for Okeh Records and Paramount Records in Chicago. McDaniel recorded seven sessions: one in the summer of 1926 on the rare Kansas City label Meritt; four sessions in Chicago for Okeh from late 1926 to late 1927 (of the 10 sides recorded, only four were issued), and two sessions in Chicago for Paramount in March 1929.
After the stock market crashed in 1929, McDaniel could only find work as a washroom attendant at Sam Pick's Club Madrid near Milwaukee. Despite the owner's reluctance to let her perform, she was eventually allowed to take the stage and soon became a regular performer.
In 1931, McDaniel moved to Los Angeles to join her brother Sam, and sisters Etta and Orlena. When she could not get film work, she took jobs as a maid or cook. Sam was working on a KNX radio program, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour, and was able to get his sister a spot. She performed on radio as "Hi-Hat Hattie", a bossy maid who often "forgets her place". Her show became popular, but her salary was so low that she had to keep working as a maid. She made her first film appearance in The Golden West (1932), in which she played a maid. Her second appearance came in the highly successful Mae West film I'm No Angel (1933), in which she played one of the maids with whom West camped it up backstage. She received several other uncredited film roles in the early 1930s, often singing in choruses. In 1934, McDaniel joined the Screen Actors Guild. She began to attract attention and landed larger film roles, which began to win her screen credits. Fox Film Corporation put her under contract to appear in The Little Colonel (1935), with Shirley Temple, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Lionel Barrymore.
Judge Priest (1934), directed by John Ford and starring Will Rogers, was the first film in which she played a major role. She had a leading part in the film and demonstrated her singing talent, including a duet with Rogers. McDaniel and Rogers became friends during filming. In 1935, McDaniel had prominent roles, as a slovenly maid in Alice Adams (RKO Pictures); a comic part as Jean Harlow's maid and traveling companion in China Seas (MGM) (McDaniels's first film with Clark Gable); and as the maid Isabella in Murder by Television, with Béla Lugosi. She appeared in the 1938 film Vivacious Lady, starring James Stewart and Ginger Rogers. McDaniel had a featured role as Queenie in the 1936 film Show Boat (Universal Pictures), starring Allan Jones and Irene Dunne, in which she sang a verse of Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man with Dunne, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, and a black chorus. She and Robeson sang "I Still Suits Me", written for the film by Kern and Hammerstein. After Show Boat, she had major roles in MGM's Saratoga (1937), starring Jean Harlow and Clark Gable; The Shopworn Angel (1938), with Margaret Sullavan; and The Mad Miss Manton (1938), starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She had a minor role in the Carole Lombard–Frederic March film Nothing Sacred (1937), in which she played the wife of a shoeshine man (Troy Brown) masquerading as a sultan.
McDaniel was a friend of many of Hollywood's most popular stars, including Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Bette Davis, Shirley Temple, Henry Fonda, Ronald Reagan, Olivia de Havilland, and Clark Gable. She starred with de Havilland and Gable in Gone with the Wind (1939). Around this time, she was criticized by members of the black community for the roles she accepted and for pursuing roles aggressively rather than rocking the Hollywood boat. For example, in The Little Colonel (1935), she played one of the servants longing to return to the Old South, but her portrayal of Malena in RKO Pictures's Alice Adams angered white Southern audiences, because she stole several scenes from the film's white star, Katharine Hepburn. McDaniel ultimately became best known for playing a sassy, opinionated maid.
Gone with the Wind
The competition to win the part of Mammy in Gone with the Wind was almost as fierce as that for Scarlett O'Hara. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt wrote to film producer David O. Selznick to ask that her own maid, Elizabeth McDuffie, be given the part. McDaniel did not think she would be chosen because she had earned her reputation as a comic actress. One source claimed that Clark Gable recommended that the role be given to McDaniel; in any case, she went to her audition dressed in an authentic maid's uniform and won the part.
Upon hearing of the planned film adaptation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) fought hard to require the film's producer and director to delete racial epithets from the movie (in particular the offensive slur "nigger") and to alter scenes that might be incendiary and that, in their view, were historically inaccurate. Of particular concern was a scene from the novel in which black men attack Scarlett O'Hara, after which the Ku Klux Klan, with its long history of provoking terror on black communities, is presented as a savior. Throughout the South, black men were being lynched based upon false allegations they had harmed white women. That attack scene was altered, and some offensive language was modified, but another epithet, "darkie", remained in the film, and the film's message with respect to slavery remained essentially the same. Consistent with the book, the film's screenplay also referred to poor whites as "white trash", and it ascribed these words equally to characters black and white.
Loew's Grand Theater on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia was selected by the studio as the site for the Friday, December 15, 1939, premiere of Gone with the Wind. Studio head David O. Selznick asked that McDaniel be permitted to attend, but MGM advised him not to, because of Georgia's segregation laws. Clark Gable threatened to boycott the Atlanta premiere unless McDaniel were allowed to attend, but McDaniel convinced him to attend anyway.
Most of Atlanta's 300,000 citizens crowded the route of the seven-mile (11 km) motorcade that carried the film's other stars and executives from the airport to the Georgian Terrace Hotel, where they stayed. While Jim Crow laws kept McDaniel from the Atlanta premiere, she did attend the film's Hollywood debut on December 28, 1939. Upon Selznick's insistence, her picture was also featured prominently in the program.
Reception and 1939 Academy Awards
For her performance as the house servant who repeatedly scolds her owner's daughter, Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), and scoffs at Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), McDaniel won the 1939 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first black actor to have been nominated and win an Oscar. "I loved Mammy," McDaniel said when speaking to the white press about the character. "I think I understood her because my own grandmother worked on a plantation not unlike Tara." Her role in Gone with the Wind had alarmed some whites in the South; there were complaints that in the film she had been too "familiar" with her white owners. At least one writer pointed out that McDaniel's character did not significantly depart from Mammy's persona in Margaret Mitchell's novel, and that in both the film and the book, the much younger Scarlett speaks to Mammy in ways that would be deemed inappropriate for a Southern teenager of that era to speak to a much older white person, and that neither the book nor the film hints of the existence of Mammy's own children (dead or alive), her own family (dead or alive), a real name, or her desires to have anything other than a life at Tara, serving on a slave plantation. Moreover, while Mammy scolds the younger Scarlett, she never crosses Mrs. O'Hara, the more senior white woman in the household. Some critics felt that McDaniel not only accepted the roles but also in her statements to the press acquiesced in Hollywood's stereotypes, providing fuel for critics of those who were fighting for black civil rights. Later, when McDaniel tried to take her "Mammy" character on a road show, black audiences did not prove receptive.
While many black people were happy over McDaniel's personal victory, they also viewed it as bittersweet. They believed Gone With the Wind celebrated the slave system and condemned the forces that destroyed it. For them, the unique accolade McDaniel had won suggested that only those who did not protest Hollywood's systemic use of racial stereotypes could find work and success there.
The Twelfth Academy Awards took place at the Coconut Grove Restaurant of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. It was preceded by a banquet in the same room. Louella Parsons, an American gossip columnist, wrote about Oscar night, February 29, 1940:
McDaniel received a plaque-style Oscar, approximately by , the type awarded to all Best Supporting Actors and Actresses at that time. She and her escort were required to sit at a segregated table for two at the far wall of the room; her white agent, William Meiklejohn, sat at the same table. The hotel had a strict no-blacks policy, but allowed McDaniel in as a favor. The discrimination continued after the award ceremony as well as her white co-stars went to a "no-blacks" club, where McDaniel was also denied entry. Another black woman did not win an Oscar again for 50 years, with Whoopi Goldberg winning Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ghost. Weeks prior to McDaniel winning her Oscar, there was even more controversy. David Selznick, the producer of Gone With the Wind, omitted the faces of all the black actors on the posters advertising the movie in the South. None of the black cast members were allowed to attend the premiere for the movie.
Gone with the Wind won eight Academy Awards. It was later named by the American Film Institute (AFI) as number four among the top 100 American films of all time in the 1998 ranking and number six in the 2007 ranking.
Final works
In the Warner Bros. film In This Our Life (1942), starring Bette Davis and directed by John Huston, McDaniel once again played a domestic, but one who confronts racial issues when her son, a law student, is wrongly accused of manslaughter. McDaniel was in the same studio's Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943), with Humphrey Bogart and Bette Davis. In its review of the film, Time wrote that McDaniel was comic relief in an otherwise "grim study," writing, "Hattie McDaniel, whose bubbling, blaring good humor more than redeems the roaring bad taste of a Harlem number called Ice Cold Katie". McDaniel continued to play maids during the war years for Warners in The Male Animal (1942) and United Artists' Since You Went Away (1944), but her feistiness was toned down to reflect the era's somber news. She also played the maid in Song of the South (1946) for Disney.
She made her last film appearances in Mickey (1948) and Family Honeymoon (1949), where that same year, she appeared on the live CBS television program The Ed Wynn Show. She remained active on radio and television in her final years, becoming the first black actor to star in her own radio show with the comedy series Beulah. She also starred in the television version of the show, replacing Ethel Waters after the first season. (Waters had apparently expressed concerns over stereotypes in the role.) Beulah was a hit, however, and earned McDaniel $2,000 per week; however, the show was controversial. In 1951, the United States Army ceased broadcasting Beulah in Asia because troops complained that the show perpetuated negative stereotypes of black men as shiftless and lazy and interfered with the ability of black troops to perform their mission. After filming a handful of episodes, however, McDaniel learned she had breast cancer. By the spring of 1952, she was too ill to work and was replaced by Louise Beavers.
Personal life
Marriages
McDaniel married Howard Hickman on January 19, 1911, in Denver, Colorado. He died in 1915. Her second husband, George Langford, died of a gunshot wound in January 1925, soon after she married him and while her career was on the rise.
She married James Lloyd Crawford, a real estate salesman, on March 21, 1941, in Tucson, Arizona. According to Donald Bogle, in his book Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams, McDaniel happily confided to gossip columnist Hedda Hopper in 1945 that she was pregnant. McDaniel began buying baby clothes and set up a nursery in her house. Her plans were shattered when she suffered a false pregnancy and fell into a depression. She never had any children. She divorced Crawford in 1945, after four and a half years of marriage. Crawford had been jealous of her career success, she said.
She married Larry Williams, an interior decorator, on June 11, 1949, in Yuma, Arizona, but divorced him in 1950 after testifying that their five months together had been marred by "arguing and fussing." McDaniel broke down in tears when she testified that her husband tried to provoke dissension in the cast of her radio show and otherwise interfered with her work. "I haven't gotten over it yet," she said. "I got so I couldn't sleep. I couldn't concentrate on my lines."
Community service
During World War II, she served as chairman of the Negro Division of the Hollywood Victory Committee, providing entertainment for soldiers stationed at military bases. (The US military was segregated, and black entertainers were not allowed to serve on white entertainment committees.) She elicited the help of a friend, the actor Leigh Whipper, and other black entertainers for her committee. She made numerous personal appearances at military hospitals, threw parties, and performed at United Service Organizations (USO) shows and war bond rallies to raise funds to support the war on behalf of the Victory Committee. Bette Davis was the only white member of McDaniel's acting troupe to perform for black regiments; Lena Horne and Ethel Waters also participated. McDaniel was also a member of American Women's Voluntary Services.
She joined the actor Clarence Muse, one of the first black members of the Screen Actors Guild, in an NBC radio broadcast to raise funds for Red Cross relief programs for Americans that had been displaced by devastating floods, and she gained a reputation for generosity, lending money to friends and strangers alike.
Death
In August 1950, McDaniel suffered a heart ailment and entered Temple Hospital in semi-critical condition. She was released in October to recuperate at home, and she was cited by United Press on January 3, 1951, as showing "slight improvement in her recovery from a mild stroke."
McDaniel died of breast cancer at age 59 on October 26, 1952, in the hospital on the grounds of the Motion Picture House in Woodland Hills, California. She was survived by her brother Sam McDaniel. Thousands of mourners turned out to celebrate her life and achievements. In her will, McDaniel wrote,
Hollywood Cemetery, on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, is the resting place of movie stars such as Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino. Its owner at the time, Jules Roth, refused to allow her to be buried there, because, at the time of McDaniel's death, the cemetery practiced racial segregation and would not accept the remains of black people for burial. Her second choice was Rosedale Cemetery (now known as Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery), where she lies today.
In 1999, Tyler Cassity, the new owner of the Hollywood Cemetery (renamed the Hollywood Forever Cemetery), offered to have McDaniel re-interred there. Her family did not wish to disturb her remains and declined the offer. Instead, Hollywood Forever Cemetery built a large cenotaph on the lawn overlooking its lake. It is one of Hollywood's most popular tourist attractions.
McDaniel's last will and testament of December 1951 bequeathed her Oscar to Howard University, where she had been honored by the students with a luncheon after she had won her Oscar. At the time of her death, McDaniel would have had few options. Very few white institutions in that day preserved black history. Historically, black colleges had been where such artifacts were placed. Despite evidence McDaniel had earned an excellent income as an actress, her final estate was less than $10,000. The IRS claimed the estate owed more than $11,000 in taxes. In the end, the probate court ordered all of her property, including her Oscar, sold to pay off creditors. Years later, the Oscar turned up where McDaniel wanted it to be: Howard University, where, according to reports, it was displayed in a glass case in the university's drama department. However, it appears to have gone missing from Howard in the 60's or 70's and has never been recovered.
Reception and impact
Initial controversies
As her fame grew, McDaniel faced growing criticism from some members of the black community. Groups such as the NAACP complained that Hollywood stereotypes not only restricted black actors to servant roles but often portrayed them as lazy, dim-witted, satisfied with lowly positions, or violent. In addition to addressing the studios, they called upon actors, and especially leading black actors, to pressure studios to offer more substantive roles and at least not pander to stereotypes. They also argued that these portrayals were unfair as well as inaccurate and that, coupled with segregation and other forms of discrimination, such stereotypes were making it difficult for all black people, not only actors, to overcome racism and succeed in the entertainment industry. Some attacked McDaniel for being an "Uncle Tom"—a person willing to advance personally by perpetuating racial stereotypes or being an agreeable agent of offensive racial restrictions. McDaniel characterized these challenges as class-based biases against domestics, a claim that white columnists seemed to accept. She reportedly said, "Why should I complain about making $700 a week playing a maid? If I didn't, I'd be making $7 a week being one."
McDaniel may also have been criticized because, unlike many other black entertainers, she was not associated with civil rights protests and was largely absent from efforts to establish a commercial base for independent black films. She did not join the Negro Actors Guild of America until 1947, late in her career. McDaniel hired one of the few white agents who would represent black actors at the time, William Meiklejohn, to advance her career. Evidence suggests her avoidance of political controversy was deliberate. When columnist Hedda Hopper sent her Richard Nixon placards and asked McDaniel to distribute them, McDaniel declined, replying she had long ago decided to stay out of politics. "Beulah is everybody's friend," she said. Since she was earning a living honestly, she added, she should not be criticized for accepting such work as was offered. Her critics, especially Walter White of the NAACP, claimed that she and other actors who agreed to portray stereotypes were not a neutral force but rather willing agents of black oppression.
McDaniel and other black actresses and actors feared that their roles would evaporate if the NAACP and other Hollywood critics complained too loudly. She blamed these critics for hindering her career and sought the help of allies of doubtful reputation. After speaking with McDaniel, Hopper claimed that McDaniel's career troubles were not the result of racism but had been caused by McDaniel's "own people".
Achievements and legacy
McDaniel has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood: one at 6933 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to radio and one at 1719 Vine Street for motion pictures. In 1975, she was inducted posthumously into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame.
In 1994 the actress and singer Karla Burns, notably the first black performer to win a Laurence Olivier Award, launched her one-woman show Hi-Hat-Hattie (written by Larry Parr), about McDaniel's life. Burns went on to perform the role in several other cities through 2018, including Off-Broadway and the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre in California.
In 2002, McDaniel's legacy was celebrated in American Movie Classics's (AMC) film Beyond Tara, The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel (2001), produced and directed by Madison D. Lacy and hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. This one-hour special depicted McDaniel's struggles and triumphs in the presence of rampant racism and brutal adversity. The film won the 2001–2002 Daytime Emmy Award, presented on May 17, 2002, for Outstanding Special Class Special.
McDaniel was the 29th inductee in the Black Heritage Series by the United States Postal Service. Her 39-cent stamp was released on January 29, 2006, featuring a 1941 photograph of McDaniel in the dress she wore to accept the Academy Award in 1940. The ceremony took place at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where the Hattie McDaniel collection includes photographs of McDaniel and other family members as well as scripts and other documents.
In 2004 Rita Dove, the first black U.S. poet laureate, published her poem "Hattie McDaniel Arrives at the Coconut Grove" in The New Yorker and has since presented it frequently during her poetry readings as well as on YouTube.
In the 2020 Netflix mini-series Hollywood a fictionalised Hattie McDaniel is played by Queen Latifah.
Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar
The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in The Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in The Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.
In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Precious, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar.
In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of The Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar had likely been returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the award.
West Adams Heights homeowners' covenant case victory
McDaniel was the most famous of the black homeowners who helped to organize the black Historic West Adams neighborhood residents who saved their homes. Loren Miller, an attorney and the owner and publisher of the California Eagle newspaper, represented the minority homeowners in their restrictive covenant case. In 1944, Miller won the case Fairchild v Rainers, a decision in favor of a black family in Pasadena, California, which had bought a nonrestricted lot but was still sued by white neighbors.
Time magazine, in its issue of December 17, 1945, reported:
McDaniel had purchased her white, two-story, seventeen-room house in 1942. The house included a large living room, dining room, drawing room, den, butler's pantry, kitchen, service porch, library, four bedrooms and a basement. McDaniel had a yearly Hollywood party. Everyone knew that the king of Hollywood, Clark Gable, could always be found at McDaniel's parties.
Filmography
Film
Features
Short films
Mickey's Rescue (1934) as Maid (uncredited)
Fate's Fathead (1934) as Mandy - the Maid (uncredited)
The Chases of Pimple Street (1934) as Hattie, Gertrude's Maid (uncredited)
Anniversary Trouble (1935) as Mandy, the Maid
Okay Toots! (1935) as Hattie - the Maid (uncredited)
Wig-Wag (1935) as Cook (uncredited)
The Four Star Boarder (1935) as Maid (uncredited)
Arbor Day (1936) as Buckwheat's Mother
Termites of 1938 (Three Stooges) (1938)
Radio
Station KOA, Denver, Melony Hounds (1926)
Station KNX, Los Angeles, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour (1931)
CBS Network, The Beulah Show (1947)
McDaniel was a semi-regular on the radio program Amos 'n' Andy, first as Andy's demanding landlady. In one episode they nearly marry. Andy was out for her money, aided and abetted by the Kingfish, who gives his wife's diamond ring to present to McDaniel as an engagement ring. The scheme blows up in their faces when Sapphire decides to throw a party to celebrate. Andy desperately tries to conceal the ring from Sapphire. In frustration and growing anger, McDaniel says to Andy, "Andy, sweetheart, darlin'. Is you gonna let go of my hand or does I have to pop you??!!" This episode aired on NBC in June 1944. She played a similar character, "Sadie Simpson", in several later episodes.
Discography
Hattie McDaniel recorded infrequently as a singer. In addition to the musical numbers over her long career in films, she recorded for Okeh Records, Paramount, and the small Kansas City, Missouri label Merrit. All of her known recordings (some of which were never issued) were recorded in the 1920s.
See also
List of African-American firsts
List of black Academy Award winners and nominees
List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
References
Bibliography
Hopper, Hedda. "Hattie Hates Nobody". Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1947.
Jackson, Carlton. Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel. Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1990.
Mitchell, Lisa. "More Than a Mammy". Hollywood Studio Magazine, April 1979.
Salamon, Julie. "The Courage to Rise Above Mammyness". New York Times, August 6, 2001.
Watts, Jill. Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2005.
Talk of the Nation. Jill Watts, interview, audio
Young, Al. "I'd Rather Play a Maid Than Be One". New York Times, October 15, 1989.
Zeigler, Ronny. "Hattie McDaniel: '(I'd) ... rather play a maid.'" N.Y. Amsterdam News, April 28, 1979.
Further reading
Carter, W. Burlette, [ Finding the Oscar] (January 6, 2012). Howard Law Journal, Vol. 55, No. 1, 2011; GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2012-2; GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2012-2.
HISTORY This Week. The Legacy of an Oscar 02/10/2020 W. Burlette Carter and Jill Watts
External links
Hattie and Sam McDaniel papers at Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
1893 births
1952 deaths
20th-century American actresses
20th-century American comedians
Actors from Wichita, Kansas
Actresses from Kansas
African-American actresses
African-American female comedians
African-American women singer-songwriters
African-American radio personalities
American film actresses
American radio actresses
American television actresses
American women comedians
American blues singer-songwriters
Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winners
Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery
Comedians from California
Comedians from Kansas
Deaths from breast cancer
Deaths from cancer in California
Musicians from Wichita, Kansas
Okeh Records artists
Paramount Pictures contract players
People from South Los Angeles
People from West Adams, Los Angeles
RKO Pictures contract players
20th-century African-American women singers
Singer-songwriters from Kansas | true | [
"The Mirror of the Heart of Vajrasattva () is numbered amongst the 'Seventeen Tantras of Menngagde' () within Dzogchen discourse and is part of the textual support for the Vima Nyingtik.\n\nThe Continuum of Vajrasattva's Heart-Mirror conveys how the 'lamps' () are the self-display of awareness. It furthermore lists twenty-one pointing-out instructions appropriate for people with different propensities and proclivities along with four key points and practice instructions.\n\nThese Seventeen Tantras are to be found in the Canon of the Ancient School, the 'Nyingma Gyubum' (), volumes 9 and 10, folio numbers 143-159 of the edition edited by 'Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche' commonly known as Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche (Thimpu, Bhutan, 1973), reproduced from the manuscript preserved at 'Tingkye Gonpa Jang' () Monastery in Tibet.\n\nNomenclature, orthography and etymology\n'The Mirror of the Heart of Vajrasattva' ()\n\nMirror\nThe Melong is an important polyvalent symbol and potent teaching tool in Dzogchen.\n\nEnglish translations\nThis tantra has not as yet has been completely rendered into English nor made generally available.\n\nThe Seventeen Tantras are quoted extensively throughout Longchenpa's (1308 - 1364?) 'The Precious Treasury of the Way of Abiding' () rendered in English by Barron and Padma Translation Committee (1998). This work is one of Longchenpa's Seven Treasuries and the Tibetan text in poor reproduction of the pecha has been graciously made available online by Dowman and Smith.\n\nBarron et al. (1998: p. 136) render an embedded quotation of this tantra within their translation of Lonchenpa's 'Way of Abiding' (Wylie: gnas lugs):\n\"Understand all aspects of awareness to be free of ordinary consciousness, which involves concepts of identity. Similarly, bring this understanding to the point of understanding that all phenomena are unceasing. Bring the understanding of what is unceasing to the point of understanding that it manifests in any way whatsoever. Bring the understanding of what manifests in any way whatsoever to the point of understanding that it is unborn. Bring the understanding what is unborn to the point of understanding that it does not come and go. Bring the understanding of what does not come and go to the point of understanding that it is nondual. Bring the understanding of what is nondual to the point of understanding that it is absolutely free of limitations. Similarly, bring this understanding to the point of not conceptualizing or thinking about any phenomenon in any way. Bring this understanding of all phenomena to the point of experiencing their essence lucidly and without distraction.\"\n\nPrimary resources\nThe Mirror of the Heart of Vajrasattva in Wylie @ Wikisource\nརྡོ་རྗེ་སེམས་དཔའ་སྙིང་གི་མེ་ལོང་གི་རྒྱུད in Tibetan Script (Uchen) Unicode @ Wikisource\n\nReferences\n\nDzogchen texts\nNyingma texts\nNyingma tantras",
"Amenity is the first demo of the Dutch symphonic metal band Delain. It was released in 2002. Martijn Westerholt, founder of Delain, doesn't regard this as the beginning of Delain: \"I tried a few songs with local musicians, but it did not work, it did not really bring me what I was looking for.\"\n\nTrack listing\n\nPersonnel \nDelain\n Anne Invernizzi – vocals\n Martijn Westerholt – keyboards\n Roy van Enkhuyzen – guitars\n Frank van der Meijden – guitars\n Martijn Willemsen – bass\n Jimmy Revson – drums\n\nAdditional musician\n George Oosthoek (ex Orphanage) – growling vocals (3, 4)\n\nProduction\n Hans Invernizzi – engineering, mixing\n Ernst Wijnants – mastering\n Karianne Hylkema – photography\n Wencke Vinks – design\n\nReferences\n\n2002 albums\nDelain albums"
]
|
[
"Hattie McDaniel",
"Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar",
"WHat did this lead him to",
"The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown.",
"What did this bring about",
"In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s."
]
| C_f7cf3aff90f0448485ddd74b2d1cafa7_0 | What did this mean for her | 3 | What did Jet magazine mean for Hattie McDaniel | Hattie McDaniel | The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009. In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s. In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of the Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar was likely returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the 5 1/2" x 6" plaque. CANNOTANSWER | In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. | Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first African American to win an Oscar. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975, and in 2006 she became the first black Oscar winner honored with a U.S. postage stamp. In 2010, she was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. In addition to acting, McDaniel recorded 16 blues sides between 1926 and 1929 and was a radio performer and television personality; she was the first black woman to sing on radio in the United States. Although she appeared in over 300 films, she received screen credits for only 83.
McDaniel experienced racism and racial segregation throughout her career, and notably was unable to attend the premiere of Gone with the Wind in Atlanta because it was held at a whites-only theater. At the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, she sat at a segregated table at the side of the room. In 1952, McDaniel died due to breast cancer. Her final wish to be buried in Hollywood Cemetery was denied due to the graveyard being restricted to whites only at the time.
Early life
McDaniel, the youngest of 13 children, was born in 1893 to formerly-enslaved parents in Wichita, Kansas. Her mother, Susan Holbert, was a singer of gospel music, and her father, Henry McDaniel, fought in the Civil War with the 122nd United States Colored Troops. In 1900, the family moved to Colorado, living first in Fort Collins and then in Denver, where Hattie attended Denver East High School (1908-1910) and in 1908 entered a contest sponsored by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, reciting "Convict Joe", later claiming she had won first place. Her brother, Sam McDaniel, played the butler in the 1948 Three Stooges' short film Heavenly Daze. Her sister Etta McDaniel was also an actress.
Career
Early work and acting beginnings
McDaniel was a songwriter as well as a performer. She honed her songwriting skills while working with her brother Otis McDaniel's carnival company, a minstrel show. McDaniel and her sister Etta Goff launched an all-female minstrel show in 1914 called the McDaniel Sisters Company. After the death of her brother Otis in 1916, the troupe began to lose money, and Hattie did not get her next big break until 1920. From 1920 to 1925, she appeared with Professor George Morrison's Melody Hounds, a black touring ensemble. In the mid-1920s, she embarked on a radio career, singing with the Melody Hounds on station KOA in Denver. From 1926 to 1929, she recorded many of her songs for Okeh Records and Paramount Records in Chicago. McDaniel recorded seven sessions: one in the summer of 1926 on the rare Kansas City label Meritt; four sessions in Chicago for Okeh from late 1926 to late 1927 (of the 10 sides recorded, only four were issued), and two sessions in Chicago for Paramount in March 1929.
After the stock market crashed in 1929, McDaniel could only find work as a washroom attendant at Sam Pick's Club Madrid near Milwaukee. Despite the owner's reluctance to let her perform, she was eventually allowed to take the stage and soon became a regular performer.
In 1931, McDaniel moved to Los Angeles to join her brother Sam, and sisters Etta and Orlena. When she could not get film work, she took jobs as a maid or cook. Sam was working on a KNX radio program, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour, and was able to get his sister a spot. She performed on radio as "Hi-Hat Hattie", a bossy maid who often "forgets her place". Her show became popular, but her salary was so low that she had to keep working as a maid. She made her first film appearance in The Golden West (1932), in which she played a maid. Her second appearance came in the highly successful Mae West film I'm No Angel (1933), in which she played one of the maids with whom West camped it up backstage. She received several other uncredited film roles in the early 1930s, often singing in choruses. In 1934, McDaniel joined the Screen Actors Guild. She began to attract attention and landed larger film roles, which began to win her screen credits. Fox Film Corporation put her under contract to appear in The Little Colonel (1935), with Shirley Temple, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Lionel Barrymore.
Judge Priest (1934), directed by John Ford and starring Will Rogers, was the first film in which she played a major role. She had a leading part in the film and demonstrated her singing talent, including a duet with Rogers. McDaniel and Rogers became friends during filming. In 1935, McDaniel had prominent roles, as a slovenly maid in Alice Adams (RKO Pictures); a comic part as Jean Harlow's maid and traveling companion in China Seas (MGM) (McDaniels's first film with Clark Gable); and as the maid Isabella in Murder by Television, with Béla Lugosi. She appeared in the 1938 film Vivacious Lady, starring James Stewart and Ginger Rogers. McDaniel had a featured role as Queenie in the 1936 film Show Boat (Universal Pictures), starring Allan Jones and Irene Dunne, in which she sang a verse of Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man with Dunne, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, and a black chorus. She and Robeson sang "I Still Suits Me", written for the film by Kern and Hammerstein. After Show Boat, she had major roles in MGM's Saratoga (1937), starring Jean Harlow and Clark Gable; The Shopworn Angel (1938), with Margaret Sullavan; and The Mad Miss Manton (1938), starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She had a minor role in the Carole Lombard–Frederic March film Nothing Sacred (1937), in which she played the wife of a shoeshine man (Troy Brown) masquerading as a sultan.
McDaniel was a friend of many of Hollywood's most popular stars, including Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Bette Davis, Shirley Temple, Henry Fonda, Ronald Reagan, Olivia de Havilland, and Clark Gable. She starred with de Havilland and Gable in Gone with the Wind (1939). Around this time, she was criticized by members of the black community for the roles she accepted and for pursuing roles aggressively rather than rocking the Hollywood boat. For example, in The Little Colonel (1935), she played one of the servants longing to return to the Old South, but her portrayal of Malena in RKO Pictures's Alice Adams angered white Southern audiences, because she stole several scenes from the film's white star, Katharine Hepburn. McDaniel ultimately became best known for playing a sassy, opinionated maid.
Gone with the Wind
The competition to win the part of Mammy in Gone with the Wind was almost as fierce as that for Scarlett O'Hara. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt wrote to film producer David O. Selznick to ask that her own maid, Elizabeth McDuffie, be given the part. McDaniel did not think she would be chosen because she had earned her reputation as a comic actress. One source claimed that Clark Gable recommended that the role be given to McDaniel; in any case, she went to her audition dressed in an authentic maid's uniform and won the part.
Upon hearing of the planned film adaptation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) fought hard to require the film's producer and director to delete racial epithets from the movie (in particular the offensive slur "nigger") and to alter scenes that might be incendiary and that, in their view, were historically inaccurate. Of particular concern was a scene from the novel in which black men attack Scarlett O'Hara, after which the Ku Klux Klan, with its long history of provoking terror on black communities, is presented as a savior. Throughout the South, black men were being lynched based upon false allegations they had harmed white women. That attack scene was altered, and some offensive language was modified, but another epithet, "darkie", remained in the film, and the film's message with respect to slavery remained essentially the same. Consistent with the book, the film's screenplay also referred to poor whites as "white trash", and it ascribed these words equally to characters black and white.
Loew's Grand Theater on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia was selected by the studio as the site for the Friday, December 15, 1939, premiere of Gone with the Wind. Studio head David O. Selznick asked that McDaniel be permitted to attend, but MGM advised him not to, because of Georgia's segregation laws. Clark Gable threatened to boycott the Atlanta premiere unless McDaniel were allowed to attend, but McDaniel convinced him to attend anyway.
Most of Atlanta's 300,000 citizens crowded the route of the seven-mile (11 km) motorcade that carried the film's other stars and executives from the airport to the Georgian Terrace Hotel, where they stayed. While Jim Crow laws kept McDaniel from the Atlanta premiere, she did attend the film's Hollywood debut on December 28, 1939. Upon Selznick's insistence, her picture was also featured prominently in the program.
Reception and 1939 Academy Awards
For her performance as the house servant who repeatedly scolds her owner's daughter, Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), and scoffs at Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), McDaniel won the 1939 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first black actor to have been nominated and win an Oscar. "I loved Mammy," McDaniel said when speaking to the white press about the character. "I think I understood her because my own grandmother worked on a plantation not unlike Tara." Her role in Gone with the Wind had alarmed some whites in the South; there were complaints that in the film she had been too "familiar" with her white owners. At least one writer pointed out that McDaniel's character did not significantly depart from Mammy's persona in Margaret Mitchell's novel, and that in both the film and the book, the much younger Scarlett speaks to Mammy in ways that would be deemed inappropriate for a Southern teenager of that era to speak to a much older white person, and that neither the book nor the film hints of the existence of Mammy's own children (dead or alive), her own family (dead or alive), a real name, or her desires to have anything other than a life at Tara, serving on a slave plantation. Moreover, while Mammy scolds the younger Scarlett, she never crosses Mrs. O'Hara, the more senior white woman in the household. Some critics felt that McDaniel not only accepted the roles but also in her statements to the press acquiesced in Hollywood's stereotypes, providing fuel for critics of those who were fighting for black civil rights. Later, when McDaniel tried to take her "Mammy" character on a road show, black audiences did not prove receptive.
While many black people were happy over McDaniel's personal victory, they also viewed it as bittersweet. They believed Gone With the Wind celebrated the slave system and condemned the forces that destroyed it. For them, the unique accolade McDaniel had won suggested that only those who did not protest Hollywood's systemic use of racial stereotypes could find work and success there.
The Twelfth Academy Awards took place at the Coconut Grove Restaurant of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. It was preceded by a banquet in the same room. Louella Parsons, an American gossip columnist, wrote about Oscar night, February 29, 1940:
McDaniel received a plaque-style Oscar, approximately by , the type awarded to all Best Supporting Actors and Actresses at that time. She and her escort were required to sit at a segregated table for two at the far wall of the room; her white agent, William Meiklejohn, sat at the same table. The hotel had a strict no-blacks policy, but allowed McDaniel in as a favor. The discrimination continued after the award ceremony as well as her white co-stars went to a "no-blacks" club, where McDaniel was also denied entry. Another black woman did not win an Oscar again for 50 years, with Whoopi Goldberg winning Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ghost. Weeks prior to McDaniel winning her Oscar, there was even more controversy. David Selznick, the producer of Gone With the Wind, omitted the faces of all the black actors on the posters advertising the movie in the South. None of the black cast members were allowed to attend the premiere for the movie.
Gone with the Wind won eight Academy Awards. It was later named by the American Film Institute (AFI) as number four among the top 100 American films of all time in the 1998 ranking and number six in the 2007 ranking.
Final works
In the Warner Bros. film In This Our Life (1942), starring Bette Davis and directed by John Huston, McDaniel once again played a domestic, but one who confronts racial issues when her son, a law student, is wrongly accused of manslaughter. McDaniel was in the same studio's Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943), with Humphrey Bogart and Bette Davis. In its review of the film, Time wrote that McDaniel was comic relief in an otherwise "grim study," writing, "Hattie McDaniel, whose bubbling, blaring good humor more than redeems the roaring bad taste of a Harlem number called Ice Cold Katie". McDaniel continued to play maids during the war years for Warners in The Male Animal (1942) and United Artists' Since You Went Away (1944), but her feistiness was toned down to reflect the era's somber news. She also played the maid in Song of the South (1946) for Disney.
She made her last film appearances in Mickey (1948) and Family Honeymoon (1949), where that same year, she appeared on the live CBS television program The Ed Wynn Show. She remained active on radio and television in her final years, becoming the first black actor to star in her own radio show with the comedy series Beulah. She also starred in the television version of the show, replacing Ethel Waters after the first season. (Waters had apparently expressed concerns over stereotypes in the role.) Beulah was a hit, however, and earned McDaniel $2,000 per week; however, the show was controversial. In 1951, the United States Army ceased broadcasting Beulah in Asia because troops complained that the show perpetuated negative stereotypes of black men as shiftless and lazy and interfered with the ability of black troops to perform their mission. After filming a handful of episodes, however, McDaniel learned she had breast cancer. By the spring of 1952, she was too ill to work and was replaced by Louise Beavers.
Personal life
Marriages
McDaniel married Howard Hickman on January 19, 1911, in Denver, Colorado. He died in 1915. Her second husband, George Langford, died of a gunshot wound in January 1925, soon after she married him and while her career was on the rise.
She married James Lloyd Crawford, a real estate salesman, on March 21, 1941, in Tucson, Arizona. According to Donald Bogle, in his book Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams, McDaniel happily confided to gossip columnist Hedda Hopper in 1945 that she was pregnant. McDaniel began buying baby clothes and set up a nursery in her house. Her plans were shattered when she suffered a false pregnancy and fell into a depression. She never had any children. She divorced Crawford in 1945, after four and a half years of marriage. Crawford had been jealous of her career success, she said.
She married Larry Williams, an interior decorator, on June 11, 1949, in Yuma, Arizona, but divorced him in 1950 after testifying that their five months together had been marred by "arguing and fussing." McDaniel broke down in tears when she testified that her husband tried to provoke dissension in the cast of her radio show and otherwise interfered with her work. "I haven't gotten over it yet," she said. "I got so I couldn't sleep. I couldn't concentrate on my lines."
Community service
During World War II, she served as chairman of the Negro Division of the Hollywood Victory Committee, providing entertainment for soldiers stationed at military bases. (The US military was segregated, and black entertainers were not allowed to serve on white entertainment committees.) She elicited the help of a friend, the actor Leigh Whipper, and other black entertainers for her committee. She made numerous personal appearances at military hospitals, threw parties, and performed at United Service Organizations (USO) shows and war bond rallies to raise funds to support the war on behalf of the Victory Committee. Bette Davis was the only white member of McDaniel's acting troupe to perform for black regiments; Lena Horne and Ethel Waters also participated. McDaniel was also a member of American Women's Voluntary Services.
She joined the actor Clarence Muse, one of the first black members of the Screen Actors Guild, in an NBC radio broadcast to raise funds for Red Cross relief programs for Americans that had been displaced by devastating floods, and she gained a reputation for generosity, lending money to friends and strangers alike.
Death
In August 1950, McDaniel suffered a heart ailment and entered Temple Hospital in semi-critical condition. She was released in October to recuperate at home, and she was cited by United Press on January 3, 1951, as showing "slight improvement in her recovery from a mild stroke."
McDaniel died of breast cancer at age 59 on October 26, 1952, in the hospital on the grounds of the Motion Picture House in Woodland Hills, California. She was survived by her brother Sam McDaniel. Thousands of mourners turned out to celebrate her life and achievements. In her will, McDaniel wrote,
Hollywood Cemetery, on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, is the resting place of movie stars such as Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino. Its owner at the time, Jules Roth, refused to allow her to be buried there, because, at the time of McDaniel's death, the cemetery practiced racial segregation and would not accept the remains of black people for burial. Her second choice was Rosedale Cemetery (now known as Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery), where she lies today.
In 1999, Tyler Cassity, the new owner of the Hollywood Cemetery (renamed the Hollywood Forever Cemetery), offered to have McDaniel re-interred there. Her family did not wish to disturb her remains and declined the offer. Instead, Hollywood Forever Cemetery built a large cenotaph on the lawn overlooking its lake. It is one of Hollywood's most popular tourist attractions.
McDaniel's last will and testament of December 1951 bequeathed her Oscar to Howard University, where she had been honored by the students with a luncheon after she had won her Oscar. At the time of her death, McDaniel would have had few options. Very few white institutions in that day preserved black history. Historically, black colleges had been where such artifacts were placed. Despite evidence McDaniel had earned an excellent income as an actress, her final estate was less than $10,000. The IRS claimed the estate owed more than $11,000 in taxes. In the end, the probate court ordered all of her property, including her Oscar, sold to pay off creditors. Years later, the Oscar turned up where McDaniel wanted it to be: Howard University, where, according to reports, it was displayed in a glass case in the university's drama department. However, it appears to have gone missing from Howard in the 60's or 70's and has never been recovered.
Reception and impact
Initial controversies
As her fame grew, McDaniel faced growing criticism from some members of the black community. Groups such as the NAACP complained that Hollywood stereotypes not only restricted black actors to servant roles but often portrayed them as lazy, dim-witted, satisfied with lowly positions, or violent. In addition to addressing the studios, they called upon actors, and especially leading black actors, to pressure studios to offer more substantive roles and at least not pander to stereotypes. They also argued that these portrayals were unfair as well as inaccurate and that, coupled with segregation and other forms of discrimination, such stereotypes were making it difficult for all black people, not only actors, to overcome racism and succeed in the entertainment industry. Some attacked McDaniel for being an "Uncle Tom"—a person willing to advance personally by perpetuating racial stereotypes or being an agreeable agent of offensive racial restrictions. McDaniel characterized these challenges as class-based biases against domestics, a claim that white columnists seemed to accept. She reportedly said, "Why should I complain about making $700 a week playing a maid? If I didn't, I'd be making $7 a week being one."
McDaniel may also have been criticized because, unlike many other black entertainers, she was not associated with civil rights protests and was largely absent from efforts to establish a commercial base for independent black films. She did not join the Negro Actors Guild of America until 1947, late in her career. McDaniel hired one of the few white agents who would represent black actors at the time, William Meiklejohn, to advance her career. Evidence suggests her avoidance of political controversy was deliberate. When columnist Hedda Hopper sent her Richard Nixon placards and asked McDaniel to distribute them, McDaniel declined, replying she had long ago decided to stay out of politics. "Beulah is everybody's friend," she said. Since she was earning a living honestly, she added, she should not be criticized for accepting such work as was offered. Her critics, especially Walter White of the NAACP, claimed that she and other actors who agreed to portray stereotypes were not a neutral force but rather willing agents of black oppression.
McDaniel and other black actresses and actors feared that their roles would evaporate if the NAACP and other Hollywood critics complained too loudly. She blamed these critics for hindering her career and sought the help of allies of doubtful reputation. After speaking with McDaniel, Hopper claimed that McDaniel's career troubles were not the result of racism but had been caused by McDaniel's "own people".
Achievements and legacy
McDaniel has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood: one at 6933 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to radio and one at 1719 Vine Street for motion pictures. In 1975, she was inducted posthumously into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame.
In 1994 the actress and singer Karla Burns, notably the first black performer to win a Laurence Olivier Award, launched her one-woman show Hi-Hat-Hattie (written by Larry Parr), about McDaniel's life. Burns went on to perform the role in several other cities through 2018, including Off-Broadway and the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre in California.
In 2002, McDaniel's legacy was celebrated in American Movie Classics's (AMC) film Beyond Tara, The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel (2001), produced and directed by Madison D. Lacy and hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. This one-hour special depicted McDaniel's struggles and triumphs in the presence of rampant racism and brutal adversity. The film won the 2001–2002 Daytime Emmy Award, presented on May 17, 2002, for Outstanding Special Class Special.
McDaniel was the 29th inductee in the Black Heritage Series by the United States Postal Service. Her 39-cent stamp was released on January 29, 2006, featuring a 1941 photograph of McDaniel in the dress she wore to accept the Academy Award in 1940. The ceremony took place at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where the Hattie McDaniel collection includes photographs of McDaniel and other family members as well as scripts and other documents.
In 2004 Rita Dove, the first black U.S. poet laureate, published her poem "Hattie McDaniel Arrives at the Coconut Grove" in The New Yorker and has since presented it frequently during her poetry readings as well as on YouTube.
In the 2020 Netflix mini-series Hollywood a fictionalised Hattie McDaniel is played by Queen Latifah.
Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar
The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in The Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in The Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.
In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Precious, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar.
In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of The Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar had likely been returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the award.
West Adams Heights homeowners' covenant case victory
McDaniel was the most famous of the black homeowners who helped to organize the black Historic West Adams neighborhood residents who saved their homes. Loren Miller, an attorney and the owner and publisher of the California Eagle newspaper, represented the minority homeowners in their restrictive covenant case. In 1944, Miller won the case Fairchild v Rainers, a decision in favor of a black family in Pasadena, California, which had bought a nonrestricted lot but was still sued by white neighbors.
Time magazine, in its issue of December 17, 1945, reported:
McDaniel had purchased her white, two-story, seventeen-room house in 1942. The house included a large living room, dining room, drawing room, den, butler's pantry, kitchen, service porch, library, four bedrooms and a basement. McDaniel had a yearly Hollywood party. Everyone knew that the king of Hollywood, Clark Gable, could always be found at McDaniel's parties.
Filmography
Film
Features
Short films
Mickey's Rescue (1934) as Maid (uncredited)
Fate's Fathead (1934) as Mandy - the Maid (uncredited)
The Chases of Pimple Street (1934) as Hattie, Gertrude's Maid (uncredited)
Anniversary Trouble (1935) as Mandy, the Maid
Okay Toots! (1935) as Hattie - the Maid (uncredited)
Wig-Wag (1935) as Cook (uncredited)
The Four Star Boarder (1935) as Maid (uncredited)
Arbor Day (1936) as Buckwheat's Mother
Termites of 1938 (Three Stooges) (1938)
Radio
Station KOA, Denver, Melony Hounds (1926)
Station KNX, Los Angeles, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour (1931)
CBS Network, The Beulah Show (1947)
McDaniel was a semi-regular on the radio program Amos 'n' Andy, first as Andy's demanding landlady. In one episode they nearly marry. Andy was out for her money, aided and abetted by the Kingfish, who gives his wife's diamond ring to present to McDaniel as an engagement ring. The scheme blows up in their faces when Sapphire decides to throw a party to celebrate. Andy desperately tries to conceal the ring from Sapphire. In frustration and growing anger, McDaniel says to Andy, "Andy, sweetheart, darlin'. Is you gonna let go of my hand or does I have to pop you??!!" This episode aired on NBC in June 1944. She played a similar character, "Sadie Simpson", in several later episodes.
Discography
Hattie McDaniel recorded infrequently as a singer. In addition to the musical numbers over her long career in films, she recorded for Okeh Records, Paramount, and the small Kansas City, Missouri label Merrit. All of her known recordings (some of which were never issued) were recorded in the 1920s.
See also
List of African-American firsts
List of black Academy Award winners and nominees
List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
References
Bibliography
Hopper, Hedda. "Hattie Hates Nobody". Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1947.
Jackson, Carlton. Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel. Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1990.
Mitchell, Lisa. "More Than a Mammy". Hollywood Studio Magazine, April 1979.
Salamon, Julie. "The Courage to Rise Above Mammyness". New York Times, August 6, 2001.
Watts, Jill. Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2005.
Talk of the Nation. Jill Watts, interview, audio
Young, Al. "I'd Rather Play a Maid Than Be One". New York Times, October 15, 1989.
Zeigler, Ronny. "Hattie McDaniel: '(I'd) ... rather play a maid.'" N.Y. Amsterdam News, April 28, 1979.
Further reading
Carter, W. Burlette, [ Finding the Oscar] (January 6, 2012). Howard Law Journal, Vol. 55, No. 1, 2011; GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2012-2; GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2012-2.
HISTORY This Week. The Legacy of an Oscar 02/10/2020 W. Burlette Carter and Jill Watts
External links
Hattie and Sam McDaniel papers at Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
1893 births
1952 deaths
20th-century American actresses
20th-century American comedians
Actors from Wichita, Kansas
Actresses from Kansas
African-American actresses
African-American female comedians
African-American women singer-songwriters
African-American radio personalities
American film actresses
American radio actresses
American television actresses
American women comedians
American blues singer-songwriters
Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winners
Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery
Comedians from California
Comedians from Kansas
Deaths from breast cancer
Deaths from cancer in California
Musicians from Wichita, Kansas
Okeh Records artists
Paramount Pictures contract players
People from South Los Angeles
People from West Adams, Los Angeles
RKO Pictures contract players
20th-century African-American women singers
Singer-songwriters from Kansas | true | [
"\"Operate\" is a song written and recorded by Peaches. The song was released as a double limited vinyl A-side with \"Shake Yer Dix\" to promote the release of her second studio album Fatherfucker.\n\nTrack listing\nUK CD single\n \"Operate\" – 3:28\n \"Shake Yer Dix\" – 3:32\n\nSong usage\n\"Operate\" has been used in movies Mean Girls and Waiting.... The song was also used in the American television series Las Vegas (episode title: New Orleans). \n\nIn 2017, following the release of Taylor Swift's \"Look What You Made Me Do\", some commentators suggested that the song sampled the beat from \"Operate\". Some Twitter users speculated that the alleged sample was a subtle reference to a Katy Perry tweet warning people to \"watch out for the Regina George in sheep's clothing\", since George appeared in the Mean Girls scene which featured the Peaches song. For a time, music annotation website Genius listed \"Operate\" as being sampled in the Swift single. Writing for the Alternative Press, Maggie Dickman argued that Swift's song \"clearly sounds like\" the Peaches song, and also remarked that Swift's music video was similar to Peaches'. In an article for W, Kyle Munzenrieder argued that the beat in Swift's song sounded similar but not the same, since it was \"cleaner and more toned down\". In her liner notes, Swift credited a sample of the Right Said Fred song \"I'm Too Sexy\", but did not list the Peaches song as a sample. A mashup of \"Operate\" and \"Look What You Made Me Do\" was posted to YouTube.\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\nElectroclash songs\nPeaches (musician) songs\nSong recordings produced by Peaches (musician)\nSongs written by Peaches (musician)\nXL Recordings singles",
"A standard normal table, also called the unit normal table or Z table, is a mathematical table for the values of Φ, which are the values of the cumulative distribution function of the normal distribution. It is used to find the probability that a statistic is observed below, above, or between values on the standard normal distribution, and by extension, any normal distribution. Since probability tables cannot be printed for every normal distribution, as there are an infinite variety of normal distributions, it is common practice to convert a normal to a standard normal and then use the standard normal table to find probabilities.\n\nNormal and standard normal distribution\nNormal distributions are symmetrical, bell-shaped distributions that are useful in describing real-world data. The standard normal distribution, represented by the letter Z, is the normal distribution having a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 1.\n\nConversion\n\nIf X is a random variable from a normal distribution with mean μ and standard deviation σ, its Z-score may be calculated from X by subtracting μ and dividing by the standard deviation:\n\n \nIf is the mean of a sample of size n from some population in which the mean is μ and the standard deviation is σ, the standard error is σ/√n:\n\n \n\nIf is the total of a sample of size n from some population in which the mean is μ and the standard deviation is σ, the expected total is nμ and the standard error is σ √n:\n\nReading a Z table\n\nFormatting / layout\nZ tables are typically composed as follows:\n The label for rows contains the integer part and the first decimal place of Z.\n The label for columns contains the second decimal place of Z.\n The values within the table are the probabilities corresponding to the table type. These probabilities are calculations of the area under the normal curve from the starting point (0 for cumulative from mean, negative infinity for cumulative and positive infinity for complementary cumulative) to Z.\n\nExample: To find 0.69, one would look down the rows to find 0.6 and then across the columns to 0.09 which would yield a probability of 0.25490 for a cumulative from mean table or 0.75490 from a cumulative table.\n\nBecause the normal distribution curve is symmetrical, probabilities for only positive values of Z are typically given. The user has to use a complementary operation on the absolute value of Z, as in the example below.\n\nTypes of tables\nZ tables use at least three different conventions:\n\nCumulative from mean gives a probability that a statistic is between 0 (mean) and Z. Example: \nCumulative gives a probability that a statistic is less than Z. This equates to the area of the distribution below Z. Example: .\nComplementary cumulative gives a probability that a statistic is greater than Z. This equates to the area of the distribution above Z.\nExample: Find Prob(Z ≥ 0.69). Since this is the portion of the area above Z, the proportion that is greater than Z is found by subtracting Z from 1. That is or .\n\nTable examples\n\nCumulative from minus infinity to Z\n\nThis table gives a probability that a statistic is between minus infinity and Z.\n\n \n\nThe values are calculated using the cumulative distribution function of a standard normal distribution with mean of zero and standard deviation of one, usually denoted with the capital Greek letter (phi), is the integral\n\n(z) is related to the error function, or erf(z).\n\n \n\nNote that for z = 1, 2, 3, one obtains (after multiplying by 2 to account for the [−z,z] interval) the results f(z) = 0.6827, 0.9545, 0.9974, \ncharacteristic of the 68–95–99.7 rule.\n\nCumulative(less than Z)\nThis table gives a probability that a statistic is less than Z (i.e. between negative infinity and Z).\n\nComplementary cumulative\nThis table gives a probability that a statistic is greater than Z.\n\nThis table gives a probability that a statistic is greater than Z, for large integer Z values.\n\nExamples of use\n\nA professor's exam scores are approximately distributed normally with mean 80 and standard deviation 5. Only a cumulative from mean table is available.\n\n What is the probability that a student scores an 82 or less? \n What is the probability that a student scores a 90 or more? \n What is the probability that a student scores a 74 or less? Since this table does not include negatives, the process involves the following additional step: \n What is the probability that a student scores between 74 and 82? \n What is the probability that an average of three scores is 82 or less?\n\nSee also\n\n 68–95–99.7 rule\n t-distribution table\n\nReferences\n\nNormal distribution\nMathematical tables"
]
|
[
"Hattie McDaniel",
"Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar",
"WHat did this lead him to",
"The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown.",
"What did this bring about",
"In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s.",
"What did this mean for her",
"In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard."
]
| C_f7cf3aff90f0448485ddd74b2d1cafa7_0 | What did this led to being written about | 4 | What did no Oscar led to being written about | Hattie McDaniel | The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009. In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s. In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of the Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar was likely returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the 5 1/2" x 6" plaque. CANNOTANSWER | In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. | Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first African American to win an Oscar. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975, and in 2006 she became the first black Oscar winner honored with a U.S. postage stamp. In 2010, she was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. In addition to acting, McDaniel recorded 16 blues sides between 1926 and 1929 and was a radio performer and television personality; she was the first black woman to sing on radio in the United States. Although she appeared in over 300 films, she received screen credits for only 83.
McDaniel experienced racism and racial segregation throughout her career, and notably was unable to attend the premiere of Gone with the Wind in Atlanta because it was held at a whites-only theater. At the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, she sat at a segregated table at the side of the room. In 1952, McDaniel died due to breast cancer. Her final wish to be buried in Hollywood Cemetery was denied due to the graveyard being restricted to whites only at the time.
Early life
McDaniel, the youngest of 13 children, was born in 1893 to formerly-enslaved parents in Wichita, Kansas. Her mother, Susan Holbert, was a singer of gospel music, and her father, Henry McDaniel, fought in the Civil War with the 122nd United States Colored Troops. In 1900, the family moved to Colorado, living first in Fort Collins and then in Denver, where Hattie attended Denver East High School (1908-1910) and in 1908 entered a contest sponsored by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, reciting "Convict Joe", later claiming she had won first place. Her brother, Sam McDaniel, played the butler in the 1948 Three Stooges' short film Heavenly Daze. Her sister Etta McDaniel was also an actress.
Career
Early work and acting beginnings
McDaniel was a songwriter as well as a performer. She honed her songwriting skills while working with her brother Otis McDaniel's carnival company, a minstrel show. McDaniel and her sister Etta Goff launched an all-female minstrel show in 1914 called the McDaniel Sisters Company. After the death of her brother Otis in 1916, the troupe began to lose money, and Hattie did not get her next big break until 1920. From 1920 to 1925, she appeared with Professor George Morrison's Melody Hounds, a black touring ensemble. In the mid-1920s, she embarked on a radio career, singing with the Melody Hounds on station KOA in Denver. From 1926 to 1929, she recorded many of her songs for Okeh Records and Paramount Records in Chicago. McDaniel recorded seven sessions: one in the summer of 1926 on the rare Kansas City label Meritt; four sessions in Chicago for Okeh from late 1926 to late 1927 (of the 10 sides recorded, only four were issued), and two sessions in Chicago for Paramount in March 1929.
After the stock market crashed in 1929, McDaniel could only find work as a washroom attendant at Sam Pick's Club Madrid near Milwaukee. Despite the owner's reluctance to let her perform, she was eventually allowed to take the stage and soon became a regular performer.
In 1931, McDaniel moved to Los Angeles to join her brother Sam, and sisters Etta and Orlena. When she could not get film work, she took jobs as a maid or cook. Sam was working on a KNX radio program, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour, and was able to get his sister a spot. She performed on radio as "Hi-Hat Hattie", a bossy maid who often "forgets her place". Her show became popular, but her salary was so low that she had to keep working as a maid. She made her first film appearance in The Golden West (1932), in which she played a maid. Her second appearance came in the highly successful Mae West film I'm No Angel (1933), in which she played one of the maids with whom West camped it up backstage. She received several other uncredited film roles in the early 1930s, often singing in choruses. In 1934, McDaniel joined the Screen Actors Guild. She began to attract attention and landed larger film roles, which began to win her screen credits. Fox Film Corporation put her under contract to appear in The Little Colonel (1935), with Shirley Temple, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Lionel Barrymore.
Judge Priest (1934), directed by John Ford and starring Will Rogers, was the first film in which she played a major role. She had a leading part in the film and demonstrated her singing talent, including a duet with Rogers. McDaniel and Rogers became friends during filming. In 1935, McDaniel had prominent roles, as a slovenly maid in Alice Adams (RKO Pictures); a comic part as Jean Harlow's maid and traveling companion in China Seas (MGM) (McDaniels's first film with Clark Gable); and as the maid Isabella in Murder by Television, with Béla Lugosi. She appeared in the 1938 film Vivacious Lady, starring James Stewart and Ginger Rogers. McDaniel had a featured role as Queenie in the 1936 film Show Boat (Universal Pictures), starring Allan Jones and Irene Dunne, in which she sang a verse of Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man with Dunne, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, and a black chorus. She and Robeson sang "I Still Suits Me", written for the film by Kern and Hammerstein. After Show Boat, she had major roles in MGM's Saratoga (1937), starring Jean Harlow and Clark Gable; The Shopworn Angel (1938), with Margaret Sullavan; and The Mad Miss Manton (1938), starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She had a minor role in the Carole Lombard–Frederic March film Nothing Sacred (1937), in which she played the wife of a shoeshine man (Troy Brown) masquerading as a sultan.
McDaniel was a friend of many of Hollywood's most popular stars, including Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Bette Davis, Shirley Temple, Henry Fonda, Ronald Reagan, Olivia de Havilland, and Clark Gable. She starred with de Havilland and Gable in Gone with the Wind (1939). Around this time, she was criticized by members of the black community for the roles she accepted and for pursuing roles aggressively rather than rocking the Hollywood boat. For example, in The Little Colonel (1935), she played one of the servants longing to return to the Old South, but her portrayal of Malena in RKO Pictures's Alice Adams angered white Southern audiences, because she stole several scenes from the film's white star, Katharine Hepburn. McDaniel ultimately became best known for playing a sassy, opinionated maid.
Gone with the Wind
The competition to win the part of Mammy in Gone with the Wind was almost as fierce as that for Scarlett O'Hara. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt wrote to film producer David O. Selznick to ask that her own maid, Elizabeth McDuffie, be given the part. McDaniel did not think she would be chosen because she had earned her reputation as a comic actress. One source claimed that Clark Gable recommended that the role be given to McDaniel; in any case, she went to her audition dressed in an authentic maid's uniform and won the part.
Upon hearing of the planned film adaptation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) fought hard to require the film's producer and director to delete racial epithets from the movie (in particular the offensive slur "nigger") and to alter scenes that might be incendiary and that, in their view, were historically inaccurate. Of particular concern was a scene from the novel in which black men attack Scarlett O'Hara, after which the Ku Klux Klan, with its long history of provoking terror on black communities, is presented as a savior. Throughout the South, black men were being lynched based upon false allegations they had harmed white women. That attack scene was altered, and some offensive language was modified, but another epithet, "darkie", remained in the film, and the film's message with respect to slavery remained essentially the same. Consistent with the book, the film's screenplay also referred to poor whites as "white trash", and it ascribed these words equally to characters black and white.
Loew's Grand Theater on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia was selected by the studio as the site for the Friday, December 15, 1939, premiere of Gone with the Wind. Studio head David O. Selznick asked that McDaniel be permitted to attend, but MGM advised him not to, because of Georgia's segregation laws. Clark Gable threatened to boycott the Atlanta premiere unless McDaniel were allowed to attend, but McDaniel convinced him to attend anyway.
Most of Atlanta's 300,000 citizens crowded the route of the seven-mile (11 km) motorcade that carried the film's other stars and executives from the airport to the Georgian Terrace Hotel, where they stayed. While Jim Crow laws kept McDaniel from the Atlanta premiere, she did attend the film's Hollywood debut on December 28, 1939. Upon Selznick's insistence, her picture was also featured prominently in the program.
Reception and 1939 Academy Awards
For her performance as the house servant who repeatedly scolds her owner's daughter, Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), and scoffs at Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), McDaniel won the 1939 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first black actor to have been nominated and win an Oscar. "I loved Mammy," McDaniel said when speaking to the white press about the character. "I think I understood her because my own grandmother worked on a plantation not unlike Tara." Her role in Gone with the Wind had alarmed some whites in the South; there were complaints that in the film she had been too "familiar" with her white owners. At least one writer pointed out that McDaniel's character did not significantly depart from Mammy's persona in Margaret Mitchell's novel, and that in both the film and the book, the much younger Scarlett speaks to Mammy in ways that would be deemed inappropriate for a Southern teenager of that era to speak to a much older white person, and that neither the book nor the film hints of the existence of Mammy's own children (dead or alive), her own family (dead or alive), a real name, or her desires to have anything other than a life at Tara, serving on a slave plantation. Moreover, while Mammy scolds the younger Scarlett, she never crosses Mrs. O'Hara, the more senior white woman in the household. Some critics felt that McDaniel not only accepted the roles but also in her statements to the press acquiesced in Hollywood's stereotypes, providing fuel for critics of those who were fighting for black civil rights. Later, when McDaniel tried to take her "Mammy" character on a road show, black audiences did not prove receptive.
While many black people were happy over McDaniel's personal victory, they also viewed it as bittersweet. They believed Gone With the Wind celebrated the slave system and condemned the forces that destroyed it. For them, the unique accolade McDaniel had won suggested that only those who did not protest Hollywood's systemic use of racial stereotypes could find work and success there.
The Twelfth Academy Awards took place at the Coconut Grove Restaurant of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. It was preceded by a banquet in the same room. Louella Parsons, an American gossip columnist, wrote about Oscar night, February 29, 1940:
McDaniel received a plaque-style Oscar, approximately by , the type awarded to all Best Supporting Actors and Actresses at that time. She and her escort were required to sit at a segregated table for two at the far wall of the room; her white agent, William Meiklejohn, sat at the same table. The hotel had a strict no-blacks policy, but allowed McDaniel in as a favor. The discrimination continued after the award ceremony as well as her white co-stars went to a "no-blacks" club, where McDaniel was also denied entry. Another black woman did not win an Oscar again for 50 years, with Whoopi Goldberg winning Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ghost. Weeks prior to McDaniel winning her Oscar, there was even more controversy. David Selznick, the producer of Gone With the Wind, omitted the faces of all the black actors on the posters advertising the movie in the South. None of the black cast members were allowed to attend the premiere for the movie.
Gone with the Wind won eight Academy Awards. It was later named by the American Film Institute (AFI) as number four among the top 100 American films of all time in the 1998 ranking and number six in the 2007 ranking.
Final works
In the Warner Bros. film In This Our Life (1942), starring Bette Davis and directed by John Huston, McDaniel once again played a domestic, but one who confronts racial issues when her son, a law student, is wrongly accused of manslaughter. McDaniel was in the same studio's Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943), with Humphrey Bogart and Bette Davis. In its review of the film, Time wrote that McDaniel was comic relief in an otherwise "grim study," writing, "Hattie McDaniel, whose bubbling, blaring good humor more than redeems the roaring bad taste of a Harlem number called Ice Cold Katie". McDaniel continued to play maids during the war years for Warners in The Male Animal (1942) and United Artists' Since You Went Away (1944), but her feistiness was toned down to reflect the era's somber news. She also played the maid in Song of the South (1946) for Disney.
She made her last film appearances in Mickey (1948) and Family Honeymoon (1949), where that same year, she appeared on the live CBS television program The Ed Wynn Show. She remained active on radio and television in her final years, becoming the first black actor to star in her own radio show with the comedy series Beulah. She also starred in the television version of the show, replacing Ethel Waters after the first season. (Waters had apparently expressed concerns over stereotypes in the role.) Beulah was a hit, however, and earned McDaniel $2,000 per week; however, the show was controversial. In 1951, the United States Army ceased broadcasting Beulah in Asia because troops complained that the show perpetuated negative stereotypes of black men as shiftless and lazy and interfered with the ability of black troops to perform their mission. After filming a handful of episodes, however, McDaniel learned she had breast cancer. By the spring of 1952, she was too ill to work and was replaced by Louise Beavers.
Personal life
Marriages
McDaniel married Howard Hickman on January 19, 1911, in Denver, Colorado. He died in 1915. Her second husband, George Langford, died of a gunshot wound in January 1925, soon after she married him and while her career was on the rise.
She married James Lloyd Crawford, a real estate salesman, on March 21, 1941, in Tucson, Arizona. According to Donald Bogle, in his book Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams, McDaniel happily confided to gossip columnist Hedda Hopper in 1945 that she was pregnant. McDaniel began buying baby clothes and set up a nursery in her house. Her plans were shattered when she suffered a false pregnancy and fell into a depression. She never had any children. She divorced Crawford in 1945, after four and a half years of marriage. Crawford had been jealous of her career success, she said.
She married Larry Williams, an interior decorator, on June 11, 1949, in Yuma, Arizona, but divorced him in 1950 after testifying that their five months together had been marred by "arguing and fussing." McDaniel broke down in tears when she testified that her husband tried to provoke dissension in the cast of her radio show and otherwise interfered with her work. "I haven't gotten over it yet," she said. "I got so I couldn't sleep. I couldn't concentrate on my lines."
Community service
During World War II, she served as chairman of the Negro Division of the Hollywood Victory Committee, providing entertainment for soldiers stationed at military bases. (The US military was segregated, and black entertainers were not allowed to serve on white entertainment committees.) She elicited the help of a friend, the actor Leigh Whipper, and other black entertainers for her committee. She made numerous personal appearances at military hospitals, threw parties, and performed at United Service Organizations (USO) shows and war bond rallies to raise funds to support the war on behalf of the Victory Committee. Bette Davis was the only white member of McDaniel's acting troupe to perform for black regiments; Lena Horne and Ethel Waters also participated. McDaniel was also a member of American Women's Voluntary Services.
She joined the actor Clarence Muse, one of the first black members of the Screen Actors Guild, in an NBC radio broadcast to raise funds for Red Cross relief programs for Americans that had been displaced by devastating floods, and she gained a reputation for generosity, lending money to friends and strangers alike.
Death
In August 1950, McDaniel suffered a heart ailment and entered Temple Hospital in semi-critical condition. She was released in October to recuperate at home, and she was cited by United Press on January 3, 1951, as showing "slight improvement in her recovery from a mild stroke."
McDaniel died of breast cancer at age 59 on October 26, 1952, in the hospital on the grounds of the Motion Picture House in Woodland Hills, California. She was survived by her brother Sam McDaniel. Thousands of mourners turned out to celebrate her life and achievements. In her will, McDaniel wrote,
Hollywood Cemetery, on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, is the resting place of movie stars such as Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino. Its owner at the time, Jules Roth, refused to allow her to be buried there, because, at the time of McDaniel's death, the cemetery practiced racial segregation and would not accept the remains of black people for burial. Her second choice was Rosedale Cemetery (now known as Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery), where she lies today.
In 1999, Tyler Cassity, the new owner of the Hollywood Cemetery (renamed the Hollywood Forever Cemetery), offered to have McDaniel re-interred there. Her family did not wish to disturb her remains and declined the offer. Instead, Hollywood Forever Cemetery built a large cenotaph on the lawn overlooking its lake. It is one of Hollywood's most popular tourist attractions.
McDaniel's last will and testament of December 1951 bequeathed her Oscar to Howard University, where she had been honored by the students with a luncheon after she had won her Oscar. At the time of her death, McDaniel would have had few options. Very few white institutions in that day preserved black history. Historically, black colleges had been where such artifacts were placed. Despite evidence McDaniel had earned an excellent income as an actress, her final estate was less than $10,000. The IRS claimed the estate owed more than $11,000 in taxes. In the end, the probate court ordered all of her property, including her Oscar, sold to pay off creditors. Years later, the Oscar turned up where McDaniel wanted it to be: Howard University, where, according to reports, it was displayed in a glass case in the university's drama department. However, it appears to have gone missing from Howard in the 60's or 70's and has never been recovered.
Reception and impact
Initial controversies
As her fame grew, McDaniel faced growing criticism from some members of the black community. Groups such as the NAACP complained that Hollywood stereotypes not only restricted black actors to servant roles but often portrayed them as lazy, dim-witted, satisfied with lowly positions, or violent. In addition to addressing the studios, they called upon actors, and especially leading black actors, to pressure studios to offer more substantive roles and at least not pander to stereotypes. They also argued that these portrayals were unfair as well as inaccurate and that, coupled with segregation and other forms of discrimination, such stereotypes were making it difficult for all black people, not only actors, to overcome racism and succeed in the entertainment industry. Some attacked McDaniel for being an "Uncle Tom"—a person willing to advance personally by perpetuating racial stereotypes or being an agreeable agent of offensive racial restrictions. McDaniel characterized these challenges as class-based biases against domestics, a claim that white columnists seemed to accept. She reportedly said, "Why should I complain about making $700 a week playing a maid? If I didn't, I'd be making $7 a week being one."
McDaniel may also have been criticized because, unlike many other black entertainers, she was not associated with civil rights protests and was largely absent from efforts to establish a commercial base for independent black films. She did not join the Negro Actors Guild of America until 1947, late in her career. McDaniel hired one of the few white agents who would represent black actors at the time, William Meiklejohn, to advance her career. Evidence suggests her avoidance of political controversy was deliberate. When columnist Hedda Hopper sent her Richard Nixon placards and asked McDaniel to distribute them, McDaniel declined, replying she had long ago decided to stay out of politics. "Beulah is everybody's friend," she said. Since she was earning a living honestly, she added, she should not be criticized for accepting such work as was offered. Her critics, especially Walter White of the NAACP, claimed that she and other actors who agreed to portray stereotypes were not a neutral force but rather willing agents of black oppression.
McDaniel and other black actresses and actors feared that their roles would evaporate if the NAACP and other Hollywood critics complained too loudly. She blamed these critics for hindering her career and sought the help of allies of doubtful reputation. After speaking with McDaniel, Hopper claimed that McDaniel's career troubles were not the result of racism but had been caused by McDaniel's "own people".
Achievements and legacy
McDaniel has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood: one at 6933 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to radio and one at 1719 Vine Street for motion pictures. In 1975, she was inducted posthumously into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame.
In 1994 the actress and singer Karla Burns, notably the first black performer to win a Laurence Olivier Award, launched her one-woman show Hi-Hat-Hattie (written by Larry Parr), about McDaniel's life. Burns went on to perform the role in several other cities through 2018, including Off-Broadway and the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre in California.
In 2002, McDaniel's legacy was celebrated in American Movie Classics's (AMC) film Beyond Tara, The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel (2001), produced and directed by Madison D. Lacy and hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. This one-hour special depicted McDaniel's struggles and triumphs in the presence of rampant racism and brutal adversity. The film won the 2001–2002 Daytime Emmy Award, presented on May 17, 2002, for Outstanding Special Class Special.
McDaniel was the 29th inductee in the Black Heritage Series by the United States Postal Service. Her 39-cent stamp was released on January 29, 2006, featuring a 1941 photograph of McDaniel in the dress she wore to accept the Academy Award in 1940. The ceremony took place at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where the Hattie McDaniel collection includes photographs of McDaniel and other family members as well as scripts and other documents.
In 2004 Rita Dove, the first black U.S. poet laureate, published her poem "Hattie McDaniel Arrives at the Coconut Grove" in The New Yorker and has since presented it frequently during her poetry readings as well as on YouTube.
In the 2020 Netflix mini-series Hollywood a fictionalised Hattie McDaniel is played by Queen Latifah.
Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar
The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in The Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in The Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.
In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Precious, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar.
In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of The Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar had likely been returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the award.
West Adams Heights homeowners' covenant case victory
McDaniel was the most famous of the black homeowners who helped to organize the black Historic West Adams neighborhood residents who saved their homes. Loren Miller, an attorney and the owner and publisher of the California Eagle newspaper, represented the minority homeowners in their restrictive covenant case. In 1944, Miller won the case Fairchild v Rainers, a decision in favor of a black family in Pasadena, California, which had bought a nonrestricted lot but was still sued by white neighbors.
Time magazine, in its issue of December 17, 1945, reported:
McDaniel had purchased her white, two-story, seventeen-room house in 1942. The house included a large living room, dining room, drawing room, den, butler's pantry, kitchen, service porch, library, four bedrooms and a basement. McDaniel had a yearly Hollywood party. Everyone knew that the king of Hollywood, Clark Gable, could always be found at McDaniel's parties.
Filmography
Film
Features
Short films
Mickey's Rescue (1934) as Maid (uncredited)
Fate's Fathead (1934) as Mandy - the Maid (uncredited)
The Chases of Pimple Street (1934) as Hattie, Gertrude's Maid (uncredited)
Anniversary Trouble (1935) as Mandy, the Maid
Okay Toots! (1935) as Hattie - the Maid (uncredited)
Wig-Wag (1935) as Cook (uncredited)
The Four Star Boarder (1935) as Maid (uncredited)
Arbor Day (1936) as Buckwheat's Mother
Termites of 1938 (Three Stooges) (1938)
Radio
Station KOA, Denver, Melony Hounds (1926)
Station KNX, Los Angeles, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour (1931)
CBS Network, The Beulah Show (1947)
McDaniel was a semi-regular on the radio program Amos 'n' Andy, first as Andy's demanding landlady. In one episode they nearly marry. Andy was out for her money, aided and abetted by the Kingfish, who gives his wife's diamond ring to present to McDaniel as an engagement ring. The scheme blows up in their faces when Sapphire decides to throw a party to celebrate. Andy desperately tries to conceal the ring from Sapphire. In frustration and growing anger, McDaniel says to Andy, "Andy, sweetheart, darlin'. Is you gonna let go of my hand or does I have to pop you??!!" This episode aired on NBC in June 1944. She played a similar character, "Sadie Simpson", in several later episodes.
Discography
Hattie McDaniel recorded infrequently as a singer. In addition to the musical numbers over her long career in films, she recorded for Okeh Records, Paramount, and the small Kansas City, Missouri label Merrit. All of her known recordings (some of which were never issued) were recorded in the 1920s.
See also
List of African-American firsts
List of black Academy Award winners and nominees
List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
References
Bibliography
Hopper, Hedda. "Hattie Hates Nobody". Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1947.
Jackson, Carlton. Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel. Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1990.
Mitchell, Lisa. "More Than a Mammy". Hollywood Studio Magazine, April 1979.
Salamon, Julie. "The Courage to Rise Above Mammyness". New York Times, August 6, 2001.
Watts, Jill. Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2005.
Talk of the Nation. Jill Watts, interview, audio
Young, Al. "I'd Rather Play a Maid Than Be One". New York Times, October 15, 1989.
Zeigler, Ronny. "Hattie McDaniel: '(I'd) ... rather play a maid.'" N.Y. Amsterdam News, April 28, 1979.
Further reading
Carter, W. Burlette, [ Finding the Oscar] (January 6, 2012). Howard Law Journal, Vol. 55, No. 1, 2011; GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2012-2; GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2012-2.
HISTORY This Week. The Legacy of an Oscar 02/10/2020 W. Burlette Carter and Jill Watts
External links
Hattie and Sam McDaniel papers at Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
1893 births
1952 deaths
20th-century American actresses
20th-century American comedians
Actors from Wichita, Kansas
Actresses from Kansas
African-American actresses
African-American female comedians
African-American women singer-songwriters
African-American radio personalities
American film actresses
American radio actresses
American television actresses
American women comedians
American blues singer-songwriters
Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winners
Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery
Comedians from California
Comedians from Kansas
Deaths from breast cancer
Deaths from cancer in California
Musicians from Wichita, Kansas
Okeh Records artists
Paramount Pictures contract players
People from South Los Angeles
People from West Adams, Los Angeles
RKO Pictures contract players
20th-century African-American women singers
Singer-songwriters from Kansas | true | [
"What'cha Gonna Do About It is a 1963 song by Doris Troy. It made #37 on the UK Singles Chart in 1964 and #38 in 1965.\n\nMusical composition\nFeaturing a stuttering single-note piano line throughout - giving the song a Caribbean feel to the record - the song is a cocky warning to her man to change his ways for the good of their relationship.\n\nCover versions\n\nPeter Doyle cover version\nNew Seekers vocalist Peter Doyle, before joining the New Seekers, did a cover of What'cha Gonna Do About It which made #27 on the ARIA Charts.\n\nOther cover versions\nThe Hollies did a British Invasion cover version of this for their debut album Stay with The Hollies.\nCilla Black did a cover of this for her debut album Cilla.\n\nReferences\n\nDoris Troy songs\n1964 songs\nSongs written by Gregory Carroll (R&B singer)\nSongs written by Doris Troy\nSongs written by Rex Garvin",
"\"Holy Key\" is a hip hop single by American musician DJ Khaled, featuring American rappers Big Sean, Kendrick Lamar and American singer Betty Wright. It was released on July 22, 2016, by We the Best Music Group and Epic Records as the third single of DJ Khaled's ninth studio album, Major Key. The song was produced by Cool & Dre.\n\nBackground\nWhilst in the process of recording \"Holy Key\", Khaled told Sean; \"Yo. This record? I don’t want no rules, no regulations, I don’t want no regular song structure. I want you to just go bad. Catch the Holy Ghost and just… This is your chance to spit them bars. Even though you spit them all the time. Big this is a special one we gonna do it on.\" Khaled approached Kendrick Lamar about doing a feature on the song at a basketball game in LA they were both attending. Lamar responded to the idea of a possible collaboration; \"No doubt, Khaled. I love what youre doing right now. I love how you're inspiring the world and the kids with your music. Send it through.\" Khaled was hesitant to send the song immediately as he \"wanted to make sure it was the right record\", and with Lamar's schedule being busy, Khaled feared the record not being done on time. Lamar's verse was sent two days after Khaled spoke to him.\n\nIn the days leading up to the release of \"Holy Key\", DJ Khaled went on SnapChat and teased by yelling \"Ay Juan, did the Kendrick vocals get here yet?\" and that Kendrick would have the most talked about verse on his album. Khaled would then proceed to comment on the single: \"Man, we did our damn thing. Those are two different rappers and guess what? They both great. That's how you make records. I'm not here just to make a record. That’s not what Khaled does. I'ma try to bring the best out of everybody!\"\n\nChart performance\n\"Holy Key\" debuted at number 84 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the chart dated August 20, 2016.\n\nCharts\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n2016 songs\n2016 singles\nDJ Khaled songs\nBetty Wright songs\nKendrick Lamar songs\nBig Sean songs\nSongs written by DJ Khaled\nSongs written by Kendrick Lamar\nSongs written by Big Sean\nSongs written by Betty Wright\nEpic Records singles"
]
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"Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar",
"WHat did this lead him to",
"The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown.",
"What did this bring about",
"In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s.",
"What did this mean for her",
"In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard.",
"What did this led to being written about",
"In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s."
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| C_f7cf3aff90f0448485ddd74b2d1cafa7_0 | What did this lead him too | 5 | What did Oscar lead Hattie McDaniel too | Hattie McDaniel | The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009. In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s. In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of the Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar was likely returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the 5 1/2" x 6" plaque. CANNOTANSWER | The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009. | Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first African American to win an Oscar. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975, and in 2006 she became the first black Oscar winner honored with a U.S. postage stamp. In 2010, she was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. In addition to acting, McDaniel recorded 16 blues sides between 1926 and 1929 and was a radio performer and television personality; she was the first black woman to sing on radio in the United States. Although she appeared in over 300 films, she received screen credits for only 83.
McDaniel experienced racism and racial segregation throughout her career, and notably was unable to attend the premiere of Gone with the Wind in Atlanta because it was held at a whites-only theater. At the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, she sat at a segregated table at the side of the room. In 1952, McDaniel died due to breast cancer. Her final wish to be buried in Hollywood Cemetery was denied due to the graveyard being restricted to whites only at the time.
Early life
McDaniel, the youngest of 13 children, was born in 1893 to formerly-enslaved parents in Wichita, Kansas. Her mother, Susan Holbert, was a singer of gospel music, and her father, Henry McDaniel, fought in the Civil War with the 122nd United States Colored Troops. In 1900, the family moved to Colorado, living first in Fort Collins and then in Denver, where Hattie attended Denver East High School (1908-1910) and in 1908 entered a contest sponsored by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, reciting "Convict Joe", later claiming she had won first place. Her brother, Sam McDaniel, played the butler in the 1948 Three Stooges' short film Heavenly Daze. Her sister Etta McDaniel was also an actress.
Career
Early work and acting beginnings
McDaniel was a songwriter as well as a performer. She honed her songwriting skills while working with her brother Otis McDaniel's carnival company, a minstrel show. McDaniel and her sister Etta Goff launched an all-female minstrel show in 1914 called the McDaniel Sisters Company. After the death of her brother Otis in 1916, the troupe began to lose money, and Hattie did not get her next big break until 1920. From 1920 to 1925, she appeared with Professor George Morrison's Melody Hounds, a black touring ensemble. In the mid-1920s, she embarked on a radio career, singing with the Melody Hounds on station KOA in Denver. From 1926 to 1929, she recorded many of her songs for Okeh Records and Paramount Records in Chicago. McDaniel recorded seven sessions: one in the summer of 1926 on the rare Kansas City label Meritt; four sessions in Chicago for Okeh from late 1926 to late 1927 (of the 10 sides recorded, only four were issued), and two sessions in Chicago for Paramount in March 1929.
After the stock market crashed in 1929, McDaniel could only find work as a washroom attendant at Sam Pick's Club Madrid near Milwaukee. Despite the owner's reluctance to let her perform, she was eventually allowed to take the stage and soon became a regular performer.
In 1931, McDaniel moved to Los Angeles to join her brother Sam, and sisters Etta and Orlena. When she could not get film work, she took jobs as a maid or cook. Sam was working on a KNX radio program, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour, and was able to get his sister a spot. She performed on radio as "Hi-Hat Hattie", a bossy maid who often "forgets her place". Her show became popular, but her salary was so low that she had to keep working as a maid. She made her first film appearance in The Golden West (1932), in which she played a maid. Her second appearance came in the highly successful Mae West film I'm No Angel (1933), in which she played one of the maids with whom West camped it up backstage. She received several other uncredited film roles in the early 1930s, often singing in choruses. In 1934, McDaniel joined the Screen Actors Guild. She began to attract attention and landed larger film roles, which began to win her screen credits. Fox Film Corporation put her under contract to appear in The Little Colonel (1935), with Shirley Temple, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Lionel Barrymore.
Judge Priest (1934), directed by John Ford and starring Will Rogers, was the first film in which she played a major role. She had a leading part in the film and demonstrated her singing talent, including a duet with Rogers. McDaniel and Rogers became friends during filming. In 1935, McDaniel had prominent roles, as a slovenly maid in Alice Adams (RKO Pictures); a comic part as Jean Harlow's maid and traveling companion in China Seas (MGM) (McDaniels's first film with Clark Gable); and as the maid Isabella in Murder by Television, with Béla Lugosi. She appeared in the 1938 film Vivacious Lady, starring James Stewart and Ginger Rogers. McDaniel had a featured role as Queenie in the 1936 film Show Boat (Universal Pictures), starring Allan Jones and Irene Dunne, in which she sang a verse of Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man with Dunne, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, and a black chorus. She and Robeson sang "I Still Suits Me", written for the film by Kern and Hammerstein. After Show Boat, she had major roles in MGM's Saratoga (1937), starring Jean Harlow and Clark Gable; The Shopworn Angel (1938), with Margaret Sullavan; and The Mad Miss Manton (1938), starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She had a minor role in the Carole Lombard–Frederic March film Nothing Sacred (1937), in which she played the wife of a shoeshine man (Troy Brown) masquerading as a sultan.
McDaniel was a friend of many of Hollywood's most popular stars, including Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Bette Davis, Shirley Temple, Henry Fonda, Ronald Reagan, Olivia de Havilland, and Clark Gable. She starred with de Havilland and Gable in Gone with the Wind (1939). Around this time, she was criticized by members of the black community for the roles she accepted and for pursuing roles aggressively rather than rocking the Hollywood boat. For example, in The Little Colonel (1935), she played one of the servants longing to return to the Old South, but her portrayal of Malena in RKO Pictures's Alice Adams angered white Southern audiences, because she stole several scenes from the film's white star, Katharine Hepburn. McDaniel ultimately became best known for playing a sassy, opinionated maid.
Gone with the Wind
The competition to win the part of Mammy in Gone with the Wind was almost as fierce as that for Scarlett O'Hara. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt wrote to film producer David O. Selznick to ask that her own maid, Elizabeth McDuffie, be given the part. McDaniel did not think she would be chosen because she had earned her reputation as a comic actress. One source claimed that Clark Gable recommended that the role be given to McDaniel; in any case, she went to her audition dressed in an authentic maid's uniform and won the part.
Upon hearing of the planned film adaptation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) fought hard to require the film's producer and director to delete racial epithets from the movie (in particular the offensive slur "nigger") and to alter scenes that might be incendiary and that, in their view, were historically inaccurate. Of particular concern was a scene from the novel in which black men attack Scarlett O'Hara, after which the Ku Klux Klan, with its long history of provoking terror on black communities, is presented as a savior. Throughout the South, black men were being lynched based upon false allegations they had harmed white women. That attack scene was altered, and some offensive language was modified, but another epithet, "darkie", remained in the film, and the film's message with respect to slavery remained essentially the same. Consistent with the book, the film's screenplay also referred to poor whites as "white trash", and it ascribed these words equally to characters black and white.
Loew's Grand Theater on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia was selected by the studio as the site for the Friday, December 15, 1939, premiere of Gone with the Wind. Studio head David O. Selznick asked that McDaniel be permitted to attend, but MGM advised him not to, because of Georgia's segregation laws. Clark Gable threatened to boycott the Atlanta premiere unless McDaniel were allowed to attend, but McDaniel convinced him to attend anyway.
Most of Atlanta's 300,000 citizens crowded the route of the seven-mile (11 km) motorcade that carried the film's other stars and executives from the airport to the Georgian Terrace Hotel, where they stayed. While Jim Crow laws kept McDaniel from the Atlanta premiere, she did attend the film's Hollywood debut on December 28, 1939. Upon Selznick's insistence, her picture was also featured prominently in the program.
Reception and 1939 Academy Awards
For her performance as the house servant who repeatedly scolds her owner's daughter, Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), and scoffs at Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), McDaniel won the 1939 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first black actor to have been nominated and win an Oscar. "I loved Mammy," McDaniel said when speaking to the white press about the character. "I think I understood her because my own grandmother worked on a plantation not unlike Tara." Her role in Gone with the Wind had alarmed some whites in the South; there were complaints that in the film she had been too "familiar" with her white owners. At least one writer pointed out that McDaniel's character did not significantly depart from Mammy's persona in Margaret Mitchell's novel, and that in both the film and the book, the much younger Scarlett speaks to Mammy in ways that would be deemed inappropriate for a Southern teenager of that era to speak to a much older white person, and that neither the book nor the film hints of the existence of Mammy's own children (dead or alive), her own family (dead or alive), a real name, or her desires to have anything other than a life at Tara, serving on a slave plantation. Moreover, while Mammy scolds the younger Scarlett, she never crosses Mrs. O'Hara, the more senior white woman in the household. Some critics felt that McDaniel not only accepted the roles but also in her statements to the press acquiesced in Hollywood's stereotypes, providing fuel for critics of those who were fighting for black civil rights. Later, when McDaniel tried to take her "Mammy" character on a road show, black audiences did not prove receptive.
While many black people were happy over McDaniel's personal victory, they also viewed it as bittersweet. They believed Gone With the Wind celebrated the slave system and condemned the forces that destroyed it. For them, the unique accolade McDaniel had won suggested that only those who did not protest Hollywood's systemic use of racial stereotypes could find work and success there.
The Twelfth Academy Awards took place at the Coconut Grove Restaurant of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. It was preceded by a banquet in the same room. Louella Parsons, an American gossip columnist, wrote about Oscar night, February 29, 1940:
McDaniel received a plaque-style Oscar, approximately by , the type awarded to all Best Supporting Actors and Actresses at that time. She and her escort were required to sit at a segregated table for two at the far wall of the room; her white agent, William Meiklejohn, sat at the same table. The hotel had a strict no-blacks policy, but allowed McDaniel in as a favor. The discrimination continued after the award ceremony as well as her white co-stars went to a "no-blacks" club, where McDaniel was also denied entry. Another black woman did not win an Oscar again for 50 years, with Whoopi Goldberg winning Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ghost. Weeks prior to McDaniel winning her Oscar, there was even more controversy. David Selznick, the producer of Gone With the Wind, omitted the faces of all the black actors on the posters advertising the movie in the South. None of the black cast members were allowed to attend the premiere for the movie.
Gone with the Wind won eight Academy Awards. It was later named by the American Film Institute (AFI) as number four among the top 100 American films of all time in the 1998 ranking and number six in the 2007 ranking.
Final works
In the Warner Bros. film In This Our Life (1942), starring Bette Davis and directed by John Huston, McDaniel once again played a domestic, but one who confronts racial issues when her son, a law student, is wrongly accused of manslaughter. McDaniel was in the same studio's Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943), with Humphrey Bogart and Bette Davis. In its review of the film, Time wrote that McDaniel was comic relief in an otherwise "grim study," writing, "Hattie McDaniel, whose bubbling, blaring good humor more than redeems the roaring bad taste of a Harlem number called Ice Cold Katie". McDaniel continued to play maids during the war years for Warners in The Male Animal (1942) and United Artists' Since You Went Away (1944), but her feistiness was toned down to reflect the era's somber news. She also played the maid in Song of the South (1946) for Disney.
She made her last film appearances in Mickey (1948) and Family Honeymoon (1949), where that same year, she appeared on the live CBS television program The Ed Wynn Show. She remained active on radio and television in her final years, becoming the first black actor to star in her own radio show with the comedy series Beulah. She also starred in the television version of the show, replacing Ethel Waters after the first season. (Waters had apparently expressed concerns over stereotypes in the role.) Beulah was a hit, however, and earned McDaniel $2,000 per week; however, the show was controversial. In 1951, the United States Army ceased broadcasting Beulah in Asia because troops complained that the show perpetuated negative stereotypes of black men as shiftless and lazy and interfered with the ability of black troops to perform their mission. After filming a handful of episodes, however, McDaniel learned she had breast cancer. By the spring of 1952, she was too ill to work and was replaced by Louise Beavers.
Personal life
Marriages
McDaniel married Howard Hickman on January 19, 1911, in Denver, Colorado. He died in 1915. Her second husband, George Langford, died of a gunshot wound in January 1925, soon after she married him and while her career was on the rise.
She married James Lloyd Crawford, a real estate salesman, on March 21, 1941, in Tucson, Arizona. According to Donald Bogle, in his book Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams, McDaniel happily confided to gossip columnist Hedda Hopper in 1945 that she was pregnant. McDaniel began buying baby clothes and set up a nursery in her house. Her plans were shattered when she suffered a false pregnancy and fell into a depression. She never had any children. She divorced Crawford in 1945, after four and a half years of marriage. Crawford had been jealous of her career success, she said.
She married Larry Williams, an interior decorator, on June 11, 1949, in Yuma, Arizona, but divorced him in 1950 after testifying that their five months together had been marred by "arguing and fussing." McDaniel broke down in tears when she testified that her husband tried to provoke dissension in the cast of her radio show and otherwise interfered with her work. "I haven't gotten over it yet," she said. "I got so I couldn't sleep. I couldn't concentrate on my lines."
Community service
During World War II, she served as chairman of the Negro Division of the Hollywood Victory Committee, providing entertainment for soldiers stationed at military bases. (The US military was segregated, and black entertainers were not allowed to serve on white entertainment committees.) She elicited the help of a friend, the actor Leigh Whipper, and other black entertainers for her committee. She made numerous personal appearances at military hospitals, threw parties, and performed at United Service Organizations (USO) shows and war bond rallies to raise funds to support the war on behalf of the Victory Committee. Bette Davis was the only white member of McDaniel's acting troupe to perform for black regiments; Lena Horne and Ethel Waters also participated. McDaniel was also a member of American Women's Voluntary Services.
She joined the actor Clarence Muse, one of the first black members of the Screen Actors Guild, in an NBC radio broadcast to raise funds for Red Cross relief programs for Americans that had been displaced by devastating floods, and she gained a reputation for generosity, lending money to friends and strangers alike.
Death
In August 1950, McDaniel suffered a heart ailment and entered Temple Hospital in semi-critical condition. She was released in October to recuperate at home, and she was cited by United Press on January 3, 1951, as showing "slight improvement in her recovery from a mild stroke."
McDaniel died of breast cancer at age 59 on October 26, 1952, in the hospital on the grounds of the Motion Picture House in Woodland Hills, California. She was survived by her brother Sam McDaniel. Thousands of mourners turned out to celebrate her life and achievements. In her will, McDaniel wrote,
Hollywood Cemetery, on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, is the resting place of movie stars such as Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino. Its owner at the time, Jules Roth, refused to allow her to be buried there, because, at the time of McDaniel's death, the cemetery practiced racial segregation and would not accept the remains of black people for burial. Her second choice was Rosedale Cemetery (now known as Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery), where she lies today.
In 1999, Tyler Cassity, the new owner of the Hollywood Cemetery (renamed the Hollywood Forever Cemetery), offered to have McDaniel re-interred there. Her family did not wish to disturb her remains and declined the offer. Instead, Hollywood Forever Cemetery built a large cenotaph on the lawn overlooking its lake. It is one of Hollywood's most popular tourist attractions.
McDaniel's last will and testament of December 1951 bequeathed her Oscar to Howard University, where she had been honored by the students with a luncheon after she had won her Oscar. At the time of her death, McDaniel would have had few options. Very few white institutions in that day preserved black history. Historically, black colleges had been where such artifacts were placed. Despite evidence McDaniel had earned an excellent income as an actress, her final estate was less than $10,000. The IRS claimed the estate owed more than $11,000 in taxes. In the end, the probate court ordered all of her property, including her Oscar, sold to pay off creditors. Years later, the Oscar turned up where McDaniel wanted it to be: Howard University, where, according to reports, it was displayed in a glass case in the university's drama department. However, it appears to have gone missing from Howard in the 60's or 70's and has never been recovered.
Reception and impact
Initial controversies
As her fame grew, McDaniel faced growing criticism from some members of the black community. Groups such as the NAACP complained that Hollywood stereotypes not only restricted black actors to servant roles but often portrayed them as lazy, dim-witted, satisfied with lowly positions, or violent. In addition to addressing the studios, they called upon actors, and especially leading black actors, to pressure studios to offer more substantive roles and at least not pander to stereotypes. They also argued that these portrayals were unfair as well as inaccurate and that, coupled with segregation and other forms of discrimination, such stereotypes were making it difficult for all black people, not only actors, to overcome racism and succeed in the entertainment industry. Some attacked McDaniel for being an "Uncle Tom"—a person willing to advance personally by perpetuating racial stereotypes or being an agreeable agent of offensive racial restrictions. McDaniel characterized these challenges as class-based biases against domestics, a claim that white columnists seemed to accept. She reportedly said, "Why should I complain about making $700 a week playing a maid? If I didn't, I'd be making $7 a week being one."
McDaniel may also have been criticized because, unlike many other black entertainers, she was not associated with civil rights protests and was largely absent from efforts to establish a commercial base for independent black films. She did not join the Negro Actors Guild of America until 1947, late in her career. McDaniel hired one of the few white agents who would represent black actors at the time, William Meiklejohn, to advance her career. Evidence suggests her avoidance of political controversy was deliberate. When columnist Hedda Hopper sent her Richard Nixon placards and asked McDaniel to distribute them, McDaniel declined, replying she had long ago decided to stay out of politics. "Beulah is everybody's friend," she said. Since she was earning a living honestly, she added, she should not be criticized for accepting such work as was offered. Her critics, especially Walter White of the NAACP, claimed that she and other actors who agreed to portray stereotypes were not a neutral force but rather willing agents of black oppression.
McDaniel and other black actresses and actors feared that their roles would evaporate if the NAACP and other Hollywood critics complained too loudly. She blamed these critics for hindering her career and sought the help of allies of doubtful reputation. After speaking with McDaniel, Hopper claimed that McDaniel's career troubles were not the result of racism but had been caused by McDaniel's "own people".
Achievements and legacy
McDaniel has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood: one at 6933 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to radio and one at 1719 Vine Street for motion pictures. In 1975, she was inducted posthumously into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame.
In 1994 the actress and singer Karla Burns, notably the first black performer to win a Laurence Olivier Award, launched her one-woman show Hi-Hat-Hattie (written by Larry Parr), about McDaniel's life. Burns went on to perform the role in several other cities through 2018, including Off-Broadway and the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre in California.
In 2002, McDaniel's legacy was celebrated in American Movie Classics's (AMC) film Beyond Tara, The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel (2001), produced and directed by Madison D. Lacy and hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. This one-hour special depicted McDaniel's struggles and triumphs in the presence of rampant racism and brutal adversity. The film won the 2001–2002 Daytime Emmy Award, presented on May 17, 2002, for Outstanding Special Class Special.
McDaniel was the 29th inductee in the Black Heritage Series by the United States Postal Service. Her 39-cent stamp was released on January 29, 2006, featuring a 1941 photograph of McDaniel in the dress she wore to accept the Academy Award in 1940. The ceremony took place at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where the Hattie McDaniel collection includes photographs of McDaniel and other family members as well as scripts and other documents.
In 2004 Rita Dove, the first black U.S. poet laureate, published her poem "Hattie McDaniel Arrives at the Coconut Grove" in The New Yorker and has since presented it frequently during her poetry readings as well as on YouTube.
In the 2020 Netflix mini-series Hollywood a fictionalised Hattie McDaniel is played by Queen Latifah.
Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar
The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in The Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in The Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.
In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Precious, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar.
In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of The Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar had likely been returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the award.
West Adams Heights homeowners' covenant case victory
McDaniel was the most famous of the black homeowners who helped to organize the black Historic West Adams neighborhood residents who saved their homes. Loren Miller, an attorney and the owner and publisher of the California Eagle newspaper, represented the minority homeowners in their restrictive covenant case. In 1944, Miller won the case Fairchild v Rainers, a decision in favor of a black family in Pasadena, California, which had bought a nonrestricted lot but was still sued by white neighbors.
Time magazine, in its issue of December 17, 1945, reported:
McDaniel had purchased her white, two-story, seventeen-room house in 1942. The house included a large living room, dining room, drawing room, den, butler's pantry, kitchen, service porch, library, four bedrooms and a basement. McDaniel had a yearly Hollywood party. Everyone knew that the king of Hollywood, Clark Gable, could always be found at McDaniel's parties.
Filmography
Film
Features
Short films
Mickey's Rescue (1934) as Maid (uncredited)
Fate's Fathead (1934) as Mandy - the Maid (uncredited)
The Chases of Pimple Street (1934) as Hattie, Gertrude's Maid (uncredited)
Anniversary Trouble (1935) as Mandy, the Maid
Okay Toots! (1935) as Hattie - the Maid (uncredited)
Wig-Wag (1935) as Cook (uncredited)
The Four Star Boarder (1935) as Maid (uncredited)
Arbor Day (1936) as Buckwheat's Mother
Termites of 1938 (Three Stooges) (1938)
Radio
Station KOA, Denver, Melony Hounds (1926)
Station KNX, Los Angeles, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour (1931)
CBS Network, The Beulah Show (1947)
McDaniel was a semi-regular on the radio program Amos 'n' Andy, first as Andy's demanding landlady. In one episode they nearly marry. Andy was out for her money, aided and abetted by the Kingfish, who gives his wife's diamond ring to present to McDaniel as an engagement ring. The scheme blows up in their faces when Sapphire decides to throw a party to celebrate. Andy desperately tries to conceal the ring from Sapphire. In frustration and growing anger, McDaniel says to Andy, "Andy, sweetheart, darlin'. Is you gonna let go of my hand or does I have to pop you??!!" This episode aired on NBC in June 1944. She played a similar character, "Sadie Simpson", in several later episodes.
Discography
Hattie McDaniel recorded infrequently as a singer. In addition to the musical numbers over her long career in films, she recorded for Okeh Records, Paramount, and the small Kansas City, Missouri label Merrit. All of her known recordings (some of which were never issued) were recorded in the 1920s.
See also
List of African-American firsts
List of black Academy Award winners and nominees
List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
References
Bibliography
Hopper, Hedda. "Hattie Hates Nobody". Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1947.
Jackson, Carlton. Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel. Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1990.
Mitchell, Lisa. "More Than a Mammy". Hollywood Studio Magazine, April 1979.
Salamon, Julie. "The Courage to Rise Above Mammyness". New York Times, August 6, 2001.
Watts, Jill. Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2005.
Talk of the Nation. Jill Watts, interview, audio
Young, Al. "I'd Rather Play a Maid Than Be One". New York Times, October 15, 1989.
Zeigler, Ronny. "Hattie McDaniel: '(I'd) ... rather play a maid.'" N.Y. Amsterdam News, April 28, 1979.
Further reading
Carter, W. Burlette, [ Finding the Oscar] (January 6, 2012). Howard Law Journal, Vol. 55, No. 1, 2011; GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2012-2; GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2012-2.
HISTORY This Week. The Legacy of an Oscar 02/10/2020 W. Burlette Carter and Jill Watts
External links
Hattie and Sam McDaniel papers at Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
1893 births
1952 deaths
20th-century American actresses
20th-century American comedians
Actors from Wichita, Kansas
Actresses from Kansas
African-American actresses
African-American female comedians
African-American women singer-songwriters
African-American radio personalities
American film actresses
American radio actresses
American television actresses
American women comedians
American blues singer-songwriters
Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winners
Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery
Comedians from California
Comedians from Kansas
Deaths from breast cancer
Deaths from cancer in California
Musicians from Wichita, Kansas
Okeh Records artists
Paramount Pictures contract players
People from South Los Angeles
People from West Adams, Los Angeles
RKO Pictures contract players
20th-century African-American women singers
Singer-songwriters from Kansas | true | [
"Glam-A-Geddon (also known as Glam-A-Geddon 25 or Glam-A-Geddon 25/30/40) was a concert tour co-headlined by the heavy metal band Mötley Crüe, American rock band Poison and glam rock band New York Dolls. It was announced by Bret Michaels on March 1, 2011.\n\nThe tour was called Glam-A-Geddon 25 from some sources because 2011 marks the 25th anniversary of Poison's debut, Look What the Cat Dragged In. 2011 also marks the 30th anniversary of Mötley Crüe's debut, Too Fast For Love. It ran from May 29 in Pryor, Oklahoma and ended August 5 in Tomah, Wisconsin.\n\nSetlists\nMötley Crüe\n\"Wild Side\"\n\"Saints of Los Angeles\"\n\"Live Wire\"\n\"Shout at the Devil\"\n\"Same Ol' Situation (S.O.S.)\"\n\"Primal Scream\"\n\"Home Sweet Home\"\n\"Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)\"/Tommy Lee drum solo/Mick Mars guitar solo\n\"Looks That Kill\"\n\"Dr. Feelgood\"\n\"Too Young to Fall in Love\"\n\"Girls, Girls, Girls\"\n\"Smokin' in the Boys' Room\" (Brownsville Station cover)\n\"Kickstart My Heart\"\n\nPoison\n\"Look What the Cat Dragged In\"\n\"Ride the Wind\"\n\"We're an American Band\" (Grand Funk Railroad cover)\n\"Your Mama Don't Dance\" (Loggins & Messina cover) and Rikki Rockett guitar solo\n\"Fallen Angel\"\n\"Unskinny Bop\" and Rikki Rockett drum solo\n\"Every Rose Has Its Thorn\"\n\"Talk Dirty to Me\"\n\"Nothin' but a Good Time\"\n\nNew York Dolls\n\"Looking for a Kiss\"\n\"Cause I Sez So\"\n\"Dance Like a Monkey\"\n\"Who Are the Mystery Girls?\"\n\"Talk to Me Baby\"\n\"Kids Like You\"\n\"Personality Crisis\"\n\"Pills\" (Bo Diddley cover)\n\"Trash\"\n\nTour dates\n\nThis show only featured Mötley Crüe and New York Dolls. Poison did not perform on this date.\nThis show only featured Mötley Crüe. Poison and New York Dolls did not perform on this date.\n\nPersonnel \n\nMötley Crüe\n Nikki Sixx – bass, keyboards, piano, backing vocals\n Mick Mars – lead guitar, backing vocals\n Vince Neil – lead vocals, rhythm guitar\n Tommy Lee – drums, keyboards, piano, backing vocals\n\nPoison\n Bret Michaels – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, harmonica \n Rikki Rockett – drums, percussion, backing vocals\n Bobby Dall – bass, piano, backing vocals \n C.C. DeVille – lead guitar, vocals\n\nNew York Dolls\n David Johansen – vocals, harmonica \n Sylvain Sylvain – guitar, piano\n Jason Sutter – drums\n Kenny Aaronson – bass\n Earl Slick – guitar\n\nReferences\n\n2011 concert tours\nMötley Crüe concert tours",
"The 1982 Melbourne Cup was a two-mile handicap horse race which took place on Tuesday, 2 November 1982. The race, run over , at Flemington Racecourse.\n\nThe race is best remembered for the defeat of champion Kingston Town who had won his third Cox Plate the start before. Fellow Tommy Smith trained Just A Dash was sent out the 11/2 favourite. Gelding Gurner's Lane ran third in the Metropolitan Handicap and then won the Caulfield Cup and incurred a 3 kg penalty for the cup. Gurner's Lane won by a neck beating Kingston Town. Malcolm Johnston was heavily criticised for taking 'The King' to the lead too early. Kingston Town went to Perth and broke down after winning what would be his last race, now named the Kingston Town Classic; Gurner's Lane never won another race. He did also win the 1982 AJC and the VRC St Leger Stakes. This impressive run of race victories saw him awarded the Australian Horse of the Year for the 1982–1983 season.\n\nField \n\nThis is a list of horses which ran in the 1982 Melbourne Cup.\n\nReferences\n\n1982\nMelbourne Cup\nMelbourne Cup\n1980s in Melbourne"
]
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"The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown.",
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"What did this mean for her",
"In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard.",
"What did this led to being written about",
"In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s.",
"What did this lead him too",
"The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009."
]
| C_f7cf3aff90f0448485ddd74b2d1cafa7_0 | What did this led her to do | 6 | What did assertions led Hattie McDaniel to do what? | Hattie McDaniel | The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009. In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s. In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of the Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar was likely returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the 5 1/2" x 6" plaque. CANNOTANSWER | In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, | Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first African American to win an Oscar. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975, and in 2006 she became the first black Oscar winner honored with a U.S. postage stamp. In 2010, she was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. In addition to acting, McDaniel recorded 16 blues sides between 1926 and 1929 and was a radio performer and television personality; she was the first black woman to sing on radio in the United States. Although she appeared in over 300 films, she received screen credits for only 83.
McDaniel experienced racism and racial segregation throughout her career, and notably was unable to attend the premiere of Gone with the Wind in Atlanta because it was held at a whites-only theater. At the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, she sat at a segregated table at the side of the room. In 1952, McDaniel died due to breast cancer. Her final wish to be buried in Hollywood Cemetery was denied due to the graveyard being restricted to whites only at the time.
Early life
McDaniel, the youngest of 13 children, was born in 1893 to formerly-enslaved parents in Wichita, Kansas. Her mother, Susan Holbert, was a singer of gospel music, and her father, Henry McDaniel, fought in the Civil War with the 122nd United States Colored Troops. In 1900, the family moved to Colorado, living first in Fort Collins and then in Denver, where Hattie attended Denver East High School (1908-1910) and in 1908 entered a contest sponsored by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, reciting "Convict Joe", later claiming she had won first place. Her brother, Sam McDaniel, played the butler in the 1948 Three Stooges' short film Heavenly Daze. Her sister Etta McDaniel was also an actress.
Career
Early work and acting beginnings
McDaniel was a songwriter as well as a performer. She honed her songwriting skills while working with her brother Otis McDaniel's carnival company, a minstrel show. McDaniel and her sister Etta Goff launched an all-female minstrel show in 1914 called the McDaniel Sisters Company. After the death of her brother Otis in 1916, the troupe began to lose money, and Hattie did not get her next big break until 1920. From 1920 to 1925, she appeared with Professor George Morrison's Melody Hounds, a black touring ensemble. In the mid-1920s, she embarked on a radio career, singing with the Melody Hounds on station KOA in Denver. From 1926 to 1929, she recorded many of her songs for Okeh Records and Paramount Records in Chicago. McDaniel recorded seven sessions: one in the summer of 1926 on the rare Kansas City label Meritt; four sessions in Chicago for Okeh from late 1926 to late 1927 (of the 10 sides recorded, only four were issued), and two sessions in Chicago for Paramount in March 1929.
After the stock market crashed in 1929, McDaniel could only find work as a washroom attendant at Sam Pick's Club Madrid near Milwaukee. Despite the owner's reluctance to let her perform, she was eventually allowed to take the stage and soon became a regular performer.
In 1931, McDaniel moved to Los Angeles to join her brother Sam, and sisters Etta and Orlena. When she could not get film work, she took jobs as a maid or cook. Sam was working on a KNX radio program, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour, and was able to get his sister a spot. She performed on radio as "Hi-Hat Hattie", a bossy maid who often "forgets her place". Her show became popular, but her salary was so low that she had to keep working as a maid. She made her first film appearance in The Golden West (1932), in which she played a maid. Her second appearance came in the highly successful Mae West film I'm No Angel (1933), in which she played one of the maids with whom West camped it up backstage. She received several other uncredited film roles in the early 1930s, often singing in choruses. In 1934, McDaniel joined the Screen Actors Guild. She began to attract attention and landed larger film roles, which began to win her screen credits. Fox Film Corporation put her under contract to appear in The Little Colonel (1935), with Shirley Temple, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Lionel Barrymore.
Judge Priest (1934), directed by John Ford and starring Will Rogers, was the first film in which she played a major role. She had a leading part in the film and demonstrated her singing talent, including a duet with Rogers. McDaniel and Rogers became friends during filming. In 1935, McDaniel had prominent roles, as a slovenly maid in Alice Adams (RKO Pictures); a comic part as Jean Harlow's maid and traveling companion in China Seas (MGM) (McDaniels's first film with Clark Gable); and as the maid Isabella in Murder by Television, with Béla Lugosi. She appeared in the 1938 film Vivacious Lady, starring James Stewart and Ginger Rogers. McDaniel had a featured role as Queenie in the 1936 film Show Boat (Universal Pictures), starring Allan Jones and Irene Dunne, in which she sang a verse of Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man with Dunne, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, and a black chorus. She and Robeson sang "I Still Suits Me", written for the film by Kern and Hammerstein. After Show Boat, she had major roles in MGM's Saratoga (1937), starring Jean Harlow and Clark Gable; The Shopworn Angel (1938), with Margaret Sullavan; and The Mad Miss Manton (1938), starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She had a minor role in the Carole Lombard–Frederic March film Nothing Sacred (1937), in which she played the wife of a shoeshine man (Troy Brown) masquerading as a sultan.
McDaniel was a friend of many of Hollywood's most popular stars, including Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Bette Davis, Shirley Temple, Henry Fonda, Ronald Reagan, Olivia de Havilland, and Clark Gable. She starred with de Havilland and Gable in Gone with the Wind (1939). Around this time, she was criticized by members of the black community for the roles she accepted and for pursuing roles aggressively rather than rocking the Hollywood boat. For example, in The Little Colonel (1935), she played one of the servants longing to return to the Old South, but her portrayal of Malena in RKO Pictures's Alice Adams angered white Southern audiences, because she stole several scenes from the film's white star, Katharine Hepburn. McDaniel ultimately became best known for playing a sassy, opinionated maid.
Gone with the Wind
The competition to win the part of Mammy in Gone with the Wind was almost as fierce as that for Scarlett O'Hara. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt wrote to film producer David O. Selznick to ask that her own maid, Elizabeth McDuffie, be given the part. McDaniel did not think she would be chosen because she had earned her reputation as a comic actress. One source claimed that Clark Gable recommended that the role be given to McDaniel; in any case, she went to her audition dressed in an authentic maid's uniform and won the part.
Upon hearing of the planned film adaptation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) fought hard to require the film's producer and director to delete racial epithets from the movie (in particular the offensive slur "nigger") and to alter scenes that might be incendiary and that, in their view, were historically inaccurate. Of particular concern was a scene from the novel in which black men attack Scarlett O'Hara, after which the Ku Klux Klan, with its long history of provoking terror on black communities, is presented as a savior. Throughout the South, black men were being lynched based upon false allegations they had harmed white women. That attack scene was altered, and some offensive language was modified, but another epithet, "darkie", remained in the film, and the film's message with respect to slavery remained essentially the same. Consistent with the book, the film's screenplay also referred to poor whites as "white trash", and it ascribed these words equally to characters black and white.
Loew's Grand Theater on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia was selected by the studio as the site for the Friday, December 15, 1939, premiere of Gone with the Wind. Studio head David O. Selznick asked that McDaniel be permitted to attend, but MGM advised him not to, because of Georgia's segregation laws. Clark Gable threatened to boycott the Atlanta premiere unless McDaniel were allowed to attend, but McDaniel convinced him to attend anyway.
Most of Atlanta's 300,000 citizens crowded the route of the seven-mile (11 km) motorcade that carried the film's other stars and executives from the airport to the Georgian Terrace Hotel, where they stayed. While Jim Crow laws kept McDaniel from the Atlanta premiere, she did attend the film's Hollywood debut on December 28, 1939. Upon Selznick's insistence, her picture was also featured prominently in the program.
Reception and 1939 Academy Awards
For her performance as the house servant who repeatedly scolds her owner's daughter, Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), and scoffs at Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), McDaniel won the 1939 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first black actor to have been nominated and win an Oscar. "I loved Mammy," McDaniel said when speaking to the white press about the character. "I think I understood her because my own grandmother worked on a plantation not unlike Tara." Her role in Gone with the Wind had alarmed some whites in the South; there were complaints that in the film she had been too "familiar" with her white owners. At least one writer pointed out that McDaniel's character did not significantly depart from Mammy's persona in Margaret Mitchell's novel, and that in both the film and the book, the much younger Scarlett speaks to Mammy in ways that would be deemed inappropriate for a Southern teenager of that era to speak to a much older white person, and that neither the book nor the film hints of the existence of Mammy's own children (dead or alive), her own family (dead or alive), a real name, or her desires to have anything other than a life at Tara, serving on a slave plantation. Moreover, while Mammy scolds the younger Scarlett, she never crosses Mrs. O'Hara, the more senior white woman in the household. Some critics felt that McDaniel not only accepted the roles but also in her statements to the press acquiesced in Hollywood's stereotypes, providing fuel for critics of those who were fighting for black civil rights. Later, when McDaniel tried to take her "Mammy" character on a road show, black audiences did not prove receptive.
While many black people were happy over McDaniel's personal victory, they also viewed it as bittersweet. They believed Gone With the Wind celebrated the slave system and condemned the forces that destroyed it. For them, the unique accolade McDaniel had won suggested that only those who did not protest Hollywood's systemic use of racial stereotypes could find work and success there.
The Twelfth Academy Awards took place at the Coconut Grove Restaurant of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. It was preceded by a banquet in the same room. Louella Parsons, an American gossip columnist, wrote about Oscar night, February 29, 1940:
McDaniel received a plaque-style Oscar, approximately by , the type awarded to all Best Supporting Actors and Actresses at that time. She and her escort were required to sit at a segregated table for two at the far wall of the room; her white agent, William Meiklejohn, sat at the same table. The hotel had a strict no-blacks policy, but allowed McDaniel in as a favor. The discrimination continued after the award ceremony as well as her white co-stars went to a "no-blacks" club, where McDaniel was also denied entry. Another black woman did not win an Oscar again for 50 years, with Whoopi Goldberg winning Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ghost. Weeks prior to McDaniel winning her Oscar, there was even more controversy. David Selznick, the producer of Gone With the Wind, omitted the faces of all the black actors on the posters advertising the movie in the South. None of the black cast members were allowed to attend the premiere for the movie.
Gone with the Wind won eight Academy Awards. It was later named by the American Film Institute (AFI) as number four among the top 100 American films of all time in the 1998 ranking and number six in the 2007 ranking.
Final works
In the Warner Bros. film In This Our Life (1942), starring Bette Davis and directed by John Huston, McDaniel once again played a domestic, but one who confronts racial issues when her son, a law student, is wrongly accused of manslaughter. McDaniel was in the same studio's Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943), with Humphrey Bogart and Bette Davis. In its review of the film, Time wrote that McDaniel was comic relief in an otherwise "grim study," writing, "Hattie McDaniel, whose bubbling, blaring good humor more than redeems the roaring bad taste of a Harlem number called Ice Cold Katie". McDaniel continued to play maids during the war years for Warners in The Male Animal (1942) and United Artists' Since You Went Away (1944), but her feistiness was toned down to reflect the era's somber news. She also played the maid in Song of the South (1946) for Disney.
She made her last film appearances in Mickey (1948) and Family Honeymoon (1949), where that same year, she appeared on the live CBS television program The Ed Wynn Show. She remained active on radio and television in her final years, becoming the first black actor to star in her own radio show with the comedy series Beulah. She also starred in the television version of the show, replacing Ethel Waters after the first season. (Waters had apparently expressed concerns over stereotypes in the role.) Beulah was a hit, however, and earned McDaniel $2,000 per week; however, the show was controversial. In 1951, the United States Army ceased broadcasting Beulah in Asia because troops complained that the show perpetuated negative stereotypes of black men as shiftless and lazy and interfered with the ability of black troops to perform their mission. After filming a handful of episodes, however, McDaniel learned she had breast cancer. By the spring of 1952, she was too ill to work and was replaced by Louise Beavers.
Personal life
Marriages
McDaniel married Howard Hickman on January 19, 1911, in Denver, Colorado. He died in 1915. Her second husband, George Langford, died of a gunshot wound in January 1925, soon after she married him and while her career was on the rise.
She married James Lloyd Crawford, a real estate salesman, on March 21, 1941, in Tucson, Arizona. According to Donald Bogle, in his book Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams, McDaniel happily confided to gossip columnist Hedda Hopper in 1945 that she was pregnant. McDaniel began buying baby clothes and set up a nursery in her house. Her plans were shattered when she suffered a false pregnancy and fell into a depression. She never had any children. She divorced Crawford in 1945, after four and a half years of marriage. Crawford had been jealous of her career success, she said.
She married Larry Williams, an interior decorator, on June 11, 1949, in Yuma, Arizona, but divorced him in 1950 after testifying that their five months together had been marred by "arguing and fussing." McDaniel broke down in tears when she testified that her husband tried to provoke dissension in the cast of her radio show and otherwise interfered with her work. "I haven't gotten over it yet," she said. "I got so I couldn't sleep. I couldn't concentrate on my lines."
Community service
During World War II, she served as chairman of the Negro Division of the Hollywood Victory Committee, providing entertainment for soldiers stationed at military bases. (The US military was segregated, and black entertainers were not allowed to serve on white entertainment committees.) She elicited the help of a friend, the actor Leigh Whipper, and other black entertainers for her committee. She made numerous personal appearances at military hospitals, threw parties, and performed at United Service Organizations (USO) shows and war bond rallies to raise funds to support the war on behalf of the Victory Committee. Bette Davis was the only white member of McDaniel's acting troupe to perform for black regiments; Lena Horne and Ethel Waters also participated. McDaniel was also a member of American Women's Voluntary Services.
She joined the actor Clarence Muse, one of the first black members of the Screen Actors Guild, in an NBC radio broadcast to raise funds for Red Cross relief programs for Americans that had been displaced by devastating floods, and she gained a reputation for generosity, lending money to friends and strangers alike.
Death
In August 1950, McDaniel suffered a heart ailment and entered Temple Hospital in semi-critical condition. She was released in October to recuperate at home, and she was cited by United Press on January 3, 1951, as showing "slight improvement in her recovery from a mild stroke."
McDaniel died of breast cancer at age 59 on October 26, 1952, in the hospital on the grounds of the Motion Picture House in Woodland Hills, California. She was survived by her brother Sam McDaniel. Thousands of mourners turned out to celebrate her life and achievements. In her will, McDaniel wrote,
Hollywood Cemetery, on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, is the resting place of movie stars such as Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino. Its owner at the time, Jules Roth, refused to allow her to be buried there, because, at the time of McDaniel's death, the cemetery practiced racial segregation and would not accept the remains of black people for burial. Her second choice was Rosedale Cemetery (now known as Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery), where she lies today.
In 1999, Tyler Cassity, the new owner of the Hollywood Cemetery (renamed the Hollywood Forever Cemetery), offered to have McDaniel re-interred there. Her family did not wish to disturb her remains and declined the offer. Instead, Hollywood Forever Cemetery built a large cenotaph on the lawn overlooking its lake. It is one of Hollywood's most popular tourist attractions.
McDaniel's last will and testament of December 1951 bequeathed her Oscar to Howard University, where she had been honored by the students with a luncheon after she had won her Oscar. At the time of her death, McDaniel would have had few options. Very few white institutions in that day preserved black history. Historically, black colleges had been where such artifacts were placed. Despite evidence McDaniel had earned an excellent income as an actress, her final estate was less than $10,000. The IRS claimed the estate owed more than $11,000 in taxes. In the end, the probate court ordered all of her property, including her Oscar, sold to pay off creditors. Years later, the Oscar turned up where McDaniel wanted it to be: Howard University, where, according to reports, it was displayed in a glass case in the university's drama department. However, it appears to have gone missing from Howard in the 60's or 70's and has never been recovered.
Reception and impact
Initial controversies
As her fame grew, McDaniel faced growing criticism from some members of the black community. Groups such as the NAACP complained that Hollywood stereotypes not only restricted black actors to servant roles but often portrayed them as lazy, dim-witted, satisfied with lowly positions, or violent. In addition to addressing the studios, they called upon actors, and especially leading black actors, to pressure studios to offer more substantive roles and at least not pander to stereotypes. They also argued that these portrayals were unfair as well as inaccurate and that, coupled with segregation and other forms of discrimination, such stereotypes were making it difficult for all black people, not only actors, to overcome racism and succeed in the entertainment industry. Some attacked McDaniel for being an "Uncle Tom"—a person willing to advance personally by perpetuating racial stereotypes or being an agreeable agent of offensive racial restrictions. McDaniel characterized these challenges as class-based biases against domestics, a claim that white columnists seemed to accept. She reportedly said, "Why should I complain about making $700 a week playing a maid? If I didn't, I'd be making $7 a week being one."
McDaniel may also have been criticized because, unlike many other black entertainers, she was not associated with civil rights protests and was largely absent from efforts to establish a commercial base for independent black films. She did not join the Negro Actors Guild of America until 1947, late in her career. McDaniel hired one of the few white agents who would represent black actors at the time, William Meiklejohn, to advance her career. Evidence suggests her avoidance of political controversy was deliberate. When columnist Hedda Hopper sent her Richard Nixon placards and asked McDaniel to distribute them, McDaniel declined, replying she had long ago decided to stay out of politics. "Beulah is everybody's friend," she said. Since she was earning a living honestly, she added, she should not be criticized for accepting such work as was offered. Her critics, especially Walter White of the NAACP, claimed that she and other actors who agreed to portray stereotypes were not a neutral force but rather willing agents of black oppression.
McDaniel and other black actresses and actors feared that their roles would evaporate if the NAACP and other Hollywood critics complained too loudly. She blamed these critics for hindering her career and sought the help of allies of doubtful reputation. After speaking with McDaniel, Hopper claimed that McDaniel's career troubles were not the result of racism but had been caused by McDaniel's "own people".
Achievements and legacy
McDaniel has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood: one at 6933 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to radio and one at 1719 Vine Street for motion pictures. In 1975, she was inducted posthumously into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame.
In 1994 the actress and singer Karla Burns, notably the first black performer to win a Laurence Olivier Award, launched her one-woman show Hi-Hat-Hattie (written by Larry Parr), about McDaniel's life. Burns went on to perform the role in several other cities through 2018, including Off-Broadway and the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre in California.
In 2002, McDaniel's legacy was celebrated in American Movie Classics's (AMC) film Beyond Tara, The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel (2001), produced and directed by Madison D. Lacy and hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. This one-hour special depicted McDaniel's struggles and triumphs in the presence of rampant racism and brutal adversity. The film won the 2001–2002 Daytime Emmy Award, presented on May 17, 2002, for Outstanding Special Class Special.
McDaniel was the 29th inductee in the Black Heritage Series by the United States Postal Service. Her 39-cent stamp was released on January 29, 2006, featuring a 1941 photograph of McDaniel in the dress she wore to accept the Academy Award in 1940. The ceremony took place at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where the Hattie McDaniel collection includes photographs of McDaniel and other family members as well as scripts and other documents.
In 2004 Rita Dove, the first black U.S. poet laureate, published her poem "Hattie McDaniel Arrives at the Coconut Grove" in The New Yorker and has since presented it frequently during her poetry readings as well as on YouTube.
In the 2020 Netflix mini-series Hollywood a fictionalised Hattie McDaniel is played by Queen Latifah.
Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar
The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in The Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in The Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.
In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Precious, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar.
In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of The Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar had likely been returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the award.
West Adams Heights homeowners' covenant case victory
McDaniel was the most famous of the black homeowners who helped to organize the black Historic West Adams neighborhood residents who saved their homes. Loren Miller, an attorney and the owner and publisher of the California Eagle newspaper, represented the minority homeowners in their restrictive covenant case. In 1944, Miller won the case Fairchild v Rainers, a decision in favor of a black family in Pasadena, California, which had bought a nonrestricted lot but was still sued by white neighbors.
Time magazine, in its issue of December 17, 1945, reported:
McDaniel had purchased her white, two-story, seventeen-room house in 1942. The house included a large living room, dining room, drawing room, den, butler's pantry, kitchen, service porch, library, four bedrooms and a basement. McDaniel had a yearly Hollywood party. Everyone knew that the king of Hollywood, Clark Gable, could always be found at McDaniel's parties.
Filmography
Film
Features
Short films
Mickey's Rescue (1934) as Maid (uncredited)
Fate's Fathead (1934) as Mandy - the Maid (uncredited)
The Chases of Pimple Street (1934) as Hattie, Gertrude's Maid (uncredited)
Anniversary Trouble (1935) as Mandy, the Maid
Okay Toots! (1935) as Hattie - the Maid (uncredited)
Wig-Wag (1935) as Cook (uncredited)
The Four Star Boarder (1935) as Maid (uncredited)
Arbor Day (1936) as Buckwheat's Mother
Termites of 1938 (Three Stooges) (1938)
Radio
Station KOA, Denver, Melony Hounds (1926)
Station KNX, Los Angeles, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour (1931)
CBS Network, The Beulah Show (1947)
McDaniel was a semi-regular on the radio program Amos 'n' Andy, first as Andy's demanding landlady. In one episode they nearly marry. Andy was out for her money, aided and abetted by the Kingfish, who gives his wife's diamond ring to present to McDaniel as an engagement ring. The scheme blows up in their faces when Sapphire decides to throw a party to celebrate. Andy desperately tries to conceal the ring from Sapphire. In frustration and growing anger, McDaniel says to Andy, "Andy, sweetheart, darlin'. Is you gonna let go of my hand or does I have to pop you??!!" This episode aired on NBC in June 1944. She played a similar character, "Sadie Simpson", in several later episodes.
Discography
Hattie McDaniel recorded infrequently as a singer. In addition to the musical numbers over her long career in films, she recorded for Okeh Records, Paramount, and the small Kansas City, Missouri label Merrit. All of her known recordings (some of which were never issued) were recorded in the 1920s.
See also
List of African-American firsts
List of black Academy Award winners and nominees
List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
References
Bibliography
Hopper, Hedda. "Hattie Hates Nobody". Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1947.
Jackson, Carlton. Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel. Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1990.
Mitchell, Lisa. "More Than a Mammy". Hollywood Studio Magazine, April 1979.
Salamon, Julie. "The Courage to Rise Above Mammyness". New York Times, August 6, 2001.
Watts, Jill. Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2005.
Talk of the Nation. Jill Watts, interview, audio
Young, Al. "I'd Rather Play a Maid Than Be One". New York Times, October 15, 1989.
Zeigler, Ronny. "Hattie McDaniel: '(I'd) ... rather play a maid.'" N.Y. Amsterdam News, April 28, 1979.
Further reading
Carter, W. Burlette, [ Finding the Oscar] (January 6, 2012). Howard Law Journal, Vol. 55, No. 1, 2011; GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2012-2; GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2012-2.
HISTORY This Week. The Legacy of an Oscar 02/10/2020 W. Burlette Carter and Jill Watts
External links
Hattie and Sam McDaniel papers at Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
1893 births
1952 deaths
20th-century American actresses
20th-century American comedians
Actors from Wichita, Kansas
Actresses from Kansas
African-American actresses
African-American female comedians
African-American women singer-songwriters
African-American radio personalities
American film actresses
American radio actresses
American television actresses
American women comedians
American blues singer-songwriters
Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winners
Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery
Comedians from California
Comedians from Kansas
Deaths from breast cancer
Deaths from cancer in California
Musicians from Wichita, Kansas
Okeh Records artists
Paramount Pictures contract players
People from South Los Angeles
People from West Adams, Los Angeles
RKO Pictures contract players
20th-century African-American women singers
Singer-songwriters from Kansas | false | [
"\"What Did I Do to You?\" is a song recorded by British singer Lisa Stansfield for her 1989 album, Affection. It was written by Stansfield, Ian Devaney and Andy Morris, and produced by Devaney and Morris. The song was released as the fourth European single on 30 April 1990. It included three previously unreleased songs written by Stansfield, Devaney and Morris: \"My Apple Heart,\" \"Lay Me Down\" and \"Something's Happenin'.\" \"What Did I Do to You?\" was remixed by Mark Saunders and by the Grammy Award-winning American house music DJ and producer, David Morales. The single became a top forty hit in the European countries reaching number eighteen in Finland, number twenty in Ireland and number twenty-five in the United Kingdom. \"What Did I Do to You?\" was also released in Japan.\n\nIn 2014, the remixes of \"What Did I Do to You?\" were included on the deluxe 2CD + DVD re-release of Affection and on People Hold On ... The Remix Anthology. They were also featured on The Collection 1989–2003 box set (2014), including previously unreleased Red Zone Mix by David Morales.\n\nCritical reception\nThe song received positive reviews from music critics. Matthew Hocter from Albumism viewed it as a \"upbeat offering\". David Giles from Music Week said it is \"beautifully performed\" by Stansfield. A reviewer from Reading Eagle wrote that \"What Did I Do to You?\" \"would be right at home on the \"Saturday Night Fever\" soundtrack.\"\n\nMusic video\nA music video was produced to promote the single, directed by Philip Richardson, who had previously directed the videos for \"All Around the World\" and \"Live Together\". It features Stansfield with her kiss curls, dressed in a white outfit and performing with her band on a stage in front of a jumping audience. The video was later published on Stansfield's official YouTube channel in November 2009. It has amassed more than 1,6 million views as of October 2021.\n\nTrack listings\n\n European/UK 7\" single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Mark Saunders Remix Edit) – 4:20\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:59\n\n European/UK/Japanese CD single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Mark Saunders Remix Edit) – 4:20\n\"My Apple Heart\" – 5:19\n\"Lay Me Down\" – 4:17\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:59\n\n UK 10\" single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Mark Saunders Remix) – 5:52\n\"My Apple Heart\" – 5:19\n\"Lay Me Down\" – 4:17\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:59\n\n European/UK 12\" single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Morales Mix) – 7:59\n\"My Apple Heart\" – 4:22\n\"Lay Me Down\" – 3:19\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:15\n\n UK 12\" promotional single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Morales Mix) – 7:59\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Anti Poll Tax Dub) – 6:31\n\n Other remixes\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Red Zone Mix) – 7:45\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\nLisa Stansfield songs\n1990 singles\nSongs written by Lisa Stansfield\n1989 songs\nArista Records singles\nSongs written by Ian Devaney\nSongs written by Andy Morris (musician)",
"\"What Do I Have to Do\" is a song performed by Australian singer and songwriter Kylie Minogue taken from her third studio album, Rhythm of Love (1990). The song was written and produced by Stock, Aitken & Waterman. Originally, the song was planned to be released after the single \"Better the Devil You Know\", but instead \"Step Back in Time\" was released and this was released as the third single on 21 January 1991. The song received positive reviews from most music critics, who thought the song was an instant rave classic.\n\nThe song peaked at number eleven in her native Australia. The song did however peak at number six in the United Kingdom, becoming a success there. The song was also hit in France and The Netherlands.\n\nThe song has been performed on most of Minogue's concert tours, including her Rhythm of Love Tour, Let's Get to It Tour and Intimate and Live Tour. The song has also been performed at the Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour and the Homecoming Tour, and has been most recently been performed at her Aphrodite World Tour.\n\nBackground\nThere are three official promotional mixes of the song. The early unreleased first version is synth orienated and has multilayered vocals. Much of the synth was omitted and the drums, bass and vocals were toned down for the second album version. The third version, the 7\" Mix, contains a newer drum track, multilayered vocals in the chorus and relies much less on the synthesizers than on the album version. This version of the song also contains samples from American comedian Sam Kinison, and was used for the music video. In the UK a limited edition 7″ single came with postcards with shots from the video.\n\nOriginally, \"What Do I Have To Do\" was planned to be released as the follow-up single to \"Better the Devil You Know\", but was later released as the third single off the album instead, and the track was specially remixed for single release. The 1999 biographical book Girl Next Door identified this track as Kylie's favourite to perform live.\n\nThe single artwork was photographed by Robert Erdmann.\n\nReception\n\nCritical response\n\"What Do I Have To Do?\" received very positive reviews from many music critics. Jason Shawahn from About.com said the song, along with \"Better The Devil You Know\" and \"Wouldn't Change a Thing\", \"are nothing if not pop masterpieces.\" He also labeled it as a \"pop classic\". Quentin Harrison from Albumism noted it as \"luxuriant electro-pop\", adding that Ian Curnow and Phil Harding \"rework it into an appetizing, but accessible house ditty that emphasizes unity between the single's beat and Minogue's supple vocal.\" While reviewing Rhythm of Love, Chris True from AllMusic highlighted the song as an album standout. NME voted it as the thirtieth best track of 1991. Eleanor Levy from Record Mirror described it as \"more mature, in a Hi-NRG, Bronski Beatish way.\" She added, \"More straightforward rhythm than formula pop song, it fizzes predictably rather than sparkles but, like Kylie's ever-elongating fringe, will no doubt grow and grow.\" Caroline Sullivan from Smash Hits called it \"supreme\", and said the song \"sees a return to the reassuring old Kylie-sound\". While reviewing Ultimate Kylie, Mark Edwards from Stylus Magazine gave it a positive remark, saying that along with \"Shocked\" and \"Give Me Just a Little More Time\", they \"were great songs and suddenly Kylie was a little bit cool.\"\n\nChart performance\n\"What Do I Have to Do\" debuted at number twenty-seven on the Australian Singles Chart, until rising and peaking at number eleven, staying there for two consecutive weeks. The song then debuted at number ninety-nine on the Dutch Top 40, until peaking at number eighty-one for one week. The song then debuted and peaked at number fifty on the French Singles Chart.\n\nImpact and legacy\nEnglish DJ and record producer Nicky Holloway chose \"What Do I Have to Do\" as one of his top 10 vinyl thrills in 1996, saying, \"I've had so much fun with this over the years. You don't realise what you're dancing to until it's too late to stop! It's got a long intro so people are dancing away and don't realise that it's Kylie Minogue until they're sucked into it.\"\n\nMusic video\n\nThe music video for the song was directed by Dave Hogan. In relation to this video, Minogue is quoted as saying \"how many Hollywood stars can you look like in three and a half minutes...\". Her younger sister Dannii Minogue also appears in the video. The music video begins with clips of the dance scene intercut with Minogue emerging from a swimming pool and her love interest seeing her with another man. The love interest is played by Zane O'Donnell, the same model who would appear in the video for Minogue's subsequent single \"Shocked\". \nMinogue then goes out to the balcony overlooking a fairground and the man follows. The video then shifts to the man watching Minogue dancing with a female friend in a club. The next scene is Minogue waking up in her lover's bed as he prepares to leave the bedroom. After this, Minogue singing on the bed is intercut with scenes of her singing and dancing in front of a white backdrop. The video goes back to her and her friend having fun in the club as the man stares at her again. Later, she sits on the bench overlooking the scene and takes a glance at a lookalike of her lover next to her. Following this, she gets up to dance as the man watches. Finally, she gets a tattoo of a black panther on her back and shows it to her lover. The video concludes with all of Minogue's performance scenes intercut with her doing the ironing in a Gingham Apron and on a date with her lover. The final shot is of Minogue and her lover walking across a bridge.\n\nWhile reviewing the DVD version of Greatest Hits for Amazon.co.uk, John Galilee said \"Her most outrageous but greatest video moment is where she parodies certain movie stars in the chic video for \"What Do I Have to Do?\", and because of her heavy eye make-up almost earns herself the title drag-queen Kylie (watch out for sister Dannii who briefly stars in the video, wearing a blonde wig).\"\n\nFormats and track listings\nThese are the formats and track listings of major single releases of \"What Do I Have to Do\".\n\n 7\" vinyl single\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix) – 3:32\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Instrumental) – 3:48\n\n 12\" vinyl single\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix) – 7:48\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Instrumental) – 5:08\n\n CD single\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix) – 3:32\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix) – 7:48\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Instrumental) – 5:08\n\n iTunes Digital EP – Remixes\n(Not available at time of original release. Released for the first time as part of iTunes PWL archive release in 2009)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (12\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Between the Sheets Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Album Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 12\" Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 12\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 7\" Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 7\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 7\" Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 12\" Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers Do the Dub)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix)\n\n iTunes Digital EP – The Original Synth Mixes (released 8 November 2010)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Billy The Fish Mix: Part I) 3:44\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Billy The Fish Mix: Part II) 7:30\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Original 12\" Mix) 7:09\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Album Mix II) 8:42\n\n iTunes Digital EP – What Do I Have to Do?\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix) — 3:33\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix) — 7:47\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Album Mix) — 8:07\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Instrumental) — 3:33\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Instrumental) — 5:07\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Backing Track) — 3:33\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Instrumental) — 3:43\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Backing Track) — 3:43\n \"Things Can Only Get Better\" (Album Instrumental) — 3:55\n \"Things Can Only Get Better\" (Album Backing Track) — 3:55\n\nLive performances\nMinogue performed the song on the following concert tours:\n Rhythm of Love Tour\n Let's Get to It Tour\n Intimate and Live Tour\n On a Night Like This Tour\n Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour (as part of the \"Smiley Kylie Medley\")\n Showgirl: The Homecoming Tour (as part of the \"Everything Taboo Medley\")\n For You, for Me (as part of the \"Everything Taboo Medley\")\n Aphrodite World Tour\nSummer 2019\n\nThe song was also performed on:\n An Audience with Kylie Minogue 2001 TV special, performed as part of the hits medley.\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nReferences\n\n1991 singles\nKylie Minogue songs\nSong recordings produced by Stock Aitken Waterman\nSongs written by Mike Stock (musician)\nSongs written by Matt Aitken\nSongs written by Pete Waterman\n1990 songs\nMushroom Records singles\nPete Waterman Entertainment singles\nTorch songs\nEurodance songs"
]
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"Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar",
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"The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown.",
"What did this bring about",
"In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s.",
"What did this mean for her",
"In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard.",
"What did this led to being written about",
"In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s.",
"What did this lead him too",
"The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.",
"What did this led her to do",
"In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair,"
]
| C_f7cf3aff90f0448485ddd74b2d1cafa7_0 | What did this do for her | 7 | What did Monique do for Hattie McDaniel? | Hattie McDaniel | The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009. In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s. In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of the Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar was likely returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the 5 1/2" x 6" plaque. CANNOTANSWER | for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, | Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first African American to win an Oscar. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975, and in 2006 she became the first black Oscar winner honored with a U.S. postage stamp. In 2010, she was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. In addition to acting, McDaniel recorded 16 blues sides between 1926 and 1929 and was a radio performer and television personality; she was the first black woman to sing on radio in the United States. Although she appeared in over 300 films, she received screen credits for only 83.
McDaniel experienced racism and racial segregation throughout her career, and notably was unable to attend the premiere of Gone with the Wind in Atlanta because it was held at a whites-only theater. At the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, she sat at a segregated table at the side of the room. In 1952, McDaniel died due to breast cancer. Her final wish to be buried in Hollywood Cemetery was denied due to the graveyard being restricted to whites only at the time.
Early life
McDaniel, the youngest of 13 children, was born in 1893 to formerly-enslaved parents in Wichita, Kansas. Her mother, Susan Holbert, was a singer of gospel music, and her father, Henry McDaniel, fought in the Civil War with the 122nd United States Colored Troops. In 1900, the family moved to Colorado, living first in Fort Collins and then in Denver, where Hattie attended Denver East High School (1908-1910) and in 1908 entered a contest sponsored by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, reciting "Convict Joe", later claiming she had won first place. Her brother, Sam McDaniel, played the butler in the 1948 Three Stooges' short film Heavenly Daze. Her sister Etta McDaniel was also an actress.
Career
Early work and acting beginnings
McDaniel was a songwriter as well as a performer. She honed her songwriting skills while working with her brother Otis McDaniel's carnival company, a minstrel show. McDaniel and her sister Etta Goff launched an all-female minstrel show in 1914 called the McDaniel Sisters Company. After the death of her brother Otis in 1916, the troupe began to lose money, and Hattie did not get her next big break until 1920. From 1920 to 1925, she appeared with Professor George Morrison's Melody Hounds, a black touring ensemble. In the mid-1920s, she embarked on a radio career, singing with the Melody Hounds on station KOA in Denver. From 1926 to 1929, she recorded many of her songs for Okeh Records and Paramount Records in Chicago. McDaniel recorded seven sessions: one in the summer of 1926 on the rare Kansas City label Meritt; four sessions in Chicago for Okeh from late 1926 to late 1927 (of the 10 sides recorded, only four were issued), and two sessions in Chicago for Paramount in March 1929.
After the stock market crashed in 1929, McDaniel could only find work as a washroom attendant at Sam Pick's Club Madrid near Milwaukee. Despite the owner's reluctance to let her perform, she was eventually allowed to take the stage and soon became a regular performer.
In 1931, McDaniel moved to Los Angeles to join her brother Sam, and sisters Etta and Orlena. When she could not get film work, she took jobs as a maid or cook. Sam was working on a KNX radio program, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour, and was able to get his sister a spot. She performed on radio as "Hi-Hat Hattie", a bossy maid who often "forgets her place". Her show became popular, but her salary was so low that she had to keep working as a maid. She made her first film appearance in The Golden West (1932), in which she played a maid. Her second appearance came in the highly successful Mae West film I'm No Angel (1933), in which she played one of the maids with whom West camped it up backstage. She received several other uncredited film roles in the early 1930s, often singing in choruses. In 1934, McDaniel joined the Screen Actors Guild. She began to attract attention and landed larger film roles, which began to win her screen credits. Fox Film Corporation put her under contract to appear in The Little Colonel (1935), with Shirley Temple, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Lionel Barrymore.
Judge Priest (1934), directed by John Ford and starring Will Rogers, was the first film in which she played a major role. She had a leading part in the film and demonstrated her singing talent, including a duet with Rogers. McDaniel and Rogers became friends during filming. In 1935, McDaniel had prominent roles, as a slovenly maid in Alice Adams (RKO Pictures); a comic part as Jean Harlow's maid and traveling companion in China Seas (MGM) (McDaniels's first film with Clark Gable); and as the maid Isabella in Murder by Television, with Béla Lugosi. She appeared in the 1938 film Vivacious Lady, starring James Stewart and Ginger Rogers. McDaniel had a featured role as Queenie in the 1936 film Show Boat (Universal Pictures), starring Allan Jones and Irene Dunne, in which she sang a verse of Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man with Dunne, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, and a black chorus. She and Robeson sang "I Still Suits Me", written for the film by Kern and Hammerstein. After Show Boat, she had major roles in MGM's Saratoga (1937), starring Jean Harlow and Clark Gable; The Shopworn Angel (1938), with Margaret Sullavan; and The Mad Miss Manton (1938), starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She had a minor role in the Carole Lombard–Frederic March film Nothing Sacred (1937), in which she played the wife of a shoeshine man (Troy Brown) masquerading as a sultan.
McDaniel was a friend of many of Hollywood's most popular stars, including Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Bette Davis, Shirley Temple, Henry Fonda, Ronald Reagan, Olivia de Havilland, and Clark Gable. She starred with de Havilland and Gable in Gone with the Wind (1939). Around this time, she was criticized by members of the black community for the roles she accepted and for pursuing roles aggressively rather than rocking the Hollywood boat. For example, in The Little Colonel (1935), she played one of the servants longing to return to the Old South, but her portrayal of Malena in RKO Pictures's Alice Adams angered white Southern audiences, because she stole several scenes from the film's white star, Katharine Hepburn. McDaniel ultimately became best known for playing a sassy, opinionated maid.
Gone with the Wind
The competition to win the part of Mammy in Gone with the Wind was almost as fierce as that for Scarlett O'Hara. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt wrote to film producer David O. Selznick to ask that her own maid, Elizabeth McDuffie, be given the part. McDaniel did not think she would be chosen because she had earned her reputation as a comic actress. One source claimed that Clark Gable recommended that the role be given to McDaniel; in any case, she went to her audition dressed in an authentic maid's uniform and won the part.
Upon hearing of the planned film adaptation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) fought hard to require the film's producer and director to delete racial epithets from the movie (in particular the offensive slur "nigger") and to alter scenes that might be incendiary and that, in their view, were historically inaccurate. Of particular concern was a scene from the novel in which black men attack Scarlett O'Hara, after which the Ku Klux Klan, with its long history of provoking terror on black communities, is presented as a savior. Throughout the South, black men were being lynched based upon false allegations they had harmed white women. That attack scene was altered, and some offensive language was modified, but another epithet, "darkie", remained in the film, and the film's message with respect to slavery remained essentially the same. Consistent with the book, the film's screenplay also referred to poor whites as "white trash", and it ascribed these words equally to characters black and white.
Loew's Grand Theater on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia was selected by the studio as the site for the Friday, December 15, 1939, premiere of Gone with the Wind. Studio head David O. Selznick asked that McDaniel be permitted to attend, but MGM advised him not to, because of Georgia's segregation laws. Clark Gable threatened to boycott the Atlanta premiere unless McDaniel were allowed to attend, but McDaniel convinced him to attend anyway.
Most of Atlanta's 300,000 citizens crowded the route of the seven-mile (11 km) motorcade that carried the film's other stars and executives from the airport to the Georgian Terrace Hotel, where they stayed. While Jim Crow laws kept McDaniel from the Atlanta premiere, she did attend the film's Hollywood debut on December 28, 1939. Upon Selznick's insistence, her picture was also featured prominently in the program.
Reception and 1939 Academy Awards
For her performance as the house servant who repeatedly scolds her owner's daughter, Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), and scoffs at Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), McDaniel won the 1939 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first black actor to have been nominated and win an Oscar. "I loved Mammy," McDaniel said when speaking to the white press about the character. "I think I understood her because my own grandmother worked on a plantation not unlike Tara." Her role in Gone with the Wind had alarmed some whites in the South; there were complaints that in the film she had been too "familiar" with her white owners. At least one writer pointed out that McDaniel's character did not significantly depart from Mammy's persona in Margaret Mitchell's novel, and that in both the film and the book, the much younger Scarlett speaks to Mammy in ways that would be deemed inappropriate for a Southern teenager of that era to speak to a much older white person, and that neither the book nor the film hints of the existence of Mammy's own children (dead or alive), her own family (dead or alive), a real name, or her desires to have anything other than a life at Tara, serving on a slave plantation. Moreover, while Mammy scolds the younger Scarlett, she never crosses Mrs. O'Hara, the more senior white woman in the household. Some critics felt that McDaniel not only accepted the roles but also in her statements to the press acquiesced in Hollywood's stereotypes, providing fuel for critics of those who were fighting for black civil rights. Later, when McDaniel tried to take her "Mammy" character on a road show, black audiences did not prove receptive.
While many black people were happy over McDaniel's personal victory, they also viewed it as bittersweet. They believed Gone With the Wind celebrated the slave system and condemned the forces that destroyed it. For them, the unique accolade McDaniel had won suggested that only those who did not protest Hollywood's systemic use of racial stereotypes could find work and success there.
The Twelfth Academy Awards took place at the Coconut Grove Restaurant of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. It was preceded by a banquet in the same room. Louella Parsons, an American gossip columnist, wrote about Oscar night, February 29, 1940:
McDaniel received a plaque-style Oscar, approximately by , the type awarded to all Best Supporting Actors and Actresses at that time. She and her escort were required to sit at a segregated table for two at the far wall of the room; her white agent, William Meiklejohn, sat at the same table. The hotel had a strict no-blacks policy, but allowed McDaniel in as a favor. The discrimination continued after the award ceremony as well as her white co-stars went to a "no-blacks" club, where McDaniel was also denied entry. Another black woman did not win an Oscar again for 50 years, with Whoopi Goldberg winning Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ghost. Weeks prior to McDaniel winning her Oscar, there was even more controversy. David Selznick, the producer of Gone With the Wind, omitted the faces of all the black actors on the posters advertising the movie in the South. None of the black cast members were allowed to attend the premiere for the movie.
Gone with the Wind won eight Academy Awards. It was later named by the American Film Institute (AFI) as number four among the top 100 American films of all time in the 1998 ranking and number six in the 2007 ranking.
Final works
In the Warner Bros. film In This Our Life (1942), starring Bette Davis and directed by John Huston, McDaniel once again played a domestic, but one who confronts racial issues when her son, a law student, is wrongly accused of manslaughter. McDaniel was in the same studio's Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943), with Humphrey Bogart and Bette Davis. In its review of the film, Time wrote that McDaniel was comic relief in an otherwise "grim study," writing, "Hattie McDaniel, whose bubbling, blaring good humor more than redeems the roaring bad taste of a Harlem number called Ice Cold Katie". McDaniel continued to play maids during the war years for Warners in The Male Animal (1942) and United Artists' Since You Went Away (1944), but her feistiness was toned down to reflect the era's somber news. She also played the maid in Song of the South (1946) for Disney.
She made her last film appearances in Mickey (1948) and Family Honeymoon (1949), where that same year, she appeared on the live CBS television program The Ed Wynn Show. She remained active on radio and television in her final years, becoming the first black actor to star in her own radio show with the comedy series Beulah. She also starred in the television version of the show, replacing Ethel Waters after the first season. (Waters had apparently expressed concerns over stereotypes in the role.) Beulah was a hit, however, and earned McDaniel $2,000 per week; however, the show was controversial. In 1951, the United States Army ceased broadcasting Beulah in Asia because troops complained that the show perpetuated negative stereotypes of black men as shiftless and lazy and interfered with the ability of black troops to perform their mission. After filming a handful of episodes, however, McDaniel learned she had breast cancer. By the spring of 1952, she was too ill to work and was replaced by Louise Beavers.
Personal life
Marriages
McDaniel married Howard Hickman on January 19, 1911, in Denver, Colorado. He died in 1915. Her second husband, George Langford, died of a gunshot wound in January 1925, soon after she married him and while her career was on the rise.
She married James Lloyd Crawford, a real estate salesman, on March 21, 1941, in Tucson, Arizona. According to Donald Bogle, in his book Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams, McDaniel happily confided to gossip columnist Hedda Hopper in 1945 that she was pregnant. McDaniel began buying baby clothes and set up a nursery in her house. Her plans were shattered when she suffered a false pregnancy and fell into a depression. She never had any children. She divorced Crawford in 1945, after four and a half years of marriage. Crawford had been jealous of her career success, she said.
She married Larry Williams, an interior decorator, on June 11, 1949, in Yuma, Arizona, but divorced him in 1950 after testifying that their five months together had been marred by "arguing and fussing." McDaniel broke down in tears when she testified that her husband tried to provoke dissension in the cast of her radio show and otherwise interfered with her work. "I haven't gotten over it yet," she said. "I got so I couldn't sleep. I couldn't concentrate on my lines."
Community service
During World War II, she served as chairman of the Negro Division of the Hollywood Victory Committee, providing entertainment for soldiers stationed at military bases. (The US military was segregated, and black entertainers were not allowed to serve on white entertainment committees.) She elicited the help of a friend, the actor Leigh Whipper, and other black entertainers for her committee. She made numerous personal appearances at military hospitals, threw parties, and performed at United Service Organizations (USO) shows and war bond rallies to raise funds to support the war on behalf of the Victory Committee. Bette Davis was the only white member of McDaniel's acting troupe to perform for black regiments; Lena Horne and Ethel Waters also participated. McDaniel was also a member of American Women's Voluntary Services.
She joined the actor Clarence Muse, one of the first black members of the Screen Actors Guild, in an NBC radio broadcast to raise funds for Red Cross relief programs for Americans that had been displaced by devastating floods, and she gained a reputation for generosity, lending money to friends and strangers alike.
Death
In August 1950, McDaniel suffered a heart ailment and entered Temple Hospital in semi-critical condition. She was released in October to recuperate at home, and she was cited by United Press on January 3, 1951, as showing "slight improvement in her recovery from a mild stroke."
McDaniel died of breast cancer at age 59 on October 26, 1952, in the hospital on the grounds of the Motion Picture House in Woodland Hills, California. She was survived by her brother Sam McDaniel. Thousands of mourners turned out to celebrate her life and achievements. In her will, McDaniel wrote,
Hollywood Cemetery, on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, is the resting place of movie stars such as Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino. Its owner at the time, Jules Roth, refused to allow her to be buried there, because, at the time of McDaniel's death, the cemetery practiced racial segregation and would not accept the remains of black people for burial. Her second choice was Rosedale Cemetery (now known as Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery), where she lies today.
In 1999, Tyler Cassity, the new owner of the Hollywood Cemetery (renamed the Hollywood Forever Cemetery), offered to have McDaniel re-interred there. Her family did not wish to disturb her remains and declined the offer. Instead, Hollywood Forever Cemetery built a large cenotaph on the lawn overlooking its lake. It is one of Hollywood's most popular tourist attractions.
McDaniel's last will and testament of December 1951 bequeathed her Oscar to Howard University, where she had been honored by the students with a luncheon after she had won her Oscar. At the time of her death, McDaniel would have had few options. Very few white institutions in that day preserved black history. Historically, black colleges had been where such artifacts were placed. Despite evidence McDaniel had earned an excellent income as an actress, her final estate was less than $10,000. The IRS claimed the estate owed more than $11,000 in taxes. In the end, the probate court ordered all of her property, including her Oscar, sold to pay off creditors. Years later, the Oscar turned up where McDaniel wanted it to be: Howard University, where, according to reports, it was displayed in a glass case in the university's drama department. However, it appears to have gone missing from Howard in the 60's or 70's and has never been recovered.
Reception and impact
Initial controversies
As her fame grew, McDaniel faced growing criticism from some members of the black community. Groups such as the NAACP complained that Hollywood stereotypes not only restricted black actors to servant roles but often portrayed them as lazy, dim-witted, satisfied with lowly positions, or violent. In addition to addressing the studios, they called upon actors, and especially leading black actors, to pressure studios to offer more substantive roles and at least not pander to stereotypes. They also argued that these portrayals were unfair as well as inaccurate and that, coupled with segregation and other forms of discrimination, such stereotypes were making it difficult for all black people, not only actors, to overcome racism and succeed in the entertainment industry. Some attacked McDaniel for being an "Uncle Tom"—a person willing to advance personally by perpetuating racial stereotypes or being an agreeable agent of offensive racial restrictions. McDaniel characterized these challenges as class-based biases against domestics, a claim that white columnists seemed to accept. She reportedly said, "Why should I complain about making $700 a week playing a maid? If I didn't, I'd be making $7 a week being one."
McDaniel may also have been criticized because, unlike many other black entertainers, she was not associated with civil rights protests and was largely absent from efforts to establish a commercial base for independent black films. She did not join the Negro Actors Guild of America until 1947, late in her career. McDaniel hired one of the few white agents who would represent black actors at the time, William Meiklejohn, to advance her career. Evidence suggests her avoidance of political controversy was deliberate. When columnist Hedda Hopper sent her Richard Nixon placards and asked McDaniel to distribute them, McDaniel declined, replying she had long ago decided to stay out of politics. "Beulah is everybody's friend," she said. Since she was earning a living honestly, she added, she should not be criticized for accepting such work as was offered. Her critics, especially Walter White of the NAACP, claimed that she and other actors who agreed to portray stereotypes were not a neutral force but rather willing agents of black oppression.
McDaniel and other black actresses and actors feared that their roles would evaporate if the NAACP and other Hollywood critics complained too loudly. She blamed these critics for hindering her career and sought the help of allies of doubtful reputation. After speaking with McDaniel, Hopper claimed that McDaniel's career troubles were not the result of racism but had been caused by McDaniel's "own people".
Achievements and legacy
McDaniel has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood: one at 6933 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to radio and one at 1719 Vine Street for motion pictures. In 1975, she was inducted posthumously into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame.
In 1994 the actress and singer Karla Burns, notably the first black performer to win a Laurence Olivier Award, launched her one-woman show Hi-Hat-Hattie (written by Larry Parr), about McDaniel's life. Burns went on to perform the role in several other cities through 2018, including Off-Broadway and the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre in California.
In 2002, McDaniel's legacy was celebrated in American Movie Classics's (AMC) film Beyond Tara, The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel (2001), produced and directed by Madison D. Lacy and hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. This one-hour special depicted McDaniel's struggles and triumphs in the presence of rampant racism and brutal adversity. The film won the 2001–2002 Daytime Emmy Award, presented on May 17, 2002, for Outstanding Special Class Special.
McDaniel was the 29th inductee in the Black Heritage Series by the United States Postal Service. Her 39-cent stamp was released on January 29, 2006, featuring a 1941 photograph of McDaniel in the dress she wore to accept the Academy Award in 1940. The ceremony took place at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where the Hattie McDaniel collection includes photographs of McDaniel and other family members as well as scripts and other documents.
In 2004 Rita Dove, the first black U.S. poet laureate, published her poem "Hattie McDaniel Arrives at the Coconut Grove" in The New Yorker and has since presented it frequently during her poetry readings as well as on YouTube.
In the 2020 Netflix mini-series Hollywood a fictionalised Hattie McDaniel is played by Queen Latifah.
Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar
The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in The Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in The Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.
In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Precious, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar.
In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of The Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar had likely been returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the award.
West Adams Heights homeowners' covenant case victory
McDaniel was the most famous of the black homeowners who helped to organize the black Historic West Adams neighborhood residents who saved their homes. Loren Miller, an attorney and the owner and publisher of the California Eagle newspaper, represented the minority homeowners in their restrictive covenant case. In 1944, Miller won the case Fairchild v Rainers, a decision in favor of a black family in Pasadena, California, which had bought a nonrestricted lot but was still sued by white neighbors.
Time magazine, in its issue of December 17, 1945, reported:
McDaniel had purchased her white, two-story, seventeen-room house in 1942. The house included a large living room, dining room, drawing room, den, butler's pantry, kitchen, service porch, library, four bedrooms and a basement. McDaniel had a yearly Hollywood party. Everyone knew that the king of Hollywood, Clark Gable, could always be found at McDaniel's parties.
Filmography
Film
Features
Short films
Mickey's Rescue (1934) as Maid (uncredited)
Fate's Fathead (1934) as Mandy - the Maid (uncredited)
The Chases of Pimple Street (1934) as Hattie, Gertrude's Maid (uncredited)
Anniversary Trouble (1935) as Mandy, the Maid
Okay Toots! (1935) as Hattie - the Maid (uncredited)
Wig-Wag (1935) as Cook (uncredited)
The Four Star Boarder (1935) as Maid (uncredited)
Arbor Day (1936) as Buckwheat's Mother
Termites of 1938 (Three Stooges) (1938)
Radio
Station KOA, Denver, Melony Hounds (1926)
Station KNX, Los Angeles, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour (1931)
CBS Network, The Beulah Show (1947)
McDaniel was a semi-regular on the radio program Amos 'n' Andy, first as Andy's demanding landlady. In one episode they nearly marry. Andy was out for her money, aided and abetted by the Kingfish, who gives his wife's diamond ring to present to McDaniel as an engagement ring. The scheme blows up in their faces when Sapphire decides to throw a party to celebrate. Andy desperately tries to conceal the ring from Sapphire. In frustration and growing anger, McDaniel says to Andy, "Andy, sweetheart, darlin'. Is you gonna let go of my hand or does I have to pop you??!!" This episode aired on NBC in June 1944. She played a similar character, "Sadie Simpson", in several later episodes.
Discography
Hattie McDaniel recorded infrequently as a singer. In addition to the musical numbers over her long career in films, she recorded for Okeh Records, Paramount, and the small Kansas City, Missouri label Merrit. All of her known recordings (some of which were never issued) were recorded in the 1920s.
See also
List of African-American firsts
List of black Academy Award winners and nominees
List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
References
Bibliography
Hopper, Hedda. "Hattie Hates Nobody". Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1947.
Jackson, Carlton. Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel. Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1990.
Mitchell, Lisa. "More Than a Mammy". Hollywood Studio Magazine, April 1979.
Salamon, Julie. "The Courage to Rise Above Mammyness". New York Times, August 6, 2001.
Watts, Jill. Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2005.
Talk of the Nation. Jill Watts, interview, audio
Young, Al. "I'd Rather Play a Maid Than Be One". New York Times, October 15, 1989.
Zeigler, Ronny. "Hattie McDaniel: '(I'd) ... rather play a maid.'" N.Y. Amsterdam News, April 28, 1979.
Further reading
Carter, W. Burlette, [ Finding the Oscar] (January 6, 2012). Howard Law Journal, Vol. 55, No. 1, 2011; GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2012-2; GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2012-2.
HISTORY This Week. The Legacy of an Oscar 02/10/2020 W. Burlette Carter and Jill Watts
External links
Hattie and Sam McDaniel papers at Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
1893 births
1952 deaths
20th-century American actresses
20th-century American comedians
Actors from Wichita, Kansas
Actresses from Kansas
African-American actresses
African-American female comedians
African-American women singer-songwriters
African-American radio personalities
American film actresses
American radio actresses
American television actresses
American women comedians
American blues singer-songwriters
Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winners
Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery
Comedians from California
Comedians from Kansas
Deaths from breast cancer
Deaths from cancer in California
Musicians from Wichita, Kansas
Okeh Records artists
Paramount Pictures contract players
People from South Los Angeles
People from West Adams, Los Angeles
RKO Pictures contract players
20th-century African-American women singers
Singer-songwriters from Kansas | false | [
"What'cha Gonna Do About It is a 1963 song by Doris Troy. It made #37 on the UK Singles Chart in 1964 and #38 in 1965.\n\nMusical composition\nFeaturing a stuttering single-note piano line throughout - giving the song a Caribbean feel to the record - the song is a cocky warning to her man to change his ways for the good of their relationship.\n\nCover versions\n\nPeter Doyle cover version\nNew Seekers vocalist Peter Doyle, before joining the New Seekers, did a cover of What'cha Gonna Do About It which made #27 on the ARIA Charts.\n\nOther cover versions\nThe Hollies did a British Invasion cover version of this for their debut album Stay with The Hollies.\nCilla Black did a cover of this for her debut album Cilla.\n\nReferences\n\nDoris Troy songs\n1964 songs\nSongs written by Gregory Carroll (R&B singer)\nSongs written by Doris Troy\nSongs written by Rex Garvin",
"\"What Do I Have to Do\" is a song performed by Australian singer and songwriter Kylie Minogue taken from her third studio album, Rhythm of Love (1990). The song was written and produced by Stock, Aitken & Waterman. Originally, the song was planned to be released after the single \"Better the Devil You Know\", but instead \"Step Back in Time\" was released and this was released as the third single on 21 January 1991. The song received positive reviews from most music critics, who thought the song was an instant rave classic.\n\nThe song peaked at number eleven in her native Australia. The song did however peak at number six in the United Kingdom, becoming a success there. The song was also hit in France and The Netherlands.\n\nThe song has been performed on most of Minogue's concert tours, including her Rhythm of Love Tour, Let's Get to It Tour and Intimate and Live Tour. The song has also been performed at the Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour and the Homecoming Tour, and has been most recently been performed at her Aphrodite World Tour.\n\nBackground\nThere are three official promotional mixes of the song. The early unreleased first version is synth orienated and has multilayered vocals. Much of the synth was omitted and the drums, bass and vocals were toned down for the second album version. The third version, the 7\" Mix, contains a newer drum track, multilayered vocals in the chorus and relies much less on the synthesizers than on the album version. This version of the song also contains samples from American comedian Sam Kinison, and was used for the music video. In the UK a limited edition 7″ single came with postcards with shots from the video.\n\nOriginally, \"What Do I Have To Do\" was planned to be released as the follow-up single to \"Better the Devil You Know\", but was later released as the third single off the album instead, and the track was specially remixed for single release. The 1999 biographical book Girl Next Door identified this track as Kylie's favourite to perform live.\n\nThe single artwork was photographed by Robert Erdmann.\n\nReception\n\nCritical response\n\"What Do I Have To Do?\" received very positive reviews from many music critics. Jason Shawahn from About.com said the song, along with \"Better The Devil You Know\" and \"Wouldn't Change a Thing\", \"are nothing if not pop masterpieces.\" He also labeled it as a \"pop classic\". Quentin Harrison from Albumism noted it as \"luxuriant electro-pop\", adding that Ian Curnow and Phil Harding \"rework it into an appetizing, but accessible house ditty that emphasizes unity between the single's beat and Minogue's supple vocal.\" While reviewing Rhythm of Love, Chris True from AllMusic highlighted the song as an album standout. NME voted it as the thirtieth best track of 1991. Eleanor Levy from Record Mirror described it as \"more mature, in a Hi-NRG, Bronski Beatish way.\" She added, \"More straightforward rhythm than formula pop song, it fizzes predictably rather than sparkles but, like Kylie's ever-elongating fringe, will no doubt grow and grow.\" Caroline Sullivan from Smash Hits called it \"supreme\", and said the song \"sees a return to the reassuring old Kylie-sound\". While reviewing Ultimate Kylie, Mark Edwards from Stylus Magazine gave it a positive remark, saying that along with \"Shocked\" and \"Give Me Just a Little More Time\", they \"were great songs and suddenly Kylie was a little bit cool.\"\n\nChart performance\n\"What Do I Have to Do\" debuted at number twenty-seven on the Australian Singles Chart, until rising and peaking at number eleven, staying there for two consecutive weeks. The song then debuted at number ninety-nine on the Dutch Top 40, until peaking at number eighty-one for one week. The song then debuted and peaked at number fifty on the French Singles Chart.\n\nImpact and legacy\nEnglish DJ and record producer Nicky Holloway chose \"What Do I Have to Do\" as one of his top 10 vinyl thrills in 1996, saying, \"I've had so much fun with this over the years. You don't realise what you're dancing to until it's too late to stop! It's got a long intro so people are dancing away and don't realise that it's Kylie Minogue until they're sucked into it.\"\n\nMusic video\n\nThe music video for the song was directed by Dave Hogan. In relation to this video, Minogue is quoted as saying \"how many Hollywood stars can you look like in three and a half minutes...\". Her younger sister Dannii Minogue also appears in the video. The music video begins with clips of the dance scene intercut with Minogue emerging from a swimming pool and her love interest seeing her with another man. The love interest is played by Zane O'Donnell, the same model who would appear in the video for Minogue's subsequent single \"Shocked\". \nMinogue then goes out to the balcony overlooking a fairground and the man follows. The video then shifts to the man watching Minogue dancing with a female friend in a club. The next scene is Minogue waking up in her lover's bed as he prepares to leave the bedroom. After this, Minogue singing on the bed is intercut with scenes of her singing and dancing in front of a white backdrop. The video goes back to her and her friend having fun in the club as the man stares at her again. Later, she sits on the bench overlooking the scene and takes a glance at a lookalike of her lover next to her. Following this, she gets up to dance as the man watches. Finally, she gets a tattoo of a black panther on her back and shows it to her lover. The video concludes with all of Minogue's performance scenes intercut with her doing the ironing in a Gingham Apron and on a date with her lover. The final shot is of Minogue and her lover walking across a bridge.\n\nWhile reviewing the DVD version of Greatest Hits for Amazon.co.uk, John Galilee said \"Her most outrageous but greatest video moment is where she parodies certain movie stars in the chic video for \"What Do I Have to Do?\", and because of her heavy eye make-up almost earns herself the title drag-queen Kylie (watch out for sister Dannii who briefly stars in the video, wearing a blonde wig).\"\n\nFormats and track listings\nThese are the formats and track listings of major single releases of \"What Do I Have to Do\".\n\n 7\" vinyl single\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix) – 3:32\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Instrumental) – 3:48\n\n 12\" vinyl single\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix) – 7:48\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Instrumental) – 5:08\n\n CD single\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix) – 3:32\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix) – 7:48\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Instrumental) – 5:08\n\n iTunes Digital EP – Remixes\n(Not available at time of original release. Released for the first time as part of iTunes PWL archive release in 2009)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (12\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Between the Sheets Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Album Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 12\" Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 12\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 7\" Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 7\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 7\" Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 12\" Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers Do the Dub)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix)\n\n iTunes Digital EP – The Original Synth Mixes (released 8 November 2010)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Billy The Fish Mix: Part I) 3:44\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Billy The Fish Mix: Part II) 7:30\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Original 12\" Mix) 7:09\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Album Mix II) 8:42\n\n iTunes Digital EP – What Do I Have to Do?\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix) — 3:33\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix) — 7:47\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Album Mix) — 8:07\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Instrumental) — 3:33\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Instrumental) — 5:07\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Backing Track) — 3:33\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Instrumental) — 3:43\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Backing Track) — 3:43\n \"Things Can Only Get Better\" (Album Instrumental) — 3:55\n \"Things Can Only Get Better\" (Album Backing Track) — 3:55\n\nLive performances\nMinogue performed the song on the following concert tours:\n Rhythm of Love Tour\n Let's Get to It Tour\n Intimate and Live Tour\n On a Night Like This Tour\n Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour (as part of the \"Smiley Kylie Medley\")\n Showgirl: The Homecoming Tour (as part of the \"Everything Taboo Medley\")\n For You, for Me (as part of the \"Everything Taboo Medley\")\n Aphrodite World Tour\nSummer 2019\n\nThe song was also performed on:\n An Audience with Kylie Minogue 2001 TV special, performed as part of the hits medley.\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nReferences\n\n1991 singles\nKylie Minogue songs\nSong recordings produced by Stock Aitken Waterman\nSongs written by Mike Stock (musician)\nSongs written by Matt Aitken\nSongs written by Pete Waterman\n1990 songs\nMushroom Records singles\nPete Waterman Entertainment singles\nTorch songs\nEurodance songs"
]
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[
"Hattie McDaniel",
"Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar",
"WHat did this lead him to",
"The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown.",
"What did this bring about",
"In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s.",
"What did this mean for her",
"In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard.",
"What did this led to being written about",
"In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s.",
"What did this lead him too",
"The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.",
"What did this led her to do",
"In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair,",
"What did this do for her",
"for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to\". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011,"
]
| C_f7cf3aff90f0448485ddd74b2d1cafa7_0 | How did this come about | 8 | How did the speech come about? | Hattie McDaniel | The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009. In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s. In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of the Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar was likely returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the 5 1/2" x 6" plaque. CANNOTANSWER | Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s. | Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first African American to win an Oscar. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975, and in 2006 she became the first black Oscar winner honored with a U.S. postage stamp. In 2010, she was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. In addition to acting, McDaniel recorded 16 blues sides between 1926 and 1929 and was a radio performer and television personality; she was the first black woman to sing on radio in the United States. Although she appeared in over 300 films, she received screen credits for only 83.
McDaniel experienced racism and racial segregation throughout her career, and notably was unable to attend the premiere of Gone with the Wind in Atlanta because it was held at a whites-only theater. At the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, she sat at a segregated table at the side of the room. In 1952, McDaniel died due to breast cancer. Her final wish to be buried in Hollywood Cemetery was denied due to the graveyard being restricted to whites only at the time.
Early life
McDaniel, the youngest of 13 children, was born in 1893 to formerly-enslaved parents in Wichita, Kansas. Her mother, Susan Holbert, was a singer of gospel music, and her father, Henry McDaniel, fought in the Civil War with the 122nd United States Colored Troops. In 1900, the family moved to Colorado, living first in Fort Collins and then in Denver, where Hattie attended Denver East High School (1908-1910) and in 1908 entered a contest sponsored by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, reciting "Convict Joe", later claiming she had won first place. Her brother, Sam McDaniel, played the butler in the 1948 Three Stooges' short film Heavenly Daze. Her sister Etta McDaniel was also an actress.
Career
Early work and acting beginnings
McDaniel was a songwriter as well as a performer. She honed her songwriting skills while working with her brother Otis McDaniel's carnival company, a minstrel show. McDaniel and her sister Etta Goff launched an all-female minstrel show in 1914 called the McDaniel Sisters Company. After the death of her brother Otis in 1916, the troupe began to lose money, and Hattie did not get her next big break until 1920. From 1920 to 1925, she appeared with Professor George Morrison's Melody Hounds, a black touring ensemble. In the mid-1920s, she embarked on a radio career, singing with the Melody Hounds on station KOA in Denver. From 1926 to 1929, she recorded many of her songs for Okeh Records and Paramount Records in Chicago. McDaniel recorded seven sessions: one in the summer of 1926 on the rare Kansas City label Meritt; four sessions in Chicago for Okeh from late 1926 to late 1927 (of the 10 sides recorded, only four were issued), and two sessions in Chicago for Paramount in March 1929.
After the stock market crashed in 1929, McDaniel could only find work as a washroom attendant at Sam Pick's Club Madrid near Milwaukee. Despite the owner's reluctance to let her perform, she was eventually allowed to take the stage and soon became a regular performer.
In 1931, McDaniel moved to Los Angeles to join her brother Sam, and sisters Etta and Orlena. When she could not get film work, she took jobs as a maid or cook. Sam was working on a KNX radio program, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour, and was able to get his sister a spot. She performed on radio as "Hi-Hat Hattie", a bossy maid who often "forgets her place". Her show became popular, but her salary was so low that she had to keep working as a maid. She made her first film appearance in The Golden West (1932), in which she played a maid. Her second appearance came in the highly successful Mae West film I'm No Angel (1933), in which she played one of the maids with whom West camped it up backstage. She received several other uncredited film roles in the early 1930s, often singing in choruses. In 1934, McDaniel joined the Screen Actors Guild. She began to attract attention and landed larger film roles, which began to win her screen credits. Fox Film Corporation put her under contract to appear in The Little Colonel (1935), with Shirley Temple, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Lionel Barrymore.
Judge Priest (1934), directed by John Ford and starring Will Rogers, was the first film in which she played a major role. She had a leading part in the film and demonstrated her singing talent, including a duet with Rogers. McDaniel and Rogers became friends during filming. In 1935, McDaniel had prominent roles, as a slovenly maid in Alice Adams (RKO Pictures); a comic part as Jean Harlow's maid and traveling companion in China Seas (MGM) (McDaniels's first film with Clark Gable); and as the maid Isabella in Murder by Television, with Béla Lugosi. She appeared in the 1938 film Vivacious Lady, starring James Stewart and Ginger Rogers. McDaniel had a featured role as Queenie in the 1936 film Show Boat (Universal Pictures), starring Allan Jones and Irene Dunne, in which she sang a verse of Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man with Dunne, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, and a black chorus. She and Robeson sang "I Still Suits Me", written for the film by Kern and Hammerstein. After Show Boat, she had major roles in MGM's Saratoga (1937), starring Jean Harlow and Clark Gable; The Shopworn Angel (1938), with Margaret Sullavan; and The Mad Miss Manton (1938), starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She had a minor role in the Carole Lombard–Frederic March film Nothing Sacred (1937), in which she played the wife of a shoeshine man (Troy Brown) masquerading as a sultan.
McDaniel was a friend of many of Hollywood's most popular stars, including Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Bette Davis, Shirley Temple, Henry Fonda, Ronald Reagan, Olivia de Havilland, and Clark Gable. She starred with de Havilland and Gable in Gone with the Wind (1939). Around this time, she was criticized by members of the black community for the roles she accepted and for pursuing roles aggressively rather than rocking the Hollywood boat. For example, in The Little Colonel (1935), she played one of the servants longing to return to the Old South, but her portrayal of Malena in RKO Pictures's Alice Adams angered white Southern audiences, because she stole several scenes from the film's white star, Katharine Hepburn. McDaniel ultimately became best known for playing a sassy, opinionated maid.
Gone with the Wind
The competition to win the part of Mammy in Gone with the Wind was almost as fierce as that for Scarlett O'Hara. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt wrote to film producer David O. Selznick to ask that her own maid, Elizabeth McDuffie, be given the part. McDaniel did not think she would be chosen because she had earned her reputation as a comic actress. One source claimed that Clark Gable recommended that the role be given to McDaniel; in any case, she went to her audition dressed in an authentic maid's uniform and won the part.
Upon hearing of the planned film adaptation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) fought hard to require the film's producer and director to delete racial epithets from the movie (in particular the offensive slur "nigger") and to alter scenes that might be incendiary and that, in their view, were historically inaccurate. Of particular concern was a scene from the novel in which black men attack Scarlett O'Hara, after which the Ku Klux Klan, with its long history of provoking terror on black communities, is presented as a savior. Throughout the South, black men were being lynched based upon false allegations they had harmed white women. That attack scene was altered, and some offensive language was modified, but another epithet, "darkie", remained in the film, and the film's message with respect to slavery remained essentially the same. Consistent with the book, the film's screenplay also referred to poor whites as "white trash", and it ascribed these words equally to characters black and white.
Loew's Grand Theater on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia was selected by the studio as the site for the Friday, December 15, 1939, premiere of Gone with the Wind. Studio head David O. Selznick asked that McDaniel be permitted to attend, but MGM advised him not to, because of Georgia's segregation laws. Clark Gable threatened to boycott the Atlanta premiere unless McDaniel were allowed to attend, but McDaniel convinced him to attend anyway.
Most of Atlanta's 300,000 citizens crowded the route of the seven-mile (11 km) motorcade that carried the film's other stars and executives from the airport to the Georgian Terrace Hotel, where they stayed. While Jim Crow laws kept McDaniel from the Atlanta premiere, she did attend the film's Hollywood debut on December 28, 1939. Upon Selznick's insistence, her picture was also featured prominently in the program.
Reception and 1939 Academy Awards
For her performance as the house servant who repeatedly scolds her owner's daughter, Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), and scoffs at Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), McDaniel won the 1939 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first black actor to have been nominated and win an Oscar. "I loved Mammy," McDaniel said when speaking to the white press about the character. "I think I understood her because my own grandmother worked on a plantation not unlike Tara." Her role in Gone with the Wind had alarmed some whites in the South; there were complaints that in the film she had been too "familiar" with her white owners. At least one writer pointed out that McDaniel's character did not significantly depart from Mammy's persona in Margaret Mitchell's novel, and that in both the film and the book, the much younger Scarlett speaks to Mammy in ways that would be deemed inappropriate for a Southern teenager of that era to speak to a much older white person, and that neither the book nor the film hints of the existence of Mammy's own children (dead or alive), her own family (dead or alive), a real name, or her desires to have anything other than a life at Tara, serving on a slave plantation. Moreover, while Mammy scolds the younger Scarlett, she never crosses Mrs. O'Hara, the more senior white woman in the household. Some critics felt that McDaniel not only accepted the roles but also in her statements to the press acquiesced in Hollywood's stereotypes, providing fuel for critics of those who were fighting for black civil rights. Later, when McDaniel tried to take her "Mammy" character on a road show, black audiences did not prove receptive.
While many black people were happy over McDaniel's personal victory, they also viewed it as bittersweet. They believed Gone With the Wind celebrated the slave system and condemned the forces that destroyed it. For them, the unique accolade McDaniel had won suggested that only those who did not protest Hollywood's systemic use of racial stereotypes could find work and success there.
The Twelfth Academy Awards took place at the Coconut Grove Restaurant of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. It was preceded by a banquet in the same room. Louella Parsons, an American gossip columnist, wrote about Oscar night, February 29, 1940:
McDaniel received a plaque-style Oscar, approximately by , the type awarded to all Best Supporting Actors and Actresses at that time. She and her escort were required to sit at a segregated table for two at the far wall of the room; her white agent, William Meiklejohn, sat at the same table. The hotel had a strict no-blacks policy, but allowed McDaniel in as a favor. The discrimination continued after the award ceremony as well as her white co-stars went to a "no-blacks" club, where McDaniel was also denied entry. Another black woman did not win an Oscar again for 50 years, with Whoopi Goldberg winning Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ghost. Weeks prior to McDaniel winning her Oscar, there was even more controversy. David Selznick, the producer of Gone With the Wind, omitted the faces of all the black actors on the posters advertising the movie in the South. None of the black cast members were allowed to attend the premiere for the movie.
Gone with the Wind won eight Academy Awards. It was later named by the American Film Institute (AFI) as number four among the top 100 American films of all time in the 1998 ranking and number six in the 2007 ranking.
Final works
In the Warner Bros. film In This Our Life (1942), starring Bette Davis and directed by John Huston, McDaniel once again played a domestic, but one who confronts racial issues when her son, a law student, is wrongly accused of manslaughter. McDaniel was in the same studio's Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943), with Humphrey Bogart and Bette Davis. In its review of the film, Time wrote that McDaniel was comic relief in an otherwise "grim study," writing, "Hattie McDaniel, whose bubbling, blaring good humor more than redeems the roaring bad taste of a Harlem number called Ice Cold Katie". McDaniel continued to play maids during the war years for Warners in The Male Animal (1942) and United Artists' Since You Went Away (1944), but her feistiness was toned down to reflect the era's somber news. She also played the maid in Song of the South (1946) for Disney.
She made her last film appearances in Mickey (1948) and Family Honeymoon (1949), where that same year, she appeared on the live CBS television program The Ed Wynn Show. She remained active on radio and television in her final years, becoming the first black actor to star in her own radio show with the comedy series Beulah. She also starred in the television version of the show, replacing Ethel Waters after the first season. (Waters had apparently expressed concerns over stereotypes in the role.) Beulah was a hit, however, and earned McDaniel $2,000 per week; however, the show was controversial. In 1951, the United States Army ceased broadcasting Beulah in Asia because troops complained that the show perpetuated negative stereotypes of black men as shiftless and lazy and interfered with the ability of black troops to perform their mission. After filming a handful of episodes, however, McDaniel learned she had breast cancer. By the spring of 1952, she was too ill to work and was replaced by Louise Beavers.
Personal life
Marriages
McDaniel married Howard Hickman on January 19, 1911, in Denver, Colorado. He died in 1915. Her second husband, George Langford, died of a gunshot wound in January 1925, soon after she married him and while her career was on the rise.
She married James Lloyd Crawford, a real estate salesman, on March 21, 1941, in Tucson, Arizona. According to Donald Bogle, in his book Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams, McDaniel happily confided to gossip columnist Hedda Hopper in 1945 that she was pregnant. McDaniel began buying baby clothes and set up a nursery in her house. Her plans were shattered when she suffered a false pregnancy and fell into a depression. She never had any children. She divorced Crawford in 1945, after four and a half years of marriage. Crawford had been jealous of her career success, she said.
She married Larry Williams, an interior decorator, on June 11, 1949, in Yuma, Arizona, but divorced him in 1950 after testifying that their five months together had been marred by "arguing and fussing." McDaniel broke down in tears when she testified that her husband tried to provoke dissension in the cast of her radio show and otherwise interfered with her work. "I haven't gotten over it yet," she said. "I got so I couldn't sleep. I couldn't concentrate on my lines."
Community service
During World War II, she served as chairman of the Negro Division of the Hollywood Victory Committee, providing entertainment for soldiers stationed at military bases. (The US military was segregated, and black entertainers were not allowed to serve on white entertainment committees.) She elicited the help of a friend, the actor Leigh Whipper, and other black entertainers for her committee. She made numerous personal appearances at military hospitals, threw parties, and performed at United Service Organizations (USO) shows and war bond rallies to raise funds to support the war on behalf of the Victory Committee. Bette Davis was the only white member of McDaniel's acting troupe to perform for black regiments; Lena Horne and Ethel Waters also participated. McDaniel was also a member of American Women's Voluntary Services.
She joined the actor Clarence Muse, one of the first black members of the Screen Actors Guild, in an NBC radio broadcast to raise funds for Red Cross relief programs for Americans that had been displaced by devastating floods, and she gained a reputation for generosity, lending money to friends and strangers alike.
Death
In August 1950, McDaniel suffered a heart ailment and entered Temple Hospital in semi-critical condition. She was released in October to recuperate at home, and she was cited by United Press on January 3, 1951, as showing "slight improvement in her recovery from a mild stroke."
McDaniel died of breast cancer at age 59 on October 26, 1952, in the hospital on the grounds of the Motion Picture House in Woodland Hills, California. She was survived by her brother Sam McDaniel. Thousands of mourners turned out to celebrate her life and achievements. In her will, McDaniel wrote,
Hollywood Cemetery, on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, is the resting place of movie stars such as Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino. Its owner at the time, Jules Roth, refused to allow her to be buried there, because, at the time of McDaniel's death, the cemetery practiced racial segregation and would not accept the remains of black people for burial. Her second choice was Rosedale Cemetery (now known as Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery), where she lies today.
In 1999, Tyler Cassity, the new owner of the Hollywood Cemetery (renamed the Hollywood Forever Cemetery), offered to have McDaniel re-interred there. Her family did not wish to disturb her remains and declined the offer. Instead, Hollywood Forever Cemetery built a large cenotaph on the lawn overlooking its lake. It is one of Hollywood's most popular tourist attractions.
McDaniel's last will and testament of December 1951 bequeathed her Oscar to Howard University, where she had been honored by the students with a luncheon after she had won her Oscar. At the time of her death, McDaniel would have had few options. Very few white institutions in that day preserved black history. Historically, black colleges had been where such artifacts were placed. Despite evidence McDaniel had earned an excellent income as an actress, her final estate was less than $10,000. The IRS claimed the estate owed more than $11,000 in taxes. In the end, the probate court ordered all of her property, including her Oscar, sold to pay off creditors. Years later, the Oscar turned up where McDaniel wanted it to be: Howard University, where, according to reports, it was displayed in a glass case in the university's drama department. However, it appears to have gone missing from Howard in the 60's or 70's and has never been recovered.
Reception and impact
Initial controversies
As her fame grew, McDaniel faced growing criticism from some members of the black community. Groups such as the NAACP complained that Hollywood stereotypes not only restricted black actors to servant roles but often portrayed them as lazy, dim-witted, satisfied with lowly positions, or violent. In addition to addressing the studios, they called upon actors, and especially leading black actors, to pressure studios to offer more substantive roles and at least not pander to stereotypes. They also argued that these portrayals were unfair as well as inaccurate and that, coupled with segregation and other forms of discrimination, such stereotypes were making it difficult for all black people, not only actors, to overcome racism and succeed in the entertainment industry. Some attacked McDaniel for being an "Uncle Tom"—a person willing to advance personally by perpetuating racial stereotypes or being an agreeable agent of offensive racial restrictions. McDaniel characterized these challenges as class-based biases against domestics, a claim that white columnists seemed to accept. She reportedly said, "Why should I complain about making $700 a week playing a maid? If I didn't, I'd be making $7 a week being one."
McDaniel may also have been criticized because, unlike many other black entertainers, she was not associated with civil rights protests and was largely absent from efforts to establish a commercial base for independent black films. She did not join the Negro Actors Guild of America until 1947, late in her career. McDaniel hired one of the few white agents who would represent black actors at the time, William Meiklejohn, to advance her career. Evidence suggests her avoidance of political controversy was deliberate. When columnist Hedda Hopper sent her Richard Nixon placards and asked McDaniel to distribute them, McDaniel declined, replying she had long ago decided to stay out of politics. "Beulah is everybody's friend," she said. Since she was earning a living honestly, she added, she should not be criticized for accepting such work as was offered. Her critics, especially Walter White of the NAACP, claimed that she and other actors who agreed to portray stereotypes were not a neutral force but rather willing agents of black oppression.
McDaniel and other black actresses and actors feared that their roles would evaporate if the NAACP and other Hollywood critics complained too loudly. She blamed these critics for hindering her career and sought the help of allies of doubtful reputation. After speaking with McDaniel, Hopper claimed that McDaniel's career troubles were not the result of racism but had been caused by McDaniel's "own people".
Achievements and legacy
McDaniel has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood: one at 6933 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to radio and one at 1719 Vine Street for motion pictures. In 1975, she was inducted posthumously into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame.
In 1994 the actress and singer Karla Burns, notably the first black performer to win a Laurence Olivier Award, launched her one-woman show Hi-Hat-Hattie (written by Larry Parr), about McDaniel's life. Burns went on to perform the role in several other cities through 2018, including Off-Broadway and the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre in California.
In 2002, McDaniel's legacy was celebrated in American Movie Classics's (AMC) film Beyond Tara, The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel (2001), produced and directed by Madison D. Lacy and hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. This one-hour special depicted McDaniel's struggles and triumphs in the presence of rampant racism and brutal adversity. The film won the 2001–2002 Daytime Emmy Award, presented on May 17, 2002, for Outstanding Special Class Special.
McDaniel was the 29th inductee in the Black Heritage Series by the United States Postal Service. Her 39-cent stamp was released on January 29, 2006, featuring a 1941 photograph of McDaniel in the dress she wore to accept the Academy Award in 1940. The ceremony took place at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where the Hattie McDaniel collection includes photographs of McDaniel and other family members as well as scripts and other documents.
In 2004 Rita Dove, the first black U.S. poet laureate, published her poem "Hattie McDaniel Arrives at the Coconut Grove" in The New Yorker and has since presented it frequently during her poetry readings as well as on YouTube.
In the 2020 Netflix mini-series Hollywood a fictionalised Hattie McDaniel is played by Queen Latifah.
Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar
The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in The Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in The Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.
In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Precious, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar.
In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of The Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar had likely been returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the award.
West Adams Heights homeowners' covenant case victory
McDaniel was the most famous of the black homeowners who helped to organize the black Historic West Adams neighborhood residents who saved their homes. Loren Miller, an attorney and the owner and publisher of the California Eagle newspaper, represented the minority homeowners in their restrictive covenant case. In 1944, Miller won the case Fairchild v Rainers, a decision in favor of a black family in Pasadena, California, which had bought a nonrestricted lot but was still sued by white neighbors.
Time magazine, in its issue of December 17, 1945, reported:
McDaniel had purchased her white, two-story, seventeen-room house in 1942. The house included a large living room, dining room, drawing room, den, butler's pantry, kitchen, service porch, library, four bedrooms and a basement. McDaniel had a yearly Hollywood party. Everyone knew that the king of Hollywood, Clark Gable, could always be found at McDaniel's parties.
Filmography
Film
Features
Short films
Mickey's Rescue (1934) as Maid (uncredited)
Fate's Fathead (1934) as Mandy - the Maid (uncredited)
The Chases of Pimple Street (1934) as Hattie, Gertrude's Maid (uncredited)
Anniversary Trouble (1935) as Mandy, the Maid
Okay Toots! (1935) as Hattie - the Maid (uncredited)
Wig-Wag (1935) as Cook (uncredited)
The Four Star Boarder (1935) as Maid (uncredited)
Arbor Day (1936) as Buckwheat's Mother
Termites of 1938 (Three Stooges) (1938)
Radio
Station KOA, Denver, Melony Hounds (1926)
Station KNX, Los Angeles, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour (1931)
CBS Network, The Beulah Show (1947)
McDaniel was a semi-regular on the radio program Amos 'n' Andy, first as Andy's demanding landlady. In one episode they nearly marry. Andy was out for her money, aided and abetted by the Kingfish, who gives his wife's diamond ring to present to McDaniel as an engagement ring. The scheme blows up in their faces when Sapphire decides to throw a party to celebrate. Andy desperately tries to conceal the ring from Sapphire. In frustration and growing anger, McDaniel says to Andy, "Andy, sweetheart, darlin'. Is you gonna let go of my hand or does I have to pop you??!!" This episode aired on NBC in June 1944. She played a similar character, "Sadie Simpson", in several later episodes.
Discography
Hattie McDaniel recorded infrequently as a singer. In addition to the musical numbers over her long career in films, she recorded for Okeh Records, Paramount, and the small Kansas City, Missouri label Merrit. All of her known recordings (some of which were never issued) were recorded in the 1920s.
See also
List of African-American firsts
List of black Academy Award winners and nominees
List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
References
Bibliography
Hopper, Hedda. "Hattie Hates Nobody". Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1947.
Jackson, Carlton. Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel. Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1990.
Mitchell, Lisa. "More Than a Mammy". Hollywood Studio Magazine, April 1979.
Salamon, Julie. "The Courage to Rise Above Mammyness". New York Times, August 6, 2001.
Watts, Jill. Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2005.
Talk of the Nation. Jill Watts, interview, audio
Young, Al. "I'd Rather Play a Maid Than Be One". New York Times, October 15, 1989.
Zeigler, Ronny. "Hattie McDaniel: '(I'd) ... rather play a maid.'" N.Y. Amsterdam News, April 28, 1979.
Further reading
Carter, W. Burlette, [ Finding the Oscar] (January 6, 2012). Howard Law Journal, Vol. 55, No. 1, 2011; GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2012-2; GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2012-2.
HISTORY This Week. The Legacy of an Oscar 02/10/2020 W. Burlette Carter and Jill Watts
External links
Hattie and Sam McDaniel papers at Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
1893 births
1952 deaths
20th-century American actresses
20th-century American comedians
Actors from Wichita, Kansas
Actresses from Kansas
African-American actresses
African-American female comedians
African-American women singer-songwriters
African-American radio personalities
American film actresses
American radio actresses
American television actresses
American women comedians
American blues singer-songwriters
Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winners
Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery
Comedians from California
Comedians from Kansas
Deaths from breast cancer
Deaths from cancer in California
Musicians from Wichita, Kansas
Okeh Records artists
Paramount Pictures contract players
People from South Los Angeles
People from West Adams, Los Angeles
RKO Pictures contract players
20th-century African-American women singers
Singer-songwriters from Kansas | false | [
"\"How Come, How Long\" is a song written, produced and performed by Babyface (Kenneth Edmonds). It was released as the third single from his album The Day. It is a duet with American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder.\n\nThe lyrics deal with physical abuse, regarding a woman killed by her husband after tremendous physical abuse. This release met with mixed reaction by critics and did not chart on any major charts in United States, finding a better chart performance in United Kingdom, where it became a top ten hit for the performers. This song was nominated twice for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.\n\nSong information\nThe track was written, produced and performed by Babyface as a duet with American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, who also co-wrote the song. The lyrics deal with domestic violence and is inspired by the Nicole Brown Simpson case. On the Entertainment Weekly review of The Day, David Browne wrote that this \"domestic-abuse saga\" needed \"tougher music to make its point.\" At the 40th Grammy Awards this song received a nomination for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals, which it lost to \"Don't Look Back\" by John Lee Hooker and Van Morrison. The following year, the song received the same nomination with the live version included on Babyface's Unplugged album, losing this time to Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach with their rendition of \"I Still Have That Other Girl\".\n\nMusic video\nThe music video for this song, directed by F. Gary Gray, shows several residents of an apartment building ignoring the shouts, screams, and arguments between a married couple, ending with a twist, showing that the woman killed her abusive husband, ending with her being arrested. This video received a nomination for Best R&B Video at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards, which was awarded to \"I'll Be Missing You\" by Puff Daddy (Sean Combs) featuring Faith Evans and 112. It also was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video, losing to \"Got 'til It's Gone\" by Janet Jackson.\n\nTrack listing\nUS CD single\n\"How Come, How Long\" – 5:11\n\"Every Time I Close My Eyes\" (Timbaland remix) – 4:23\n\nUK CD single (XPCD2161)\n\"How Come, How Long\" (Radio edit) – 4:12\n\nCD maxi single (EPC 664402 2)\n\"How Come, How Long\" (radio edit) – 4:12\n\"How Come, How Long\" (Natty & Slaps remix) – 5:08\n\"How Come, How Long\" (Laws & Craigie remix) – 6:28\n\"Every Time I Close My Eyes\" (Timbaland remix) – 4:55\n\nChart\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nPersonnel\nThe following people contributed to \"How Come, How Long\":\nBabyface — main performer and producer\nStevie Wonder — vocals, harmonica\nTimbaland — producer, remixing\nJimmy Douglas — remixing\nJon Gass — mixing\nBenny Medina — management\nAnton Corbijn — photography\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nSong Lyrics on Rhapsody\nListen to the song\n\n1997 singles\nBabyface (musician) songs\nStevie Wonder songs\nMusic videos directed by F. Gary Gray\nSongs written by Babyface (musician)\nSongs written by Stevie Wonder\nSong recordings produced by Babyface (musician)\nSongs about domestic violence\nContemporary R&B ballads\nVocal duets\nAmerican soft rock songs",
"\n\nNegative particles \nNegative particle syntax is parallel to Mandarin about 70% of the time. Here is a fairly complete description (parallel usage to Mandarin is bolded):\n\n 不 - is not + noun (Mandarin: 不)\n 伊不是阮老母 She is not my mother.\n 不 - does not + verb/will not + verb (Mandarin: 不)\n 伊不来 He does not come./He will not come.\n verb + 未 + particle - is not able to (Mandarin: 不)\n 我看未着 I am not able to see it.\n 未 + helping verb - can not (opposite of ē is able to/Mandarin: 不)\n 伊未晓讲英语 He can't speak English.\n helping verbs that go with 未\n未使 - is not permitted to (Mandarin: 不可以)\n未晓 - does not know how to (Mandarin: 不会)\n未当 - not able to (Mandarin: 不能)\n 莫 - do not (imperative) (Mandarin: 别)\n 莫讲! Don't speak!\n 无 - do not + helping verb (Mandarin: 不)\n 伊无侎来 He is not going to come.\n helping verbs that go with 无:\n侎 - want to + verb; will + verb\n爱 - must + verb\n应该 - should + verb\n合意 - like to + verb\n 无 - does not have (Mandarin: 没有)\n 伊无钱 He does not have any money.\n 无 - did not (Mandarin: 没有)\n 伊无来 He did not come.\n 无 - is not + adjective (Mandarin: 不)\n 伊无婎 She is not beautiful.\nAn exception can be made for 好 (good), 不好 = 无好 - not good.\nback to main article\nview negative particles in traditional Chinese script\n\nSouthern Min"
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"The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown.",
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"In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s.",
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"In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard.",
"What did this led to being written about",
"In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s.",
"What did this lead him too",
"The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.",
"What did this led her to do",
"In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair,",
"What did this do for her",
"for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to\". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011,",
"How did this come about",
"Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s."
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| C_f7cf3aff90f0448485ddd74b2d1cafa7_0 | Waht happened in the end | 9 | Waht happened in the end | Hattie McDaniel | The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in the Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in the Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009. In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's plaque. In 2011, J. Freedom duLac reported in the Washington Post that the plaque had disappeared in the 1960s. In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of the Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar was likely returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the 5 1/2" x 6" plaque. CANNOTANSWER | In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. | Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939), she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first African American to win an Oscar. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975, and in 2006 she became the first black Oscar winner honored with a U.S. postage stamp. In 2010, she was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. In addition to acting, McDaniel recorded 16 blues sides between 1926 and 1929 and was a radio performer and television personality; she was the first black woman to sing on radio in the United States. Although she appeared in over 300 films, she received screen credits for only 83.
McDaniel experienced racism and racial segregation throughout her career, and notably was unable to attend the premiere of Gone with the Wind in Atlanta because it was held at a whites-only theater. At the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, she sat at a segregated table at the side of the room. In 1952, McDaniel died due to breast cancer. Her final wish to be buried in Hollywood Cemetery was denied due to the graveyard being restricted to whites only at the time.
Early life
McDaniel, the youngest of 13 children, was born in 1893 to formerly-enslaved parents in Wichita, Kansas. Her mother, Susan Holbert, was a singer of gospel music, and her father, Henry McDaniel, fought in the Civil War with the 122nd United States Colored Troops. In 1900, the family moved to Colorado, living first in Fort Collins and then in Denver, where Hattie attended Denver East High School (1908-1910) and in 1908 entered a contest sponsored by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, reciting "Convict Joe", later claiming she had won first place. Her brother, Sam McDaniel, played the butler in the 1948 Three Stooges' short film Heavenly Daze. Her sister Etta McDaniel was also an actress.
Career
Early work and acting beginnings
McDaniel was a songwriter as well as a performer. She honed her songwriting skills while working with her brother Otis McDaniel's carnival company, a minstrel show. McDaniel and her sister Etta Goff launched an all-female minstrel show in 1914 called the McDaniel Sisters Company. After the death of her brother Otis in 1916, the troupe began to lose money, and Hattie did not get her next big break until 1920. From 1920 to 1925, she appeared with Professor George Morrison's Melody Hounds, a black touring ensemble. In the mid-1920s, she embarked on a radio career, singing with the Melody Hounds on station KOA in Denver. From 1926 to 1929, she recorded many of her songs for Okeh Records and Paramount Records in Chicago. McDaniel recorded seven sessions: one in the summer of 1926 on the rare Kansas City label Meritt; four sessions in Chicago for Okeh from late 1926 to late 1927 (of the 10 sides recorded, only four were issued), and two sessions in Chicago for Paramount in March 1929.
After the stock market crashed in 1929, McDaniel could only find work as a washroom attendant at Sam Pick's Club Madrid near Milwaukee. Despite the owner's reluctance to let her perform, she was eventually allowed to take the stage and soon became a regular performer.
In 1931, McDaniel moved to Los Angeles to join her brother Sam, and sisters Etta and Orlena. When she could not get film work, she took jobs as a maid or cook. Sam was working on a KNX radio program, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour, and was able to get his sister a spot. She performed on radio as "Hi-Hat Hattie", a bossy maid who often "forgets her place". Her show became popular, but her salary was so low that she had to keep working as a maid. She made her first film appearance in The Golden West (1932), in which she played a maid. Her second appearance came in the highly successful Mae West film I'm No Angel (1933), in which she played one of the maids with whom West camped it up backstage. She received several other uncredited film roles in the early 1930s, often singing in choruses. In 1934, McDaniel joined the Screen Actors Guild. She began to attract attention and landed larger film roles, which began to win her screen credits. Fox Film Corporation put her under contract to appear in The Little Colonel (1935), with Shirley Temple, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Lionel Barrymore.
Judge Priest (1934), directed by John Ford and starring Will Rogers, was the first film in which she played a major role. She had a leading part in the film and demonstrated her singing talent, including a duet with Rogers. McDaniel and Rogers became friends during filming. In 1935, McDaniel had prominent roles, as a slovenly maid in Alice Adams (RKO Pictures); a comic part as Jean Harlow's maid and traveling companion in China Seas (MGM) (McDaniels's first film with Clark Gable); and as the maid Isabella in Murder by Television, with Béla Lugosi. She appeared in the 1938 film Vivacious Lady, starring James Stewart and Ginger Rogers. McDaniel had a featured role as Queenie in the 1936 film Show Boat (Universal Pictures), starring Allan Jones and Irene Dunne, in which she sang a verse of Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man with Dunne, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, and a black chorus. She and Robeson sang "I Still Suits Me", written for the film by Kern and Hammerstein. After Show Boat, she had major roles in MGM's Saratoga (1937), starring Jean Harlow and Clark Gable; The Shopworn Angel (1938), with Margaret Sullavan; and The Mad Miss Manton (1938), starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. She had a minor role in the Carole Lombard–Frederic March film Nothing Sacred (1937), in which she played the wife of a shoeshine man (Troy Brown) masquerading as a sultan.
McDaniel was a friend of many of Hollywood's most popular stars, including Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Bette Davis, Shirley Temple, Henry Fonda, Ronald Reagan, Olivia de Havilland, and Clark Gable. She starred with de Havilland and Gable in Gone with the Wind (1939). Around this time, she was criticized by members of the black community for the roles she accepted and for pursuing roles aggressively rather than rocking the Hollywood boat. For example, in The Little Colonel (1935), she played one of the servants longing to return to the Old South, but her portrayal of Malena in RKO Pictures's Alice Adams angered white Southern audiences, because she stole several scenes from the film's white star, Katharine Hepburn. McDaniel ultimately became best known for playing a sassy, opinionated maid.
Gone with the Wind
The competition to win the part of Mammy in Gone with the Wind was almost as fierce as that for Scarlett O'Hara. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt wrote to film producer David O. Selznick to ask that her own maid, Elizabeth McDuffie, be given the part. McDaniel did not think she would be chosen because she had earned her reputation as a comic actress. One source claimed that Clark Gable recommended that the role be given to McDaniel; in any case, she went to her audition dressed in an authentic maid's uniform and won the part.
Upon hearing of the planned film adaptation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) fought hard to require the film's producer and director to delete racial epithets from the movie (in particular the offensive slur "nigger") and to alter scenes that might be incendiary and that, in their view, were historically inaccurate. Of particular concern was a scene from the novel in which black men attack Scarlett O'Hara, after which the Ku Klux Klan, with its long history of provoking terror on black communities, is presented as a savior. Throughout the South, black men were being lynched based upon false allegations they had harmed white women. That attack scene was altered, and some offensive language was modified, but another epithet, "darkie", remained in the film, and the film's message with respect to slavery remained essentially the same. Consistent with the book, the film's screenplay also referred to poor whites as "white trash", and it ascribed these words equally to characters black and white.
Loew's Grand Theater on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia was selected by the studio as the site for the Friday, December 15, 1939, premiere of Gone with the Wind. Studio head David O. Selznick asked that McDaniel be permitted to attend, but MGM advised him not to, because of Georgia's segregation laws. Clark Gable threatened to boycott the Atlanta premiere unless McDaniel were allowed to attend, but McDaniel convinced him to attend anyway.
Most of Atlanta's 300,000 citizens crowded the route of the seven-mile (11 km) motorcade that carried the film's other stars and executives from the airport to the Georgian Terrace Hotel, where they stayed. While Jim Crow laws kept McDaniel from the Atlanta premiere, she did attend the film's Hollywood debut on December 28, 1939. Upon Selznick's insistence, her picture was also featured prominently in the program.
Reception and 1939 Academy Awards
For her performance as the house servant who repeatedly scolds her owner's daughter, Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), and scoffs at Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), McDaniel won the 1939 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first black actor to have been nominated and win an Oscar. "I loved Mammy," McDaniel said when speaking to the white press about the character. "I think I understood her because my own grandmother worked on a plantation not unlike Tara." Her role in Gone with the Wind had alarmed some whites in the South; there were complaints that in the film she had been too "familiar" with her white owners. At least one writer pointed out that McDaniel's character did not significantly depart from Mammy's persona in Margaret Mitchell's novel, and that in both the film and the book, the much younger Scarlett speaks to Mammy in ways that would be deemed inappropriate for a Southern teenager of that era to speak to a much older white person, and that neither the book nor the film hints of the existence of Mammy's own children (dead or alive), her own family (dead or alive), a real name, or her desires to have anything other than a life at Tara, serving on a slave plantation. Moreover, while Mammy scolds the younger Scarlett, she never crosses Mrs. O'Hara, the more senior white woman in the household. Some critics felt that McDaniel not only accepted the roles but also in her statements to the press acquiesced in Hollywood's stereotypes, providing fuel for critics of those who were fighting for black civil rights. Later, when McDaniel tried to take her "Mammy" character on a road show, black audiences did not prove receptive.
While many black people were happy over McDaniel's personal victory, they also viewed it as bittersweet. They believed Gone With the Wind celebrated the slave system and condemned the forces that destroyed it. For them, the unique accolade McDaniel had won suggested that only those who did not protest Hollywood's systemic use of racial stereotypes could find work and success there.
The Twelfth Academy Awards took place at the Coconut Grove Restaurant of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. It was preceded by a banquet in the same room. Louella Parsons, an American gossip columnist, wrote about Oscar night, February 29, 1940:
McDaniel received a plaque-style Oscar, approximately by , the type awarded to all Best Supporting Actors and Actresses at that time. She and her escort were required to sit at a segregated table for two at the far wall of the room; her white agent, William Meiklejohn, sat at the same table. The hotel had a strict no-blacks policy, but allowed McDaniel in as a favor. The discrimination continued after the award ceremony as well as her white co-stars went to a "no-blacks" club, where McDaniel was also denied entry. Another black woman did not win an Oscar again for 50 years, with Whoopi Goldberg winning Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ghost. Weeks prior to McDaniel winning her Oscar, there was even more controversy. David Selznick, the producer of Gone With the Wind, omitted the faces of all the black actors on the posters advertising the movie in the South. None of the black cast members were allowed to attend the premiere for the movie.
Gone with the Wind won eight Academy Awards. It was later named by the American Film Institute (AFI) as number four among the top 100 American films of all time in the 1998 ranking and number six in the 2007 ranking.
Final works
In the Warner Bros. film In This Our Life (1942), starring Bette Davis and directed by John Huston, McDaniel once again played a domestic, but one who confronts racial issues when her son, a law student, is wrongly accused of manslaughter. McDaniel was in the same studio's Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943), with Humphrey Bogart and Bette Davis. In its review of the film, Time wrote that McDaniel was comic relief in an otherwise "grim study," writing, "Hattie McDaniel, whose bubbling, blaring good humor more than redeems the roaring bad taste of a Harlem number called Ice Cold Katie". McDaniel continued to play maids during the war years for Warners in The Male Animal (1942) and United Artists' Since You Went Away (1944), but her feistiness was toned down to reflect the era's somber news. She also played the maid in Song of the South (1946) for Disney.
She made her last film appearances in Mickey (1948) and Family Honeymoon (1949), where that same year, she appeared on the live CBS television program The Ed Wynn Show. She remained active on radio and television in her final years, becoming the first black actor to star in her own radio show with the comedy series Beulah. She also starred in the television version of the show, replacing Ethel Waters after the first season. (Waters had apparently expressed concerns over stereotypes in the role.) Beulah was a hit, however, and earned McDaniel $2,000 per week; however, the show was controversial. In 1951, the United States Army ceased broadcasting Beulah in Asia because troops complained that the show perpetuated negative stereotypes of black men as shiftless and lazy and interfered with the ability of black troops to perform their mission. After filming a handful of episodes, however, McDaniel learned she had breast cancer. By the spring of 1952, she was too ill to work and was replaced by Louise Beavers.
Personal life
Marriages
McDaniel married Howard Hickman on January 19, 1911, in Denver, Colorado. He died in 1915. Her second husband, George Langford, died of a gunshot wound in January 1925, soon after she married him and while her career was on the rise.
She married James Lloyd Crawford, a real estate salesman, on March 21, 1941, in Tucson, Arizona. According to Donald Bogle, in his book Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams, McDaniel happily confided to gossip columnist Hedda Hopper in 1945 that she was pregnant. McDaniel began buying baby clothes and set up a nursery in her house. Her plans were shattered when she suffered a false pregnancy and fell into a depression. She never had any children. She divorced Crawford in 1945, after four and a half years of marriage. Crawford had been jealous of her career success, she said.
She married Larry Williams, an interior decorator, on June 11, 1949, in Yuma, Arizona, but divorced him in 1950 after testifying that their five months together had been marred by "arguing and fussing." McDaniel broke down in tears when she testified that her husband tried to provoke dissension in the cast of her radio show and otherwise interfered with her work. "I haven't gotten over it yet," she said. "I got so I couldn't sleep. I couldn't concentrate on my lines."
Community service
During World War II, she served as chairman of the Negro Division of the Hollywood Victory Committee, providing entertainment for soldiers stationed at military bases. (The US military was segregated, and black entertainers were not allowed to serve on white entertainment committees.) She elicited the help of a friend, the actor Leigh Whipper, and other black entertainers for her committee. She made numerous personal appearances at military hospitals, threw parties, and performed at United Service Organizations (USO) shows and war bond rallies to raise funds to support the war on behalf of the Victory Committee. Bette Davis was the only white member of McDaniel's acting troupe to perform for black regiments; Lena Horne and Ethel Waters also participated. McDaniel was also a member of American Women's Voluntary Services.
She joined the actor Clarence Muse, one of the first black members of the Screen Actors Guild, in an NBC radio broadcast to raise funds for Red Cross relief programs for Americans that had been displaced by devastating floods, and she gained a reputation for generosity, lending money to friends and strangers alike.
Death
In August 1950, McDaniel suffered a heart ailment and entered Temple Hospital in semi-critical condition. She was released in October to recuperate at home, and she was cited by United Press on January 3, 1951, as showing "slight improvement in her recovery from a mild stroke."
McDaniel died of breast cancer at age 59 on October 26, 1952, in the hospital on the grounds of the Motion Picture House in Woodland Hills, California. She was survived by her brother Sam McDaniel. Thousands of mourners turned out to celebrate her life and achievements. In her will, McDaniel wrote,
Hollywood Cemetery, on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, is the resting place of movie stars such as Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino. Its owner at the time, Jules Roth, refused to allow her to be buried there, because, at the time of McDaniel's death, the cemetery practiced racial segregation and would not accept the remains of black people for burial. Her second choice was Rosedale Cemetery (now known as Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery), where she lies today.
In 1999, Tyler Cassity, the new owner of the Hollywood Cemetery (renamed the Hollywood Forever Cemetery), offered to have McDaniel re-interred there. Her family did not wish to disturb her remains and declined the offer. Instead, Hollywood Forever Cemetery built a large cenotaph on the lawn overlooking its lake. It is one of Hollywood's most popular tourist attractions.
McDaniel's last will and testament of December 1951 bequeathed her Oscar to Howard University, where she had been honored by the students with a luncheon after she had won her Oscar. At the time of her death, McDaniel would have had few options. Very few white institutions in that day preserved black history. Historically, black colleges had been where such artifacts were placed. Despite evidence McDaniel had earned an excellent income as an actress, her final estate was less than $10,000. The IRS claimed the estate owed more than $11,000 in taxes. In the end, the probate court ordered all of her property, including her Oscar, sold to pay off creditors. Years later, the Oscar turned up where McDaniel wanted it to be: Howard University, where, according to reports, it was displayed in a glass case in the university's drama department. However, it appears to have gone missing from Howard in the 60's or 70's and has never been recovered.
Reception and impact
Initial controversies
As her fame grew, McDaniel faced growing criticism from some members of the black community. Groups such as the NAACP complained that Hollywood stereotypes not only restricted black actors to servant roles but often portrayed them as lazy, dim-witted, satisfied with lowly positions, or violent. In addition to addressing the studios, they called upon actors, and especially leading black actors, to pressure studios to offer more substantive roles and at least not pander to stereotypes. They also argued that these portrayals were unfair as well as inaccurate and that, coupled with segregation and other forms of discrimination, such stereotypes were making it difficult for all black people, not only actors, to overcome racism and succeed in the entertainment industry. Some attacked McDaniel for being an "Uncle Tom"—a person willing to advance personally by perpetuating racial stereotypes or being an agreeable agent of offensive racial restrictions. McDaniel characterized these challenges as class-based biases against domestics, a claim that white columnists seemed to accept. She reportedly said, "Why should I complain about making $700 a week playing a maid? If I didn't, I'd be making $7 a week being one."
McDaniel may also have been criticized because, unlike many other black entertainers, she was not associated with civil rights protests and was largely absent from efforts to establish a commercial base for independent black films. She did not join the Negro Actors Guild of America until 1947, late in her career. McDaniel hired one of the few white agents who would represent black actors at the time, William Meiklejohn, to advance her career. Evidence suggests her avoidance of political controversy was deliberate. When columnist Hedda Hopper sent her Richard Nixon placards and asked McDaniel to distribute them, McDaniel declined, replying she had long ago decided to stay out of politics. "Beulah is everybody's friend," she said. Since she was earning a living honestly, she added, she should not be criticized for accepting such work as was offered. Her critics, especially Walter White of the NAACP, claimed that she and other actors who agreed to portray stereotypes were not a neutral force but rather willing agents of black oppression.
McDaniel and other black actresses and actors feared that their roles would evaporate if the NAACP and other Hollywood critics complained too loudly. She blamed these critics for hindering her career and sought the help of allies of doubtful reputation. After speaking with McDaniel, Hopper claimed that McDaniel's career troubles were not the result of racism but had been caused by McDaniel's "own people".
Achievements and legacy
McDaniel has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood: one at 6933 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to radio and one at 1719 Vine Street for motion pictures. In 1975, she was inducted posthumously into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame.
In 1994 the actress and singer Karla Burns, notably the first black performer to win a Laurence Olivier Award, launched her one-woman show Hi-Hat-Hattie (written by Larry Parr), about McDaniel's life. Burns went on to perform the role in several other cities through 2018, including Off-Broadway and the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre in California.
In 2002, McDaniel's legacy was celebrated in American Movie Classics's (AMC) film Beyond Tara, The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel (2001), produced and directed by Madison D. Lacy and hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. This one-hour special depicted McDaniel's struggles and triumphs in the presence of rampant racism and brutal adversity. The film won the 2001–2002 Daytime Emmy Award, presented on May 17, 2002, for Outstanding Special Class Special.
McDaniel was the 29th inductee in the Black Heritage Series by the United States Postal Service. Her 39-cent stamp was released on January 29, 2006, featuring a 1941 photograph of McDaniel in the dress she wore to accept the Academy Award in 1940. The ceremony took place at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where the Hattie McDaniel collection includes photographs of McDaniel and other family members as well as scripts and other documents.
In 2004 Rita Dove, the first black U.S. poet laureate, published her poem "Hattie McDaniel Arrives at the Coconut Grove" in The New Yorker and has since presented it frequently during her poetry readings as well as on YouTube.
In the 2020 Netflix mini-series Hollywood a fictionalised Hattie McDaniel is played by Queen Latifah.
Whereabouts of the McDaniel Oscar
The whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar are currently unknown. In 1992, Jet magazine reported that Howard University could not find it and alleged that it had disappeared during protests in the 1960s. In 1998, Howard University stated that it could find no written record of the Oscar having arrived at Howard. In 2007, an article in The Huffington Post repeated rumors that the Oscar had been cast into the Potomac River by angry civil rights protesters in the 1960s. The assertion reappeared in The Huffington Post under the same byline in 2009.
In 2010, Mo'Nique, the winner of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Precious, wearing a blue dress and gardenias in her hair, as McDaniel had at the ceremony in 1940, in her acceptance speech thanked McDaniel "for enduring all that she had to so that I would not have to". Her speech revived interest in the whereabouts of McDaniel's Oscar.
In November 2011, W. B. Carter, of the George Washington University Law School, published the results of her year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Oscar's fate. Carter rejected claims that students had stolen the Oscar (and thrown it in the Potomac River) as wild speculation or fabrication that traded on long-perpetuated stereotypes of blacks. She questioned the sourcing of The Huffington Post stories. Instead, she argued that the Oscar had likely been returned to Howard University's Channing Pollack Theater Collection between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1973 or had possibly been boxed and stored in the drama department at that time. The reason for its removal, she argued, was not civil rights unrest but rather efforts to make room for a new generation of black performers. If neither the Oscar nor any paper trail of its ultimate destiny can be found at Howard today, she suggested, inadequate storage or record-keeping in a time of financial constraints and national turbulence may be blamed. She also suggested that a new generation of caretakers may have failed to realize the historic significance of the award.
West Adams Heights homeowners' covenant case victory
McDaniel was the most famous of the black homeowners who helped to organize the black Historic West Adams neighborhood residents who saved their homes. Loren Miller, an attorney and the owner and publisher of the California Eagle newspaper, represented the minority homeowners in their restrictive covenant case. In 1944, Miller won the case Fairchild v Rainers, a decision in favor of a black family in Pasadena, California, which had bought a nonrestricted lot but was still sued by white neighbors.
Time magazine, in its issue of December 17, 1945, reported:
McDaniel had purchased her white, two-story, seventeen-room house in 1942. The house included a large living room, dining room, drawing room, den, butler's pantry, kitchen, service porch, library, four bedrooms and a basement. McDaniel had a yearly Hollywood party. Everyone knew that the king of Hollywood, Clark Gable, could always be found at McDaniel's parties.
Filmography
Film
Features
Short films
Mickey's Rescue (1934) as Maid (uncredited)
Fate's Fathead (1934) as Mandy - the Maid (uncredited)
The Chases of Pimple Street (1934) as Hattie, Gertrude's Maid (uncredited)
Anniversary Trouble (1935) as Mandy, the Maid
Okay Toots! (1935) as Hattie - the Maid (uncredited)
Wig-Wag (1935) as Cook (uncredited)
The Four Star Boarder (1935) as Maid (uncredited)
Arbor Day (1936) as Buckwheat's Mother
Termites of 1938 (Three Stooges) (1938)
Radio
Station KOA, Denver, Melony Hounds (1926)
Station KNX, Los Angeles, The Optimistic Do-Nut Hour (1931)
CBS Network, The Beulah Show (1947)
McDaniel was a semi-regular on the radio program Amos 'n' Andy, first as Andy's demanding landlady. In one episode they nearly marry. Andy was out for her money, aided and abetted by the Kingfish, who gives his wife's diamond ring to present to McDaniel as an engagement ring. The scheme blows up in their faces when Sapphire decides to throw a party to celebrate. Andy desperately tries to conceal the ring from Sapphire. In frustration and growing anger, McDaniel says to Andy, "Andy, sweetheart, darlin'. Is you gonna let go of my hand or does I have to pop you??!!" This episode aired on NBC in June 1944. She played a similar character, "Sadie Simpson", in several later episodes.
Discography
Hattie McDaniel recorded infrequently as a singer. In addition to the musical numbers over her long career in films, she recorded for Okeh Records, Paramount, and the small Kansas City, Missouri label Merrit. All of her known recordings (some of which were never issued) were recorded in the 1920s.
See also
List of African-American firsts
List of black Academy Award winners and nominees
List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
References
Bibliography
Hopper, Hedda. "Hattie Hates Nobody". Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1947.
Jackson, Carlton. Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel. Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1990.
Mitchell, Lisa. "More Than a Mammy". Hollywood Studio Magazine, April 1979.
Salamon, Julie. "The Courage to Rise Above Mammyness". New York Times, August 6, 2001.
Watts, Jill. Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2005.
Talk of the Nation. Jill Watts, interview, audio
Young, Al. "I'd Rather Play a Maid Than Be One". New York Times, October 15, 1989.
Zeigler, Ronny. "Hattie McDaniel: '(I'd) ... rather play a maid.'" N.Y. Amsterdam News, April 28, 1979.
Further reading
Carter, W. Burlette, [ Finding the Oscar] (January 6, 2012). Howard Law Journal, Vol. 55, No. 1, 2011; GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2012-2; GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2012-2.
HISTORY This Week. The Legacy of an Oscar 02/10/2020 W. Burlette Carter and Jill Watts
External links
Hattie and Sam McDaniel papers at Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
1893 births
1952 deaths
20th-century American actresses
20th-century American comedians
Actors from Wichita, Kansas
Actresses from Kansas
African-American actresses
African-American female comedians
African-American women singer-songwriters
African-American radio personalities
American film actresses
American radio actresses
American television actresses
American women comedians
American blues singer-songwriters
Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winners
Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery
Comedians from California
Comedians from Kansas
Deaths from breast cancer
Deaths from cancer in California
Musicians from Wichita, Kansas
Okeh Records artists
Paramount Pictures contract players
People from South Los Angeles
People from West Adams, Los Angeles
RKO Pictures contract players
20th-century African-American women singers
Singer-songwriters from Kansas | true | [
"WAHT (1560 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Cowpens, South Carolina, and serving Clemson and Spartanburg. WAHT offers a sports format, simulcasting WCCP-FM 105.5 FM in Clemson. Local hosts are heard during the day on weekdays, with CBS Sports Radio airing nights and weekends. The station is owned by John and Blake Byrne, through licensee Byrne Acquisition Group, LLC.\n\nBy day, WAHT transmits with 15,000 watts, but because 1560 AM is a clear channel frequency, WAHT must sign off at night to avoid interference. During critical hours, WAHT broadcasts with 870 watts. The station uses a non-directional antenna at all times. WAHT is also heard on 250-watt FM translator W248DD at 97.5 MHz.\n\nHistory\nWCCP/1560 signed on in 1969 by Matt Phillips (who later founded WRIX-AM-FM in Anderson, South Carolina). The call letters has formerly been assigned to Savannah, Georgia on 1450 kHz; that station became WBYG and is not longer on the air. Former CBS Morning News anchor Jane Robelot worked at WCCP in the late 1970s and early 1980s.\n\nOn April 23, 2007 WAHT changed its format to sports, simulcasting WCCP-FM (then at 104.9).\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nAHT\nAHT",
"WCCP-FM (105.5 MHz) is a commercial radio station in Clemson, South Carolina. It is owned by the Byrne Acquisition Group, headed by John Byrne, and it broadcasts a sports format known as \"The Roar\". Weekdays it has a line up of local sports hosts. Nights and weekends, it carries CBS Sports Radio. Programming is simulcast on WAHT 1560 AM in Cowpens, South Carolina, and on its FM translator at 97.5 MHz.\n\nWCCP-FM has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 20,000 watts. The transmitter is off Harper Road in Pendleton, South Carolina.\n\nStation history\nWCCP-FM signed on the air on April 8, 1993 at 104.9 MHz. It was an oldies station using the name \"Foothills 104.9\", but switched to all-sports by the end of the decade. Tommy Powell was mainly responsible for getting WCCP-FM 104.9 on the air. Since 2003, WCCP-FM has been the flagship radio station for Clemson University athletics. It also carries Atlanta Falcons football and Atlanta Braves baseball games.\n\nOn May 5, 2014, WCCP-FM moved from 104.9 FM to 105.5 FM and rebranded as \"105.5 The Roar\".\n\nSee also\nWAHT\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nWCCP-FM official website\n\nCCP-FM\nESPN Radio stations\nRadio stations established in 1993\n1993 establishments in South Carolina"
]
|
[
"James Brown",
"1962-1966: Mr. Dynamite"
]
| C_185d6e4eab0446b1aa68bcc9a108fa5d_1 | What happened in 1962? | 1 | What happened to James Brown in 1962? | James Brown | In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming not only a top five R&B single but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers. Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior. In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones. Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on. CANNOTANSWER | In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming not only a top five R&B single | James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer, and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honorific nicknames "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and "Soul Brother No. 1". In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown was one of the first 10 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction in New York on January 23, 1986.
Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia. He first came to national public attention in the mid-1950s as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a rhythm and blues vocal group founded by Bobby Byrd. With the hit ballads "Please, Please, Please" and "Try Me", Brown built a reputation as a dynamic live performer with the Famous Flames and his backing band, sometimes known as the James Brown Band or the James Brown Orchestra. His success peaked in the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apollo and hit singles such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", "I Got You (I Feel Good)" and "It's a Man's Man's Man's World".
During the late 1960s, Brown moved from a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms and styles to a profoundly "Africanized" approach to music-making, emphasizing stripped-down interlocking rhythms that influenced the development of funk music. By the early 1970s, Brown had fully established the funk sound after the formation of the J.B.s with records such as "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine" and "The Payback". He also became noted for songs of social commentary, including the 1968 hit "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud". Brown continued to perform and record until his death from pneumonia in 2006.
Brown recorded 17 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B charts. He also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that did not reach No. 1. Brown was inducted into the first class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013 as an artist and then in 2017 as a songwriter. He also received honors from several other institutions, including inductions into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In Joel Whitburn's analysis of the Billboard R&B charts from 1942 to 2010, Brown is ranked No. 1 in The Top 500 Artists. He is ranked seventh on Rolling Stone list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
Early life
Brown was born on May 3, 1933, in Barnwell, South Carolina, to 16-year-old Susie (née Behling; 1916–2004) and 21-year-old Joseph Gardner Brown (1912–1993) in a small wooden shack. Brown's name was supposed to have been Joseph James Brown, but his first and middle names were mistakenly reversed on his birth certificate. In his autobiography, Brown stated that he had Chinese and Native American ancestry and that his father was of mixed African-American and Native American descent, while his mother was of mixed African-American and Asian descent.
The Brown family lived in extreme poverty in Elko, South Carolina, which was an impoverished town at the time. They later moved to Augusta, Georgia, when James was four or five. His family first settled at one of his aunts' brothels. They later moved into a house shared with another aunt. Brown's mother eventually left the family after a contentious and abusive marriage and moved to New York. Brown spent long stretches of time on his own, hanging out in the streets and hustling to get by. He managed to stay in school until the sixth grade.
He began singing in talent shows as a young child, first appearing at Augusta's Lenox Theater in 1944, winning the show after singing the ballad "So Long". While in Augusta, Brown performed buck dances for change to entertain troops from Camp Gordon at the start of World War II as their convoys traveled over a canal bridge near his aunt's home. He learned to play the piano, guitar, and harmonica during this period. He became inspired to become an entertainer after hearing "Caldonia" by Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five. In his teen years, Brown briefly had a career as a boxer.
At the age of 16, he was convicted of robbery and sent to a juvenile detention center in Toccoa. There, he formed a gospel quartet with four fellow cellmates, including Johnny Terry. Brown met singer Bobby Byrd when the two played against each other in a baseball game outside the detention center. Byrd also discovered that Brown could sing after hearing of "a guy called Music Box", which was Brown's musical nickname at the prison. Byrd has since claimed he and his family helped to secure an early release, which led to Brown promising the court he would "sing for the Lord". Brown was released on a work sponsorship with Toccoa business owner S.C. Lawson. Lawson was impressed with Brown's work ethic and secured his release with a promise to keep him employed for two years. Brown was paroled on June 14, 1952. Brown went on to work with both of Lawson's sons, and would come back to visit the family from time to time throughout his career. Shortly after being paroled he joined the gospel group the Ever-Ready Gospel Singers, featuring Byrd's sister Sarah.
Music career
1953–1961: The Famous Flames
Brown eventually joined Bobby Byrd's group in 1954. The group had evolved from the Gospel Starlighters, an a cappella gospel group, to an R&B group with the name the Avons. He reputedly joined the band after one of its members, Troy Collins, died in a car crash. Along with Brown and Byrd, the group consisted of Sylvester Keels, Doyle Oglesby, Fred Pulliam, Nash Knox and Nafloyd Scott. Influenced by R&B groups such as Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, the Orioles and Billy Ward and his Dominoes, the group changed its name, first to the Toccoa Band and then to the Flames. Nafloyd's brother Baroy later joined the group on bass guitar, and Brown, Byrd and Keels switched lead positions and instruments, often playing drums and piano. Johnny Terry later joined, by which time Pulliam and Oglesby had long left. one of his 10 children commited suicide.
Berry Trimier became the group's first manager, booking them at parties near college campuses in Georgia and South Carolina. The group had already gained a reputation as a good live act when they renamed themselves the Famous Flames. In 1955, the group had contacted Little Richard while performing in Macon. Richard convinced the group to get in contact with his manager at the time, Clint Brantley, at his nightclub. Brantley agreed to manage them after seeing the group audition. He then sent them to a local radio station to record a demo session, where they performed their own composition "Please, Please, Please", which was inspired when Little Richard wrote the words of the title on a napkin and Brown was determined to make a song out of it. The Famous Flames eventually signed with King Records' Federal subsidiary in Cincinnati, Ohio, and issued a re-recorded version of "Please, Please, Please" in March 1956. The song became the group's first R&B hit, selling over a million copies. None of their follow-ups gained similar success. By 1957, Brown had replaced Clint Brantley as manager and hired Ben Bart, chief of Universal Attractions Agency. That year the original Flames broke up, after Bart changed the name of the group to "James Brown and The Famous Flames".
In October 1958, Brown released the ballad "Try Me", which hit number one on the R&B chart in the beginning of 1959, becoming the first of seventeen chart-topping R&B hits. Shortly afterwards, he recruited his first band, led by J. C. Davis, and reunited with Bobby Byrd who joined a revived Famous Flames lineup that included Eugene "Baby" Lloyd Stallworth and Bobby Bennett, with Johnny Terry sometimes coming in as the "fifth Flame". Brown, the Flames, and his entire band debuted at the Apollo Theater on April 24, 1959, opening for Brown's idol, Little Willie John. Federal Records issued two albums credited to Brown and the Famous Flames (both contained previously released singles). By 1960, Brown began multi-tasking in the recording studio involving himself, his singing group, the Famous Flames, and his band, a separate entity from The Flames, sometimes named the James Brown Orchestra or the James Brown Band. That year the band released the top ten R&B hit "(Do the) Mashed Potatoes" on Dade Records, owned by Henry Stone, billed under the pseudonym "Nat Kendrick & the Swans" due to label issues. As a result of its success, King president Syd Nathan shifted Brown's contract from Federal to the parent label, King, which according to Brown in his autobiography meant "you got more support from the company". While with King, Brown, under the Famous Flames lineup, released the hit-filled album Think! and the following year released two albums with the James Brown Band earning second billing. With the Famous Flames, Brown sang lead on several more hits, including"Bewildered", "I'll Go Crazy" and "Think", songs that hinted at his emerging style.
1962–1966: Mr. Dynamite
In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming a top five R&B single. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers.
Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior.
In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones.
Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" in 1965, which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Brown also signed a production deal with Loma Records. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World", a third Top 10 Pop hit (No. 1 R&B) which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on.
1967–1970: Soul Brother No. 1
By 1967, Brown's emerging sound had begun to be defined as funk music. That year he released what some critics cited as the first true funk song, "Cold Sweat", which hit number-one on the R&B chart (Top 10 Pop) and became one of his first recordings to contain a drum break and also the first that featured a harmony that was reduced to a single chord. The instrumental arrangements on tracks such as "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" and "Licking Stick-Licking Stick" (both recorded in 1968) and "Funky Drummer" (recorded in 1969) featured a more developed version of Brown's mid-1960s style, with the horn section, guitars, bass and drums meshed together in intricate rhythmic patterns based on multiple interlocking riffs.
Changes in Brown's style that started with "Cold Sweat" also established the musical foundation for Brown's later hits, such as "I Got the Feelin'" (1968) and "Mother Popcorn" (1969). By this time Brown's vocals frequently took the form of a kind of rhythmic declamation, not quite sung but not quite spoken, that only intermittently featured traces of pitch or melody. This would become a major influence on the techniques of rapping, which would come to maturity along with hip hop music in the coming decades. Brown's style of funk in the late 1960s was based on interlocking syncopated parts: strutting bass lines, syncopated drum patterns, and iconic percussive guitar riffs. The main guitar ostinatos for "Ain't It Funky" and "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" (both 1969), are examples of Brown's refinement of New Orleans funk; irresistibly danceable riffs, stripped down to their rhythmic essence. On both recordings the tonal structure is bare bones. The pattern of attack-points is the emphasis, not the pattern of pitches, as if the guitar were an African drum, or idiophone. Alexander Stewart states that this popular feel was passed along from "New Orleans—through James Brown's music, to the popular music of the 1970s". Those same tracks were later resurrected by countless hip-hop musicians from the 1970s onward. As a result, James Brown remains to this day the world's most sampled recording artist, but, two tracks that he wrote, are also synonymous with modern dance, especially with house music, jungle music, and drum and bass music, (which were sped up exponentially, in the latter two genres).
"Bring it Up" has an Afro-Cuban guajeo-like structure. All three of these guitar riffs are based on an onbeat/offbeat structure. Stewart says that it "is different from a time line (such as clave and tresillo) in that it is not an exact pattern, but more of a loose organizing principle."
It was around this time as the musician's popularity increased that he acquired the nickname "Soul Brother No. 1", after failing to win the title "King of Soul" from Solomon Burke during a Chicago gig two years prior. Brown's recordings during this period influenced musicians across the industry, most notably groups such as Sly and the Family Stone, Funkadelic, Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, Booker T. & the M.G.s as well as vocalists such as Edwin Starr, David Ruffin and Dennis Edwards from The Temptations, and Michael Jackson, who, throughout his career, cited Brown as his ultimate idol.
Brown's band during this period employed musicians and arrangers who had come up through the jazz tradition. He was noted for his ability as a bandleader and songwriter to blend the simplicity and drive of R&B with the rhythmic complexity and precision of jazz. Trumpeter Lewis Hamlin and saxophonist/keyboardist Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis (the successor to previous bandleader Nat Jones) led the band. Guitarist Jimmy Nolen provided percussive, deceptively simple riffs for each song, and Maceo Parker's prominent saxophone solos provided a focal point for many performances. Other members of Brown's band included stalwart Famous Flames singer and sideman Bobby Byrd, trombonist Fred Wesley, drummers John "Jabo" Starks, Clyde Stubblefield and Melvin Parker, saxophonist St. Clair Pinckney, guitarist Alphonso "Country" Kellum and bassist Bernard Odum.
In addition to a torrent of singles and studio albums, Brown's output during this period included two more successful live albums, Live at the Garden (1967) and Live at the Apollo, Volume II (1968), and a 1968 television special, James Brown: Man to Man. His music empire expanded along with his influence on the music scene. As Brown's music empire grew, his desire for financial and artistic independence grew as well. Brown bought radio stations during the late 1960s, including WRDW in his native Augusta, where he shined shoes as a boy. In November 1967, James Brown purchased radio station WGYW in Knoxville, Tennessee, for a reported $75,000, according to the January 20, 1968 Record World magazine. The call letters were changed to WJBE reflecting his initials. WJBE began on January 15, 1968, and broadcast a Rhythm & Blues format. The station slogan was "WJBE 1430 Raw Soul". Brown also bought WEBB in Baltimore in 1970.
Brown branched out to make several recordings with musicians outside his own band. In an attempt to appeal to the older, more affluent, and predominantly white adult contemporary audience, Brown recorded Gettin' Down To It (1969) and Soul on Top (1970)—two albums consisting mostly of romantic ballads, jazz standards, and homologous reinterpretations of his earlier hits—with the Dee Felice Trio and the Louie Bellson Orchestra. In 1968, he recorded a number of funk-oriented tracks with The Dapps, a white Cincinnati band, including the hit "I Can't Stand Myself". He also released three albums of Christmas music with his own band.
1970–1975: Godfather of Soul
In March 1970, most of Brown's mid-to-late 1960s road band walked out on him due to money disputes, a development augured by the prior disbandment of The Famous Flames singing group for the same reason in 1968. Brown and erstwhile Famous Flames singer Bobby Byrd (who chose to remain in the band during this tumultuous period) subsequently recruited several members of the Cincinnati-based The Pacemakers, which included Bootsy Collins and his brother Phelps "Catfish" Collins; augmented by the remaining members of the 1960s road band (including Fred Wesley, who rejoined Brown's outfit in December 1970) and other newer musicians, they would form the nucleus of The J.B.'s, Brown's new backing ensemble. Shortly following their first performance together, the band entered the studio to record the Brown-Byrd composition, "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine"; the song and other contemporaneous singles would further cement Brown's influence in the nascent genre of funk music. This iteration of the J.B.'s dissolved after a March 1971 European tour (documented on the 1991 archival release Love Power Peace) due to additional money disputes and Bootsy Collins' use of LSD; the Collins brothers would soon become integral members of Parliament-Funkadelic, while a new lineup of the J.B.'s coalesced around Wesley, St. Clair Pinckney and drummer John Starks.
In 1971, Brown began recording for Polydor Records which also took over distribution of Brown's King Records catalog. Many of his sidemen and supporting players, including Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s, Bobby Byrd, Lyn Collins, Vicki Anderson and former rival Hank Ballard, released records on the People label, an imprint founded by Brown that was purchased by Polydor as part of Brown's new contract. The recordings on the People label, almost all of which were produced by Brown himself, exemplified the mature flowering of his "house style". Several tracks thought by critics to be excessively sexual were released at this time. He would later soften his vocal approach. Songs such as "I Know You Got Soul" by Bobby Byrd, "Think" by Lyn Collins and "Doing It to Death" by Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s are considered as much a part of Brown's recorded legacy as the recordings released under his own name. That year, he also began touring African countries and was received well by audiences there. During the 1972 presidential election, James Brown openly proclaimed his support of Richard Nixon for reelection to the presidency over Democratic candidate George McGovern. The decision led to a boycott of his performances and, according to Brown, cost him a big portion of his black audience. As a result, Brown's record sales and concerts in the United States reached a lull in 1973 as he failed to land a number-one R&B single that year. Brown relied more on touring outside the United States where he continued to perform for sold-out crowds in cities such as London, Paris and Lausanne. That year he also faced problems with the IRS for failure to pay back taxes, charging he hadn't paid upwards of $4.5 million; five years earlier, the IRS had claimed he owed nearly $2 million.
In 1973, Brown provided the score for the blaxploitation film Black Caesar. He also recorded another soundtrack for the film, Slaughter's Big Rip-Off. Following the release of these soundtracks, Brown acquired a self-styled nickname, "The Godfather of Soul", which remains his most popular nickname. In 1974 he returned to the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts with "The Payback", with the parent album reaching the same spot on the album charts; he would reach No. 1 two more times in 1974, with "My Thang" and "Papa Don't Take No Mess". Later that year, he returned to Africa and performed in Kinshasa as part of the buildup to The Rumble in the Jungle fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. Admirers of Brown's music, including Miles Davis and other jazz musicians, began to cite him as a major influence on their own styles. However, Brown, like others who were influenced by his music, also "borrowed" from other musicians. His 1976 single, "Hot (I Need To Be Loved, Loved, Loved, Loved)" (R&B No. 31), interpolated the main riff from "Fame" by David Bowie while omitting any attribution to the latter song's composers (including Bowie, John Lennon and guitarist Carlos Alomar), not the other way around as was often believed.
"Papa Don't Take No Mess" would prove to be his final single to reach the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts and his final Top 40 pop single of the 1970s, though he continued to occasionally have Top 10 R&B recordings. Among his top ten R&B hits during this latter period included "Funky President" (R&B No. 4) and "Get Up Offa That Thing" (R&B No. 4), the latter song released in 1976 and aimed at musical rivals such as Barry White, The Ohio Players and K.C. and the Sunshine Band. Brown credited his then-wife and two of their children as writers of the song to avoid concurrent tax problems with the IRS. Starting in October 1975, Brown produced, directed, and hosted Future Shock, an Atlanta-based television variety show that ran for three years.
1975–1991: Decline and resurgence
Although his records were mainstays of the vanguard New York underground disco scene (exemplified by DJs such as David Mancuso and Francis Grasso) from 1969 onwards, Brown did not consciously yield to the trend until 1975's Sex Machine Today. By 1977, he was no longer a dominant force in R&B. After "Get Up Offa That Thing", thirteen of Brown's late 1970s recordings for Polydor failed to reach the Top 10 of the R&B chart, with only "Bodyheat" in 1976 and the disco-oriented "It's Too Funky in Here" in 1979 reaching the R&B Top 15 and the ballad "Kiss in '77" reaching the Top 20. After 1976's "Bodyheat", he also failed to appear on the Billboard Hot 100. As a result, Brown's concert attendance began dropping and his reported disputes with the IRS caused his business empire to collapse. In addition, Brown's former bandmates, including Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker and the Collins brothers, had found bigger success as members of George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic collective. The emergence of disco also stopped Brown's success on the R&B charts because its slicker, more commercial style had superseded his more raw funk productions.
By the release of 1979's The Original Disco Man, Brown was not providing much production or writing, leaving most of it to producer Brad Shapiro, resulting in the song "It's Too Funky in Here" becoming Brown's most successful single in this period. After two more albums failed to chart, Brown left Polydor in 1981. It was around this time that Brown changed the name of his band from the J.B.'s to the Soul Generals (or Soul G's). The band retained that name until his death. Despite Brown's declining record sales, promoters Gary LoConti and Jim Rissmiller helped Brown sell out a string of residency shows at the Country Club in Reseda. Brown's compromised commercial standing prevented him from charging a large live fee to the promoters for these shows. However, the great success of these shows marked a turning point for Brown's career, and soon he was back on top in Hollywood. Movies followed, starting with appearances in the feature films The Blues Brothers, Doctor Detroit and Rocky IV, as well as guest-starring in the Miami Vice episode "Missing Hours" (1987). In 1984, he teamed with rap musician Afrika Bambaataa on the song "Unity". A year later he signed with Scotti Brothers Records and issued the moderately successful album Gravity in 1986. It included Brown's final Top 10 pop hit, "Living in America", marking his first Top 40 entry since 1974 and his first Top 10 pop entry since 1968. Produced and written by Dan Hartman, it was also featured prominently on the Rocky IV film and soundtrack. Brown performed the song in the film at Apollo Creed's final fight, shot in the Ziegfeld Room at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and was credited in the film as "The Godfather of Soul". 1986 also saw the publication of his autobiography, James Brown: The Godfather of Soul, co-written with Bruce Tucker. In 1987, Brown won the Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Living in America".
In 1988, Brown worked with the production team Full Force on the new jack swing-influenced I'm Real. It spawned his final two Top 10 R&B hits, "I'm Real" and "Static", which peaked at No. 2 and No. 5, respectively, on the R&B charts. Meanwhile, the drum break from the second version of the original 1969 hit "Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose" (the recording included on the compilation album In the Jungle Groove) became so popular at hip hop dance parties (especially for breakdance) during the early 1980s that hip hop pioneer Kurtis Blow called the song "the national anthem of hip hop".
1991–2006: Final years
After his stint in prison during the late 1980s, Brown met Larry Fridie and Thomas Hart who produced the first James Brown biopic, entitled James Brown: The Man, the Message, the Music, released in 1992. He returned to music with the album Love Over-Due in 1991. It included the single "(So Tired of Standing Still We Got to) Move On", which peaked at No. 48 on the R&B chart. His former record label Polydor also released the four-CD box set Star Time, spanning Brown's career to date. Brown's release from prison also prompted his former record labels to reissue his albums on CD, featuring additional tracks and commentary by music critics and historians. That same year, Brown appeared on rapper MC Hammer's video for "Too Legit to Quit". Hammer had been noted, alongside Big Daddy Kane, for bringing Brown's unique stage shows and their own energetic dance moves to the hip-hop generation; both listed Brown as their idol. Both musicians also sampled his work, with Hammer having sampled the rhythms from "Super Bad" for his song "Here Comes the Hammer", from his best-selling album Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em. Big Daddy Kane sampled many times. Before the year was over, Brown–who had immediately returned to work with his band following his release–organized a pay-per-view concert following a show at Los Angeles' Wiltern Theatre, that was well received.
On June 10, 1991, James Brown and a star-filled line up performed before a crowd at the Wiltern Theatre for a live pay-per-view at-home audience. James Brown: Living in America – Live! was the brainchild of Indiana producer Danny Hubbard. It featured
M.C. Hammer as well as Bell Biv Devoe, Heavy D & the Boys, En Vogue, C+C Music Factory, Quincy Jones, Sherman Hemsley and Keenen Ivory Wayans. Ice-T, Tone Loc and Kool Moe Dee performed paying homage to Brown. This was Brown's first public performance since his parole from the South Carolina prison system in February. He had served two-and-a-half years of two concurrent six-year sentences for aggravated assault and other felonies.
Brown continued making recordings. In 1993 his album Universal James was released. It included his final Billboard charting single, "Can't Get Any Harder", which peaked at No. 76 on the US R&B chart and reached No. 59 on the UK chart. Its brief charting in the UK was probably due to the success of a remixed version of "I Feel Good" featuring Dakeyne. Brown also released the singles "How Long" and "Georgia-Lina", which failed to chart. In 1995, Brown returned to the Apollo and recorded Live at the Apollo 1995. It included a studio track titled "Respect Me", which was released as a single; again it failed to chart. Brown's final studio albums, I'm Back and The Next Step, were released in 1998 and 2002 respectively. I'm Back featured the song "Funk on Ah Roll", which peaked at No. 40 in the UK but did not chart in his native US. The Next Step included Brown's final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In". Both albums were produced by Derrick Monk. Brown's concert success, however, remained unabated and he kept up with a grueling schedule throughout the remainder of his life, living up to his previous nickname, "The Hardest Working Man in Show Business", in spite of his advanced age. In 2003, Brown participated in the PBS American Masters television documentary James Brown: Soul Survivor, which was directed by Jeremy Marre.
Brown performed in the Super Bowl XXXI halftime show.
Brown celebrated his status as an icon by appearing in a variety of entertainment and sports events, including an appearance on the WCW pay-per-view event, SuperBrawl X, where he danced alongside wrestler Ernest "The Cat" Miller, who based his character on Brown, during his in-ring skit with The Maestro. Brown then appeared in Tony Scott's short film Beat the Devil in 2001. He was featured alongside Clive Owen, Gary Oldman, Danny Trejo and Marilyn Manson. Brown also made a cameo appearance in the 2002 Jackie Chan film The Tuxedo, in which Chan was required to finish Brown's act after having accidentally knocked out the singer. In 2002, Brown appeared in Undercover Brother, playing himself.
In 2004, Brown performed in Hyde Park, London as a support act for Red Hot Chili Peppers concerts. The beginning of 2005 saw the publication of Brown's second book, I Feel Good: A Memoir of a Life of Soul, written with Marc Eliot. In February and March, he participated in recording sessions for an intended studio album with Fred Wesley, Pee Wee Ellis, and other longtime collaborators. Though he lost interest in the album, which remains unreleased, a track from the sessions, "Gut Bucket", appeared on a compilation CD included with the August 2006 issue of MOJO. He appeared at Edinburgh 50,000 – The Final Push, the final Live 8 concert on July 6, 2005, where he performed a duet with British pop star Will Young on "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag". In the Black Eyed Peas album "Monkey Business", Brown was featured on a track called, "They Don't Want Music". The previous week he had performed a duet with another British pop star, Joss Stone, on the United Kingdom chat show Friday Night with Jonathan Ross. In 2006, Brown continued his "Seven Decades of Funk World Tour", his last concert tour where he performed all over the world. His final U.S. performances were in San Francisco on August 20, 2006, as headliner at the Festival of the Golden Gate (Foggfest) on the Great Meadow at Fort Mason. The following day, August 21, he performed at Humboldt State University in Arcata, CA, at a small theatre (800 seats) on campus. His last shows were greeted with positive reviews, and one of his final concert appearances at the Irish Oxegen festival in Punchestown in 2006 was performed for a record crowd of 80,000 people. He played a full concert as part of the BBC's Electric Proms on October 27, 2006, at The Roundhouse, supported by The Zutons, with special appearances from Max Beasley and The Sugababes.
Brown's last televised appearance was at his induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame in November 2006, before his death the following month. Before his death, Brown had been scheduled to perform a duet with singer Annie Lennox on the song "Vengeance" for her new album Venus, which was released in 2007.
Artistry
As a vocalist, Brown performed in a forceful shout style derived from gospel music. Meanwhile, "his rhythmic grunts and expressive shrieks harked back farther still to ring shouts, work songs, and field cries", according to the Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History (1996): "He reimported the rhythmic complexity from which rhythm and blues, under the dual pressure of rock 'n' roll and pop, had progressively fallen away since its birth from jazz and blues."
For many years, Brown's touring show was one of the most extravagant productions in American popular music. At the time of Brown's death, his band included three guitarists, two bass guitar players, two drummers, three horns and a percussionist. The bands that he maintained during the late 1960s and 1970s were of comparable size, and the bands also included a three-piece amplified string section that played during the ballads. Brown employed between 40 and 50 people for the James Brown Revue, and members of the revue traveled with him in a bus to cities and towns all over the country, performing upwards of 330 shows a year with almost all of the shows as one-nighters.
Concert style
Before James Brown appeared on stage, his personal MC gave him an elaborate introduction accompanied by drumrolls, as the MC worked in Brown's various sobriquets along with the names of many of his hit songs. The introduction by Fats Gonder, captured on Brown's 1963 album Live at the Apollo is a representative example:
James Brown's performances were famous for their intensity and length. His own stated goal was to "give people more than what they came for — make them tired, 'cause that's what they came for.'" Brown's concert repertoire consisted mostly of his own hits and recent songs, with a few R&B covers mixed in. Brown danced vigorously as he sang, working popular dance steps such as the Mashed Potato into his routine along with dramatic leaps, splits and slides. In addition, his horn players and singing group (The Famous Flames) typically performed choreographed dance routines, and later incarnations of the Revue included backup dancers. Male performers in the Revue were required to wear tuxedoes and cummerbunds long after more casual concert wear became the norm among the younger musical acts. Brown's own extravagant outfits and his elaborate processed hairdo completed the visual impression. A James Brown concert typically included a performance by a featured vocalist, such as Vicki Anderson or Marva Whitney, and an instrumental feature for the band, which sometimes served as the opening act for the show.
A trademark feature of Brown's stage shows, usually during the song "Please, Please, Please", involved Brown dropping to his knees while clutching the microphone stand in his hands, prompting the show's longtime MC, Danny Ray, to come out, drape a cape over Brown's shoulders and escort him off the stage after he had worked himself to exhaustion during his performance. As Brown was escorted off the stage by the MC, Brown's vocal group, the Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Lloyd Stallworth, and Bobby Bennett), continued singing the background vocals "Please, please don't go-oh". Brown would then shake off the cape and stagger back to the microphone to perform an encore. Brown's routine was inspired by a similar one used by the professional wrestler Gorgeous George, as well as Little Richard. In his 2005 autobiography I Feel Good: A Memoir in a Life of Soul, Brown, who was a fan of Gorgeous George, credited the wrestler as the inspiration for both his cape routine and concert attire, stating, "Seeing him on TV helped create the James Brown you see on stage". Brown performs a version of the cape routine in the film of the T.A.M.I. Show (1964) in which he and The Famous Flames upstaged The Rolling Stones, and over the closing credits of the film Blues Brothers 2000. The Police refer to "James Brown on the T.A.M.I. Show" in their 1980 song "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around".
Band leadership
Brown demanded extreme discipline, perfection and precision from his musicians and dancers – performers in his Revue showed up for rehearsals and members wore the right "uniform" or "costume" for concert performances. During an interview conducted by Terri Gross during the NPR segment "Fresh Air" with Maceo Parker, a former saxophonist in Brown's band for most of the 1960s and part of the 1970s and 1980s, Parker offered his experience with the discipline that Brown demanded of the band:
Brown also had a practice of directing, correcting and assessing fines on members of his band who broke his rules, such as wearing unshined shoes, dancing out of sync or showing up late on stage. During some of his concert performances, Brown danced in front of his band with his back to the audience as he slid across the floor, flashing hand signals and splaying his pulsating fingers to the beat of the music. Although audiences thought Brown's dance routine was part of his act, this practice was actually his way of pointing to the offending member of his troupe who played or sang the wrong note or committed some other infraction. Brown used his splayed fingers and hand signals to alert the offending person of the fine that person must pay to him for breaking his rules.
Brown's demands of his support acts were, meanwhile, quite the reverse. As Fred Wesley recalled of his time as musical director of the JBs, if Brown felt intimidated by a support act he would try to "undermine their performances by shortening their sets without notice, demanding that they not do certain showstopping songs, and even insisting on doing the unthinkable, playing drums on some of their songs. A sure set killer."
Social activism
Education advocacy and humanitarianism
Brown's main social activism was in preserving the need for education among youths, influenced by his own troubled childhood and his being forced to drop out of the seventh grade for wearing "insufficient clothes". Due to heavy dropout rates in the 1960s, Brown released the pro-education song, "Don't Be a Drop-Out". Royalties of the song were donated to dropout-prevention charity programs. The success of this led to Brown meeting with President Lyndon B. Johnson at the White House. Johnson cited Brown for being a positive role model to the youth. A lifelong Republican, Brown gained the confidence of President Richard Nixon, to whom he found he had to explain the plight of Black Americans.
Throughout the remainder of his life, Brown made public speeches in schools and continued to advocate the importance of education in school. Upon filing his will in 2002, Brown advised that most of the money in his estate go into creating the I Feel Good, Inc. Trust to benefit disadvantaged children and provide scholarships for his grandchildren. His final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In", advocated against murders of young children in the streets. Brown often gave out money and other items to children while traveling to his childhood hometown of Augusta. A week before his death, while looking gravely ill, Brown gave out toys and turkeys to kids at an Atlanta orphanage, something he had done several times over the years.
Civil rights and self-reliance
Though Brown performed at benefit rallies for civil rights organizations in the mid-1960s, Brown often shied away from discussing civil rights in his songs in fear of alienating his crossover audience. In 1968, in response to a growing urge of anti-war advocacy during the Vietnam War, Brown recorded the song, "America Is My Home". In the song, Brown performed a rap, advocating patriotism and exhorting listeners to "stop pitying yoursel[ves] and get up and fight". At the time of the song's release, Brown had been participating in performing for troops stationed in Vietnam.
The Boston Garden concert
On April 5, 1968, a day after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, Brown provided a free citywide televised concert at the Boston Garden to maintain public order and calm concerned Boston residents (over the objections of the police chief, who wanted to call off the concert, which he thought would incite violence). The show was later released on DVD as Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968. According to the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston, then-mayor Kevin White had strongly restrained the Boston police from cracking down on minor violence and protests after the assassination, while religious and community leaders worked to keep tempers from flaring. White arranged to have Brown's performance broadcast multiple times on Boston's public television station, WGBH, thus keeping potential rioters off the streets, watching the concert for free. Angered by not being told of this, Brown demanded $60,000 for "gate" fees (money he thought would be lost from ticket sales on account of the concert being broadcast for free) and then threatened to go public about the secret arrangement when the city balked at paying up afterwards, news of which would have been a political death blow to White and spark riots of its own. White eventually lobbied the behind-the-scenes power-brokering group known as "The Vault" to come up with money for Brown's gate fee and other social programs, contributing $100,000. Brown received $15,000 from them via the city. White also persuaded management at the Garden to give up their share of receipts to make up the differences. Following this successful performance, Brown was counseled by President Johnson to urge cities ravaged from riots following King's assassination to not resort to violence, telling them to "cool it, there's another way".
Responding to pressure from black activists, including H. Rap Brown, to take a bigger stance on their issues and from footage of black on black crime committed in inner cities, Brown wrote the lyrics to the song "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud", which his bandleader Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis accompanied with a musical composition. Released late that summer, the song's lyrics helped to make it an anthem for the civil rights movement. Brown only performed the song sporadically following its initial release and later stated he had regrets about recording it, saying in 1984, "Now 'Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud' has done more for the black race than any other record, but if I had my choice, I wouldn't have done it, because I don't like defining anyone by race. To teach race is to teach separatism." In his autobiography he stated:
The song is obsolete now ... But it was necessary to teach pride then, and I think the song did a lot of good for a lot of people ... People called "Black and Proud" militant and angry – maybe because of the line about dying on your feet instead of living on your knees. But really, if you listen to it, it sounds like a children's song. That's why I had children in it, so children who heard it could grow up feeling pride ... The song cost me a lot of my crossover audience. The racial makeup at my concerts was mostly black after that. I don't regret it, though, even if it was misunderstood.
In 1969, Brown recorded two more songs of social commentary, "World" and "I Don't Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing", the latter song pleading for equal opportunity and self-reliance rather than entitlement. In 1970, in response to some black leaders for not being outspoken enough, he recorded "Get Up, Get into It, Get Involved" and "Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing". In 1971, he began touring Africa, including Zambia and Nigeria. He was made "freeman of the city" in Lagos, Nigeria, by Oba Adeyinka Oyekan, for his "influence on black people all over the world". With his company, James Brown Enterprises, Brown helped to provide jobs for blacks in business in the communities. As the 1970s continued, Brown continued to record songs of social commentary, most prominently 1972's "King Heroin" and the two-part ballad "Public Enemy", which dealt with drug addiction.
Political views
During the 1968 presidential campaign, Brown endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hubert Humphrey and appeared with Humphrey at political rallies. Brown was labeled an "Uncle Tom" for supporting Humphrey and also for releasing the pro-American funk song, "America Is My Home", in which Brown had lambasted protesters of the Vietnam War as well as the politics of pro-black activists. Brown began supporting Republican president Richard Nixon after being invited to perform at Nixon's inaugural ball in January 1969. Brown's endorsement of Nixon during the 1972 presidential election negatively impacted his career during that period with several national Black organizations boycotting his records and protesting at his concert shows; a November 1972 show in Cincinnati was picketed with signs saying, "James Brown: Nixon's Clown". Brown initially was invited to perform at a Youth Concert following Nixon's inauguration in January 1973 but bailed out due to the backlash he suffered from supporting Nixon. Brown joined fellow black entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., who faced similar backlash, to back out of the concert. Brown blamed it on "fatigue". Brown later reversed his support of Nixon and composed the song, "You Can Have Watergate (Just Gimme Some Bucks And I'll Be Straight)" as a result. After Nixon resigned from office, Brown composed the 1974 hit, "Funky President (People It's Bad)", right after Gerald Ford took Nixon's place. Brown later supported Democratic President Jimmy Carter, attending one of Carter's inaugural balls in 1977. Brown also openly supported President Ronald Reagan's reelection in 1984.
Brown stated he was neither Democratic nor Republican despite his support of Republican presidents such as Nixon and Reagan as well as Democratic presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Carter. In 1999, when being interviewed by Rolling Stone, the magazine asked him to name a hero in the 20th century; Brown mentioned John F. Kennedy and then-96-year-old U.S. Senator, and former Dixiecrat, Strom Thurmond, stating "when the young whippersnappers get out of line, whether Democratic or Republican, an old man can walk up and say 'Wait a minute, son, it goes this way.' And that's great for our country. He's like a grandfather to me." In 2003, Brown was the featured attraction of a Washington D.C. fundraiser for the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Following the deaths of Ronald Reagan and his friend Ray Charles, Brown said to CNN, "I'm kind of in an uproar. I love the country and I got – you know I've been around a long time, through many presidents and everything. So after losing Mr. Reagan, who I knew very well, then Mr. Ray Charles, who I worked with and lived with like, all our life, we had a show together in Oakland many, many years ago and it's like you found the placard." Despite his contrarian political views, Brown mentored black activist Rev. Al Sharpton during the 1970s.
Personal life
At the end of his life, James Brown lived in Beech Island, South Carolina, directly across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia. Brown had diabetes that went undiagnosed for years, according to his longtime manager Charles Bobbit. In 2004, Brown was successfully treated for prostate cancer. Regardless of his health, Brown maintained his reputation as the "hardest working man in show business" by keeping up with his grueling performance schedule.
In 1962, Tammi Terrell joined the James Brown Revue. Brown became sexually involved with Terrell even though she was only 17 in a relationship that continued until she escaped his abuse. Bobby Bennett, former member of the Famous Flames, told Rolling Stone about the abuse he witnessed: "He beat Tammi Terrell terrible", said Bennett. "She was bleeding, shedding blood." Terrell, who died in 1970, was Brown's girlfriend before she became famous as Marvin Gaye's singing partner in the mid-'60s. "Tammi left him because she didn't want her butt whipped", said Bennett, who also claimed he saw Brown kick one pregnant girlfriend down a flight of stairs.
Marriages and children
Brown was married four times. His first marriage was to Velma Warren in 1953, and they had one son together. Over a decade later, the couple had separated and the final divorce decree was issued in 1969. They maintained a close friendship that lasted until Brown's death. Brown's second marriage was to Deidre "Deedee" Jenkins, on October 22, 1970. They had two daughters together. The couple were separated by 1979, after what his daughter describes as years of domestic abuse, and the final divorce decree was issued on January 10, 1981. His third marriage was to Adrienne Lois Rodriguez (March 9, 1950 – January 6, 1996), in 1984. It was a contentious marriage that made headlines due to domestic abuse complaints. Rodriguez filed for divorce in 1988, "citing years of cruelty treatment", but they reconciled. Less than a year after Rodriguez died in 1996, Brown hired Tomi Rae Hynie to be a background singer for his band and she later became his fourth wife.
On December 23, 2002, Brown and Hynie held a wedding ceremony that was officiated by the Rev. Larry Flyer. Following Brown's death, controversy surrounded the circumstances of the marriage, with Brown's attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, reporting that the marriage was not valid; Hynie was still married to Javed Ahmed, a man from Bangladesh. Hynie claimed Ahmed married her to obtain residency through a Green Card and that the marriage was annulled but the annulment did not occur until April 2004. In an attempt to prove her marriage to Brown was valid, Hynie produced a 2001 marriage certificate as proof of her marriage to Brown, but she did not provide King with court records pointing to an annulment of her marriage to him or to Ahmed. According to Dallas, Brown was angry and hurt that Hynie had concealed her prior marriage from him and Brown moved to file for annulment from Hynie. Dallas added that though Hynie's marriage to Ahmed was annulled after she married Brown, the Brown–Hynie marriage was not valid under South Carolina law because Brown and Hynie did not remarry after the annulment. In August 2003, Brown took out a full-page public notice in Variety featuring Hynie, James II and himself on vacation at Disney World to announce that he and Hynie were going their separate ways. In 2015, a judge ruled Hynie as Brown's legal widow.
Brown had numerous children and acknowledged nine of them including five sons – Teddy (1954–1973), Terry, Larry, Daryl, and James Joseph Brown Jr. and four daughters – Lisa, Dr. Yamma Noyola Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas, and Venisha Brown (1964–2018). Brown also had eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Brown's eldest son, Teddy, died in a car crash on June 14, 1973. According to an August 22, 2007, article published in the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, DNA tests indicate that Brown also fathered at least three extramarital children. The first one of them to be identified is LaRhonda Pettit (born 1962), a retired flight attendant and teacher who lives in Houston. During contesting of Brown's will, another of the Brown family attorneys, Debra Opri, revealed to Larry King that Brown wanted a DNA test performed after his death to confirm the paternity of James Brown Jr. (born 2001)—not for Brown's sake but for the sake of the other family members. In April 2007, Hynie selected a guardian ad litem whom she wanted appointed by the court to represent her son, James Brown Jr., in the paternity proceedings. James Brown Jr. was confirmed to be his biological son.
Drug abuse
For most of his career, Brown had a strict drug- and alcohol-free policy for any member in his entourage, including band members, and would fire people who disobeyed orders, particularly those who used or abused drugs. Although early members of the Famous Flames were fired for using alcohol, Brown often served a highball consisting of Delaware Punch and moonshine at his St. Albans, Queens house in the mid-1960s. Some of the original members of Brown's 1970s band, the J.B.'s, including Catfish and Bootsy Collins, intentionally took LSD during a performance in 1971, causing Brown to fire them after the show because he had suspected them of being on drugs all along.
Aide Bob Patton has asserted that he accidentally shared a PCP-laced cannabis joint with Brown in the mid-1970s and "hallucinated for hours", although Brown "talked about it as if it was only marijuana he was smoking". By the mid-1980s, it was widely alleged that Brown was using drugs, with Vicki Anderson confirming to journalist Barney Hoskyns that Brown's regular use of PCP (colloquially known as "angel dust") "began before 1982". After he met and later married Adrienne Rodriguez in 1984, she and Brown began using PCP together. This drug usage often resulted in violent outbursts from him, and he was arrested several times for domestic violence against Rodriguez while high on the drug. By January 1988, Brown faced four criminal charges within a 12-month span relating to driving, PCP, and gun possession. After an April 1988 arrest for domestic abuse, Brown went on the CNN program Sonya Live in L.A. with host Sonya Friedman. The interview became notorious for Brown's irreverent demeanor, with some asserting that Brown was high.
One of Brown's former mistresses recalled in a GQ magazine article on Brown some years after his death that Brown would smoke PCP ("until that got hard to find") and cocaine, mixed with tobacco in Kool cigarettes. He also engaged in the off-label use of sildenafil, maintaining that it gave him "extra energy". While once under the influence of PCP (which he continued to procure dependent on its availability) when traveling in a car, Brown alleged that passing trees contained psychotronic surveillance technology.
In January 1998, he spent a week in rehab to deal with an addiction to unspecified prescription drugs. A week after his release, he was arrested for an unlawful use of a handgun and possession of cannabis. Prior to his death in December 2006, when Brown entered Emory University Hospital, traces of cocaine were found in the singer's urine. His widow suggested Brown would "do crack" with a female acquaintance.
Theft and assault convictions
Brown's personal life was marred by several brushes with the law. At the age of 16, he was convicted of theft and served three years in juvenile prison. During a concert held at Club 15 in Macon, Georgia in 1963, while Otis Redding was performing alongside his former band Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers, Brown reportedly tried to shoot his musical rival Joe Tex. The incident led to multiple people being shot and stabbed. Since Brown was still on parole at the time, he relied on his agent Clint Brantley "and a few thousand dollars to make the situation disappear". According to Jenkins, "seven people got shot", and after the shootout ended, a man appeared and gave "each one of the injured a hundred dollars apiece not to carry it no further and not to talk to the press". Brown was never charged for the incident.
On July 16, 1978, after performing at the Apollo, Brown was arrested for reportedly failing to turn in records from one of his radio stations after the station was forced to file for bankruptcy. Brown was arrested on April 3, 1988, for assault, and again in May 1988 on drug and weapons charges, and again on September 24, 1988, following a high-speed car chase on Interstate 20 near the Georgia–South Carolina state border. He was convicted of carrying an unlicensed pistol and assaulting a police officer, along with various drug-related and driving offenses. Although he was sentenced to six years in prison, he was eventually released on parole on February 27, 1991, after serving two years of his sentence. Brown's FBI file, released to The Washington Post in 2007 under the Freedom of Information Act, related Brown's claim that the high-speed chase did not occur as claimed by the police, and that local police shot at his car several times during an incident of police harassment and assaulted him after his arrest. Local authorities found no merit to Brown's accusations.
In 1998, a woman named Mary Simons accused Brown in a civil suit of holding her captive for three days, demanding oral sex and firing a gun in his office; Simons' charge was eventually dismissed. In another civil suit, filed by former background singer Lisa Rushton alleged that between 1994 and 1999, Brown allegedly demanded sexual favors and when refused, would cut off her pay and kept her offstage. She also claimed Brown would "place a hand on her buttocks and loudly told her in a crowded restaurant to not look or speak to any other man besides himself;" Rushton eventually withdrew her lawsuit. In yet another civil suit, a woman named Lisa Agbalaya, who worked for Brown, said the singer would tell her he had "bull testicles", handed her a pair of zebra-print underwear, told her to wear them while he massaged her with oil, and fired her after she refused. A Los Angeles jury cleared the singer of sexual harassment but found him liable for wrongful termination.
The police were summoned to Brown's residence on July 3, 2000, after he was accused of charging at an electric company repairman with a steak knife when the repairman visited Brown's house to investigate a complaint about having no lights at the residence. In 2003, Brown was pardoned by the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services for past crimes that he was convicted of committing in South Carolina.
Domestic violence arrests
Brown was repeatedly arrested for domestic violence. Adrienne Rodriguez, his third wife, had him arrested four times between 1987 and 1995 on charges of assault. In one incident, Rodriguez reported to authorities that Brown beat her with an iron pipe and shot at her car. Rodriguez was hospitalized after the last assault in October 1995, but charges were dropped after she died in January 1996.
In January 2004, Brown was arrested in South Carolina on a domestic violence charge after Tomi Rae Hynie accused him of pushing her to the floor during an argument at their home, where she suffered scratches and bruises to her right arm and hip. In June, Brown pleaded no contest to the domestic violence incident, but served no jail time. Instead, Brown was required to forfeit a US$1,087 bond as punishment.
Rape accusation
In January 2005, a woman named Jacque Hollander filed a lawsuit against James Brown, which stemmed from an alleged 1988 rape. When the case was initially heard before a judge in 2002, Hollander's claims against Brown were dismissed by the court as the limitations period for filing the suit had expired. Hollander claimed that stress from the alleged assault later caused her to contract Graves' disease, a thyroid condition. Hollander claimed that the incident took place in South Carolina while she was employed by Brown as a publicist. Hollander alleged that, during her ride in a van with Brown, Brown pulled over to the side of the road and sexually assaulted her while he threatened her with a shotgun. In her case against Brown, Hollander entered as evidence a DNA sample and a polygraph result, but the evidence was not considered due to the limitations defense. Hollander later attempted to bring her case before the Supreme Court, but nothing came of her complaint.
Later life and death
Illness
On December 23, 2006, Brown became very ill and arrived at his dentist's office in Atlanta, Georgia, several hours late. His appointment was for dental implant work. During that visit, Brown's dentist observed that he looked "very bad ... weak and dazed". Instead of performing the work, the dentist advised Brown to see a doctor right away about his medical condition.
Brown went to the Emory Crawford Long Memorial Hospital the next day for medical evaluation and was admitted for observation and treatment. According to Charles Bobbit, his longtime personal manager and friend, Brown had been struggling with a noisy cough since returning from a November trip to Europe. Yet, Bobbit said, the singer had a history of never complaining about being sick and often performed while ill. Although Brown had to cancel upcoming concerts in Waterbury, Connecticut, and Englewood, New Jersey, he was confident that the doctor would discharge him from the hospital in time for his scheduled New Year's Eve shows at the Count Basie Theatre in New Jersey and the B. B. King Blues Club in New York, in addition to performing a song live on CNN for the Anderson Cooper New Year's Eve special. Brown remained hospitalized, however, and his condition worsened throughout the day.
Death
On Christmas Day 2006, Brown died at approximately 1:45 a.m. EST (06:45 UTC), at age 73, from congestive heart failure, resulting from complications of pneumonia. Bobbit was at his bedside and later reported that Brown stuttered, "I'm going away tonight", then took three long, quiet breaths and fell asleep before dying.
In 2019, an investigation by CNN and other journalists led to suggestions that Brown had been murdered.
Memorial services
After Brown's death, his relatives, a host of celebrities, and thousands of fans gathered, on December 28, 2006, for a public memorial service at the Apollo Theater in New York City and, on December 30, 2006, at the James Brown Arena in Augusta, Georgia. A separate, private ceremony was held in North Augusta, South Carolina, on December 29, 2006, with Brown's family in attendance. Celebrities at these various memorial events included Michael Jackson, Jimmy Cliff, Joe Frazier, Buddy Guy, Ice Cube, Ludacris, Dr. Dre, Little Richard, Dick Gregory, MC Hammer, Prince, Jesse Jackson, Ice-T, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bootsy Collins, LL Cool J, Lil Wayne, Lenny Kravitz, 50 Cent, Stevie Wonder, and Don King. Rev. Al Sharpton officiated at all of Brown's public and private memorial services.
Brown's memorial ceremonies were all elaborate, complete with costume changes for the deceased and videos featuring him in concert. His body, placed in a Promethean casket—bronze polished to a golden shine—was driven through the streets of New York to the Apollo Theater in a white, glass-encased horse-drawn carriage. In Augusta, Georgia, his memorial procession stopped to pay respects at his statue, en route to the James Brown Arena. During the public memorial there, a video showed Brown's last performance in Augusta, Georgia, with the Ray Charles version of "Georgia on My Mind" playing soulfully in the background. His last backup band, The Soul Generals, also played some of his hits during that tribute at the arena. The group was joined by Bootsy Collins on bass, with MC Hammer performing a dance in James Brown style. Former Temptations lead singer Ali-Ollie Woodson performed "Walk Around Heaven All Day" at the memorial services.
Last will and testament
Brown signed his last will and testament on August 1, 2000, before J. Strom Thurmond Jr., an attorney for the estate. The irrevocable trust, separate and apart from Brown's will, was created on his behalf, that same year, by his attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, one of three personal representatives of Brown's estate. His will covered the disposition of his personal assets, such as clothing, cars, and jewelry, while the irrevocable trust covered the disposition of the music rights, business assets of James Brown Enterprises, and his Beech Island, South Carolina estate.
During the reading of the will on January 11, 2007, Thurmond revealed that Brown's six adult living children (Terry Brown, Larry Brown, Daryl Brown, Yamma Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas and Venisha Brown) were named in the document, while Hynie and James II were not mentioned as heirs. Brown's will had been signed 10 months before James II was born and more than a year before Brown's marriage to Tomi Rae Hynie. Like Brown's will, his irrevocable trust omitted Hynie and James II as recipients of Brown's property. The irrevocable trust had also been established before, and not amended since, the birth of James II.
On January 24, 2007, Brown's children filed a lawsuit, petitioning the court to remove the personal representatives from the estate (including Brown's attorney, as well as trustee Albert "Buddy" Dallas) and appoint a special administrator because of perceived impropriety and alleged mismanagement of Brown's assets. On January 31, 2007, Hynie also filed a lawsuit against Brown's estate, challenging the validity of the will and the irrevocable trust. Hynie's suit asked the court both to recognize her as Brown's widow and to appoint a special administrator for the estate.
On January 27, 2015, Judge Doyet Early III ruled that Tomi Rae Hynie Brown was officially the widow of James Brown. The decision was based on the grounds that Hynie's previous marriage was invalid and that James Brown had abandoned his efforts to annul his own marriage to Hynie.
On February 19, 2015, the South Carolina Supreme Court intervened, halting all lower court actions in the estate and undertaking to review previous actions itself. The South Carolina Court of Appeals in July 2018 ruled that Hynie was, in fact, Mr. Brown's wife. In 2020, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that Hynie had not been legally married to Brown and did not have a right to his estate. It was reported in July 2021 that Brown's family had reached a settlement ending the 15-year battle over the estate.
Legacy
Brown received awards and honors throughout his lifetime and after his death. In 1993 the City Council of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, conducted a poll of residents to choose a new name for the bridge that crossed the Yampa River on Shield Drive. The winning name, with 7,717 votes, was "James Brown Soul Center of the Universe Bridge". The bridge was officially dedicated in September 1993, and Brown appeared at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the event. A petition was started by local ranchers to return the name to "Stockbridge" for historical reasons, but they backed off after citizens defeated their efforts because of the popularity of Brown's name. Brown returned to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, on July 4, 2002, for an outdoor festival, performing with bands such as The String Cheese Incident.
During his long career, Brown received many prestigious music industry awards and honors. In 1983 he was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. Brown was one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction dinner in New York on January 23, 1986. At that time, the members of his original vocal group, The Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Johnny Terry, Bobby Bennett, and Lloyd Stallworth) were not inducted. However, on April 14, 2012, The Famous Flames were automatically and retroactively inducted into the Hall of Fame alongside Brown, without the need for nomination and voting, on the basis that they should have been inducted with him in 1986. On February 25, 1992, Brown was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 34th annual Grammy Awards. Exactly a year later, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 4th annual Rhythm & Blues Foundation Pioneer Awards. A ceremony was held for Brown on January 10, 1997, to honor him with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
On June 15, 2000, Brown was honored as an inductee to the New York Songwriters Hall of Fame. On August 6, 2002, he was honored as the first BMI Urban Icon at the BMI Urban Awards. His BMI accolades include an impressive ten R&B Awards and six Pop Awards. On November 14, 2006, Brown was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, and he was one of several inductees to perform at the ceremony. In recognition of his accomplishments as an entertainer, Brown was a recipient of Kennedy Center Honors on December 7, 2003. In 2004 Rolling Stone magazine ranked James Brown as No. 7 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In an article for Rolling Stone, critic Robert Christgau cited Brown as "the greatest musician of the rock era". He appeared on the BET Awards June 24, 2003, and received the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Michael Jackson, and performed with him. In 2004, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member Aretha Franklin.
Brown was also honored in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, for his philanthropy and civic activities. On November 20, 1993, Mayor Charles DeVaney of Augusta held a ceremony to dedicate a section of 9th Street between Broad and Twiggs Streets, renamed "James Brown Boulevard", in the entertainer's honor. On May 6, 2005, as a 72nd birthday present for Brown, the city of Augusta unveiled a life-sized bronze James Brown statue on Broad Street. The statue was to have been dedicated a year earlier, but the ceremony was put on hold because of a domestic abuse charge that Brown faced at the time. In 2005, Charles "Champ" Walker and the We Feel Good Committee went before the County commission and received approval to change Augusta's slogan to "We Feel Good". Afterward, officials renamed the city's civic center the James Brown Arena, and James Brown attended a ceremony for the unveiling of the namesake center on October 15, 2006.
On December 30, 2006, during the public memorial service at the James Brown Arena, Dr. Shirley A.R. Lewis, president of Paine College, a historically black college in Augusta, Georgia, bestowed posthumously upon Brown an honorary doctorate in recognition and honor of his many contributions to the school in its times of need. Brown had originally been scheduled to receive the honorary doctorate from Paine College during its May 2007 commencement.
During the 49th Annual Grammy Awards presentation on February 11, 2007, James Brown's famous cape was draped over a microphone by Danny Ray at the end of a montage in honor of notable people in the music industry who died during the previous year. Earlier that evening, Christina Aguilera delivered an impassioned performance of Brown's hit "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" followed by a standing ovation, while Chris Brown performed a dance routine in honor of James Brown.
On August 17, 2013, the official R&B Music Hall of Fame honored and inducted James Brown at a ceremony held at the Waetjen Auditorium at Cleveland State University.
ART THE BOX began in early 2015 as a collaboration between three organizations: the City of Augusta, the Downtown Development Authority and the Greater Augusta Arts Council. 19 local artists were selected by a committee to create art on 23 local traffic signal control cabinets (TSCCs). A competition was held to create the James Brown Tribute Box on the corner of James Brown Blvd. (9th Ave.) and Broad St. This box was designed and painted by local artist, Ms. Robbie Pitts Bellamy and has become a favorite photo opportunity to visitors and locals in Augusta, Georgia.
"I have a lot of musical heroes but I think James Brown is at the top of the list", remarked Public Enemy's Chuck D. "Absolutely the funkiest man on Earth ... In a black household, James Brown is part of the fabric – Motown, Stax, Atlantic and James Brown."
Tributes
As a tribute to James Brown, the Rolling Stones covered the song, "I'll Go Crazy" from Brown's Live at the Apollo album, during their 2007 European tour. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has remarked, "He [James Brown] was almost a musical genre in his own right and he changed and moved forward the whole time so people were able to learn from him."
On December 22, 2007, the first annual "Tribute Fit For the King of King Records" in honor of James Brown was held at the Madison Theater in Covington, Kentucky. The tribute, organized by Bootsy Collins, featured Tony Wilson as Young James Brown with appearances by Afrika Bambaataa, Chuck D of Public Enemy, The Soul Generals, Buckethead, Freekbass, Triage and many of Brown's surviving family members. Comedian Michael Coyer was the MC for the event. During the show, the mayor of Cincinnati proclaimed December 22 as James Brown Day.
As of September 2021, a significant collection of James Brown clothing, memorabilia, and personal artifacts are on exhibit in downtown Augusta, Georgia at the Augusta History Museum.
Discography
Studio albums
Please Please Please (1958)
Try Me! (1959)
Think! (1960)
The Amazing James Brown (1961)
James Brown and His Famous Flames Tour the U.S.A. (1962)
Prisoner of Love (1963)
Grits & Soul (1964)
Showtime (1964)
Out of Sight (1964)
James Brown Plays James Brown Today & Yesterday (1965)
Mighty Instrumentals (1966)
James Brown Plays New Breed (The Boo-Ga-Loo) (1966)
James Brown Sings Christmas Songs (1966)
Handful of Soul (1966)
James Brown Sings Raw Soul (1967)
James Brown Plays the Real Thing (1967)
Cold Sweat (1967)
I Can't Stand Myself When You Touch Me (1968)
I Got the Feelin' (1968)
James Brown Plays Nothing But Soul (1968)
Thinking About Little Willie John and a Few Nice Things (1968)
A Soulful Christmas (1968)
Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud (1969)
Gettin' Down to It (1969)
The Popcorn (1969)
It's a Mother (1969)
Ain't It Funky (1970)
Soul on Top (1970)
It's a New Day – Let a Man Come In (1970)
Hey America (1970)
Sho Is Funky Down Here (1971)
Hot Pants (1971)
There It Is (1972)
Get on the Good Foot (1972)
Black Caesar (1973)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973)
The Payback (1973)
Hell (1974)
Reality (1974)
Sex Machine Today (1975)
Everybody's Doin' the Hustle & Dead on the Double Bump (1975)
Hot (1976)
Get Up Offa That Thing (1976)
Bodyheat (1976)
Mutha's Nature (1977)
Jam 1980's (1978)
Take a Look at Those Cakes (1978)
The Original Disco Man (1979)
People (1980)
Soul Syndrome (1980)
Nonstop! (1981)
Bring It On! (1983)
Gravity (1986)
I'm Real (1988)
Love Over-Due (1991)
Universal James (1992)
I'm Back (1998)
The Merry Christmas Album (1999)
The Next Step (2002)
Filmography
The T.A.M.I. Show (1964) (concert film)- with The Famous Flames
Ski Party (1965)- with The Famous Flames
James Brown: Man to Man (1968) (concert film)
The Phynx (1970)
Black Caesar (1973) (soundtrack only)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973) (soundtrack only)
The Blues Brothers (1980)
Doctor Detroit (1983)
Rocky IV (1985)
Miami Vice (1987)
James Brown: Live in East Berlin (1989)
The Simpsons (1993)
When We Were Kings (1996) (documentary)
Duckman (1997)
Soulmates (1997)
Blues Brothers 2000 (1998)
Holy Man (1998)
Undercover Brother (2002)
The Tuxedo (2002)
The Hire: Beat the Devil (2002) (short film)
Paper Chasers (2003) (documentary)
Soul Survivor (2003) (documentary)
Sid Bernstein Presents ... (2005) (documentary)
Glastonbury (2006) (documentary)
Life on the Road with Mr. and Mrs. Brown (2007) (documentary; release pending)
Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968 (2008) (concert film)
I Got The Feelin': James Brown in the '60s, three-DVD set featuring Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968, Live at the Apollo '68 [DVD version of James Brown: Man to Man], and the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston
Soul Power (2009) (documentary)
Get on Up (2014)
Biopics
Mr. Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown (2014), released in April 2014, written and directed by Alex Gibney, produced by Mick Jagger.
Get on Up (2014), released in theaters on August 1, 2014. Chadwick Boseman plays the role of James Brown in the film. Originally, Mick Jagger and Brian Grazer had begun producing a documentary film on Brown in 2013. A fiction film had been in the planning stages for many years and was revived when Jagger read the script by Jez and John-Henry Butterworth.
In other media
Games
In the video game World of Warcraft, the first boss character of the Forge of Souls dungeon is Bronjahm, "the Godfather of Souls". His quotes during the fight are musical references, and he has a chance of dropping an item called "Papa's Brand New Bag".
Television
As himself (voice) in the 1993 The Simpsons episode "Bart's Inner Child".
In 1991, Brown did a Pay Per View Special with top celebrities such as Quincy Jones, Rick James, Dan Aykroyd, Gladys Knight, Denzel Washington, MC Hammer and others attended or were opening acts. This was produced with boxing promoter Buddy Dallas. 15.5 million households tuned in at a cost $19.99.
In 2002, Brown starred in the Jackie Chan movie The Tuxedo as himself
See also
Progressive soul
References
Footnotes
Sources
Further reading
Danielsen, Anne (2006). Presence and pleasure: The funk grooves of James Brown and Parliament. Wesleyan University Press.
George, Nelson, and Leeds, Alan (editors). (2008). The James Brown Reader: 50 Years of Writing about the Godfather of Soul. New York: Plume.
Lethem, J. (June 12, 2006). "Being James Brown", Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved January 14, 2007.
McBride, James (2016) Kill 'Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul. New York: Spiegel & Grau
Sullivan, James. (2008). The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved The Soul Of America. New York: Gotham Books.
Sussman, M. (producer). (December 25, 2006). Arts: Soul classics by James Brown (multimedia presentation). The New York Times. Retrieved January 9, 2007.
Wesley, Fred. (2002). Hit Me, Fred: Recollections of a Sideman. Durham: Duke University Press.
Whitney, Marva and Waring, Charles. (2013) God, The Devil & James Brown:(Memoirs of a Funky Diva). New Romney: Bank House Books
External links
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The Famous Flames members | false | [
"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books",
"\"What Happened to Us\" is a song by Australian recording artist Jessica Mauboy, featuring English recording artist Jay Sean. It was written by Sean, Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim and Israel Cruz. \"What Happened to Us\" was leaked online in October 2010, and was released on 10 March 2011, as the third single from Mauboy's second studio album, Get 'Em Girls (2010). The song received positive reviews from critics.\n\nA remix of \"What Happened to Us\" made by production team OFM, was released on 11 April 2011. A different version of the song which features Stan Walker, was released on 29 May 2011. \"What Happened to Us\" charted on the ARIA Singles Chart at number 14 and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). An accompanying music video was directed by Mark Alston, and reminisces on a former relationship between Mauboy and Sean.\n\nProduction and release\n\n\"What Happened to Us\" was written by Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim, Israel Cruz and Jay Sean. It was produced by Skaller, Cruz, Rohaim and Bobby Bass. The song uses C, D, and B minor chords in the chorus. \"What Happened to Us\" was sent to contemporary hit radio in Australia on 14 February 2011. The cover art for the song was revealed on 22 February on Mauboy's official Facebook page. A CD release was available for purchase via her official website on 10 March, for one week only. It was released digitally the following day.\n\nReception\nMajhid Heath from ABC Online Indigenous called the song a \"Jordin Sparks-esque duet\", and wrote that it \"has a nice innocence to it that rings true to the experience of losing a first love.\" Chris Urankar from Nine to Five wrote that it as a \"mid-tempo duet ballad\" which signifies Mauboy's strength as a global player. On 21 March 2011, \"What Happened to Us\" debuted at number 30 on the ARIA Singles Chart, and peaked at number 14 the following week. The song was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), for selling 70,000 copies. \"What Happened to Us\" spent a total of ten weeks in the ARIA top fifty.\n\nMusic video\n\nBackground\nThe music video for the song was shot in the Elizabeth Bay House in Sydney on 26 November 2010. The video was shot during Sean's visit to Australia for the Summerbeatz tour. During an interview with The Daily Telegraph while on the set of the video, Sean said \"the song is sick! ... Jessica's voice is amazing and we're shooting [the video] in this ridiculously beautiful mansion overlooking the harbour.\" The video was directed by Mark Alston, who had previously directed the video for Mauboy's single \"Let Me Be Me\" (2009). It premiered on YouTube on 10 February 2011.\n\nSynopsis and reception\nThe video begins showing Mauboy who appears to be sitting on a yellow antique couch in a mansion, wearing a purple dress. As the video progresses, scenes of memories are displayed of Mauboy and her love interest, played by Sean, spending time there previously. It then cuts to the scenes where Sean appears in the main entrance room of the mansion. The final scene shows Mauboy outdoors in a gold dress, surrounded by green grass and trees. She is later joined by Sean who appears in a black suit and a white shirt, and together they sing the chorus of the song to each other. David Lim of Feed Limmy wrote that the video is \"easily the best thing our R&B princess has committed to film – ever\" and praised the \"mansion and wondrous interior décor\". He also commended Mauboy for choosing Australian talent to direct the video instead of American directors, which she had used for her previous two music videos. Since its release, the video has received over two million views on Vevo.\n\nLive performances\nMauboy performed \"What Happened to Us\" live for the first time during her YouTube Live Sessions program on 4 December 2010. She also appeared on Adam Hills in Gordon Street Tonight on 23 February 2011 for an interview and later performed the song. On 15 March 2011, Mauboy performed \"What Happened to Us\" on Sunrise. She also performed the song with Stan Walker during the Australian leg of Chris Brown's F.A.M.E. Tour in April 2011. Mauboy and Walker later performed \"What Happened to Us\" on Dancing with the Stars Australia on 29 May 2011. From November 2013 to February 2014, \"What Happened to Us\" was part of the set list of the To the End of the Earth Tour, Mauboy's second headlining tour of Australia, with Nathaniel Willemse singing Sean's part.\n\nTrack listing\n\nDigital download\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean – 3:19\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Sgt Slick Remix) – 6:33\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Just Witness Remix) – 3:45\n\nCD single\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Album Version) – 3:19\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Sgt Slick Remix) – 6:33\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (OFM Remix) – 3:39\n\nDigital download – Remix\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (OFM Remix) – 3:38\n\nDigital download\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Stan Walker – 3:20\n\nPersonnel\nSongwriting – Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim, Israel Cruz, Jay Sean\nProduction – Jeremy Skaller, Bobby Bass\nAdditional production – Israel Cruz, Khaled Rohaim\nLead vocals – Jessica Mauboy, Jay Sean\nMixing – Phil Tan\nAdditional mixing – Damien Lewis\nMastering – Tom Coyne \nSource:\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly chart\n\nYear-end chart\n\nCertification\n\nRadio dates and release history\n\nReferences\n\n2010 songs\n2011 singles\nJessica Mauboy songs\nJay Sean songs\nSongs written by Billy Steinberg\nSongs written by Jay Sean\nSongs written by Josh Alexander\nSongs written by Israel Cruz\nVocal duets\nSony Music Australia singles\nSongs written by Khaled Rohaim"
]
|
[
"James Brown",
"1962-1966: Mr. Dynamite",
"What happened in 1962?",
"In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental \"Night Train\", becoming not only a top five R&B single"
]
| C_185d6e4eab0446b1aa68bcc9a108fa5d_1 | What else did it become? | 2 | In addition to a top five R&B single, what else did Night Train become? | James Brown | In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming not only a top five R&B single but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers. Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior. In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones. Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on. CANNOTANSWER | but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100. | James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer, and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honorific nicknames "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and "Soul Brother No. 1". In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown was one of the first 10 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction in New York on January 23, 1986.
Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia. He first came to national public attention in the mid-1950s as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a rhythm and blues vocal group founded by Bobby Byrd. With the hit ballads "Please, Please, Please" and "Try Me", Brown built a reputation as a dynamic live performer with the Famous Flames and his backing band, sometimes known as the James Brown Band or the James Brown Orchestra. His success peaked in the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apollo and hit singles such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", "I Got You (I Feel Good)" and "It's a Man's Man's Man's World".
During the late 1960s, Brown moved from a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms and styles to a profoundly "Africanized" approach to music-making, emphasizing stripped-down interlocking rhythms that influenced the development of funk music. By the early 1970s, Brown had fully established the funk sound after the formation of the J.B.s with records such as "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine" and "The Payback". He also became noted for songs of social commentary, including the 1968 hit "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud". Brown continued to perform and record until his death from pneumonia in 2006.
Brown recorded 17 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B charts. He also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that did not reach No. 1. Brown was inducted into the first class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013 as an artist and then in 2017 as a songwriter. He also received honors from several other institutions, including inductions into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In Joel Whitburn's analysis of the Billboard R&B charts from 1942 to 2010, Brown is ranked No. 1 in The Top 500 Artists. He is ranked seventh on Rolling Stone list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
Early life
Brown was born on May 3, 1933, in Barnwell, South Carolina, to 16-year-old Susie (née Behling; 1916–2004) and 21-year-old Joseph Gardner Brown (1912–1993) in a small wooden shack. Brown's name was supposed to have been Joseph James Brown, but his first and middle names were mistakenly reversed on his birth certificate. In his autobiography, Brown stated that he had Chinese and Native American ancestry and that his father was of mixed African-American and Native American descent, while his mother was of mixed African-American and Asian descent.
The Brown family lived in extreme poverty in Elko, South Carolina, which was an impoverished town at the time. They later moved to Augusta, Georgia, when James was four or five. His family first settled at one of his aunts' brothels. They later moved into a house shared with another aunt. Brown's mother eventually left the family after a contentious and abusive marriage and moved to New York. Brown spent long stretches of time on his own, hanging out in the streets and hustling to get by. He managed to stay in school until the sixth grade.
He began singing in talent shows as a young child, first appearing at Augusta's Lenox Theater in 1944, winning the show after singing the ballad "So Long". While in Augusta, Brown performed buck dances for change to entertain troops from Camp Gordon at the start of World War II as their convoys traveled over a canal bridge near his aunt's home. He learned to play the piano, guitar, and harmonica during this period. He became inspired to become an entertainer after hearing "Caldonia" by Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five. In his teen years, Brown briefly had a career as a boxer.
At the age of 16, he was convicted of robbery and sent to a juvenile detention center in Toccoa. There, he formed a gospel quartet with four fellow cellmates, including Johnny Terry. Brown met singer Bobby Byrd when the two played against each other in a baseball game outside the detention center. Byrd also discovered that Brown could sing after hearing of "a guy called Music Box", which was Brown's musical nickname at the prison. Byrd has since claimed he and his family helped to secure an early release, which led to Brown promising the court he would "sing for the Lord". Brown was released on a work sponsorship with Toccoa business owner S.C. Lawson. Lawson was impressed with Brown's work ethic and secured his release with a promise to keep him employed for two years. Brown was paroled on June 14, 1952. Brown went on to work with both of Lawson's sons, and would come back to visit the family from time to time throughout his career. Shortly after being paroled he joined the gospel group the Ever-Ready Gospel Singers, featuring Byrd's sister Sarah.
Music career
1953–1961: The Famous Flames
Brown eventually joined Bobby Byrd's group in 1954. The group had evolved from the Gospel Starlighters, an a cappella gospel group, to an R&B group with the name the Avons. He reputedly joined the band after one of its members, Troy Collins, died in a car crash. Along with Brown and Byrd, the group consisted of Sylvester Keels, Doyle Oglesby, Fred Pulliam, Nash Knox and Nafloyd Scott. Influenced by R&B groups such as Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, the Orioles and Billy Ward and his Dominoes, the group changed its name, first to the Toccoa Band and then to the Flames. Nafloyd's brother Baroy later joined the group on bass guitar, and Brown, Byrd and Keels switched lead positions and instruments, often playing drums and piano. Johnny Terry later joined, by which time Pulliam and Oglesby had long left. one of his 10 children commited suicide.
Berry Trimier became the group's first manager, booking them at parties near college campuses in Georgia and South Carolina. The group had already gained a reputation as a good live act when they renamed themselves the Famous Flames. In 1955, the group had contacted Little Richard while performing in Macon. Richard convinced the group to get in contact with his manager at the time, Clint Brantley, at his nightclub. Brantley agreed to manage them after seeing the group audition. He then sent them to a local radio station to record a demo session, where they performed their own composition "Please, Please, Please", which was inspired when Little Richard wrote the words of the title on a napkin and Brown was determined to make a song out of it. The Famous Flames eventually signed with King Records' Federal subsidiary in Cincinnati, Ohio, and issued a re-recorded version of "Please, Please, Please" in March 1956. The song became the group's first R&B hit, selling over a million copies. None of their follow-ups gained similar success. By 1957, Brown had replaced Clint Brantley as manager and hired Ben Bart, chief of Universal Attractions Agency. That year the original Flames broke up, after Bart changed the name of the group to "James Brown and The Famous Flames".
In October 1958, Brown released the ballad "Try Me", which hit number one on the R&B chart in the beginning of 1959, becoming the first of seventeen chart-topping R&B hits. Shortly afterwards, he recruited his first band, led by J. C. Davis, and reunited with Bobby Byrd who joined a revived Famous Flames lineup that included Eugene "Baby" Lloyd Stallworth and Bobby Bennett, with Johnny Terry sometimes coming in as the "fifth Flame". Brown, the Flames, and his entire band debuted at the Apollo Theater on April 24, 1959, opening for Brown's idol, Little Willie John. Federal Records issued two albums credited to Brown and the Famous Flames (both contained previously released singles). By 1960, Brown began multi-tasking in the recording studio involving himself, his singing group, the Famous Flames, and his band, a separate entity from The Flames, sometimes named the James Brown Orchestra or the James Brown Band. That year the band released the top ten R&B hit "(Do the) Mashed Potatoes" on Dade Records, owned by Henry Stone, billed under the pseudonym "Nat Kendrick & the Swans" due to label issues. As a result of its success, King president Syd Nathan shifted Brown's contract from Federal to the parent label, King, which according to Brown in his autobiography meant "you got more support from the company". While with King, Brown, under the Famous Flames lineup, released the hit-filled album Think! and the following year released two albums with the James Brown Band earning second billing. With the Famous Flames, Brown sang lead on several more hits, including"Bewildered", "I'll Go Crazy" and "Think", songs that hinted at his emerging style.
1962–1966: Mr. Dynamite
In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming a top five R&B single. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers.
Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior.
In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones.
Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" in 1965, which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Brown also signed a production deal with Loma Records. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World", a third Top 10 Pop hit (No. 1 R&B) which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on.
1967–1970: Soul Brother No. 1
By 1967, Brown's emerging sound had begun to be defined as funk music. That year he released what some critics cited as the first true funk song, "Cold Sweat", which hit number-one on the R&B chart (Top 10 Pop) and became one of his first recordings to contain a drum break and also the first that featured a harmony that was reduced to a single chord. The instrumental arrangements on tracks such as "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" and "Licking Stick-Licking Stick" (both recorded in 1968) and "Funky Drummer" (recorded in 1969) featured a more developed version of Brown's mid-1960s style, with the horn section, guitars, bass and drums meshed together in intricate rhythmic patterns based on multiple interlocking riffs.
Changes in Brown's style that started with "Cold Sweat" also established the musical foundation for Brown's later hits, such as "I Got the Feelin'" (1968) and "Mother Popcorn" (1969). By this time Brown's vocals frequently took the form of a kind of rhythmic declamation, not quite sung but not quite spoken, that only intermittently featured traces of pitch or melody. This would become a major influence on the techniques of rapping, which would come to maturity along with hip hop music in the coming decades. Brown's style of funk in the late 1960s was based on interlocking syncopated parts: strutting bass lines, syncopated drum patterns, and iconic percussive guitar riffs. The main guitar ostinatos for "Ain't It Funky" and "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" (both 1969), are examples of Brown's refinement of New Orleans funk; irresistibly danceable riffs, stripped down to their rhythmic essence. On both recordings the tonal structure is bare bones. The pattern of attack-points is the emphasis, not the pattern of pitches, as if the guitar were an African drum, or idiophone. Alexander Stewart states that this popular feel was passed along from "New Orleans—through James Brown's music, to the popular music of the 1970s". Those same tracks were later resurrected by countless hip-hop musicians from the 1970s onward. As a result, James Brown remains to this day the world's most sampled recording artist, but, two tracks that he wrote, are also synonymous with modern dance, especially with house music, jungle music, and drum and bass music, (which were sped up exponentially, in the latter two genres).
"Bring it Up" has an Afro-Cuban guajeo-like structure. All three of these guitar riffs are based on an onbeat/offbeat structure. Stewart says that it "is different from a time line (such as clave and tresillo) in that it is not an exact pattern, but more of a loose organizing principle."
It was around this time as the musician's popularity increased that he acquired the nickname "Soul Brother No. 1", after failing to win the title "King of Soul" from Solomon Burke during a Chicago gig two years prior. Brown's recordings during this period influenced musicians across the industry, most notably groups such as Sly and the Family Stone, Funkadelic, Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, Booker T. & the M.G.s as well as vocalists such as Edwin Starr, David Ruffin and Dennis Edwards from The Temptations, and Michael Jackson, who, throughout his career, cited Brown as his ultimate idol.
Brown's band during this period employed musicians and arrangers who had come up through the jazz tradition. He was noted for his ability as a bandleader and songwriter to blend the simplicity and drive of R&B with the rhythmic complexity and precision of jazz. Trumpeter Lewis Hamlin and saxophonist/keyboardist Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis (the successor to previous bandleader Nat Jones) led the band. Guitarist Jimmy Nolen provided percussive, deceptively simple riffs for each song, and Maceo Parker's prominent saxophone solos provided a focal point for many performances. Other members of Brown's band included stalwart Famous Flames singer and sideman Bobby Byrd, trombonist Fred Wesley, drummers John "Jabo" Starks, Clyde Stubblefield and Melvin Parker, saxophonist St. Clair Pinckney, guitarist Alphonso "Country" Kellum and bassist Bernard Odum.
In addition to a torrent of singles and studio albums, Brown's output during this period included two more successful live albums, Live at the Garden (1967) and Live at the Apollo, Volume II (1968), and a 1968 television special, James Brown: Man to Man. His music empire expanded along with his influence on the music scene. As Brown's music empire grew, his desire for financial and artistic independence grew as well. Brown bought radio stations during the late 1960s, including WRDW in his native Augusta, where he shined shoes as a boy. In November 1967, James Brown purchased radio station WGYW in Knoxville, Tennessee, for a reported $75,000, according to the January 20, 1968 Record World magazine. The call letters were changed to WJBE reflecting his initials. WJBE began on January 15, 1968, and broadcast a Rhythm & Blues format. The station slogan was "WJBE 1430 Raw Soul". Brown also bought WEBB in Baltimore in 1970.
Brown branched out to make several recordings with musicians outside his own band. In an attempt to appeal to the older, more affluent, and predominantly white adult contemporary audience, Brown recorded Gettin' Down To It (1969) and Soul on Top (1970)—two albums consisting mostly of romantic ballads, jazz standards, and homologous reinterpretations of his earlier hits—with the Dee Felice Trio and the Louie Bellson Orchestra. In 1968, he recorded a number of funk-oriented tracks with The Dapps, a white Cincinnati band, including the hit "I Can't Stand Myself". He also released three albums of Christmas music with his own band.
1970–1975: Godfather of Soul
In March 1970, most of Brown's mid-to-late 1960s road band walked out on him due to money disputes, a development augured by the prior disbandment of The Famous Flames singing group for the same reason in 1968. Brown and erstwhile Famous Flames singer Bobby Byrd (who chose to remain in the band during this tumultuous period) subsequently recruited several members of the Cincinnati-based The Pacemakers, which included Bootsy Collins and his brother Phelps "Catfish" Collins; augmented by the remaining members of the 1960s road band (including Fred Wesley, who rejoined Brown's outfit in December 1970) and other newer musicians, they would form the nucleus of The J.B.'s, Brown's new backing ensemble. Shortly following their first performance together, the band entered the studio to record the Brown-Byrd composition, "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine"; the song and other contemporaneous singles would further cement Brown's influence in the nascent genre of funk music. This iteration of the J.B.'s dissolved after a March 1971 European tour (documented on the 1991 archival release Love Power Peace) due to additional money disputes and Bootsy Collins' use of LSD; the Collins brothers would soon become integral members of Parliament-Funkadelic, while a new lineup of the J.B.'s coalesced around Wesley, St. Clair Pinckney and drummer John Starks.
In 1971, Brown began recording for Polydor Records which also took over distribution of Brown's King Records catalog. Many of his sidemen and supporting players, including Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s, Bobby Byrd, Lyn Collins, Vicki Anderson and former rival Hank Ballard, released records on the People label, an imprint founded by Brown that was purchased by Polydor as part of Brown's new contract. The recordings on the People label, almost all of which were produced by Brown himself, exemplified the mature flowering of his "house style". Several tracks thought by critics to be excessively sexual were released at this time. He would later soften his vocal approach. Songs such as "I Know You Got Soul" by Bobby Byrd, "Think" by Lyn Collins and "Doing It to Death" by Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s are considered as much a part of Brown's recorded legacy as the recordings released under his own name. That year, he also began touring African countries and was received well by audiences there. During the 1972 presidential election, James Brown openly proclaimed his support of Richard Nixon for reelection to the presidency over Democratic candidate George McGovern. The decision led to a boycott of his performances and, according to Brown, cost him a big portion of his black audience. As a result, Brown's record sales and concerts in the United States reached a lull in 1973 as he failed to land a number-one R&B single that year. Brown relied more on touring outside the United States where he continued to perform for sold-out crowds in cities such as London, Paris and Lausanne. That year he also faced problems with the IRS for failure to pay back taxes, charging he hadn't paid upwards of $4.5 million; five years earlier, the IRS had claimed he owed nearly $2 million.
In 1973, Brown provided the score for the blaxploitation film Black Caesar. He also recorded another soundtrack for the film, Slaughter's Big Rip-Off. Following the release of these soundtracks, Brown acquired a self-styled nickname, "The Godfather of Soul", which remains his most popular nickname. In 1974 he returned to the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts with "The Payback", with the parent album reaching the same spot on the album charts; he would reach No. 1 two more times in 1974, with "My Thang" and "Papa Don't Take No Mess". Later that year, he returned to Africa and performed in Kinshasa as part of the buildup to The Rumble in the Jungle fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. Admirers of Brown's music, including Miles Davis and other jazz musicians, began to cite him as a major influence on their own styles. However, Brown, like others who were influenced by his music, also "borrowed" from other musicians. His 1976 single, "Hot (I Need To Be Loved, Loved, Loved, Loved)" (R&B No. 31), interpolated the main riff from "Fame" by David Bowie while omitting any attribution to the latter song's composers (including Bowie, John Lennon and guitarist Carlos Alomar), not the other way around as was often believed.
"Papa Don't Take No Mess" would prove to be his final single to reach the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts and his final Top 40 pop single of the 1970s, though he continued to occasionally have Top 10 R&B recordings. Among his top ten R&B hits during this latter period included "Funky President" (R&B No. 4) and "Get Up Offa That Thing" (R&B No. 4), the latter song released in 1976 and aimed at musical rivals such as Barry White, The Ohio Players and K.C. and the Sunshine Band. Brown credited his then-wife and two of their children as writers of the song to avoid concurrent tax problems with the IRS. Starting in October 1975, Brown produced, directed, and hosted Future Shock, an Atlanta-based television variety show that ran for three years.
1975–1991: Decline and resurgence
Although his records were mainstays of the vanguard New York underground disco scene (exemplified by DJs such as David Mancuso and Francis Grasso) from 1969 onwards, Brown did not consciously yield to the trend until 1975's Sex Machine Today. By 1977, he was no longer a dominant force in R&B. After "Get Up Offa That Thing", thirteen of Brown's late 1970s recordings for Polydor failed to reach the Top 10 of the R&B chart, with only "Bodyheat" in 1976 and the disco-oriented "It's Too Funky in Here" in 1979 reaching the R&B Top 15 and the ballad "Kiss in '77" reaching the Top 20. After 1976's "Bodyheat", he also failed to appear on the Billboard Hot 100. As a result, Brown's concert attendance began dropping and his reported disputes with the IRS caused his business empire to collapse. In addition, Brown's former bandmates, including Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker and the Collins brothers, had found bigger success as members of George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic collective. The emergence of disco also stopped Brown's success on the R&B charts because its slicker, more commercial style had superseded his more raw funk productions.
By the release of 1979's The Original Disco Man, Brown was not providing much production or writing, leaving most of it to producer Brad Shapiro, resulting in the song "It's Too Funky in Here" becoming Brown's most successful single in this period. After two more albums failed to chart, Brown left Polydor in 1981. It was around this time that Brown changed the name of his band from the J.B.'s to the Soul Generals (or Soul G's). The band retained that name until his death. Despite Brown's declining record sales, promoters Gary LoConti and Jim Rissmiller helped Brown sell out a string of residency shows at the Country Club in Reseda. Brown's compromised commercial standing prevented him from charging a large live fee to the promoters for these shows. However, the great success of these shows marked a turning point for Brown's career, and soon he was back on top in Hollywood. Movies followed, starting with appearances in the feature films The Blues Brothers, Doctor Detroit and Rocky IV, as well as guest-starring in the Miami Vice episode "Missing Hours" (1987). In 1984, he teamed with rap musician Afrika Bambaataa on the song "Unity". A year later he signed with Scotti Brothers Records and issued the moderately successful album Gravity in 1986. It included Brown's final Top 10 pop hit, "Living in America", marking his first Top 40 entry since 1974 and his first Top 10 pop entry since 1968. Produced and written by Dan Hartman, it was also featured prominently on the Rocky IV film and soundtrack. Brown performed the song in the film at Apollo Creed's final fight, shot in the Ziegfeld Room at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and was credited in the film as "The Godfather of Soul". 1986 also saw the publication of his autobiography, James Brown: The Godfather of Soul, co-written with Bruce Tucker. In 1987, Brown won the Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Living in America".
In 1988, Brown worked with the production team Full Force on the new jack swing-influenced I'm Real. It spawned his final two Top 10 R&B hits, "I'm Real" and "Static", which peaked at No. 2 and No. 5, respectively, on the R&B charts. Meanwhile, the drum break from the second version of the original 1969 hit "Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose" (the recording included on the compilation album In the Jungle Groove) became so popular at hip hop dance parties (especially for breakdance) during the early 1980s that hip hop pioneer Kurtis Blow called the song "the national anthem of hip hop".
1991–2006: Final years
After his stint in prison during the late 1980s, Brown met Larry Fridie and Thomas Hart who produced the first James Brown biopic, entitled James Brown: The Man, the Message, the Music, released in 1992. He returned to music with the album Love Over-Due in 1991. It included the single "(So Tired of Standing Still We Got to) Move On", which peaked at No. 48 on the R&B chart. His former record label Polydor also released the four-CD box set Star Time, spanning Brown's career to date. Brown's release from prison also prompted his former record labels to reissue his albums on CD, featuring additional tracks and commentary by music critics and historians. That same year, Brown appeared on rapper MC Hammer's video for "Too Legit to Quit". Hammer had been noted, alongside Big Daddy Kane, for bringing Brown's unique stage shows and their own energetic dance moves to the hip-hop generation; both listed Brown as their idol. Both musicians also sampled his work, with Hammer having sampled the rhythms from "Super Bad" for his song "Here Comes the Hammer", from his best-selling album Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em. Big Daddy Kane sampled many times. Before the year was over, Brown–who had immediately returned to work with his band following his release–organized a pay-per-view concert following a show at Los Angeles' Wiltern Theatre, that was well received.
On June 10, 1991, James Brown and a star-filled line up performed before a crowd at the Wiltern Theatre for a live pay-per-view at-home audience. James Brown: Living in America – Live! was the brainchild of Indiana producer Danny Hubbard. It featured
M.C. Hammer as well as Bell Biv Devoe, Heavy D & the Boys, En Vogue, C+C Music Factory, Quincy Jones, Sherman Hemsley and Keenen Ivory Wayans. Ice-T, Tone Loc and Kool Moe Dee performed paying homage to Brown. This was Brown's first public performance since his parole from the South Carolina prison system in February. He had served two-and-a-half years of two concurrent six-year sentences for aggravated assault and other felonies.
Brown continued making recordings. In 1993 his album Universal James was released. It included his final Billboard charting single, "Can't Get Any Harder", which peaked at No. 76 on the US R&B chart and reached No. 59 on the UK chart. Its brief charting in the UK was probably due to the success of a remixed version of "I Feel Good" featuring Dakeyne. Brown also released the singles "How Long" and "Georgia-Lina", which failed to chart. In 1995, Brown returned to the Apollo and recorded Live at the Apollo 1995. It included a studio track titled "Respect Me", which was released as a single; again it failed to chart. Brown's final studio albums, I'm Back and The Next Step, were released in 1998 and 2002 respectively. I'm Back featured the song "Funk on Ah Roll", which peaked at No. 40 in the UK but did not chart in his native US. The Next Step included Brown's final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In". Both albums were produced by Derrick Monk. Brown's concert success, however, remained unabated and he kept up with a grueling schedule throughout the remainder of his life, living up to his previous nickname, "The Hardest Working Man in Show Business", in spite of his advanced age. In 2003, Brown participated in the PBS American Masters television documentary James Brown: Soul Survivor, which was directed by Jeremy Marre.
Brown performed in the Super Bowl XXXI halftime show.
Brown celebrated his status as an icon by appearing in a variety of entertainment and sports events, including an appearance on the WCW pay-per-view event, SuperBrawl X, where he danced alongside wrestler Ernest "The Cat" Miller, who based his character on Brown, during his in-ring skit with The Maestro. Brown then appeared in Tony Scott's short film Beat the Devil in 2001. He was featured alongside Clive Owen, Gary Oldman, Danny Trejo and Marilyn Manson. Brown also made a cameo appearance in the 2002 Jackie Chan film The Tuxedo, in which Chan was required to finish Brown's act after having accidentally knocked out the singer. In 2002, Brown appeared in Undercover Brother, playing himself.
In 2004, Brown performed in Hyde Park, London as a support act for Red Hot Chili Peppers concerts. The beginning of 2005 saw the publication of Brown's second book, I Feel Good: A Memoir of a Life of Soul, written with Marc Eliot. In February and March, he participated in recording sessions for an intended studio album with Fred Wesley, Pee Wee Ellis, and other longtime collaborators. Though he lost interest in the album, which remains unreleased, a track from the sessions, "Gut Bucket", appeared on a compilation CD included with the August 2006 issue of MOJO. He appeared at Edinburgh 50,000 – The Final Push, the final Live 8 concert on July 6, 2005, where he performed a duet with British pop star Will Young on "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag". In the Black Eyed Peas album "Monkey Business", Brown was featured on a track called, "They Don't Want Music". The previous week he had performed a duet with another British pop star, Joss Stone, on the United Kingdom chat show Friday Night with Jonathan Ross. In 2006, Brown continued his "Seven Decades of Funk World Tour", his last concert tour where he performed all over the world. His final U.S. performances were in San Francisco on August 20, 2006, as headliner at the Festival of the Golden Gate (Foggfest) on the Great Meadow at Fort Mason. The following day, August 21, he performed at Humboldt State University in Arcata, CA, at a small theatre (800 seats) on campus. His last shows were greeted with positive reviews, and one of his final concert appearances at the Irish Oxegen festival in Punchestown in 2006 was performed for a record crowd of 80,000 people. He played a full concert as part of the BBC's Electric Proms on October 27, 2006, at The Roundhouse, supported by The Zutons, with special appearances from Max Beasley and The Sugababes.
Brown's last televised appearance was at his induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame in November 2006, before his death the following month. Before his death, Brown had been scheduled to perform a duet with singer Annie Lennox on the song "Vengeance" for her new album Venus, which was released in 2007.
Artistry
As a vocalist, Brown performed in a forceful shout style derived from gospel music. Meanwhile, "his rhythmic grunts and expressive shrieks harked back farther still to ring shouts, work songs, and field cries", according to the Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History (1996): "He reimported the rhythmic complexity from which rhythm and blues, under the dual pressure of rock 'n' roll and pop, had progressively fallen away since its birth from jazz and blues."
For many years, Brown's touring show was one of the most extravagant productions in American popular music. At the time of Brown's death, his band included three guitarists, two bass guitar players, two drummers, three horns and a percussionist. The bands that he maintained during the late 1960s and 1970s were of comparable size, and the bands also included a three-piece amplified string section that played during the ballads. Brown employed between 40 and 50 people for the James Brown Revue, and members of the revue traveled with him in a bus to cities and towns all over the country, performing upwards of 330 shows a year with almost all of the shows as one-nighters.
Concert style
Before James Brown appeared on stage, his personal MC gave him an elaborate introduction accompanied by drumrolls, as the MC worked in Brown's various sobriquets along with the names of many of his hit songs. The introduction by Fats Gonder, captured on Brown's 1963 album Live at the Apollo is a representative example:
James Brown's performances were famous for their intensity and length. His own stated goal was to "give people more than what they came for — make them tired, 'cause that's what they came for.'" Brown's concert repertoire consisted mostly of his own hits and recent songs, with a few R&B covers mixed in. Brown danced vigorously as he sang, working popular dance steps such as the Mashed Potato into his routine along with dramatic leaps, splits and slides. In addition, his horn players and singing group (The Famous Flames) typically performed choreographed dance routines, and later incarnations of the Revue included backup dancers. Male performers in the Revue were required to wear tuxedoes and cummerbunds long after more casual concert wear became the norm among the younger musical acts. Brown's own extravagant outfits and his elaborate processed hairdo completed the visual impression. A James Brown concert typically included a performance by a featured vocalist, such as Vicki Anderson or Marva Whitney, and an instrumental feature for the band, which sometimes served as the opening act for the show.
A trademark feature of Brown's stage shows, usually during the song "Please, Please, Please", involved Brown dropping to his knees while clutching the microphone stand in his hands, prompting the show's longtime MC, Danny Ray, to come out, drape a cape over Brown's shoulders and escort him off the stage after he had worked himself to exhaustion during his performance. As Brown was escorted off the stage by the MC, Brown's vocal group, the Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Lloyd Stallworth, and Bobby Bennett), continued singing the background vocals "Please, please don't go-oh". Brown would then shake off the cape and stagger back to the microphone to perform an encore. Brown's routine was inspired by a similar one used by the professional wrestler Gorgeous George, as well as Little Richard. In his 2005 autobiography I Feel Good: A Memoir in a Life of Soul, Brown, who was a fan of Gorgeous George, credited the wrestler as the inspiration for both his cape routine and concert attire, stating, "Seeing him on TV helped create the James Brown you see on stage". Brown performs a version of the cape routine in the film of the T.A.M.I. Show (1964) in which he and The Famous Flames upstaged The Rolling Stones, and over the closing credits of the film Blues Brothers 2000. The Police refer to "James Brown on the T.A.M.I. Show" in their 1980 song "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around".
Band leadership
Brown demanded extreme discipline, perfection and precision from his musicians and dancers – performers in his Revue showed up for rehearsals and members wore the right "uniform" or "costume" for concert performances. During an interview conducted by Terri Gross during the NPR segment "Fresh Air" with Maceo Parker, a former saxophonist in Brown's band for most of the 1960s and part of the 1970s and 1980s, Parker offered his experience with the discipline that Brown demanded of the band:
Brown also had a practice of directing, correcting and assessing fines on members of his band who broke his rules, such as wearing unshined shoes, dancing out of sync or showing up late on stage. During some of his concert performances, Brown danced in front of his band with his back to the audience as he slid across the floor, flashing hand signals and splaying his pulsating fingers to the beat of the music. Although audiences thought Brown's dance routine was part of his act, this practice was actually his way of pointing to the offending member of his troupe who played or sang the wrong note or committed some other infraction. Brown used his splayed fingers and hand signals to alert the offending person of the fine that person must pay to him for breaking his rules.
Brown's demands of his support acts were, meanwhile, quite the reverse. As Fred Wesley recalled of his time as musical director of the JBs, if Brown felt intimidated by a support act he would try to "undermine their performances by shortening their sets without notice, demanding that they not do certain showstopping songs, and even insisting on doing the unthinkable, playing drums on some of their songs. A sure set killer."
Social activism
Education advocacy and humanitarianism
Brown's main social activism was in preserving the need for education among youths, influenced by his own troubled childhood and his being forced to drop out of the seventh grade for wearing "insufficient clothes". Due to heavy dropout rates in the 1960s, Brown released the pro-education song, "Don't Be a Drop-Out". Royalties of the song were donated to dropout-prevention charity programs. The success of this led to Brown meeting with President Lyndon B. Johnson at the White House. Johnson cited Brown for being a positive role model to the youth. A lifelong Republican, Brown gained the confidence of President Richard Nixon, to whom he found he had to explain the plight of Black Americans.
Throughout the remainder of his life, Brown made public speeches in schools and continued to advocate the importance of education in school. Upon filing his will in 2002, Brown advised that most of the money in his estate go into creating the I Feel Good, Inc. Trust to benefit disadvantaged children and provide scholarships for his grandchildren. His final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In", advocated against murders of young children in the streets. Brown often gave out money and other items to children while traveling to his childhood hometown of Augusta. A week before his death, while looking gravely ill, Brown gave out toys and turkeys to kids at an Atlanta orphanage, something he had done several times over the years.
Civil rights and self-reliance
Though Brown performed at benefit rallies for civil rights organizations in the mid-1960s, Brown often shied away from discussing civil rights in his songs in fear of alienating his crossover audience. In 1968, in response to a growing urge of anti-war advocacy during the Vietnam War, Brown recorded the song, "America Is My Home". In the song, Brown performed a rap, advocating patriotism and exhorting listeners to "stop pitying yoursel[ves] and get up and fight". At the time of the song's release, Brown had been participating in performing for troops stationed in Vietnam.
The Boston Garden concert
On April 5, 1968, a day after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, Brown provided a free citywide televised concert at the Boston Garden to maintain public order and calm concerned Boston residents (over the objections of the police chief, who wanted to call off the concert, which he thought would incite violence). The show was later released on DVD as Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968. According to the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston, then-mayor Kevin White had strongly restrained the Boston police from cracking down on minor violence and protests after the assassination, while religious and community leaders worked to keep tempers from flaring. White arranged to have Brown's performance broadcast multiple times on Boston's public television station, WGBH, thus keeping potential rioters off the streets, watching the concert for free. Angered by not being told of this, Brown demanded $60,000 for "gate" fees (money he thought would be lost from ticket sales on account of the concert being broadcast for free) and then threatened to go public about the secret arrangement when the city balked at paying up afterwards, news of which would have been a political death blow to White and spark riots of its own. White eventually lobbied the behind-the-scenes power-brokering group known as "The Vault" to come up with money for Brown's gate fee and other social programs, contributing $100,000. Brown received $15,000 from them via the city. White also persuaded management at the Garden to give up their share of receipts to make up the differences. Following this successful performance, Brown was counseled by President Johnson to urge cities ravaged from riots following King's assassination to not resort to violence, telling them to "cool it, there's another way".
Responding to pressure from black activists, including H. Rap Brown, to take a bigger stance on their issues and from footage of black on black crime committed in inner cities, Brown wrote the lyrics to the song "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud", which his bandleader Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis accompanied with a musical composition. Released late that summer, the song's lyrics helped to make it an anthem for the civil rights movement. Brown only performed the song sporadically following its initial release and later stated he had regrets about recording it, saying in 1984, "Now 'Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud' has done more for the black race than any other record, but if I had my choice, I wouldn't have done it, because I don't like defining anyone by race. To teach race is to teach separatism." In his autobiography he stated:
The song is obsolete now ... But it was necessary to teach pride then, and I think the song did a lot of good for a lot of people ... People called "Black and Proud" militant and angry – maybe because of the line about dying on your feet instead of living on your knees. But really, if you listen to it, it sounds like a children's song. That's why I had children in it, so children who heard it could grow up feeling pride ... The song cost me a lot of my crossover audience. The racial makeup at my concerts was mostly black after that. I don't regret it, though, even if it was misunderstood.
In 1969, Brown recorded two more songs of social commentary, "World" and "I Don't Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing", the latter song pleading for equal opportunity and self-reliance rather than entitlement. In 1970, in response to some black leaders for not being outspoken enough, he recorded "Get Up, Get into It, Get Involved" and "Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing". In 1971, he began touring Africa, including Zambia and Nigeria. He was made "freeman of the city" in Lagos, Nigeria, by Oba Adeyinka Oyekan, for his "influence on black people all over the world". With his company, James Brown Enterprises, Brown helped to provide jobs for blacks in business in the communities. As the 1970s continued, Brown continued to record songs of social commentary, most prominently 1972's "King Heroin" and the two-part ballad "Public Enemy", which dealt with drug addiction.
Political views
During the 1968 presidential campaign, Brown endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hubert Humphrey and appeared with Humphrey at political rallies. Brown was labeled an "Uncle Tom" for supporting Humphrey and also for releasing the pro-American funk song, "America Is My Home", in which Brown had lambasted protesters of the Vietnam War as well as the politics of pro-black activists. Brown began supporting Republican president Richard Nixon after being invited to perform at Nixon's inaugural ball in January 1969. Brown's endorsement of Nixon during the 1972 presidential election negatively impacted his career during that period with several national Black organizations boycotting his records and protesting at his concert shows; a November 1972 show in Cincinnati was picketed with signs saying, "James Brown: Nixon's Clown". Brown initially was invited to perform at a Youth Concert following Nixon's inauguration in January 1973 but bailed out due to the backlash he suffered from supporting Nixon. Brown joined fellow black entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., who faced similar backlash, to back out of the concert. Brown blamed it on "fatigue". Brown later reversed his support of Nixon and composed the song, "You Can Have Watergate (Just Gimme Some Bucks And I'll Be Straight)" as a result. After Nixon resigned from office, Brown composed the 1974 hit, "Funky President (People It's Bad)", right after Gerald Ford took Nixon's place. Brown later supported Democratic President Jimmy Carter, attending one of Carter's inaugural balls in 1977. Brown also openly supported President Ronald Reagan's reelection in 1984.
Brown stated he was neither Democratic nor Republican despite his support of Republican presidents such as Nixon and Reagan as well as Democratic presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Carter. In 1999, when being interviewed by Rolling Stone, the magazine asked him to name a hero in the 20th century; Brown mentioned John F. Kennedy and then-96-year-old U.S. Senator, and former Dixiecrat, Strom Thurmond, stating "when the young whippersnappers get out of line, whether Democratic or Republican, an old man can walk up and say 'Wait a minute, son, it goes this way.' And that's great for our country. He's like a grandfather to me." In 2003, Brown was the featured attraction of a Washington D.C. fundraiser for the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Following the deaths of Ronald Reagan and his friend Ray Charles, Brown said to CNN, "I'm kind of in an uproar. I love the country and I got – you know I've been around a long time, through many presidents and everything. So after losing Mr. Reagan, who I knew very well, then Mr. Ray Charles, who I worked with and lived with like, all our life, we had a show together in Oakland many, many years ago and it's like you found the placard." Despite his contrarian political views, Brown mentored black activist Rev. Al Sharpton during the 1970s.
Personal life
At the end of his life, James Brown lived in Beech Island, South Carolina, directly across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia. Brown had diabetes that went undiagnosed for years, according to his longtime manager Charles Bobbit. In 2004, Brown was successfully treated for prostate cancer. Regardless of his health, Brown maintained his reputation as the "hardest working man in show business" by keeping up with his grueling performance schedule.
In 1962, Tammi Terrell joined the James Brown Revue. Brown became sexually involved with Terrell even though she was only 17 in a relationship that continued until she escaped his abuse. Bobby Bennett, former member of the Famous Flames, told Rolling Stone about the abuse he witnessed: "He beat Tammi Terrell terrible", said Bennett. "She was bleeding, shedding blood." Terrell, who died in 1970, was Brown's girlfriend before she became famous as Marvin Gaye's singing partner in the mid-'60s. "Tammi left him because she didn't want her butt whipped", said Bennett, who also claimed he saw Brown kick one pregnant girlfriend down a flight of stairs.
Marriages and children
Brown was married four times. His first marriage was to Velma Warren in 1953, and they had one son together. Over a decade later, the couple had separated and the final divorce decree was issued in 1969. They maintained a close friendship that lasted until Brown's death. Brown's second marriage was to Deidre "Deedee" Jenkins, on October 22, 1970. They had two daughters together. The couple were separated by 1979, after what his daughter describes as years of domestic abuse, and the final divorce decree was issued on January 10, 1981. His third marriage was to Adrienne Lois Rodriguez (March 9, 1950 – January 6, 1996), in 1984. It was a contentious marriage that made headlines due to domestic abuse complaints. Rodriguez filed for divorce in 1988, "citing years of cruelty treatment", but they reconciled. Less than a year after Rodriguez died in 1996, Brown hired Tomi Rae Hynie to be a background singer for his band and she later became his fourth wife.
On December 23, 2002, Brown and Hynie held a wedding ceremony that was officiated by the Rev. Larry Flyer. Following Brown's death, controversy surrounded the circumstances of the marriage, with Brown's attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, reporting that the marriage was not valid; Hynie was still married to Javed Ahmed, a man from Bangladesh. Hynie claimed Ahmed married her to obtain residency through a Green Card and that the marriage was annulled but the annulment did not occur until April 2004. In an attempt to prove her marriage to Brown was valid, Hynie produced a 2001 marriage certificate as proof of her marriage to Brown, but she did not provide King with court records pointing to an annulment of her marriage to him or to Ahmed. According to Dallas, Brown was angry and hurt that Hynie had concealed her prior marriage from him and Brown moved to file for annulment from Hynie. Dallas added that though Hynie's marriage to Ahmed was annulled after she married Brown, the Brown–Hynie marriage was not valid under South Carolina law because Brown and Hynie did not remarry after the annulment. In August 2003, Brown took out a full-page public notice in Variety featuring Hynie, James II and himself on vacation at Disney World to announce that he and Hynie were going their separate ways. In 2015, a judge ruled Hynie as Brown's legal widow.
Brown had numerous children and acknowledged nine of them including five sons – Teddy (1954–1973), Terry, Larry, Daryl, and James Joseph Brown Jr. and four daughters – Lisa, Dr. Yamma Noyola Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas, and Venisha Brown (1964–2018). Brown also had eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Brown's eldest son, Teddy, died in a car crash on June 14, 1973. According to an August 22, 2007, article published in the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, DNA tests indicate that Brown also fathered at least three extramarital children. The first one of them to be identified is LaRhonda Pettit (born 1962), a retired flight attendant and teacher who lives in Houston. During contesting of Brown's will, another of the Brown family attorneys, Debra Opri, revealed to Larry King that Brown wanted a DNA test performed after his death to confirm the paternity of James Brown Jr. (born 2001)—not for Brown's sake but for the sake of the other family members. In April 2007, Hynie selected a guardian ad litem whom she wanted appointed by the court to represent her son, James Brown Jr., in the paternity proceedings. James Brown Jr. was confirmed to be his biological son.
Drug abuse
For most of his career, Brown had a strict drug- and alcohol-free policy for any member in his entourage, including band members, and would fire people who disobeyed orders, particularly those who used or abused drugs. Although early members of the Famous Flames were fired for using alcohol, Brown often served a highball consisting of Delaware Punch and moonshine at his St. Albans, Queens house in the mid-1960s. Some of the original members of Brown's 1970s band, the J.B.'s, including Catfish and Bootsy Collins, intentionally took LSD during a performance in 1971, causing Brown to fire them after the show because he had suspected them of being on drugs all along.
Aide Bob Patton has asserted that he accidentally shared a PCP-laced cannabis joint with Brown in the mid-1970s and "hallucinated for hours", although Brown "talked about it as if it was only marijuana he was smoking". By the mid-1980s, it was widely alleged that Brown was using drugs, with Vicki Anderson confirming to journalist Barney Hoskyns that Brown's regular use of PCP (colloquially known as "angel dust") "began before 1982". After he met and later married Adrienne Rodriguez in 1984, she and Brown began using PCP together. This drug usage often resulted in violent outbursts from him, and he was arrested several times for domestic violence against Rodriguez while high on the drug. By January 1988, Brown faced four criminal charges within a 12-month span relating to driving, PCP, and gun possession. After an April 1988 arrest for domestic abuse, Brown went on the CNN program Sonya Live in L.A. with host Sonya Friedman. The interview became notorious for Brown's irreverent demeanor, with some asserting that Brown was high.
One of Brown's former mistresses recalled in a GQ magazine article on Brown some years after his death that Brown would smoke PCP ("until that got hard to find") and cocaine, mixed with tobacco in Kool cigarettes. He also engaged in the off-label use of sildenafil, maintaining that it gave him "extra energy". While once under the influence of PCP (which he continued to procure dependent on its availability) when traveling in a car, Brown alleged that passing trees contained psychotronic surveillance technology.
In January 1998, he spent a week in rehab to deal with an addiction to unspecified prescription drugs. A week after his release, he was arrested for an unlawful use of a handgun and possession of cannabis. Prior to his death in December 2006, when Brown entered Emory University Hospital, traces of cocaine were found in the singer's urine. His widow suggested Brown would "do crack" with a female acquaintance.
Theft and assault convictions
Brown's personal life was marred by several brushes with the law. At the age of 16, he was convicted of theft and served three years in juvenile prison. During a concert held at Club 15 in Macon, Georgia in 1963, while Otis Redding was performing alongside his former band Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers, Brown reportedly tried to shoot his musical rival Joe Tex. The incident led to multiple people being shot and stabbed. Since Brown was still on parole at the time, he relied on his agent Clint Brantley "and a few thousand dollars to make the situation disappear". According to Jenkins, "seven people got shot", and after the shootout ended, a man appeared and gave "each one of the injured a hundred dollars apiece not to carry it no further and not to talk to the press". Brown was never charged for the incident.
On July 16, 1978, after performing at the Apollo, Brown was arrested for reportedly failing to turn in records from one of his radio stations after the station was forced to file for bankruptcy. Brown was arrested on April 3, 1988, for assault, and again in May 1988 on drug and weapons charges, and again on September 24, 1988, following a high-speed car chase on Interstate 20 near the Georgia–South Carolina state border. He was convicted of carrying an unlicensed pistol and assaulting a police officer, along with various drug-related and driving offenses. Although he was sentenced to six years in prison, he was eventually released on parole on February 27, 1991, after serving two years of his sentence. Brown's FBI file, released to The Washington Post in 2007 under the Freedom of Information Act, related Brown's claim that the high-speed chase did not occur as claimed by the police, and that local police shot at his car several times during an incident of police harassment and assaulted him after his arrest. Local authorities found no merit to Brown's accusations.
In 1998, a woman named Mary Simons accused Brown in a civil suit of holding her captive for three days, demanding oral sex and firing a gun in his office; Simons' charge was eventually dismissed. In another civil suit, filed by former background singer Lisa Rushton alleged that between 1994 and 1999, Brown allegedly demanded sexual favors and when refused, would cut off her pay and kept her offstage. She also claimed Brown would "place a hand on her buttocks and loudly told her in a crowded restaurant to not look or speak to any other man besides himself;" Rushton eventually withdrew her lawsuit. In yet another civil suit, a woman named Lisa Agbalaya, who worked for Brown, said the singer would tell her he had "bull testicles", handed her a pair of zebra-print underwear, told her to wear them while he massaged her with oil, and fired her after she refused. A Los Angeles jury cleared the singer of sexual harassment but found him liable for wrongful termination.
The police were summoned to Brown's residence on July 3, 2000, after he was accused of charging at an electric company repairman with a steak knife when the repairman visited Brown's house to investigate a complaint about having no lights at the residence. In 2003, Brown was pardoned by the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services for past crimes that he was convicted of committing in South Carolina.
Domestic violence arrests
Brown was repeatedly arrested for domestic violence. Adrienne Rodriguez, his third wife, had him arrested four times between 1987 and 1995 on charges of assault. In one incident, Rodriguez reported to authorities that Brown beat her with an iron pipe and shot at her car. Rodriguez was hospitalized after the last assault in October 1995, but charges were dropped after she died in January 1996.
In January 2004, Brown was arrested in South Carolina on a domestic violence charge after Tomi Rae Hynie accused him of pushing her to the floor during an argument at their home, where she suffered scratches and bruises to her right arm and hip. In June, Brown pleaded no contest to the domestic violence incident, but served no jail time. Instead, Brown was required to forfeit a US$1,087 bond as punishment.
Rape accusation
In January 2005, a woman named Jacque Hollander filed a lawsuit against James Brown, which stemmed from an alleged 1988 rape. When the case was initially heard before a judge in 2002, Hollander's claims against Brown were dismissed by the court as the limitations period for filing the suit had expired. Hollander claimed that stress from the alleged assault later caused her to contract Graves' disease, a thyroid condition. Hollander claimed that the incident took place in South Carolina while she was employed by Brown as a publicist. Hollander alleged that, during her ride in a van with Brown, Brown pulled over to the side of the road and sexually assaulted her while he threatened her with a shotgun. In her case against Brown, Hollander entered as evidence a DNA sample and a polygraph result, but the evidence was not considered due to the limitations defense. Hollander later attempted to bring her case before the Supreme Court, but nothing came of her complaint.
Later life and death
Illness
On December 23, 2006, Brown became very ill and arrived at his dentist's office in Atlanta, Georgia, several hours late. His appointment was for dental implant work. During that visit, Brown's dentist observed that he looked "very bad ... weak and dazed". Instead of performing the work, the dentist advised Brown to see a doctor right away about his medical condition.
Brown went to the Emory Crawford Long Memorial Hospital the next day for medical evaluation and was admitted for observation and treatment. According to Charles Bobbit, his longtime personal manager and friend, Brown had been struggling with a noisy cough since returning from a November trip to Europe. Yet, Bobbit said, the singer had a history of never complaining about being sick and often performed while ill. Although Brown had to cancel upcoming concerts in Waterbury, Connecticut, and Englewood, New Jersey, he was confident that the doctor would discharge him from the hospital in time for his scheduled New Year's Eve shows at the Count Basie Theatre in New Jersey and the B. B. King Blues Club in New York, in addition to performing a song live on CNN for the Anderson Cooper New Year's Eve special. Brown remained hospitalized, however, and his condition worsened throughout the day.
Death
On Christmas Day 2006, Brown died at approximately 1:45 a.m. EST (06:45 UTC), at age 73, from congestive heart failure, resulting from complications of pneumonia. Bobbit was at his bedside and later reported that Brown stuttered, "I'm going away tonight", then took three long, quiet breaths and fell asleep before dying.
In 2019, an investigation by CNN and other journalists led to suggestions that Brown had been murdered.
Memorial services
After Brown's death, his relatives, a host of celebrities, and thousands of fans gathered, on December 28, 2006, for a public memorial service at the Apollo Theater in New York City and, on December 30, 2006, at the James Brown Arena in Augusta, Georgia. A separate, private ceremony was held in North Augusta, South Carolina, on December 29, 2006, with Brown's family in attendance. Celebrities at these various memorial events included Michael Jackson, Jimmy Cliff, Joe Frazier, Buddy Guy, Ice Cube, Ludacris, Dr. Dre, Little Richard, Dick Gregory, MC Hammer, Prince, Jesse Jackson, Ice-T, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bootsy Collins, LL Cool J, Lil Wayne, Lenny Kravitz, 50 Cent, Stevie Wonder, and Don King. Rev. Al Sharpton officiated at all of Brown's public and private memorial services.
Brown's memorial ceremonies were all elaborate, complete with costume changes for the deceased and videos featuring him in concert. His body, placed in a Promethean casket—bronze polished to a golden shine—was driven through the streets of New York to the Apollo Theater in a white, glass-encased horse-drawn carriage. In Augusta, Georgia, his memorial procession stopped to pay respects at his statue, en route to the James Brown Arena. During the public memorial there, a video showed Brown's last performance in Augusta, Georgia, with the Ray Charles version of "Georgia on My Mind" playing soulfully in the background. His last backup band, The Soul Generals, also played some of his hits during that tribute at the arena. The group was joined by Bootsy Collins on bass, with MC Hammer performing a dance in James Brown style. Former Temptations lead singer Ali-Ollie Woodson performed "Walk Around Heaven All Day" at the memorial services.
Last will and testament
Brown signed his last will and testament on August 1, 2000, before J. Strom Thurmond Jr., an attorney for the estate. The irrevocable trust, separate and apart from Brown's will, was created on his behalf, that same year, by his attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, one of three personal representatives of Brown's estate. His will covered the disposition of his personal assets, such as clothing, cars, and jewelry, while the irrevocable trust covered the disposition of the music rights, business assets of James Brown Enterprises, and his Beech Island, South Carolina estate.
During the reading of the will on January 11, 2007, Thurmond revealed that Brown's six adult living children (Terry Brown, Larry Brown, Daryl Brown, Yamma Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas and Venisha Brown) were named in the document, while Hynie and James II were not mentioned as heirs. Brown's will had been signed 10 months before James II was born and more than a year before Brown's marriage to Tomi Rae Hynie. Like Brown's will, his irrevocable trust omitted Hynie and James II as recipients of Brown's property. The irrevocable trust had also been established before, and not amended since, the birth of James II.
On January 24, 2007, Brown's children filed a lawsuit, petitioning the court to remove the personal representatives from the estate (including Brown's attorney, as well as trustee Albert "Buddy" Dallas) and appoint a special administrator because of perceived impropriety and alleged mismanagement of Brown's assets. On January 31, 2007, Hynie also filed a lawsuit against Brown's estate, challenging the validity of the will and the irrevocable trust. Hynie's suit asked the court both to recognize her as Brown's widow and to appoint a special administrator for the estate.
On January 27, 2015, Judge Doyet Early III ruled that Tomi Rae Hynie Brown was officially the widow of James Brown. The decision was based on the grounds that Hynie's previous marriage was invalid and that James Brown had abandoned his efforts to annul his own marriage to Hynie.
On February 19, 2015, the South Carolina Supreme Court intervened, halting all lower court actions in the estate and undertaking to review previous actions itself. The South Carolina Court of Appeals in July 2018 ruled that Hynie was, in fact, Mr. Brown's wife. In 2020, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that Hynie had not been legally married to Brown and did not have a right to his estate. It was reported in July 2021 that Brown's family had reached a settlement ending the 15-year battle over the estate.
Legacy
Brown received awards and honors throughout his lifetime and after his death. In 1993 the City Council of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, conducted a poll of residents to choose a new name for the bridge that crossed the Yampa River on Shield Drive. The winning name, with 7,717 votes, was "James Brown Soul Center of the Universe Bridge". The bridge was officially dedicated in September 1993, and Brown appeared at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the event. A petition was started by local ranchers to return the name to "Stockbridge" for historical reasons, but they backed off after citizens defeated their efforts because of the popularity of Brown's name. Brown returned to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, on July 4, 2002, for an outdoor festival, performing with bands such as The String Cheese Incident.
During his long career, Brown received many prestigious music industry awards and honors. In 1983 he was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. Brown was one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction dinner in New York on January 23, 1986. At that time, the members of his original vocal group, The Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Johnny Terry, Bobby Bennett, and Lloyd Stallworth) were not inducted. However, on April 14, 2012, The Famous Flames were automatically and retroactively inducted into the Hall of Fame alongside Brown, without the need for nomination and voting, on the basis that they should have been inducted with him in 1986. On February 25, 1992, Brown was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 34th annual Grammy Awards. Exactly a year later, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 4th annual Rhythm & Blues Foundation Pioneer Awards. A ceremony was held for Brown on January 10, 1997, to honor him with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
On June 15, 2000, Brown was honored as an inductee to the New York Songwriters Hall of Fame. On August 6, 2002, he was honored as the first BMI Urban Icon at the BMI Urban Awards. His BMI accolades include an impressive ten R&B Awards and six Pop Awards. On November 14, 2006, Brown was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, and he was one of several inductees to perform at the ceremony. In recognition of his accomplishments as an entertainer, Brown was a recipient of Kennedy Center Honors on December 7, 2003. In 2004 Rolling Stone magazine ranked James Brown as No. 7 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In an article for Rolling Stone, critic Robert Christgau cited Brown as "the greatest musician of the rock era". He appeared on the BET Awards June 24, 2003, and received the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Michael Jackson, and performed with him. In 2004, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member Aretha Franklin.
Brown was also honored in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, for his philanthropy and civic activities. On November 20, 1993, Mayor Charles DeVaney of Augusta held a ceremony to dedicate a section of 9th Street between Broad and Twiggs Streets, renamed "James Brown Boulevard", in the entertainer's honor. On May 6, 2005, as a 72nd birthday present for Brown, the city of Augusta unveiled a life-sized bronze James Brown statue on Broad Street. The statue was to have been dedicated a year earlier, but the ceremony was put on hold because of a domestic abuse charge that Brown faced at the time. In 2005, Charles "Champ" Walker and the We Feel Good Committee went before the County commission and received approval to change Augusta's slogan to "We Feel Good". Afterward, officials renamed the city's civic center the James Brown Arena, and James Brown attended a ceremony for the unveiling of the namesake center on October 15, 2006.
On December 30, 2006, during the public memorial service at the James Brown Arena, Dr. Shirley A.R. Lewis, president of Paine College, a historically black college in Augusta, Georgia, bestowed posthumously upon Brown an honorary doctorate in recognition and honor of his many contributions to the school in its times of need. Brown had originally been scheduled to receive the honorary doctorate from Paine College during its May 2007 commencement.
During the 49th Annual Grammy Awards presentation on February 11, 2007, James Brown's famous cape was draped over a microphone by Danny Ray at the end of a montage in honor of notable people in the music industry who died during the previous year. Earlier that evening, Christina Aguilera delivered an impassioned performance of Brown's hit "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" followed by a standing ovation, while Chris Brown performed a dance routine in honor of James Brown.
On August 17, 2013, the official R&B Music Hall of Fame honored and inducted James Brown at a ceremony held at the Waetjen Auditorium at Cleveland State University.
ART THE BOX began in early 2015 as a collaboration between three organizations: the City of Augusta, the Downtown Development Authority and the Greater Augusta Arts Council. 19 local artists were selected by a committee to create art on 23 local traffic signal control cabinets (TSCCs). A competition was held to create the James Brown Tribute Box on the corner of James Brown Blvd. (9th Ave.) and Broad St. This box was designed and painted by local artist, Ms. Robbie Pitts Bellamy and has become a favorite photo opportunity to visitors and locals in Augusta, Georgia.
"I have a lot of musical heroes but I think James Brown is at the top of the list", remarked Public Enemy's Chuck D. "Absolutely the funkiest man on Earth ... In a black household, James Brown is part of the fabric – Motown, Stax, Atlantic and James Brown."
Tributes
As a tribute to James Brown, the Rolling Stones covered the song, "I'll Go Crazy" from Brown's Live at the Apollo album, during their 2007 European tour. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has remarked, "He [James Brown] was almost a musical genre in his own right and he changed and moved forward the whole time so people were able to learn from him."
On December 22, 2007, the first annual "Tribute Fit For the King of King Records" in honor of James Brown was held at the Madison Theater in Covington, Kentucky. The tribute, organized by Bootsy Collins, featured Tony Wilson as Young James Brown with appearances by Afrika Bambaataa, Chuck D of Public Enemy, The Soul Generals, Buckethead, Freekbass, Triage and many of Brown's surviving family members. Comedian Michael Coyer was the MC for the event. During the show, the mayor of Cincinnati proclaimed December 22 as James Brown Day.
As of September 2021, a significant collection of James Brown clothing, memorabilia, and personal artifacts are on exhibit in downtown Augusta, Georgia at the Augusta History Museum.
Discography
Studio albums
Please Please Please (1958)
Try Me! (1959)
Think! (1960)
The Amazing James Brown (1961)
James Brown and His Famous Flames Tour the U.S.A. (1962)
Prisoner of Love (1963)
Grits & Soul (1964)
Showtime (1964)
Out of Sight (1964)
James Brown Plays James Brown Today & Yesterday (1965)
Mighty Instrumentals (1966)
James Brown Plays New Breed (The Boo-Ga-Loo) (1966)
James Brown Sings Christmas Songs (1966)
Handful of Soul (1966)
James Brown Sings Raw Soul (1967)
James Brown Plays the Real Thing (1967)
Cold Sweat (1967)
I Can't Stand Myself When You Touch Me (1968)
I Got the Feelin' (1968)
James Brown Plays Nothing But Soul (1968)
Thinking About Little Willie John and a Few Nice Things (1968)
A Soulful Christmas (1968)
Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud (1969)
Gettin' Down to It (1969)
The Popcorn (1969)
It's a Mother (1969)
Ain't It Funky (1970)
Soul on Top (1970)
It's a New Day – Let a Man Come In (1970)
Hey America (1970)
Sho Is Funky Down Here (1971)
Hot Pants (1971)
There It Is (1972)
Get on the Good Foot (1972)
Black Caesar (1973)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973)
The Payback (1973)
Hell (1974)
Reality (1974)
Sex Machine Today (1975)
Everybody's Doin' the Hustle & Dead on the Double Bump (1975)
Hot (1976)
Get Up Offa That Thing (1976)
Bodyheat (1976)
Mutha's Nature (1977)
Jam 1980's (1978)
Take a Look at Those Cakes (1978)
The Original Disco Man (1979)
People (1980)
Soul Syndrome (1980)
Nonstop! (1981)
Bring It On! (1983)
Gravity (1986)
I'm Real (1988)
Love Over-Due (1991)
Universal James (1992)
I'm Back (1998)
The Merry Christmas Album (1999)
The Next Step (2002)
Filmography
The T.A.M.I. Show (1964) (concert film)- with The Famous Flames
Ski Party (1965)- with The Famous Flames
James Brown: Man to Man (1968) (concert film)
The Phynx (1970)
Black Caesar (1973) (soundtrack only)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973) (soundtrack only)
The Blues Brothers (1980)
Doctor Detroit (1983)
Rocky IV (1985)
Miami Vice (1987)
James Brown: Live in East Berlin (1989)
The Simpsons (1993)
When We Were Kings (1996) (documentary)
Duckman (1997)
Soulmates (1997)
Blues Brothers 2000 (1998)
Holy Man (1998)
Undercover Brother (2002)
The Tuxedo (2002)
The Hire: Beat the Devil (2002) (short film)
Paper Chasers (2003) (documentary)
Soul Survivor (2003) (documentary)
Sid Bernstein Presents ... (2005) (documentary)
Glastonbury (2006) (documentary)
Life on the Road with Mr. and Mrs. Brown (2007) (documentary; release pending)
Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968 (2008) (concert film)
I Got The Feelin': James Brown in the '60s, three-DVD set featuring Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968, Live at the Apollo '68 [DVD version of James Brown: Man to Man], and the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston
Soul Power (2009) (documentary)
Get on Up (2014)
Biopics
Mr. Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown (2014), released in April 2014, written and directed by Alex Gibney, produced by Mick Jagger.
Get on Up (2014), released in theaters on August 1, 2014. Chadwick Boseman plays the role of James Brown in the film. Originally, Mick Jagger and Brian Grazer had begun producing a documentary film on Brown in 2013. A fiction film had been in the planning stages for many years and was revived when Jagger read the script by Jez and John-Henry Butterworth.
In other media
Games
In the video game World of Warcraft, the first boss character of the Forge of Souls dungeon is Bronjahm, "the Godfather of Souls". His quotes during the fight are musical references, and he has a chance of dropping an item called "Papa's Brand New Bag".
Television
As himself (voice) in the 1993 The Simpsons episode "Bart's Inner Child".
In 1991, Brown did a Pay Per View Special with top celebrities such as Quincy Jones, Rick James, Dan Aykroyd, Gladys Knight, Denzel Washington, MC Hammer and others attended or were opening acts. This was produced with boxing promoter Buddy Dallas. 15.5 million households tuned in at a cost $19.99.
In 2002, Brown starred in the Jackie Chan movie The Tuxedo as himself
See also
Progressive soul
References
Footnotes
Sources
Further reading
Danielsen, Anne (2006). Presence and pleasure: The funk grooves of James Brown and Parliament. Wesleyan University Press.
George, Nelson, and Leeds, Alan (editors). (2008). The James Brown Reader: 50 Years of Writing about the Godfather of Soul. New York: Plume.
Lethem, J. (June 12, 2006). "Being James Brown", Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved January 14, 2007.
McBride, James (2016) Kill 'Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul. New York: Spiegel & Grau
Sullivan, James. (2008). The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved The Soul Of America. New York: Gotham Books.
Sussman, M. (producer). (December 25, 2006). Arts: Soul classics by James Brown (multimedia presentation). The New York Times. Retrieved January 9, 2007.
Wesley, Fred. (2002). Hit Me, Fred: Recollections of a Sideman. Durham: Duke University Press.
Whitney, Marva and Waring, Charles. (2013) God, The Devil & James Brown:(Memoirs of a Funky Diva). New Romney: Bank House Books
External links
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The Famous Flames members | false | [
"\"What Else Is There?\" is the third single from the Norwegian duo Röyksopp's second album The Understanding. It features the vocals of Karin Dreijer from the Swedish electronica duo The Knife. The album was released in the UK with the help of Astralwerks.\n\nThe single was used in an O2 television advertisement in the Czech Republic and in Slovakia during 2008. It was also used in the 2006 film Cashback and the 2007 film, Meet Bill. Trentemøller's remix of \"What Else is There?\" was featured in an episode of the HBO show Entourage.\n\nThe song was covered by extreme metal band Enslaved as a bonus track for their album E.\n\nThe song was listed as the 375th best song of the 2000s by Pitchfork Media.\n\nOfficial versions\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Album Version) – 5:17\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Radio Edit) – 3:38\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Jacques Lu Cont Radio Mix) – 3:46\n\"What Else Is There?\" (The Emperor Machine Vocal Version) – 8:03\n\"What Else Is There?\" (The Emperor Machine Dub Version) – 7:51\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Thin White Duke Mix) – 8:25\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Thin White Duke Edit) – 4:50\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Thin White Duke Remix) (Radio Edit) – 3:06\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Trentemøller Remix) – 7:42\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Vitalic Remix) – 5:14\n\nResponse\nThe single was officially released on 5 December 2005 in the UK. The single had a limited release on 21 November 2005 to promote the upcoming album. On the UK Singles Chart, it peaked at number 32, while on the UK Dance Chart, it reached number one.\n\nMusic video\nThe music video was directed by Martin de Thurah. It features Norwegian model Marianne Schröder who is shown lip-syncing Dreijer's voice. Schröder is depicted as a floating woman traveling across stormy landscapes and within empty houses. Dreijer makes a cameo appearance as a woman wearing an Elizabethan ruff while dining alone at a festive table.\n\nMovie spots\n\nThe song is also featured in the movie Meet Bill as characters played by Jessica Alba and Aaron Eckhart smoke marijuana while listening to it. It is also part of the end credits music of the film Cashback.\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\n2005 singles\nRöyksopp songs\nAstralwerks singles\nSongs written by Svein Berge\nSongs written by Torbjørn Brundtland\n2004 songs\nSongs written by Roger Greenaway\nSongs written by Olof Dreijer\nSongs written by Karin Dreijer",
"What Else Do You Do? (A Compilation of Quiet Music) is a various artists compilation album, released in 1990 by Shimmy Disc.\n\nTrack listing\n\nPersonnel \nAdapted from the What Else Do You Do? (A Compilation of Quiet Music) liner notes.\n Kramer – production, engineering\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n\n1990 compilation albums\nAlbums produced by Kramer (musician)\nShimmy Disc compilation albums"
]
|
[
"James Brown",
"1962-1966: Mr. Dynamite",
"What happened in 1962?",
"In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental \"Night Train\", becoming not only a top five R&B single",
"What else did it become?",
"but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100."
]
| C_185d6e4eab0446b1aa68bcc9a108fa5d_1 | How many albums were released in this time frame? | 3 | How many albums were released from 1962-1966? | James Brown | In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming not only a top five R&B single but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers. Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior. In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones. Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer, and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honorific nicknames "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and "Soul Brother No. 1". In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown was one of the first 10 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction in New York on January 23, 1986.
Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia. He first came to national public attention in the mid-1950s as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a rhythm and blues vocal group founded by Bobby Byrd. With the hit ballads "Please, Please, Please" and "Try Me", Brown built a reputation as a dynamic live performer with the Famous Flames and his backing band, sometimes known as the James Brown Band or the James Brown Orchestra. His success peaked in the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apollo and hit singles such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", "I Got You (I Feel Good)" and "It's a Man's Man's Man's World".
During the late 1960s, Brown moved from a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms and styles to a profoundly "Africanized" approach to music-making, emphasizing stripped-down interlocking rhythms that influenced the development of funk music. By the early 1970s, Brown had fully established the funk sound after the formation of the J.B.s with records such as "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine" and "The Payback". He also became noted for songs of social commentary, including the 1968 hit "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud". Brown continued to perform and record until his death from pneumonia in 2006.
Brown recorded 17 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B charts. He also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that did not reach No. 1. Brown was inducted into the first class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013 as an artist and then in 2017 as a songwriter. He also received honors from several other institutions, including inductions into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In Joel Whitburn's analysis of the Billboard R&B charts from 1942 to 2010, Brown is ranked No. 1 in The Top 500 Artists. He is ranked seventh on Rolling Stone list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
Early life
Brown was born on May 3, 1933, in Barnwell, South Carolina, to 16-year-old Susie (née Behling; 1916–2004) and 21-year-old Joseph Gardner Brown (1912–1993) in a small wooden shack. Brown's name was supposed to have been Joseph James Brown, but his first and middle names were mistakenly reversed on his birth certificate. In his autobiography, Brown stated that he had Chinese and Native American ancestry and that his father was of mixed African-American and Native American descent, while his mother was of mixed African-American and Asian descent.
The Brown family lived in extreme poverty in Elko, South Carolina, which was an impoverished town at the time. They later moved to Augusta, Georgia, when James was four or five. His family first settled at one of his aunts' brothels. They later moved into a house shared with another aunt. Brown's mother eventually left the family after a contentious and abusive marriage and moved to New York. Brown spent long stretches of time on his own, hanging out in the streets and hustling to get by. He managed to stay in school until the sixth grade.
He began singing in talent shows as a young child, first appearing at Augusta's Lenox Theater in 1944, winning the show after singing the ballad "So Long". While in Augusta, Brown performed buck dances for change to entertain troops from Camp Gordon at the start of World War II as their convoys traveled over a canal bridge near his aunt's home. He learned to play the piano, guitar, and harmonica during this period. He became inspired to become an entertainer after hearing "Caldonia" by Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five. In his teen years, Brown briefly had a career as a boxer.
At the age of 16, he was convicted of robbery and sent to a juvenile detention center in Toccoa. There, he formed a gospel quartet with four fellow cellmates, including Johnny Terry. Brown met singer Bobby Byrd when the two played against each other in a baseball game outside the detention center. Byrd also discovered that Brown could sing after hearing of "a guy called Music Box", which was Brown's musical nickname at the prison. Byrd has since claimed he and his family helped to secure an early release, which led to Brown promising the court he would "sing for the Lord". Brown was released on a work sponsorship with Toccoa business owner S.C. Lawson. Lawson was impressed with Brown's work ethic and secured his release with a promise to keep him employed for two years. Brown was paroled on June 14, 1952. Brown went on to work with both of Lawson's sons, and would come back to visit the family from time to time throughout his career. Shortly after being paroled he joined the gospel group the Ever-Ready Gospel Singers, featuring Byrd's sister Sarah.
Music career
1953–1961: The Famous Flames
Brown eventually joined Bobby Byrd's group in 1954. The group had evolved from the Gospel Starlighters, an a cappella gospel group, to an R&B group with the name the Avons. He reputedly joined the band after one of its members, Troy Collins, died in a car crash. Along with Brown and Byrd, the group consisted of Sylvester Keels, Doyle Oglesby, Fred Pulliam, Nash Knox and Nafloyd Scott. Influenced by R&B groups such as Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, the Orioles and Billy Ward and his Dominoes, the group changed its name, first to the Toccoa Band and then to the Flames. Nafloyd's brother Baroy later joined the group on bass guitar, and Brown, Byrd and Keels switched lead positions and instruments, often playing drums and piano. Johnny Terry later joined, by which time Pulliam and Oglesby had long left. one of his 10 children commited suicide.
Berry Trimier became the group's first manager, booking them at parties near college campuses in Georgia and South Carolina. The group had already gained a reputation as a good live act when they renamed themselves the Famous Flames. In 1955, the group had contacted Little Richard while performing in Macon. Richard convinced the group to get in contact with his manager at the time, Clint Brantley, at his nightclub. Brantley agreed to manage them after seeing the group audition. He then sent them to a local radio station to record a demo session, where they performed their own composition "Please, Please, Please", which was inspired when Little Richard wrote the words of the title on a napkin and Brown was determined to make a song out of it. The Famous Flames eventually signed with King Records' Federal subsidiary in Cincinnati, Ohio, and issued a re-recorded version of "Please, Please, Please" in March 1956. The song became the group's first R&B hit, selling over a million copies. None of their follow-ups gained similar success. By 1957, Brown had replaced Clint Brantley as manager and hired Ben Bart, chief of Universal Attractions Agency. That year the original Flames broke up, after Bart changed the name of the group to "James Brown and The Famous Flames".
In October 1958, Brown released the ballad "Try Me", which hit number one on the R&B chart in the beginning of 1959, becoming the first of seventeen chart-topping R&B hits. Shortly afterwards, he recruited his first band, led by J. C. Davis, and reunited with Bobby Byrd who joined a revived Famous Flames lineup that included Eugene "Baby" Lloyd Stallworth and Bobby Bennett, with Johnny Terry sometimes coming in as the "fifth Flame". Brown, the Flames, and his entire band debuted at the Apollo Theater on April 24, 1959, opening for Brown's idol, Little Willie John. Federal Records issued two albums credited to Brown and the Famous Flames (both contained previously released singles). By 1960, Brown began multi-tasking in the recording studio involving himself, his singing group, the Famous Flames, and his band, a separate entity from The Flames, sometimes named the James Brown Orchestra or the James Brown Band. That year the band released the top ten R&B hit "(Do the) Mashed Potatoes" on Dade Records, owned by Henry Stone, billed under the pseudonym "Nat Kendrick & the Swans" due to label issues. As a result of its success, King president Syd Nathan shifted Brown's contract from Federal to the parent label, King, which according to Brown in his autobiography meant "you got more support from the company". While with King, Brown, under the Famous Flames lineup, released the hit-filled album Think! and the following year released two albums with the James Brown Band earning second billing. With the Famous Flames, Brown sang lead on several more hits, including"Bewildered", "I'll Go Crazy" and "Think", songs that hinted at his emerging style.
1962–1966: Mr. Dynamite
In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming a top five R&B single. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers.
Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior.
In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones.
Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" in 1965, which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Brown also signed a production deal with Loma Records. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World", a third Top 10 Pop hit (No. 1 R&B) which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on.
1967–1970: Soul Brother No. 1
By 1967, Brown's emerging sound had begun to be defined as funk music. That year he released what some critics cited as the first true funk song, "Cold Sweat", which hit number-one on the R&B chart (Top 10 Pop) and became one of his first recordings to contain a drum break and also the first that featured a harmony that was reduced to a single chord. The instrumental arrangements on tracks such as "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" and "Licking Stick-Licking Stick" (both recorded in 1968) and "Funky Drummer" (recorded in 1969) featured a more developed version of Brown's mid-1960s style, with the horn section, guitars, bass and drums meshed together in intricate rhythmic patterns based on multiple interlocking riffs.
Changes in Brown's style that started with "Cold Sweat" also established the musical foundation for Brown's later hits, such as "I Got the Feelin'" (1968) and "Mother Popcorn" (1969). By this time Brown's vocals frequently took the form of a kind of rhythmic declamation, not quite sung but not quite spoken, that only intermittently featured traces of pitch or melody. This would become a major influence on the techniques of rapping, which would come to maturity along with hip hop music in the coming decades. Brown's style of funk in the late 1960s was based on interlocking syncopated parts: strutting bass lines, syncopated drum patterns, and iconic percussive guitar riffs. The main guitar ostinatos for "Ain't It Funky" and "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" (both 1969), are examples of Brown's refinement of New Orleans funk; irresistibly danceable riffs, stripped down to their rhythmic essence. On both recordings the tonal structure is bare bones. The pattern of attack-points is the emphasis, not the pattern of pitches, as if the guitar were an African drum, or idiophone. Alexander Stewart states that this popular feel was passed along from "New Orleans—through James Brown's music, to the popular music of the 1970s". Those same tracks were later resurrected by countless hip-hop musicians from the 1970s onward. As a result, James Brown remains to this day the world's most sampled recording artist, but, two tracks that he wrote, are also synonymous with modern dance, especially with house music, jungle music, and drum and bass music, (which were sped up exponentially, in the latter two genres).
"Bring it Up" has an Afro-Cuban guajeo-like structure. All three of these guitar riffs are based on an onbeat/offbeat structure. Stewart says that it "is different from a time line (such as clave and tresillo) in that it is not an exact pattern, but more of a loose organizing principle."
It was around this time as the musician's popularity increased that he acquired the nickname "Soul Brother No. 1", after failing to win the title "King of Soul" from Solomon Burke during a Chicago gig two years prior. Brown's recordings during this period influenced musicians across the industry, most notably groups such as Sly and the Family Stone, Funkadelic, Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, Booker T. & the M.G.s as well as vocalists such as Edwin Starr, David Ruffin and Dennis Edwards from The Temptations, and Michael Jackson, who, throughout his career, cited Brown as his ultimate idol.
Brown's band during this period employed musicians and arrangers who had come up through the jazz tradition. He was noted for his ability as a bandleader and songwriter to blend the simplicity and drive of R&B with the rhythmic complexity and precision of jazz. Trumpeter Lewis Hamlin and saxophonist/keyboardist Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis (the successor to previous bandleader Nat Jones) led the band. Guitarist Jimmy Nolen provided percussive, deceptively simple riffs for each song, and Maceo Parker's prominent saxophone solos provided a focal point for many performances. Other members of Brown's band included stalwart Famous Flames singer and sideman Bobby Byrd, trombonist Fred Wesley, drummers John "Jabo" Starks, Clyde Stubblefield and Melvin Parker, saxophonist St. Clair Pinckney, guitarist Alphonso "Country" Kellum and bassist Bernard Odum.
In addition to a torrent of singles and studio albums, Brown's output during this period included two more successful live albums, Live at the Garden (1967) and Live at the Apollo, Volume II (1968), and a 1968 television special, James Brown: Man to Man. His music empire expanded along with his influence on the music scene. As Brown's music empire grew, his desire for financial and artistic independence grew as well. Brown bought radio stations during the late 1960s, including WRDW in his native Augusta, where he shined shoes as a boy. In November 1967, James Brown purchased radio station WGYW in Knoxville, Tennessee, for a reported $75,000, according to the January 20, 1968 Record World magazine. The call letters were changed to WJBE reflecting his initials. WJBE began on January 15, 1968, and broadcast a Rhythm & Blues format. The station slogan was "WJBE 1430 Raw Soul". Brown also bought WEBB in Baltimore in 1970.
Brown branched out to make several recordings with musicians outside his own band. In an attempt to appeal to the older, more affluent, and predominantly white adult contemporary audience, Brown recorded Gettin' Down To It (1969) and Soul on Top (1970)—two albums consisting mostly of romantic ballads, jazz standards, and homologous reinterpretations of his earlier hits—with the Dee Felice Trio and the Louie Bellson Orchestra. In 1968, he recorded a number of funk-oriented tracks with The Dapps, a white Cincinnati band, including the hit "I Can't Stand Myself". He also released three albums of Christmas music with his own band.
1970–1975: Godfather of Soul
In March 1970, most of Brown's mid-to-late 1960s road band walked out on him due to money disputes, a development augured by the prior disbandment of The Famous Flames singing group for the same reason in 1968. Brown and erstwhile Famous Flames singer Bobby Byrd (who chose to remain in the band during this tumultuous period) subsequently recruited several members of the Cincinnati-based The Pacemakers, which included Bootsy Collins and his brother Phelps "Catfish" Collins; augmented by the remaining members of the 1960s road band (including Fred Wesley, who rejoined Brown's outfit in December 1970) and other newer musicians, they would form the nucleus of The J.B.'s, Brown's new backing ensemble. Shortly following their first performance together, the band entered the studio to record the Brown-Byrd composition, "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine"; the song and other contemporaneous singles would further cement Brown's influence in the nascent genre of funk music. This iteration of the J.B.'s dissolved after a March 1971 European tour (documented on the 1991 archival release Love Power Peace) due to additional money disputes and Bootsy Collins' use of LSD; the Collins brothers would soon become integral members of Parliament-Funkadelic, while a new lineup of the J.B.'s coalesced around Wesley, St. Clair Pinckney and drummer John Starks.
In 1971, Brown began recording for Polydor Records which also took over distribution of Brown's King Records catalog. Many of his sidemen and supporting players, including Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s, Bobby Byrd, Lyn Collins, Vicki Anderson and former rival Hank Ballard, released records on the People label, an imprint founded by Brown that was purchased by Polydor as part of Brown's new contract. The recordings on the People label, almost all of which were produced by Brown himself, exemplified the mature flowering of his "house style". Several tracks thought by critics to be excessively sexual were released at this time. He would later soften his vocal approach. Songs such as "I Know You Got Soul" by Bobby Byrd, "Think" by Lyn Collins and "Doing It to Death" by Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s are considered as much a part of Brown's recorded legacy as the recordings released under his own name. That year, he also began touring African countries and was received well by audiences there. During the 1972 presidential election, James Brown openly proclaimed his support of Richard Nixon for reelection to the presidency over Democratic candidate George McGovern. The decision led to a boycott of his performances and, according to Brown, cost him a big portion of his black audience. As a result, Brown's record sales and concerts in the United States reached a lull in 1973 as he failed to land a number-one R&B single that year. Brown relied more on touring outside the United States where he continued to perform for sold-out crowds in cities such as London, Paris and Lausanne. That year he also faced problems with the IRS for failure to pay back taxes, charging he hadn't paid upwards of $4.5 million; five years earlier, the IRS had claimed he owed nearly $2 million.
In 1973, Brown provided the score for the blaxploitation film Black Caesar. He also recorded another soundtrack for the film, Slaughter's Big Rip-Off. Following the release of these soundtracks, Brown acquired a self-styled nickname, "The Godfather of Soul", which remains his most popular nickname. In 1974 he returned to the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts with "The Payback", with the parent album reaching the same spot on the album charts; he would reach No. 1 two more times in 1974, with "My Thang" and "Papa Don't Take No Mess". Later that year, he returned to Africa and performed in Kinshasa as part of the buildup to The Rumble in the Jungle fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. Admirers of Brown's music, including Miles Davis and other jazz musicians, began to cite him as a major influence on their own styles. However, Brown, like others who were influenced by his music, also "borrowed" from other musicians. His 1976 single, "Hot (I Need To Be Loved, Loved, Loved, Loved)" (R&B No. 31), interpolated the main riff from "Fame" by David Bowie while omitting any attribution to the latter song's composers (including Bowie, John Lennon and guitarist Carlos Alomar), not the other way around as was often believed.
"Papa Don't Take No Mess" would prove to be his final single to reach the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts and his final Top 40 pop single of the 1970s, though he continued to occasionally have Top 10 R&B recordings. Among his top ten R&B hits during this latter period included "Funky President" (R&B No. 4) and "Get Up Offa That Thing" (R&B No. 4), the latter song released in 1976 and aimed at musical rivals such as Barry White, The Ohio Players and K.C. and the Sunshine Band. Brown credited his then-wife and two of their children as writers of the song to avoid concurrent tax problems with the IRS. Starting in October 1975, Brown produced, directed, and hosted Future Shock, an Atlanta-based television variety show that ran for three years.
1975–1991: Decline and resurgence
Although his records were mainstays of the vanguard New York underground disco scene (exemplified by DJs such as David Mancuso and Francis Grasso) from 1969 onwards, Brown did not consciously yield to the trend until 1975's Sex Machine Today. By 1977, he was no longer a dominant force in R&B. After "Get Up Offa That Thing", thirteen of Brown's late 1970s recordings for Polydor failed to reach the Top 10 of the R&B chart, with only "Bodyheat" in 1976 and the disco-oriented "It's Too Funky in Here" in 1979 reaching the R&B Top 15 and the ballad "Kiss in '77" reaching the Top 20. After 1976's "Bodyheat", he also failed to appear on the Billboard Hot 100. As a result, Brown's concert attendance began dropping and his reported disputes with the IRS caused his business empire to collapse. In addition, Brown's former bandmates, including Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker and the Collins brothers, had found bigger success as members of George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic collective. The emergence of disco also stopped Brown's success on the R&B charts because its slicker, more commercial style had superseded his more raw funk productions.
By the release of 1979's The Original Disco Man, Brown was not providing much production or writing, leaving most of it to producer Brad Shapiro, resulting in the song "It's Too Funky in Here" becoming Brown's most successful single in this period. After two more albums failed to chart, Brown left Polydor in 1981. It was around this time that Brown changed the name of his band from the J.B.'s to the Soul Generals (or Soul G's). The band retained that name until his death. Despite Brown's declining record sales, promoters Gary LoConti and Jim Rissmiller helped Brown sell out a string of residency shows at the Country Club in Reseda. Brown's compromised commercial standing prevented him from charging a large live fee to the promoters for these shows. However, the great success of these shows marked a turning point for Brown's career, and soon he was back on top in Hollywood. Movies followed, starting with appearances in the feature films The Blues Brothers, Doctor Detroit and Rocky IV, as well as guest-starring in the Miami Vice episode "Missing Hours" (1987). In 1984, he teamed with rap musician Afrika Bambaataa on the song "Unity". A year later he signed with Scotti Brothers Records and issued the moderately successful album Gravity in 1986. It included Brown's final Top 10 pop hit, "Living in America", marking his first Top 40 entry since 1974 and his first Top 10 pop entry since 1968. Produced and written by Dan Hartman, it was also featured prominently on the Rocky IV film and soundtrack. Brown performed the song in the film at Apollo Creed's final fight, shot in the Ziegfeld Room at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and was credited in the film as "The Godfather of Soul". 1986 also saw the publication of his autobiography, James Brown: The Godfather of Soul, co-written with Bruce Tucker. In 1987, Brown won the Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Living in America".
In 1988, Brown worked with the production team Full Force on the new jack swing-influenced I'm Real. It spawned his final two Top 10 R&B hits, "I'm Real" and "Static", which peaked at No. 2 and No. 5, respectively, on the R&B charts. Meanwhile, the drum break from the second version of the original 1969 hit "Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose" (the recording included on the compilation album In the Jungle Groove) became so popular at hip hop dance parties (especially for breakdance) during the early 1980s that hip hop pioneer Kurtis Blow called the song "the national anthem of hip hop".
1991–2006: Final years
After his stint in prison during the late 1980s, Brown met Larry Fridie and Thomas Hart who produced the first James Brown biopic, entitled James Brown: The Man, the Message, the Music, released in 1992. He returned to music with the album Love Over-Due in 1991. It included the single "(So Tired of Standing Still We Got to) Move On", which peaked at No. 48 on the R&B chart. His former record label Polydor also released the four-CD box set Star Time, spanning Brown's career to date. Brown's release from prison also prompted his former record labels to reissue his albums on CD, featuring additional tracks and commentary by music critics and historians. That same year, Brown appeared on rapper MC Hammer's video for "Too Legit to Quit". Hammer had been noted, alongside Big Daddy Kane, for bringing Brown's unique stage shows and their own energetic dance moves to the hip-hop generation; both listed Brown as their idol. Both musicians also sampled his work, with Hammer having sampled the rhythms from "Super Bad" for his song "Here Comes the Hammer", from his best-selling album Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em. Big Daddy Kane sampled many times. Before the year was over, Brown–who had immediately returned to work with his band following his release–organized a pay-per-view concert following a show at Los Angeles' Wiltern Theatre, that was well received.
On June 10, 1991, James Brown and a star-filled line up performed before a crowd at the Wiltern Theatre for a live pay-per-view at-home audience. James Brown: Living in America – Live! was the brainchild of Indiana producer Danny Hubbard. It featured
M.C. Hammer as well as Bell Biv Devoe, Heavy D & the Boys, En Vogue, C+C Music Factory, Quincy Jones, Sherman Hemsley and Keenen Ivory Wayans. Ice-T, Tone Loc and Kool Moe Dee performed paying homage to Brown. This was Brown's first public performance since his parole from the South Carolina prison system in February. He had served two-and-a-half years of two concurrent six-year sentences for aggravated assault and other felonies.
Brown continued making recordings. In 1993 his album Universal James was released. It included his final Billboard charting single, "Can't Get Any Harder", which peaked at No. 76 on the US R&B chart and reached No. 59 on the UK chart. Its brief charting in the UK was probably due to the success of a remixed version of "I Feel Good" featuring Dakeyne. Brown also released the singles "How Long" and "Georgia-Lina", which failed to chart. In 1995, Brown returned to the Apollo and recorded Live at the Apollo 1995. It included a studio track titled "Respect Me", which was released as a single; again it failed to chart. Brown's final studio albums, I'm Back and The Next Step, were released in 1998 and 2002 respectively. I'm Back featured the song "Funk on Ah Roll", which peaked at No. 40 in the UK but did not chart in his native US. The Next Step included Brown's final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In". Both albums were produced by Derrick Monk. Brown's concert success, however, remained unabated and he kept up with a grueling schedule throughout the remainder of his life, living up to his previous nickname, "The Hardest Working Man in Show Business", in spite of his advanced age. In 2003, Brown participated in the PBS American Masters television documentary James Brown: Soul Survivor, which was directed by Jeremy Marre.
Brown performed in the Super Bowl XXXI halftime show.
Brown celebrated his status as an icon by appearing in a variety of entertainment and sports events, including an appearance on the WCW pay-per-view event, SuperBrawl X, where he danced alongside wrestler Ernest "The Cat" Miller, who based his character on Brown, during his in-ring skit with The Maestro. Brown then appeared in Tony Scott's short film Beat the Devil in 2001. He was featured alongside Clive Owen, Gary Oldman, Danny Trejo and Marilyn Manson. Brown also made a cameo appearance in the 2002 Jackie Chan film The Tuxedo, in which Chan was required to finish Brown's act after having accidentally knocked out the singer. In 2002, Brown appeared in Undercover Brother, playing himself.
In 2004, Brown performed in Hyde Park, London as a support act for Red Hot Chili Peppers concerts. The beginning of 2005 saw the publication of Brown's second book, I Feel Good: A Memoir of a Life of Soul, written with Marc Eliot. In February and March, he participated in recording sessions for an intended studio album with Fred Wesley, Pee Wee Ellis, and other longtime collaborators. Though he lost interest in the album, which remains unreleased, a track from the sessions, "Gut Bucket", appeared on a compilation CD included with the August 2006 issue of MOJO. He appeared at Edinburgh 50,000 – The Final Push, the final Live 8 concert on July 6, 2005, where he performed a duet with British pop star Will Young on "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag". In the Black Eyed Peas album "Monkey Business", Brown was featured on a track called, "They Don't Want Music". The previous week he had performed a duet with another British pop star, Joss Stone, on the United Kingdom chat show Friday Night with Jonathan Ross. In 2006, Brown continued his "Seven Decades of Funk World Tour", his last concert tour where he performed all over the world. His final U.S. performances were in San Francisco on August 20, 2006, as headliner at the Festival of the Golden Gate (Foggfest) on the Great Meadow at Fort Mason. The following day, August 21, he performed at Humboldt State University in Arcata, CA, at a small theatre (800 seats) on campus. His last shows were greeted with positive reviews, and one of his final concert appearances at the Irish Oxegen festival in Punchestown in 2006 was performed for a record crowd of 80,000 people. He played a full concert as part of the BBC's Electric Proms on October 27, 2006, at The Roundhouse, supported by The Zutons, with special appearances from Max Beasley and The Sugababes.
Brown's last televised appearance was at his induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame in November 2006, before his death the following month. Before his death, Brown had been scheduled to perform a duet with singer Annie Lennox on the song "Vengeance" for her new album Venus, which was released in 2007.
Artistry
As a vocalist, Brown performed in a forceful shout style derived from gospel music. Meanwhile, "his rhythmic grunts and expressive shrieks harked back farther still to ring shouts, work songs, and field cries", according to the Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History (1996): "He reimported the rhythmic complexity from which rhythm and blues, under the dual pressure of rock 'n' roll and pop, had progressively fallen away since its birth from jazz and blues."
For many years, Brown's touring show was one of the most extravagant productions in American popular music. At the time of Brown's death, his band included three guitarists, two bass guitar players, two drummers, three horns and a percussionist. The bands that he maintained during the late 1960s and 1970s were of comparable size, and the bands also included a three-piece amplified string section that played during the ballads. Brown employed between 40 and 50 people for the James Brown Revue, and members of the revue traveled with him in a bus to cities and towns all over the country, performing upwards of 330 shows a year with almost all of the shows as one-nighters.
Concert style
Before James Brown appeared on stage, his personal MC gave him an elaborate introduction accompanied by drumrolls, as the MC worked in Brown's various sobriquets along with the names of many of his hit songs. The introduction by Fats Gonder, captured on Brown's 1963 album Live at the Apollo is a representative example:
James Brown's performances were famous for their intensity and length. His own stated goal was to "give people more than what they came for — make them tired, 'cause that's what they came for.'" Brown's concert repertoire consisted mostly of his own hits and recent songs, with a few R&B covers mixed in. Brown danced vigorously as he sang, working popular dance steps such as the Mashed Potato into his routine along with dramatic leaps, splits and slides. In addition, his horn players and singing group (The Famous Flames) typically performed choreographed dance routines, and later incarnations of the Revue included backup dancers. Male performers in the Revue were required to wear tuxedoes and cummerbunds long after more casual concert wear became the norm among the younger musical acts. Brown's own extravagant outfits and his elaborate processed hairdo completed the visual impression. A James Brown concert typically included a performance by a featured vocalist, such as Vicki Anderson or Marva Whitney, and an instrumental feature for the band, which sometimes served as the opening act for the show.
A trademark feature of Brown's stage shows, usually during the song "Please, Please, Please", involved Brown dropping to his knees while clutching the microphone stand in his hands, prompting the show's longtime MC, Danny Ray, to come out, drape a cape over Brown's shoulders and escort him off the stage after he had worked himself to exhaustion during his performance. As Brown was escorted off the stage by the MC, Brown's vocal group, the Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Lloyd Stallworth, and Bobby Bennett), continued singing the background vocals "Please, please don't go-oh". Brown would then shake off the cape and stagger back to the microphone to perform an encore. Brown's routine was inspired by a similar one used by the professional wrestler Gorgeous George, as well as Little Richard. In his 2005 autobiography I Feel Good: A Memoir in a Life of Soul, Brown, who was a fan of Gorgeous George, credited the wrestler as the inspiration for both his cape routine and concert attire, stating, "Seeing him on TV helped create the James Brown you see on stage". Brown performs a version of the cape routine in the film of the T.A.M.I. Show (1964) in which he and The Famous Flames upstaged The Rolling Stones, and over the closing credits of the film Blues Brothers 2000. The Police refer to "James Brown on the T.A.M.I. Show" in their 1980 song "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around".
Band leadership
Brown demanded extreme discipline, perfection and precision from his musicians and dancers – performers in his Revue showed up for rehearsals and members wore the right "uniform" or "costume" for concert performances. During an interview conducted by Terri Gross during the NPR segment "Fresh Air" with Maceo Parker, a former saxophonist in Brown's band for most of the 1960s and part of the 1970s and 1980s, Parker offered his experience with the discipline that Brown demanded of the band:
Brown also had a practice of directing, correcting and assessing fines on members of his band who broke his rules, such as wearing unshined shoes, dancing out of sync or showing up late on stage. During some of his concert performances, Brown danced in front of his band with his back to the audience as he slid across the floor, flashing hand signals and splaying his pulsating fingers to the beat of the music. Although audiences thought Brown's dance routine was part of his act, this practice was actually his way of pointing to the offending member of his troupe who played or sang the wrong note or committed some other infraction. Brown used his splayed fingers and hand signals to alert the offending person of the fine that person must pay to him for breaking his rules.
Brown's demands of his support acts were, meanwhile, quite the reverse. As Fred Wesley recalled of his time as musical director of the JBs, if Brown felt intimidated by a support act he would try to "undermine their performances by shortening their sets without notice, demanding that they not do certain showstopping songs, and even insisting on doing the unthinkable, playing drums on some of their songs. A sure set killer."
Social activism
Education advocacy and humanitarianism
Brown's main social activism was in preserving the need for education among youths, influenced by his own troubled childhood and his being forced to drop out of the seventh grade for wearing "insufficient clothes". Due to heavy dropout rates in the 1960s, Brown released the pro-education song, "Don't Be a Drop-Out". Royalties of the song were donated to dropout-prevention charity programs. The success of this led to Brown meeting with President Lyndon B. Johnson at the White House. Johnson cited Brown for being a positive role model to the youth. A lifelong Republican, Brown gained the confidence of President Richard Nixon, to whom he found he had to explain the plight of Black Americans.
Throughout the remainder of his life, Brown made public speeches in schools and continued to advocate the importance of education in school. Upon filing his will in 2002, Brown advised that most of the money in his estate go into creating the I Feel Good, Inc. Trust to benefit disadvantaged children and provide scholarships for his grandchildren. His final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In", advocated against murders of young children in the streets. Brown often gave out money and other items to children while traveling to his childhood hometown of Augusta. A week before his death, while looking gravely ill, Brown gave out toys and turkeys to kids at an Atlanta orphanage, something he had done several times over the years.
Civil rights and self-reliance
Though Brown performed at benefit rallies for civil rights organizations in the mid-1960s, Brown often shied away from discussing civil rights in his songs in fear of alienating his crossover audience. In 1968, in response to a growing urge of anti-war advocacy during the Vietnam War, Brown recorded the song, "America Is My Home". In the song, Brown performed a rap, advocating patriotism and exhorting listeners to "stop pitying yoursel[ves] and get up and fight". At the time of the song's release, Brown had been participating in performing for troops stationed in Vietnam.
The Boston Garden concert
On April 5, 1968, a day after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, Brown provided a free citywide televised concert at the Boston Garden to maintain public order and calm concerned Boston residents (over the objections of the police chief, who wanted to call off the concert, which he thought would incite violence). The show was later released on DVD as Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968. According to the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston, then-mayor Kevin White had strongly restrained the Boston police from cracking down on minor violence and protests after the assassination, while religious and community leaders worked to keep tempers from flaring. White arranged to have Brown's performance broadcast multiple times on Boston's public television station, WGBH, thus keeping potential rioters off the streets, watching the concert for free. Angered by not being told of this, Brown demanded $60,000 for "gate" fees (money he thought would be lost from ticket sales on account of the concert being broadcast for free) and then threatened to go public about the secret arrangement when the city balked at paying up afterwards, news of which would have been a political death blow to White and spark riots of its own. White eventually lobbied the behind-the-scenes power-brokering group known as "The Vault" to come up with money for Brown's gate fee and other social programs, contributing $100,000. Brown received $15,000 from them via the city. White also persuaded management at the Garden to give up their share of receipts to make up the differences. Following this successful performance, Brown was counseled by President Johnson to urge cities ravaged from riots following King's assassination to not resort to violence, telling them to "cool it, there's another way".
Responding to pressure from black activists, including H. Rap Brown, to take a bigger stance on their issues and from footage of black on black crime committed in inner cities, Brown wrote the lyrics to the song "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud", which his bandleader Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis accompanied with a musical composition. Released late that summer, the song's lyrics helped to make it an anthem for the civil rights movement. Brown only performed the song sporadically following its initial release and later stated he had regrets about recording it, saying in 1984, "Now 'Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud' has done more for the black race than any other record, but if I had my choice, I wouldn't have done it, because I don't like defining anyone by race. To teach race is to teach separatism." In his autobiography he stated:
The song is obsolete now ... But it was necessary to teach pride then, and I think the song did a lot of good for a lot of people ... People called "Black and Proud" militant and angry – maybe because of the line about dying on your feet instead of living on your knees. But really, if you listen to it, it sounds like a children's song. That's why I had children in it, so children who heard it could grow up feeling pride ... The song cost me a lot of my crossover audience. The racial makeup at my concerts was mostly black after that. I don't regret it, though, even if it was misunderstood.
In 1969, Brown recorded two more songs of social commentary, "World" and "I Don't Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing", the latter song pleading for equal opportunity and self-reliance rather than entitlement. In 1970, in response to some black leaders for not being outspoken enough, he recorded "Get Up, Get into It, Get Involved" and "Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing". In 1971, he began touring Africa, including Zambia and Nigeria. He was made "freeman of the city" in Lagos, Nigeria, by Oba Adeyinka Oyekan, for his "influence on black people all over the world". With his company, James Brown Enterprises, Brown helped to provide jobs for blacks in business in the communities. As the 1970s continued, Brown continued to record songs of social commentary, most prominently 1972's "King Heroin" and the two-part ballad "Public Enemy", which dealt with drug addiction.
Political views
During the 1968 presidential campaign, Brown endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hubert Humphrey and appeared with Humphrey at political rallies. Brown was labeled an "Uncle Tom" for supporting Humphrey and also for releasing the pro-American funk song, "America Is My Home", in which Brown had lambasted protesters of the Vietnam War as well as the politics of pro-black activists. Brown began supporting Republican president Richard Nixon after being invited to perform at Nixon's inaugural ball in January 1969. Brown's endorsement of Nixon during the 1972 presidential election negatively impacted his career during that period with several national Black organizations boycotting his records and protesting at his concert shows; a November 1972 show in Cincinnati was picketed with signs saying, "James Brown: Nixon's Clown". Brown initially was invited to perform at a Youth Concert following Nixon's inauguration in January 1973 but bailed out due to the backlash he suffered from supporting Nixon. Brown joined fellow black entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., who faced similar backlash, to back out of the concert. Brown blamed it on "fatigue". Brown later reversed his support of Nixon and composed the song, "You Can Have Watergate (Just Gimme Some Bucks And I'll Be Straight)" as a result. After Nixon resigned from office, Brown composed the 1974 hit, "Funky President (People It's Bad)", right after Gerald Ford took Nixon's place. Brown later supported Democratic President Jimmy Carter, attending one of Carter's inaugural balls in 1977. Brown also openly supported President Ronald Reagan's reelection in 1984.
Brown stated he was neither Democratic nor Republican despite his support of Republican presidents such as Nixon and Reagan as well as Democratic presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Carter. In 1999, when being interviewed by Rolling Stone, the magazine asked him to name a hero in the 20th century; Brown mentioned John F. Kennedy and then-96-year-old U.S. Senator, and former Dixiecrat, Strom Thurmond, stating "when the young whippersnappers get out of line, whether Democratic or Republican, an old man can walk up and say 'Wait a minute, son, it goes this way.' And that's great for our country. He's like a grandfather to me." In 2003, Brown was the featured attraction of a Washington D.C. fundraiser for the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Following the deaths of Ronald Reagan and his friend Ray Charles, Brown said to CNN, "I'm kind of in an uproar. I love the country and I got – you know I've been around a long time, through many presidents and everything. So after losing Mr. Reagan, who I knew very well, then Mr. Ray Charles, who I worked with and lived with like, all our life, we had a show together in Oakland many, many years ago and it's like you found the placard." Despite his contrarian political views, Brown mentored black activist Rev. Al Sharpton during the 1970s.
Personal life
At the end of his life, James Brown lived in Beech Island, South Carolina, directly across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia. Brown had diabetes that went undiagnosed for years, according to his longtime manager Charles Bobbit. In 2004, Brown was successfully treated for prostate cancer. Regardless of his health, Brown maintained his reputation as the "hardest working man in show business" by keeping up with his grueling performance schedule.
In 1962, Tammi Terrell joined the James Brown Revue. Brown became sexually involved with Terrell even though she was only 17 in a relationship that continued until she escaped his abuse. Bobby Bennett, former member of the Famous Flames, told Rolling Stone about the abuse he witnessed: "He beat Tammi Terrell terrible", said Bennett. "She was bleeding, shedding blood." Terrell, who died in 1970, was Brown's girlfriend before she became famous as Marvin Gaye's singing partner in the mid-'60s. "Tammi left him because she didn't want her butt whipped", said Bennett, who also claimed he saw Brown kick one pregnant girlfriend down a flight of stairs.
Marriages and children
Brown was married four times. His first marriage was to Velma Warren in 1953, and they had one son together. Over a decade later, the couple had separated and the final divorce decree was issued in 1969. They maintained a close friendship that lasted until Brown's death. Brown's second marriage was to Deidre "Deedee" Jenkins, on October 22, 1970. They had two daughters together. The couple were separated by 1979, after what his daughter describes as years of domestic abuse, and the final divorce decree was issued on January 10, 1981. His third marriage was to Adrienne Lois Rodriguez (March 9, 1950 – January 6, 1996), in 1984. It was a contentious marriage that made headlines due to domestic abuse complaints. Rodriguez filed for divorce in 1988, "citing years of cruelty treatment", but they reconciled. Less than a year after Rodriguez died in 1996, Brown hired Tomi Rae Hynie to be a background singer for his band and she later became his fourth wife.
On December 23, 2002, Brown and Hynie held a wedding ceremony that was officiated by the Rev. Larry Flyer. Following Brown's death, controversy surrounded the circumstances of the marriage, with Brown's attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, reporting that the marriage was not valid; Hynie was still married to Javed Ahmed, a man from Bangladesh. Hynie claimed Ahmed married her to obtain residency through a Green Card and that the marriage was annulled but the annulment did not occur until April 2004. In an attempt to prove her marriage to Brown was valid, Hynie produced a 2001 marriage certificate as proof of her marriage to Brown, but she did not provide King with court records pointing to an annulment of her marriage to him or to Ahmed. According to Dallas, Brown was angry and hurt that Hynie had concealed her prior marriage from him and Brown moved to file for annulment from Hynie. Dallas added that though Hynie's marriage to Ahmed was annulled after she married Brown, the Brown–Hynie marriage was not valid under South Carolina law because Brown and Hynie did not remarry after the annulment. In August 2003, Brown took out a full-page public notice in Variety featuring Hynie, James II and himself on vacation at Disney World to announce that he and Hynie were going their separate ways. In 2015, a judge ruled Hynie as Brown's legal widow.
Brown had numerous children and acknowledged nine of them including five sons – Teddy (1954–1973), Terry, Larry, Daryl, and James Joseph Brown Jr. and four daughters – Lisa, Dr. Yamma Noyola Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas, and Venisha Brown (1964–2018). Brown also had eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Brown's eldest son, Teddy, died in a car crash on June 14, 1973. According to an August 22, 2007, article published in the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, DNA tests indicate that Brown also fathered at least three extramarital children. The first one of them to be identified is LaRhonda Pettit (born 1962), a retired flight attendant and teacher who lives in Houston. During contesting of Brown's will, another of the Brown family attorneys, Debra Opri, revealed to Larry King that Brown wanted a DNA test performed after his death to confirm the paternity of James Brown Jr. (born 2001)—not for Brown's sake but for the sake of the other family members. In April 2007, Hynie selected a guardian ad litem whom she wanted appointed by the court to represent her son, James Brown Jr., in the paternity proceedings. James Brown Jr. was confirmed to be his biological son.
Drug abuse
For most of his career, Brown had a strict drug- and alcohol-free policy for any member in his entourage, including band members, and would fire people who disobeyed orders, particularly those who used or abused drugs. Although early members of the Famous Flames were fired for using alcohol, Brown often served a highball consisting of Delaware Punch and moonshine at his St. Albans, Queens house in the mid-1960s. Some of the original members of Brown's 1970s band, the J.B.'s, including Catfish and Bootsy Collins, intentionally took LSD during a performance in 1971, causing Brown to fire them after the show because he had suspected them of being on drugs all along.
Aide Bob Patton has asserted that he accidentally shared a PCP-laced cannabis joint with Brown in the mid-1970s and "hallucinated for hours", although Brown "talked about it as if it was only marijuana he was smoking". By the mid-1980s, it was widely alleged that Brown was using drugs, with Vicki Anderson confirming to journalist Barney Hoskyns that Brown's regular use of PCP (colloquially known as "angel dust") "began before 1982". After he met and later married Adrienne Rodriguez in 1984, she and Brown began using PCP together. This drug usage often resulted in violent outbursts from him, and he was arrested several times for domestic violence against Rodriguez while high on the drug. By January 1988, Brown faced four criminal charges within a 12-month span relating to driving, PCP, and gun possession. After an April 1988 arrest for domestic abuse, Brown went on the CNN program Sonya Live in L.A. with host Sonya Friedman. The interview became notorious for Brown's irreverent demeanor, with some asserting that Brown was high.
One of Brown's former mistresses recalled in a GQ magazine article on Brown some years after his death that Brown would smoke PCP ("until that got hard to find") and cocaine, mixed with tobacco in Kool cigarettes. He also engaged in the off-label use of sildenafil, maintaining that it gave him "extra energy". While once under the influence of PCP (which he continued to procure dependent on its availability) when traveling in a car, Brown alleged that passing trees contained psychotronic surveillance technology.
In January 1998, he spent a week in rehab to deal with an addiction to unspecified prescription drugs. A week after his release, he was arrested for an unlawful use of a handgun and possession of cannabis. Prior to his death in December 2006, when Brown entered Emory University Hospital, traces of cocaine were found in the singer's urine. His widow suggested Brown would "do crack" with a female acquaintance.
Theft and assault convictions
Brown's personal life was marred by several brushes with the law. At the age of 16, he was convicted of theft and served three years in juvenile prison. During a concert held at Club 15 in Macon, Georgia in 1963, while Otis Redding was performing alongside his former band Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers, Brown reportedly tried to shoot his musical rival Joe Tex. The incident led to multiple people being shot and stabbed. Since Brown was still on parole at the time, he relied on his agent Clint Brantley "and a few thousand dollars to make the situation disappear". According to Jenkins, "seven people got shot", and after the shootout ended, a man appeared and gave "each one of the injured a hundred dollars apiece not to carry it no further and not to talk to the press". Brown was never charged for the incident.
On July 16, 1978, after performing at the Apollo, Brown was arrested for reportedly failing to turn in records from one of his radio stations after the station was forced to file for bankruptcy. Brown was arrested on April 3, 1988, for assault, and again in May 1988 on drug and weapons charges, and again on September 24, 1988, following a high-speed car chase on Interstate 20 near the Georgia–South Carolina state border. He was convicted of carrying an unlicensed pistol and assaulting a police officer, along with various drug-related and driving offenses. Although he was sentenced to six years in prison, he was eventually released on parole on February 27, 1991, after serving two years of his sentence. Brown's FBI file, released to The Washington Post in 2007 under the Freedom of Information Act, related Brown's claim that the high-speed chase did not occur as claimed by the police, and that local police shot at his car several times during an incident of police harassment and assaulted him after his arrest. Local authorities found no merit to Brown's accusations.
In 1998, a woman named Mary Simons accused Brown in a civil suit of holding her captive for three days, demanding oral sex and firing a gun in his office; Simons' charge was eventually dismissed. In another civil suit, filed by former background singer Lisa Rushton alleged that between 1994 and 1999, Brown allegedly demanded sexual favors and when refused, would cut off her pay and kept her offstage. She also claimed Brown would "place a hand on her buttocks and loudly told her in a crowded restaurant to not look or speak to any other man besides himself;" Rushton eventually withdrew her lawsuit. In yet another civil suit, a woman named Lisa Agbalaya, who worked for Brown, said the singer would tell her he had "bull testicles", handed her a pair of zebra-print underwear, told her to wear them while he massaged her with oil, and fired her after she refused. A Los Angeles jury cleared the singer of sexual harassment but found him liable for wrongful termination.
The police were summoned to Brown's residence on July 3, 2000, after he was accused of charging at an electric company repairman with a steak knife when the repairman visited Brown's house to investigate a complaint about having no lights at the residence. In 2003, Brown was pardoned by the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services for past crimes that he was convicted of committing in South Carolina.
Domestic violence arrests
Brown was repeatedly arrested for domestic violence. Adrienne Rodriguez, his third wife, had him arrested four times between 1987 and 1995 on charges of assault. In one incident, Rodriguez reported to authorities that Brown beat her with an iron pipe and shot at her car. Rodriguez was hospitalized after the last assault in October 1995, but charges were dropped after she died in January 1996.
In January 2004, Brown was arrested in South Carolina on a domestic violence charge after Tomi Rae Hynie accused him of pushing her to the floor during an argument at their home, where she suffered scratches and bruises to her right arm and hip. In June, Brown pleaded no contest to the domestic violence incident, but served no jail time. Instead, Brown was required to forfeit a US$1,087 bond as punishment.
Rape accusation
In January 2005, a woman named Jacque Hollander filed a lawsuit against James Brown, which stemmed from an alleged 1988 rape. When the case was initially heard before a judge in 2002, Hollander's claims against Brown were dismissed by the court as the limitations period for filing the suit had expired. Hollander claimed that stress from the alleged assault later caused her to contract Graves' disease, a thyroid condition. Hollander claimed that the incident took place in South Carolina while she was employed by Brown as a publicist. Hollander alleged that, during her ride in a van with Brown, Brown pulled over to the side of the road and sexually assaulted her while he threatened her with a shotgun. In her case against Brown, Hollander entered as evidence a DNA sample and a polygraph result, but the evidence was not considered due to the limitations defense. Hollander later attempted to bring her case before the Supreme Court, but nothing came of her complaint.
Later life and death
Illness
On December 23, 2006, Brown became very ill and arrived at his dentist's office in Atlanta, Georgia, several hours late. His appointment was for dental implant work. During that visit, Brown's dentist observed that he looked "very bad ... weak and dazed". Instead of performing the work, the dentist advised Brown to see a doctor right away about his medical condition.
Brown went to the Emory Crawford Long Memorial Hospital the next day for medical evaluation and was admitted for observation and treatment. According to Charles Bobbit, his longtime personal manager and friend, Brown had been struggling with a noisy cough since returning from a November trip to Europe. Yet, Bobbit said, the singer had a history of never complaining about being sick and often performed while ill. Although Brown had to cancel upcoming concerts in Waterbury, Connecticut, and Englewood, New Jersey, he was confident that the doctor would discharge him from the hospital in time for his scheduled New Year's Eve shows at the Count Basie Theatre in New Jersey and the B. B. King Blues Club in New York, in addition to performing a song live on CNN for the Anderson Cooper New Year's Eve special. Brown remained hospitalized, however, and his condition worsened throughout the day.
Death
On Christmas Day 2006, Brown died at approximately 1:45 a.m. EST (06:45 UTC), at age 73, from congestive heart failure, resulting from complications of pneumonia. Bobbit was at his bedside and later reported that Brown stuttered, "I'm going away tonight", then took three long, quiet breaths and fell asleep before dying.
In 2019, an investigation by CNN and other journalists led to suggestions that Brown had been murdered.
Memorial services
After Brown's death, his relatives, a host of celebrities, and thousands of fans gathered, on December 28, 2006, for a public memorial service at the Apollo Theater in New York City and, on December 30, 2006, at the James Brown Arena in Augusta, Georgia. A separate, private ceremony was held in North Augusta, South Carolina, on December 29, 2006, with Brown's family in attendance. Celebrities at these various memorial events included Michael Jackson, Jimmy Cliff, Joe Frazier, Buddy Guy, Ice Cube, Ludacris, Dr. Dre, Little Richard, Dick Gregory, MC Hammer, Prince, Jesse Jackson, Ice-T, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bootsy Collins, LL Cool J, Lil Wayne, Lenny Kravitz, 50 Cent, Stevie Wonder, and Don King. Rev. Al Sharpton officiated at all of Brown's public and private memorial services.
Brown's memorial ceremonies were all elaborate, complete with costume changes for the deceased and videos featuring him in concert. His body, placed in a Promethean casket—bronze polished to a golden shine—was driven through the streets of New York to the Apollo Theater in a white, glass-encased horse-drawn carriage. In Augusta, Georgia, his memorial procession stopped to pay respects at his statue, en route to the James Brown Arena. During the public memorial there, a video showed Brown's last performance in Augusta, Georgia, with the Ray Charles version of "Georgia on My Mind" playing soulfully in the background. His last backup band, The Soul Generals, also played some of his hits during that tribute at the arena. The group was joined by Bootsy Collins on bass, with MC Hammer performing a dance in James Brown style. Former Temptations lead singer Ali-Ollie Woodson performed "Walk Around Heaven All Day" at the memorial services.
Last will and testament
Brown signed his last will and testament on August 1, 2000, before J. Strom Thurmond Jr., an attorney for the estate. The irrevocable trust, separate and apart from Brown's will, was created on his behalf, that same year, by his attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, one of three personal representatives of Brown's estate. His will covered the disposition of his personal assets, such as clothing, cars, and jewelry, while the irrevocable trust covered the disposition of the music rights, business assets of James Brown Enterprises, and his Beech Island, South Carolina estate.
During the reading of the will on January 11, 2007, Thurmond revealed that Brown's six adult living children (Terry Brown, Larry Brown, Daryl Brown, Yamma Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas and Venisha Brown) were named in the document, while Hynie and James II were not mentioned as heirs. Brown's will had been signed 10 months before James II was born and more than a year before Brown's marriage to Tomi Rae Hynie. Like Brown's will, his irrevocable trust omitted Hynie and James II as recipients of Brown's property. The irrevocable trust had also been established before, and not amended since, the birth of James II.
On January 24, 2007, Brown's children filed a lawsuit, petitioning the court to remove the personal representatives from the estate (including Brown's attorney, as well as trustee Albert "Buddy" Dallas) and appoint a special administrator because of perceived impropriety and alleged mismanagement of Brown's assets. On January 31, 2007, Hynie also filed a lawsuit against Brown's estate, challenging the validity of the will and the irrevocable trust. Hynie's suit asked the court both to recognize her as Brown's widow and to appoint a special administrator for the estate.
On January 27, 2015, Judge Doyet Early III ruled that Tomi Rae Hynie Brown was officially the widow of James Brown. The decision was based on the grounds that Hynie's previous marriage was invalid and that James Brown had abandoned his efforts to annul his own marriage to Hynie.
On February 19, 2015, the South Carolina Supreme Court intervened, halting all lower court actions in the estate and undertaking to review previous actions itself. The South Carolina Court of Appeals in July 2018 ruled that Hynie was, in fact, Mr. Brown's wife. In 2020, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that Hynie had not been legally married to Brown and did not have a right to his estate. It was reported in July 2021 that Brown's family had reached a settlement ending the 15-year battle over the estate.
Legacy
Brown received awards and honors throughout his lifetime and after his death. In 1993 the City Council of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, conducted a poll of residents to choose a new name for the bridge that crossed the Yampa River on Shield Drive. The winning name, with 7,717 votes, was "James Brown Soul Center of the Universe Bridge". The bridge was officially dedicated in September 1993, and Brown appeared at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the event. A petition was started by local ranchers to return the name to "Stockbridge" for historical reasons, but they backed off after citizens defeated their efforts because of the popularity of Brown's name. Brown returned to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, on July 4, 2002, for an outdoor festival, performing with bands such as The String Cheese Incident.
During his long career, Brown received many prestigious music industry awards and honors. In 1983 he was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. Brown was one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction dinner in New York on January 23, 1986. At that time, the members of his original vocal group, The Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Johnny Terry, Bobby Bennett, and Lloyd Stallworth) were not inducted. However, on April 14, 2012, The Famous Flames were automatically and retroactively inducted into the Hall of Fame alongside Brown, without the need for nomination and voting, on the basis that they should have been inducted with him in 1986. On February 25, 1992, Brown was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 34th annual Grammy Awards. Exactly a year later, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 4th annual Rhythm & Blues Foundation Pioneer Awards. A ceremony was held for Brown on January 10, 1997, to honor him with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
On June 15, 2000, Brown was honored as an inductee to the New York Songwriters Hall of Fame. On August 6, 2002, he was honored as the first BMI Urban Icon at the BMI Urban Awards. His BMI accolades include an impressive ten R&B Awards and six Pop Awards. On November 14, 2006, Brown was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, and he was one of several inductees to perform at the ceremony. In recognition of his accomplishments as an entertainer, Brown was a recipient of Kennedy Center Honors on December 7, 2003. In 2004 Rolling Stone magazine ranked James Brown as No. 7 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In an article for Rolling Stone, critic Robert Christgau cited Brown as "the greatest musician of the rock era". He appeared on the BET Awards June 24, 2003, and received the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Michael Jackson, and performed with him. In 2004, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member Aretha Franklin.
Brown was also honored in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, for his philanthropy and civic activities. On November 20, 1993, Mayor Charles DeVaney of Augusta held a ceremony to dedicate a section of 9th Street between Broad and Twiggs Streets, renamed "James Brown Boulevard", in the entertainer's honor. On May 6, 2005, as a 72nd birthday present for Brown, the city of Augusta unveiled a life-sized bronze James Brown statue on Broad Street. The statue was to have been dedicated a year earlier, but the ceremony was put on hold because of a domestic abuse charge that Brown faced at the time. In 2005, Charles "Champ" Walker and the We Feel Good Committee went before the County commission and received approval to change Augusta's slogan to "We Feel Good". Afterward, officials renamed the city's civic center the James Brown Arena, and James Brown attended a ceremony for the unveiling of the namesake center on October 15, 2006.
On December 30, 2006, during the public memorial service at the James Brown Arena, Dr. Shirley A.R. Lewis, president of Paine College, a historically black college in Augusta, Georgia, bestowed posthumously upon Brown an honorary doctorate in recognition and honor of his many contributions to the school in its times of need. Brown had originally been scheduled to receive the honorary doctorate from Paine College during its May 2007 commencement.
During the 49th Annual Grammy Awards presentation on February 11, 2007, James Brown's famous cape was draped over a microphone by Danny Ray at the end of a montage in honor of notable people in the music industry who died during the previous year. Earlier that evening, Christina Aguilera delivered an impassioned performance of Brown's hit "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" followed by a standing ovation, while Chris Brown performed a dance routine in honor of James Brown.
On August 17, 2013, the official R&B Music Hall of Fame honored and inducted James Brown at a ceremony held at the Waetjen Auditorium at Cleveland State University.
ART THE BOX began in early 2015 as a collaboration between three organizations: the City of Augusta, the Downtown Development Authority and the Greater Augusta Arts Council. 19 local artists were selected by a committee to create art on 23 local traffic signal control cabinets (TSCCs). A competition was held to create the James Brown Tribute Box on the corner of James Brown Blvd. (9th Ave.) and Broad St. This box was designed and painted by local artist, Ms. Robbie Pitts Bellamy and has become a favorite photo opportunity to visitors and locals in Augusta, Georgia.
"I have a lot of musical heroes but I think James Brown is at the top of the list", remarked Public Enemy's Chuck D. "Absolutely the funkiest man on Earth ... In a black household, James Brown is part of the fabric – Motown, Stax, Atlantic and James Brown."
Tributes
As a tribute to James Brown, the Rolling Stones covered the song, "I'll Go Crazy" from Brown's Live at the Apollo album, during their 2007 European tour. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has remarked, "He [James Brown] was almost a musical genre in his own right and he changed and moved forward the whole time so people were able to learn from him."
On December 22, 2007, the first annual "Tribute Fit For the King of King Records" in honor of James Brown was held at the Madison Theater in Covington, Kentucky. The tribute, organized by Bootsy Collins, featured Tony Wilson as Young James Brown with appearances by Afrika Bambaataa, Chuck D of Public Enemy, The Soul Generals, Buckethead, Freekbass, Triage and many of Brown's surviving family members. Comedian Michael Coyer was the MC for the event. During the show, the mayor of Cincinnati proclaimed December 22 as James Brown Day.
As of September 2021, a significant collection of James Brown clothing, memorabilia, and personal artifacts are on exhibit in downtown Augusta, Georgia at the Augusta History Museum.
Discography
Studio albums
Please Please Please (1958)
Try Me! (1959)
Think! (1960)
The Amazing James Brown (1961)
James Brown and His Famous Flames Tour the U.S.A. (1962)
Prisoner of Love (1963)
Grits & Soul (1964)
Showtime (1964)
Out of Sight (1964)
James Brown Plays James Brown Today & Yesterday (1965)
Mighty Instrumentals (1966)
James Brown Plays New Breed (The Boo-Ga-Loo) (1966)
James Brown Sings Christmas Songs (1966)
Handful of Soul (1966)
James Brown Sings Raw Soul (1967)
James Brown Plays the Real Thing (1967)
Cold Sweat (1967)
I Can't Stand Myself When You Touch Me (1968)
I Got the Feelin' (1968)
James Brown Plays Nothing But Soul (1968)
Thinking About Little Willie John and a Few Nice Things (1968)
A Soulful Christmas (1968)
Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud (1969)
Gettin' Down to It (1969)
The Popcorn (1969)
It's a Mother (1969)
Ain't It Funky (1970)
Soul on Top (1970)
It's a New Day – Let a Man Come In (1970)
Hey America (1970)
Sho Is Funky Down Here (1971)
Hot Pants (1971)
There It Is (1972)
Get on the Good Foot (1972)
Black Caesar (1973)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973)
The Payback (1973)
Hell (1974)
Reality (1974)
Sex Machine Today (1975)
Everybody's Doin' the Hustle & Dead on the Double Bump (1975)
Hot (1976)
Get Up Offa That Thing (1976)
Bodyheat (1976)
Mutha's Nature (1977)
Jam 1980's (1978)
Take a Look at Those Cakes (1978)
The Original Disco Man (1979)
People (1980)
Soul Syndrome (1980)
Nonstop! (1981)
Bring It On! (1983)
Gravity (1986)
I'm Real (1988)
Love Over-Due (1991)
Universal James (1992)
I'm Back (1998)
The Merry Christmas Album (1999)
The Next Step (2002)
Filmography
The T.A.M.I. Show (1964) (concert film)- with The Famous Flames
Ski Party (1965)- with The Famous Flames
James Brown: Man to Man (1968) (concert film)
The Phynx (1970)
Black Caesar (1973) (soundtrack only)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973) (soundtrack only)
The Blues Brothers (1980)
Doctor Detroit (1983)
Rocky IV (1985)
Miami Vice (1987)
James Brown: Live in East Berlin (1989)
The Simpsons (1993)
When We Were Kings (1996) (documentary)
Duckman (1997)
Soulmates (1997)
Blues Brothers 2000 (1998)
Holy Man (1998)
Undercover Brother (2002)
The Tuxedo (2002)
The Hire: Beat the Devil (2002) (short film)
Paper Chasers (2003) (documentary)
Soul Survivor (2003) (documentary)
Sid Bernstein Presents ... (2005) (documentary)
Glastonbury (2006) (documentary)
Life on the Road with Mr. and Mrs. Brown (2007) (documentary; release pending)
Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968 (2008) (concert film)
I Got The Feelin': James Brown in the '60s, three-DVD set featuring Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968, Live at the Apollo '68 [DVD version of James Brown: Man to Man], and the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston
Soul Power (2009) (documentary)
Get on Up (2014)
Biopics
Mr. Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown (2014), released in April 2014, written and directed by Alex Gibney, produced by Mick Jagger.
Get on Up (2014), released in theaters on August 1, 2014. Chadwick Boseman plays the role of James Brown in the film. Originally, Mick Jagger and Brian Grazer had begun producing a documentary film on Brown in 2013. A fiction film had been in the planning stages for many years and was revived when Jagger read the script by Jez and John-Henry Butterworth.
In other media
Games
In the video game World of Warcraft, the first boss character of the Forge of Souls dungeon is Bronjahm, "the Godfather of Souls". His quotes during the fight are musical references, and he has a chance of dropping an item called "Papa's Brand New Bag".
Television
As himself (voice) in the 1993 The Simpsons episode "Bart's Inner Child".
In 1991, Brown did a Pay Per View Special with top celebrities such as Quincy Jones, Rick James, Dan Aykroyd, Gladys Knight, Denzel Washington, MC Hammer and others attended or were opening acts. This was produced with boxing promoter Buddy Dallas. 15.5 million households tuned in at a cost $19.99.
In 2002, Brown starred in the Jackie Chan movie The Tuxedo as himself
See also
Progressive soul
References
Footnotes
Sources
Further reading
Danielsen, Anne (2006). Presence and pleasure: The funk grooves of James Brown and Parliament. Wesleyan University Press.
George, Nelson, and Leeds, Alan (editors). (2008). The James Brown Reader: 50 Years of Writing about the Godfather of Soul. New York: Plume.
Lethem, J. (June 12, 2006). "Being James Brown", Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved January 14, 2007.
McBride, James (2016) Kill 'Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul. New York: Spiegel & Grau
Sullivan, James. (2008). The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved The Soul Of America. New York: Gotham Books.
Sussman, M. (producer). (December 25, 2006). Arts: Soul classics by James Brown (multimedia presentation). The New York Times. Retrieved January 9, 2007.
Wesley, Fred. (2002). Hit Me, Fred: Recollections of a Sideman. Durham: Duke University Press.
Whitney, Marva and Waring, Charles. (2013) God, The Devil & James Brown:(Memoirs of a Funky Diva). New Romney: Bank House Books
External links
1933 births
2006 deaths
20th-century American composers
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Activists for African-American civil rights
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The J.B.'s members
The Famous Flames members | false | [
"This is a discography for the Scottish new wave band Aztec Camera.\n\nAztec Camera had success during the 1980s and 1990s with six hit studio albums and are most recognised internationally for their hit single \"Somewhere in My Heart\".\n\nAlbums\n\nStudio albums\n\nCompilation albums\n\nEPs\n\nSingles\n\nCover versions\nVan Halen: \"Jump\" (released in 1985) \nBlue Orchids: \"Bad Education\" (released in 1987)\n\"The Red Flag\" (traditional song released in 1988) \nEdwyn Collins: \"Consolation Prize\" (released in 1990) \nCyndi Lauper: \"True Colors\" (released in 1990) \nCole Porter: \"Do I Love You?\" (released in 1990)\nAmen Corner: \"(If Paradise Is) Half As Nice\" (released in 1992)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nOfficial website\nRoddy Frame on AED\n\"Killermont Street\" – a fan site for Roddy Frame and Aztec Camera\n\nDiscographies of British artists\nRock music group discographies\nNew wave discographies",
"Moanin' in the Moonlight is the first album by American blues artist Howlin' Wolf, released by Chess Records in 1959. It contains songs previously issued as singles, including one of his best-known, \"Smokestack Lightning\". Rolling Stone ranked it number 477 on its 2020 list of \"the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time\".\n\nRecording and production \nThe two earliest songs on Moanin' in the Moonlight were \"Moanin' at Midnight\" and \"How Many More Years\". These two songs and 'All Night Boogie', were recorded in Memphis, the first two at Sam Phillips' Memphis Recording Service in Memphis, Tennessee in July 1951, and, 'All Night Boogie', the last track on side one, in Memphis in 1953. These songs were sold to the Chess brothers, Leonard and Phil, who released them on two singles (Chess 1479 and Chess 1557), the first two titles being released on August 15, 1951. The rest of the songs on the album were recorded in Chicago, Illinois and were produced by either the Chess brothers and/or Willie Dixon.\n\nArtwork, packaging, and promotion \nThe original version of Moanin' in the Moonlight featured cover artwork by Don S. Bronstein and sleeve notes by Billboard editor Paul Ackerman. The label pressings from the original series have different colors on it because several pressing plants were used.\n\nThe album was featured on an advertisement in Billboard magazine on August 10, 1959, which misprinted the album's title as Howlin' at Midnite.\n\nAccolades \nIn 1987 Moanin' in the Moonlight was given a W.C. Handy Award in the \"Vintage/Reissue Album (US)\" category. Rolling Stone magazine ranked the album number 477 on its 2020 list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Robert Palmer has cited \"How Many More Years\" (recorded May 1951) as the first record to feature a distorted power chord, played by Willie Johnson on the electric guitar.\n\nTrack listing \n\nAll songs written by Chester Burnett, except when noted. (Although the original 1959 LP, and the UK Chess 1965 issue credited all compositions to 'C. Burnett' [Howlin' Wolf].)\n\nSide one\n \"Moanin' at Midnight\" – 2:58\n \"How Many More Years\" – 2:42\n \"Smokestack Lightnin'\" – 3:07\n \"Baby How Long\" – 2:56\n \"No Place to Go\" – 2:59\n \"All Night Boogie\" – 2:12\n\nSide two\n \"Evil\" – 2:55 (Willie Dixon)\n \"I'm Leavin' You\" – 3:01\n \"Moanin' for My Baby\" – 2:47\n \"I Asked for Water (She Gave Me Gasoline)\" – 2:53\n \"Forty-Four\" – 2:51 (Roosevelt Sykes, credited to Burnett)\n \"Somebody in My Home\" – 2:27\n\nPersonnel \nThe following people contributed to Moanin' in the Moonlight:\n Howlin' Wolfvocals, harmonica\n Willie Johnsonguitar\n Willie Steeledrums\n Ike Turnerpiano on \"Moanin' at Midnight\" and \"How Many More Years\"\n Hubert Sumlin – guitar\n Hosea Lee Kennard – piano\n Willie Dixon – double bass, producer\n Earl Phillips – drums\n Jody Williams – guitar\n Otis Spann – piano\n Lee Cooper – guitar on \"No Place to Go\"\n Fred Below – drums on \"All Night Boogie\"\n S. P. Leary – drums on \"I'm leaving You\"\n Adolph \"Billy\" Dockins – tenor saxophone on \"Moanin' for My Baby\"\n Otis \"Smokey\" Smothers – guitar on \"I Asked for Water (She Gave Me Gasoline)\"\n Sam Phillips – producer on \"Moanin' at Midnight\" and \"How Many More Years\"\n Leonard Chess – producer\n Phil Chess – producer\n\nReferences \n\n1959 compilation albums\nChess Records compilation albums\nHowlin' Wolf albums\nAlbums produced by Leonard Chess\nAlbums produced by Phil Chess\nAlbums produced by Willie Dixon\nAlbums produced by Sam Phillips\nAlbums recorded at Sun Studio"
]
|
[
"James Brown",
"1962-1966: Mr. Dynamite",
"What happened in 1962?",
"In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental \"Night Train\", becoming not only a top five R&B single",
"What else did it become?",
"but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100.",
"How many albums were released in this time frame?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_185d6e4eab0446b1aa68bcc9a108fa5d_1 | What else is of interest in the article? | 4 | In addition to Night Train becoming a top five single, what else is of interest in this article?? | James Brown | In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming not only a top five R&B single but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers. Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior. In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones. Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on. CANNOTANSWER | On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, | James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer, and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honorific nicknames "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and "Soul Brother No. 1". In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown was one of the first 10 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction in New York on January 23, 1986.
Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia. He first came to national public attention in the mid-1950s as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a rhythm and blues vocal group founded by Bobby Byrd. With the hit ballads "Please, Please, Please" and "Try Me", Brown built a reputation as a dynamic live performer with the Famous Flames and his backing band, sometimes known as the James Brown Band or the James Brown Orchestra. His success peaked in the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apollo and hit singles such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", "I Got You (I Feel Good)" and "It's a Man's Man's Man's World".
During the late 1960s, Brown moved from a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms and styles to a profoundly "Africanized" approach to music-making, emphasizing stripped-down interlocking rhythms that influenced the development of funk music. By the early 1970s, Brown had fully established the funk sound after the formation of the J.B.s with records such as "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine" and "The Payback". He also became noted for songs of social commentary, including the 1968 hit "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud". Brown continued to perform and record until his death from pneumonia in 2006.
Brown recorded 17 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B charts. He also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that did not reach No. 1. Brown was inducted into the first class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013 as an artist and then in 2017 as a songwriter. He also received honors from several other institutions, including inductions into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In Joel Whitburn's analysis of the Billboard R&B charts from 1942 to 2010, Brown is ranked No. 1 in The Top 500 Artists. He is ranked seventh on Rolling Stone list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
Early life
Brown was born on May 3, 1933, in Barnwell, South Carolina, to 16-year-old Susie (née Behling; 1916–2004) and 21-year-old Joseph Gardner Brown (1912–1993) in a small wooden shack. Brown's name was supposed to have been Joseph James Brown, but his first and middle names were mistakenly reversed on his birth certificate. In his autobiography, Brown stated that he had Chinese and Native American ancestry and that his father was of mixed African-American and Native American descent, while his mother was of mixed African-American and Asian descent.
The Brown family lived in extreme poverty in Elko, South Carolina, which was an impoverished town at the time. They later moved to Augusta, Georgia, when James was four or five. His family first settled at one of his aunts' brothels. They later moved into a house shared with another aunt. Brown's mother eventually left the family after a contentious and abusive marriage and moved to New York. Brown spent long stretches of time on his own, hanging out in the streets and hustling to get by. He managed to stay in school until the sixth grade.
He began singing in talent shows as a young child, first appearing at Augusta's Lenox Theater in 1944, winning the show after singing the ballad "So Long". While in Augusta, Brown performed buck dances for change to entertain troops from Camp Gordon at the start of World War II as their convoys traveled over a canal bridge near his aunt's home. He learned to play the piano, guitar, and harmonica during this period. He became inspired to become an entertainer after hearing "Caldonia" by Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five. In his teen years, Brown briefly had a career as a boxer.
At the age of 16, he was convicted of robbery and sent to a juvenile detention center in Toccoa. There, he formed a gospel quartet with four fellow cellmates, including Johnny Terry. Brown met singer Bobby Byrd when the two played against each other in a baseball game outside the detention center. Byrd also discovered that Brown could sing after hearing of "a guy called Music Box", which was Brown's musical nickname at the prison. Byrd has since claimed he and his family helped to secure an early release, which led to Brown promising the court he would "sing for the Lord". Brown was released on a work sponsorship with Toccoa business owner S.C. Lawson. Lawson was impressed with Brown's work ethic and secured his release with a promise to keep him employed for two years. Brown was paroled on June 14, 1952. Brown went on to work with both of Lawson's sons, and would come back to visit the family from time to time throughout his career. Shortly after being paroled he joined the gospel group the Ever-Ready Gospel Singers, featuring Byrd's sister Sarah.
Music career
1953–1961: The Famous Flames
Brown eventually joined Bobby Byrd's group in 1954. The group had evolved from the Gospel Starlighters, an a cappella gospel group, to an R&B group with the name the Avons. He reputedly joined the band after one of its members, Troy Collins, died in a car crash. Along with Brown and Byrd, the group consisted of Sylvester Keels, Doyle Oglesby, Fred Pulliam, Nash Knox and Nafloyd Scott. Influenced by R&B groups such as Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, the Orioles and Billy Ward and his Dominoes, the group changed its name, first to the Toccoa Band and then to the Flames. Nafloyd's brother Baroy later joined the group on bass guitar, and Brown, Byrd and Keels switched lead positions and instruments, often playing drums and piano. Johnny Terry later joined, by which time Pulliam and Oglesby had long left. one of his 10 children commited suicide.
Berry Trimier became the group's first manager, booking them at parties near college campuses in Georgia and South Carolina. The group had already gained a reputation as a good live act when they renamed themselves the Famous Flames. In 1955, the group had contacted Little Richard while performing in Macon. Richard convinced the group to get in contact with his manager at the time, Clint Brantley, at his nightclub. Brantley agreed to manage them after seeing the group audition. He then sent them to a local radio station to record a demo session, where they performed their own composition "Please, Please, Please", which was inspired when Little Richard wrote the words of the title on a napkin and Brown was determined to make a song out of it. The Famous Flames eventually signed with King Records' Federal subsidiary in Cincinnati, Ohio, and issued a re-recorded version of "Please, Please, Please" in March 1956. The song became the group's first R&B hit, selling over a million copies. None of their follow-ups gained similar success. By 1957, Brown had replaced Clint Brantley as manager and hired Ben Bart, chief of Universal Attractions Agency. That year the original Flames broke up, after Bart changed the name of the group to "James Brown and The Famous Flames".
In October 1958, Brown released the ballad "Try Me", which hit number one on the R&B chart in the beginning of 1959, becoming the first of seventeen chart-topping R&B hits. Shortly afterwards, he recruited his first band, led by J. C. Davis, and reunited with Bobby Byrd who joined a revived Famous Flames lineup that included Eugene "Baby" Lloyd Stallworth and Bobby Bennett, with Johnny Terry sometimes coming in as the "fifth Flame". Brown, the Flames, and his entire band debuted at the Apollo Theater on April 24, 1959, opening for Brown's idol, Little Willie John. Federal Records issued two albums credited to Brown and the Famous Flames (both contained previously released singles). By 1960, Brown began multi-tasking in the recording studio involving himself, his singing group, the Famous Flames, and his band, a separate entity from The Flames, sometimes named the James Brown Orchestra or the James Brown Band. That year the band released the top ten R&B hit "(Do the) Mashed Potatoes" on Dade Records, owned by Henry Stone, billed under the pseudonym "Nat Kendrick & the Swans" due to label issues. As a result of its success, King president Syd Nathan shifted Brown's contract from Federal to the parent label, King, which according to Brown in his autobiography meant "you got more support from the company". While with King, Brown, under the Famous Flames lineup, released the hit-filled album Think! and the following year released two albums with the James Brown Band earning second billing. With the Famous Flames, Brown sang lead on several more hits, including"Bewildered", "I'll Go Crazy" and "Think", songs that hinted at his emerging style.
1962–1966: Mr. Dynamite
In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming a top five R&B single. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers.
Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior.
In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones.
Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" in 1965, which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Brown also signed a production deal with Loma Records. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World", a third Top 10 Pop hit (No. 1 R&B) which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on.
1967–1970: Soul Brother No. 1
By 1967, Brown's emerging sound had begun to be defined as funk music. That year he released what some critics cited as the first true funk song, "Cold Sweat", which hit number-one on the R&B chart (Top 10 Pop) and became one of his first recordings to contain a drum break and also the first that featured a harmony that was reduced to a single chord. The instrumental arrangements on tracks such as "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" and "Licking Stick-Licking Stick" (both recorded in 1968) and "Funky Drummer" (recorded in 1969) featured a more developed version of Brown's mid-1960s style, with the horn section, guitars, bass and drums meshed together in intricate rhythmic patterns based on multiple interlocking riffs.
Changes in Brown's style that started with "Cold Sweat" also established the musical foundation for Brown's later hits, such as "I Got the Feelin'" (1968) and "Mother Popcorn" (1969). By this time Brown's vocals frequently took the form of a kind of rhythmic declamation, not quite sung but not quite spoken, that only intermittently featured traces of pitch or melody. This would become a major influence on the techniques of rapping, which would come to maturity along with hip hop music in the coming decades. Brown's style of funk in the late 1960s was based on interlocking syncopated parts: strutting bass lines, syncopated drum patterns, and iconic percussive guitar riffs. The main guitar ostinatos for "Ain't It Funky" and "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" (both 1969), are examples of Brown's refinement of New Orleans funk; irresistibly danceable riffs, stripped down to their rhythmic essence. On both recordings the tonal structure is bare bones. The pattern of attack-points is the emphasis, not the pattern of pitches, as if the guitar were an African drum, or idiophone. Alexander Stewart states that this popular feel was passed along from "New Orleans—through James Brown's music, to the popular music of the 1970s". Those same tracks were later resurrected by countless hip-hop musicians from the 1970s onward. As a result, James Brown remains to this day the world's most sampled recording artist, but, two tracks that he wrote, are also synonymous with modern dance, especially with house music, jungle music, and drum and bass music, (which were sped up exponentially, in the latter two genres).
"Bring it Up" has an Afro-Cuban guajeo-like structure. All three of these guitar riffs are based on an onbeat/offbeat structure. Stewart says that it "is different from a time line (such as clave and tresillo) in that it is not an exact pattern, but more of a loose organizing principle."
It was around this time as the musician's popularity increased that he acquired the nickname "Soul Brother No. 1", after failing to win the title "King of Soul" from Solomon Burke during a Chicago gig two years prior. Brown's recordings during this period influenced musicians across the industry, most notably groups such as Sly and the Family Stone, Funkadelic, Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, Booker T. & the M.G.s as well as vocalists such as Edwin Starr, David Ruffin and Dennis Edwards from The Temptations, and Michael Jackson, who, throughout his career, cited Brown as his ultimate idol.
Brown's band during this period employed musicians and arrangers who had come up through the jazz tradition. He was noted for his ability as a bandleader and songwriter to blend the simplicity and drive of R&B with the rhythmic complexity and precision of jazz. Trumpeter Lewis Hamlin and saxophonist/keyboardist Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis (the successor to previous bandleader Nat Jones) led the band. Guitarist Jimmy Nolen provided percussive, deceptively simple riffs for each song, and Maceo Parker's prominent saxophone solos provided a focal point for many performances. Other members of Brown's band included stalwart Famous Flames singer and sideman Bobby Byrd, trombonist Fred Wesley, drummers John "Jabo" Starks, Clyde Stubblefield and Melvin Parker, saxophonist St. Clair Pinckney, guitarist Alphonso "Country" Kellum and bassist Bernard Odum.
In addition to a torrent of singles and studio albums, Brown's output during this period included two more successful live albums, Live at the Garden (1967) and Live at the Apollo, Volume II (1968), and a 1968 television special, James Brown: Man to Man. His music empire expanded along with his influence on the music scene. As Brown's music empire grew, his desire for financial and artistic independence grew as well. Brown bought radio stations during the late 1960s, including WRDW in his native Augusta, where he shined shoes as a boy. In November 1967, James Brown purchased radio station WGYW in Knoxville, Tennessee, for a reported $75,000, according to the January 20, 1968 Record World magazine. The call letters were changed to WJBE reflecting his initials. WJBE began on January 15, 1968, and broadcast a Rhythm & Blues format. The station slogan was "WJBE 1430 Raw Soul". Brown also bought WEBB in Baltimore in 1970.
Brown branched out to make several recordings with musicians outside his own band. In an attempt to appeal to the older, more affluent, and predominantly white adult contemporary audience, Brown recorded Gettin' Down To It (1969) and Soul on Top (1970)—two albums consisting mostly of romantic ballads, jazz standards, and homologous reinterpretations of his earlier hits—with the Dee Felice Trio and the Louie Bellson Orchestra. In 1968, he recorded a number of funk-oriented tracks with The Dapps, a white Cincinnati band, including the hit "I Can't Stand Myself". He also released three albums of Christmas music with his own band.
1970–1975: Godfather of Soul
In March 1970, most of Brown's mid-to-late 1960s road band walked out on him due to money disputes, a development augured by the prior disbandment of The Famous Flames singing group for the same reason in 1968. Brown and erstwhile Famous Flames singer Bobby Byrd (who chose to remain in the band during this tumultuous period) subsequently recruited several members of the Cincinnati-based The Pacemakers, which included Bootsy Collins and his brother Phelps "Catfish" Collins; augmented by the remaining members of the 1960s road band (including Fred Wesley, who rejoined Brown's outfit in December 1970) and other newer musicians, they would form the nucleus of The J.B.'s, Brown's new backing ensemble. Shortly following their first performance together, the band entered the studio to record the Brown-Byrd composition, "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine"; the song and other contemporaneous singles would further cement Brown's influence in the nascent genre of funk music. This iteration of the J.B.'s dissolved after a March 1971 European tour (documented on the 1991 archival release Love Power Peace) due to additional money disputes and Bootsy Collins' use of LSD; the Collins brothers would soon become integral members of Parliament-Funkadelic, while a new lineup of the J.B.'s coalesced around Wesley, St. Clair Pinckney and drummer John Starks.
In 1971, Brown began recording for Polydor Records which also took over distribution of Brown's King Records catalog. Many of his sidemen and supporting players, including Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s, Bobby Byrd, Lyn Collins, Vicki Anderson and former rival Hank Ballard, released records on the People label, an imprint founded by Brown that was purchased by Polydor as part of Brown's new contract. The recordings on the People label, almost all of which were produced by Brown himself, exemplified the mature flowering of his "house style". Several tracks thought by critics to be excessively sexual were released at this time. He would later soften his vocal approach. Songs such as "I Know You Got Soul" by Bobby Byrd, "Think" by Lyn Collins and "Doing It to Death" by Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s are considered as much a part of Brown's recorded legacy as the recordings released under his own name. That year, he also began touring African countries and was received well by audiences there. During the 1972 presidential election, James Brown openly proclaimed his support of Richard Nixon for reelection to the presidency over Democratic candidate George McGovern. The decision led to a boycott of his performances and, according to Brown, cost him a big portion of his black audience. As a result, Brown's record sales and concerts in the United States reached a lull in 1973 as he failed to land a number-one R&B single that year. Brown relied more on touring outside the United States where he continued to perform for sold-out crowds in cities such as London, Paris and Lausanne. That year he also faced problems with the IRS for failure to pay back taxes, charging he hadn't paid upwards of $4.5 million; five years earlier, the IRS had claimed he owed nearly $2 million.
In 1973, Brown provided the score for the blaxploitation film Black Caesar. He also recorded another soundtrack for the film, Slaughter's Big Rip-Off. Following the release of these soundtracks, Brown acquired a self-styled nickname, "The Godfather of Soul", which remains his most popular nickname. In 1974 he returned to the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts with "The Payback", with the parent album reaching the same spot on the album charts; he would reach No. 1 two more times in 1974, with "My Thang" and "Papa Don't Take No Mess". Later that year, he returned to Africa and performed in Kinshasa as part of the buildup to The Rumble in the Jungle fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. Admirers of Brown's music, including Miles Davis and other jazz musicians, began to cite him as a major influence on their own styles. However, Brown, like others who were influenced by his music, also "borrowed" from other musicians. His 1976 single, "Hot (I Need To Be Loved, Loved, Loved, Loved)" (R&B No. 31), interpolated the main riff from "Fame" by David Bowie while omitting any attribution to the latter song's composers (including Bowie, John Lennon and guitarist Carlos Alomar), not the other way around as was often believed.
"Papa Don't Take No Mess" would prove to be his final single to reach the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts and his final Top 40 pop single of the 1970s, though he continued to occasionally have Top 10 R&B recordings. Among his top ten R&B hits during this latter period included "Funky President" (R&B No. 4) and "Get Up Offa That Thing" (R&B No. 4), the latter song released in 1976 and aimed at musical rivals such as Barry White, The Ohio Players and K.C. and the Sunshine Band. Brown credited his then-wife and two of their children as writers of the song to avoid concurrent tax problems with the IRS. Starting in October 1975, Brown produced, directed, and hosted Future Shock, an Atlanta-based television variety show that ran for three years.
1975–1991: Decline and resurgence
Although his records were mainstays of the vanguard New York underground disco scene (exemplified by DJs such as David Mancuso and Francis Grasso) from 1969 onwards, Brown did not consciously yield to the trend until 1975's Sex Machine Today. By 1977, he was no longer a dominant force in R&B. After "Get Up Offa That Thing", thirteen of Brown's late 1970s recordings for Polydor failed to reach the Top 10 of the R&B chart, with only "Bodyheat" in 1976 and the disco-oriented "It's Too Funky in Here" in 1979 reaching the R&B Top 15 and the ballad "Kiss in '77" reaching the Top 20. After 1976's "Bodyheat", he also failed to appear on the Billboard Hot 100. As a result, Brown's concert attendance began dropping and his reported disputes with the IRS caused his business empire to collapse. In addition, Brown's former bandmates, including Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker and the Collins brothers, had found bigger success as members of George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic collective. The emergence of disco also stopped Brown's success on the R&B charts because its slicker, more commercial style had superseded his more raw funk productions.
By the release of 1979's The Original Disco Man, Brown was not providing much production or writing, leaving most of it to producer Brad Shapiro, resulting in the song "It's Too Funky in Here" becoming Brown's most successful single in this period. After two more albums failed to chart, Brown left Polydor in 1981. It was around this time that Brown changed the name of his band from the J.B.'s to the Soul Generals (or Soul G's). The band retained that name until his death. Despite Brown's declining record sales, promoters Gary LoConti and Jim Rissmiller helped Brown sell out a string of residency shows at the Country Club in Reseda. Brown's compromised commercial standing prevented him from charging a large live fee to the promoters for these shows. However, the great success of these shows marked a turning point for Brown's career, and soon he was back on top in Hollywood. Movies followed, starting with appearances in the feature films The Blues Brothers, Doctor Detroit and Rocky IV, as well as guest-starring in the Miami Vice episode "Missing Hours" (1987). In 1984, he teamed with rap musician Afrika Bambaataa on the song "Unity". A year later he signed with Scotti Brothers Records and issued the moderately successful album Gravity in 1986. It included Brown's final Top 10 pop hit, "Living in America", marking his first Top 40 entry since 1974 and his first Top 10 pop entry since 1968. Produced and written by Dan Hartman, it was also featured prominently on the Rocky IV film and soundtrack. Brown performed the song in the film at Apollo Creed's final fight, shot in the Ziegfeld Room at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and was credited in the film as "The Godfather of Soul". 1986 also saw the publication of his autobiography, James Brown: The Godfather of Soul, co-written with Bruce Tucker. In 1987, Brown won the Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Living in America".
In 1988, Brown worked with the production team Full Force on the new jack swing-influenced I'm Real. It spawned his final two Top 10 R&B hits, "I'm Real" and "Static", which peaked at No. 2 and No. 5, respectively, on the R&B charts. Meanwhile, the drum break from the second version of the original 1969 hit "Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose" (the recording included on the compilation album In the Jungle Groove) became so popular at hip hop dance parties (especially for breakdance) during the early 1980s that hip hop pioneer Kurtis Blow called the song "the national anthem of hip hop".
1991–2006: Final years
After his stint in prison during the late 1980s, Brown met Larry Fridie and Thomas Hart who produced the first James Brown biopic, entitled James Brown: The Man, the Message, the Music, released in 1992. He returned to music with the album Love Over-Due in 1991. It included the single "(So Tired of Standing Still We Got to) Move On", which peaked at No. 48 on the R&B chart. His former record label Polydor also released the four-CD box set Star Time, spanning Brown's career to date. Brown's release from prison also prompted his former record labels to reissue his albums on CD, featuring additional tracks and commentary by music critics and historians. That same year, Brown appeared on rapper MC Hammer's video for "Too Legit to Quit". Hammer had been noted, alongside Big Daddy Kane, for bringing Brown's unique stage shows and their own energetic dance moves to the hip-hop generation; both listed Brown as their idol. Both musicians also sampled his work, with Hammer having sampled the rhythms from "Super Bad" for his song "Here Comes the Hammer", from his best-selling album Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em. Big Daddy Kane sampled many times. Before the year was over, Brown–who had immediately returned to work with his band following his release–organized a pay-per-view concert following a show at Los Angeles' Wiltern Theatre, that was well received.
On June 10, 1991, James Brown and a star-filled line up performed before a crowd at the Wiltern Theatre for a live pay-per-view at-home audience. James Brown: Living in America – Live! was the brainchild of Indiana producer Danny Hubbard. It featured
M.C. Hammer as well as Bell Biv Devoe, Heavy D & the Boys, En Vogue, C+C Music Factory, Quincy Jones, Sherman Hemsley and Keenen Ivory Wayans. Ice-T, Tone Loc and Kool Moe Dee performed paying homage to Brown. This was Brown's first public performance since his parole from the South Carolina prison system in February. He had served two-and-a-half years of two concurrent six-year sentences for aggravated assault and other felonies.
Brown continued making recordings. In 1993 his album Universal James was released. It included his final Billboard charting single, "Can't Get Any Harder", which peaked at No. 76 on the US R&B chart and reached No. 59 on the UK chart. Its brief charting in the UK was probably due to the success of a remixed version of "I Feel Good" featuring Dakeyne. Brown also released the singles "How Long" and "Georgia-Lina", which failed to chart. In 1995, Brown returned to the Apollo and recorded Live at the Apollo 1995. It included a studio track titled "Respect Me", which was released as a single; again it failed to chart. Brown's final studio albums, I'm Back and The Next Step, were released in 1998 and 2002 respectively. I'm Back featured the song "Funk on Ah Roll", which peaked at No. 40 in the UK but did not chart in his native US. The Next Step included Brown's final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In". Both albums were produced by Derrick Monk. Brown's concert success, however, remained unabated and he kept up with a grueling schedule throughout the remainder of his life, living up to his previous nickname, "The Hardest Working Man in Show Business", in spite of his advanced age. In 2003, Brown participated in the PBS American Masters television documentary James Brown: Soul Survivor, which was directed by Jeremy Marre.
Brown performed in the Super Bowl XXXI halftime show.
Brown celebrated his status as an icon by appearing in a variety of entertainment and sports events, including an appearance on the WCW pay-per-view event, SuperBrawl X, where he danced alongside wrestler Ernest "The Cat" Miller, who based his character on Brown, during his in-ring skit with The Maestro. Brown then appeared in Tony Scott's short film Beat the Devil in 2001. He was featured alongside Clive Owen, Gary Oldman, Danny Trejo and Marilyn Manson. Brown also made a cameo appearance in the 2002 Jackie Chan film The Tuxedo, in which Chan was required to finish Brown's act after having accidentally knocked out the singer. In 2002, Brown appeared in Undercover Brother, playing himself.
In 2004, Brown performed in Hyde Park, London as a support act for Red Hot Chili Peppers concerts. The beginning of 2005 saw the publication of Brown's second book, I Feel Good: A Memoir of a Life of Soul, written with Marc Eliot. In February and March, he participated in recording sessions for an intended studio album with Fred Wesley, Pee Wee Ellis, and other longtime collaborators. Though he lost interest in the album, which remains unreleased, a track from the sessions, "Gut Bucket", appeared on a compilation CD included with the August 2006 issue of MOJO. He appeared at Edinburgh 50,000 – The Final Push, the final Live 8 concert on July 6, 2005, where he performed a duet with British pop star Will Young on "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag". In the Black Eyed Peas album "Monkey Business", Brown was featured on a track called, "They Don't Want Music". The previous week he had performed a duet with another British pop star, Joss Stone, on the United Kingdom chat show Friday Night with Jonathan Ross. In 2006, Brown continued his "Seven Decades of Funk World Tour", his last concert tour where he performed all over the world. His final U.S. performances were in San Francisco on August 20, 2006, as headliner at the Festival of the Golden Gate (Foggfest) on the Great Meadow at Fort Mason. The following day, August 21, he performed at Humboldt State University in Arcata, CA, at a small theatre (800 seats) on campus. His last shows were greeted with positive reviews, and one of his final concert appearances at the Irish Oxegen festival in Punchestown in 2006 was performed for a record crowd of 80,000 people. He played a full concert as part of the BBC's Electric Proms on October 27, 2006, at The Roundhouse, supported by The Zutons, with special appearances from Max Beasley and The Sugababes.
Brown's last televised appearance was at his induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame in November 2006, before his death the following month. Before his death, Brown had been scheduled to perform a duet with singer Annie Lennox on the song "Vengeance" for her new album Venus, which was released in 2007.
Artistry
As a vocalist, Brown performed in a forceful shout style derived from gospel music. Meanwhile, "his rhythmic grunts and expressive shrieks harked back farther still to ring shouts, work songs, and field cries", according to the Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History (1996): "He reimported the rhythmic complexity from which rhythm and blues, under the dual pressure of rock 'n' roll and pop, had progressively fallen away since its birth from jazz and blues."
For many years, Brown's touring show was one of the most extravagant productions in American popular music. At the time of Brown's death, his band included three guitarists, two bass guitar players, two drummers, three horns and a percussionist. The bands that he maintained during the late 1960s and 1970s were of comparable size, and the bands also included a three-piece amplified string section that played during the ballads. Brown employed between 40 and 50 people for the James Brown Revue, and members of the revue traveled with him in a bus to cities and towns all over the country, performing upwards of 330 shows a year with almost all of the shows as one-nighters.
Concert style
Before James Brown appeared on stage, his personal MC gave him an elaborate introduction accompanied by drumrolls, as the MC worked in Brown's various sobriquets along with the names of many of his hit songs. The introduction by Fats Gonder, captured on Brown's 1963 album Live at the Apollo is a representative example:
James Brown's performances were famous for their intensity and length. His own stated goal was to "give people more than what they came for — make them tired, 'cause that's what they came for.'" Brown's concert repertoire consisted mostly of his own hits and recent songs, with a few R&B covers mixed in. Brown danced vigorously as he sang, working popular dance steps such as the Mashed Potato into his routine along with dramatic leaps, splits and slides. In addition, his horn players and singing group (The Famous Flames) typically performed choreographed dance routines, and later incarnations of the Revue included backup dancers. Male performers in the Revue were required to wear tuxedoes and cummerbunds long after more casual concert wear became the norm among the younger musical acts. Brown's own extravagant outfits and his elaborate processed hairdo completed the visual impression. A James Brown concert typically included a performance by a featured vocalist, such as Vicki Anderson or Marva Whitney, and an instrumental feature for the band, which sometimes served as the opening act for the show.
A trademark feature of Brown's stage shows, usually during the song "Please, Please, Please", involved Brown dropping to his knees while clutching the microphone stand in his hands, prompting the show's longtime MC, Danny Ray, to come out, drape a cape over Brown's shoulders and escort him off the stage after he had worked himself to exhaustion during his performance. As Brown was escorted off the stage by the MC, Brown's vocal group, the Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Lloyd Stallworth, and Bobby Bennett), continued singing the background vocals "Please, please don't go-oh". Brown would then shake off the cape and stagger back to the microphone to perform an encore. Brown's routine was inspired by a similar one used by the professional wrestler Gorgeous George, as well as Little Richard. In his 2005 autobiography I Feel Good: A Memoir in a Life of Soul, Brown, who was a fan of Gorgeous George, credited the wrestler as the inspiration for both his cape routine and concert attire, stating, "Seeing him on TV helped create the James Brown you see on stage". Brown performs a version of the cape routine in the film of the T.A.M.I. Show (1964) in which he and The Famous Flames upstaged The Rolling Stones, and over the closing credits of the film Blues Brothers 2000. The Police refer to "James Brown on the T.A.M.I. Show" in their 1980 song "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around".
Band leadership
Brown demanded extreme discipline, perfection and precision from his musicians and dancers – performers in his Revue showed up for rehearsals and members wore the right "uniform" or "costume" for concert performances. During an interview conducted by Terri Gross during the NPR segment "Fresh Air" with Maceo Parker, a former saxophonist in Brown's band for most of the 1960s and part of the 1970s and 1980s, Parker offered his experience with the discipline that Brown demanded of the band:
Brown also had a practice of directing, correcting and assessing fines on members of his band who broke his rules, such as wearing unshined shoes, dancing out of sync or showing up late on stage. During some of his concert performances, Brown danced in front of his band with his back to the audience as he slid across the floor, flashing hand signals and splaying his pulsating fingers to the beat of the music. Although audiences thought Brown's dance routine was part of his act, this practice was actually his way of pointing to the offending member of his troupe who played or sang the wrong note or committed some other infraction. Brown used his splayed fingers and hand signals to alert the offending person of the fine that person must pay to him for breaking his rules.
Brown's demands of his support acts were, meanwhile, quite the reverse. As Fred Wesley recalled of his time as musical director of the JBs, if Brown felt intimidated by a support act he would try to "undermine their performances by shortening their sets without notice, demanding that they not do certain showstopping songs, and even insisting on doing the unthinkable, playing drums on some of their songs. A sure set killer."
Social activism
Education advocacy and humanitarianism
Brown's main social activism was in preserving the need for education among youths, influenced by his own troubled childhood and his being forced to drop out of the seventh grade for wearing "insufficient clothes". Due to heavy dropout rates in the 1960s, Brown released the pro-education song, "Don't Be a Drop-Out". Royalties of the song were donated to dropout-prevention charity programs. The success of this led to Brown meeting with President Lyndon B. Johnson at the White House. Johnson cited Brown for being a positive role model to the youth. A lifelong Republican, Brown gained the confidence of President Richard Nixon, to whom he found he had to explain the plight of Black Americans.
Throughout the remainder of his life, Brown made public speeches in schools and continued to advocate the importance of education in school. Upon filing his will in 2002, Brown advised that most of the money in his estate go into creating the I Feel Good, Inc. Trust to benefit disadvantaged children and provide scholarships for his grandchildren. His final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In", advocated against murders of young children in the streets. Brown often gave out money and other items to children while traveling to his childhood hometown of Augusta. A week before his death, while looking gravely ill, Brown gave out toys and turkeys to kids at an Atlanta orphanage, something he had done several times over the years.
Civil rights and self-reliance
Though Brown performed at benefit rallies for civil rights organizations in the mid-1960s, Brown often shied away from discussing civil rights in his songs in fear of alienating his crossover audience. In 1968, in response to a growing urge of anti-war advocacy during the Vietnam War, Brown recorded the song, "America Is My Home". In the song, Brown performed a rap, advocating patriotism and exhorting listeners to "stop pitying yoursel[ves] and get up and fight". At the time of the song's release, Brown had been participating in performing for troops stationed in Vietnam.
The Boston Garden concert
On April 5, 1968, a day after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, Brown provided a free citywide televised concert at the Boston Garden to maintain public order and calm concerned Boston residents (over the objections of the police chief, who wanted to call off the concert, which he thought would incite violence). The show was later released on DVD as Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968. According to the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston, then-mayor Kevin White had strongly restrained the Boston police from cracking down on minor violence and protests after the assassination, while religious and community leaders worked to keep tempers from flaring. White arranged to have Brown's performance broadcast multiple times on Boston's public television station, WGBH, thus keeping potential rioters off the streets, watching the concert for free. Angered by not being told of this, Brown demanded $60,000 for "gate" fees (money he thought would be lost from ticket sales on account of the concert being broadcast for free) and then threatened to go public about the secret arrangement when the city balked at paying up afterwards, news of which would have been a political death blow to White and spark riots of its own. White eventually lobbied the behind-the-scenes power-brokering group known as "The Vault" to come up with money for Brown's gate fee and other social programs, contributing $100,000. Brown received $15,000 from them via the city. White also persuaded management at the Garden to give up their share of receipts to make up the differences. Following this successful performance, Brown was counseled by President Johnson to urge cities ravaged from riots following King's assassination to not resort to violence, telling them to "cool it, there's another way".
Responding to pressure from black activists, including H. Rap Brown, to take a bigger stance on their issues and from footage of black on black crime committed in inner cities, Brown wrote the lyrics to the song "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud", which his bandleader Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis accompanied with a musical composition. Released late that summer, the song's lyrics helped to make it an anthem for the civil rights movement. Brown only performed the song sporadically following its initial release and later stated he had regrets about recording it, saying in 1984, "Now 'Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud' has done more for the black race than any other record, but if I had my choice, I wouldn't have done it, because I don't like defining anyone by race. To teach race is to teach separatism." In his autobiography he stated:
The song is obsolete now ... But it was necessary to teach pride then, and I think the song did a lot of good for a lot of people ... People called "Black and Proud" militant and angry – maybe because of the line about dying on your feet instead of living on your knees. But really, if you listen to it, it sounds like a children's song. That's why I had children in it, so children who heard it could grow up feeling pride ... The song cost me a lot of my crossover audience. The racial makeup at my concerts was mostly black after that. I don't regret it, though, even if it was misunderstood.
In 1969, Brown recorded two more songs of social commentary, "World" and "I Don't Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing", the latter song pleading for equal opportunity and self-reliance rather than entitlement. In 1970, in response to some black leaders for not being outspoken enough, he recorded "Get Up, Get into It, Get Involved" and "Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing". In 1971, he began touring Africa, including Zambia and Nigeria. He was made "freeman of the city" in Lagos, Nigeria, by Oba Adeyinka Oyekan, for his "influence on black people all over the world". With his company, James Brown Enterprises, Brown helped to provide jobs for blacks in business in the communities. As the 1970s continued, Brown continued to record songs of social commentary, most prominently 1972's "King Heroin" and the two-part ballad "Public Enemy", which dealt with drug addiction.
Political views
During the 1968 presidential campaign, Brown endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hubert Humphrey and appeared with Humphrey at political rallies. Brown was labeled an "Uncle Tom" for supporting Humphrey and also for releasing the pro-American funk song, "America Is My Home", in which Brown had lambasted protesters of the Vietnam War as well as the politics of pro-black activists. Brown began supporting Republican president Richard Nixon after being invited to perform at Nixon's inaugural ball in January 1969. Brown's endorsement of Nixon during the 1972 presidential election negatively impacted his career during that period with several national Black organizations boycotting his records and protesting at his concert shows; a November 1972 show in Cincinnati was picketed with signs saying, "James Brown: Nixon's Clown". Brown initially was invited to perform at a Youth Concert following Nixon's inauguration in January 1973 but bailed out due to the backlash he suffered from supporting Nixon. Brown joined fellow black entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., who faced similar backlash, to back out of the concert. Brown blamed it on "fatigue". Brown later reversed his support of Nixon and composed the song, "You Can Have Watergate (Just Gimme Some Bucks And I'll Be Straight)" as a result. After Nixon resigned from office, Brown composed the 1974 hit, "Funky President (People It's Bad)", right after Gerald Ford took Nixon's place. Brown later supported Democratic President Jimmy Carter, attending one of Carter's inaugural balls in 1977. Brown also openly supported President Ronald Reagan's reelection in 1984.
Brown stated he was neither Democratic nor Republican despite his support of Republican presidents such as Nixon and Reagan as well as Democratic presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Carter. In 1999, when being interviewed by Rolling Stone, the magazine asked him to name a hero in the 20th century; Brown mentioned John F. Kennedy and then-96-year-old U.S. Senator, and former Dixiecrat, Strom Thurmond, stating "when the young whippersnappers get out of line, whether Democratic or Republican, an old man can walk up and say 'Wait a minute, son, it goes this way.' And that's great for our country. He's like a grandfather to me." In 2003, Brown was the featured attraction of a Washington D.C. fundraiser for the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Following the deaths of Ronald Reagan and his friend Ray Charles, Brown said to CNN, "I'm kind of in an uproar. I love the country and I got – you know I've been around a long time, through many presidents and everything. So after losing Mr. Reagan, who I knew very well, then Mr. Ray Charles, who I worked with and lived with like, all our life, we had a show together in Oakland many, many years ago and it's like you found the placard." Despite his contrarian political views, Brown mentored black activist Rev. Al Sharpton during the 1970s.
Personal life
At the end of his life, James Brown lived in Beech Island, South Carolina, directly across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia. Brown had diabetes that went undiagnosed for years, according to his longtime manager Charles Bobbit. In 2004, Brown was successfully treated for prostate cancer. Regardless of his health, Brown maintained his reputation as the "hardest working man in show business" by keeping up with his grueling performance schedule.
In 1962, Tammi Terrell joined the James Brown Revue. Brown became sexually involved with Terrell even though she was only 17 in a relationship that continued until she escaped his abuse. Bobby Bennett, former member of the Famous Flames, told Rolling Stone about the abuse he witnessed: "He beat Tammi Terrell terrible", said Bennett. "She was bleeding, shedding blood." Terrell, who died in 1970, was Brown's girlfriend before she became famous as Marvin Gaye's singing partner in the mid-'60s. "Tammi left him because she didn't want her butt whipped", said Bennett, who also claimed he saw Brown kick one pregnant girlfriend down a flight of stairs.
Marriages and children
Brown was married four times. His first marriage was to Velma Warren in 1953, and they had one son together. Over a decade later, the couple had separated and the final divorce decree was issued in 1969. They maintained a close friendship that lasted until Brown's death. Brown's second marriage was to Deidre "Deedee" Jenkins, on October 22, 1970. They had two daughters together. The couple were separated by 1979, after what his daughter describes as years of domestic abuse, and the final divorce decree was issued on January 10, 1981. His third marriage was to Adrienne Lois Rodriguez (March 9, 1950 – January 6, 1996), in 1984. It was a contentious marriage that made headlines due to domestic abuse complaints. Rodriguez filed for divorce in 1988, "citing years of cruelty treatment", but they reconciled. Less than a year after Rodriguez died in 1996, Brown hired Tomi Rae Hynie to be a background singer for his band and she later became his fourth wife.
On December 23, 2002, Brown and Hynie held a wedding ceremony that was officiated by the Rev. Larry Flyer. Following Brown's death, controversy surrounded the circumstances of the marriage, with Brown's attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, reporting that the marriage was not valid; Hynie was still married to Javed Ahmed, a man from Bangladesh. Hynie claimed Ahmed married her to obtain residency through a Green Card and that the marriage was annulled but the annulment did not occur until April 2004. In an attempt to prove her marriage to Brown was valid, Hynie produced a 2001 marriage certificate as proof of her marriage to Brown, but she did not provide King with court records pointing to an annulment of her marriage to him or to Ahmed. According to Dallas, Brown was angry and hurt that Hynie had concealed her prior marriage from him and Brown moved to file for annulment from Hynie. Dallas added that though Hynie's marriage to Ahmed was annulled after she married Brown, the Brown–Hynie marriage was not valid under South Carolina law because Brown and Hynie did not remarry after the annulment. In August 2003, Brown took out a full-page public notice in Variety featuring Hynie, James II and himself on vacation at Disney World to announce that he and Hynie were going their separate ways. In 2015, a judge ruled Hynie as Brown's legal widow.
Brown had numerous children and acknowledged nine of them including five sons – Teddy (1954–1973), Terry, Larry, Daryl, and James Joseph Brown Jr. and four daughters – Lisa, Dr. Yamma Noyola Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas, and Venisha Brown (1964–2018). Brown also had eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Brown's eldest son, Teddy, died in a car crash on June 14, 1973. According to an August 22, 2007, article published in the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, DNA tests indicate that Brown also fathered at least three extramarital children. The first one of them to be identified is LaRhonda Pettit (born 1962), a retired flight attendant and teacher who lives in Houston. During contesting of Brown's will, another of the Brown family attorneys, Debra Opri, revealed to Larry King that Brown wanted a DNA test performed after his death to confirm the paternity of James Brown Jr. (born 2001)—not for Brown's sake but for the sake of the other family members. In April 2007, Hynie selected a guardian ad litem whom she wanted appointed by the court to represent her son, James Brown Jr., in the paternity proceedings. James Brown Jr. was confirmed to be his biological son.
Drug abuse
For most of his career, Brown had a strict drug- and alcohol-free policy for any member in his entourage, including band members, and would fire people who disobeyed orders, particularly those who used or abused drugs. Although early members of the Famous Flames were fired for using alcohol, Brown often served a highball consisting of Delaware Punch and moonshine at his St. Albans, Queens house in the mid-1960s. Some of the original members of Brown's 1970s band, the J.B.'s, including Catfish and Bootsy Collins, intentionally took LSD during a performance in 1971, causing Brown to fire them after the show because he had suspected them of being on drugs all along.
Aide Bob Patton has asserted that he accidentally shared a PCP-laced cannabis joint with Brown in the mid-1970s and "hallucinated for hours", although Brown "talked about it as if it was only marijuana he was smoking". By the mid-1980s, it was widely alleged that Brown was using drugs, with Vicki Anderson confirming to journalist Barney Hoskyns that Brown's regular use of PCP (colloquially known as "angel dust") "began before 1982". After he met and later married Adrienne Rodriguez in 1984, she and Brown began using PCP together. This drug usage often resulted in violent outbursts from him, and he was arrested several times for domestic violence against Rodriguez while high on the drug. By January 1988, Brown faced four criminal charges within a 12-month span relating to driving, PCP, and gun possession. After an April 1988 arrest for domestic abuse, Brown went on the CNN program Sonya Live in L.A. with host Sonya Friedman. The interview became notorious for Brown's irreverent demeanor, with some asserting that Brown was high.
One of Brown's former mistresses recalled in a GQ magazine article on Brown some years after his death that Brown would smoke PCP ("until that got hard to find") and cocaine, mixed with tobacco in Kool cigarettes. He also engaged in the off-label use of sildenafil, maintaining that it gave him "extra energy". While once under the influence of PCP (which he continued to procure dependent on its availability) when traveling in a car, Brown alleged that passing trees contained psychotronic surveillance technology.
In January 1998, he spent a week in rehab to deal with an addiction to unspecified prescription drugs. A week after his release, he was arrested for an unlawful use of a handgun and possession of cannabis. Prior to his death in December 2006, when Brown entered Emory University Hospital, traces of cocaine were found in the singer's urine. His widow suggested Brown would "do crack" with a female acquaintance.
Theft and assault convictions
Brown's personal life was marred by several brushes with the law. At the age of 16, he was convicted of theft and served three years in juvenile prison. During a concert held at Club 15 in Macon, Georgia in 1963, while Otis Redding was performing alongside his former band Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers, Brown reportedly tried to shoot his musical rival Joe Tex. The incident led to multiple people being shot and stabbed. Since Brown was still on parole at the time, he relied on his agent Clint Brantley "and a few thousand dollars to make the situation disappear". According to Jenkins, "seven people got shot", and after the shootout ended, a man appeared and gave "each one of the injured a hundred dollars apiece not to carry it no further and not to talk to the press". Brown was never charged for the incident.
On July 16, 1978, after performing at the Apollo, Brown was arrested for reportedly failing to turn in records from one of his radio stations after the station was forced to file for bankruptcy. Brown was arrested on April 3, 1988, for assault, and again in May 1988 on drug and weapons charges, and again on September 24, 1988, following a high-speed car chase on Interstate 20 near the Georgia–South Carolina state border. He was convicted of carrying an unlicensed pistol and assaulting a police officer, along with various drug-related and driving offenses. Although he was sentenced to six years in prison, he was eventually released on parole on February 27, 1991, after serving two years of his sentence. Brown's FBI file, released to The Washington Post in 2007 under the Freedom of Information Act, related Brown's claim that the high-speed chase did not occur as claimed by the police, and that local police shot at his car several times during an incident of police harassment and assaulted him after his arrest. Local authorities found no merit to Brown's accusations.
In 1998, a woman named Mary Simons accused Brown in a civil suit of holding her captive for three days, demanding oral sex and firing a gun in his office; Simons' charge was eventually dismissed. In another civil suit, filed by former background singer Lisa Rushton alleged that between 1994 and 1999, Brown allegedly demanded sexual favors and when refused, would cut off her pay and kept her offstage. She also claimed Brown would "place a hand on her buttocks and loudly told her in a crowded restaurant to not look or speak to any other man besides himself;" Rushton eventually withdrew her lawsuit. In yet another civil suit, a woman named Lisa Agbalaya, who worked for Brown, said the singer would tell her he had "bull testicles", handed her a pair of zebra-print underwear, told her to wear them while he massaged her with oil, and fired her after she refused. A Los Angeles jury cleared the singer of sexual harassment but found him liable for wrongful termination.
The police were summoned to Brown's residence on July 3, 2000, after he was accused of charging at an electric company repairman with a steak knife when the repairman visited Brown's house to investigate a complaint about having no lights at the residence. In 2003, Brown was pardoned by the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services for past crimes that he was convicted of committing in South Carolina.
Domestic violence arrests
Brown was repeatedly arrested for domestic violence. Adrienne Rodriguez, his third wife, had him arrested four times between 1987 and 1995 on charges of assault. In one incident, Rodriguez reported to authorities that Brown beat her with an iron pipe and shot at her car. Rodriguez was hospitalized after the last assault in October 1995, but charges were dropped after she died in January 1996.
In January 2004, Brown was arrested in South Carolina on a domestic violence charge after Tomi Rae Hynie accused him of pushing her to the floor during an argument at their home, where she suffered scratches and bruises to her right arm and hip. In June, Brown pleaded no contest to the domestic violence incident, but served no jail time. Instead, Brown was required to forfeit a US$1,087 bond as punishment.
Rape accusation
In January 2005, a woman named Jacque Hollander filed a lawsuit against James Brown, which stemmed from an alleged 1988 rape. When the case was initially heard before a judge in 2002, Hollander's claims against Brown were dismissed by the court as the limitations period for filing the suit had expired. Hollander claimed that stress from the alleged assault later caused her to contract Graves' disease, a thyroid condition. Hollander claimed that the incident took place in South Carolina while she was employed by Brown as a publicist. Hollander alleged that, during her ride in a van with Brown, Brown pulled over to the side of the road and sexually assaulted her while he threatened her with a shotgun. In her case against Brown, Hollander entered as evidence a DNA sample and a polygraph result, but the evidence was not considered due to the limitations defense. Hollander later attempted to bring her case before the Supreme Court, but nothing came of her complaint.
Later life and death
Illness
On December 23, 2006, Brown became very ill and arrived at his dentist's office in Atlanta, Georgia, several hours late. His appointment was for dental implant work. During that visit, Brown's dentist observed that he looked "very bad ... weak and dazed". Instead of performing the work, the dentist advised Brown to see a doctor right away about his medical condition.
Brown went to the Emory Crawford Long Memorial Hospital the next day for medical evaluation and was admitted for observation and treatment. According to Charles Bobbit, his longtime personal manager and friend, Brown had been struggling with a noisy cough since returning from a November trip to Europe. Yet, Bobbit said, the singer had a history of never complaining about being sick and often performed while ill. Although Brown had to cancel upcoming concerts in Waterbury, Connecticut, and Englewood, New Jersey, he was confident that the doctor would discharge him from the hospital in time for his scheduled New Year's Eve shows at the Count Basie Theatre in New Jersey and the B. B. King Blues Club in New York, in addition to performing a song live on CNN for the Anderson Cooper New Year's Eve special. Brown remained hospitalized, however, and his condition worsened throughout the day.
Death
On Christmas Day 2006, Brown died at approximately 1:45 a.m. EST (06:45 UTC), at age 73, from congestive heart failure, resulting from complications of pneumonia. Bobbit was at his bedside and later reported that Brown stuttered, "I'm going away tonight", then took three long, quiet breaths and fell asleep before dying.
In 2019, an investigation by CNN and other journalists led to suggestions that Brown had been murdered.
Memorial services
After Brown's death, his relatives, a host of celebrities, and thousands of fans gathered, on December 28, 2006, for a public memorial service at the Apollo Theater in New York City and, on December 30, 2006, at the James Brown Arena in Augusta, Georgia. A separate, private ceremony was held in North Augusta, South Carolina, on December 29, 2006, with Brown's family in attendance. Celebrities at these various memorial events included Michael Jackson, Jimmy Cliff, Joe Frazier, Buddy Guy, Ice Cube, Ludacris, Dr. Dre, Little Richard, Dick Gregory, MC Hammer, Prince, Jesse Jackson, Ice-T, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bootsy Collins, LL Cool J, Lil Wayne, Lenny Kravitz, 50 Cent, Stevie Wonder, and Don King. Rev. Al Sharpton officiated at all of Brown's public and private memorial services.
Brown's memorial ceremonies were all elaborate, complete with costume changes for the deceased and videos featuring him in concert. His body, placed in a Promethean casket—bronze polished to a golden shine—was driven through the streets of New York to the Apollo Theater in a white, glass-encased horse-drawn carriage. In Augusta, Georgia, his memorial procession stopped to pay respects at his statue, en route to the James Brown Arena. During the public memorial there, a video showed Brown's last performance in Augusta, Georgia, with the Ray Charles version of "Georgia on My Mind" playing soulfully in the background. His last backup band, The Soul Generals, also played some of his hits during that tribute at the arena. The group was joined by Bootsy Collins on bass, with MC Hammer performing a dance in James Brown style. Former Temptations lead singer Ali-Ollie Woodson performed "Walk Around Heaven All Day" at the memorial services.
Last will and testament
Brown signed his last will and testament on August 1, 2000, before J. Strom Thurmond Jr., an attorney for the estate. The irrevocable trust, separate and apart from Brown's will, was created on his behalf, that same year, by his attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, one of three personal representatives of Brown's estate. His will covered the disposition of his personal assets, such as clothing, cars, and jewelry, while the irrevocable trust covered the disposition of the music rights, business assets of James Brown Enterprises, and his Beech Island, South Carolina estate.
During the reading of the will on January 11, 2007, Thurmond revealed that Brown's six adult living children (Terry Brown, Larry Brown, Daryl Brown, Yamma Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas and Venisha Brown) were named in the document, while Hynie and James II were not mentioned as heirs. Brown's will had been signed 10 months before James II was born and more than a year before Brown's marriage to Tomi Rae Hynie. Like Brown's will, his irrevocable trust omitted Hynie and James II as recipients of Brown's property. The irrevocable trust had also been established before, and not amended since, the birth of James II.
On January 24, 2007, Brown's children filed a lawsuit, petitioning the court to remove the personal representatives from the estate (including Brown's attorney, as well as trustee Albert "Buddy" Dallas) and appoint a special administrator because of perceived impropriety and alleged mismanagement of Brown's assets. On January 31, 2007, Hynie also filed a lawsuit against Brown's estate, challenging the validity of the will and the irrevocable trust. Hynie's suit asked the court both to recognize her as Brown's widow and to appoint a special administrator for the estate.
On January 27, 2015, Judge Doyet Early III ruled that Tomi Rae Hynie Brown was officially the widow of James Brown. The decision was based on the grounds that Hynie's previous marriage was invalid and that James Brown had abandoned his efforts to annul his own marriage to Hynie.
On February 19, 2015, the South Carolina Supreme Court intervened, halting all lower court actions in the estate and undertaking to review previous actions itself. The South Carolina Court of Appeals in July 2018 ruled that Hynie was, in fact, Mr. Brown's wife. In 2020, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that Hynie had not been legally married to Brown and did not have a right to his estate. It was reported in July 2021 that Brown's family had reached a settlement ending the 15-year battle over the estate.
Legacy
Brown received awards and honors throughout his lifetime and after his death. In 1993 the City Council of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, conducted a poll of residents to choose a new name for the bridge that crossed the Yampa River on Shield Drive. The winning name, with 7,717 votes, was "James Brown Soul Center of the Universe Bridge". The bridge was officially dedicated in September 1993, and Brown appeared at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the event. A petition was started by local ranchers to return the name to "Stockbridge" for historical reasons, but they backed off after citizens defeated their efforts because of the popularity of Brown's name. Brown returned to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, on July 4, 2002, for an outdoor festival, performing with bands such as The String Cheese Incident.
During his long career, Brown received many prestigious music industry awards and honors. In 1983 he was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. Brown was one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction dinner in New York on January 23, 1986. At that time, the members of his original vocal group, The Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Johnny Terry, Bobby Bennett, and Lloyd Stallworth) were not inducted. However, on April 14, 2012, The Famous Flames were automatically and retroactively inducted into the Hall of Fame alongside Brown, without the need for nomination and voting, on the basis that they should have been inducted with him in 1986. On February 25, 1992, Brown was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 34th annual Grammy Awards. Exactly a year later, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 4th annual Rhythm & Blues Foundation Pioneer Awards. A ceremony was held for Brown on January 10, 1997, to honor him with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
On June 15, 2000, Brown was honored as an inductee to the New York Songwriters Hall of Fame. On August 6, 2002, he was honored as the first BMI Urban Icon at the BMI Urban Awards. His BMI accolades include an impressive ten R&B Awards and six Pop Awards. On November 14, 2006, Brown was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, and he was one of several inductees to perform at the ceremony. In recognition of his accomplishments as an entertainer, Brown was a recipient of Kennedy Center Honors on December 7, 2003. In 2004 Rolling Stone magazine ranked James Brown as No. 7 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In an article for Rolling Stone, critic Robert Christgau cited Brown as "the greatest musician of the rock era". He appeared on the BET Awards June 24, 2003, and received the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Michael Jackson, and performed with him. In 2004, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member Aretha Franklin.
Brown was also honored in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, for his philanthropy and civic activities. On November 20, 1993, Mayor Charles DeVaney of Augusta held a ceremony to dedicate a section of 9th Street between Broad and Twiggs Streets, renamed "James Brown Boulevard", in the entertainer's honor. On May 6, 2005, as a 72nd birthday present for Brown, the city of Augusta unveiled a life-sized bronze James Brown statue on Broad Street. The statue was to have been dedicated a year earlier, but the ceremony was put on hold because of a domestic abuse charge that Brown faced at the time. In 2005, Charles "Champ" Walker and the We Feel Good Committee went before the County commission and received approval to change Augusta's slogan to "We Feel Good". Afterward, officials renamed the city's civic center the James Brown Arena, and James Brown attended a ceremony for the unveiling of the namesake center on October 15, 2006.
On December 30, 2006, during the public memorial service at the James Brown Arena, Dr. Shirley A.R. Lewis, president of Paine College, a historically black college in Augusta, Georgia, bestowed posthumously upon Brown an honorary doctorate in recognition and honor of his many contributions to the school in its times of need. Brown had originally been scheduled to receive the honorary doctorate from Paine College during its May 2007 commencement.
During the 49th Annual Grammy Awards presentation on February 11, 2007, James Brown's famous cape was draped over a microphone by Danny Ray at the end of a montage in honor of notable people in the music industry who died during the previous year. Earlier that evening, Christina Aguilera delivered an impassioned performance of Brown's hit "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" followed by a standing ovation, while Chris Brown performed a dance routine in honor of James Brown.
On August 17, 2013, the official R&B Music Hall of Fame honored and inducted James Brown at a ceremony held at the Waetjen Auditorium at Cleveland State University.
ART THE BOX began in early 2015 as a collaboration between three organizations: the City of Augusta, the Downtown Development Authority and the Greater Augusta Arts Council. 19 local artists were selected by a committee to create art on 23 local traffic signal control cabinets (TSCCs). A competition was held to create the James Brown Tribute Box on the corner of James Brown Blvd. (9th Ave.) and Broad St. This box was designed and painted by local artist, Ms. Robbie Pitts Bellamy and has become a favorite photo opportunity to visitors and locals in Augusta, Georgia.
"I have a lot of musical heroes but I think James Brown is at the top of the list", remarked Public Enemy's Chuck D. "Absolutely the funkiest man on Earth ... In a black household, James Brown is part of the fabric – Motown, Stax, Atlantic and James Brown."
Tributes
As a tribute to James Brown, the Rolling Stones covered the song, "I'll Go Crazy" from Brown's Live at the Apollo album, during their 2007 European tour. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has remarked, "He [James Brown] was almost a musical genre in his own right and he changed and moved forward the whole time so people were able to learn from him."
On December 22, 2007, the first annual "Tribute Fit For the King of King Records" in honor of James Brown was held at the Madison Theater in Covington, Kentucky. The tribute, organized by Bootsy Collins, featured Tony Wilson as Young James Brown with appearances by Afrika Bambaataa, Chuck D of Public Enemy, The Soul Generals, Buckethead, Freekbass, Triage and many of Brown's surviving family members. Comedian Michael Coyer was the MC for the event. During the show, the mayor of Cincinnati proclaimed December 22 as James Brown Day.
As of September 2021, a significant collection of James Brown clothing, memorabilia, and personal artifacts are on exhibit in downtown Augusta, Georgia at the Augusta History Museum.
Discography
Studio albums
Please Please Please (1958)
Try Me! (1959)
Think! (1960)
The Amazing James Brown (1961)
James Brown and His Famous Flames Tour the U.S.A. (1962)
Prisoner of Love (1963)
Grits & Soul (1964)
Showtime (1964)
Out of Sight (1964)
James Brown Plays James Brown Today & Yesterday (1965)
Mighty Instrumentals (1966)
James Brown Plays New Breed (The Boo-Ga-Loo) (1966)
James Brown Sings Christmas Songs (1966)
Handful of Soul (1966)
James Brown Sings Raw Soul (1967)
James Brown Plays the Real Thing (1967)
Cold Sweat (1967)
I Can't Stand Myself When You Touch Me (1968)
I Got the Feelin' (1968)
James Brown Plays Nothing But Soul (1968)
Thinking About Little Willie John and a Few Nice Things (1968)
A Soulful Christmas (1968)
Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud (1969)
Gettin' Down to It (1969)
The Popcorn (1969)
It's a Mother (1969)
Ain't It Funky (1970)
Soul on Top (1970)
It's a New Day – Let a Man Come In (1970)
Hey America (1970)
Sho Is Funky Down Here (1971)
Hot Pants (1971)
There It Is (1972)
Get on the Good Foot (1972)
Black Caesar (1973)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973)
The Payback (1973)
Hell (1974)
Reality (1974)
Sex Machine Today (1975)
Everybody's Doin' the Hustle & Dead on the Double Bump (1975)
Hot (1976)
Get Up Offa That Thing (1976)
Bodyheat (1976)
Mutha's Nature (1977)
Jam 1980's (1978)
Take a Look at Those Cakes (1978)
The Original Disco Man (1979)
People (1980)
Soul Syndrome (1980)
Nonstop! (1981)
Bring It On! (1983)
Gravity (1986)
I'm Real (1988)
Love Over-Due (1991)
Universal James (1992)
I'm Back (1998)
The Merry Christmas Album (1999)
The Next Step (2002)
Filmography
The T.A.M.I. Show (1964) (concert film)- with The Famous Flames
Ski Party (1965)- with The Famous Flames
James Brown: Man to Man (1968) (concert film)
The Phynx (1970)
Black Caesar (1973) (soundtrack only)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973) (soundtrack only)
The Blues Brothers (1980)
Doctor Detroit (1983)
Rocky IV (1985)
Miami Vice (1987)
James Brown: Live in East Berlin (1989)
The Simpsons (1993)
When We Were Kings (1996) (documentary)
Duckman (1997)
Soulmates (1997)
Blues Brothers 2000 (1998)
Holy Man (1998)
Undercover Brother (2002)
The Tuxedo (2002)
The Hire: Beat the Devil (2002) (short film)
Paper Chasers (2003) (documentary)
Soul Survivor (2003) (documentary)
Sid Bernstein Presents ... (2005) (documentary)
Glastonbury (2006) (documentary)
Life on the Road with Mr. and Mrs. Brown (2007) (documentary; release pending)
Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968 (2008) (concert film)
I Got The Feelin': James Brown in the '60s, three-DVD set featuring Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968, Live at the Apollo '68 [DVD version of James Brown: Man to Man], and the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston
Soul Power (2009) (documentary)
Get on Up (2014)
Biopics
Mr. Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown (2014), released in April 2014, written and directed by Alex Gibney, produced by Mick Jagger.
Get on Up (2014), released in theaters on August 1, 2014. Chadwick Boseman plays the role of James Brown in the film. Originally, Mick Jagger and Brian Grazer had begun producing a documentary film on Brown in 2013. A fiction film had been in the planning stages for many years and was revived when Jagger read the script by Jez and John-Henry Butterworth.
In other media
Games
In the video game World of Warcraft, the first boss character of the Forge of Souls dungeon is Bronjahm, "the Godfather of Souls". His quotes during the fight are musical references, and he has a chance of dropping an item called "Papa's Brand New Bag".
Television
As himself (voice) in the 1993 The Simpsons episode "Bart's Inner Child".
In 1991, Brown did a Pay Per View Special with top celebrities such as Quincy Jones, Rick James, Dan Aykroyd, Gladys Knight, Denzel Washington, MC Hammer and others attended or were opening acts. This was produced with boxing promoter Buddy Dallas. 15.5 million households tuned in at a cost $19.99.
In 2002, Brown starred in the Jackie Chan movie The Tuxedo as himself
See also
Progressive soul
References
Footnotes
Sources
Further reading
Danielsen, Anne (2006). Presence and pleasure: The funk grooves of James Brown and Parliament. Wesleyan University Press.
George, Nelson, and Leeds, Alan (editors). (2008). The James Brown Reader: 50 Years of Writing about the Godfather of Soul. New York: Plume.
Lethem, J. (June 12, 2006). "Being James Brown", Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved January 14, 2007.
McBride, James (2016) Kill 'Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul. New York: Spiegel & Grau
Sullivan, James. (2008). The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved The Soul Of America. New York: Gotham Books.
Sussman, M. (producer). (December 25, 2006). Arts: Soul classics by James Brown (multimedia presentation). The New York Times. Retrieved January 9, 2007.
Wesley, Fred. (2002). Hit Me, Fred: Recollections of a Sideman. Durham: Duke University Press.
Whitney, Marva and Waring, Charles. (2013) God, The Devil & James Brown:(Memoirs of a Funky Diva). New Romney: Bank House Books
External links
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American people convicted of drug offenses
American people convicted of robbery
American people of Chinese descent
American people who self-identify as being of Native American descent
American rhythm and blues singers
American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters
American robbers
American soul keyboardists
American soul singers
American tenors
Black conservatism in the United States
Burials in South Carolina
Deaths from pneumonia in Georgia (U.S. state)
Education activists
Federal Records artists
Grammy Award winners
Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners
James Brown Orchestra members
Kennedy Center honorees
King Records artists
Musicians from Atlanta
Musicians from Augusta, Georgia
People from Barnwell, South Carolina
People from Beech Island, South Carolina
People from Toccoa, Georgia
Polydor Records artists
Recipients of American gubernatorial pardons
Record producers from Georgia (U.S. state)
Record producers from South Carolina
Scotti Brothers Records artists
Sexual assaults in the United States
Singers from Georgia (U.S. state)
Singers from South Carolina
Smash Records artists
The J.B.'s members
The Famous Flames members | true | [
"\"What Else Is There?\" is the third single from the Norwegian duo Röyksopp's second album The Understanding. It features the vocals of Karin Dreijer from the Swedish electronica duo The Knife. The album was released in the UK with the help of Astralwerks.\n\nThe single was used in an O2 television advertisement in the Czech Republic and in Slovakia during 2008. It was also used in the 2006 film Cashback and the 2007 film, Meet Bill. Trentemøller's remix of \"What Else is There?\" was featured in an episode of the HBO show Entourage.\n\nThe song was covered by extreme metal band Enslaved as a bonus track for their album E.\n\nThe song was listed as the 375th best song of the 2000s by Pitchfork Media.\n\nOfficial versions\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Album Version) – 5:17\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Radio Edit) – 3:38\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Jacques Lu Cont Radio Mix) – 3:46\n\"What Else Is There?\" (The Emperor Machine Vocal Version) – 8:03\n\"What Else Is There?\" (The Emperor Machine Dub Version) – 7:51\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Thin White Duke Mix) – 8:25\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Thin White Duke Edit) – 4:50\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Thin White Duke Remix) (Radio Edit) – 3:06\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Trentemøller Remix) – 7:42\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Vitalic Remix) – 5:14\n\nResponse\nThe single was officially released on 5 December 2005 in the UK. The single had a limited release on 21 November 2005 to promote the upcoming album. On the UK Singles Chart, it peaked at number 32, while on the UK Dance Chart, it reached number one.\n\nMusic video\nThe music video was directed by Martin de Thurah. It features Norwegian model Marianne Schröder who is shown lip-syncing Dreijer's voice. Schröder is depicted as a floating woman traveling across stormy landscapes and within empty houses. Dreijer makes a cameo appearance as a woman wearing an Elizabethan ruff while dining alone at a festive table.\n\nMovie spots\n\nThe song is also featured in the movie Meet Bill as characters played by Jessica Alba and Aaron Eckhart smoke marijuana while listening to it. It is also part of the end credits music of the film Cashback.\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\n2005 singles\nRöyksopp songs\nAstralwerks singles\nSongs written by Svein Berge\nSongs written by Torbjørn Brundtland\n2004 songs\nSongs written by Roger Greenaway\nSongs written by Olof Dreijer\nSongs written by Karin Dreijer",
"Deem in law is used to treat something as if it were really something else or it has qualities it does not have.\n\nDeem has been traditionally considered to be a useful word when it is necessary to establish a legal fiction either positively by \"deeming\" something to be what it is not or negatively by \"deeming\" something not to be what it is. All other uses of the word should be avoided. Phrases\nlike “if he deems fit”, “as he deems necessary”, or “nothing in this Act shall be deemed to...” are objectionable as unnecessary deviations from common language. \"Thinks\" or \"considers\" are preferable in the first two examples and \"construed\" or \"interpreted\" in the third.\n\nExamples \nIn Article 10 of the Treaty of Taipei, the inhabitants of Taiwan and Penghu are deemed to be nationals of the Republic of China. On 27 May 1952, , who was the head of the and one of the participants of the negotiation of the drafting of the treaty, explained in the House of Councillors of Japan that, the purpose of Article 10 is to facilitate the inhabitants' traveling to other countries. Wajima further explained that because the future ownership of the territorial sovereignty over Taiwan and Penghu are unclear, the inhabitants' nationalities would become unclear once they lose Japanese nationalities due to the two territories being renounced by Japan, causing their inconveniences when they are traveling to other countries. Therefore, according to Wajima, the Article makes the inhabitants of Taiwan and Penghu deemed to be nationals of the Republic of China and the purpose of the Article is not to define who the nationals of the Republic of China are.\n\nSee also \n\nDe jure\nDe facto\n\nReferences \n\nCommon law legal terminology"
]
|
[
"James Brown",
"1962-1966: Mr. Dynamite",
"What happened in 1962?",
"In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental \"Night Train\", becoming not only a top five R&B single",
"What else did it become?",
"but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100.",
"How many albums were released in this time frame?",
"I don't know.",
"What else is of interest in the article?",
"On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album,"
]
| C_185d6e4eab0446b1aa68bcc9a108fa5d_1 | How did the album do? | 5 | How did the album At the Appollo do on the charts? | James Brown | In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming not only a top five R&B single but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers. Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior. In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones. Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on. CANNOTANSWER | Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, | James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer, and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honorific nicknames "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and "Soul Brother No. 1". In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown was one of the first 10 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction in New York on January 23, 1986.
Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia. He first came to national public attention in the mid-1950s as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a rhythm and blues vocal group founded by Bobby Byrd. With the hit ballads "Please, Please, Please" and "Try Me", Brown built a reputation as a dynamic live performer with the Famous Flames and his backing band, sometimes known as the James Brown Band or the James Brown Orchestra. His success peaked in the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apollo and hit singles such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", "I Got You (I Feel Good)" and "It's a Man's Man's Man's World".
During the late 1960s, Brown moved from a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms and styles to a profoundly "Africanized" approach to music-making, emphasizing stripped-down interlocking rhythms that influenced the development of funk music. By the early 1970s, Brown had fully established the funk sound after the formation of the J.B.s with records such as "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine" and "The Payback". He also became noted for songs of social commentary, including the 1968 hit "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud". Brown continued to perform and record until his death from pneumonia in 2006.
Brown recorded 17 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B charts. He also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that did not reach No. 1. Brown was inducted into the first class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013 as an artist and then in 2017 as a songwriter. He also received honors from several other institutions, including inductions into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In Joel Whitburn's analysis of the Billboard R&B charts from 1942 to 2010, Brown is ranked No. 1 in The Top 500 Artists. He is ranked seventh on Rolling Stone list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
Early life
Brown was born on May 3, 1933, in Barnwell, South Carolina, to 16-year-old Susie (née Behling; 1916–2004) and 21-year-old Joseph Gardner Brown (1912–1993) in a small wooden shack. Brown's name was supposed to have been Joseph James Brown, but his first and middle names were mistakenly reversed on his birth certificate. In his autobiography, Brown stated that he had Chinese and Native American ancestry and that his father was of mixed African-American and Native American descent, while his mother was of mixed African-American and Asian descent.
The Brown family lived in extreme poverty in Elko, South Carolina, which was an impoverished town at the time. They later moved to Augusta, Georgia, when James was four or five. His family first settled at one of his aunts' brothels. They later moved into a house shared with another aunt. Brown's mother eventually left the family after a contentious and abusive marriage and moved to New York. Brown spent long stretches of time on his own, hanging out in the streets and hustling to get by. He managed to stay in school until the sixth grade.
He began singing in talent shows as a young child, first appearing at Augusta's Lenox Theater in 1944, winning the show after singing the ballad "So Long". While in Augusta, Brown performed buck dances for change to entertain troops from Camp Gordon at the start of World War II as their convoys traveled over a canal bridge near his aunt's home. He learned to play the piano, guitar, and harmonica during this period. He became inspired to become an entertainer after hearing "Caldonia" by Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five. In his teen years, Brown briefly had a career as a boxer.
At the age of 16, he was convicted of robbery and sent to a juvenile detention center in Toccoa. There, he formed a gospel quartet with four fellow cellmates, including Johnny Terry. Brown met singer Bobby Byrd when the two played against each other in a baseball game outside the detention center. Byrd also discovered that Brown could sing after hearing of "a guy called Music Box", which was Brown's musical nickname at the prison. Byrd has since claimed he and his family helped to secure an early release, which led to Brown promising the court he would "sing for the Lord". Brown was released on a work sponsorship with Toccoa business owner S.C. Lawson. Lawson was impressed with Brown's work ethic and secured his release with a promise to keep him employed for two years. Brown was paroled on June 14, 1952. Brown went on to work with both of Lawson's sons, and would come back to visit the family from time to time throughout his career. Shortly after being paroled he joined the gospel group the Ever-Ready Gospel Singers, featuring Byrd's sister Sarah.
Music career
1953–1961: The Famous Flames
Brown eventually joined Bobby Byrd's group in 1954. The group had evolved from the Gospel Starlighters, an a cappella gospel group, to an R&B group with the name the Avons. He reputedly joined the band after one of its members, Troy Collins, died in a car crash. Along with Brown and Byrd, the group consisted of Sylvester Keels, Doyle Oglesby, Fred Pulliam, Nash Knox and Nafloyd Scott. Influenced by R&B groups such as Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, the Orioles and Billy Ward and his Dominoes, the group changed its name, first to the Toccoa Band and then to the Flames. Nafloyd's brother Baroy later joined the group on bass guitar, and Brown, Byrd and Keels switched lead positions and instruments, often playing drums and piano. Johnny Terry later joined, by which time Pulliam and Oglesby had long left. one of his 10 children commited suicide.
Berry Trimier became the group's first manager, booking them at parties near college campuses in Georgia and South Carolina. The group had already gained a reputation as a good live act when they renamed themselves the Famous Flames. In 1955, the group had contacted Little Richard while performing in Macon. Richard convinced the group to get in contact with his manager at the time, Clint Brantley, at his nightclub. Brantley agreed to manage them after seeing the group audition. He then sent them to a local radio station to record a demo session, where they performed their own composition "Please, Please, Please", which was inspired when Little Richard wrote the words of the title on a napkin and Brown was determined to make a song out of it. The Famous Flames eventually signed with King Records' Federal subsidiary in Cincinnati, Ohio, and issued a re-recorded version of "Please, Please, Please" in March 1956. The song became the group's first R&B hit, selling over a million copies. None of their follow-ups gained similar success. By 1957, Brown had replaced Clint Brantley as manager and hired Ben Bart, chief of Universal Attractions Agency. That year the original Flames broke up, after Bart changed the name of the group to "James Brown and The Famous Flames".
In October 1958, Brown released the ballad "Try Me", which hit number one on the R&B chart in the beginning of 1959, becoming the first of seventeen chart-topping R&B hits. Shortly afterwards, he recruited his first band, led by J. C. Davis, and reunited with Bobby Byrd who joined a revived Famous Flames lineup that included Eugene "Baby" Lloyd Stallworth and Bobby Bennett, with Johnny Terry sometimes coming in as the "fifth Flame". Brown, the Flames, and his entire band debuted at the Apollo Theater on April 24, 1959, opening for Brown's idol, Little Willie John. Federal Records issued two albums credited to Brown and the Famous Flames (both contained previously released singles). By 1960, Brown began multi-tasking in the recording studio involving himself, his singing group, the Famous Flames, and his band, a separate entity from The Flames, sometimes named the James Brown Orchestra or the James Brown Band. That year the band released the top ten R&B hit "(Do the) Mashed Potatoes" on Dade Records, owned by Henry Stone, billed under the pseudonym "Nat Kendrick & the Swans" due to label issues. As a result of its success, King president Syd Nathan shifted Brown's contract from Federal to the parent label, King, which according to Brown in his autobiography meant "you got more support from the company". While with King, Brown, under the Famous Flames lineup, released the hit-filled album Think! and the following year released two albums with the James Brown Band earning second billing. With the Famous Flames, Brown sang lead on several more hits, including"Bewildered", "I'll Go Crazy" and "Think", songs that hinted at his emerging style.
1962–1966: Mr. Dynamite
In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming a top five R&B single. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers.
Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior.
In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones.
Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" in 1965, which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Brown also signed a production deal with Loma Records. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World", a third Top 10 Pop hit (No. 1 R&B) which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on.
1967–1970: Soul Brother No. 1
By 1967, Brown's emerging sound had begun to be defined as funk music. That year he released what some critics cited as the first true funk song, "Cold Sweat", which hit number-one on the R&B chart (Top 10 Pop) and became one of his first recordings to contain a drum break and also the first that featured a harmony that was reduced to a single chord. The instrumental arrangements on tracks such as "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" and "Licking Stick-Licking Stick" (both recorded in 1968) and "Funky Drummer" (recorded in 1969) featured a more developed version of Brown's mid-1960s style, with the horn section, guitars, bass and drums meshed together in intricate rhythmic patterns based on multiple interlocking riffs.
Changes in Brown's style that started with "Cold Sweat" also established the musical foundation for Brown's later hits, such as "I Got the Feelin'" (1968) and "Mother Popcorn" (1969). By this time Brown's vocals frequently took the form of a kind of rhythmic declamation, not quite sung but not quite spoken, that only intermittently featured traces of pitch or melody. This would become a major influence on the techniques of rapping, which would come to maturity along with hip hop music in the coming decades. Brown's style of funk in the late 1960s was based on interlocking syncopated parts: strutting bass lines, syncopated drum patterns, and iconic percussive guitar riffs. The main guitar ostinatos for "Ain't It Funky" and "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" (both 1969), are examples of Brown's refinement of New Orleans funk; irresistibly danceable riffs, stripped down to their rhythmic essence. On both recordings the tonal structure is bare bones. The pattern of attack-points is the emphasis, not the pattern of pitches, as if the guitar were an African drum, or idiophone. Alexander Stewart states that this popular feel was passed along from "New Orleans—through James Brown's music, to the popular music of the 1970s". Those same tracks were later resurrected by countless hip-hop musicians from the 1970s onward. As a result, James Brown remains to this day the world's most sampled recording artist, but, two tracks that he wrote, are also synonymous with modern dance, especially with house music, jungle music, and drum and bass music, (which were sped up exponentially, in the latter two genres).
"Bring it Up" has an Afro-Cuban guajeo-like structure. All three of these guitar riffs are based on an onbeat/offbeat structure. Stewart says that it "is different from a time line (such as clave and tresillo) in that it is not an exact pattern, but more of a loose organizing principle."
It was around this time as the musician's popularity increased that he acquired the nickname "Soul Brother No. 1", after failing to win the title "King of Soul" from Solomon Burke during a Chicago gig two years prior. Brown's recordings during this period influenced musicians across the industry, most notably groups such as Sly and the Family Stone, Funkadelic, Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, Booker T. & the M.G.s as well as vocalists such as Edwin Starr, David Ruffin and Dennis Edwards from The Temptations, and Michael Jackson, who, throughout his career, cited Brown as his ultimate idol.
Brown's band during this period employed musicians and arrangers who had come up through the jazz tradition. He was noted for his ability as a bandleader and songwriter to blend the simplicity and drive of R&B with the rhythmic complexity and precision of jazz. Trumpeter Lewis Hamlin and saxophonist/keyboardist Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis (the successor to previous bandleader Nat Jones) led the band. Guitarist Jimmy Nolen provided percussive, deceptively simple riffs for each song, and Maceo Parker's prominent saxophone solos provided a focal point for many performances. Other members of Brown's band included stalwart Famous Flames singer and sideman Bobby Byrd, trombonist Fred Wesley, drummers John "Jabo" Starks, Clyde Stubblefield and Melvin Parker, saxophonist St. Clair Pinckney, guitarist Alphonso "Country" Kellum and bassist Bernard Odum.
In addition to a torrent of singles and studio albums, Brown's output during this period included two more successful live albums, Live at the Garden (1967) and Live at the Apollo, Volume II (1968), and a 1968 television special, James Brown: Man to Man. His music empire expanded along with his influence on the music scene. As Brown's music empire grew, his desire for financial and artistic independence grew as well. Brown bought radio stations during the late 1960s, including WRDW in his native Augusta, where he shined shoes as a boy. In November 1967, James Brown purchased radio station WGYW in Knoxville, Tennessee, for a reported $75,000, according to the January 20, 1968 Record World magazine. The call letters were changed to WJBE reflecting his initials. WJBE began on January 15, 1968, and broadcast a Rhythm & Blues format. The station slogan was "WJBE 1430 Raw Soul". Brown also bought WEBB in Baltimore in 1970.
Brown branched out to make several recordings with musicians outside his own band. In an attempt to appeal to the older, more affluent, and predominantly white adult contemporary audience, Brown recorded Gettin' Down To It (1969) and Soul on Top (1970)—two albums consisting mostly of romantic ballads, jazz standards, and homologous reinterpretations of his earlier hits—with the Dee Felice Trio and the Louie Bellson Orchestra. In 1968, he recorded a number of funk-oriented tracks with The Dapps, a white Cincinnati band, including the hit "I Can't Stand Myself". He also released three albums of Christmas music with his own band.
1970–1975: Godfather of Soul
In March 1970, most of Brown's mid-to-late 1960s road band walked out on him due to money disputes, a development augured by the prior disbandment of The Famous Flames singing group for the same reason in 1968. Brown and erstwhile Famous Flames singer Bobby Byrd (who chose to remain in the band during this tumultuous period) subsequently recruited several members of the Cincinnati-based The Pacemakers, which included Bootsy Collins and his brother Phelps "Catfish" Collins; augmented by the remaining members of the 1960s road band (including Fred Wesley, who rejoined Brown's outfit in December 1970) and other newer musicians, they would form the nucleus of The J.B.'s, Brown's new backing ensemble. Shortly following their first performance together, the band entered the studio to record the Brown-Byrd composition, "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine"; the song and other contemporaneous singles would further cement Brown's influence in the nascent genre of funk music. This iteration of the J.B.'s dissolved after a March 1971 European tour (documented on the 1991 archival release Love Power Peace) due to additional money disputes and Bootsy Collins' use of LSD; the Collins brothers would soon become integral members of Parliament-Funkadelic, while a new lineup of the J.B.'s coalesced around Wesley, St. Clair Pinckney and drummer John Starks.
In 1971, Brown began recording for Polydor Records which also took over distribution of Brown's King Records catalog. Many of his sidemen and supporting players, including Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s, Bobby Byrd, Lyn Collins, Vicki Anderson and former rival Hank Ballard, released records on the People label, an imprint founded by Brown that was purchased by Polydor as part of Brown's new contract. The recordings on the People label, almost all of which were produced by Brown himself, exemplified the mature flowering of his "house style". Several tracks thought by critics to be excessively sexual were released at this time. He would later soften his vocal approach. Songs such as "I Know You Got Soul" by Bobby Byrd, "Think" by Lyn Collins and "Doing It to Death" by Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s are considered as much a part of Brown's recorded legacy as the recordings released under his own name. That year, he also began touring African countries and was received well by audiences there. During the 1972 presidential election, James Brown openly proclaimed his support of Richard Nixon for reelection to the presidency over Democratic candidate George McGovern. The decision led to a boycott of his performances and, according to Brown, cost him a big portion of his black audience. As a result, Brown's record sales and concerts in the United States reached a lull in 1973 as he failed to land a number-one R&B single that year. Brown relied more on touring outside the United States where he continued to perform for sold-out crowds in cities such as London, Paris and Lausanne. That year he also faced problems with the IRS for failure to pay back taxes, charging he hadn't paid upwards of $4.5 million; five years earlier, the IRS had claimed he owed nearly $2 million.
In 1973, Brown provided the score for the blaxploitation film Black Caesar. He also recorded another soundtrack for the film, Slaughter's Big Rip-Off. Following the release of these soundtracks, Brown acquired a self-styled nickname, "The Godfather of Soul", which remains his most popular nickname. In 1974 he returned to the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts with "The Payback", with the parent album reaching the same spot on the album charts; he would reach No. 1 two more times in 1974, with "My Thang" and "Papa Don't Take No Mess". Later that year, he returned to Africa and performed in Kinshasa as part of the buildup to The Rumble in the Jungle fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. Admirers of Brown's music, including Miles Davis and other jazz musicians, began to cite him as a major influence on their own styles. However, Brown, like others who were influenced by his music, also "borrowed" from other musicians. His 1976 single, "Hot (I Need To Be Loved, Loved, Loved, Loved)" (R&B No. 31), interpolated the main riff from "Fame" by David Bowie while omitting any attribution to the latter song's composers (including Bowie, John Lennon and guitarist Carlos Alomar), not the other way around as was often believed.
"Papa Don't Take No Mess" would prove to be his final single to reach the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts and his final Top 40 pop single of the 1970s, though he continued to occasionally have Top 10 R&B recordings. Among his top ten R&B hits during this latter period included "Funky President" (R&B No. 4) and "Get Up Offa That Thing" (R&B No. 4), the latter song released in 1976 and aimed at musical rivals such as Barry White, The Ohio Players and K.C. and the Sunshine Band. Brown credited his then-wife and two of their children as writers of the song to avoid concurrent tax problems with the IRS. Starting in October 1975, Brown produced, directed, and hosted Future Shock, an Atlanta-based television variety show that ran for three years.
1975–1991: Decline and resurgence
Although his records were mainstays of the vanguard New York underground disco scene (exemplified by DJs such as David Mancuso and Francis Grasso) from 1969 onwards, Brown did not consciously yield to the trend until 1975's Sex Machine Today. By 1977, he was no longer a dominant force in R&B. After "Get Up Offa That Thing", thirteen of Brown's late 1970s recordings for Polydor failed to reach the Top 10 of the R&B chart, with only "Bodyheat" in 1976 and the disco-oriented "It's Too Funky in Here" in 1979 reaching the R&B Top 15 and the ballad "Kiss in '77" reaching the Top 20. After 1976's "Bodyheat", he also failed to appear on the Billboard Hot 100. As a result, Brown's concert attendance began dropping and his reported disputes with the IRS caused his business empire to collapse. In addition, Brown's former bandmates, including Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker and the Collins brothers, had found bigger success as members of George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic collective. The emergence of disco also stopped Brown's success on the R&B charts because its slicker, more commercial style had superseded his more raw funk productions.
By the release of 1979's The Original Disco Man, Brown was not providing much production or writing, leaving most of it to producer Brad Shapiro, resulting in the song "It's Too Funky in Here" becoming Brown's most successful single in this period. After two more albums failed to chart, Brown left Polydor in 1981. It was around this time that Brown changed the name of his band from the J.B.'s to the Soul Generals (or Soul G's). The band retained that name until his death. Despite Brown's declining record sales, promoters Gary LoConti and Jim Rissmiller helped Brown sell out a string of residency shows at the Country Club in Reseda. Brown's compromised commercial standing prevented him from charging a large live fee to the promoters for these shows. However, the great success of these shows marked a turning point for Brown's career, and soon he was back on top in Hollywood. Movies followed, starting with appearances in the feature films The Blues Brothers, Doctor Detroit and Rocky IV, as well as guest-starring in the Miami Vice episode "Missing Hours" (1987). In 1984, he teamed with rap musician Afrika Bambaataa on the song "Unity". A year later he signed with Scotti Brothers Records and issued the moderately successful album Gravity in 1986. It included Brown's final Top 10 pop hit, "Living in America", marking his first Top 40 entry since 1974 and his first Top 10 pop entry since 1968. Produced and written by Dan Hartman, it was also featured prominently on the Rocky IV film and soundtrack. Brown performed the song in the film at Apollo Creed's final fight, shot in the Ziegfeld Room at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and was credited in the film as "The Godfather of Soul". 1986 also saw the publication of his autobiography, James Brown: The Godfather of Soul, co-written with Bruce Tucker. In 1987, Brown won the Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Living in America".
In 1988, Brown worked with the production team Full Force on the new jack swing-influenced I'm Real. It spawned his final two Top 10 R&B hits, "I'm Real" and "Static", which peaked at No. 2 and No. 5, respectively, on the R&B charts. Meanwhile, the drum break from the second version of the original 1969 hit "Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose" (the recording included on the compilation album In the Jungle Groove) became so popular at hip hop dance parties (especially for breakdance) during the early 1980s that hip hop pioneer Kurtis Blow called the song "the national anthem of hip hop".
1991–2006: Final years
After his stint in prison during the late 1980s, Brown met Larry Fridie and Thomas Hart who produced the first James Brown biopic, entitled James Brown: The Man, the Message, the Music, released in 1992. He returned to music with the album Love Over-Due in 1991. It included the single "(So Tired of Standing Still We Got to) Move On", which peaked at No. 48 on the R&B chart. His former record label Polydor also released the four-CD box set Star Time, spanning Brown's career to date. Brown's release from prison also prompted his former record labels to reissue his albums on CD, featuring additional tracks and commentary by music critics and historians. That same year, Brown appeared on rapper MC Hammer's video for "Too Legit to Quit". Hammer had been noted, alongside Big Daddy Kane, for bringing Brown's unique stage shows and their own energetic dance moves to the hip-hop generation; both listed Brown as their idol. Both musicians also sampled his work, with Hammer having sampled the rhythms from "Super Bad" for his song "Here Comes the Hammer", from his best-selling album Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em. Big Daddy Kane sampled many times. Before the year was over, Brown–who had immediately returned to work with his band following his release–organized a pay-per-view concert following a show at Los Angeles' Wiltern Theatre, that was well received.
On June 10, 1991, James Brown and a star-filled line up performed before a crowd at the Wiltern Theatre for a live pay-per-view at-home audience. James Brown: Living in America – Live! was the brainchild of Indiana producer Danny Hubbard. It featured
M.C. Hammer as well as Bell Biv Devoe, Heavy D & the Boys, En Vogue, C+C Music Factory, Quincy Jones, Sherman Hemsley and Keenen Ivory Wayans. Ice-T, Tone Loc and Kool Moe Dee performed paying homage to Brown. This was Brown's first public performance since his parole from the South Carolina prison system in February. He had served two-and-a-half years of two concurrent six-year sentences for aggravated assault and other felonies.
Brown continued making recordings. In 1993 his album Universal James was released. It included his final Billboard charting single, "Can't Get Any Harder", which peaked at No. 76 on the US R&B chart and reached No. 59 on the UK chart. Its brief charting in the UK was probably due to the success of a remixed version of "I Feel Good" featuring Dakeyne. Brown also released the singles "How Long" and "Georgia-Lina", which failed to chart. In 1995, Brown returned to the Apollo and recorded Live at the Apollo 1995. It included a studio track titled "Respect Me", which was released as a single; again it failed to chart. Brown's final studio albums, I'm Back and The Next Step, were released in 1998 and 2002 respectively. I'm Back featured the song "Funk on Ah Roll", which peaked at No. 40 in the UK but did not chart in his native US. The Next Step included Brown's final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In". Both albums were produced by Derrick Monk. Brown's concert success, however, remained unabated and he kept up with a grueling schedule throughout the remainder of his life, living up to his previous nickname, "The Hardest Working Man in Show Business", in spite of his advanced age. In 2003, Brown participated in the PBS American Masters television documentary James Brown: Soul Survivor, which was directed by Jeremy Marre.
Brown performed in the Super Bowl XXXI halftime show.
Brown celebrated his status as an icon by appearing in a variety of entertainment and sports events, including an appearance on the WCW pay-per-view event, SuperBrawl X, where he danced alongside wrestler Ernest "The Cat" Miller, who based his character on Brown, during his in-ring skit with The Maestro. Brown then appeared in Tony Scott's short film Beat the Devil in 2001. He was featured alongside Clive Owen, Gary Oldman, Danny Trejo and Marilyn Manson. Brown also made a cameo appearance in the 2002 Jackie Chan film The Tuxedo, in which Chan was required to finish Brown's act after having accidentally knocked out the singer. In 2002, Brown appeared in Undercover Brother, playing himself.
In 2004, Brown performed in Hyde Park, London as a support act for Red Hot Chili Peppers concerts. The beginning of 2005 saw the publication of Brown's second book, I Feel Good: A Memoir of a Life of Soul, written with Marc Eliot. In February and March, he participated in recording sessions for an intended studio album with Fred Wesley, Pee Wee Ellis, and other longtime collaborators. Though he lost interest in the album, which remains unreleased, a track from the sessions, "Gut Bucket", appeared on a compilation CD included with the August 2006 issue of MOJO. He appeared at Edinburgh 50,000 – The Final Push, the final Live 8 concert on July 6, 2005, where he performed a duet with British pop star Will Young on "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag". In the Black Eyed Peas album "Monkey Business", Brown was featured on a track called, "They Don't Want Music". The previous week he had performed a duet with another British pop star, Joss Stone, on the United Kingdom chat show Friday Night with Jonathan Ross. In 2006, Brown continued his "Seven Decades of Funk World Tour", his last concert tour where he performed all over the world. His final U.S. performances were in San Francisco on August 20, 2006, as headliner at the Festival of the Golden Gate (Foggfest) on the Great Meadow at Fort Mason. The following day, August 21, he performed at Humboldt State University in Arcata, CA, at a small theatre (800 seats) on campus. His last shows were greeted with positive reviews, and one of his final concert appearances at the Irish Oxegen festival in Punchestown in 2006 was performed for a record crowd of 80,000 people. He played a full concert as part of the BBC's Electric Proms on October 27, 2006, at The Roundhouse, supported by The Zutons, with special appearances from Max Beasley and The Sugababes.
Brown's last televised appearance was at his induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame in November 2006, before his death the following month. Before his death, Brown had been scheduled to perform a duet with singer Annie Lennox on the song "Vengeance" for her new album Venus, which was released in 2007.
Artistry
As a vocalist, Brown performed in a forceful shout style derived from gospel music. Meanwhile, "his rhythmic grunts and expressive shrieks harked back farther still to ring shouts, work songs, and field cries", according to the Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History (1996): "He reimported the rhythmic complexity from which rhythm and blues, under the dual pressure of rock 'n' roll and pop, had progressively fallen away since its birth from jazz and blues."
For many years, Brown's touring show was one of the most extravagant productions in American popular music. At the time of Brown's death, his band included three guitarists, two bass guitar players, two drummers, three horns and a percussionist. The bands that he maintained during the late 1960s and 1970s were of comparable size, and the bands also included a three-piece amplified string section that played during the ballads. Brown employed between 40 and 50 people for the James Brown Revue, and members of the revue traveled with him in a bus to cities and towns all over the country, performing upwards of 330 shows a year with almost all of the shows as one-nighters.
Concert style
Before James Brown appeared on stage, his personal MC gave him an elaborate introduction accompanied by drumrolls, as the MC worked in Brown's various sobriquets along with the names of many of his hit songs. The introduction by Fats Gonder, captured on Brown's 1963 album Live at the Apollo is a representative example:
James Brown's performances were famous for their intensity and length. His own stated goal was to "give people more than what they came for — make them tired, 'cause that's what they came for.'" Brown's concert repertoire consisted mostly of his own hits and recent songs, with a few R&B covers mixed in. Brown danced vigorously as he sang, working popular dance steps such as the Mashed Potato into his routine along with dramatic leaps, splits and slides. In addition, his horn players and singing group (The Famous Flames) typically performed choreographed dance routines, and later incarnations of the Revue included backup dancers. Male performers in the Revue were required to wear tuxedoes and cummerbunds long after more casual concert wear became the norm among the younger musical acts. Brown's own extravagant outfits and his elaborate processed hairdo completed the visual impression. A James Brown concert typically included a performance by a featured vocalist, such as Vicki Anderson or Marva Whitney, and an instrumental feature for the band, which sometimes served as the opening act for the show.
A trademark feature of Brown's stage shows, usually during the song "Please, Please, Please", involved Brown dropping to his knees while clutching the microphone stand in his hands, prompting the show's longtime MC, Danny Ray, to come out, drape a cape over Brown's shoulders and escort him off the stage after he had worked himself to exhaustion during his performance. As Brown was escorted off the stage by the MC, Brown's vocal group, the Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Lloyd Stallworth, and Bobby Bennett), continued singing the background vocals "Please, please don't go-oh". Brown would then shake off the cape and stagger back to the microphone to perform an encore. Brown's routine was inspired by a similar one used by the professional wrestler Gorgeous George, as well as Little Richard. In his 2005 autobiography I Feel Good: A Memoir in a Life of Soul, Brown, who was a fan of Gorgeous George, credited the wrestler as the inspiration for both his cape routine and concert attire, stating, "Seeing him on TV helped create the James Brown you see on stage". Brown performs a version of the cape routine in the film of the T.A.M.I. Show (1964) in which he and The Famous Flames upstaged The Rolling Stones, and over the closing credits of the film Blues Brothers 2000. The Police refer to "James Brown on the T.A.M.I. Show" in their 1980 song "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around".
Band leadership
Brown demanded extreme discipline, perfection and precision from his musicians and dancers – performers in his Revue showed up for rehearsals and members wore the right "uniform" or "costume" for concert performances. During an interview conducted by Terri Gross during the NPR segment "Fresh Air" with Maceo Parker, a former saxophonist in Brown's band for most of the 1960s and part of the 1970s and 1980s, Parker offered his experience with the discipline that Brown demanded of the band:
Brown also had a practice of directing, correcting and assessing fines on members of his band who broke his rules, such as wearing unshined shoes, dancing out of sync or showing up late on stage. During some of his concert performances, Brown danced in front of his band with his back to the audience as he slid across the floor, flashing hand signals and splaying his pulsating fingers to the beat of the music. Although audiences thought Brown's dance routine was part of his act, this practice was actually his way of pointing to the offending member of his troupe who played or sang the wrong note or committed some other infraction. Brown used his splayed fingers and hand signals to alert the offending person of the fine that person must pay to him for breaking his rules.
Brown's demands of his support acts were, meanwhile, quite the reverse. As Fred Wesley recalled of his time as musical director of the JBs, if Brown felt intimidated by a support act he would try to "undermine their performances by shortening their sets without notice, demanding that they not do certain showstopping songs, and even insisting on doing the unthinkable, playing drums on some of their songs. A sure set killer."
Social activism
Education advocacy and humanitarianism
Brown's main social activism was in preserving the need for education among youths, influenced by his own troubled childhood and his being forced to drop out of the seventh grade for wearing "insufficient clothes". Due to heavy dropout rates in the 1960s, Brown released the pro-education song, "Don't Be a Drop-Out". Royalties of the song were donated to dropout-prevention charity programs. The success of this led to Brown meeting with President Lyndon B. Johnson at the White House. Johnson cited Brown for being a positive role model to the youth. A lifelong Republican, Brown gained the confidence of President Richard Nixon, to whom he found he had to explain the plight of Black Americans.
Throughout the remainder of his life, Brown made public speeches in schools and continued to advocate the importance of education in school. Upon filing his will in 2002, Brown advised that most of the money in his estate go into creating the I Feel Good, Inc. Trust to benefit disadvantaged children and provide scholarships for his grandchildren. His final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In", advocated against murders of young children in the streets. Brown often gave out money and other items to children while traveling to his childhood hometown of Augusta. A week before his death, while looking gravely ill, Brown gave out toys and turkeys to kids at an Atlanta orphanage, something he had done several times over the years.
Civil rights and self-reliance
Though Brown performed at benefit rallies for civil rights organizations in the mid-1960s, Brown often shied away from discussing civil rights in his songs in fear of alienating his crossover audience. In 1968, in response to a growing urge of anti-war advocacy during the Vietnam War, Brown recorded the song, "America Is My Home". In the song, Brown performed a rap, advocating patriotism and exhorting listeners to "stop pitying yoursel[ves] and get up and fight". At the time of the song's release, Brown had been participating in performing for troops stationed in Vietnam.
The Boston Garden concert
On April 5, 1968, a day after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, Brown provided a free citywide televised concert at the Boston Garden to maintain public order and calm concerned Boston residents (over the objections of the police chief, who wanted to call off the concert, which he thought would incite violence). The show was later released on DVD as Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968. According to the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston, then-mayor Kevin White had strongly restrained the Boston police from cracking down on minor violence and protests after the assassination, while religious and community leaders worked to keep tempers from flaring. White arranged to have Brown's performance broadcast multiple times on Boston's public television station, WGBH, thus keeping potential rioters off the streets, watching the concert for free. Angered by not being told of this, Brown demanded $60,000 for "gate" fees (money he thought would be lost from ticket sales on account of the concert being broadcast for free) and then threatened to go public about the secret arrangement when the city balked at paying up afterwards, news of which would have been a political death blow to White and spark riots of its own. White eventually lobbied the behind-the-scenes power-brokering group known as "The Vault" to come up with money for Brown's gate fee and other social programs, contributing $100,000. Brown received $15,000 from them via the city. White also persuaded management at the Garden to give up their share of receipts to make up the differences. Following this successful performance, Brown was counseled by President Johnson to urge cities ravaged from riots following King's assassination to not resort to violence, telling them to "cool it, there's another way".
Responding to pressure from black activists, including H. Rap Brown, to take a bigger stance on their issues and from footage of black on black crime committed in inner cities, Brown wrote the lyrics to the song "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud", which his bandleader Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis accompanied with a musical composition. Released late that summer, the song's lyrics helped to make it an anthem for the civil rights movement. Brown only performed the song sporadically following its initial release and later stated he had regrets about recording it, saying in 1984, "Now 'Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud' has done more for the black race than any other record, but if I had my choice, I wouldn't have done it, because I don't like defining anyone by race. To teach race is to teach separatism." In his autobiography he stated:
The song is obsolete now ... But it was necessary to teach pride then, and I think the song did a lot of good for a lot of people ... People called "Black and Proud" militant and angry – maybe because of the line about dying on your feet instead of living on your knees. But really, if you listen to it, it sounds like a children's song. That's why I had children in it, so children who heard it could grow up feeling pride ... The song cost me a lot of my crossover audience. The racial makeup at my concerts was mostly black after that. I don't regret it, though, even if it was misunderstood.
In 1969, Brown recorded two more songs of social commentary, "World" and "I Don't Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing", the latter song pleading for equal opportunity and self-reliance rather than entitlement. In 1970, in response to some black leaders for not being outspoken enough, he recorded "Get Up, Get into It, Get Involved" and "Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing". In 1971, he began touring Africa, including Zambia and Nigeria. He was made "freeman of the city" in Lagos, Nigeria, by Oba Adeyinka Oyekan, for his "influence on black people all over the world". With his company, James Brown Enterprises, Brown helped to provide jobs for blacks in business in the communities. As the 1970s continued, Brown continued to record songs of social commentary, most prominently 1972's "King Heroin" and the two-part ballad "Public Enemy", which dealt with drug addiction.
Political views
During the 1968 presidential campaign, Brown endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hubert Humphrey and appeared with Humphrey at political rallies. Brown was labeled an "Uncle Tom" for supporting Humphrey and also for releasing the pro-American funk song, "America Is My Home", in which Brown had lambasted protesters of the Vietnam War as well as the politics of pro-black activists. Brown began supporting Republican president Richard Nixon after being invited to perform at Nixon's inaugural ball in January 1969. Brown's endorsement of Nixon during the 1972 presidential election negatively impacted his career during that period with several national Black organizations boycotting his records and protesting at his concert shows; a November 1972 show in Cincinnati was picketed with signs saying, "James Brown: Nixon's Clown". Brown initially was invited to perform at a Youth Concert following Nixon's inauguration in January 1973 but bailed out due to the backlash he suffered from supporting Nixon. Brown joined fellow black entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., who faced similar backlash, to back out of the concert. Brown blamed it on "fatigue". Brown later reversed his support of Nixon and composed the song, "You Can Have Watergate (Just Gimme Some Bucks And I'll Be Straight)" as a result. After Nixon resigned from office, Brown composed the 1974 hit, "Funky President (People It's Bad)", right after Gerald Ford took Nixon's place. Brown later supported Democratic President Jimmy Carter, attending one of Carter's inaugural balls in 1977. Brown also openly supported President Ronald Reagan's reelection in 1984.
Brown stated he was neither Democratic nor Republican despite his support of Republican presidents such as Nixon and Reagan as well as Democratic presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Carter. In 1999, when being interviewed by Rolling Stone, the magazine asked him to name a hero in the 20th century; Brown mentioned John F. Kennedy and then-96-year-old U.S. Senator, and former Dixiecrat, Strom Thurmond, stating "when the young whippersnappers get out of line, whether Democratic or Republican, an old man can walk up and say 'Wait a minute, son, it goes this way.' And that's great for our country. He's like a grandfather to me." In 2003, Brown was the featured attraction of a Washington D.C. fundraiser for the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Following the deaths of Ronald Reagan and his friend Ray Charles, Brown said to CNN, "I'm kind of in an uproar. I love the country and I got – you know I've been around a long time, through many presidents and everything. So after losing Mr. Reagan, who I knew very well, then Mr. Ray Charles, who I worked with and lived with like, all our life, we had a show together in Oakland many, many years ago and it's like you found the placard." Despite his contrarian political views, Brown mentored black activist Rev. Al Sharpton during the 1970s.
Personal life
At the end of his life, James Brown lived in Beech Island, South Carolina, directly across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia. Brown had diabetes that went undiagnosed for years, according to his longtime manager Charles Bobbit. In 2004, Brown was successfully treated for prostate cancer. Regardless of his health, Brown maintained his reputation as the "hardest working man in show business" by keeping up with his grueling performance schedule.
In 1962, Tammi Terrell joined the James Brown Revue. Brown became sexually involved with Terrell even though she was only 17 in a relationship that continued until she escaped his abuse. Bobby Bennett, former member of the Famous Flames, told Rolling Stone about the abuse he witnessed: "He beat Tammi Terrell terrible", said Bennett. "She was bleeding, shedding blood." Terrell, who died in 1970, was Brown's girlfriend before she became famous as Marvin Gaye's singing partner in the mid-'60s. "Tammi left him because she didn't want her butt whipped", said Bennett, who also claimed he saw Brown kick one pregnant girlfriend down a flight of stairs.
Marriages and children
Brown was married four times. His first marriage was to Velma Warren in 1953, and they had one son together. Over a decade later, the couple had separated and the final divorce decree was issued in 1969. They maintained a close friendship that lasted until Brown's death. Brown's second marriage was to Deidre "Deedee" Jenkins, on October 22, 1970. They had two daughters together. The couple were separated by 1979, after what his daughter describes as years of domestic abuse, and the final divorce decree was issued on January 10, 1981. His third marriage was to Adrienne Lois Rodriguez (March 9, 1950 – January 6, 1996), in 1984. It was a contentious marriage that made headlines due to domestic abuse complaints. Rodriguez filed for divorce in 1988, "citing years of cruelty treatment", but they reconciled. Less than a year after Rodriguez died in 1996, Brown hired Tomi Rae Hynie to be a background singer for his band and she later became his fourth wife.
On December 23, 2002, Brown and Hynie held a wedding ceremony that was officiated by the Rev. Larry Flyer. Following Brown's death, controversy surrounded the circumstances of the marriage, with Brown's attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, reporting that the marriage was not valid; Hynie was still married to Javed Ahmed, a man from Bangladesh. Hynie claimed Ahmed married her to obtain residency through a Green Card and that the marriage was annulled but the annulment did not occur until April 2004. In an attempt to prove her marriage to Brown was valid, Hynie produced a 2001 marriage certificate as proof of her marriage to Brown, but she did not provide King with court records pointing to an annulment of her marriage to him or to Ahmed. According to Dallas, Brown was angry and hurt that Hynie had concealed her prior marriage from him and Brown moved to file for annulment from Hynie. Dallas added that though Hynie's marriage to Ahmed was annulled after she married Brown, the Brown–Hynie marriage was not valid under South Carolina law because Brown and Hynie did not remarry after the annulment. In August 2003, Brown took out a full-page public notice in Variety featuring Hynie, James II and himself on vacation at Disney World to announce that he and Hynie were going their separate ways. In 2015, a judge ruled Hynie as Brown's legal widow.
Brown had numerous children and acknowledged nine of them including five sons – Teddy (1954–1973), Terry, Larry, Daryl, and James Joseph Brown Jr. and four daughters – Lisa, Dr. Yamma Noyola Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas, and Venisha Brown (1964–2018). Brown also had eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Brown's eldest son, Teddy, died in a car crash on June 14, 1973. According to an August 22, 2007, article published in the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, DNA tests indicate that Brown also fathered at least three extramarital children. The first one of them to be identified is LaRhonda Pettit (born 1962), a retired flight attendant and teacher who lives in Houston. During contesting of Brown's will, another of the Brown family attorneys, Debra Opri, revealed to Larry King that Brown wanted a DNA test performed after his death to confirm the paternity of James Brown Jr. (born 2001)—not for Brown's sake but for the sake of the other family members. In April 2007, Hynie selected a guardian ad litem whom she wanted appointed by the court to represent her son, James Brown Jr., in the paternity proceedings. James Brown Jr. was confirmed to be his biological son.
Drug abuse
For most of his career, Brown had a strict drug- and alcohol-free policy for any member in his entourage, including band members, and would fire people who disobeyed orders, particularly those who used or abused drugs. Although early members of the Famous Flames were fired for using alcohol, Brown often served a highball consisting of Delaware Punch and moonshine at his St. Albans, Queens house in the mid-1960s. Some of the original members of Brown's 1970s band, the J.B.'s, including Catfish and Bootsy Collins, intentionally took LSD during a performance in 1971, causing Brown to fire them after the show because he had suspected them of being on drugs all along.
Aide Bob Patton has asserted that he accidentally shared a PCP-laced cannabis joint with Brown in the mid-1970s and "hallucinated for hours", although Brown "talked about it as if it was only marijuana he was smoking". By the mid-1980s, it was widely alleged that Brown was using drugs, with Vicki Anderson confirming to journalist Barney Hoskyns that Brown's regular use of PCP (colloquially known as "angel dust") "began before 1982". After he met and later married Adrienne Rodriguez in 1984, she and Brown began using PCP together. This drug usage often resulted in violent outbursts from him, and he was arrested several times for domestic violence against Rodriguez while high on the drug. By January 1988, Brown faced four criminal charges within a 12-month span relating to driving, PCP, and gun possession. After an April 1988 arrest for domestic abuse, Brown went on the CNN program Sonya Live in L.A. with host Sonya Friedman. The interview became notorious for Brown's irreverent demeanor, with some asserting that Brown was high.
One of Brown's former mistresses recalled in a GQ magazine article on Brown some years after his death that Brown would smoke PCP ("until that got hard to find") and cocaine, mixed with tobacco in Kool cigarettes. He also engaged in the off-label use of sildenafil, maintaining that it gave him "extra energy". While once under the influence of PCP (which he continued to procure dependent on its availability) when traveling in a car, Brown alleged that passing trees contained psychotronic surveillance technology.
In January 1998, he spent a week in rehab to deal with an addiction to unspecified prescription drugs. A week after his release, he was arrested for an unlawful use of a handgun and possession of cannabis. Prior to his death in December 2006, when Brown entered Emory University Hospital, traces of cocaine were found in the singer's urine. His widow suggested Brown would "do crack" with a female acquaintance.
Theft and assault convictions
Brown's personal life was marred by several brushes with the law. At the age of 16, he was convicted of theft and served three years in juvenile prison. During a concert held at Club 15 in Macon, Georgia in 1963, while Otis Redding was performing alongside his former band Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers, Brown reportedly tried to shoot his musical rival Joe Tex. The incident led to multiple people being shot and stabbed. Since Brown was still on parole at the time, he relied on his agent Clint Brantley "and a few thousand dollars to make the situation disappear". According to Jenkins, "seven people got shot", and after the shootout ended, a man appeared and gave "each one of the injured a hundred dollars apiece not to carry it no further and not to talk to the press". Brown was never charged for the incident.
On July 16, 1978, after performing at the Apollo, Brown was arrested for reportedly failing to turn in records from one of his radio stations after the station was forced to file for bankruptcy. Brown was arrested on April 3, 1988, for assault, and again in May 1988 on drug and weapons charges, and again on September 24, 1988, following a high-speed car chase on Interstate 20 near the Georgia–South Carolina state border. He was convicted of carrying an unlicensed pistol and assaulting a police officer, along with various drug-related and driving offenses. Although he was sentenced to six years in prison, he was eventually released on parole on February 27, 1991, after serving two years of his sentence. Brown's FBI file, released to The Washington Post in 2007 under the Freedom of Information Act, related Brown's claim that the high-speed chase did not occur as claimed by the police, and that local police shot at his car several times during an incident of police harassment and assaulted him after his arrest. Local authorities found no merit to Brown's accusations.
In 1998, a woman named Mary Simons accused Brown in a civil suit of holding her captive for three days, demanding oral sex and firing a gun in his office; Simons' charge was eventually dismissed. In another civil suit, filed by former background singer Lisa Rushton alleged that between 1994 and 1999, Brown allegedly demanded sexual favors and when refused, would cut off her pay and kept her offstage. She also claimed Brown would "place a hand on her buttocks and loudly told her in a crowded restaurant to not look or speak to any other man besides himself;" Rushton eventually withdrew her lawsuit. In yet another civil suit, a woman named Lisa Agbalaya, who worked for Brown, said the singer would tell her he had "bull testicles", handed her a pair of zebra-print underwear, told her to wear them while he massaged her with oil, and fired her after she refused. A Los Angeles jury cleared the singer of sexual harassment but found him liable for wrongful termination.
The police were summoned to Brown's residence on July 3, 2000, after he was accused of charging at an electric company repairman with a steak knife when the repairman visited Brown's house to investigate a complaint about having no lights at the residence. In 2003, Brown was pardoned by the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services for past crimes that he was convicted of committing in South Carolina.
Domestic violence arrests
Brown was repeatedly arrested for domestic violence. Adrienne Rodriguez, his third wife, had him arrested four times between 1987 and 1995 on charges of assault. In one incident, Rodriguez reported to authorities that Brown beat her with an iron pipe and shot at her car. Rodriguez was hospitalized after the last assault in October 1995, but charges were dropped after she died in January 1996.
In January 2004, Brown was arrested in South Carolina on a domestic violence charge after Tomi Rae Hynie accused him of pushing her to the floor during an argument at their home, where she suffered scratches and bruises to her right arm and hip. In June, Brown pleaded no contest to the domestic violence incident, but served no jail time. Instead, Brown was required to forfeit a US$1,087 bond as punishment.
Rape accusation
In January 2005, a woman named Jacque Hollander filed a lawsuit against James Brown, which stemmed from an alleged 1988 rape. When the case was initially heard before a judge in 2002, Hollander's claims against Brown were dismissed by the court as the limitations period for filing the suit had expired. Hollander claimed that stress from the alleged assault later caused her to contract Graves' disease, a thyroid condition. Hollander claimed that the incident took place in South Carolina while she was employed by Brown as a publicist. Hollander alleged that, during her ride in a van with Brown, Brown pulled over to the side of the road and sexually assaulted her while he threatened her with a shotgun. In her case against Brown, Hollander entered as evidence a DNA sample and a polygraph result, but the evidence was not considered due to the limitations defense. Hollander later attempted to bring her case before the Supreme Court, but nothing came of her complaint.
Later life and death
Illness
On December 23, 2006, Brown became very ill and arrived at his dentist's office in Atlanta, Georgia, several hours late. His appointment was for dental implant work. During that visit, Brown's dentist observed that he looked "very bad ... weak and dazed". Instead of performing the work, the dentist advised Brown to see a doctor right away about his medical condition.
Brown went to the Emory Crawford Long Memorial Hospital the next day for medical evaluation and was admitted for observation and treatment. According to Charles Bobbit, his longtime personal manager and friend, Brown had been struggling with a noisy cough since returning from a November trip to Europe. Yet, Bobbit said, the singer had a history of never complaining about being sick and often performed while ill. Although Brown had to cancel upcoming concerts in Waterbury, Connecticut, and Englewood, New Jersey, he was confident that the doctor would discharge him from the hospital in time for his scheduled New Year's Eve shows at the Count Basie Theatre in New Jersey and the B. B. King Blues Club in New York, in addition to performing a song live on CNN for the Anderson Cooper New Year's Eve special. Brown remained hospitalized, however, and his condition worsened throughout the day.
Death
On Christmas Day 2006, Brown died at approximately 1:45 a.m. EST (06:45 UTC), at age 73, from congestive heart failure, resulting from complications of pneumonia. Bobbit was at his bedside and later reported that Brown stuttered, "I'm going away tonight", then took three long, quiet breaths and fell asleep before dying.
In 2019, an investigation by CNN and other journalists led to suggestions that Brown had been murdered.
Memorial services
After Brown's death, his relatives, a host of celebrities, and thousands of fans gathered, on December 28, 2006, for a public memorial service at the Apollo Theater in New York City and, on December 30, 2006, at the James Brown Arena in Augusta, Georgia. A separate, private ceremony was held in North Augusta, South Carolina, on December 29, 2006, with Brown's family in attendance. Celebrities at these various memorial events included Michael Jackson, Jimmy Cliff, Joe Frazier, Buddy Guy, Ice Cube, Ludacris, Dr. Dre, Little Richard, Dick Gregory, MC Hammer, Prince, Jesse Jackson, Ice-T, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bootsy Collins, LL Cool J, Lil Wayne, Lenny Kravitz, 50 Cent, Stevie Wonder, and Don King. Rev. Al Sharpton officiated at all of Brown's public and private memorial services.
Brown's memorial ceremonies were all elaborate, complete with costume changes for the deceased and videos featuring him in concert. His body, placed in a Promethean casket—bronze polished to a golden shine—was driven through the streets of New York to the Apollo Theater in a white, glass-encased horse-drawn carriage. In Augusta, Georgia, his memorial procession stopped to pay respects at his statue, en route to the James Brown Arena. During the public memorial there, a video showed Brown's last performance in Augusta, Georgia, with the Ray Charles version of "Georgia on My Mind" playing soulfully in the background. His last backup band, The Soul Generals, also played some of his hits during that tribute at the arena. The group was joined by Bootsy Collins on bass, with MC Hammer performing a dance in James Brown style. Former Temptations lead singer Ali-Ollie Woodson performed "Walk Around Heaven All Day" at the memorial services.
Last will and testament
Brown signed his last will and testament on August 1, 2000, before J. Strom Thurmond Jr., an attorney for the estate. The irrevocable trust, separate and apart from Brown's will, was created on his behalf, that same year, by his attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, one of three personal representatives of Brown's estate. His will covered the disposition of his personal assets, such as clothing, cars, and jewelry, while the irrevocable trust covered the disposition of the music rights, business assets of James Brown Enterprises, and his Beech Island, South Carolina estate.
During the reading of the will on January 11, 2007, Thurmond revealed that Brown's six adult living children (Terry Brown, Larry Brown, Daryl Brown, Yamma Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas and Venisha Brown) were named in the document, while Hynie and James II were not mentioned as heirs. Brown's will had been signed 10 months before James II was born and more than a year before Brown's marriage to Tomi Rae Hynie. Like Brown's will, his irrevocable trust omitted Hynie and James II as recipients of Brown's property. The irrevocable trust had also been established before, and not amended since, the birth of James II.
On January 24, 2007, Brown's children filed a lawsuit, petitioning the court to remove the personal representatives from the estate (including Brown's attorney, as well as trustee Albert "Buddy" Dallas) and appoint a special administrator because of perceived impropriety and alleged mismanagement of Brown's assets. On January 31, 2007, Hynie also filed a lawsuit against Brown's estate, challenging the validity of the will and the irrevocable trust. Hynie's suit asked the court both to recognize her as Brown's widow and to appoint a special administrator for the estate.
On January 27, 2015, Judge Doyet Early III ruled that Tomi Rae Hynie Brown was officially the widow of James Brown. The decision was based on the grounds that Hynie's previous marriage was invalid and that James Brown had abandoned his efforts to annul his own marriage to Hynie.
On February 19, 2015, the South Carolina Supreme Court intervened, halting all lower court actions in the estate and undertaking to review previous actions itself. The South Carolina Court of Appeals in July 2018 ruled that Hynie was, in fact, Mr. Brown's wife. In 2020, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that Hynie had not been legally married to Brown and did not have a right to his estate. It was reported in July 2021 that Brown's family had reached a settlement ending the 15-year battle over the estate.
Legacy
Brown received awards and honors throughout his lifetime and after his death. In 1993 the City Council of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, conducted a poll of residents to choose a new name for the bridge that crossed the Yampa River on Shield Drive. The winning name, with 7,717 votes, was "James Brown Soul Center of the Universe Bridge". The bridge was officially dedicated in September 1993, and Brown appeared at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the event. A petition was started by local ranchers to return the name to "Stockbridge" for historical reasons, but they backed off after citizens defeated their efforts because of the popularity of Brown's name. Brown returned to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, on July 4, 2002, for an outdoor festival, performing with bands such as The String Cheese Incident.
During his long career, Brown received many prestigious music industry awards and honors. In 1983 he was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. Brown was one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction dinner in New York on January 23, 1986. At that time, the members of his original vocal group, The Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Johnny Terry, Bobby Bennett, and Lloyd Stallworth) were not inducted. However, on April 14, 2012, The Famous Flames were automatically and retroactively inducted into the Hall of Fame alongside Brown, without the need for nomination and voting, on the basis that they should have been inducted with him in 1986. On February 25, 1992, Brown was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 34th annual Grammy Awards. Exactly a year later, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 4th annual Rhythm & Blues Foundation Pioneer Awards. A ceremony was held for Brown on January 10, 1997, to honor him with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
On June 15, 2000, Brown was honored as an inductee to the New York Songwriters Hall of Fame. On August 6, 2002, he was honored as the first BMI Urban Icon at the BMI Urban Awards. His BMI accolades include an impressive ten R&B Awards and six Pop Awards. On November 14, 2006, Brown was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, and he was one of several inductees to perform at the ceremony. In recognition of his accomplishments as an entertainer, Brown was a recipient of Kennedy Center Honors on December 7, 2003. In 2004 Rolling Stone magazine ranked James Brown as No. 7 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In an article for Rolling Stone, critic Robert Christgau cited Brown as "the greatest musician of the rock era". He appeared on the BET Awards June 24, 2003, and received the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Michael Jackson, and performed with him. In 2004, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member Aretha Franklin.
Brown was also honored in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, for his philanthropy and civic activities. On November 20, 1993, Mayor Charles DeVaney of Augusta held a ceremony to dedicate a section of 9th Street between Broad and Twiggs Streets, renamed "James Brown Boulevard", in the entertainer's honor. On May 6, 2005, as a 72nd birthday present for Brown, the city of Augusta unveiled a life-sized bronze James Brown statue on Broad Street. The statue was to have been dedicated a year earlier, but the ceremony was put on hold because of a domestic abuse charge that Brown faced at the time. In 2005, Charles "Champ" Walker and the We Feel Good Committee went before the County commission and received approval to change Augusta's slogan to "We Feel Good". Afterward, officials renamed the city's civic center the James Brown Arena, and James Brown attended a ceremony for the unveiling of the namesake center on October 15, 2006.
On December 30, 2006, during the public memorial service at the James Brown Arena, Dr. Shirley A.R. Lewis, president of Paine College, a historically black college in Augusta, Georgia, bestowed posthumously upon Brown an honorary doctorate in recognition and honor of his many contributions to the school in its times of need. Brown had originally been scheduled to receive the honorary doctorate from Paine College during its May 2007 commencement.
During the 49th Annual Grammy Awards presentation on February 11, 2007, James Brown's famous cape was draped over a microphone by Danny Ray at the end of a montage in honor of notable people in the music industry who died during the previous year. Earlier that evening, Christina Aguilera delivered an impassioned performance of Brown's hit "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" followed by a standing ovation, while Chris Brown performed a dance routine in honor of James Brown.
On August 17, 2013, the official R&B Music Hall of Fame honored and inducted James Brown at a ceremony held at the Waetjen Auditorium at Cleveland State University.
ART THE BOX began in early 2015 as a collaboration between three organizations: the City of Augusta, the Downtown Development Authority and the Greater Augusta Arts Council. 19 local artists were selected by a committee to create art on 23 local traffic signal control cabinets (TSCCs). A competition was held to create the James Brown Tribute Box on the corner of James Brown Blvd. (9th Ave.) and Broad St. This box was designed and painted by local artist, Ms. Robbie Pitts Bellamy and has become a favorite photo opportunity to visitors and locals in Augusta, Georgia.
"I have a lot of musical heroes but I think James Brown is at the top of the list", remarked Public Enemy's Chuck D. "Absolutely the funkiest man on Earth ... In a black household, James Brown is part of the fabric – Motown, Stax, Atlantic and James Brown."
Tributes
As a tribute to James Brown, the Rolling Stones covered the song, "I'll Go Crazy" from Brown's Live at the Apollo album, during their 2007 European tour. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has remarked, "He [James Brown] was almost a musical genre in his own right and he changed and moved forward the whole time so people were able to learn from him."
On December 22, 2007, the first annual "Tribute Fit For the King of King Records" in honor of James Brown was held at the Madison Theater in Covington, Kentucky. The tribute, organized by Bootsy Collins, featured Tony Wilson as Young James Brown with appearances by Afrika Bambaataa, Chuck D of Public Enemy, The Soul Generals, Buckethead, Freekbass, Triage and many of Brown's surviving family members. Comedian Michael Coyer was the MC for the event. During the show, the mayor of Cincinnati proclaimed December 22 as James Brown Day.
As of September 2021, a significant collection of James Brown clothing, memorabilia, and personal artifacts are on exhibit in downtown Augusta, Georgia at the Augusta History Museum.
Discography
Studio albums
Please Please Please (1958)
Try Me! (1959)
Think! (1960)
The Amazing James Brown (1961)
James Brown and His Famous Flames Tour the U.S.A. (1962)
Prisoner of Love (1963)
Grits & Soul (1964)
Showtime (1964)
Out of Sight (1964)
James Brown Plays James Brown Today & Yesterday (1965)
Mighty Instrumentals (1966)
James Brown Plays New Breed (The Boo-Ga-Loo) (1966)
James Brown Sings Christmas Songs (1966)
Handful of Soul (1966)
James Brown Sings Raw Soul (1967)
James Brown Plays the Real Thing (1967)
Cold Sweat (1967)
I Can't Stand Myself When You Touch Me (1968)
I Got the Feelin' (1968)
James Brown Plays Nothing But Soul (1968)
Thinking About Little Willie John and a Few Nice Things (1968)
A Soulful Christmas (1968)
Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud (1969)
Gettin' Down to It (1969)
The Popcorn (1969)
It's a Mother (1969)
Ain't It Funky (1970)
Soul on Top (1970)
It's a New Day – Let a Man Come In (1970)
Hey America (1970)
Sho Is Funky Down Here (1971)
Hot Pants (1971)
There It Is (1972)
Get on the Good Foot (1972)
Black Caesar (1973)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973)
The Payback (1973)
Hell (1974)
Reality (1974)
Sex Machine Today (1975)
Everybody's Doin' the Hustle & Dead on the Double Bump (1975)
Hot (1976)
Get Up Offa That Thing (1976)
Bodyheat (1976)
Mutha's Nature (1977)
Jam 1980's (1978)
Take a Look at Those Cakes (1978)
The Original Disco Man (1979)
People (1980)
Soul Syndrome (1980)
Nonstop! (1981)
Bring It On! (1983)
Gravity (1986)
I'm Real (1988)
Love Over-Due (1991)
Universal James (1992)
I'm Back (1998)
The Merry Christmas Album (1999)
The Next Step (2002)
Filmography
The T.A.M.I. Show (1964) (concert film)- with The Famous Flames
Ski Party (1965)- with The Famous Flames
James Brown: Man to Man (1968) (concert film)
The Phynx (1970)
Black Caesar (1973) (soundtrack only)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973) (soundtrack only)
The Blues Brothers (1980)
Doctor Detroit (1983)
Rocky IV (1985)
Miami Vice (1987)
James Brown: Live in East Berlin (1989)
The Simpsons (1993)
When We Were Kings (1996) (documentary)
Duckman (1997)
Soulmates (1997)
Blues Brothers 2000 (1998)
Holy Man (1998)
Undercover Brother (2002)
The Tuxedo (2002)
The Hire: Beat the Devil (2002) (short film)
Paper Chasers (2003) (documentary)
Soul Survivor (2003) (documentary)
Sid Bernstein Presents ... (2005) (documentary)
Glastonbury (2006) (documentary)
Life on the Road with Mr. and Mrs. Brown (2007) (documentary; release pending)
Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968 (2008) (concert film)
I Got The Feelin': James Brown in the '60s, three-DVD set featuring Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968, Live at the Apollo '68 [DVD version of James Brown: Man to Man], and the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston
Soul Power (2009) (documentary)
Get on Up (2014)
Biopics
Mr. Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown (2014), released in April 2014, written and directed by Alex Gibney, produced by Mick Jagger.
Get on Up (2014), released in theaters on August 1, 2014. Chadwick Boseman plays the role of James Brown in the film. Originally, Mick Jagger and Brian Grazer had begun producing a documentary film on Brown in 2013. A fiction film had been in the planning stages for many years and was revived when Jagger read the script by Jez and John-Henry Butterworth.
In other media
Games
In the video game World of Warcraft, the first boss character of the Forge of Souls dungeon is Bronjahm, "the Godfather of Souls". His quotes during the fight are musical references, and he has a chance of dropping an item called "Papa's Brand New Bag".
Television
As himself (voice) in the 1993 The Simpsons episode "Bart's Inner Child".
In 1991, Brown did a Pay Per View Special with top celebrities such as Quincy Jones, Rick James, Dan Aykroyd, Gladys Knight, Denzel Washington, MC Hammer and others attended or were opening acts. This was produced with boxing promoter Buddy Dallas. 15.5 million households tuned in at a cost $19.99.
In 2002, Brown starred in the Jackie Chan movie The Tuxedo as himself
See also
Progressive soul
References
Footnotes
Sources
Further reading
Danielsen, Anne (2006). Presence and pleasure: The funk grooves of James Brown and Parliament. Wesleyan University Press.
George, Nelson, and Leeds, Alan (editors). (2008). The James Brown Reader: 50 Years of Writing about the Godfather of Soul. New York: Plume.
Lethem, J. (June 12, 2006). "Being James Brown", Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved January 14, 2007.
McBride, James (2016) Kill 'Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul. New York: Spiegel & Grau
Sullivan, James. (2008). The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved The Soul Of America. New York: Gotham Books.
Sussman, M. (producer). (December 25, 2006). Arts: Soul classics by James Brown (multimedia presentation). The New York Times. Retrieved January 9, 2007.
Wesley, Fred. (2002). Hit Me, Fred: Recollections of a Sideman. Durham: Duke University Press.
Whitney, Marva and Waring, Charles. (2013) God, The Devil & James Brown:(Memoirs of a Funky Diva). New Romney: Bank House Books
External links
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The Famous Flames members | true | [
"\"How Do I Get Close\" is a song released by the British rock group, the Kinks. Released on the band's critically panned LP, UK Jive, the song was written by the band's main songwriter, Ray Davies.\n\nRelease and reception\n\"How Do I Get Close\" was first released on the Kinks' album UK Jive. UK Jive failed to make an impression on fans and critics alike, as the album failed to chart in the UK and only reached No. 122 in America. However, despite the failure of the album and the lead UK single, \"Down All the Days (Till 1992)\", \"How Do I Get Close\" was released as the second British single from the album, backed with \"Down All the Days (Till 1992)\". The single failed to chart. The single was also released in America (backed with \"War is Over\"), where, although it did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100, it hit No. 21 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, the highest on that chart since \"Working At The Factory\" in 1986. \"How Do I Get Close\" also appeared on the compilation album Lost & Found (1986-1989).\n\nStephen Thomas Erlewine cited \"How Do I Get Close\" as a highlight from both UK Jive and Lost & Found (1986-1989).\n\nReferences\n\nThe Kinks songs\n1990 singles\nSongs written by Ray Davies\nSong recordings produced by Ray Davies\n1989 songs\nMCA Records singles",
"How Do You Do may refer to:\n\nHow Do You Do (Miyuki Nakajima album)\nHow Do You Do (Mayer Hawthorne album)\n\"How Do You Do!\", a song by Roxette\n\"How Do You Do?\" (beFour song)\n\"How Do You Do\" (Mouth & MacNeal song)\n\"How Do You Do\" (Shakira song)\n\"How Do You Do?\", a song by the Boomtown Rats released as the B-side to \"Like Clockwork\"\n\"How Do You Do?\", a song from the Disney film Song of the South\n\"How Do You Do?\", a song from the Wee Sing film The Marvelous Musical Mansion\n\nSee also\n How Are You (disambiguation)\n How Have You Been (disambiguation)\n How You Been (disambiguation)"
]
|
[
"James Brown",
"1962-1966: Mr. Dynamite",
"What happened in 1962?",
"In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental \"Night Train\", becoming not only a top five R&B single",
"What else did it become?",
"but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100.",
"How many albums were released in this time frame?",
"I don't know.",
"What else is of interest in the article?",
"On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album,",
"How did the album do?",
"Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies,"
]
| C_185d6e4eab0446b1aa68bcc9a108fa5d_1 | Did he win any awards? | 6 | Did James Brown win any awards? | James Brown | In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming not only a top five R&B single but also Brown's first top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers. Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior. In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones. Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on. CANNOTANSWER | Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. | James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer, and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honorific nicknames "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and "Soul Brother No. 1". In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown was one of the first 10 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction in New York on January 23, 1986.
Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia. He first came to national public attention in the mid-1950s as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a rhythm and blues vocal group founded by Bobby Byrd. With the hit ballads "Please, Please, Please" and "Try Me", Brown built a reputation as a dynamic live performer with the Famous Flames and his backing band, sometimes known as the James Brown Band or the James Brown Orchestra. His success peaked in the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apollo and hit singles such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", "I Got You (I Feel Good)" and "It's a Man's Man's Man's World".
During the late 1960s, Brown moved from a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms and styles to a profoundly "Africanized" approach to music-making, emphasizing stripped-down interlocking rhythms that influenced the development of funk music. By the early 1970s, Brown had fully established the funk sound after the formation of the J.B.s with records such as "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine" and "The Payback". He also became noted for songs of social commentary, including the 1968 hit "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud". Brown continued to perform and record until his death from pneumonia in 2006.
Brown recorded 17 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B charts. He also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that did not reach No. 1. Brown was inducted into the first class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013 as an artist and then in 2017 as a songwriter. He also received honors from several other institutions, including inductions into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In Joel Whitburn's analysis of the Billboard R&B charts from 1942 to 2010, Brown is ranked No. 1 in The Top 500 Artists. He is ranked seventh on Rolling Stone list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
Early life
Brown was born on May 3, 1933, in Barnwell, South Carolina, to 16-year-old Susie (née Behling; 1916–2004) and 21-year-old Joseph Gardner Brown (1912–1993) in a small wooden shack. Brown's name was supposed to have been Joseph James Brown, but his first and middle names were mistakenly reversed on his birth certificate. In his autobiography, Brown stated that he had Chinese and Native American ancestry and that his father was of mixed African-American and Native American descent, while his mother was of mixed African-American and Asian descent.
The Brown family lived in extreme poverty in Elko, South Carolina, which was an impoverished town at the time. They later moved to Augusta, Georgia, when James was four or five. His family first settled at one of his aunts' brothels. They later moved into a house shared with another aunt. Brown's mother eventually left the family after a contentious and abusive marriage and moved to New York. Brown spent long stretches of time on his own, hanging out in the streets and hustling to get by. He managed to stay in school until the sixth grade.
He began singing in talent shows as a young child, first appearing at Augusta's Lenox Theater in 1944, winning the show after singing the ballad "So Long". While in Augusta, Brown performed buck dances for change to entertain troops from Camp Gordon at the start of World War II as their convoys traveled over a canal bridge near his aunt's home. He learned to play the piano, guitar, and harmonica during this period. He became inspired to become an entertainer after hearing "Caldonia" by Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five. In his teen years, Brown briefly had a career as a boxer.
At the age of 16, he was convicted of robbery and sent to a juvenile detention center in Toccoa. There, he formed a gospel quartet with four fellow cellmates, including Johnny Terry. Brown met singer Bobby Byrd when the two played against each other in a baseball game outside the detention center. Byrd also discovered that Brown could sing after hearing of "a guy called Music Box", which was Brown's musical nickname at the prison. Byrd has since claimed he and his family helped to secure an early release, which led to Brown promising the court he would "sing for the Lord". Brown was released on a work sponsorship with Toccoa business owner S.C. Lawson. Lawson was impressed with Brown's work ethic and secured his release with a promise to keep him employed for two years. Brown was paroled on June 14, 1952. Brown went on to work with both of Lawson's sons, and would come back to visit the family from time to time throughout his career. Shortly after being paroled he joined the gospel group the Ever-Ready Gospel Singers, featuring Byrd's sister Sarah.
Music career
1953–1961: The Famous Flames
Brown eventually joined Bobby Byrd's group in 1954. The group had evolved from the Gospel Starlighters, an a cappella gospel group, to an R&B group with the name the Avons. He reputedly joined the band after one of its members, Troy Collins, died in a car crash. Along with Brown and Byrd, the group consisted of Sylvester Keels, Doyle Oglesby, Fred Pulliam, Nash Knox and Nafloyd Scott. Influenced by R&B groups such as Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, the Orioles and Billy Ward and his Dominoes, the group changed its name, first to the Toccoa Band and then to the Flames. Nafloyd's brother Baroy later joined the group on bass guitar, and Brown, Byrd and Keels switched lead positions and instruments, often playing drums and piano. Johnny Terry later joined, by which time Pulliam and Oglesby had long left. one of his 10 children commited suicide.
Berry Trimier became the group's first manager, booking them at parties near college campuses in Georgia and South Carolina. The group had already gained a reputation as a good live act when they renamed themselves the Famous Flames. In 1955, the group had contacted Little Richard while performing in Macon. Richard convinced the group to get in contact with his manager at the time, Clint Brantley, at his nightclub. Brantley agreed to manage them after seeing the group audition. He then sent them to a local radio station to record a demo session, where they performed their own composition "Please, Please, Please", which was inspired when Little Richard wrote the words of the title on a napkin and Brown was determined to make a song out of it. The Famous Flames eventually signed with King Records' Federal subsidiary in Cincinnati, Ohio, and issued a re-recorded version of "Please, Please, Please" in March 1956. The song became the group's first R&B hit, selling over a million copies. None of their follow-ups gained similar success. By 1957, Brown had replaced Clint Brantley as manager and hired Ben Bart, chief of Universal Attractions Agency. That year the original Flames broke up, after Bart changed the name of the group to "James Brown and The Famous Flames".
In October 1958, Brown released the ballad "Try Me", which hit number one on the R&B chart in the beginning of 1959, becoming the first of seventeen chart-topping R&B hits. Shortly afterwards, he recruited his first band, led by J. C. Davis, and reunited with Bobby Byrd who joined a revived Famous Flames lineup that included Eugene "Baby" Lloyd Stallworth and Bobby Bennett, with Johnny Terry sometimes coming in as the "fifth Flame". Brown, the Flames, and his entire band debuted at the Apollo Theater on April 24, 1959, opening for Brown's idol, Little Willie John. Federal Records issued two albums credited to Brown and the Famous Flames (both contained previously released singles). By 1960, Brown began multi-tasking in the recording studio involving himself, his singing group, the Famous Flames, and his band, a separate entity from The Flames, sometimes named the James Brown Orchestra or the James Brown Band. That year the band released the top ten R&B hit "(Do the) Mashed Potatoes" on Dade Records, owned by Henry Stone, billed under the pseudonym "Nat Kendrick & the Swans" due to label issues. As a result of its success, King president Syd Nathan shifted Brown's contract from Federal to the parent label, King, which according to Brown in his autobiography meant "you got more support from the company". While with King, Brown, under the Famous Flames lineup, released the hit-filled album Think! and the following year released two albums with the James Brown Band earning second billing. With the Famous Flames, Brown sang lead on several more hits, including"Bewildered", "I'll Go Crazy" and "Think", songs that hinted at his emerging style.
1962–1966: Mr. Dynamite
In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming a top five R&B single. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers.
Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months. In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band. During this time Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior.
In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records. King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take. Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after giving an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones.
Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" in 1965, which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award. Brown also signed a production deal with Loma Records. Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World", a third Top 10 Pop hit (No. 1 R&B) which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on.
1967–1970: Soul Brother No. 1
By 1967, Brown's emerging sound had begun to be defined as funk music. That year he released what some critics cited as the first true funk song, "Cold Sweat", which hit number-one on the R&B chart (Top 10 Pop) and became one of his first recordings to contain a drum break and also the first that featured a harmony that was reduced to a single chord. The instrumental arrangements on tracks such as "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" and "Licking Stick-Licking Stick" (both recorded in 1968) and "Funky Drummer" (recorded in 1969) featured a more developed version of Brown's mid-1960s style, with the horn section, guitars, bass and drums meshed together in intricate rhythmic patterns based on multiple interlocking riffs.
Changes in Brown's style that started with "Cold Sweat" also established the musical foundation for Brown's later hits, such as "I Got the Feelin'" (1968) and "Mother Popcorn" (1969). By this time Brown's vocals frequently took the form of a kind of rhythmic declamation, not quite sung but not quite spoken, that only intermittently featured traces of pitch or melody. This would become a major influence on the techniques of rapping, which would come to maturity along with hip hop music in the coming decades. Brown's style of funk in the late 1960s was based on interlocking syncopated parts: strutting bass lines, syncopated drum patterns, and iconic percussive guitar riffs. The main guitar ostinatos for "Ain't It Funky" and "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" (both 1969), are examples of Brown's refinement of New Orleans funk; irresistibly danceable riffs, stripped down to their rhythmic essence. On both recordings the tonal structure is bare bones. The pattern of attack-points is the emphasis, not the pattern of pitches, as if the guitar were an African drum, or idiophone. Alexander Stewart states that this popular feel was passed along from "New Orleans—through James Brown's music, to the popular music of the 1970s". Those same tracks were later resurrected by countless hip-hop musicians from the 1970s onward. As a result, James Brown remains to this day the world's most sampled recording artist, but, two tracks that he wrote, are also synonymous with modern dance, especially with house music, jungle music, and drum and bass music, (which were sped up exponentially, in the latter two genres).
"Bring it Up" has an Afro-Cuban guajeo-like structure. All three of these guitar riffs are based on an onbeat/offbeat structure. Stewart says that it "is different from a time line (such as clave and tresillo) in that it is not an exact pattern, but more of a loose organizing principle."
It was around this time as the musician's popularity increased that he acquired the nickname "Soul Brother No. 1", after failing to win the title "King of Soul" from Solomon Burke during a Chicago gig two years prior. Brown's recordings during this period influenced musicians across the industry, most notably groups such as Sly and the Family Stone, Funkadelic, Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, Booker T. & the M.G.s as well as vocalists such as Edwin Starr, David Ruffin and Dennis Edwards from The Temptations, and Michael Jackson, who, throughout his career, cited Brown as his ultimate idol.
Brown's band during this period employed musicians and arrangers who had come up through the jazz tradition. He was noted for his ability as a bandleader and songwriter to blend the simplicity and drive of R&B with the rhythmic complexity and precision of jazz. Trumpeter Lewis Hamlin and saxophonist/keyboardist Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis (the successor to previous bandleader Nat Jones) led the band. Guitarist Jimmy Nolen provided percussive, deceptively simple riffs for each song, and Maceo Parker's prominent saxophone solos provided a focal point for many performances. Other members of Brown's band included stalwart Famous Flames singer and sideman Bobby Byrd, trombonist Fred Wesley, drummers John "Jabo" Starks, Clyde Stubblefield and Melvin Parker, saxophonist St. Clair Pinckney, guitarist Alphonso "Country" Kellum and bassist Bernard Odum.
In addition to a torrent of singles and studio albums, Brown's output during this period included two more successful live albums, Live at the Garden (1967) and Live at the Apollo, Volume II (1968), and a 1968 television special, James Brown: Man to Man. His music empire expanded along with his influence on the music scene. As Brown's music empire grew, his desire for financial and artistic independence grew as well. Brown bought radio stations during the late 1960s, including WRDW in his native Augusta, where he shined shoes as a boy. In November 1967, James Brown purchased radio station WGYW in Knoxville, Tennessee, for a reported $75,000, according to the January 20, 1968 Record World magazine. The call letters were changed to WJBE reflecting his initials. WJBE began on January 15, 1968, and broadcast a Rhythm & Blues format. The station slogan was "WJBE 1430 Raw Soul". Brown also bought WEBB in Baltimore in 1970.
Brown branched out to make several recordings with musicians outside his own band. In an attempt to appeal to the older, more affluent, and predominantly white adult contemporary audience, Brown recorded Gettin' Down To It (1969) and Soul on Top (1970)—two albums consisting mostly of romantic ballads, jazz standards, and homologous reinterpretations of his earlier hits—with the Dee Felice Trio and the Louie Bellson Orchestra. In 1968, he recorded a number of funk-oriented tracks with The Dapps, a white Cincinnati band, including the hit "I Can't Stand Myself". He also released three albums of Christmas music with his own band.
1970–1975: Godfather of Soul
In March 1970, most of Brown's mid-to-late 1960s road band walked out on him due to money disputes, a development augured by the prior disbandment of The Famous Flames singing group for the same reason in 1968. Brown and erstwhile Famous Flames singer Bobby Byrd (who chose to remain in the band during this tumultuous period) subsequently recruited several members of the Cincinnati-based The Pacemakers, which included Bootsy Collins and his brother Phelps "Catfish" Collins; augmented by the remaining members of the 1960s road band (including Fred Wesley, who rejoined Brown's outfit in December 1970) and other newer musicians, they would form the nucleus of The J.B.'s, Brown's new backing ensemble. Shortly following their first performance together, the band entered the studio to record the Brown-Byrd composition, "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine"; the song and other contemporaneous singles would further cement Brown's influence in the nascent genre of funk music. This iteration of the J.B.'s dissolved after a March 1971 European tour (documented on the 1991 archival release Love Power Peace) due to additional money disputes and Bootsy Collins' use of LSD; the Collins brothers would soon become integral members of Parliament-Funkadelic, while a new lineup of the J.B.'s coalesced around Wesley, St. Clair Pinckney and drummer John Starks.
In 1971, Brown began recording for Polydor Records which also took over distribution of Brown's King Records catalog. Many of his sidemen and supporting players, including Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s, Bobby Byrd, Lyn Collins, Vicki Anderson and former rival Hank Ballard, released records on the People label, an imprint founded by Brown that was purchased by Polydor as part of Brown's new contract. The recordings on the People label, almost all of which were produced by Brown himself, exemplified the mature flowering of his "house style". Several tracks thought by critics to be excessively sexual were released at this time. He would later soften his vocal approach. Songs such as "I Know You Got Soul" by Bobby Byrd, "Think" by Lyn Collins and "Doing It to Death" by Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s are considered as much a part of Brown's recorded legacy as the recordings released under his own name. That year, he also began touring African countries and was received well by audiences there. During the 1972 presidential election, James Brown openly proclaimed his support of Richard Nixon for reelection to the presidency over Democratic candidate George McGovern. The decision led to a boycott of his performances and, according to Brown, cost him a big portion of his black audience. As a result, Brown's record sales and concerts in the United States reached a lull in 1973 as he failed to land a number-one R&B single that year. Brown relied more on touring outside the United States where he continued to perform for sold-out crowds in cities such as London, Paris and Lausanne. That year he also faced problems with the IRS for failure to pay back taxes, charging he hadn't paid upwards of $4.5 million; five years earlier, the IRS had claimed he owed nearly $2 million.
In 1973, Brown provided the score for the blaxploitation film Black Caesar. He also recorded another soundtrack for the film, Slaughter's Big Rip-Off. Following the release of these soundtracks, Brown acquired a self-styled nickname, "The Godfather of Soul", which remains his most popular nickname. In 1974 he returned to the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts with "The Payback", with the parent album reaching the same spot on the album charts; he would reach No. 1 two more times in 1974, with "My Thang" and "Papa Don't Take No Mess". Later that year, he returned to Africa and performed in Kinshasa as part of the buildup to The Rumble in the Jungle fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. Admirers of Brown's music, including Miles Davis and other jazz musicians, began to cite him as a major influence on their own styles. However, Brown, like others who were influenced by his music, also "borrowed" from other musicians. His 1976 single, "Hot (I Need To Be Loved, Loved, Loved, Loved)" (R&B No. 31), interpolated the main riff from "Fame" by David Bowie while omitting any attribution to the latter song's composers (including Bowie, John Lennon and guitarist Carlos Alomar), not the other way around as was often believed.
"Papa Don't Take No Mess" would prove to be his final single to reach the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts and his final Top 40 pop single of the 1970s, though he continued to occasionally have Top 10 R&B recordings. Among his top ten R&B hits during this latter period included "Funky President" (R&B No. 4) and "Get Up Offa That Thing" (R&B No. 4), the latter song released in 1976 and aimed at musical rivals such as Barry White, The Ohio Players and K.C. and the Sunshine Band. Brown credited his then-wife and two of their children as writers of the song to avoid concurrent tax problems with the IRS. Starting in October 1975, Brown produced, directed, and hosted Future Shock, an Atlanta-based television variety show that ran for three years.
1975–1991: Decline and resurgence
Although his records were mainstays of the vanguard New York underground disco scene (exemplified by DJs such as David Mancuso and Francis Grasso) from 1969 onwards, Brown did not consciously yield to the trend until 1975's Sex Machine Today. By 1977, he was no longer a dominant force in R&B. After "Get Up Offa That Thing", thirteen of Brown's late 1970s recordings for Polydor failed to reach the Top 10 of the R&B chart, with only "Bodyheat" in 1976 and the disco-oriented "It's Too Funky in Here" in 1979 reaching the R&B Top 15 and the ballad "Kiss in '77" reaching the Top 20. After 1976's "Bodyheat", he also failed to appear on the Billboard Hot 100. As a result, Brown's concert attendance began dropping and his reported disputes with the IRS caused his business empire to collapse. In addition, Brown's former bandmates, including Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker and the Collins brothers, had found bigger success as members of George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic collective. The emergence of disco also stopped Brown's success on the R&B charts because its slicker, more commercial style had superseded his more raw funk productions.
By the release of 1979's The Original Disco Man, Brown was not providing much production or writing, leaving most of it to producer Brad Shapiro, resulting in the song "It's Too Funky in Here" becoming Brown's most successful single in this period. After two more albums failed to chart, Brown left Polydor in 1981. It was around this time that Brown changed the name of his band from the J.B.'s to the Soul Generals (or Soul G's). The band retained that name until his death. Despite Brown's declining record sales, promoters Gary LoConti and Jim Rissmiller helped Brown sell out a string of residency shows at the Country Club in Reseda. Brown's compromised commercial standing prevented him from charging a large live fee to the promoters for these shows. However, the great success of these shows marked a turning point for Brown's career, and soon he was back on top in Hollywood. Movies followed, starting with appearances in the feature films The Blues Brothers, Doctor Detroit and Rocky IV, as well as guest-starring in the Miami Vice episode "Missing Hours" (1987). In 1984, he teamed with rap musician Afrika Bambaataa on the song "Unity". A year later he signed with Scotti Brothers Records and issued the moderately successful album Gravity in 1986. It included Brown's final Top 10 pop hit, "Living in America", marking his first Top 40 entry since 1974 and his first Top 10 pop entry since 1968. Produced and written by Dan Hartman, it was also featured prominently on the Rocky IV film and soundtrack. Brown performed the song in the film at Apollo Creed's final fight, shot in the Ziegfeld Room at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and was credited in the film as "The Godfather of Soul". 1986 also saw the publication of his autobiography, James Brown: The Godfather of Soul, co-written with Bruce Tucker. In 1987, Brown won the Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Living in America".
In 1988, Brown worked with the production team Full Force on the new jack swing-influenced I'm Real. It spawned his final two Top 10 R&B hits, "I'm Real" and "Static", which peaked at No. 2 and No. 5, respectively, on the R&B charts. Meanwhile, the drum break from the second version of the original 1969 hit "Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose" (the recording included on the compilation album In the Jungle Groove) became so popular at hip hop dance parties (especially for breakdance) during the early 1980s that hip hop pioneer Kurtis Blow called the song "the national anthem of hip hop".
1991–2006: Final years
After his stint in prison during the late 1980s, Brown met Larry Fridie and Thomas Hart who produced the first James Brown biopic, entitled James Brown: The Man, the Message, the Music, released in 1992. He returned to music with the album Love Over-Due in 1991. It included the single "(So Tired of Standing Still We Got to) Move On", which peaked at No. 48 on the R&B chart. His former record label Polydor also released the four-CD box set Star Time, spanning Brown's career to date. Brown's release from prison also prompted his former record labels to reissue his albums on CD, featuring additional tracks and commentary by music critics and historians. That same year, Brown appeared on rapper MC Hammer's video for "Too Legit to Quit". Hammer had been noted, alongside Big Daddy Kane, for bringing Brown's unique stage shows and their own energetic dance moves to the hip-hop generation; both listed Brown as their idol. Both musicians also sampled his work, with Hammer having sampled the rhythms from "Super Bad" for his song "Here Comes the Hammer", from his best-selling album Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em. Big Daddy Kane sampled many times. Before the year was over, Brown–who had immediately returned to work with his band following his release–organized a pay-per-view concert following a show at Los Angeles' Wiltern Theatre, that was well received.
On June 10, 1991, James Brown and a star-filled line up performed before a crowd at the Wiltern Theatre for a live pay-per-view at-home audience. James Brown: Living in America – Live! was the brainchild of Indiana producer Danny Hubbard. It featured
M.C. Hammer as well as Bell Biv Devoe, Heavy D & the Boys, En Vogue, C+C Music Factory, Quincy Jones, Sherman Hemsley and Keenen Ivory Wayans. Ice-T, Tone Loc and Kool Moe Dee performed paying homage to Brown. This was Brown's first public performance since his parole from the South Carolina prison system in February. He had served two-and-a-half years of two concurrent six-year sentences for aggravated assault and other felonies.
Brown continued making recordings. In 1993 his album Universal James was released. It included his final Billboard charting single, "Can't Get Any Harder", which peaked at No. 76 on the US R&B chart and reached No. 59 on the UK chart. Its brief charting in the UK was probably due to the success of a remixed version of "I Feel Good" featuring Dakeyne. Brown also released the singles "How Long" and "Georgia-Lina", which failed to chart. In 1995, Brown returned to the Apollo and recorded Live at the Apollo 1995. It included a studio track titled "Respect Me", which was released as a single; again it failed to chart. Brown's final studio albums, I'm Back and The Next Step, were released in 1998 and 2002 respectively. I'm Back featured the song "Funk on Ah Roll", which peaked at No. 40 in the UK but did not chart in his native US. The Next Step included Brown's final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In". Both albums were produced by Derrick Monk. Brown's concert success, however, remained unabated and he kept up with a grueling schedule throughout the remainder of his life, living up to his previous nickname, "The Hardest Working Man in Show Business", in spite of his advanced age. In 2003, Brown participated in the PBS American Masters television documentary James Brown: Soul Survivor, which was directed by Jeremy Marre.
Brown performed in the Super Bowl XXXI halftime show.
Brown celebrated his status as an icon by appearing in a variety of entertainment and sports events, including an appearance on the WCW pay-per-view event, SuperBrawl X, where he danced alongside wrestler Ernest "The Cat" Miller, who based his character on Brown, during his in-ring skit with The Maestro. Brown then appeared in Tony Scott's short film Beat the Devil in 2001. He was featured alongside Clive Owen, Gary Oldman, Danny Trejo and Marilyn Manson. Brown also made a cameo appearance in the 2002 Jackie Chan film The Tuxedo, in which Chan was required to finish Brown's act after having accidentally knocked out the singer. In 2002, Brown appeared in Undercover Brother, playing himself.
In 2004, Brown performed in Hyde Park, London as a support act for Red Hot Chili Peppers concerts. The beginning of 2005 saw the publication of Brown's second book, I Feel Good: A Memoir of a Life of Soul, written with Marc Eliot. In February and March, he participated in recording sessions for an intended studio album with Fred Wesley, Pee Wee Ellis, and other longtime collaborators. Though he lost interest in the album, which remains unreleased, a track from the sessions, "Gut Bucket", appeared on a compilation CD included with the August 2006 issue of MOJO. He appeared at Edinburgh 50,000 – The Final Push, the final Live 8 concert on July 6, 2005, where he performed a duet with British pop star Will Young on "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag". In the Black Eyed Peas album "Monkey Business", Brown was featured on a track called, "They Don't Want Music". The previous week he had performed a duet with another British pop star, Joss Stone, on the United Kingdom chat show Friday Night with Jonathan Ross. In 2006, Brown continued his "Seven Decades of Funk World Tour", his last concert tour where he performed all over the world. His final U.S. performances were in San Francisco on August 20, 2006, as headliner at the Festival of the Golden Gate (Foggfest) on the Great Meadow at Fort Mason. The following day, August 21, he performed at Humboldt State University in Arcata, CA, at a small theatre (800 seats) on campus. His last shows were greeted with positive reviews, and one of his final concert appearances at the Irish Oxegen festival in Punchestown in 2006 was performed for a record crowd of 80,000 people. He played a full concert as part of the BBC's Electric Proms on October 27, 2006, at The Roundhouse, supported by The Zutons, with special appearances from Max Beasley and The Sugababes.
Brown's last televised appearance was at his induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame in November 2006, before his death the following month. Before his death, Brown had been scheduled to perform a duet with singer Annie Lennox on the song "Vengeance" for her new album Venus, which was released in 2007.
Artistry
As a vocalist, Brown performed in a forceful shout style derived from gospel music. Meanwhile, "his rhythmic grunts and expressive shrieks harked back farther still to ring shouts, work songs, and field cries", according to the Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History (1996): "He reimported the rhythmic complexity from which rhythm and blues, under the dual pressure of rock 'n' roll and pop, had progressively fallen away since its birth from jazz and blues."
For many years, Brown's touring show was one of the most extravagant productions in American popular music. At the time of Brown's death, his band included three guitarists, two bass guitar players, two drummers, three horns and a percussionist. The bands that he maintained during the late 1960s and 1970s were of comparable size, and the bands also included a three-piece amplified string section that played during the ballads. Brown employed between 40 and 50 people for the James Brown Revue, and members of the revue traveled with him in a bus to cities and towns all over the country, performing upwards of 330 shows a year with almost all of the shows as one-nighters.
Concert style
Before James Brown appeared on stage, his personal MC gave him an elaborate introduction accompanied by drumrolls, as the MC worked in Brown's various sobriquets along with the names of many of his hit songs. The introduction by Fats Gonder, captured on Brown's 1963 album Live at the Apollo is a representative example:
James Brown's performances were famous for their intensity and length. His own stated goal was to "give people more than what they came for — make them tired, 'cause that's what they came for.'" Brown's concert repertoire consisted mostly of his own hits and recent songs, with a few R&B covers mixed in. Brown danced vigorously as he sang, working popular dance steps such as the Mashed Potato into his routine along with dramatic leaps, splits and slides. In addition, his horn players and singing group (The Famous Flames) typically performed choreographed dance routines, and later incarnations of the Revue included backup dancers. Male performers in the Revue were required to wear tuxedoes and cummerbunds long after more casual concert wear became the norm among the younger musical acts. Brown's own extravagant outfits and his elaborate processed hairdo completed the visual impression. A James Brown concert typically included a performance by a featured vocalist, such as Vicki Anderson or Marva Whitney, and an instrumental feature for the band, which sometimes served as the opening act for the show.
A trademark feature of Brown's stage shows, usually during the song "Please, Please, Please", involved Brown dropping to his knees while clutching the microphone stand in his hands, prompting the show's longtime MC, Danny Ray, to come out, drape a cape over Brown's shoulders and escort him off the stage after he had worked himself to exhaustion during his performance. As Brown was escorted off the stage by the MC, Brown's vocal group, the Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Lloyd Stallworth, and Bobby Bennett), continued singing the background vocals "Please, please don't go-oh". Brown would then shake off the cape and stagger back to the microphone to perform an encore. Brown's routine was inspired by a similar one used by the professional wrestler Gorgeous George, as well as Little Richard. In his 2005 autobiography I Feel Good: A Memoir in a Life of Soul, Brown, who was a fan of Gorgeous George, credited the wrestler as the inspiration for both his cape routine and concert attire, stating, "Seeing him on TV helped create the James Brown you see on stage". Brown performs a version of the cape routine in the film of the T.A.M.I. Show (1964) in which he and The Famous Flames upstaged The Rolling Stones, and over the closing credits of the film Blues Brothers 2000. The Police refer to "James Brown on the T.A.M.I. Show" in their 1980 song "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around".
Band leadership
Brown demanded extreme discipline, perfection and precision from his musicians and dancers – performers in his Revue showed up for rehearsals and members wore the right "uniform" or "costume" for concert performances. During an interview conducted by Terri Gross during the NPR segment "Fresh Air" with Maceo Parker, a former saxophonist in Brown's band for most of the 1960s and part of the 1970s and 1980s, Parker offered his experience with the discipline that Brown demanded of the band:
Brown also had a practice of directing, correcting and assessing fines on members of his band who broke his rules, such as wearing unshined shoes, dancing out of sync or showing up late on stage. During some of his concert performances, Brown danced in front of his band with his back to the audience as he slid across the floor, flashing hand signals and splaying his pulsating fingers to the beat of the music. Although audiences thought Brown's dance routine was part of his act, this practice was actually his way of pointing to the offending member of his troupe who played or sang the wrong note or committed some other infraction. Brown used his splayed fingers and hand signals to alert the offending person of the fine that person must pay to him for breaking his rules.
Brown's demands of his support acts were, meanwhile, quite the reverse. As Fred Wesley recalled of his time as musical director of the JBs, if Brown felt intimidated by a support act he would try to "undermine their performances by shortening their sets without notice, demanding that they not do certain showstopping songs, and even insisting on doing the unthinkable, playing drums on some of their songs. A sure set killer."
Social activism
Education advocacy and humanitarianism
Brown's main social activism was in preserving the need for education among youths, influenced by his own troubled childhood and his being forced to drop out of the seventh grade for wearing "insufficient clothes". Due to heavy dropout rates in the 1960s, Brown released the pro-education song, "Don't Be a Drop-Out". Royalties of the song were donated to dropout-prevention charity programs. The success of this led to Brown meeting with President Lyndon B. Johnson at the White House. Johnson cited Brown for being a positive role model to the youth. A lifelong Republican, Brown gained the confidence of President Richard Nixon, to whom he found he had to explain the plight of Black Americans.
Throughout the remainder of his life, Brown made public speeches in schools and continued to advocate the importance of education in school. Upon filing his will in 2002, Brown advised that most of the money in his estate go into creating the I Feel Good, Inc. Trust to benefit disadvantaged children and provide scholarships for his grandchildren. His final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In", advocated against murders of young children in the streets. Brown often gave out money and other items to children while traveling to his childhood hometown of Augusta. A week before his death, while looking gravely ill, Brown gave out toys and turkeys to kids at an Atlanta orphanage, something he had done several times over the years.
Civil rights and self-reliance
Though Brown performed at benefit rallies for civil rights organizations in the mid-1960s, Brown often shied away from discussing civil rights in his songs in fear of alienating his crossover audience. In 1968, in response to a growing urge of anti-war advocacy during the Vietnam War, Brown recorded the song, "America Is My Home". In the song, Brown performed a rap, advocating patriotism and exhorting listeners to "stop pitying yoursel[ves] and get up and fight". At the time of the song's release, Brown had been participating in performing for troops stationed in Vietnam.
The Boston Garden concert
On April 5, 1968, a day after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, Brown provided a free citywide televised concert at the Boston Garden to maintain public order and calm concerned Boston residents (over the objections of the police chief, who wanted to call off the concert, which he thought would incite violence). The show was later released on DVD as Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968. According to the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston, then-mayor Kevin White had strongly restrained the Boston police from cracking down on minor violence and protests after the assassination, while religious and community leaders worked to keep tempers from flaring. White arranged to have Brown's performance broadcast multiple times on Boston's public television station, WGBH, thus keeping potential rioters off the streets, watching the concert for free. Angered by not being told of this, Brown demanded $60,000 for "gate" fees (money he thought would be lost from ticket sales on account of the concert being broadcast for free) and then threatened to go public about the secret arrangement when the city balked at paying up afterwards, news of which would have been a political death blow to White and spark riots of its own. White eventually lobbied the behind-the-scenes power-brokering group known as "The Vault" to come up with money for Brown's gate fee and other social programs, contributing $100,000. Brown received $15,000 from them via the city. White also persuaded management at the Garden to give up their share of receipts to make up the differences. Following this successful performance, Brown was counseled by President Johnson to urge cities ravaged from riots following King's assassination to not resort to violence, telling them to "cool it, there's another way".
Responding to pressure from black activists, including H. Rap Brown, to take a bigger stance on their issues and from footage of black on black crime committed in inner cities, Brown wrote the lyrics to the song "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud", which his bandleader Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis accompanied with a musical composition. Released late that summer, the song's lyrics helped to make it an anthem for the civil rights movement. Brown only performed the song sporadically following its initial release and later stated he had regrets about recording it, saying in 1984, "Now 'Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud' has done more for the black race than any other record, but if I had my choice, I wouldn't have done it, because I don't like defining anyone by race. To teach race is to teach separatism." In his autobiography he stated:
The song is obsolete now ... But it was necessary to teach pride then, and I think the song did a lot of good for a lot of people ... People called "Black and Proud" militant and angry – maybe because of the line about dying on your feet instead of living on your knees. But really, if you listen to it, it sounds like a children's song. That's why I had children in it, so children who heard it could grow up feeling pride ... The song cost me a lot of my crossover audience. The racial makeup at my concerts was mostly black after that. I don't regret it, though, even if it was misunderstood.
In 1969, Brown recorded two more songs of social commentary, "World" and "I Don't Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing", the latter song pleading for equal opportunity and self-reliance rather than entitlement. In 1970, in response to some black leaders for not being outspoken enough, he recorded "Get Up, Get into It, Get Involved" and "Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing". In 1971, he began touring Africa, including Zambia and Nigeria. He was made "freeman of the city" in Lagos, Nigeria, by Oba Adeyinka Oyekan, for his "influence on black people all over the world". With his company, James Brown Enterprises, Brown helped to provide jobs for blacks in business in the communities. As the 1970s continued, Brown continued to record songs of social commentary, most prominently 1972's "King Heroin" and the two-part ballad "Public Enemy", which dealt with drug addiction.
Political views
During the 1968 presidential campaign, Brown endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hubert Humphrey and appeared with Humphrey at political rallies. Brown was labeled an "Uncle Tom" for supporting Humphrey and also for releasing the pro-American funk song, "America Is My Home", in which Brown had lambasted protesters of the Vietnam War as well as the politics of pro-black activists. Brown began supporting Republican president Richard Nixon after being invited to perform at Nixon's inaugural ball in January 1969. Brown's endorsement of Nixon during the 1972 presidential election negatively impacted his career during that period with several national Black organizations boycotting his records and protesting at his concert shows; a November 1972 show in Cincinnati was picketed with signs saying, "James Brown: Nixon's Clown". Brown initially was invited to perform at a Youth Concert following Nixon's inauguration in January 1973 but bailed out due to the backlash he suffered from supporting Nixon. Brown joined fellow black entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., who faced similar backlash, to back out of the concert. Brown blamed it on "fatigue". Brown later reversed his support of Nixon and composed the song, "You Can Have Watergate (Just Gimme Some Bucks And I'll Be Straight)" as a result. After Nixon resigned from office, Brown composed the 1974 hit, "Funky President (People It's Bad)", right after Gerald Ford took Nixon's place. Brown later supported Democratic President Jimmy Carter, attending one of Carter's inaugural balls in 1977. Brown also openly supported President Ronald Reagan's reelection in 1984.
Brown stated he was neither Democratic nor Republican despite his support of Republican presidents such as Nixon and Reagan as well as Democratic presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Carter. In 1999, when being interviewed by Rolling Stone, the magazine asked him to name a hero in the 20th century; Brown mentioned John F. Kennedy and then-96-year-old U.S. Senator, and former Dixiecrat, Strom Thurmond, stating "when the young whippersnappers get out of line, whether Democratic or Republican, an old man can walk up and say 'Wait a minute, son, it goes this way.' And that's great for our country. He's like a grandfather to me." In 2003, Brown was the featured attraction of a Washington D.C. fundraiser for the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Following the deaths of Ronald Reagan and his friend Ray Charles, Brown said to CNN, "I'm kind of in an uproar. I love the country and I got – you know I've been around a long time, through many presidents and everything. So after losing Mr. Reagan, who I knew very well, then Mr. Ray Charles, who I worked with and lived with like, all our life, we had a show together in Oakland many, many years ago and it's like you found the placard." Despite his contrarian political views, Brown mentored black activist Rev. Al Sharpton during the 1970s.
Personal life
At the end of his life, James Brown lived in Beech Island, South Carolina, directly across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia. Brown had diabetes that went undiagnosed for years, according to his longtime manager Charles Bobbit. In 2004, Brown was successfully treated for prostate cancer. Regardless of his health, Brown maintained his reputation as the "hardest working man in show business" by keeping up with his grueling performance schedule.
In 1962, Tammi Terrell joined the James Brown Revue. Brown became sexually involved with Terrell even though she was only 17 in a relationship that continued until she escaped his abuse. Bobby Bennett, former member of the Famous Flames, told Rolling Stone about the abuse he witnessed: "He beat Tammi Terrell terrible", said Bennett. "She was bleeding, shedding blood." Terrell, who died in 1970, was Brown's girlfriend before she became famous as Marvin Gaye's singing partner in the mid-'60s. "Tammi left him because she didn't want her butt whipped", said Bennett, who also claimed he saw Brown kick one pregnant girlfriend down a flight of stairs.
Marriages and children
Brown was married four times. His first marriage was to Velma Warren in 1953, and they had one son together. Over a decade later, the couple had separated and the final divorce decree was issued in 1969. They maintained a close friendship that lasted until Brown's death. Brown's second marriage was to Deidre "Deedee" Jenkins, on October 22, 1970. They had two daughters together. The couple were separated by 1979, after what his daughter describes as years of domestic abuse, and the final divorce decree was issued on January 10, 1981. His third marriage was to Adrienne Lois Rodriguez (March 9, 1950 – January 6, 1996), in 1984. It was a contentious marriage that made headlines due to domestic abuse complaints. Rodriguez filed for divorce in 1988, "citing years of cruelty treatment", but they reconciled. Less than a year after Rodriguez died in 1996, Brown hired Tomi Rae Hynie to be a background singer for his band and she later became his fourth wife.
On December 23, 2002, Brown and Hynie held a wedding ceremony that was officiated by the Rev. Larry Flyer. Following Brown's death, controversy surrounded the circumstances of the marriage, with Brown's attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, reporting that the marriage was not valid; Hynie was still married to Javed Ahmed, a man from Bangladesh. Hynie claimed Ahmed married her to obtain residency through a Green Card and that the marriage was annulled but the annulment did not occur until April 2004. In an attempt to prove her marriage to Brown was valid, Hynie produced a 2001 marriage certificate as proof of her marriage to Brown, but she did not provide King with court records pointing to an annulment of her marriage to him or to Ahmed. According to Dallas, Brown was angry and hurt that Hynie had concealed her prior marriage from him and Brown moved to file for annulment from Hynie. Dallas added that though Hynie's marriage to Ahmed was annulled after she married Brown, the Brown–Hynie marriage was not valid under South Carolina law because Brown and Hynie did not remarry after the annulment. In August 2003, Brown took out a full-page public notice in Variety featuring Hynie, James II and himself on vacation at Disney World to announce that he and Hynie were going their separate ways. In 2015, a judge ruled Hynie as Brown's legal widow.
Brown had numerous children and acknowledged nine of them including five sons – Teddy (1954–1973), Terry, Larry, Daryl, and James Joseph Brown Jr. and four daughters – Lisa, Dr. Yamma Noyola Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas, and Venisha Brown (1964–2018). Brown also had eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Brown's eldest son, Teddy, died in a car crash on June 14, 1973. According to an August 22, 2007, article published in the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, DNA tests indicate that Brown also fathered at least three extramarital children. The first one of them to be identified is LaRhonda Pettit (born 1962), a retired flight attendant and teacher who lives in Houston. During contesting of Brown's will, another of the Brown family attorneys, Debra Opri, revealed to Larry King that Brown wanted a DNA test performed after his death to confirm the paternity of James Brown Jr. (born 2001)—not for Brown's sake but for the sake of the other family members. In April 2007, Hynie selected a guardian ad litem whom she wanted appointed by the court to represent her son, James Brown Jr., in the paternity proceedings. James Brown Jr. was confirmed to be his biological son.
Drug abuse
For most of his career, Brown had a strict drug- and alcohol-free policy for any member in his entourage, including band members, and would fire people who disobeyed orders, particularly those who used or abused drugs. Although early members of the Famous Flames were fired for using alcohol, Brown often served a highball consisting of Delaware Punch and moonshine at his St. Albans, Queens house in the mid-1960s. Some of the original members of Brown's 1970s band, the J.B.'s, including Catfish and Bootsy Collins, intentionally took LSD during a performance in 1971, causing Brown to fire them after the show because he had suspected them of being on drugs all along.
Aide Bob Patton has asserted that he accidentally shared a PCP-laced cannabis joint with Brown in the mid-1970s and "hallucinated for hours", although Brown "talked about it as if it was only marijuana he was smoking". By the mid-1980s, it was widely alleged that Brown was using drugs, with Vicki Anderson confirming to journalist Barney Hoskyns that Brown's regular use of PCP (colloquially known as "angel dust") "began before 1982". After he met and later married Adrienne Rodriguez in 1984, she and Brown began using PCP together. This drug usage often resulted in violent outbursts from him, and he was arrested several times for domestic violence against Rodriguez while high on the drug. By January 1988, Brown faced four criminal charges within a 12-month span relating to driving, PCP, and gun possession. After an April 1988 arrest for domestic abuse, Brown went on the CNN program Sonya Live in L.A. with host Sonya Friedman. The interview became notorious for Brown's irreverent demeanor, with some asserting that Brown was high.
One of Brown's former mistresses recalled in a GQ magazine article on Brown some years after his death that Brown would smoke PCP ("until that got hard to find") and cocaine, mixed with tobacco in Kool cigarettes. He also engaged in the off-label use of sildenafil, maintaining that it gave him "extra energy". While once under the influence of PCP (which he continued to procure dependent on its availability) when traveling in a car, Brown alleged that passing trees contained psychotronic surveillance technology.
In January 1998, he spent a week in rehab to deal with an addiction to unspecified prescription drugs. A week after his release, he was arrested for an unlawful use of a handgun and possession of cannabis. Prior to his death in December 2006, when Brown entered Emory University Hospital, traces of cocaine were found in the singer's urine. His widow suggested Brown would "do crack" with a female acquaintance.
Theft and assault convictions
Brown's personal life was marred by several brushes with the law. At the age of 16, he was convicted of theft and served three years in juvenile prison. During a concert held at Club 15 in Macon, Georgia in 1963, while Otis Redding was performing alongside his former band Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers, Brown reportedly tried to shoot his musical rival Joe Tex. The incident led to multiple people being shot and stabbed. Since Brown was still on parole at the time, he relied on his agent Clint Brantley "and a few thousand dollars to make the situation disappear". According to Jenkins, "seven people got shot", and after the shootout ended, a man appeared and gave "each one of the injured a hundred dollars apiece not to carry it no further and not to talk to the press". Brown was never charged for the incident.
On July 16, 1978, after performing at the Apollo, Brown was arrested for reportedly failing to turn in records from one of his radio stations after the station was forced to file for bankruptcy. Brown was arrested on April 3, 1988, for assault, and again in May 1988 on drug and weapons charges, and again on September 24, 1988, following a high-speed car chase on Interstate 20 near the Georgia–South Carolina state border. He was convicted of carrying an unlicensed pistol and assaulting a police officer, along with various drug-related and driving offenses. Although he was sentenced to six years in prison, he was eventually released on parole on February 27, 1991, after serving two years of his sentence. Brown's FBI file, released to The Washington Post in 2007 under the Freedom of Information Act, related Brown's claim that the high-speed chase did not occur as claimed by the police, and that local police shot at his car several times during an incident of police harassment and assaulted him after his arrest. Local authorities found no merit to Brown's accusations.
In 1998, a woman named Mary Simons accused Brown in a civil suit of holding her captive for three days, demanding oral sex and firing a gun in his office; Simons' charge was eventually dismissed. In another civil suit, filed by former background singer Lisa Rushton alleged that between 1994 and 1999, Brown allegedly demanded sexual favors and when refused, would cut off her pay and kept her offstage. She also claimed Brown would "place a hand on her buttocks and loudly told her in a crowded restaurant to not look or speak to any other man besides himself;" Rushton eventually withdrew her lawsuit. In yet another civil suit, a woman named Lisa Agbalaya, who worked for Brown, said the singer would tell her he had "bull testicles", handed her a pair of zebra-print underwear, told her to wear them while he massaged her with oil, and fired her after she refused. A Los Angeles jury cleared the singer of sexual harassment but found him liable for wrongful termination.
The police were summoned to Brown's residence on July 3, 2000, after he was accused of charging at an electric company repairman with a steak knife when the repairman visited Brown's house to investigate a complaint about having no lights at the residence. In 2003, Brown was pardoned by the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services for past crimes that he was convicted of committing in South Carolina.
Domestic violence arrests
Brown was repeatedly arrested for domestic violence. Adrienne Rodriguez, his third wife, had him arrested four times between 1987 and 1995 on charges of assault. In one incident, Rodriguez reported to authorities that Brown beat her with an iron pipe and shot at her car. Rodriguez was hospitalized after the last assault in October 1995, but charges were dropped after she died in January 1996.
In January 2004, Brown was arrested in South Carolina on a domestic violence charge after Tomi Rae Hynie accused him of pushing her to the floor during an argument at their home, where she suffered scratches and bruises to her right arm and hip. In June, Brown pleaded no contest to the domestic violence incident, but served no jail time. Instead, Brown was required to forfeit a US$1,087 bond as punishment.
Rape accusation
In January 2005, a woman named Jacque Hollander filed a lawsuit against James Brown, which stemmed from an alleged 1988 rape. When the case was initially heard before a judge in 2002, Hollander's claims against Brown were dismissed by the court as the limitations period for filing the suit had expired. Hollander claimed that stress from the alleged assault later caused her to contract Graves' disease, a thyroid condition. Hollander claimed that the incident took place in South Carolina while she was employed by Brown as a publicist. Hollander alleged that, during her ride in a van with Brown, Brown pulled over to the side of the road and sexually assaulted her while he threatened her with a shotgun. In her case against Brown, Hollander entered as evidence a DNA sample and a polygraph result, but the evidence was not considered due to the limitations defense. Hollander later attempted to bring her case before the Supreme Court, but nothing came of her complaint.
Later life and death
Illness
On December 23, 2006, Brown became very ill and arrived at his dentist's office in Atlanta, Georgia, several hours late. His appointment was for dental implant work. During that visit, Brown's dentist observed that he looked "very bad ... weak and dazed". Instead of performing the work, the dentist advised Brown to see a doctor right away about his medical condition.
Brown went to the Emory Crawford Long Memorial Hospital the next day for medical evaluation and was admitted for observation and treatment. According to Charles Bobbit, his longtime personal manager and friend, Brown had been struggling with a noisy cough since returning from a November trip to Europe. Yet, Bobbit said, the singer had a history of never complaining about being sick and often performed while ill. Although Brown had to cancel upcoming concerts in Waterbury, Connecticut, and Englewood, New Jersey, he was confident that the doctor would discharge him from the hospital in time for his scheduled New Year's Eve shows at the Count Basie Theatre in New Jersey and the B. B. King Blues Club in New York, in addition to performing a song live on CNN for the Anderson Cooper New Year's Eve special. Brown remained hospitalized, however, and his condition worsened throughout the day.
Death
On Christmas Day 2006, Brown died at approximately 1:45 a.m. EST (06:45 UTC), at age 73, from congestive heart failure, resulting from complications of pneumonia. Bobbit was at his bedside and later reported that Brown stuttered, "I'm going away tonight", then took three long, quiet breaths and fell asleep before dying.
In 2019, an investigation by CNN and other journalists led to suggestions that Brown had been murdered.
Memorial services
After Brown's death, his relatives, a host of celebrities, and thousands of fans gathered, on December 28, 2006, for a public memorial service at the Apollo Theater in New York City and, on December 30, 2006, at the James Brown Arena in Augusta, Georgia. A separate, private ceremony was held in North Augusta, South Carolina, on December 29, 2006, with Brown's family in attendance. Celebrities at these various memorial events included Michael Jackson, Jimmy Cliff, Joe Frazier, Buddy Guy, Ice Cube, Ludacris, Dr. Dre, Little Richard, Dick Gregory, MC Hammer, Prince, Jesse Jackson, Ice-T, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bootsy Collins, LL Cool J, Lil Wayne, Lenny Kravitz, 50 Cent, Stevie Wonder, and Don King. Rev. Al Sharpton officiated at all of Brown's public and private memorial services.
Brown's memorial ceremonies were all elaborate, complete with costume changes for the deceased and videos featuring him in concert. His body, placed in a Promethean casket—bronze polished to a golden shine—was driven through the streets of New York to the Apollo Theater in a white, glass-encased horse-drawn carriage. In Augusta, Georgia, his memorial procession stopped to pay respects at his statue, en route to the James Brown Arena. During the public memorial there, a video showed Brown's last performance in Augusta, Georgia, with the Ray Charles version of "Georgia on My Mind" playing soulfully in the background. His last backup band, The Soul Generals, also played some of his hits during that tribute at the arena. The group was joined by Bootsy Collins on bass, with MC Hammer performing a dance in James Brown style. Former Temptations lead singer Ali-Ollie Woodson performed "Walk Around Heaven All Day" at the memorial services.
Last will and testament
Brown signed his last will and testament on August 1, 2000, before J. Strom Thurmond Jr., an attorney for the estate. The irrevocable trust, separate and apart from Brown's will, was created on his behalf, that same year, by his attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, one of three personal representatives of Brown's estate. His will covered the disposition of his personal assets, such as clothing, cars, and jewelry, while the irrevocable trust covered the disposition of the music rights, business assets of James Brown Enterprises, and his Beech Island, South Carolina estate.
During the reading of the will on January 11, 2007, Thurmond revealed that Brown's six adult living children (Terry Brown, Larry Brown, Daryl Brown, Yamma Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas and Venisha Brown) were named in the document, while Hynie and James II were not mentioned as heirs. Brown's will had been signed 10 months before James II was born and more than a year before Brown's marriage to Tomi Rae Hynie. Like Brown's will, his irrevocable trust omitted Hynie and James II as recipients of Brown's property. The irrevocable trust had also been established before, and not amended since, the birth of James II.
On January 24, 2007, Brown's children filed a lawsuit, petitioning the court to remove the personal representatives from the estate (including Brown's attorney, as well as trustee Albert "Buddy" Dallas) and appoint a special administrator because of perceived impropriety and alleged mismanagement of Brown's assets. On January 31, 2007, Hynie also filed a lawsuit against Brown's estate, challenging the validity of the will and the irrevocable trust. Hynie's suit asked the court both to recognize her as Brown's widow and to appoint a special administrator for the estate.
On January 27, 2015, Judge Doyet Early III ruled that Tomi Rae Hynie Brown was officially the widow of James Brown. The decision was based on the grounds that Hynie's previous marriage was invalid and that James Brown had abandoned his efforts to annul his own marriage to Hynie.
On February 19, 2015, the South Carolina Supreme Court intervened, halting all lower court actions in the estate and undertaking to review previous actions itself. The South Carolina Court of Appeals in July 2018 ruled that Hynie was, in fact, Mr. Brown's wife. In 2020, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that Hynie had not been legally married to Brown and did not have a right to his estate. It was reported in July 2021 that Brown's family had reached a settlement ending the 15-year battle over the estate.
Legacy
Brown received awards and honors throughout his lifetime and after his death. In 1993 the City Council of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, conducted a poll of residents to choose a new name for the bridge that crossed the Yampa River on Shield Drive. The winning name, with 7,717 votes, was "James Brown Soul Center of the Universe Bridge". The bridge was officially dedicated in September 1993, and Brown appeared at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the event. A petition was started by local ranchers to return the name to "Stockbridge" for historical reasons, but they backed off after citizens defeated their efforts because of the popularity of Brown's name. Brown returned to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, on July 4, 2002, for an outdoor festival, performing with bands such as The String Cheese Incident.
During his long career, Brown received many prestigious music industry awards and honors. In 1983 he was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. Brown was one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction dinner in New York on January 23, 1986. At that time, the members of his original vocal group, The Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Johnny Terry, Bobby Bennett, and Lloyd Stallworth) were not inducted. However, on April 14, 2012, The Famous Flames were automatically and retroactively inducted into the Hall of Fame alongside Brown, without the need for nomination and voting, on the basis that they should have been inducted with him in 1986. On February 25, 1992, Brown was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 34th annual Grammy Awards. Exactly a year later, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 4th annual Rhythm & Blues Foundation Pioneer Awards. A ceremony was held for Brown on January 10, 1997, to honor him with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
On June 15, 2000, Brown was honored as an inductee to the New York Songwriters Hall of Fame. On August 6, 2002, he was honored as the first BMI Urban Icon at the BMI Urban Awards. His BMI accolades include an impressive ten R&B Awards and six Pop Awards. On November 14, 2006, Brown was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, and he was one of several inductees to perform at the ceremony. In recognition of his accomplishments as an entertainer, Brown was a recipient of Kennedy Center Honors on December 7, 2003. In 2004 Rolling Stone magazine ranked James Brown as No. 7 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In an article for Rolling Stone, critic Robert Christgau cited Brown as "the greatest musician of the rock era". He appeared on the BET Awards June 24, 2003, and received the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Michael Jackson, and performed with him. In 2004, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member Aretha Franklin.
Brown was also honored in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, for his philanthropy and civic activities. On November 20, 1993, Mayor Charles DeVaney of Augusta held a ceremony to dedicate a section of 9th Street between Broad and Twiggs Streets, renamed "James Brown Boulevard", in the entertainer's honor. On May 6, 2005, as a 72nd birthday present for Brown, the city of Augusta unveiled a life-sized bronze James Brown statue on Broad Street. The statue was to have been dedicated a year earlier, but the ceremony was put on hold because of a domestic abuse charge that Brown faced at the time. In 2005, Charles "Champ" Walker and the We Feel Good Committee went before the County commission and received approval to change Augusta's slogan to "We Feel Good". Afterward, officials renamed the city's civic center the James Brown Arena, and James Brown attended a ceremony for the unveiling of the namesake center on October 15, 2006.
On December 30, 2006, during the public memorial service at the James Brown Arena, Dr. Shirley A.R. Lewis, president of Paine College, a historically black college in Augusta, Georgia, bestowed posthumously upon Brown an honorary doctorate in recognition and honor of his many contributions to the school in its times of need. Brown had originally been scheduled to receive the honorary doctorate from Paine College during its May 2007 commencement.
During the 49th Annual Grammy Awards presentation on February 11, 2007, James Brown's famous cape was draped over a microphone by Danny Ray at the end of a montage in honor of notable people in the music industry who died during the previous year. Earlier that evening, Christina Aguilera delivered an impassioned performance of Brown's hit "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" followed by a standing ovation, while Chris Brown performed a dance routine in honor of James Brown.
On August 17, 2013, the official R&B Music Hall of Fame honored and inducted James Brown at a ceremony held at the Waetjen Auditorium at Cleveland State University.
ART THE BOX began in early 2015 as a collaboration between three organizations: the City of Augusta, the Downtown Development Authority and the Greater Augusta Arts Council. 19 local artists were selected by a committee to create art on 23 local traffic signal control cabinets (TSCCs). A competition was held to create the James Brown Tribute Box on the corner of James Brown Blvd. (9th Ave.) and Broad St. This box was designed and painted by local artist, Ms. Robbie Pitts Bellamy and has become a favorite photo opportunity to visitors and locals in Augusta, Georgia.
"I have a lot of musical heroes but I think James Brown is at the top of the list", remarked Public Enemy's Chuck D. "Absolutely the funkiest man on Earth ... In a black household, James Brown is part of the fabric – Motown, Stax, Atlantic and James Brown."
Tributes
As a tribute to James Brown, the Rolling Stones covered the song, "I'll Go Crazy" from Brown's Live at the Apollo album, during their 2007 European tour. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has remarked, "He [James Brown] was almost a musical genre in his own right and he changed and moved forward the whole time so people were able to learn from him."
On December 22, 2007, the first annual "Tribute Fit For the King of King Records" in honor of James Brown was held at the Madison Theater in Covington, Kentucky. The tribute, organized by Bootsy Collins, featured Tony Wilson as Young James Brown with appearances by Afrika Bambaataa, Chuck D of Public Enemy, The Soul Generals, Buckethead, Freekbass, Triage and many of Brown's surviving family members. Comedian Michael Coyer was the MC for the event. During the show, the mayor of Cincinnati proclaimed December 22 as James Brown Day.
As of September 2021, a significant collection of James Brown clothing, memorabilia, and personal artifacts are on exhibit in downtown Augusta, Georgia at the Augusta History Museum.
Discography
Studio albums
Please Please Please (1958)
Try Me! (1959)
Think! (1960)
The Amazing James Brown (1961)
James Brown and His Famous Flames Tour the U.S.A. (1962)
Prisoner of Love (1963)
Grits & Soul (1964)
Showtime (1964)
Out of Sight (1964)
James Brown Plays James Brown Today & Yesterday (1965)
Mighty Instrumentals (1966)
James Brown Plays New Breed (The Boo-Ga-Loo) (1966)
James Brown Sings Christmas Songs (1966)
Handful of Soul (1966)
James Brown Sings Raw Soul (1967)
James Brown Plays the Real Thing (1967)
Cold Sweat (1967)
I Can't Stand Myself When You Touch Me (1968)
I Got the Feelin' (1968)
James Brown Plays Nothing But Soul (1968)
Thinking About Little Willie John and a Few Nice Things (1968)
A Soulful Christmas (1968)
Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud (1969)
Gettin' Down to It (1969)
The Popcorn (1969)
It's a Mother (1969)
Ain't It Funky (1970)
Soul on Top (1970)
It's a New Day – Let a Man Come In (1970)
Hey America (1970)
Sho Is Funky Down Here (1971)
Hot Pants (1971)
There It Is (1972)
Get on the Good Foot (1972)
Black Caesar (1973)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973)
The Payback (1973)
Hell (1974)
Reality (1974)
Sex Machine Today (1975)
Everybody's Doin' the Hustle & Dead on the Double Bump (1975)
Hot (1976)
Get Up Offa That Thing (1976)
Bodyheat (1976)
Mutha's Nature (1977)
Jam 1980's (1978)
Take a Look at Those Cakes (1978)
The Original Disco Man (1979)
People (1980)
Soul Syndrome (1980)
Nonstop! (1981)
Bring It On! (1983)
Gravity (1986)
I'm Real (1988)
Love Over-Due (1991)
Universal James (1992)
I'm Back (1998)
The Merry Christmas Album (1999)
The Next Step (2002)
Filmography
The T.A.M.I. Show (1964) (concert film)- with The Famous Flames
Ski Party (1965)- with The Famous Flames
James Brown: Man to Man (1968) (concert film)
The Phynx (1970)
Black Caesar (1973) (soundtrack only)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973) (soundtrack only)
The Blues Brothers (1980)
Doctor Detroit (1983)
Rocky IV (1985)
Miami Vice (1987)
James Brown: Live in East Berlin (1989)
The Simpsons (1993)
When We Were Kings (1996) (documentary)
Duckman (1997)
Soulmates (1997)
Blues Brothers 2000 (1998)
Holy Man (1998)
Undercover Brother (2002)
The Tuxedo (2002)
The Hire: Beat the Devil (2002) (short film)
Paper Chasers (2003) (documentary)
Soul Survivor (2003) (documentary)
Sid Bernstein Presents ... (2005) (documentary)
Glastonbury (2006) (documentary)
Life on the Road with Mr. and Mrs. Brown (2007) (documentary; release pending)
Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968 (2008) (concert film)
I Got The Feelin': James Brown in the '60s, three-DVD set featuring Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968, Live at the Apollo '68 [DVD version of James Brown: Man to Man], and the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston
Soul Power (2009) (documentary)
Get on Up (2014)
Biopics
Mr. Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown (2014), released in April 2014, written and directed by Alex Gibney, produced by Mick Jagger.
Get on Up (2014), released in theaters on August 1, 2014. Chadwick Boseman plays the role of James Brown in the film. Originally, Mick Jagger and Brian Grazer had begun producing a documentary film on Brown in 2013. A fiction film had been in the planning stages for many years and was revived when Jagger read the script by Jez and John-Henry Butterworth.
In other media
Games
In the video game World of Warcraft, the first boss character of the Forge of Souls dungeon is Bronjahm, "the Godfather of Souls". His quotes during the fight are musical references, and he has a chance of dropping an item called "Papa's Brand New Bag".
Television
As himself (voice) in the 1993 The Simpsons episode "Bart's Inner Child".
In 1991, Brown did a Pay Per View Special with top celebrities such as Quincy Jones, Rick James, Dan Aykroyd, Gladys Knight, Denzel Washington, MC Hammer and others attended or were opening acts. This was produced with boxing promoter Buddy Dallas. 15.5 million households tuned in at a cost $19.99.
In 2002, Brown starred in the Jackie Chan movie The Tuxedo as himself
See also
Progressive soul
References
Footnotes
Sources
Further reading
Danielsen, Anne (2006). Presence and pleasure: The funk grooves of James Brown and Parliament. Wesleyan University Press.
George, Nelson, and Leeds, Alan (editors). (2008). The James Brown Reader: 50 Years of Writing about the Godfather of Soul. New York: Plume.
Lethem, J. (June 12, 2006). "Being James Brown", Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved January 14, 2007.
McBride, James (2016) Kill 'Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul. New York: Spiegel & Grau
Sullivan, James. (2008). The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved The Soul Of America. New York: Gotham Books.
Sussman, M. (producer). (December 25, 2006). Arts: Soul classics by James Brown (multimedia presentation). The New York Times. Retrieved January 9, 2007.
Wesley, Fred. (2002). Hit Me, Fred: Recollections of a Sideman. Durham: Duke University Press.
Whitney, Marva and Waring, Charles. (2013) God, The Devil & James Brown:(Memoirs of a Funky Diva). New Romney: Bank House Books
External links
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The Famous Flames members | false | [
"Le Cousin is a 1997 French film directed by Alain Corneau.\n\nPlot \nThe film deals with the relationship of the police and an informant in the drug scene.\n\nAwards and nominations\nLe Cousin was nominated for 5 César Awards but did not win in any category.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1997 films\n1997 crime films\nFilms about drugs\nFilms directed by Alain Corneau\nFrench crime films\nFrench films\nFrench-language films",
"The 23rd Fangoria Chainsaw Awards is an award ceremony presented for horror films that were released in 2020. The nominees were announced on January 20, 2021. The film The Invisible Man won five of its five nominations, including Best Wide Release, as well as the write-in poll of Best Kill. Color Out Of Space and Possessor each took two awards. His House did not win any of its seven nominations. The ceremony was exclusively livestreamed for the first time on the SHUDDER horror streaming service.\n\nWinners and nominees\n\nReferences\n\nFangoria Chainsaw Awards"
]
|
[
"Celine Dion",
"2011-2014: Celine, Sans attendre and Loved Me Back to Life"
]
| C_78f1e410e4c0415db79dddeaf75c47aa_0 | What did Celine Dion do in 2011? | 1 | What did Celine Dion do in 2011? | Celine Dion | In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. Additionally, for a record sixth time, Dion performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, Dion appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, Dion released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, Dion made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica. In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. Dion began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles. The music video for "Incredible" was uploaded onto Dion's official Vevo channel in early June 2014. On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Celine une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia. CANNOTANSWER | February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. | Céline Marie Claudette Dion (; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. She is noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals. Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French language artist of all time. Her music has incorporated genres such as pop, rock, R&B, gospel, and classical music.
Born into a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, she emerged as a teen star in her home country with a series of French-language albums during the 1980s. She first gained international recognition by winning both the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, where she represented Switzerland. After learning to speak English, she signed on to Epic Records in the United States. In 1990, Dion released her debut English-language album, Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world. Her recordings since have been mainly in English and French although she has also sung in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese, and Chinese.
During the 1990s, she achieved worldwide fame after releasing several best-selling English-language albums in music history, such as Falling into You (1996) and Let's Talk About Love (1997), which were both certified diamond in the US and over 30 million sales worldwide each. She also scored a series of international number-one hits, including "The Power of Love", "Think Twice", "Because You Loved Me", "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", "My Heart Will Go On", and "I'm Your Angel". Dion continued releasing French albums between each English record; D'eux (1995) became the best-selling French-language album of all time, while S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998), Sans attendre (2012), and Encore un soir (2016), were all certified diamond in France. During the 2000s, she built her reputation as a highly successful live performer with A New Day... on the Las Vegas Strip (2003–07), which remains the highest-grossing concert residency of all time, as well as the Taking Chances World Tour (2008–09), one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time.
Dion is also one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with record sales of more than 200 million worldwide. Although her releases have often received mixed critical reception, Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most successful vocalists. She has won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year. Billboard named her the "Queen of Adult Contemporary" for having the most number-one songs on the radio format for a female artist. Dion is the second best-selling female artist in the US during the Nielsen SoundScan, the 8th all-time best-performing top female artist in the United States, and the sixth all-time best-performing female soloist in Billboard 200 history. In 2003, she was honoured by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for selling over 50 million albums in Europe. In 2008, Dion was recognized as the Best-selling International Artist in South Africa.
Life and career
1968–1989: Early life and career beginnings
Dion was born in Charlemagne, Quebec, northeast of Montreal, the youngest of 14 children of Thérèse (née Tanguay, 1927–2020), a homemaker, and Adhémar Dion (1923–2003), a butcher, both of French-Canadian descent. She was raised a Roman Catholic in a poor but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne. Music had always been a major part of the Dion family, and she was named after the song "Céline", which French singer Hugues Aufray had recorded two years before her birth. On 13 August 1973, at the age of five, the young Céline made her first public appearance at her brother Michel's wedding, where she performed Christine Charbonneau's song "Du fil, des aiguilles et du coton". She continued to perform with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar called Le Vieux Baril, "The Old Barrel". From an early age, she had dreamed of being a performer. In a 1994 interview with People magazine, she recalled, "I missed my family and my home, but I don't regret having lost my adolescence. I had one dream: I wanted to be a singer." As a child in Quebec, Dion participated in Girl Guide programs as a member of Girl Guides of Canada.
At age 12, she collaborated with her mother and her brother Jacques to write and compose her first song, "Ce n'était qu'un rêve", whose title translates as "It Was Only a Dream" or "Nothing But A Dream". Her brother Michel sent the recording to music manager René Angélil, whose name he discovered on the back of a Ginette Reno album. Angélil was moved to tears by Dion's voice and decided to make her a star. In 1981, he mortgaged his home to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu, which later became a local No. 1 hit and made her an instant star in Quebec. Her popularity spread to other parts of the world when she competed in the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, and won the musician's award for "Top Performer" as well as the gold medal for "Best Song" with "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi".
By 1983, in addition to becoming the first Canadian artist to receive a gold record in France for the single "D'amour ou d'amitié" ("Of Love or of Friendship"), Dion had also won several Félix Awards, including "Best Female performer" and "Discovery of the Year". Further success came when she represented Switzerland in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Ne partez pas sans moi" and won the contest by a close margin in Dublin, Ireland.
At age 18, after seeing a Michael Jackson performance, Dion told Angélil that she wanted to be a star like Jackson. Though confident in her talent, Angélil realized that her image needed to be changed for her to be marketed worldwide. She receded from the spotlight for a number of months, during which she underwent dental surgery to improve her appearance, and was sent to the École Berlitz in 1989 to polish her English.
In 1989, during a concert on the Incognito tournée, she injured her voice. She consulted the otorhinolaryngologist William Gould, who gave her an ultimatum: have immediate surgery on her vocal cords or do not utilize them at all for three weeks. Dion chose the latter and underwent vocal training with William Riley.
1990–1992: Unison, Dion chante Plamondon, and Celine Dion
Two years after she learned English, Dion made her debut into the Anglophone market with Unison (1990), the lead single having originally been recorded by Laura Branigan. She incorporated the help of many established musicians, including Vito Luprano and Canadian producer David Foster. The album was largely influenced by 1980s soft rock music that quickly found a niche within the adult contemporary radio format. Unison also hit the right notes with critics: Jim Faber of Entertainment Weekly wrote that her vocals were "tastefully unadorned", and that she never attempted to "bring off styles that are beyond her". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic declared it "a fine, sophisticated American debut". Singles from the album included "(If There Was) Any Other Way", "The Last to Know", "Unison", and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now", a mid-tempo soft-rock ballad that made prominent use of the electric guitar. The latter became her first top-ten hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number four. In 1991, Dion was a featured soloist on "Voices That Care", a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm.
Her real international breakthrough came when she duetted with Peabo Bryson on the title track to Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991). It became her first top-ten hit in the UK and her second top-ten hit in the United States. The song earned its songwriters an Academy Award for Best Song and gave Dion her first Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. "Beauty and the Beast" served as the lead single from her 1992 self-titled album, which, like her debut, had a strong pop rock influence combined with elements of soul and classical music. Owing to the success of the lead-off single and her collaborations with David Foster and Diane Warren, the album was even more well-received commercially than Unison; it was certified diamond in Canada and double platinum in the US. The album's second single "If You Asked Me To" (a cover of Patti LaBelle's song from the 1989 movie Licence to Kill) became her first number-one single in Canada and peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Also during this time, Dion released the Francophone album Dion chante Plamondon. The album consisted mostly of covers, but featured four new songs: "Des mots qui sonnent", "Je danse dans ma tête", "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime", and "L'amour existe encore". It was originally released in Canada and France during the 1991–1992 period, then later received an international release in 1994, the first French Celine Dion album to do so. "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)" became a smash hit in France, reaching No. 2 and being certified gold. In Quebec, the album was certified Gold the day it was released.
By 1992, Unison, Céline Dion, and numerous high-profile media appearances had propelled Dion to superstardom in North America. She had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame. However, while she was experiencing rising success in the US, her French fans in Canada criticized her for neglecting them. She would later rebuff these criticisms at the 1991 Félix Awards show, where, after winning "English Artist of the Year", she openly refused to accept the award. She asserted that she was—and would always be—a French, not an English, artist. Apart from her commercial success, there were also changes in her personal life, as Angélil, who was 26 years her senior, transitioned from manager to lover. However, the relationship was kept a secret as they both feared that the public would find their relations inappropriate.
1993–1995: The Colour of My Love and D'eux
In 1993, Dion announced her feelings for her manager by declaring him "the colour of [her] love" in the dedication section of her third English-language album The Colour of My Love. However, instead of criticizing their relationship as she had feared, fans embraced the couple. Eventually, Angélil and Dion married in an extravagant wedding ceremony on 17 December 1994, which was broadcast live on Canadian television.
As with most of her catalogue, The Colour of My Love had over-riding themes of love and romance. It became her most successful record up to that point, selling more than six million copies in the US, two million in Canada, and peaking at No. 1 in many countries. The album also spawned Dion's first US, Canadian, and Australian No. 1 single "The Power of Love" (a remake of Jennifer Rush's 1985 hit), which would become her signature hit in various nations until she reached new career heights in the late 1990s.
The single "When I Fall in Love", a duet with Clive Griffin, achieved moderate success on the US and Canadian charts and was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one. The Colour of My Love also became Dion's first major hit in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. Both the album and the single "Think Twice" simultaneously occupied the top of the British charts for five consecutive weeks. "Think Twice", which remained at No. 1 for seven weeks, eventually became the fourth single by a female artist to sell in excess of one million copies in the UK while the album was eventually certified five-times platinum for two million copies sold.
Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record. Generally, they achieved more credibility than her English-language works. She released À l'Olympia, a live album that was recorded during one of her concerts at the Paris Olympia in 1994. It had one promotional single, a live version of "Calling You", which peaked at seventy-five on the French Singles Chart. She also recorded a bilingual version of "Petit Papa Noël" with Alvin and the Chipmunks for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk. D'eux (also known as The French Album in the United States), was released in 1995, and it would go on to become the best-selling French-language album of all time. The album was mostly written and produced by Jean-Jacques Goldman, and amassed huge success with the singles "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" and "Je sais pas". "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" reached No. 1 in France and stayed at the top position for twelve weeks. It was later certified Platinum in France. The single reached the top ten in the UK and Ireland, a rare accomplishment for a French song. The second single off the album, "Je sais pas", reached No. 1 on the French Singles Chart as well and was certified Silver there.
During the mid-1990s and onward, Dion's albums were generally constructed on the basis of melodramatic soft rock ballads, with sprinklings of up-tempo pop and rare forays into other genres. She collaborated with many renowned writers and producers such as Jim Steinman and David Foster, who helped her to develop a signature sound. While critical reviews fluctuated, her releases performed increasingly well on the international charts, and in 1996, she won the World Music Award for "World's Best-selling Female Recording Artist of the Year" for the third time. By the mid-1990s, she had established herself as one of the best-selling artists in the world.
1996–1999: Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love, and S'il suffisait d'aimer
In the five years since her debut English language album in 1990, Billboard stated that she had already sold 40 million albums worldwide. Falling into You (1996), Dion's fourth English-language album, presented the singer at the height of her popularity and showed a further progression of her music. In an attempt to reach a wider audience, the album combined many elements, such as complex orchestral sounds, African chanting, and elaborate musical effects. Additionally, instruments like the violin, Spanish guitar, trombone, the cavaquinho, and saxophone created a new sound. The singles encompassed a variety of musical styles. The title track "Falling into You" and "River Deep – Mountain High" (a Tina Turner cover) made prominent use of percussion instruments; "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (produced by its writer Jim Steinman) and a remake of Eric Carmen's "All by Myself" maintained a soft-rock atmosphere, combined with the classical sound of the piano; and the No. 1 single "Because You Loved Me", which was written by Diane Warren, was a pop ballad that served as the theme to the 1996 film Up Close and Personal.
Falling into You garnered career-best reviews for Dion. While Dan Leroy wrote that it was not very different from her previous work, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times and Natalie Nichols of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the album was formulaic, other critics, such as Chuck Eddy of Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic, and Daniel Durchholz, lavished the album as "compelling", "passionate", "stylish", "elegant", and "remarkably well-crafted". Falling into You became Dion's most critically and commercially successful album: it topped the charts in many countries and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.
In 2013, CBC Music ranked Falling into You 33rd in their list of the 100 greatest Canadian albums ever. In the United States, the album reached No. 1, and was later certified 11× Platinum for over 11 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album was certified diamond for over one million copies shipped. The IFPI certified Falling into You 9× Platinum, an accolade that has been given to only two other albums in history, with one of the two being Dion's own album, Let's Talk About Love. The album also won Grammy Awards for Best Pop Album and the academy's highest honour, Album of the Year.
Dion was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream" at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In March 1996, she launched the Falling into You Tour in support of her new album, performing concerts around the world for over a year.
She followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love (1997), which was publicized as its sequel. The recording process took place in London, New York City, and Los Angeles, and featured a host of special guests, such as Barbra Streisand on "Tell Him"; the Bee Gees on "Immortality"; and tenor Luciano Pavarotti on "I Hate You Then I Love You". Other musicians included Carole King, Sir George Martin, Bryan Adams and Jamaican singer Diana King, who added a reggae tinge to "Treat Her Like a Lady".
Let's Talk About Love was another major success, reaching No. 1 all over the world, attaining platinum status in twenty-four sales territories, and becoming the fastest selling album of her career. In the United States, the album topped the chart in its seventh week of release, and was later certified 10× Platinum in the US for over 10 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album sold 230,212 copies in its first week of release, which remains a record. It was eventually certified diamond in Canada for over one million copies shipped. The most successful single from the album was the classically influenced ballad "My Heart Will Go On", which was written and composed by James Horner and Will Jennings, and produced by Horner and Walter Afanasieff.
Serving as the love theme for the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic, the song topped the charts across the world and became Dion's signature song. Horner and Jennings won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song, while Dion herself garnered two Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and the most coveted, Record of the Year, (the song itself won four awards, but two were presented to the songwriters). "My Heart Will Go On" and "Think Twice" made her the only female artist in the UK to have two singles to sell more than a million copies. In support of her album, she embarked on the Let's Talk About Love Tour between 1998 and 1999.
Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums: the Christmas album These Are Special Times (1998), the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer, and the compilation album All the Way... A Decade of Song (1999). On These Are Special Times, she co-wrote the song "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day" along with Ric Wake and Peter Zizzo. The album was her most classically influenced yet, with orchestral arrangements found on virtually every track. The album featured the single "I'm Your Angel" (a duet with R. Kelly), which became her fourth US No. 1 single, and a smash hit across the world. The album's second single "The Prayer" (a duet with Andrea Bocelli) served as the soundtrack of the 1998 film Quest for Camelot and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. All the Way... A Decade of Song drew together her most successful hits coupled with seven new songs, including the lead-off single "That's the Way It Is", a cover of Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", and "All the Way", a duet with Frank Sinatra. All the Way became one of the best-selling compilation albums of all time, reaching No. 1 in the United States for three weeks. The album was later certified 7x Platinum in the US for 7 million copies shipped. It also topped the charts in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Her last French-language studio album of the 1990s, S'il suffisait d'aimer, was very successful as well, topping the charts in every major French-speaking country, including France, Switzerland, the Wallonia region of Belgium, and Canada. In France, the album was certified diamond, selling 1.5 million copies. By the end of the 1990s, Dion had sold more than 130 million records worldwide, and had won a slew of industry awards. Her status as one of the music industry's biggest pop divas was further solidified when she was asked to perform on VH1's Divas Live special in 1998, with superstars Aretha Franklin, Gloria Estefan, Shania Twain, and Mariah Carey. That year, she also received two of the highest Canadian honours: "Officer of the Order of Canada for Outstanding Contribution to the World of Contemporary Music" and "Officer of the National Order of Quebec". A year later, she was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame, and was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.
Starting from the mid-1990s, the pop rock influence that was more noticeable in her earlier releases was replaced by a more mature feel. Additionally, the recurring theme of "love" dominated most of her releases, which led to some critics dismissing her music as banal. Other critics, like Elysa Gardner and Jose F. Promis, praised her voice during this period, describing it as a "technical marvel". Steve Dollar, in his review of These Are Special Times, opined that Dion was a "vocal Olympian for whom there ain't no mountain—or scale—high enough".
2000–2003: Hiatus, A New Day Has Come, One Heart, and 1 fille & 4 types
After releasing and promoting thirteen albums during the 1990s, Dion stated that she needed to settle down, and announced on her latest album All the Way... A Decade of Song, that she needed to take a step back from the spotlight and enjoy life. Angélil's diagnosis with esophageal cancer also prompted her to hiatus. While on break, she was unable to escape the spotlight. In 2000, the National Enquirer published a false story about the singer. Brandishing a picture of Dion and her husband, the magazine misquoted her, printing the headline, "Celine — 'I'm Pregnant With Twins!'" She later sued the magazine for more than $20million. The editors of the Enquirer printed an apology and a full retraction to her in the next issue, and donated money to the American Cancer Society in honour of her and her husband. A year after the incident, after undergoing fertility treatments, she gave birth to a son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, on 25 January 2001, in Florida.
Following the 11 September attacks, Dion returned to the music scene, and in a televised performance sang "God Bless America" at the benefit concert America: A Tribute to Heroes. Chuck Taylor of Billboard wrote, "the performance ... brings to mind what has made her one of the celebrated vocalists of our time: the ability to render emotion that shakes the soul. Affecting, meaningful, and filled with grace, this is a musical reflection to share with all of us still searching for ways to cope." She performed it again in 2003 during pregame festivities for Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego. In December 2001, she published her autobiography My Story, My Dream which chronicled her rags-to-riches story.
Dion ended her three-year sabbatical from the music industry with the aptly titled album A New Day Has Come, released in March 2002. The album was her most personal yet, with songs focusing on her motherhood and maturation as a woman such as "A New Day Has Come", and "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)". She stated: "becoming a mother makes you a grown-up." She stated, "A New Day Has Come, for Rene, for me, is the baby. It has everything to do with the baby ... That song "A New Day Has Come" represents very well the mood I'm feeling right now. It represents the whole album." A New Day Has Come debuted at No. 1 in more than 17 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 527,000 copies; marking her first No. 1 debut on the chart, as well as the highest debut sales week of her career in the US. It was eventually certified 3× Platinum in the United States, and 6× Platinum in Canada.
While the album was commercially successful, critical reviews suggested that it was "forgettable" and the lyrics were "lifeless". Both Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone magazine, and Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly, stated that Dion's music had not developed much during her break, and classed her material as trite and mediocre. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine called the album "a lengthy collection of drippy, gooey pop fluffer-nutter". The first single off the album, A New Day Has Come peaked at No.22 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, being an airplay-only release. On the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks, however, the song spent 21 consecutive weeks at No. 1, breaking the record for the longest span at the top. The previous record holders were Phil Collins' You'll Be in My Heart and Dion's own Because You Loved Me, both of which lasted nineteen weeks at No. 1. The album's next single, "I'm Alive", was featured on the soundtrack for Stuart Little 2 (2002), and was ranked number 2 on the European Hot 100 Singles, and number 6 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks in the United States. During 2002, she performed for many benefit concerts, including her second appearance on VH1 Divas Live, a concert to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation, alongside Cher, Anastacia, Dixie Chicks, Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, Cyndi Lauper, Shakira, and Stevie Nicks.
In conjunction with an endorsement deal with Chrysler, she released One Heart (2003), an album that represented her appreciation for life. The album largely consisted of pop and dance music—a deviation from the soaring, melodramatic ballads, for which she had been known. Although the album achieved moderate success, One Heart was met with mixed criticism, and words such as "predictable" and "banal" appeared even in the most lenient reviews. A cover of the 1989 Cyndi Lauper hit "I Drove All Night", released to launch her advertising campaign with Chrysler, incorporated elements of dance-pop and rock and roll. The advertising deal was met with criticism, with some stating that Dion was trying to cater to her sponsors.
After One Heart, she released her next English-language studio album, Miracle (2004). Miracle was a multimedia project conceived by Dion and Australian photographer Anne Geddes and had a theme centring on babies and motherhood. The album was filled with lullabies and other songs of maternal love and inspiration, including covers of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" and John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy". The reviews for Miracle were mixed. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic.com gave the album three of out five stars, stating, "The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience." Chuck Taylor of Billboard magazine wrote that the single "Beautiful Boy" was "an unexpected gem" and called Dion "a timeless, enormously versatile artist", Chuck Arnold of People Magazine, however, labelled the album as excessively sentimental, while Nancy Miller of Entertainment Weekly opined that "the whole earth-mama act is just opportunism, reborn". Miracle debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 in Canada and was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA.
The francophone album 1 fille & 4 types (1 Girl & 4 Guys), released in October 2003, fared better than her previous two releases and showed her trying to distance herself from the "diva" image. She recruited Jean-Jacques Goldman, Gildas Arzel, Eric Benzi, and Jacques Veneruso, with whom she had previously worked on two of her best-selling French albums S'il suffisait d'aimer and D'eux. Labeled "the album of pleasure" by Dion herself, the album cover showed her in a simple and relaxed manner, contrary to the choreographed poses usually found on her album covers. The album achieved widespread commercial success in France, Canada, and Belgium where it reached No. 1. In France, the album debuted at No. 1 and was later certified 2× platinum after selling over 700,000 copies. Critic Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Dion's vocals were "back at top of their game" and that she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while".
Though her albums were commercially successful, they did not achieve the sales or the reception of her previous works. Her songs received less airplay as radio became less embracing of balladeers like Dion, Carey, and Houston, and was focused on more up-tempo, Urban/Hip-hop songs. By 2004, Dion had accumulated sales of more than 175 million albums worldwide and received the Chopard Diamond Award from the World Music Awards for her achievements. According to the official World Music Awards website, the award is rare; it is "not presented every year" and an artist can be presented with the award only for selling "over 100 million albums during their career".
2003–2007: A New Day...
In early 2002, Dion announced a three-year, 600-show contract to appear five nights a week in an entertainment extravaganza, A New Day..., at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. This move was generally seen as risky, but journalist Miriam Nunzio wrote that it was "one of the smartest business decisions in years by any major recording artist". Dion conceived the show after seeing O by Franco Dragone during her break from recording, and it premiered on 25 March 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena specifically designed for her show and modelled after the Roman Colosseum. Many stars attended the opening night including Dick Clark, Alan Thicke, Kathy Griffin, Lance Bass, and Justin Timberlake, who hosted the television special. The show, directed by Dragone and choreographed by the renowned Mia Michaels, was a combination of dance, music, and visual effects. It included Dion performing her biggest hits against an array of dancers and special effects. Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find the singer among the excessive stage ornamentation and dancers. However, he noted that the show had become more enjoyable over the course of its run, because of her improved stage-presence and simplified costumes.
The show was well-received by audiences, despite the complaints of expensive tickets; it routinely sold out until its end in late 2007. Ticket prices averaged $135.33. According to Pollstar, Dion sold 322,000 tickets and grossed US$43.9 million in the first half of 2005, and by July 2005, she had sold out 315 out of 384 shows. By the end of 2005, she grossed more than US$76 million, placing sixth on Billboard's Money Makers list for 2005. Because of the show's success, her contract was extended into 2007 for an undisclosed sum. On 5 January 2007, it was announced that the show would end on 15 December 2007, with tickets for the period after October 2007 having gone on sale from 1 March. According to Billboard, A New Day... is the most successful residency of all time, grossing over US$385 million ($ million in dollars) and drawing nearly three million people to 717 shows. The Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... DVD was released on 10 December 2007, in Europe and the following day in North America.
2007–2010: D'elles, Taking Chances, and Taking Chances Tour
On 21 May 2007, Dion released the French-language album D'elles (About Them), which debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week. It marked her tenth No. 1 album in the SoundScan era, and her eighth to debut at the top position. In Canada, the album has been certified 2× platinum, and within the first month had already shipped half a million units worldwide. D'Elles also reached No. 1 in France and Belgium. The first single "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)" (meaning "And If There Was Only One Woman Left (I Would Be That One)") debuted at the top of the French singles chart a month earlier. Later that same year, she released the English album Taking Chances on 12 November in Europe, and 13 November in North America. Her first English studio album since 2003's One Heart, it featured pop, R&B, and rock inspired music. For this album, she collaborated with John Shanks and ex-Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody, as well as Kristian Lundin, Peer Åström, Linda Perry, Japanese singer Yuna Ito, and R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. Dion stated, "I think this album represents a positive evolution in my career ... I'm feeling strong, maybe a little gutsier than in the past, and just as passionate about music and life as I ever was." She launched her year-long worldwide Taking Chances Tour on 14 February 2008, in South Africa, performing 132 dates in stadiums and arenas across five continents.
The Taking Chances Tour was a great success in the United States, reaching the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Boxscore, having sold out every concert in the US and Canada. In addition, she appeared on Idol Gives Back for a second year in a row. Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, adding to her 53 previous nominations (an all-time record). Her nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year (for Taking Chances), Francophone Album of the Year (for D'elles) and Album of the Year (for both Taking Chances and D'elles). The following year, she was nominated for 3 Juno Awards including the Fan Choice Award, Song of the Year (for Taking Chances), and Music DVD of the Year (for Live in Las Vegas — A New Day...)
On 22 August 2008, Dion presented a free outdoor concert, mostly in French, on the Plains of Abraham, in Québec City, Canada, for the 400th anniversary of Québec City. The celebration gathered approximately 490,000 people. The concert, called Céline sur les Plaines, was released on DVD on 11 November 2008, in Québec and was released on 20 May 2009, in France. Late October 2008 saw the worldwide release of a comprehensive English-language greatest hits album, My Love: Essential Collection.
In May 2009, Dion was named the 20th best-selling artist of the decade and the second-best-selling female artist of the decade in the United States, selling an estimated 17.57 million copies of her albums there since 2000. In June 2009, Forbes reported that she earned $100 million during 2008. In December 2009, Pollstar announced that she was the best-selling solo touring act of the decade and the second-best-selling touring act of the decade, behind only the Dave Matthews Band. she grossed $522.2 million during the decade, a large portion of that sum coming from her five-year residency at Caesars Palace.
On 17 February 2010, Dion released into theatres a documentary film about her Taking Chances Tour, titled, Celine: Through the Eyes of the World. The documentary shows behind-the-scenes footage of her both onstage and offstage, along with footage of her with her family as they travelled the world with her. The distributor is the Sony Pictures subsidiary, Hot Ticket. The film was later released on Blu-ray and DVD on 4 May 2010, along with the CD/DVD, Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert. At the 52nd Grammy Awards in February 2010, Dion joined Carrie Underwood, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, and Smokey Robinson to perform the song "Earth Song" during the 3-D Michael Jackson tribute.
In January 2010, The Los Angeles Times presented its annual list of the top ten largest earners of the year, revealing that Dion took the top spot for the entire decade, with $US747.9 million in total revenue from 2000–2009. The largest haul came from ticket sales, totalling $522.2 million. Additionally, she was named "Artist of the Decade" in her native Canadian province of Québec, announced by the Montréal-based newspaper, Le Journal de Québec in 2009 December. A public online survey asked responders to vote for whom they believe deserved the above-mentioned accolade.
Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, Dion was named the most popular musician in the United States, ahead of U2, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles while factoring in gender, political affiliations, geographic region of residence, and income. Specifically, she was the most popular musician in the female demographic, as well as among all Democrats, those who live in the eastern United States and southern United States, and those who have incomes between US$35k and US$74.9k.
In September 2010, she released the single "Voler", a duet with French singer Michel Sardou. The song was later included on Sardou's album. In addition, it was announced in October 2010 that Dion wrote and composed a new song for Canadian singer, Marc Dupré entitled "Entre deux mondes".
2011–2014: Celine, Sans attendre, and Loved Me Back to Life
In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. In 2018, Billboard stated her residency Celine is the second most successful residency of all time. By the end of 2011, Dion has sold 331,000 albums (despite not releasing any studio album since 2007) and 956,000 digital tracks in the United States.
For a record sixth time, she performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, she appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, she released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, she made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica.
In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. She began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles.
In June 2013, Dion co-produced the show titled "Voices" by Véronic DiCaire at the Bally’s Hotel & Casino’s Jubilee Theatre and was presented 145 times up until 2015.
On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Céline une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia.
2014–present: Husband's death, Encore un soir, Courage, and return to Vegas
On 13 August 2014, Dion announced the indefinite postponement of all her show business activities, including her concert residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and the cancellation of her Asia Tour, because of the worsening of her husband's health after he underwent the removal of a cancerous tumor in December 2013. However, on 20 March 2015, she announced that she would be returning to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in late August 2015. On 14 January 2016, she cancelled the rest of the January performances due to her husband's and her brother's death from cancer. Dion resumed the residency on 23 February to a sold-out crowd and rave reviews.
In October 2015, Dion announced on social media that she had begun working on a new French album, posting a photo by the side of Algerian singer Zaho. Dion's French single, "Encore un soir", was released on 24 May 2016. On 20 May, she released a cover of Queen's song "The Show Must Go On", featuring Lindsey Stirling on violin. She performed "The Show Must Go On" at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards on 22 May, and received the Billboard Icon Award (presented to her by her son, René-Charles Angélil) in recognition of her career spanning over three decades.
The singer's new French album, Encore un soir, was released on 26 August 2016. It features fifteen tracks performed in French and, according to the singer, has a personal choice of the songs – more uplifting lyrics were chosen. Encore un soir topped the charts in France, Canada, Belgium and Switzerland, and was certified Diamond in France, 2× Platinum in Canada and Platinum in Belgium and Switzerland. It has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. In 2016 and 2017, Dion toured Europe and Canada with two sold-out concert tours. On 9 September 2016, she released "Recovering", a song written for her by Pink after Dion's husband René Angélil died in January 2016. Dion also recorded "How Does a Moment Last Forever" for the Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, released in March 2017. Her compilation, Un peu de nous topped the chart in France in July and August 2017.
On 3 May 2018, she released the single "Ashes" from the film Deadpool 2. The remix version of the song topped the US Dance Club Songs chart in July 2018. From June to August 2018, she toured the Asia-Pacific region and grossed $56.5 million from 22 shows. On 24 September 2018, she announced the end of her Las Vegas residency Celine, with the final date set for 8 June 2019. She is working on a new English album. In January 2019, she performed "A Change Is Gonna Come" at the "Aretha! A Grammy Celebration for the Queen of Soul" Franklin's tribute concert, to be broadcast in March 2019. In March 2019, she was one of 11 singers from Quebec, alongside Ginette Reno, Diane Dufresne, Isabelle Boulay, Luce Dufault, Louise Forestier, Laurence Jalbert, Catherine Major, Ariane Moffatt, Marie Denise Pelletier, and Marie-Élaine Thibert, who participated in a supergroup recording of Renée Claude's 1971 single "Tu trouveras la paix" after Claude's diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease was announced. On 3 April 2019, during a Facebook Live event, Dion announced her 2019/2020 Courage World Tour, beginning in Quebec City on 18 September 2019. She also announced a new English language album of the same name, released in November 2019.
On 18 September 2019, Dion released three songs, "Lying Down", "Courage", and "Imperfections" from her upcoming album, Courage. On 26 February 2020, Dion released two songs as exclusive Spotify singles: an acoustic version of Imperfections, and a cover of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game. Isaak joined Dion and sang vocals on the track. On 10 June 2020, Dion announced that her Courage World Tour will kick off again in 2021, after the tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 21 May 2021, it was announced Dion would return to Vegas, in November of the same year, for a limited-run installment of ten dates in collaboration with Resorts World Las Vegas. Billboard listed Dion as the third top paid musician of 2020 (second by female artist), with total of earnings of $17.5 million.
On 15 January 2022, a statement posted to Dion's website and social media accounts announced that the U.S. and Canadian concert dates for March-April 2022 were canceled because of “severe and persistent muscle spasms” that are preventing Dion from performing onstage.
Artistry
Influences
Dion cites idols as varied as Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Charles Aznavour, Carole King, Anne Murray, Barbra Streisand, and the Bee Gees, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with. Her music has been influenced by numerous genres, including pop, rock, gospel, R&B, and soul, and her lyrics focus on themes of poverty, world hunger, and spirituality, with an emphasis on love and romance. After the birth of her first child, her work increasingly focused on maternal love.
Musical style
Dion has faced considerable criticism from critics, who state that her music often retreats behind pop and soul conventions, and is marked by excessive sentimentality. According to Keith Harris of Rolling Stone magazine, "[Dion's] sentimentality is bombastic and defiant rather than demure and retiring ... [she] stands at the end of the chain of drastic devolution that goes Aretha–Whitney–Mariah. Far from being an aberration, Dion actually stands as a symbol of a certain kind of pop sensibility—bigger is better, too much is never enough, and the riper the emotion the more true." Her francophone releases, by contrast, tend to be deeper and more varied than her English releases, and consequently have achieved more credibility.
Critics have stated that Dion's involvement in the production aspect of her music is fundamentally lacking, which results in her work being overproduced and impersonal. However, coming from a family in which all of her siblings were musicians, she dabbled in learning how to play instruments like piano and guitar, and practised with a Fender Stratocaster during the recording sessions for her album Falling into You.
Occasionally, Dion has contributed to the writing of a handful of her English and French songs, as well as writing a few songs for other artists such as Marc Dupre. Additionally, as her career progressed, she found herself taking charge in the production of her albums. On her first English album, which she recorded before she had a firm command of the English language, she expressed disapproval, which could have been avoided if she had assumed more creative input. By the time she released her second English album Celine Dion, she had assumed more control of the production and recording process, hoping to dispel earlier criticisms. She stated, "On the second album I said, 'Well, I have the choice to be afraid one more time and not be 100% happy, or not be afraid and be part of this album.' This is my album." Besides her contributions to some of her early French albums, Dion wrote a few of the songs on Let's Talk About Love (1997) and These Are Special Times (1998).
She is often the subject of media ridicule and parody and is frequently impersonated on shows such as MADtv, Saturday Night Live, South Park, Royal Canadian Air Farce, and This Hour Has 22 Minutes for her strong accent and onstage gesticulations. However, she has stated that she is unaffected by the comments, and is flattered that people take the time to impersonate her. She even invited Ana Gasteyer, who parodied her on SNL, to appear onstage during one of her performances in New York City. While she is rarely politically outspoken, in 2005 following the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Dion appeared on Larry King Live and tearfully criticized the US government's slow response in aiding the victims of the hurricane: "There's people still there waiting to be rescued. To me that is not acceptable ... How can it be so easy to send planes in another country to kill everybody in a second and destroy lives. We need to serve our country." After her interview, she stated, "When I do interviews with Larry King or the big TV shows like that, they put you on the spot, which is very difficult. I do have an opinion, but I'm a singer. I'm not a politician."
Voice and timbre
Dion once claimed to be a mezzo-soprano. However, attempts to adapt classical voice types to other forms of singing have been met with controversy. Without making a classification, Kent Nagano, maestro of the Munich Symphony Orchestra, remarked, "All you just sang was full lyric soprano", after Dion auditioned with two solos from Carmen, wanting to know if she could sing opera. Her timbre has been described as "thin, slightly nasal" with a "raspy" lower register and "bell glass-like high notes".
According to Linda Lister in Divafication: The Deification of Modern Female Pop Stars, she has been described as a reigning "Queen of Pop" for her influence over the recording industry during the 1990s, alongside other female artists, including Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. In a countdown of the "22 Greatest Voices in Music" by Blender Magazine and MTV, she placed ninth (sixth for a female), and she was also placed fourth in Cover Magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists". Dion is often compared to Houston and Carey for her vocal style, and to her idol Barbra Streisand for her voice.
She is often praised for her technical virtuosity. Jim Santella of The Buffalo News writes "Like an iron fist in a velvet glove, the power of Celine Dion's voice is cloaked in a silky vibrato that betrays the intensity of her vocal commitment." Jeff Miers, also of The Buffalo News, says of Dion "Her singing voice is absolutely extra-human. She hits notes in full voice, with a controlled vibrato and an incredible conception of pitch, like she's shucking an ear of corn." Stephen Holden of The New York Times states that Dion has "a good-sized arsenal of technical skills. She can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch. And as her duets ... have shown, she is a reliable harmony voice." In an interview with Libération, Jean-Jacques Goldman notes that she has "no problem of accuracy or tempo". According to Kent Nagano, she is "a musician who has a good ear, a refinement, and a degree of perfection that is enviable". Charles Alexander of Time states, "[Her] voice glides effortlessly from deep whispers to dead-on high notes, a sweet siren that combines force with grace."
In her French repertoire, Dion adorns her vocals with more nuances and expressiveness, with the emotional intensity being "more tender and intimate". Additionally, Luc Plamondon, a French singer-songwriter who has worked closely with Dion claims that there are three chanteuses (stylistically) that she uses: the Québécois, the French, and the American. Her self-titled 1992 album was promoted with the slogan "Remember the name because you'll never forget the voice."
Legacy
Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most influential vocalists. She has been referred to as the "Queen of Power Ballads" by the media.. Billboard called Dion the "Queen of Pop". Her music and vocal styling, alongside that of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, have been said to shape how the bulk of modern female pop vocalists sing. These three artists have been widely credited with reviving the power ballad, and in doing so reshaping the adult contemporary radio format, making it one of the most popular formats of the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2002, Billboard named her as the "Best-selling contemporary female artist in history".
According to producer, musician, and former American Idol judge Randy Jackson, Dion, Houston, and Carey are the voices of the modern era. Music critic and Dion biographer Carl Wilson notes that her "fame and influence is also renewed and expressed regularly these days by American Idol, the largest mass musical phenomenon of the past decade, where Celine's stood solidly in its pantheon of singers for young people to emulate". Many contestants on the countless televised talent competitions that have risen at the turn of the millennium often emulate Dion, Houston and Carey and cite them as idols. MTV also praised Dion by saying: "Céline Dion was better than almost anyone at capitalizing on pop’s ability to articulate feelings in sensational, over-the-top ways."
Numerous artists have either mentioned Dion as a major influence or as one of their favourite singers including: Britney Spears, Rihanna, Adele, Josh Groban, Delta Goodrem, Leona Lewis, Jennifer Hudson, Vanessa Hudgens, Kelly Clarkson, Perrie Edwards, Loren Allred, Brazilian singer Wanessa Camargo, Ariana Grande, Sam Smith, Frank Ocean, Ava Max, Charlotte Cardin, and V (from BTS) among many others. Country singer Martina McBride is widely heralded by the press as the Celine Dion of Country music.
Many artists have also praised Dion's voice, singing ability or expressed an interest in working with her including Met Opera conductor and musical director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Beyoncé, Carlos Santana, Elton John, OneRepublic, Coldplay, Sharon Osbourne, Nicole Scherzinger, Ne-Yo, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, Luciano Pavarotti, Bee Gees, Sir George Martin, Justin Bieber, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Drake and Cher.
Timbaland stated "Celine has such a beautiful, mesmerizing voice. She is so talented. I think we could create something that is a classic like she is already." Josh Groban remarked "She's a powerhouse. In this day and age, when more and more studio-produced, tiny-tiny voices are being rewarded ... she has this extraordinary instrument." According to Diane Warren, "Celine is the best singer by far of her generation", an opinion shared by Quincy Jones, Tommy Mottola, and David Foster. Moreover, Shania Twain and Jennifer Lopez have praised her dynamic stage presence, with Jennifer Lopez commenting on American Idol: "Celine gets on stage, she owns the stage, she runs all over that stage, she stops that stage." Leona Lewis is also a huge fan of Céline Dion saying "Celine is someone I aspire to be like in every way. "Gosh – I can't wait. I'm in the middle of picking out dresses at the moment. Celine is definitely one of my heroes. She is amazing." American singer and actress Lea Michelle said that she listened to Céline Dion's music while in the process of making her sophomore album 'Places' and cited her as one of her vocal influences.
Godmother of Soul Patti LaBelle called Dion as one of the greatest singers ever. Pop singer Kelly Clarkson also praised Dion's vocal ability saying: "she has two sets of lungs when she sings." and also called her the most gifted vocalist on the planet.
Dion holds the Guiness World Record for the most Juno Awards won for Album Of The Year (tied with Michael Buble & Arcade Fire). She won 3 out of the 13 nominations she received in the category throughout her career. Dion is the 3rd most decorated artist in Juno Awards history, winning 20 out of the 75 total nominations ever, becoming the most nominated artist in the awards history as well.
In 1997-1998, Dion sold more than 60 million albums, and was estimated to sell a record once every 1.2 seconds. In 2017, Dion broke records across the UK as the highest grossing artist at each UK venue where she performed which included dates at the O2 Arena in London, Leeds First Direct Arena, Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena and the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. John Meglen, president and co-CEO, Concerts West commended her by saying: "She really is the voice of our lifetime."
In 2018, there were over 300,000 Taiwanese fans that clambered for the 20,000 tickets available for Célines first concert ever in Taiwan which caused the system to lag for 30 minutes. The demand caused them to add two additional shows eventually.
Cultural impact
In Francophone music industry
On a cultural level, Dion is credited for introducing francophone music to many non-francophone countries around the globe. Her albums D'eux and S'il suffisait d'aimer remain the best selling francophone albums in history, gaining unprecedented success in non-Francophone markets such as the United Kingdom, Poland, Netherlands, Portugal, Greece, Austria, Japan, and New Zealand. According to RFI Musique, she "has done her bit for French music over the years, assuring the success of French songs which would probably never have got beyond Francophone borders without her ... Without Celine, French record sales would be dramatically lower!" In May 2008, she was awarded France's highest award, as Knight of the Legion of Honour by President of France Nicolas Sarkozy. Sarkozy praised Dion and stated: "France thanks you because your talent and success have contributed to the influence of the French language outside our borders".
In Las Vegas strip
She is also credited for both revitalizing and revolutionizing the entertainment scene in Las Vegas with the gargantuan successes of her residencies there. She signed a multi-million dollar deal worthed $100 million to do a residency in Vegas and is considered one of the most lucrative and risky in the touring industry.
Billboard credits Dion as the one who pioneered modern residencies saying: "Since Dion's debut, hundreds of artists have tried their hand at Vegas residencies, including, most recently, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Usher, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Rod Stewart and Sting. Once considered the domain of artists long past their peak, today's Las Vegas residency shows are big business, generating millions in sales." Moreover, Billboard also said: "She changed history and she completely changed Las Vegas," said Nelson, who notes the new residencies being announced for artists like Cardi B, Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Lopez aren't really at the same production level or scale of what Dion created with her husband René Angélil, as well as Meglen, Nelson and former AEG CEO Tim Leiweke." Dion is popularly referred as the reigning "Queen of Las Vegas" by various media outlets for her impact and legacy in the city.
According to Gary Bongiovanni, president and editor-in-chief of Pollstar, "Celine redefined what artists can do in Las Vegas, helping to make it arguably the busiest entertainment city in the world."
Kurt Melien, vice-president of entertainment at Caesar's Palace stated "Celine was a pioneer without question ... Twenty years ago, we couldn't have got someone the stature of Britney Spears to appear in Vegas. Stars likes her would never have considered it if Celine hadn't paved the way. She changed the face of modern Vegas."
The Guardian listed Dion's Vegas residency as one of the 50 gigs that changed music, crediting her as the one who revived it, further saying: "it was Céline Dion who turned Caesars into the stage for a glorious pop comeback. Her initial five-year run was followed by a further eight years – and prompted copycat turns by Britney Spears, Pink and Katy Perry.
In the economy
Regarding her financial impact on Las Vegas, Stephen Brown, director of the Centre for Business and Economic Research in Las Vegas, commented: "People will come to the city just for her and they will spend money and as a consequence, she has an outsized impact on the economy", then adding "Bigger than Elvis, Sinatra and Liberace put together? Definitely." Estimations indicate that Dion's show will create up to 7,000 indirect jobs and around $114 million worth of new economic activity in each of the three years for which she has been contracted.
In businesses
Forbes also discussed how entrepreneurs can reclaim the power in their business by being like Céline Dion as an example saying: "Well, remember back in 2017 when Dion launched her handbag line? During a press conference, she admitted her late manager (and husband) had always handled everything for her. Every aspect of her shows was pre-decided; every move, appearance and interview was programmed in advance. She just showed up and executed (which she did brilliantly). At the end of her handbag launch press release, she said "Now . . . I'm the boss.” Starting right then and there, she’d be the one calling the shots for her shows, her kids, her handbags and everything else that mattered to her. She was going to do things her way."
In Fashion
Celine Dion has received various acclaims from fashion critics for reinventing her fashion style over the years. The Guardian called her "The Joyous New Queen of Fashion". Harper's Bazaar also praised Dion for being an ultimate fashion risk-taker and called her a "Fashion Chameleon". Billboard dubbed her as "Streetwear Icon" after recapping the global icon's style evolution through the years. Vogue named her as one of music's most exuberant dressers, beloved as much for her glorious voice as her extravagant sense of style. Tatler discussed in an article how Cardi B might be the next Céline Dion of Paris Fashion Week, proving that Céline is the standard for the occasion. Fashion stylist and image architect Law Roach praised Celine Dion, calling her "The Queen of Camp" & "The Queen of Glitter & Sequins". Dion further cemented her name in the fashion world by wearing the reverse tuxedo at 1999 Academy Awards, which became one of the most talked ensembles of that time. Vogue also listed her iconic 1999 reverse tuxedo as one of the most controversial looks of all time saying it was undeniably the highlight of the year. W also listed the iconic ensemble as one of the most memorable dresses of all time. In February 2020, Sergio Guadarrama, a contestant of Project Runway, copied the idea of reverse tuxedo and claimed it was his original idea and had even claimed that he had no idea about the iconic tuxedo, which left the fans of the show disappointed.
Breaking music barriers
Vice discussed how Dion's music made impact in Nigerian culture, saying: "By the 2000s, Celine Dion was basically the queen of Nigerian airwaves. It was impossible to watch TV or listen to the radio without hearing her music – either on adverts, or in Nollywood films featuring heartthrobs like Genevieve Nnaji and Ramsey Nouah."
Billboard also discussed how Dion’s appearance at Jamaica Jazz & Blues changed the festival’s future. According to Walter Elmore, CEO of Art of Music Productions said Dion is by far the most expensive artist he has ever booked, further saying: “I have already received calls from the management of several major US artists who want to perform here next year because they heard Celine’s comments about our show’s production quality,” Elmore said. “Her performance confirms that we can bring the biggest artists on the planet to our little island.”
In 2012, Dion visited Jamaica for the very first time which broke attendance records and caused traffic congestion around the concert venue. Vice discussed how Dion's music has been constant in dancehall clubs for decades, as many Jamaican dancehall artists cover her songs and remixing her ballads into anthems of dance hall. Further adding: "Several current dancehall musicians continue to use utilize Dion’s tunes with the addition of upbeat guitars, pan flutes, and backbeat shuffles that transform the music for consumption by dancehall fans."
Being referenced in songs
The Canadian comedy music group The Arrogant Worms released an album called Dirt in 1999 which contained a song called "Celine Dion", about the singers' stalker-like affection for her. Dion has also been referred/mentioned in various hit songs including "Dark Fantasy" by Kanye West, "911/Mr. Lonely" by Tyler, the Creator, "That Girl" by Pharrell Williams, "Work" by A$AP Ferg, and "What's The Use" by Mac Miller, to name a few.
Cultural honors
In 1999, Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame and was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in January 2004, one which she dedicated to her father, who had died the month prior. In May 2003, she placed at No. 10 on VH1's list of "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era". Dion's album Falling into You is included on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. "My Heart Will Go On" was included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. In 2021, Dion was ranked by Forbes as the third richest woman in entertainment with an estimated net worth of US$460 million. In August 2008, she received an honorary doctorate in music from the Université Laval in Quebec City.
In October 2010, Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador, a program created by the UN in 1999, sharing this accolade with Oscar-winner Susan Sarandon. She also received several state decorations. In 2004, she was awarded the Society of Singers Lifetime Achievement Award.
On 26 July 2013, she was awarded the highest rank of the Order of Canada, the Companion of the Order of Canada, by the Governor General of Canada and the investiture ceremony was held at Citadelle of Quebec, in which they said: "An incomparable artist, she is equally known for her compassion, generosity and commitment to a number of social and humanitarian causes. She is notably the national celebrity patron for Cystic Fibrosis Canada and honorary patron of the CHU Sainte-Justine. In addition, through her foundation, she also helps children in need and their families here in Canada and abroad."
By the end of 1998, Dion was recognized by Billboard as the "Woman of the Year". They also stated how Céline's voice was featured in eight charting albums on Billboard 200 year-end chart which sold 18 million units during a calendar year (excluding her own catalog sales and recent releases at that time).
West University of Timișoara conducted a research study that analyzes Céline Dion's contributions to global music culture in both spatial and temporal terms, In November 2013, Dion was inducted at the American Gaming Association Hall Of Fame for her outstanding contributions to the growth and stature of the gaming industry.
In popular culture
Dion was referenced as an antagonist character named "Feline Dion" from the hit animated series Totally Spies! which was aired in an episode in 2013.
In 2021, French actress and filmmaker Valérie Lemercier released Aline, a film which fictionalized Dion's life with Lemercier playing a singer named "Aline Dieu".
Other activities
Business endeavours
Les Productions Feeling Inc., also known as Feeling Inc. or just Feeling, is an artist management company based in Laval, Québec, Canada, and owned by Dion and her husband and manager, Rene Angélil. She is also founder of Nickels Restaurant food chain. She and her husband also own Le Mirage Golf Club and Schwartz's Restaurant. In association with Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf and Shaquille O'Neal, she opened a popular night club called Pure, located at Caesars Palace.
Dion became an entrepreneur with the establishment of her franchise restaurant Nickels in 1990. She has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997. In 2003, Dion signed a deal with Coty, Inc. to release Celine Dion Parfums. Her latest fragrance, Signature, was released in September 2011 with an advertising campaign by New York agency Kraftworks NYC. Since its inception, Celine Dion Parfums has grossed over $850 million in retail sales. In October 2004, Air Canada hired Dion as part of their promotional campaign to unveil new service products and an updated livery. "You and I", the theme song sung by Dion, was written by advertising executives working for Air Canada.
Dion also launched an eponymous bag and accessories line "Céline Dion Collection". According to Innee-Sedona International, the Asia partner for Bugatti Group said that it already topped $10 million sales after just three collections.
Philanthropy
Dion has actively supported many charity organizations, worldwide. She has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993. She has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine succumbed to the disease at the age of sixteen, in Dion's arms. In 2003, she joined a number of other celebrities, athletes, and politicians, including Josh Groban and Yolanda Adams to support "World Children's Day", a global fundraising effort sponsored by McDonald's. The effort raised money from more than 100 nations and benefited orphanages and children's health organizations. In addition, she has been a major supporter of the T. J. Martell Foundation, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, and many health and educational campaigns. During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, she donated $1 million to the victims of the storm, and held a fund-raising event for the victims of the 2004 Asian tsunami, which subsequently raised more than $1 million. After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, she donated $100,000 to China Children & Teenagers' Fund and sent a letter showing her consolation and support. Since 2004, she is involved, alongside husband René Angelil, with the Québec gay community by supporting the publication of health and HIV prevention materials in Gay Globe Magazine, owned by journalist Roger-Luc Chayer. She is also a member of Canadian charity Artists Against Racism. In November 2018, she launched a gender-neutral clothing line for kids, Celinununu. In 2009, Dion joined an effort along with Leonardo DiCaprio, James Cameron and Kate Winslet, to donate money to support the nursing home fees of the then-last living survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, Millvina Dean. The campaign resulted in $30,000 as donation.
Personal life
As the youngest of 14 children, Dion grew up wearing hand-me-downs and sharing a bed with several sisters. As a baby, she slept in a drawer to save on a crib. She was bullied at school and called "Vampire", owing to her teeth and skinny frame. Local tabloids even dubbed her "Canine Dion" in the teenage years of her career. She often spoke of running home from school to play music in the basement with her brothers and sisters. "I detested school", she would later write in her autobiography. "I had always lived surrounded by adults and children a lot older than me. I learned everything I needed to know from them. As far as I was concerned, real life existed around them." Dion's eldest sister was already in her twenties, married, and pregnant with her first child at the time Dion's mother, Thérèse, was pregnant with Celine.
Dion first met René Angélil, her future husband and manager, in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after her brother, Michel Dondalinger Dion, had sent him a demonstration recording of "Ce n'était qu'un rêve" ("It Was Only a Dream/Nothing But A Dream"), a song she, her mother Thérèse, and her brother Jacques Dion had jointly written. Over subsequent years, Angélil guided her to stardom in francophone territories.
After the dissolution of Angélil's second marriage, he and Dion took a professional break and he spent the major part of the year in Las Vegas, while Dion was learning English and taking dance and vocal lessons in Montreal. Upon his return, "he avoided being alone with me for too long a time", she said in her 2000 autobiography My Story, My Dream. Meanwhile, she kept a photo of Angélil under her pillow, writing, "Before I fell asleep, I slipped it under the pillow, out of fear that my mother, who always shared a room with me, would find it." She also wrote "Less and less could I hide from myself the fact that I was in love with Rene; I had all the symptoms," and "I was in love with a man I couldn't love, who didn't want me to love him, who didn't want to love me." Dion's mother, who traveled everywhere with the singer until she was 19, was initially wary of her daughter's growing infatuation with a much older and twice-divorced Angélil, but Dion was insistent, telling her mother "I'm not a minor. This is a free country. No one has the right to prevent me from loving whoever I want to."
Their professional relationship eventually turned romantic after Dion's win at the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin in 1988; she was 20. The romance was known to only family and friends for five years, though Dion nearly revealed all in a tearful 1992 interview with journalist Lise Payette. Many years later, Payette penned the song "Je cherche l'ombre" for Dion's 2007 album D'elles.
Dion and Angélil became engaged in 1993, on Dion's 25th birthday, and made their relationship public in the liner notes of her 1993 album The Colour of My Love. They married on 17 December 1994, at Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec. On 5 January 2000, Dion and Angélil renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas.
In May 2000, Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in vitro fertilization because of years of failed attempts to conceive. Their first son, René-Charles Angélil, was born on 25 January 2001. Dion suffered a miscarriage in 2009. In May 2010, Angélil announced that she was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in vitro fertilization. On Saturday, 23 October 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, Dion gave birth to fraternal twins by Caesarean section at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, The twins were named Eddy, after Dion's favourite French songwriter, Eddy Marnay, who had also produced her first five albums; and Nelson, after former South African President Nelson Mandela. She appeared with her newborn sons on the cover of 9 December 2010 issue of the Canadian edition of Hello! magazine.
On 14 January 2016, Angélil died of throat cancer. His funeral was held on 22 January 2016, in Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, where he and Dion wed 21 years earlier. The couple's eldest son, René-Charles, gave the eulogy just three days before his 15th birthday. Following Angélil's death, Dion became the sole owner and president of her management and production companies, including CDA Productions and Les Productions Feeling.
Two days after Angélil's deathon what would have been her husband's birthdayDion's brother, Daniel, died aged 59, also of cancer.
On 22 March 2018, Dion's management team announced that she had been dealing with hearing irregularities for the previous 12–18 months due to patulous Eustachian tube and would undergo a minimally invasive surgical procedure to correct the problem after ear-drop medications appeared to be no longer working.
Owing to her slight frame, Dion has for decades been subject of eating disorder rumors, which she has consistently denied: "I don't have an eating problem, and there's nothing more I can say about it". "My work requires me to be in great physical shape. I wouldn't have been able to live up to a hundred shows a year and travel ceaselessly from one end of the world to the other if I had eaten too much or not enough, or if, as certain magazines have claimed, I made myself throw up after each meal." She has often spoken about having been bullied at school and lacking confidence in her early years in the business: "I didn't have, visually, what it took. I was not pretty, I had teeth problems, and I was very skinny. I didn't fit the mold".
Dion took up ballet under the guidance of her former dancer, Naomi Stikeman, who also previously performed for The National Ballet of Canada and La La La Human Steps, and former Cirque du Soleil dancer-turned-fashion-illustrator, Pepe Muñoz, who is also part of her styling team. She is also a skier and a regular at her son René-Charles' hockey games.
Dion resides in Henderson, Nevada, in a house she bought with her husband in 2003. She previously owned homes in Montreal, Quebec, and Jupiter Island, Florida.
Dion's older son René-Charles Angélil loves music and has tried to follow a musical path. Under the stage name Big Tip, he released in May 2018 on his SoundCloud account 6 rap songs including originals "The Kid", "The Apple" and "Never Stop" and two adaptations from The Weeknd songs, "Catwalks" sampling on The Weeknd's "Sidewalks" and a remix of The Weeknd's "Loft Music" as "Loft Music Remix". He also released the 5-track EP CasiNo. 5 in December 2020 using the artistic name RC Angelil. The EP includes the tracks "Mamba Mentality", "Money, Thrills and Rest", "No Ls", "GG4" (featuring PAKKA) and "LV".
Discography
French-language studio albums
La voix du bon Dieu (1981)
Céline Dion chante Noël (1981)
Tellement j'ai d'amour... (1982)
Les chemins de ma maison (1983)
Chants et contes de Noël (1983)
Mélanie (1984)
C'est pour toi (1985)
Incognito (1987)
Dion chante Plamondon (1991)
D'eux (1995)
S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998)
1 fille & 4 types (2003)
D'elles (2007)
Sans attendre (2012)
Encore un soir (2016)
English-language studio albums
Unison (1990)
Celine Dion (1992)
The Colour of My Love (1993)
Falling into You (1996)
Let's Talk About Love (1997)
These Are Special Times (1998)
A New Day Has Come (2002)
One Heart (2003)
Miracle (2004)
Taking Chances (2007)
Loved Me Back to Life (2013)
Courage (2019)
Concert tours and residencies
Tours
Les chemins de ma maison (1983–1984)
Céline Dion en concert (1985)
Tournée Incognito (1988)
Unison Tour (1990–1991)
Celine Dion in Concert (1992–1993)
The Colour of My Love Tour (1994–1995)
D'eux Tour (1995–1996)
Falling into You: Around the World (1996–1997)
Let's Talk About Love World Tour (1998–1999)
Taking Chances World Tour (2008–2009)
Tournée Européenne 2013
Summer Tour 2016
Celine Dion Live 2017
Celine Dion Live 2018
Courage World Tour (2019–2023)
Residencies
A New Day... (2003–2007)
Celine (2011–2019)
Celine (2022)
Filmography
Touched by an Angel
The Nanny
All My Children
La fureur de Céline
Des fleurs sur la neige
Quest for Camelot as Juliana (singing voice)
Céline sur les Plaines
Celine: Through the Eyes of the World
Sur la piste du Marsupilami
Hell's Kitchen
Muppets Most Wanted
References
Bibliography
Céline Dion. Artist direct. Retrieved on 18 December 2005.
"Celine Dion". Contemporary Musicians, Volume 25. Gale Group, 1999.
"Celine Dion". Newsmakers 1995, Issue 4. Gale Research, 1995.
Céline Dion. Rock on the Net. Retrieved 20 November 2005.
Céline Dion. The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2 July 2006
Céline Dion provided by VH1.com Retrieved 16 August 2005.
Dion extends long Las Vegas stint. news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2005.
Durchholz, Daniel. Review: One Heart. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. St. Louis, Mo.: 24 April 2003. p. F.3
The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalist covemagazine.com Retrieved 1 November 2005.
Joel Whitburn Presents the Billboard Hot 100 Charts: The Nineties ()
World Music Awards Diamond Award Retrieved 1 November 2005, (Search by year required)
Further reading
External links
CelineDion.com – Official website operated by Sony Music Canada (English, French).
[ Celine Dion] at AllMusic
[ Celine Dion] at Billboard.com
1968 births
Living people
20th-century Canadian composers
20th-century Canadian women singers
20th-century women composers
21st-century Canadian composers
21st-century Canadian women singers
21st-century women composers
550 Music artists
Ballad musicians
Businesspeople from Florida
Businesspeople from Quebec
Canadian businesspeople in retailing
Canadian child singers
Canadian contemporary R&B singers
Canadian dance musicians
Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States
Canadian women pop singers
Canadian women rock singers
Canadian women singers
Canadian pop pianists
Canadian restaurateurs
Canadian Roman Catholics
Canadian soft rock musicians
Canadian sopranos
Canadian soul singers
Canadian voice actresses
Canadian women in business
Canadian women philanthropists
Canadian women pianists
Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Columbia Records artists
Companions of the Order of Canada
Epic Records artists
Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Switzerland
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1988
Eurovision Song Contest winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Félix Award winners
French-language singers of Canada
French Quebecers
Grammy Award winners
Ivor Novello Award winners
Juno Award for Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Artist of the Year winners
Juno Award for Dance Recording of the Year winners
Juno Award for Francophone Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for International Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Single of the Year winners
Juno International Achievement Award winners
Las Vegas shows
Musicians from Las Vegas
Officers of the National Order of Quebec
People from Charlemagne, Quebec
People from Henderson, Nevada
People from Jupiter Island, Florida
Philanthropists from Florida
Philanthropists from Nevada
Philanthropists from Quebec
Pop rock singers
Singers from Quebec
Singers with a three-octave vocal range
Spanish-language singers of Canada
Women restaurateurs
World Music Awards winners | true | [
"\"Did You Give Enough Love\" is a song by Canadian singer Celine Dion, released as the sixth and final single from her second English-language studio album, Celine Dion (1992). It was released in July 1993 as a radio single in Canada. \"Did You Give Enough Love\" was written by Seth Swirsky and Arnie Roman, and produced by Ric Wake.\n\nBackground and release\nThe promotional CD contained also two remixes of \"Did You Give Enough Love\" created by Jean-Pierre Isaac: Remix 45\" and 12\" Club Mix. The single was released without a cover, but there was a pictured CD.\n\nA black-and-white music video was made in 1993. It was directed by Alain DesRochers and was shot in Montreal.\n\nThe song peaked at number 17 in Canada.\n\n\"Did You Give Enough Love\" was included also on \"The Power of Love\" European single, released the next year.\n\nDion performed the song during her Celine Dion in Concert tour in 1992 and 1993.\n\nCritical reception\nIn their review of the Celine Dion album, Billboard described the song as a \"beat-laden\" pop tune.\n\nTrack listing\nCanadian promotional CD single\n\"Did You Give Enough Love\" (Remix 45\") – 4:22\n\"Did You Give Enough Love\" (12\" Club Mix) – 6:44\n\"Did You Give Enough Love\" (Album Version) – 4:21\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\n1992 songs\n1993 singles\nCeline Dion songs\nColumbia Records singles\nEpic Records singles\nSong recordings produced by Ric Wake\nSongs written by Arnie Roman\nSongs written by Seth Swirsky",
"Celine Dion in Concert was the fourth concert tour by Celine Dion. The tour consisted of 51 shows held between 13 July 1992 and 13 May 1993. It was organized to support the album Celine Dion.\n\nHistory\nDuring the summer of 1992, Céline Dion did an American tour as the opening act for Michael Bolton. They kicked off the \"Time, Love and Tenderness Tour\" on 13 July 1992 at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California. In the space of one month, they performed the show in twenty-thousand-seat-arenas. Dion also joined Bolton for the song \"Hold On, I'm Comin'.\" According to Celine, the opening for Michael Bolton was exhausting, particularly because she had to change cities every day. \"But we were finally doing what we had always dreamed of doing: working in the country that created the big time\", Celine has said. In the beginning, Celine performed for very restless, impatient audiences who were waiting to hear Michael Bolton and were not interested in her. \"I had a defective sound system and very little space because the stage was taken up by the mixers and instruments for the main act.\" The concerts were held outdoors, and it was still daylight when Celine went onstage. Eventually Rene Angelil was able to convince the producers to begin the show a half-hour later. By the end of the tour, Celine had good lighting and a better sound system.\n\nBetween August 1992 and March 1993 she toured Quebec, Canada. In August 1992, in front of more than 45,000 people, Dion took part in a historic concert at Le Parc des Iles on Ile Ste-Hélène to celebrate the 350th anniversary of Montreal. She performed duets with Aaron Neville, Peabo Bryson and The Atlanta Super Choir in a concert that was later aired on the CBC's Les Beaux Dimanches. On 23 March 1993 Dion began her English-language Canada leg of the tour, with five sold-out concerts at the Montreal Forum. This last leg included 28 dates and 75,000 tickets. When they went on sale, the tickets were sold in 5 hours.\n\nAccording to Le Soleil (17 November 1993) Dion gave 17 concerts at Capitole Theatre, Quebec City since its opening in November 1992 with an average of 1,300 tickets sold per show. She was the most profitable act for the venue.\n\nDion typically performed 15 songs during her 90-minute shows. The set list included mainly songs from her latest English album Celine Dion, but also few from her previous albums (Unison and Dion chante Plamondon) and three covers: \"Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word,\" \"Can't Help Falling in Love\" and \"(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman.\"\n\nDion was supposed to sing in Campbellton and Caraquet in May 1993, but these concerts were cancelled because of death of her niece Karine. It was announced that they would be rescheduled later that summer. An additional 4 concerts which Dion had to postpone after Karine's death were performed in September 1993. During the 7–8 September 1993 concerts, Celine performed songs from her upcoming album \"The Colour Of My Love\". Singer Anthony Kavanagh did the opening act at Celine's shows in Quebec, Canada. In the rest of the country, Lennie Gallant did some opening acts. Some of the concerts of the tour were actually special performances for some festivals like the \"Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières\", \"Montréal au rythme des Amériques\", \"Canadian National Exhibition\" and the \"Gatineau Hot Air Balloon Festival\".\n\nOpening acts\n Anthony Kavanagh (Quebec)\n Lennie Gallant (Canada)\n\nSet list\n \"Des mots qui sonnent\"\n \"Where Does My Heart Beat Now\"\n \"Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word\"\n \"Love Can Move Mountains\"\n \"L'amour existe encore\"\n \"Je danse dans ma tête\"\n \"Unison\"\n \"If You Asked Me To\"\n \"Did You Give Enough Love\"\n \"Beauty and the Beast\"\n \"Water from the Moon\"\n \"With This Tear\"\n \"(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman\" \n \"Nothing Broken but My Heart\"\n \"Can't Help Falling in Love\"\n\nTour dates\n\nFestivals and other miscellaneous performances\nThis concert was a part of the \"Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières\"\nThis concert was a part of the \"Montréal au rythme des Amériques\"\nThis concert was a part of the \"Canadian National Exhibition\"\nThis concert was a part of the \"Gatineau Hot Air Balloon Festival\"\n\nReferences\n\nCeline Dion concert tours\n1992 concert tours\n1993 concert tours"
]
|
[
"Celine Dion",
"2011-2014: Celine, Sans attendre and Loved Me Back to Life",
"What did Celine Dion do in 2011?",
"February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011."
]
| C_78f1e410e4c0415db79dddeaf75c47aa_0 | Was her tour successful? | 2 | Was Celine Dion's 2011 tour successful? | Celine Dion | In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. Additionally, for a record sixth time, Dion performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, Dion appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, Dion released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, Dion made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica. In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. Dion began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles. The music video for "Incredible" was uploaded onto Dion's official Vevo channel in early June 2014. On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Celine une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia. CANNOTANSWER | Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. | Céline Marie Claudette Dion (; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. She is noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals. Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French language artist of all time. Her music has incorporated genres such as pop, rock, R&B, gospel, and classical music.
Born into a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, she emerged as a teen star in her home country with a series of French-language albums during the 1980s. She first gained international recognition by winning both the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, where she represented Switzerland. After learning to speak English, she signed on to Epic Records in the United States. In 1990, Dion released her debut English-language album, Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world. Her recordings since have been mainly in English and French although she has also sung in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese, and Chinese.
During the 1990s, she achieved worldwide fame after releasing several best-selling English-language albums in music history, such as Falling into You (1996) and Let's Talk About Love (1997), which were both certified diamond in the US and over 30 million sales worldwide each. She also scored a series of international number-one hits, including "The Power of Love", "Think Twice", "Because You Loved Me", "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", "My Heart Will Go On", and "I'm Your Angel". Dion continued releasing French albums between each English record; D'eux (1995) became the best-selling French-language album of all time, while S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998), Sans attendre (2012), and Encore un soir (2016), were all certified diamond in France. During the 2000s, she built her reputation as a highly successful live performer with A New Day... on the Las Vegas Strip (2003–07), which remains the highest-grossing concert residency of all time, as well as the Taking Chances World Tour (2008–09), one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time.
Dion is also one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with record sales of more than 200 million worldwide. Although her releases have often received mixed critical reception, Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most successful vocalists. She has won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year. Billboard named her the "Queen of Adult Contemporary" for having the most number-one songs on the radio format for a female artist. Dion is the second best-selling female artist in the US during the Nielsen SoundScan, the 8th all-time best-performing top female artist in the United States, and the sixth all-time best-performing female soloist in Billboard 200 history. In 2003, she was honoured by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for selling over 50 million albums in Europe. In 2008, Dion was recognized as the Best-selling International Artist in South Africa.
Life and career
1968–1989: Early life and career beginnings
Dion was born in Charlemagne, Quebec, northeast of Montreal, the youngest of 14 children of Thérèse (née Tanguay, 1927–2020), a homemaker, and Adhémar Dion (1923–2003), a butcher, both of French-Canadian descent. She was raised a Roman Catholic in a poor but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne. Music had always been a major part of the Dion family, and she was named after the song "Céline", which French singer Hugues Aufray had recorded two years before her birth. On 13 August 1973, at the age of five, the young Céline made her first public appearance at her brother Michel's wedding, where she performed Christine Charbonneau's song "Du fil, des aiguilles et du coton". She continued to perform with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar called Le Vieux Baril, "The Old Barrel". From an early age, she had dreamed of being a performer. In a 1994 interview with People magazine, she recalled, "I missed my family and my home, but I don't regret having lost my adolescence. I had one dream: I wanted to be a singer." As a child in Quebec, Dion participated in Girl Guide programs as a member of Girl Guides of Canada.
At age 12, she collaborated with her mother and her brother Jacques to write and compose her first song, "Ce n'était qu'un rêve", whose title translates as "It Was Only a Dream" or "Nothing But A Dream". Her brother Michel sent the recording to music manager René Angélil, whose name he discovered on the back of a Ginette Reno album. Angélil was moved to tears by Dion's voice and decided to make her a star. In 1981, he mortgaged his home to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu, which later became a local No. 1 hit and made her an instant star in Quebec. Her popularity spread to other parts of the world when she competed in the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, and won the musician's award for "Top Performer" as well as the gold medal for "Best Song" with "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi".
By 1983, in addition to becoming the first Canadian artist to receive a gold record in France for the single "D'amour ou d'amitié" ("Of Love or of Friendship"), Dion had also won several Félix Awards, including "Best Female performer" and "Discovery of the Year". Further success came when she represented Switzerland in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Ne partez pas sans moi" and won the contest by a close margin in Dublin, Ireland.
At age 18, after seeing a Michael Jackson performance, Dion told Angélil that she wanted to be a star like Jackson. Though confident in her talent, Angélil realized that her image needed to be changed for her to be marketed worldwide. She receded from the spotlight for a number of months, during which she underwent dental surgery to improve her appearance, and was sent to the École Berlitz in 1989 to polish her English.
In 1989, during a concert on the Incognito tournée, she injured her voice. She consulted the otorhinolaryngologist William Gould, who gave her an ultimatum: have immediate surgery on her vocal cords or do not utilize them at all for three weeks. Dion chose the latter and underwent vocal training with William Riley.
1990–1992: Unison, Dion chante Plamondon, and Celine Dion
Two years after she learned English, Dion made her debut into the Anglophone market with Unison (1990), the lead single having originally been recorded by Laura Branigan. She incorporated the help of many established musicians, including Vito Luprano and Canadian producer David Foster. The album was largely influenced by 1980s soft rock music that quickly found a niche within the adult contemporary radio format. Unison also hit the right notes with critics: Jim Faber of Entertainment Weekly wrote that her vocals were "tastefully unadorned", and that she never attempted to "bring off styles that are beyond her". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic declared it "a fine, sophisticated American debut". Singles from the album included "(If There Was) Any Other Way", "The Last to Know", "Unison", and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now", a mid-tempo soft-rock ballad that made prominent use of the electric guitar. The latter became her first top-ten hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number four. In 1991, Dion was a featured soloist on "Voices That Care", a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm.
Her real international breakthrough came when she duetted with Peabo Bryson on the title track to Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991). It became her first top-ten hit in the UK and her second top-ten hit in the United States. The song earned its songwriters an Academy Award for Best Song and gave Dion her first Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. "Beauty and the Beast" served as the lead single from her 1992 self-titled album, which, like her debut, had a strong pop rock influence combined with elements of soul and classical music. Owing to the success of the lead-off single and her collaborations with David Foster and Diane Warren, the album was even more well-received commercially than Unison; it was certified diamond in Canada and double platinum in the US. The album's second single "If You Asked Me To" (a cover of Patti LaBelle's song from the 1989 movie Licence to Kill) became her first number-one single in Canada and peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Also during this time, Dion released the Francophone album Dion chante Plamondon. The album consisted mostly of covers, but featured four new songs: "Des mots qui sonnent", "Je danse dans ma tête", "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime", and "L'amour existe encore". It was originally released in Canada and France during the 1991–1992 period, then later received an international release in 1994, the first French Celine Dion album to do so. "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)" became a smash hit in France, reaching No. 2 and being certified gold. In Quebec, the album was certified Gold the day it was released.
By 1992, Unison, Céline Dion, and numerous high-profile media appearances had propelled Dion to superstardom in North America. She had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame. However, while she was experiencing rising success in the US, her French fans in Canada criticized her for neglecting them. She would later rebuff these criticisms at the 1991 Félix Awards show, where, after winning "English Artist of the Year", she openly refused to accept the award. She asserted that she was—and would always be—a French, not an English, artist. Apart from her commercial success, there were also changes in her personal life, as Angélil, who was 26 years her senior, transitioned from manager to lover. However, the relationship was kept a secret as they both feared that the public would find their relations inappropriate.
1993–1995: The Colour of My Love and D'eux
In 1993, Dion announced her feelings for her manager by declaring him "the colour of [her] love" in the dedication section of her third English-language album The Colour of My Love. However, instead of criticizing their relationship as she had feared, fans embraced the couple. Eventually, Angélil and Dion married in an extravagant wedding ceremony on 17 December 1994, which was broadcast live on Canadian television.
As with most of her catalogue, The Colour of My Love had over-riding themes of love and romance. It became her most successful record up to that point, selling more than six million copies in the US, two million in Canada, and peaking at No. 1 in many countries. The album also spawned Dion's first US, Canadian, and Australian No. 1 single "The Power of Love" (a remake of Jennifer Rush's 1985 hit), which would become her signature hit in various nations until she reached new career heights in the late 1990s.
The single "When I Fall in Love", a duet with Clive Griffin, achieved moderate success on the US and Canadian charts and was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one. The Colour of My Love also became Dion's first major hit in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. Both the album and the single "Think Twice" simultaneously occupied the top of the British charts for five consecutive weeks. "Think Twice", which remained at No. 1 for seven weeks, eventually became the fourth single by a female artist to sell in excess of one million copies in the UK while the album was eventually certified five-times platinum for two million copies sold.
Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record. Generally, they achieved more credibility than her English-language works. She released À l'Olympia, a live album that was recorded during one of her concerts at the Paris Olympia in 1994. It had one promotional single, a live version of "Calling You", which peaked at seventy-five on the French Singles Chart. She also recorded a bilingual version of "Petit Papa Noël" with Alvin and the Chipmunks for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk. D'eux (also known as The French Album in the United States), was released in 1995, and it would go on to become the best-selling French-language album of all time. The album was mostly written and produced by Jean-Jacques Goldman, and amassed huge success with the singles "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" and "Je sais pas". "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" reached No. 1 in France and stayed at the top position for twelve weeks. It was later certified Platinum in France. The single reached the top ten in the UK and Ireland, a rare accomplishment for a French song. The second single off the album, "Je sais pas", reached No. 1 on the French Singles Chart as well and was certified Silver there.
During the mid-1990s and onward, Dion's albums were generally constructed on the basis of melodramatic soft rock ballads, with sprinklings of up-tempo pop and rare forays into other genres. She collaborated with many renowned writers and producers such as Jim Steinman and David Foster, who helped her to develop a signature sound. While critical reviews fluctuated, her releases performed increasingly well on the international charts, and in 1996, she won the World Music Award for "World's Best-selling Female Recording Artist of the Year" for the third time. By the mid-1990s, she had established herself as one of the best-selling artists in the world.
1996–1999: Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love, and S'il suffisait d'aimer
In the five years since her debut English language album in 1990, Billboard stated that she had already sold 40 million albums worldwide. Falling into You (1996), Dion's fourth English-language album, presented the singer at the height of her popularity and showed a further progression of her music. In an attempt to reach a wider audience, the album combined many elements, such as complex orchestral sounds, African chanting, and elaborate musical effects. Additionally, instruments like the violin, Spanish guitar, trombone, the cavaquinho, and saxophone created a new sound. The singles encompassed a variety of musical styles. The title track "Falling into You" and "River Deep – Mountain High" (a Tina Turner cover) made prominent use of percussion instruments; "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (produced by its writer Jim Steinman) and a remake of Eric Carmen's "All by Myself" maintained a soft-rock atmosphere, combined with the classical sound of the piano; and the No. 1 single "Because You Loved Me", which was written by Diane Warren, was a pop ballad that served as the theme to the 1996 film Up Close and Personal.
Falling into You garnered career-best reviews for Dion. While Dan Leroy wrote that it was not very different from her previous work, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times and Natalie Nichols of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the album was formulaic, other critics, such as Chuck Eddy of Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic, and Daniel Durchholz, lavished the album as "compelling", "passionate", "stylish", "elegant", and "remarkably well-crafted". Falling into You became Dion's most critically and commercially successful album: it topped the charts in many countries and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.
In 2013, CBC Music ranked Falling into You 33rd in their list of the 100 greatest Canadian albums ever. In the United States, the album reached No. 1, and was later certified 11× Platinum for over 11 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album was certified diamond for over one million copies shipped. The IFPI certified Falling into You 9× Platinum, an accolade that has been given to only two other albums in history, with one of the two being Dion's own album, Let's Talk About Love. The album also won Grammy Awards for Best Pop Album and the academy's highest honour, Album of the Year.
Dion was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream" at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In March 1996, she launched the Falling into You Tour in support of her new album, performing concerts around the world for over a year.
She followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love (1997), which was publicized as its sequel. The recording process took place in London, New York City, and Los Angeles, and featured a host of special guests, such as Barbra Streisand on "Tell Him"; the Bee Gees on "Immortality"; and tenor Luciano Pavarotti on "I Hate You Then I Love You". Other musicians included Carole King, Sir George Martin, Bryan Adams and Jamaican singer Diana King, who added a reggae tinge to "Treat Her Like a Lady".
Let's Talk About Love was another major success, reaching No. 1 all over the world, attaining platinum status in twenty-four sales territories, and becoming the fastest selling album of her career. In the United States, the album topped the chart in its seventh week of release, and was later certified 10× Platinum in the US for over 10 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album sold 230,212 copies in its first week of release, which remains a record. It was eventually certified diamond in Canada for over one million copies shipped. The most successful single from the album was the classically influenced ballad "My Heart Will Go On", which was written and composed by James Horner and Will Jennings, and produced by Horner and Walter Afanasieff.
Serving as the love theme for the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic, the song topped the charts across the world and became Dion's signature song. Horner and Jennings won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song, while Dion herself garnered two Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and the most coveted, Record of the Year, (the song itself won four awards, but two were presented to the songwriters). "My Heart Will Go On" and "Think Twice" made her the only female artist in the UK to have two singles to sell more than a million copies. In support of her album, she embarked on the Let's Talk About Love Tour between 1998 and 1999.
Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums: the Christmas album These Are Special Times (1998), the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer, and the compilation album All the Way... A Decade of Song (1999). On These Are Special Times, she co-wrote the song "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day" along with Ric Wake and Peter Zizzo. The album was her most classically influenced yet, with orchestral arrangements found on virtually every track. The album featured the single "I'm Your Angel" (a duet with R. Kelly), which became her fourth US No. 1 single, and a smash hit across the world. The album's second single "The Prayer" (a duet with Andrea Bocelli) served as the soundtrack of the 1998 film Quest for Camelot and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. All the Way... A Decade of Song drew together her most successful hits coupled with seven new songs, including the lead-off single "That's the Way It Is", a cover of Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", and "All the Way", a duet with Frank Sinatra. All the Way became one of the best-selling compilation albums of all time, reaching No. 1 in the United States for three weeks. The album was later certified 7x Platinum in the US for 7 million copies shipped. It also topped the charts in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Her last French-language studio album of the 1990s, S'il suffisait d'aimer, was very successful as well, topping the charts in every major French-speaking country, including France, Switzerland, the Wallonia region of Belgium, and Canada. In France, the album was certified diamond, selling 1.5 million copies. By the end of the 1990s, Dion had sold more than 130 million records worldwide, and had won a slew of industry awards. Her status as one of the music industry's biggest pop divas was further solidified when she was asked to perform on VH1's Divas Live special in 1998, with superstars Aretha Franklin, Gloria Estefan, Shania Twain, and Mariah Carey. That year, she also received two of the highest Canadian honours: "Officer of the Order of Canada for Outstanding Contribution to the World of Contemporary Music" and "Officer of the National Order of Quebec". A year later, she was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame, and was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.
Starting from the mid-1990s, the pop rock influence that was more noticeable in her earlier releases was replaced by a more mature feel. Additionally, the recurring theme of "love" dominated most of her releases, which led to some critics dismissing her music as banal. Other critics, like Elysa Gardner and Jose F. Promis, praised her voice during this period, describing it as a "technical marvel". Steve Dollar, in his review of These Are Special Times, opined that Dion was a "vocal Olympian for whom there ain't no mountain—or scale—high enough".
2000–2003: Hiatus, A New Day Has Come, One Heart, and 1 fille & 4 types
After releasing and promoting thirteen albums during the 1990s, Dion stated that she needed to settle down, and announced on her latest album All the Way... A Decade of Song, that she needed to take a step back from the spotlight and enjoy life. Angélil's diagnosis with esophageal cancer also prompted her to hiatus. While on break, she was unable to escape the spotlight. In 2000, the National Enquirer published a false story about the singer. Brandishing a picture of Dion and her husband, the magazine misquoted her, printing the headline, "Celine — 'I'm Pregnant With Twins!'" She later sued the magazine for more than $20million. The editors of the Enquirer printed an apology and a full retraction to her in the next issue, and donated money to the American Cancer Society in honour of her and her husband. A year after the incident, after undergoing fertility treatments, she gave birth to a son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, on 25 January 2001, in Florida.
Following the 11 September attacks, Dion returned to the music scene, and in a televised performance sang "God Bless America" at the benefit concert America: A Tribute to Heroes. Chuck Taylor of Billboard wrote, "the performance ... brings to mind what has made her one of the celebrated vocalists of our time: the ability to render emotion that shakes the soul. Affecting, meaningful, and filled with grace, this is a musical reflection to share with all of us still searching for ways to cope." She performed it again in 2003 during pregame festivities for Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego. In December 2001, she published her autobiography My Story, My Dream which chronicled her rags-to-riches story.
Dion ended her three-year sabbatical from the music industry with the aptly titled album A New Day Has Come, released in March 2002. The album was her most personal yet, with songs focusing on her motherhood and maturation as a woman such as "A New Day Has Come", and "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)". She stated: "becoming a mother makes you a grown-up." She stated, "A New Day Has Come, for Rene, for me, is the baby. It has everything to do with the baby ... That song "A New Day Has Come" represents very well the mood I'm feeling right now. It represents the whole album." A New Day Has Come debuted at No. 1 in more than 17 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 527,000 copies; marking her first No. 1 debut on the chart, as well as the highest debut sales week of her career in the US. It was eventually certified 3× Platinum in the United States, and 6× Platinum in Canada.
While the album was commercially successful, critical reviews suggested that it was "forgettable" and the lyrics were "lifeless". Both Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone magazine, and Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly, stated that Dion's music had not developed much during her break, and classed her material as trite and mediocre. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine called the album "a lengthy collection of drippy, gooey pop fluffer-nutter". The first single off the album, A New Day Has Come peaked at No.22 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, being an airplay-only release. On the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks, however, the song spent 21 consecutive weeks at No. 1, breaking the record for the longest span at the top. The previous record holders were Phil Collins' You'll Be in My Heart and Dion's own Because You Loved Me, both of which lasted nineteen weeks at No. 1. The album's next single, "I'm Alive", was featured on the soundtrack for Stuart Little 2 (2002), and was ranked number 2 on the European Hot 100 Singles, and number 6 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks in the United States. During 2002, she performed for many benefit concerts, including her second appearance on VH1 Divas Live, a concert to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation, alongside Cher, Anastacia, Dixie Chicks, Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, Cyndi Lauper, Shakira, and Stevie Nicks.
In conjunction with an endorsement deal with Chrysler, she released One Heart (2003), an album that represented her appreciation for life. The album largely consisted of pop and dance music—a deviation from the soaring, melodramatic ballads, for which she had been known. Although the album achieved moderate success, One Heart was met with mixed criticism, and words such as "predictable" and "banal" appeared even in the most lenient reviews. A cover of the 1989 Cyndi Lauper hit "I Drove All Night", released to launch her advertising campaign with Chrysler, incorporated elements of dance-pop and rock and roll. The advertising deal was met with criticism, with some stating that Dion was trying to cater to her sponsors.
After One Heart, she released her next English-language studio album, Miracle (2004). Miracle was a multimedia project conceived by Dion and Australian photographer Anne Geddes and had a theme centring on babies and motherhood. The album was filled with lullabies and other songs of maternal love and inspiration, including covers of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" and John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy". The reviews for Miracle were mixed. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic.com gave the album three of out five stars, stating, "The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience." Chuck Taylor of Billboard magazine wrote that the single "Beautiful Boy" was "an unexpected gem" and called Dion "a timeless, enormously versatile artist", Chuck Arnold of People Magazine, however, labelled the album as excessively sentimental, while Nancy Miller of Entertainment Weekly opined that "the whole earth-mama act is just opportunism, reborn". Miracle debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 in Canada and was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA.
The francophone album 1 fille & 4 types (1 Girl & 4 Guys), released in October 2003, fared better than her previous two releases and showed her trying to distance herself from the "diva" image. She recruited Jean-Jacques Goldman, Gildas Arzel, Eric Benzi, and Jacques Veneruso, with whom she had previously worked on two of her best-selling French albums S'il suffisait d'aimer and D'eux. Labeled "the album of pleasure" by Dion herself, the album cover showed her in a simple and relaxed manner, contrary to the choreographed poses usually found on her album covers. The album achieved widespread commercial success in France, Canada, and Belgium where it reached No. 1. In France, the album debuted at No. 1 and was later certified 2× platinum after selling over 700,000 copies. Critic Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Dion's vocals were "back at top of their game" and that she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while".
Though her albums were commercially successful, they did not achieve the sales or the reception of her previous works. Her songs received less airplay as radio became less embracing of balladeers like Dion, Carey, and Houston, and was focused on more up-tempo, Urban/Hip-hop songs. By 2004, Dion had accumulated sales of more than 175 million albums worldwide and received the Chopard Diamond Award from the World Music Awards for her achievements. According to the official World Music Awards website, the award is rare; it is "not presented every year" and an artist can be presented with the award only for selling "over 100 million albums during their career".
2003–2007: A New Day...
In early 2002, Dion announced a three-year, 600-show contract to appear five nights a week in an entertainment extravaganza, A New Day..., at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. This move was generally seen as risky, but journalist Miriam Nunzio wrote that it was "one of the smartest business decisions in years by any major recording artist". Dion conceived the show after seeing O by Franco Dragone during her break from recording, and it premiered on 25 March 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena specifically designed for her show and modelled after the Roman Colosseum. Many stars attended the opening night including Dick Clark, Alan Thicke, Kathy Griffin, Lance Bass, and Justin Timberlake, who hosted the television special. The show, directed by Dragone and choreographed by the renowned Mia Michaels, was a combination of dance, music, and visual effects. It included Dion performing her biggest hits against an array of dancers and special effects. Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find the singer among the excessive stage ornamentation and dancers. However, he noted that the show had become more enjoyable over the course of its run, because of her improved stage-presence and simplified costumes.
The show was well-received by audiences, despite the complaints of expensive tickets; it routinely sold out until its end in late 2007. Ticket prices averaged $135.33. According to Pollstar, Dion sold 322,000 tickets and grossed US$43.9 million in the first half of 2005, and by July 2005, she had sold out 315 out of 384 shows. By the end of 2005, she grossed more than US$76 million, placing sixth on Billboard's Money Makers list for 2005. Because of the show's success, her contract was extended into 2007 for an undisclosed sum. On 5 January 2007, it was announced that the show would end on 15 December 2007, with tickets for the period after October 2007 having gone on sale from 1 March. According to Billboard, A New Day... is the most successful residency of all time, grossing over US$385 million ($ million in dollars) and drawing nearly three million people to 717 shows. The Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... DVD was released on 10 December 2007, in Europe and the following day in North America.
2007–2010: D'elles, Taking Chances, and Taking Chances Tour
On 21 May 2007, Dion released the French-language album D'elles (About Them), which debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week. It marked her tenth No. 1 album in the SoundScan era, and her eighth to debut at the top position. In Canada, the album has been certified 2× platinum, and within the first month had already shipped half a million units worldwide. D'Elles also reached No. 1 in France and Belgium. The first single "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)" (meaning "And If There Was Only One Woman Left (I Would Be That One)") debuted at the top of the French singles chart a month earlier. Later that same year, she released the English album Taking Chances on 12 November in Europe, and 13 November in North America. Her first English studio album since 2003's One Heart, it featured pop, R&B, and rock inspired music. For this album, she collaborated with John Shanks and ex-Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody, as well as Kristian Lundin, Peer Åström, Linda Perry, Japanese singer Yuna Ito, and R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. Dion stated, "I think this album represents a positive evolution in my career ... I'm feeling strong, maybe a little gutsier than in the past, and just as passionate about music and life as I ever was." She launched her year-long worldwide Taking Chances Tour on 14 February 2008, in South Africa, performing 132 dates in stadiums and arenas across five continents.
The Taking Chances Tour was a great success in the United States, reaching the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Boxscore, having sold out every concert in the US and Canada. In addition, she appeared on Idol Gives Back for a second year in a row. Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, adding to her 53 previous nominations (an all-time record). Her nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year (for Taking Chances), Francophone Album of the Year (for D'elles) and Album of the Year (for both Taking Chances and D'elles). The following year, she was nominated for 3 Juno Awards including the Fan Choice Award, Song of the Year (for Taking Chances), and Music DVD of the Year (for Live in Las Vegas — A New Day...)
On 22 August 2008, Dion presented a free outdoor concert, mostly in French, on the Plains of Abraham, in Québec City, Canada, for the 400th anniversary of Québec City. The celebration gathered approximately 490,000 people. The concert, called Céline sur les Plaines, was released on DVD on 11 November 2008, in Québec and was released on 20 May 2009, in France. Late October 2008 saw the worldwide release of a comprehensive English-language greatest hits album, My Love: Essential Collection.
In May 2009, Dion was named the 20th best-selling artist of the decade and the second-best-selling female artist of the decade in the United States, selling an estimated 17.57 million copies of her albums there since 2000. In June 2009, Forbes reported that she earned $100 million during 2008. In December 2009, Pollstar announced that she was the best-selling solo touring act of the decade and the second-best-selling touring act of the decade, behind only the Dave Matthews Band. she grossed $522.2 million during the decade, a large portion of that sum coming from her five-year residency at Caesars Palace.
On 17 February 2010, Dion released into theatres a documentary film about her Taking Chances Tour, titled, Celine: Through the Eyes of the World. The documentary shows behind-the-scenes footage of her both onstage and offstage, along with footage of her with her family as they travelled the world with her. The distributor is the Sony Pictures subsidiary, Hot Ticket. The film was later released on Blu-ray and DVD on 4 May 2010, along with the CD/DVD, Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert. At the 52nd Grammy Awards in February 2010, Dion joined Carrie Underwood, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, and Smokey Robinson to perform the song "Earth Song" during the 3-D Michael Jackson tribute.
In January 2010, The Los Angeles Times presented its annual list of the top ten largest earners of the year, revealing that Dion took the top spot for the entire decade, with $US747.9 million in total revenue from 2000–2009. The largest haul came from ticket sales, totalling $522.2 million. Additionally, she was named "Artist of the Decade" in her native Canadian province of Québec, announced by the Montréal-based newspaper, Le Journal de Québec in 2009 December. A public online survey asked responders to vote for whom they believe deserved the above-mentioned accolade.
Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, Dion was named the most popular musician in the United States, ahead of U2, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles while factoring in gender, political affiliations, geographic region of residence, and income. Specifically, she was the most popular musician in the female demographic, as well as among all Democrats, those who live in the eastern United States and southern United States, and those who have incomes between US$35k and US$74.9k.
In September 2010, she released the single "Voler", a duet with French singer Michel Sardou. The song was later included on Sardou's album. In addition, it was announced in October 2010 that Dion wrote and composed a new song for Canadian singer, Marc Dupré entitled "Entre deux mondes".
2011–2014: Celine, Sans attendre, and Loved Me Back to Life
In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. In 2018, Billboard stated her residency Celine is the second most successful residency of all time. By the end of 2011, Dion has sold 331,000 albums (despite not releasing any studio album since 2007) and 956,000 digital tracks in the United States.
For a record sixth time, she performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, she appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, she released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, she made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica.
In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. She began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles.
In June 2013, Dion co-produced the show titled "Voices" by Véronic DiCaire at the Bally’s Hotel & Casino’s Jubilee Theatre and was presented 145 times up until 2015.
On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Céline une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia.
2014–present: Husband's death, Encore un soir, Courage, and return to Vegas
On 13 August 2014, Dion announced the indefinite postponement of all her show business activities, including her concert residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and the cancellation of her Asia Tour, because of the worsening of her husband's health after he underwent the removal of a cancerous tumor in December 2013. However, on 20 March 2015, she announced that she would be returning to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in late August 2015. On 14 January 2016, she cancelled the rest of the January performances due to her husband's and her brother's death from cancer. Dion resumed the residency on 23 February to a sold-out crowd and rave reviews.
In October 2015, Dion announced on social media that she had begun working on a new French album, posting a photo by the side of Algerian singer Zaho. Dion's French single, "Encore un soir", was released on 24 May 2016. On 20 May, she released a cover of Queen's song "The Show Must Go On", featuring Lindsey Stirling on violin. She performed "The Show Must Go On" at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards on 22 May, and received the Billboard Icon Award (presented to her by her son, René-Charles Angélil) in recognition of her career spanning over three decades.
The singer's new French album, Encore un soir, was released on 26 August 2016. It features fifteen tracks performed in French and, according to the singer, has a personal choice of the songs – more uplifting lyrics were chosen. Encore un soir topped the charts in France, Canada, Belgium and Switzerland, and was certified Diamond in France, 2× Platinum in Canada and Platinum in Belgium and Switzerland. It has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. In 2016 and 2017, Dion toured Europe and Canada with two sold-out concert tours. On 9 September 2016, she released "Recovering", a song written for her by Pink after Dion's husband René Angélil died in January 2016. Dion also recorded "How Does a Moment Last Forever" for the Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, released in March 2017. Her compilation, Un peu de nous topped the chart in France in July and August 2017.
On 3 May 2018, she released the single "Ashes" from the film Deadpool 2. The remix version of the song topped the US Dance Club Songs chart in July 2018. From June to August 2018, she toured the Asia-Pacific region and grossed $56.5 million from 22 shows. On 24 September 2018, she announced the end of her Las Vegas residency Celine, with the final date set for 8 June 2019. She is working on a new English album. In January 2019, she performed "A Change Is Gonna Come" at the "Aretha! A Grammy Celebration for the Queen of Soul" Franklin's tribute concert, to be broadcast in March 2019. In March 2019, she was one of 11 singers from Quebec, alongside Ginette Reno, Diane Dufresne, Isabelle Boulay, Luce Dufault, Louise Forestier, Laurence Jalbert, Catherine Major, Ariane Moffatt, Marie Denise Pelletier, and Marie-Élaine Thibert, who participated in a supergroup recording of Renée Claude's 1971 single "Tu trouveras la paix" after Claude's diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease was announced. On 3 April 2019, during a Facebook Live event, Dion announced her 2019/2020 Courage World Tour, beginning in Quebec City on 18 September 2019. She also announced a new English language album of the same name, released in November 2019.
On 18 September 2019, Dion released three songs, "Lying Down", "Courage", and "Imperfections" from her upcoming album, Courage. On 26 February 2020, Dion released two songs as exclusive Spotify singles: an acoustic version of Imperfections, and a cover of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game. Isaak joined Dion and sang vocals on the track. On 10 June 2020, Dion announced that her Courage World Tour will kick off again in 2021, after the tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 21 May 2021, it was announced Dion would return to Vegas, in November of the same year, for a limited-run installment of ten dates in collaboration with Resorts World Las Vegas. Billboard listed Dion as the third top paid musician of 2020 (second by female artist), with total of earnings of $17.5 million.
On 15 January 2022, a statement posted to Dion's website and social media accounts announced that the U.S. and Canadian concert dates for March-April 2022 were canceled because of “severe and persistent muscle spasms” that are preventing Dion from performing onstage.
Artistry
Influences
Dion cites idols as varied as Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Charles Aznavour, Carole King, Anne Murray, Barbra Streisand, and the Bee Gees, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with. Her music has been influenced by numerous genres, including pop, rock, gospel, R&B, and soul, and her lyrics focus on themes of poverty, world hunger, and spirituality, with an emphasis on love and romance. After the birth of her first child, her work increasingly focused on maternal love.
Musical style
Dion has faced considerable criticism from critics, who state that her music often retreats behind pop and soul conventions, and is marked by excessive sentimentality. According to Keith Harris of Rolling Stone magazine, "[Dion's] sentimentality is bombastic and defiant rather than demure and retiring ... [she] stands at the end of the chain of drastic devolution that goes Aretha–Whitney–Mariah. Far from being an aberration, Dion actually stands as a symbol of a certain kind of pop sensibility—bigger is better, too much is never enough, and the riper the emotion the more true." Her francophone releases, by contrast, tend to be deeper and more varied than her English releases, and consequently have achieved more credibility.
Critics have stated that Dion's involvement in the production aspect of her music is fundamentally lacking, which results in her work being overproduced and impersonal. However, coming from a family in which all of her siblings were musicians, she dabbled in learning how to play instruments like piano and guitar, and practised with a Fender Stratocaster during the recording sessions for her album Falling into You.
Occasionally, Dion has contributed to the writing of a handful of her English and French songs, as well as writing a few songs for other artists such as Marc Dupre. Additionally, as her career progressed, she found herself taking charge in the production of her albums. On her first English album, which she recorded before she had a firm command of the English language, she expressed disapproval, which could have been avoided if she had assumed more creative input. By the time she released her second English album Celine Dion, she had assumed more control of the production and recording process, hoping to dispel earlier criticisms. She stated, "On the second album I said, 'Well, I have the choice to be afraid one more time and not be 100% happy, or not be afraid and be part of this album.' This is my album." Besides her contributions to some of her early French albums, Dion wrote a few of the songs on Let's Talk About Love (1997) and These Are Special Times (1998).
She is often the subject of media ridicule and parody and is frequently impersonated on shows such as MADtv, Saturday Night Live, South Park, Royal Canadian Air Farce, and This Hour Has 22 Minutes for her strong accent and onstage gesticulations. However, she has stated that she is unaffected by the comments, and is flattered that people take the time to impersonate her. She even invited Ana Gasteyer, who parodied her on SNL, to appear onstage during one of her performances in New York City. While she is rarely politically outspoken, in 2005 following the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Dion appeared on Larry King Live and tearfully criticized the US government's slow response in aiding the victims of the hurricane: "There's people still there waiting to be rescued. To me that is not acceptable ... How can it be so easy to send planes in another country to kill everybody in a second and destroy lives. We need to serve our country." After her interview, she stated, "When I do interviews with Larry King or the big TV shows like that, they put you on the spot, which is very difficult. I do have an opinion, but I'm a singer. I'm not a politician."
Voice and timbre
Dion once claimed to be a mezzo-soprano. However, attempts to adapt classical voice types to other forms of singing have been met with controversy. Without making a classification, Kent Nagano, maestro of the Munich Symphony Orchestra, remarked, "All you just sang was full lyric soprano", after Dion auditioned with two solos from Carmen, wanting to know if she could sing opera. Her timbre has been described as "thin, slightly nasal" with a "raspy" lower register and "bell glass-like high notes".
According to Linda Lister in Divafication: The Deification of Modern Female Pop Stars, she has been described as a reigning "Queen of Pop" for her influence over the recording industry during the 1990s, alongside other female artists, including Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. In a countdown of the "22 Greatest Voices in Music" by Blender Magazine and MTV, she placed ninth (sixth for a female), and she was also placed fourth in Cover Magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists". Dion is often compared to Houston and Carey for her vocal style, and to her idol Barbra Streisand for her voice.
She is often praised for her technical virtuosity. Jim Santella of The Buffalo News writes "Like an iron fist in a velvet glove, the power of Celine Dion's voice is cloaked in a silky vibrato that betrays the intensity of her vocal commitment." Jeff Miers, also of The Buffalo News, says of Dion "Her singing voice is absolutely extra-human. She hits notes in full voice, with a controlled vibrato and an incredible conception of pitch, like she's shucking an ear of corn." Stephen Holden of The New York Times states that Dion has "a good-sized arsenal of technical skills. She can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch. And as her duets ... have shown, she is a reliable harmony voice." In an interview with Libération, Jean-Jacques Goldman notes that she has "no problem of accuracy or tempo". According to Kent Nagano, she is "a musician who has a good ear, a refinement, and a degree of perfection that is enviable". Charles Alexander of Time states, "[Her] voice glides effortlessly from deep whispers to dead-on high notes, a sweet siren that combines force with grace."
In her French repertoire, Dion adorns her vocals with more nuances and expressiveness, with the emotional intensity being "more tender and intimate". Additionally, Luc Plamondon, a French singer-songwriter who has worked closely with Dion claims that there are three chanteuses (stylistically) that she uses: the Québécois, the French, and the American. Her self-titled 1992 album was promoted with the slogan "Remember the name because you'll never forget the voice."
Legacy
Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most influential vocalists. She has been referred to as the "Queen of Power Ballads" by the media.. Billboard called Dion the "Queen of Pop". Her music and vocal styling, alongside that of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, have been said to shape how the bulk of modern female pop vocalists sing. These three artists have been widely credited with reviving the power ballad, and in doing so reshaping the adult contemporary radio format, making it one of the most popular formats of the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2002, Billboard named her as the "Best-selling contemporary female artist in history".
According to producer, musician, and former American Idol judge Randy Jackson, Dion, Houston, and Carey are the voices of the modern era. Music critic and Dion biographer Carl Wilson notes that her "fame and influence is also renewed and expressed regularly these days by American Idol, the largest mass musical phenomenon of the past decade, where Celine's stood solidly in its pantheon of singers for young people to emulate". Many contestants on the countless televised talent competitions that have risen at the turn of the millennium often emulate Dion, Houston and Carey and cite them as idols. MTV also praised Dion by saying: "Céline Dion was better than almost anyone at capitalizing on pop’s ability to articulate feelings in sensational, over-the-top ways."
Numerous artists have either mentioned Dion as a major influence or as one of their favourite singers including: Britney Spears, Rihanna, Adele, Josh Groban, Delta Goodrem, Leona Lewis, Jennifer Hudson, Vanessa Hudgens, Kelly Clarkson, Perrie Edwards, Loren Allred, Brazilian singer Wanessa Camargo, Ariana Grande, Sam Smith, Frank Ocean, Ava Max, Charlotte Cardin, and V (from BTS) among many others. Country singer Martina McBride is widely heralded by the press as the Celine Dion of Country music.
Many artists have also praised Dion's voice, singing ability or expressed an interest in working with her including Met Opera conductor and musical director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Beyoncé, Carlos Santana, Elton John, OneRepublic, Coldplay, Sharon Osbourne, Nicole Scherzinger, Ne-Yo, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, Luciano Pavarotti, Bee Gees, Sir George Martin, Justin Bieber, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Drake and Cher.
Timbaland stated "Celine has such a beautiful, mesmerizing voice. She is so talented. I think we could create something that is a classic like she is already." Josh Groban remarked "She's a powerhouse. In this day and age, when more and more studio-produced, tiny-tiny voices are being rewarded ... she has this extraordinary instrument." According to Diane Warren, "Celine is the best singer by far of her generation", an opinion shared by Quincy Jones, Tommy Mottola, and David Foster. Moreover, Shania Twain and Jennifer Lopez have praised her dynamic stage presence, with Jennifer Lopez commenting on American Idol: "Celine gets on stage, she owns the stage, she runs all over that stage, she stops that stage." Leona Lewis is also a huge fan of Céline Dion saying "Celine is someone I aspire to be like in every way. "Gosh – I can't wait. I'm in the middle of picking out dresses at the moment. Celine is definitely one of my heroes. She is amazing." American singer and actress Lea Michelle said that she listened to Céline Dion's music while in the process of making her sophomore album 'Places' and cited her as one of her vocal influences.
Godmother of Soul Patti LaBelle called Dion as one of the greatest singers ever. Pop singer Kelly Clarkson also praised Dion's vocal ability saying: "she has two sets of lungs when she sings." and also called her the most gifted vocalist on the planet.
Dion holds the Guiness World Record for the most Juno Awards won for Album Of The Year (tied with Michael Buble & Arcade Fire). She won 3 out of the 13 nominations she received in the category throughout her career. Dion is the 3rd most decorated artist in Juno Awards history, winning 20 out of the 75 total nominations ever, becoming the most nominated artist in the awards history as well.
In 1997-1998, Dion sold more than 60 million albums, and was estimated to sell a record once every 1.2 seconds. In 2017, Dion broke records across the UK as the highest grossing artist at each UK venue where she performed which included dates at the O2 Arena in London, Leeds First Direct Arena, Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena and the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. John Meglen, president and co-CEO, Concerts West commended her by saying: "She really is the voice of our lifetime."
In 2018, there were over 300,000 Taiwanese fans that clambered for the 20,000 tickets available for Célines first concert ever in Taiwan which caused the system to lag for 30 minutes. The demand caused them to add two additional shows eventually.
Cultural impact
In Francophone music industry
On a cultural level, Dion is credited for introducing francophone music to many non-francophone countries around the globe. Her albums D'eux and S'il suffisait d'aimer remain the best selling francophone albums in history, gaining unprecedented success in non-Francophone markets such as the United Kingdom, Poland, Netherlands, Portugal, Greece, Austria, Japan, and New Zealand. According to RFI Musique, she "has done her bit for French music over the years, assuring the success of French songs which would probably never have got beyond Francophone borders without her ... Without Celine, French record sales would be dramatically lower!" In May 2008, she was awarded France's highest award, as Knight of the Legion of Honour by President of France Nicolas Sarkozy. Sarkozy praised Dion and stated: "France thanks you because your talent and success have contributed to the influence of the French language outside our borders".
In Las Vegas strip
She is also credited for both revitalizing and revolutionizing the entertainment scene in Las Vegas with the gargantuan successes of her residencies there. She signed a multi-million dollar deal worthed $100 million to do a residency in Vegas and is considered one of the most lucrative and risky in the touring industry.
Billboard credits Dion as the one who pioneered modern residencies saying: "Since Dion's debut, hundreds of artists have tried their hand at Vegas residencies, including, most recently, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Usher, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Rod Stewart and Sting. Once considered the domain of artists long past their peak, today's Las Vegas residency shows are big business, generating millions in sales." Moreover, Billboard also said: "She changed history and she completely changed Las Vegas," said Nelson, who notes the new residencies being announced for artists like Cardi B, Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Lopez aren't really at the same production level or scale of what Dion created with her husband René Angélil, as well as Meglen, Nelson and former AEG CEO Tim Leiweke." Dion is popularly referred as the reigning "Queen of Las Vegas" by various media outlets for her impact and legacy in the city.
According to Gary Bongiovanni, president and editor-in-chief of Pollstar, "Celine redefined what artists can do in Las Vegas, helping to make it arguably the busiest entertainment city in the world."
Kurt Melien, vice-president of entertainment at Caesar's Palace stated "Celine was a pioneer without question ... Twenty years ago, we couldn't have got someone the stature of Britney Spears to appear in Vegas. Stars likes her would never have considered it if Celine hadn't paved the way. She changed the face of modern Vegas."
The Guardian listed Dion's Vegas residency as one of the 50 gigs that changed music, crediting her as the one who revived it, further saying: "it was Céline Dion who turned Caesars into the stage for a glorious pop comeback. Her initial five-year run was followed by a further eight years – and prompted copycat turns by Britney Spears, Pink and Katy Perry.
In the economy
Regarding her financial impact on Las Vegas, Stephen Brown, director of the Centre for Business and Economic Research in Las Vegas, commented: "People will come to the city just for her and they will spend money and as a consequence, she has an outsized impact on the economy", then adding "Bigger than Elvis, Sinatra and Liberace put together? Definitely." Estimations indicate that Dion's show will create up to 7,000 indirect jobs and around $114 million worth of new economic activity in each of the three years for which she has been contracted.
In businesses
Forbes also discussed how entrepreneurs can reclaim the power in their business by being like Céline Dion as an example saying: "Well, remember back in 2017 when Dion launched her handbag line? During a press conference, she admitted her late manager (and husband) had always handled everything for her. Every aspect of her shows was pre-decided; every move, appearance and interview was programmed in advance. She just showed up and executed (which she did brilliantly). At the end of her handbag launch press release, she said "Now . . . I'm the boss.” Starting right then and there, she’d be the one calling the shots for her shows, her kids, her handbags and everything else that mattered to her. She was going to do things her way."
In Fashion
Celine Dion has received various acclaims from fashion critics for reinventing her fashion style over the years. The Guardian called her "The Joyous New Queen of Fashion". Harper's Bazaar also praised Dion for being an ultimate fashion risk-taker and called her a "Fashion Chameleon". Billboard dubbed her as "Streetwear Icon" after recapping the global icon's style evolution through the years. Vogue named her as one of music's most exuberant dressers, beloved as much for her glorious voice as her extravagant sense of style. Tatler discussed in an article how Cardi B might be the next Céline Dion of Paris Fashion Week, proving that Céline is the standard for the occasion. Fashion stylist and image architect Law Roach praised Celine Dion, calling her "The Queen of Camp" & "The Queen of Glitter & Sequins". Dion further cemented her name in the fashion world by wearing the reverse tuxedo at 1999 Academy Awards, which became one of the most talked ensembles of that time. Vogue also listed her iconic 1999 reverse tuxedo as one of the most controversial looks of all time saying it was undeniably the highlight of the year. W also listed the iconic ensemble as one of the most memorable dresses of all time. In February 2020, Sergio Guadarrama, a contestant of Project Runway, copied the idea of reverse tuxedo and claimed it was his original idea and had even claimed that he had no idea about the iconic tuxedo, which left the fans of the show disappointed.
Breaking music barriers
Vice discussed how Dion's music made impact in Nigerian culture, saying: "By the 2000s, Celine Dion was basically the queen of Nigerian airwaves. It was impossible to watch TV or listen to the radio without hearing her music – either on adverts, or in Nollywood films featuring heartthrobs like Genevieve Nnaji and Ramsey Nouah."
Billboard also discussed how Dion’s appearance at Jamaica Jazz & Blues changed the festival’s future. According to Walter Elmore, CEO of Art of Music Productions said Dion is by far the most expensive artist he has ever booked, further saying: “I have already received calls from the management of several major US artists who want to perform here next year because they heard Celine’s comments about our show’s production quality,” Elmore said. “Her performance confirms that we can bring the biggest artists on the planet to our little island.”
In 2012, Dion visited Jamaica for the very first time which broke attendance records and caused traffic congestion around the concert venue. Vice discussed how Dion's music has been constant in dancehall clubs for decades, as many Jamaican dancehall artists cover her songs and remixing her ballads into anthems of dance hall. Further adding: "Several current dancehall musicians continue to use utilize Dion’s tunes with the addition of upbeat guitars, pan flutes, and backbeat shuffles that transform the music for consumption by dancehall fans."
Being referenced in songs
The Canadian comedy music group The Arrogant Worms released an album called Dirt in 1999 which contained a song called "Celine Dion", about the singers' stalker-like affection for her. Dion has also been referred/mentioned in various hit songs including "Dark Fantasy" by Kanye West, "911/Mr. Lonely" by Tyler, the Creator, "That Girl" by Pharrell Williams, "Work" by A$AP Ferg, and "What's The Use" by Mac Miller, to name a few.
Cultural honors
In 1999, Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame and was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in January 2004, one which she dedicated to her father, who had died the month prior. In May 2003, she placed at No. 10 on VH1's list of "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era". Dion's album Falling into You is included on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. "My Heart Will Go On" was included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. In 2021, Dion was ranked by Forbes as the third richest woman in entertainment with an estimated net worth of US$460 million. In August 2008, she received an honorary doctorate in music from the Université Laval in Quebec City.
In October 2010, Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador, a program created by the UN in 1999, sharing this accolade with Oscar-winner Susan Sarandon. She also received several state decorations. In 2004, she was awarded the Society of Singers Lifetime Achievement Award.
On 26 July 2013, she was awarded the highest rank of the Order of Canada, the Companion of the Order of Canada, by the Governor General of Canada and the investiture ceremony was held at Citadelle of Quebec, in which they said: "An incomparable artist, she is equally known for her compassion, generosity and commitment to a number of social and humanitarian causes. She is notably the national celebrity patron for Cystic Fibrosis Canada and honorary patron of the CHU Sainte-Justine. In addition, through her foundation, she also helps children in need and their families here in Canada and abroad."
By the end of 1998, Dion was recognized by Billboard as the "Woman of the Year". They also stated how Céline's voice was featured in eight charting albums on Billboard 200 year-end chart which sold 18 million units during a calendar year (excluding her own catalog sales and recent releases at that time).
West University of Timișoara conducted a research study that analyzes Céline Dion's contributions to global music culture in both spatial and temporal terms, In November 2013, Dion was inducted at the American Gaming Association Hall Of Fame for her outstanding contributions to the growth and stature of the gaming industry.
In popular culture
Dion was referenced as an antagonist character named "Feline Dion" from the hit animated series Totally Spies! which was aired in an episode in 2013.
In 2021, French actress and filmmaker Valérie Lemercier released Aline, a film which fictionalized Dion's life with Lemercier playing a singer named "Aline Dieu".
Other activities
Business endeavours
Les Productions Feeling Inc., also known as Feeling Inc. or just Feeling, is an artist management company based in Laval, Québec, Canada, and owned by Dion and her husband and manager, Rene Angélil. She is also founder of Nickels Restaurant food chain. She and her husband also own Le Mirage Golf Club and Schwartz's Restaurant. In association with Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf and Shaquille O'Neal, she opened a popular night club called Pure, located at Caesars Palace.
Dion became an entrepreneur with the establishment of her franchise restaurant Nickels in 1990. She has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997. In 2003, Dion signed a deal with Coty, Inc. to release Celine Dion Parfums. Her latest fragrance, Signature, was released in September 2011 with an advertising campaign by New York agency Kraftworks NYC. Since its inception, Celine Dion Parfums has grossed over $850 million in retail sales. In October 2004, Air Canada hired Dion as part of their promotional campaign to unveil new service products and an updated livery. "You and I", the theme song sung by Dion, was written by advertising executives working for Air Canada.
Dion also launched an eponymous bag and accessories line "Céline Dion Collection". According to Innee-Sedona International, the Asia partner for Bugatti Group said that it already topped $10 million sales after just three collections.
Philanthropy
Dion has actively supported many charity organizations, worldwide. She has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993. She has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine succumbed to the disease at the age of sixteen, in Dion's arms. In 2003, she joined a number of other celebrities, athletes, and politicians, including Josh Groban and Yolanda Adams to support "World Children's Day", a global fundraising effort sponsored by McDonald's. The effort raised money from more than 100 nations and benefited orphanages and children's health organizations. In addition, she has been a major supporter of the T. J. Martell Foundation, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, and many health and educational campaigns. During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, she donated $1 million to the victims of the storm, and held a fund-raising event for the victims of the 2004 Asian tsunami, which subsequently raised more than $1 million. After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, she donated $100,000 to China Children & Teenagers' Fund and sent a letter showing her consolation and support. Since 2004, she is involved, alongside husband René Angelil, with the Québec gay community by supporting the publication of health and HIV prevention materials in Gay Globe Magazine, owned by journalist Roger-Luc Chayer. She is also a member of Canadian charity Artists Against Racism. In November 2018, she launched a gender-neutral clothing line for kids, Celinununu. In 2009, Dion joined an effort along with Leonardo DiCaprio, James Cameron and Kate Winslet, to donate money to support the nursing home fees of the then-last living survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, Millvina Dean. The campaign resulted in $30,000 as donation.
Personal life
As the youngest of 14 children, Dion grew up wearing hand-me-downs and sharing a bed with several sisters. As a baby, she slept in a drawer to save on a crib. She was bullied at school and called "Vampire", owing to her teeth and skinny frame. Local tabloids even dubbed her "Canine Dion" in the teenage years of her career. She often spoke of running home from school to play music in the basement with her brothers and sisters. "I detested school", she would later write in her autobiography. "I had always lived surrounded by adults and children a lot older than me. I learned everything I needed to know from them. As far as I was concerned, real life existed around them." Dion's eldest sister was already in her twenties, married, and pregnant with her first child at the time Dion's mother, Thérèse, was pregnant with Celine.
Dion first met René Angélil, her future husband and manager, in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after her brother, Michel Dondalinger Dion, had sent him a demonstration recording of "Ce n'était qu'un rêve" ("It Was Only a Dream/Nothing But A Dream"), a song she, her mother Thérèse, and her brother Jacques Dion had jointly written. Over subsequent years, Angélil guided her to stardom in francophone territories.
After the dissolution of Angélil's second marriage, he and Dion took a professional break and he spent the major part of the year in Las Vegas, while Dion was learning English and taking dance and vocal lessons in Montreal. Upon his return, "he avoided being alone with me for too long a time", she said in her 2000 autobiography My Story, My Dream. Meanwhile, she kept a photo of Angélil under her pillow, writing, "Before I fell asleep, I slipped it under the pillow, out of fear that my mother, who always shared a room with me, would find it." She also wrote "Less and less could I hide from myself the fact that I was in love with Rene; I had all the symptoms," and "I was in love with a man I couldn't love, who didn't want me to love him, who didn't want to love me." Dion's mother, who traveled everywhere with the singer until she was 19, was initially wary of her daughter's growing infatuation with a much older and twice-divorced Angélil, but Dion was insistent, telling her mother "I'm not a minor. This is a free country. No one has the right to prevent me from loving whoever I want to."
Their professional relationship eventually turned romantic after Dion's win at the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin in 1988; she was 20. The romance was known to only family and friends for five years, though Dion nearly revealed all in a tearful 1992 interview with journalist Lise Payette. Many years later, Payette penned the song "Je cherche l'ombre" for Dion's 2007 album D'elles.
Dion and Angélil became engaged in 1993, on Dion's 25th birthday, and made their relationship public in the liner notes of her 1993 album The Colour of My Love. They married on 17 December 1994, at Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec. On 5 January 2000, Dion and Angélil renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas.
In May 2000, Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in vitro fertilization because of years of failed attempts to conceive. Their first son, René-Charles Angélil, was born on 25 January 2001. Dion suffered a miscarriage in 2009. In May 2010, Angélil announced that she was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in vitro fertilization. On Saturday, 23 October 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, Dion gave birth to fraternal twins by Caesarean section at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, The twins were named Eddy, after Dion's favourite French songwriter, Eddy Marnay, who had also produced her first five albums; and Nelson, after former South African President Nelson Mandela. She appeared with her newborn sons on the cover of 9 December 2010 issue of the Canadian edition of Hello! magazine.
On 14 January 2016, Angélil died of throat cancer. His funeral was held on 22 January 2016, in Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, where he and Dion wed 21 years earlier. The couple's eldest son, René-Charles, gave the eulogy just three days before his 15th birthday. Following Angélil's death, Dion became the sole owner and president of her management and production companies, including CDA Productions and Les Productions Feeling.
Two days after Angélil's deathon what would have been her husband's birthdayDion's brother, Daniel, died aged 59, also of cancer.
On 22 March 2018, Dion's management team announced that she had been dealing with hearing irregularities for the previous 12–18 months due to patulous Eustachian tube and would undergo a minimally invasive surgical procedure to correct the problem after ear-drop medications appeared to be no longer working.
Owing to her slight frame, Dion has for decades been subject of eating disorder rumors, which she has consistently denied: "I don't have an eating problem, and there's nothing more I can say about it". "My work requires me to be in great physical shape. I wouldn't have been able to live up to a hundred shows a year and travel ceaselessly from one end of the world to the other if I had eaten too much or not enough, or if, as certain magazines have claimed, I made myself throw up after each meal." She has often spoken about having been bullied at school and lacking confidence in her early years in the business: "I didn't have, visually, what it took. I was not pretty, I had teeth problems, and I was very skinny. I didn't fit the mold".
Dion took up ballet under the guidance of her former dancer, Naomi Stikeman, who also previously performed for The National Ballet of Canada and La La La Human Steps, and former Cirque du Soleil dancer-turned-fashion-illustrator, Pepe Muñoz, who is also part of her styling team. She is also a skier and a regular at her son René-Charles' hockey games.
Dion resides in Henderson, Nevada, in a house she bought with her husband in 2003. She previously owned homes in Montreal, Quebec, and Jupiter Island, Florida.
Dion's older son René-Charles Angélil loves music and has tried to follow a musical path. Under the stage name Big Tip, he released in May 2018 on his SoundCloud account 6 rap songs including originals "The Kid", "The Apple" and "Never Stop" and two adaptations from The Weeknd songs, "Catwalks" sampling on The Weeknd's "Sidewalks" and a remix of The Weeknd's "Loft Music" as "Loft Music Remix". He also released the 5-track EP CasiNo. 5 in December 2020 using the artistic name RC Angelil. The EP includes the tracks "Mamba Mentality", "Money, Thrills and Rest", "No Ls", "GG4" (featuring PAKKA) and "LV".
Discography
French-language studio albums
La voix du bon Dieu (1981)
Céline Dion chante Noël (1981)
Tellement j'ai d'amour... (1982)
Les chemins de ma maison (1983)
Chants et contes de Noël (1983)
Mélanie (1984)
C'est pour toi (1985)
Incognito (1987)
Dion chante Plamondon (1991)
D'eux (1995)
S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998)
1 fille & 4 types (2003)
D'elles (2007)
Sans attendre (2012)
Encore un soir (2016)
English-language studio albums
Unison (1990)
Celine Dion (1992)
The Colour of My Love (1993)
Falling into You (1996)
Let's Talk About Love (1997)
These Are Special Times (1998)
A New Day Has Come (2002)
One Heart (2003)
Miracle (2004)
Taking Chances (2007)
Loved Me Back to Life (2013)
Courage (2019)
Concert tours and residencies
Tours
Les chemins de ma maison (1983–1984)
Céline Dion en concert (1985)
Tournée Incognito (1988)
Unison Tour (1990–1991)
Celine Dion in Concert (1992–1993)
The Colour of My Love Tour (1994–1995)
D'eux Tour (1995–1996)
Falling into You: Around the World (1996–1997)
Let's Talk About Love World Tour (1998–1999)
Taking Chances World Tour (2008–2009)
Tournée Européenne 2013
Summer Tour 2016
Celine Dion Live 2017
Celine Dion Live 2018
Courage World Tour (2019–2023)
Residencies
A New Day... (2003–2007)
Celine (2011–2019)
Celine (2022)
Filmography
Touched by an Angel
The Nanny
All My Children
La fureur de Céline
Des fleurs sur la neige
Quest for Camelot as Juliana (singing voice)
Céline sur les Plaines
Celine: Through the Eyes of the World
Sur la piste du Marsupilami
Hell's Kitchen
Muppets Most Wanted
References
Bibliography
Céline Dion. Artist direct. Retrieved on 18 December 2005.
"Celine Dion". Contemporary Musicians, Volume 25. Gale Group, 1999.
"Celine Dion". Newsmakers 1995, Issue 4. Gale Research, 1995.
Céline Dion. Rock on the Net. Retrieved 20 November 2005.
Céline Dion. The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2 July 2006
Céline Dion provided by VH1.com Retrieved 16 August 2005.
Dion extends long Las Vegas stint. news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2005.
Durchholz, Daniel. Review: One Heart. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. St. Louis, Mo.: 24 April 2003. p. F.3
The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalist covemagazine.com Retrieved 1 November 2005.
Joel Whitburn Presents the Billboard Hot 100 Charts: The Nineties ()
World Music Awards Diamond Award Retrieved 1 November 2005, (Search by year required)
Further reading
External links
CelineDion.com – Official website operated by Sony Music Canada (English, French).
[ Celine Dion] at AllMusic
[ Celine Dion] at Billboard.com
1968 births
Living people
20th-century Canadian composers
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World Music Awards winners | true | [
"American singer-actress Cher has embarked on seven concert tours and three concert residencies. As a solo artist, Cher has made concerts in North America, Europe, Australia and Asia. Cher's first ever concert was with her ex-husband Sonny Bono in 1966 at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.\n\nIn 1979, Cher started her first solo concert tour, the Cher in Concert Tour, with performances in Europa and North America in 1979. After the success with disco music, Cher and her boyfriend at the time, Les Dudek, formed the new wave band Black Rose with which she did her first mini-tour, The Black Rose Show. Black Rose band during their tour were the opening act for Bob Seger in Europe and for Hall & Oates during the 1980 summer in North America.\n\nAfter eight years off the road, Cher did her second solo sold-out tour in 1990, the Heart of Stone Tour, which was followed up by 1992's Love Hurts Tour. The Love Hurts Tour is well known by fans for cancellations due to Cher's illness.\n\nAfter the huge success of the Believe album, she did her 1999/2000 Do You Believe? tour.\nFinally, in 2002, she embarked on her so far last concert tour, the marathon Living Proof: The Farewell Tour, which lasted from June 2002 until April 2005. The tour featured a total 325 shows, the most ever for a concert tour by a female solo artist, and grossed more than $250 million, becoming Cher's highest-grossing tour ever. Cher closed the farewell tour in April 2005 at the Hollywood Bowl. It was the most successful tour by a single female solo artist at that time.\n\nFrom May 2008 until February 2011, Cher performed at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada with her new show, Cher at the Colosseum. She signed for 200 shows over the span of three years. She was paid $60 million for her return.\n\nAfter her residency at the Caesars Palace which lasted from 2008-2011, Cher began touring with the Dressed to Kill Tour in 2014 after the release of her album Closer to the Truth. Cher is one of the most successful touring artists, she was placed at number three among most successful female artists and at number twenty three overall on Billboard Top Live Artists From 1990-2014 list.\n\nConcert tours\n\nConcert residencies\n\nReferences\n\n \nCher\n\nhu:Cher filmjei",
"Sarah Ellerby (born 24 February 1975) is an English former professional pool player. She began playing in England, before moving to the United States to play in World Pool-Billiard Association events. In total, Ellerby has won over 100 championships, including the 1997 European Eight-ball Championship. She retired in 2008 whilst ranked number one in the world in eight-ball.\n\nCareer\nEllerby was born on 24 February 1975. She started playing cue sports at the age of 12. She was an England international player from 1992 to 1999.\n\nEllerby played in the United States, and obtained an extraordinary ability visa to relocate there to play. Her flight was diverted to Newfoundland due to the September 11 attacks, and then her plane returned to England. She played eight-ball for most of her career in England but switched to nine-ball in America. Her nickname as a player in the United Kingdom was Velvet, and she changed this to Ice Maiden after she moved. Ellerby was named the 2002 rookie of the year, and in 2003 was ranked 13th.\n\nShe retired from competitive play in 2008, when ranked fifth at nine-ball and first at eight-ball, having lost her appetite for the game when her management consultancy became successful, and her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer for the second time.\n\nTournament wins\nEllerby won over 100 titles. They include the following:\n\n1997 European Championship\n1st Ladies Billiard Association of Florida Tour 2001 #1\n1st Ladies Billiard Association of Florida Tour 2001 #4\n1st North East Women's Tour 2001 Event 1\nLadies Spirit Tour 2002 #2\nLadies Spirit Tour 2002 #1\nLadies Spirit Tour 2003 #1\nLadies Spirit Tour 2003 #7\n\nReferences \n\nLiving people\nFemale pool players\nEnglish pool players\n1975 births"
]
|
[
"Celine Dion",
"2011-2014: Celine, Sans attendre and Loved Me Back to Life",
"What did Celine Dion do in 2011?",
"February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011.",
"Was her tour successful?",
"Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote."
]
| C_78f1e410e4c0415db79dddeaf75c47aa_0 | Did she win any awards during this time? | 3 | Did Celine Dion win any awards following her 2011 tour? | Celine Dion | In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. Additionally, for a record sixth time, Dion performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, Dion appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, Dion released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, Dion made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica. In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. Dion began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles. The music video for "Incredible" was uploaded onto Dion's official Vevo channel in early June 2014. On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Celine une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Céline Marie Claudette Dion (; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. She is noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals. Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French language artist of all time. Her music has incorporated genres such as pop, rock, R&B, gospel, and classical music.
Born into a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, she emerged as a teen star in her home country with a series of French-language albums during the 1980s. She first gained international recognition by winning both the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, where she represented Switzerland. After learning to speak English, she signed on to Epic Records in the United States. In 1990, Dion released her debut English-language album, Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world. Her recordings since have been mainly in English and French although she has also sung in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese, and Chinese.
During the 1990s, she achieved worldwide fame after releasing several best-selling English-language albums in music history, such as Falling into You (1996) and Let's Talk About Love (1997), which were both certified diamond in the US and over 30 million sales worldwide each. She also scored a series of international number-one hits, including "The Power of Love", "Think Twice", "Because You Loved Me", "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", "My Heart Will Go On", and "I'm Your Angel". Dion continued releasing French albums between each English record; D'eux (1995) became the best-selling French-language album of all time, while S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998), Sans attendre (2012), and Encore un soir (2016), were all certified diamond in France. During the 2000s, she built her reputation as a highly successful live performer with A New Day... on the Las Vegas Strip (2003–07), which remains the highest-grossing concert residency of all time, as well as the Taking Chances World Tour (2008–09), one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time.
Dion is also one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with record sales of more than 200 million worldwide. Although her releases have often received mixed critical reception, Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most successful vocalists. She has won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year. Billboard named her the "Queen of Adult Contemporary" for having the most number-one songs on the radio format for a female artist. Dion is the second best-selling female artist in the US during the Nielsen SoundScan, the 8th all-time best-performing top female artist in the United States, and the sixth all-time best-performing female soloist in Billboard 200 history. In 2003, she was honoured by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for selling over 50 million albums in Europe. In 2008, Dion was recognized as the Best-selling International Artist in South Africa.
Life and career
1968–1989: Early life and career beginnings
Dion was born in Charlemagne, Quebec, northeast of Montreal, the youngest of 14 children of Thérèse (née Tanguay, 1927–2020), a homemaker, and Adhémar Dion (1923–2003), a butcher, both of French-Canadian descent. She was raised a Roman Catholic in a poor but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne. Music had always been a major part of the Dion family, and she was named after the song "Céline", which French singer Hugues Aufray had recorded two years before her birth. On 13 August 1973, at the age of five, the young Céline made her first public appearance at her brother Michel's wedding, where she performed Christine Charbonneau's song "Du fil, des aiguilles et du coton". She continued to perform with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar called Le Vieux Baril, "The Old Barrel". From an early age, she had dreamed of being a performer. In a 1994 interview with People magazine, she recalled, "I missed my family and my home, but I don't regret having lost my adolescence. I had one dream: I wanted to be a singer." As a child in Quebec, Dion participated in Girl Guide programs as a member of Girl Guides of Canada.
At age 12, she collaborated with her mother and her brother Jacques to write and compose her first song, "Ce n'était qu'un rêve", whose title translates as "It Was Only a Dream" or "Nothing But A Dream". Her brother Michel sent the recording to music manager René Angélil, whose name he discovered on the back of a Ginette Reno album. Angélil was moved to tears by Dion's voice and decided to make her a star. In 1981, he mortgaged his home to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu, which later became a local No. 1 hit and made her an instant star in Quebec. Her popularity spread to other parts of the world when she competed in the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, and won the musician's award for "Top Performer" as well as the gold medal for "Best Song" with "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi".
By 1983, in addition to becoming the first Canadian artist to receive a gold record in France for the single "D'amour ou d'amitié" ("Of Love or of Friendship"), Dion had also won several Félix Awards, including "Best Female performer" and "Discovery of the Year". Further success came when she represented Switzerland in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Ne partez pas sans moi" and won the contest by a close margin in Dublin, Ireland.
At age 18, after seeing a Michael Jackson performance, Dion told Angélil that she wanted to be a star like Jackson. Though confident in her talent, Angélil realized that her image needed to be changed for her to be marketed worldwide. She receded from the spotlight for a number of months, during which she underwent dental surgery to improve her appearance, and was sent to the École Berlitz in 1989 to polish her English.
In 1989, during a concert on the Incognito tournée, she injured her voice. She consulted the otorhinolaryngologist William Gould, who gave her an ultimatum: have immediate surgery on her vocal cords or do not utilize them at all for three weeks. Dion chose the latter and underwent vocal training with William Riley.
1990–1992: Unison, Dion chante Plamondon, and Celine Dion
Two years after she learned English, Dion made her debut into the Anglophone market with Unison (1990), the lead single having originally been recorded by Laura Branigan. She incorporated the help of many established musicians, including Vito Luprano and Canadian producer David Foster. The album was largely influenced by 1980s soft rock music that quickly found a niche within the adult contemporary radio format. Unison also hit the right notes with critics: Jim Faber of Entertainment Weekly wrote that her vocals were "tastefully unadorned", and that she never attempted to "bring off styles that are beyond her". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic declared it "a fine, sophisticated American debut". Singles from the album included "(If There Was) Any Other Way", "The Last to Know", "Unison", and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now", a mid-tempo soft-rock ballad that made prominent use of the electric guitar. The latter became her first top-ten hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number four. In 1991, Dion was a featured soloist on "Voices That Care", a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm.
Her real international breakthrough came when she duetted with Peabo Bryson on the title track to Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991). It became her first top-ten hit in the UK and her second top-ten hit in the United States. The song earned its songwriters an Academy Award for Best Song and gave Dion her first Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. "Beauty and the Beast" served as the lead single from her 1992 self-titled album, which, like her debut, had a strong pop rock influence combined with elements of soul and classical music. Owing to the success of the lead-off single and her collaborations with David Foster and Diane Warren, the album was even more well-received commercially than Unison; it was certified diamond in Canada and double platinum in the US. The album's second single "If You Asked Me To" (a cover of Patti LaBelle's song from the 1989 movie Licence to Kill) became her first number-one single in Canada and peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Also during this time, Dion released the Francophone album Dion chante Plamondon. The album consisted mostly of covers, but featured four new songs: "Des mots qui sonnent", "Je danse dans ma tête", "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime", and "L'amour existe encore". It was originally released in Canada and France during the 1991–1992 period, then later received an international release in 1994, the first French Celine Dion album to do so. "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)" became a smash hit in France, reaching No. 2 and being certified gold. In Quebec, the album was certified Gold the day it was released.
By 1992, Unison, Céline Dion, and numerous high-profile media appearances had propelled Dion to superstardom in North America. She had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame. However, while she was experiencing rising success in the US, her French fans in Canada criticized her for neglecting them. She would later rebuff these criticisms at the 1991 Félix Awards show, where, after winning "English Artist of the Year", she openly refused to accept the award. She asserted that she was—and would always be—a French, not an English, artist. Apart from her commercial success, there were also changes in her personal life, as Angélil, who was 26 years her senior, transitioned from manager to lover. However, the relationship was kept a secret as they both feared that the public would find their relations inappropriate.
1993–1995: The Colour of My Love and D'eux
In 1993, Dion announced her feelings for her manager by declaring him "the colour of [her] love" in the dedication section of her third English-language album The Colour of My Love. However, instead of criticizing their relationship as she had feared, fans embraced the couple. Eventually, Angélil and Dion married in an extravagant wedding ceremony on 17 December 1994, which was broadcast live on Canadian television.
As with most of her catalogue, The Colour of My Love had over-riding themes of love and romance. It became her most successful record up to that point, selling more than six million copies in the US, two million in Canada, and peaking at No. 1 in many countries. The album also spawned Dion's first US, Canadian, and Australian No. 1 single "The Power of Love" (a remake of Jennifer Rush's 1985 hit), which would become her signature hit in various nations until she reached new career heights in the late 1990s.
The single "When I Fall in Love", a duet with Clive Griffin, achieved moderate success on the US and Canadian charts and was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one. The Colour of My Love also became Dion's first major hit in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. Both the album and the single "Think Twice" simultaneously occupied the top of the British charts for five consecutive weeks. "Think Twice", which remained at No. 1 for seven weeks, eventually became the fourth single by a female artist to sell in excess of one million copies in the UK while the album was eventually certified five-times platinum for two million copies sold.
Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record. Generally, they achieved more credibility than her English-language works. She released À l'Olympia, a live album that was recorded during one of her concerts at the Paris Olympia in 1994. It had one promotional single, a live version of "Calling You", which peaked at seventy-five on the French Singles Chart. She also recorded a bilingual version of "Petit Papa Noël" with Alvin and the Chipmunks for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk. D'eux (also known as The French Album in the United States), was released in 1995, and it would go on to become the best-selling French-language album of all time. The album was mostly written and produced by Jean-Jacques Goldman, and amassed huge success with the singles "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" and "Je sais pas". "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" reached No. 1 in France and stayed at the top position for twelve weeks. It was later certified Platinum in France. The single reached the top ten in the UK and Ireland, a rare accomplishment for a French song. The second single off the album, "Je sais pas", reached No. 1 on the French Singles Chart as well and was certified Silver there.
During the mid-1990s and onward, Dion's albums were generally constructed on the basis of melodramatic soft rock ballads, with sprinklings of up-tempo pop and rare forays into other genres. She collaborated with many renowned writers and producers such as Jim Steinman and David Foster, who helped her to develop a signature sound. While critical reviews fluctuated, her releases performed increasingly well on the international charts, and in 1996, she won the World Music Award for "World's Best-selling Female Recording Artist of the Year" for the third time. By the mid-1990s, she had established herself as one of the best-selling artists in the world.
1996–1999: Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love, and S'il suffisait d'aimer
In the five years since her debut English language album in 1990, Billboard stated that she had already sold 40 million albums worldwide. Falling into You (1996), Dion's fourth English-language album, presented the singer at the height of her popularity and showed a further progression of her music. In an attempt to reach a wider audience, the album combined many elements, such as complex orchestral sounds, African chanting, and elaborate musical effects. Additionally, instruments like the violin, Spanish guitar, trombone, the cavaquinho, and saxophone created a new sound. The singles encompassed a variety of musical styles. The title track "Falling into You" and "River Deep – Mountain High" (a Tina Turner cover) made prominent use of percussion instruments; "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (produced by its writer Jim Steinman) and a remake of Eric Carmen's "All by Myself" maintained a soft-rock atmosphere, combined with the classical sound of the piano; and the No. 1 single "Because You Loved Me", which was written by Diane Warren, was a pop ballad that served as the theme to the 1996 film Up Close and Personal.
Falling into You garnered career-best reviews for Dion. While Dan Leroy wrote that it was not very different from her previous work, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times and Natalie Nichols of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the album was formulaic, other critics, such as Chuck Eddy of Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic, and Daniel Durchholz, lavished the album as "compelling", "passionate", "stylish", "elegant", and "remarkably well-crafted". Falling into You became Dion's most critically and commercially successful album: it topped the charts in many countries and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.
In 2013, CBC Music ranked Falling into You 33rd in their list of the 100 greatest Canadian albums ever. In the United States, the album reached No. 1, and was later certified 11× Platinum for over 11 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album was certified diamond for over one million copies shipped. The IFPI certified Falling into You 9× Platinum, an accolade that has been given to only two other albums in history, with one of the two being Dion's own album, Let's Talk About Love. The album also won Grammy Awards for Best Pop Album and the academy's highest honour, Album of the Year.
Dion was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream" at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In March 1996, she launched the Falling into You Tour in support of her new album, performing concerts around the world for over a year.
She followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love (1997), which was publicized as its sequel. The recording process took place in London, New York City, and Los Angeles, and featured a host of special guests, such as Barbra Streisand on "Tell Him"; the Bee Gees on "Immortality"; and tenor Luciano Pavarotti on "I Hate You Then I Love You". Other musicians included Carole King, Sir George Martin, Bryan Adams and Jamaican singer Diana King, who added a reggae tinge to "Treat Her Like a Lady".
Let's Talk About Love was another major success, reaching No. 1 all over the world, attaining platinum status in twenty-four sales territories, and becoming the fastest selling album of her career. In the United States, the album topped the chart in its seventh week of release, and was later certified 10× Platinum in the US for over 10 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album sold 230,212 copies in its first week of release, which remains a record. It was eventually certified diamond in Canada for over one million copies shipped. The most successful single from the album was the classically influenced ballad "My Heart Will Go On", which was written and composed by James Horner and Will Jennings, and produced by Horner and Walter Afanasieff.
Serving as the love theme for the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic, the song topped the charts across the world and became Dion's signature song. Horner and Jennings won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song, while Dion herself garnered two Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and the most coveted, Record of the Year, (the song itself won four awards, but two were presented to the songwriters). "My Heart Will Go On" and "Think Twice" made her the only female artist in the UK to have two singles to sell more than a million copies. In support of her album, she embarked on the Let's Talk About Love Tour between 1998 and 1999.
Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums: the Christmas album These Are Special Times (1998), the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer, and the compilation album All the Way... A Decade of Song (1999). On These Are Special Times, she co-wrote the song "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day" along with Ric Wake and Peter Zizzo. The album was her most classically influenced yet, with orchestral arrangements found on virtually every track. The album featured the single "I'm Your Angel" (a duet with R. Kelly), which became her fourth US No. 1 single, and a smash hit across the world. The album's second single "The Prayer" (a duet with Andrea Bocelli) served as the soundtrack of the 1998 film Quest for Camelot and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. All the Way... A Decade of Song drew together her most successful hits coupled with seven new songs, including the lead-off single "That's the Way It Is", a cover of Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", and "All the Way", a duet with Frank Sinatra. All the Way became one of the best-selling compilation albums of all time, reaching No. 1 in the United States for three weeks. The album was later certified 7x Platinum in the US for 7 million copies shipped. It also topped the charts in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Her last French-language studio album of the 1990s, S'il suffisait d'aimer, was very successful as well, topping the charts in every major French-speaking country, including France, Switzerland, the Wallonia region of Belgium, and Canada. In France, the album was certified diamond, selling 1.5 million copies. By the end of the 1990s, Dion had sold more than 130 million records worldwide, and had won a slew of industry awards. Her status as one of the music industry's biggest pop divas was further solidified when she was asked to perform on VH1's Divas Live special in 1998, with superstars Aretha Franklin, Gloria Estefan, Shania Twain, and Mariah Carey. That year, she also received two of the highest Canadian honours: "Officer of the Order of Canada for Outstanding Contribution to the World of Contemporary Music" and "Officer of the National Order of Quebec". A year later, she was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame, and was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.
Starting from the mid-1990s, the pop rock influence that was more noticeable in her earlier releases was replaced by a more mature feel. Additionally, the recurring theme of "love" dominated most of her releases, which led to some critics dismissing her music as banal. Other critics, like Elysa Gardner and Jose F. Promis, praised her voice during this period, describing it as a "technical marvel". Steve Dollar, in his review of These Are Special Times, opined that Dion was a "vocal Olympian for whom there ain't no mountain—or scale—high enough".
2000–2003: Hiatus, A New Day Has Come, One Heart, and 1 fille & 4 types
After releasing and promoting thirteen albums during the 1990s, Dion stated that she needed to settle down, and announced on her latest album All the Way... A Decade of Song, that she needed to take a step back from the spotlight and enjoy life. Angélil's diagnosis with esophageal cancer also prompted her to hiatus. While on break, she was unable to escape the spotlight. In 2000, the National Enquirer published a false story about the singer. Brandishing a picture of Dion and her husband, the magazine misquoted her, printing the headline, "Celine — 'I'm Pregnant With Twins!'" She later sued the magazine for more than $20million. The editors of the Enquirer printed an apology and a full retraction to her in the next issue, and donated money to the American Cancer Society in honour of her and her husband. A year after the incident, after undergoing fertility treatments, she gave birth to a son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, on 25 January 2001, in Florida.
Following the 11 September attacks, Dion returned to the music scene, and in a televised performance sang "God Bless America" at the benefit concert America: A Tribute to Heroes. Chuck Taylor of Billboard wrote, "the performance ... brings to mind what has made her one of the celebrated vocalists of our time: the ability to render emotion that shakes the soul. Affecting, meaningful, and filled with grace, this is a musical reflection to share with all of us still searching for ways to cope." She performed it again in 2003 during pregame festivities for Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego. In December 2001, she published her autobiography My Story, My Dream which chronicled her rags-to-riches story.
Dion ended her three-year sabbatical from the music industry with the aptly titled album A New Day Has Come, released in March 2002. The album was her most personal yet, with songs focusing on her motherhood and maturation as a woman such as "A New Day Has Come", and "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)". She stated: "becoming a mother makes you a grown-up." She stated, "A New Day Has Come, for Rene, for me, is the baby. It has everything to do with the baby ... That song "A New Day Has Come" represents very well the mood I'm feeling right now. It represents the whole album." A New Day Has Come debuted at No. 1 in more than 17 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 527,000 copies; marking her first No. 1 debut on the chart, as well as the highest debut sales week of her career in the US. It was eventually certified 3× Platinum in the United States, and 6× Platinum in Canada.
While the album was commercially successful, critical reviews suggested that it was "forgettable" and the lyrics were "lifeless". Both Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone magazine, and Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly, stated that Dion's music had not developed much during her break, and classed her material as trite and mediocre. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine called the album "a lengthy collection of drippy, gooey pop fluffer-nutter". The first single off the album, A New Day Has Come peaked at No.22 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, being an airplay-only release. On the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks, however, the song spent 21 consecutive weeks at No. 1, breaking the record for the longest span at the top. The previous record holders were Phil Collins' You'll Be in My Heart and Dion's own Because You Loved Me, both of which lasted nineteen weeks at No. 1. The album's next single, "I'm Alive", was featured on the soundtrack for Stuart Little 2 (2002), and was ranked number 2 on the European Hot 100 Singles, and number 6 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks in the United States. During 2002, she performed for many benefit concerts, including her second appearance on VH1 Divas Live, a concert to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation, alongside Cher, Anastacia, Dixie Chicks, Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, Cyndi Lauper, Shakira, and Stevie Nicks.
In conjunction with an endorsement deal with Chrysler, she released One Heart (2003), an album that represented her appreciation for life. The album largely consisted of pop and dance music—a deviation from the soaring, melodramatic ballads, for which she had been known. Although the album achieved moderate success, One Heart was met with mixed criticism, and words such as "predictable" and "banal" appeared even in the most lenient reviews. A cover of the 1989 Cyndi Lauper hit "I Drove All Night", released to launch her advertising campaign with Chrysler, incorporated elements of dance-pop and rock and roll. The advertising deal was met with criticism, with some stating that Dion was trying to cater to her sponsors.
After One Heart, she released her next English-language studio album, Miracle (2004). Miracle was a multimedia project conceived by Dion and Australian photographer Anne Geddes and had a theme centring on babies and motherhood. The album was filled with lullabies and other songs of maternal love and inspiration, including covers of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" and John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy". The reviews for Miracle were mixed. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic.com gave the album three of out five stars, stating, "The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience." Chuck Taylor of Billboard magazine wrote that the single "Beautiful Boy" was "an unexpected gem" and called Dion "a timeless, enormously versatile artist", Chuck Arnold of People Magazine, however, labelled the album as excessively sentimental, while Nancy Miller of Entertainment Weekly opined that "the whole earth-mama act is just opportunism, reborn". Miracle debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 in Canada and was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA.
The francophone album 1 fille & 4 types (1 Girl & 4 Guys), released in October 2003, fared better than her previous two releases and showed her trying to distance herself from the "diva" image. She recruited Jean-Jacques Goldman, Gildas Arzel, Eric Benzi, and Jacques Veneruso, with whom she had previously worked on two of her best-selling French albums S'il suffisait d'aimer and D'eux. Labeled "the album of pleasure" by Dion herself, the album cover showed her in a simple and relaxed manner, contrary to the choreographed poses usually found on her album covers. The album achieved widespread commercial success in France, Canada, and Belgium where it reached No. 1. In France, the album debuted at No. 1 and was later certified 2× platinum after selling over 700,000 copies. Critic Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Dion's vocals were "back at top of their game" and that she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while".
Though her albums were commercially successful, they did not achieve the sales or the reception of her previous works. Her songs received less airplay as radio became less embracing of balladeers like Dion, Carey, and Houston, and was focused on more up-tempo, Urban/Hip-hop songs. By 2004, Dion had accumulated sales of more than 175 million albums worldwide and received the Chopard Diamond Award from the World Music Awards for her achievements. According to the official World Music Awards website, the award is rare; it is "not presented every year" and an artist can be presented with the award only for selling "over 100 million albums during their career".
2003–2007: A New Day...
In early 2002, Dion announced a three-year, 600-show contract to appear five nights a week in an entertainment extravaganza, A New Day..., at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. This move was generally seen as risky, but journalist Miriam Nunzio wrote that it was "one of the smartest business decisions in years by any major recording artist". Dion conceived the show after seeing O by Franco Dragone during her break from recording, and it premiered on 25 March 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena specifically designed for her show and modelled after the Roman Colosseum. Many stars attended the opening night including Dick Clark, Alan Thicke, Kathy Griffin, Lance Bass, and Justin Timberlake, who hosted the television special. The show, directed by Dragone and choreographed by the renowned Mia Michaels, was a combination of dance, music, and visual effects. It included Dion performing her biggest hits against an array of dancers and special effects. Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find the singer among the excessive stage ornamentation and dancers. However, he noted that the show had become more enjoyable over the course of its run, because of her improved stage-presence and simplified costumes.
The show was well-received by audiences, despite the complaints of expensive tickets; it routinely sold out until its end in late 2007. Ticket prices averaged $135.33. According to Pollstar, Dion sold 322,000 tickets and grossed US$43.9 million in the first half of 2005, and by July 2005, she had sold out 315 out of 384 shows. By the end of 2005, she grossed more than US$76 million, placing sixth on Billboard's Money Makers list for 2005. Because of the show's success, her contract was extended into 2007 for an undisclosed sum. On 5 January 2007, it was announced that the show would end on 15 December 2007, with tickets for the period after October 2007 having gone on sale from 1 March. According to Billboard, A New Day... is the most successful residency of all time, grossing over US$385 million ($ million in dollars) and drawing nearly three million people to 717 shows. The Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... DVD was released on 10 December 2007, in Europe and the following day in North America.
2007–2010: D'elles, Taking Chances, and Taking Chances Tour
On 21 May 2007, Dion released the French-language album D'elles (About Them), which debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week. It marked her tenth No. 1 album in the SoundScan era, and her eighth to debut at the top position. In Canada, the album has been certified 2× platinum, and within the first month had already shipped half a million units worldwide. D'Elles also reached No. 1 in France and Belgium. The first single "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)" (meaning "And If There Was Only One Woman Left (I Would Be That One)") debuted at the top of the French singles chart a month earlier. Later that same year, she released the English album Taking Chances on 12 November in Europe, and 13 November in North America. Her first English studio album since 2003's One Heart, it featured pop, R&B, and rock inspired music. For this album, she collaborated with John Shanks and ex-Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody, as well as Kristian Lundin, Peer Åström, Linda Perry, Japanese singer Yuna Ito, and R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. Dion stated, "I think this album represents a positive evolution in my career ... I'm feeling strong, maybe a little gutsier than in the past, and just as passionate about music and life as I ever was." She launched her year-long worldwide Taking Chances Tour on 14 February 2008, in South Africa, performing 132 dates in stadiums and arenas across five continents.
The Taking Chances Tour was a great success in the United States, reaching the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Boxscore, having sold out every concert in the US and Canada. In addition, she appeared on Idol Gives Back for a second year in a row. Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, adding to her 53 previous nominations (an all-time record). Her nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year (for Taking Chances), Francophone Album of the Year (for D'elles) and Album of the Year (for both Taking Chances and D'elles). The following year, she was nominated for 3 Juno Awards including the Fan Choice Award, Song of the Year (for Taking Chances), and Music DVD of the Year (for Live in Las Vegas — A New Day...)
On 22 August 2008, Dion presented a free outdoor concert, mostly in French, on the Plains of Abraham, in Québec City, Canada, for the 400th anniversary of Québec City. The celebration gathered approximately 490,000 people. The concert, called Céline sur les Plaines, was released on DVD on 11 November 2008, in Québec and was released on 20 May 2009, in France. Late October 2008 saw the worldwide release of a comprehensive English-language greatest hits album, My Love: Essential Collection.
In May 2009, Dion was named the 20th best-selling artist of the decade and the second-best-selling female artist of the decade in the United States, selling an estimated 17.57 million copies of her albums there since 2000. In June 2009, Forbes reported that she earned $100 million during 2008. In December 2009, Pollstar announced that she was the best-selling solo touring act of the decade and the second-best-selling touring act of the decade, behind only the Dave Matthews Band. she grossed $522.2 million during the decade, a large portion of that sum coming from her five-year residency at Caesars Palace.
On 17 February 2010, Dion released into theatres a documentary film about her Taking Chances Tour, titled, Celine: Through the Eyes of the World. The documentary shows behind-the-scenes footage of her both onstage and offstage, along with footage of her with her family as they travelled the world with her. The distributor is the Sony Pictures subsidiary, Hot Ticket. The film was later released on Blu-ray and DVD on 4 May 2010, along with the CD/DVD, Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert. At the 52nd Grammy Awards in February 2010, Dion joined Carrie Underwood, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, and Smokey Robinson to perform the song "Earth Song" during the 3-D Michael Jackson tribute.
In January 2010, The Los Angeles Times presented its annual list of the top ten largest earners of the year, revealing that Dion took the top spot for the entire decade, with $US747.9 million in total revenue from 2000–2009. The largest haul came from ticket sales, totalling $522.2 million. Additionally, she was named "Artist of the Decade" in her native Canadian province of Québec, announced by the Montréal-based newspaper, Le Journal de Québec in 2009 December. A public online survey asked responders to vote for whom they believe deserved the above-mentioned accolade.
Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, Dion was named the most popular musician in the United States, ahead of U2, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles while factoring in gender, political affiliations, geographic region of residence, and income. Specifically, she was the most popular musician in the female demographic, as well as among all Democrats, those who live in the eastern United States and southern United States, and those who have incomes between US$35k and US$74.9k.
In September 2010, she released the single "Voler", a duet with French singer Michel Sardou. The song was later included on Sardou's album. In addition, it was announced in October 2010 that Dion wrote and composed a new song for Canadian singer, Marc Dupré entitled "Entre deux mondes".
2011–2014: Celine, Sans attendre, and Loved Me Back to Life
In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. In 2018, Billboard stated her residency Celine is the second most successful residency of all time. By the end of 2011, Dion has sold 331,000 albums (despite not releasing any studio album since 2007) and 956,000 digital tracks in the United States.
For a record sixth time, she performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, she appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, she released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, she made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica.
In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. She began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles.
In June 2013, Dion co-produced the show titled "Voices" by Véronic DiCaire at the Bally’s Hotel & Casino’s Jubilee Theatre and was presented 145 times up until 2015.
On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Céline une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia.
2014–present: Husband's death, Encore un soir, Courage, and return to Vegas
On 13 August 2014, Dion announced the indefinite postponement of all her show business activities, including her concert residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and the cancellation of her Asia Tour, because of the worsening of her husband's health after he underwent the removal of a cancerous tumor in December 2013. However, on 20 March 2015, she announced that she would be returning to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in late August 2015. On 14 January 2016, she cancelled the rest of the January performances due to her husband's and her brother's death from cancer. Dion resumed the residency on 23 February to a sold-out crowd and rave reviews.
In October 2015, Dion announced on social media that she had begun working on a new French album, posting a photo by the side of Algerian singer Zaho. Dion's French single, "Encore un soir", was released on 24 May 2016. On 20 May, she released a cover of Queen's song "The Show Must Go On", featuring Lindsey Stirling on violin. She performed "The Show Must Go On" at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards on 22 May, and received the Billboard Icon Award (presented to her by her son, René-Charles Angélil) in recognition of her career spanning over three decades.
The singer's new French album, Encore un soir, was released on 26 August 2016. It features fifteen tracks performed in French and, according to the singer, has a personal choice of the songs – more uplifting lyrics were chosen. Encore un soir topped the charts in France, Canada, Belgium and Switzerland, and was certified Diamond in France, 2× Platinum in Canada and Platinum in Belgium and Switzerland. It has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. In 2016 and 2017, Dion toured Europe and Canada with two sold-out concert tours. On 9 September 2016, she released "Recovering", a song written for her by Pink after Dion's husband René Angélil died in January 2016. Dion also recorded "How Does a Moment Last Forever" for the Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, released in March 2017. Her compilation, Un peu de nous topped the chart in France in July and August 2017.
On 3 May 2018, she released the single "Ashes" from the film Deadpool 2. The remix version of the song topped the US Dance Club Songs chart in July 2018. From June to August 2018, she toured the Asia-Pacific region and grossed $56.5 million from 22 shows. On 24 September 2018, she announced the end of her Las Vegas residency Celine, with the final date set for 8 June 2019. She is working on a new English album. In January 2019, she performed "A Change Is Gonna Come" at the "Aretha! A Grammy Celebration for the Queen of Soul" Franklin's tribute concert, to be broadcast in March 2019. In March 2019, she was one of 11 singers from Quebec, alongside Ginette Reno, Diane Dufresne, Isabelle Boulay, Luce Dufault, Louise Forestier, Laurence Jalbert, Catherine Major, Ariane Moffatt, Marie Denise Pelletier, and Marie-Élaine Thibert, who participated in a supergroup recording of Renée Claude's 1971 single "Tu trouveras la paix" after Claude's diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease was announced. On 3 April 2019, during a Facebook Live event, Dion announced her 2019/2020 Courage World Tour, beginning in Quebec City on 18 September 2019. She also announced a new English language album of the same name, released in November 2019.
On 18 September 2019, Dion released three songs, "Lying Down", "Courage", and "Imperfections" from her upcoming album, Courage. On 26 February 2020, Dion released two songs as exclusive Spotify singles: an acoustic version of Imperfections, and a cover of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game. Isaak joined Dion and sang vocals on the track. On 10 June 2020, Dion announced that her Courage World Tour will kick off again in 2021, after the tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 21 May 2021, it was announced Dion would return to Vegas, in November of the same year, for a limited-run installment of ten dates in collaboration with Resorts World Las Vegas. Billboard listed Dion as the third top paid musician of 2020 (second by female artist), with total of earnings of $17.5 million.
On 15 January 2022, a statement posted to Dion's website and social media accounts announced that the U.S. and Canadian concert dates for March-April 2022 were canceled because of “severe and persistent muscle spasms” that are preventing Dion from performing onstage.
Artistry
Influences
Dion cites idols as varied as Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Charles Aznavour, Carole King, Anne Murray, Barbra Streisand, and the Bee Gees, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with. Her music has been influenced by numerous genres, including pop, rock, gospel, R&B, and soul, and her lyrics focus on themes of poverty, world hunger, and spirituality, with an emphasis on love and romance. After the birth of her first child, her work increasingly focused on maternal love.
Musical style
Dion has faced considerable criticism from critics, who state that her music often retreats behind pop and soul conventions, and is marked by excessive sentimentality. According to Keith Harris of Rolling Stone magazine, "[Dion's] sentimentality is bombastic and defiant rather than demure and retiring ... [she] stands at the end of the chain of drastic devolution that goes Aretha–Whitney–Mariah. Far from being an aberration, Dion actually stands as a symbol of a certain kind of pop sensibility—bigger is better, too much is never enough, and the riper the emotion the more true." Her francophone releases, by contrast, tend to be deeper and more varied than her English releases, and consequently have achieved more credibility.
Critics have stated that Dion's involvement in the production aspect of her music is fundamentally lacking, which results in her work being overproduced and impersonal. However, coming from a family in which all of her siblings were musicians, she dabbled in learning how to play instruments like piano and guitar, and practised with a Fender Stratocaster during the recording sessions for her album Falling into You.
Occasionally, Dion has contributed to the writing of a handful of her English and French songs, as well as writing a few songs for other artists such as Marc Dupre. Additionally, as her career progressed, she found herself taking charge in the production of her albums. On her first English album, which she recorded before she had a firm command of the English language, she expressed disapproval, which could have been avoided if she had assumed more creative input. By the time she released her second English album Celine Dion, she had assumed more control of the production and recording process, hoping to dispel earlier criticisms. She stated, "On the second album I said, 'Well, I have the choice to be afraid one more time and not be 100% happy, or not be afraid and be part of this album.' This is my album." Besides her contributions to some of her early French albums, Dion wrote a few of the songs on Let's Talk About Love (1997) and These Are Special Times (1998).
She is often the subject of media ridicule and parody and is frequently impersonated on shows such as MADtv, Saturday Night Live, South Park, Royal Canadian Air Farce, and This Hour Has 22 Minutes for her strong accent and onstage gesticulations. However, she has stated that she is unaffected by the comments, and is flattered that people take the time to impersonate her. She even invited Ana Gasteyer, who parodied her on SNL, to appear onstage during one of her performances in New York City. While she is rarely politically outspoken, in 2005 following the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Dion appeared on Larry King Live and tearfully criticized the US government's slow response in aiding the victims of the hurricane: "There's people still there waiting to be rescued. To me that is not acceptable ... How can it be so easy to send planes in another country to kill everybody in a second and destroy lives. We need to serve our country." After her interview, she stated, "When I do interviews with Larry King or the big TV shows like that, they put you on the spot, which is very difficult. I do have an opinion, but I'm a singer. I'm not a politician."
Voice and timbre
Dion once claimed to be a mezzo-soprano. However, attempts to adapt classical voice types to other forms of singing have been met with controversy. Without making a classification, Kent Nagano, maestro of the Munich Symphony Orchestra, remarked, "All you just sang was full lyric soprano", after Dion auditioned with two solos from Carmen, wanting to know if she could sing opera. Her timbre has been described as "thin, slightly nasal" with a "raspy" lower register and "bell glass-like high notes".
According to Linda Lister in Divafication: The Deification of Modern Female Pop Stars, she has been described as a reigning "Queen of Pop" for her influence over the recording industry during the 1990s, alongside other female artists, including Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. In a countdown of the "22 Greatest Voices in Music" by Blender Magazine and MTV, she placed ninth (sixth for a female), and she was also placed fourth in Cover Magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists". Dion is often compared to Houston and Carey for her vocal style, and to her idol Barbra Streisand for her voice.
She is often praised for her technical virtuosity. Jim Santella of The Buffalo News writes "Like an iron fist in a velvet glove, the power of Celine Dion's voice is cloaked in a silky vibrato that betrays the intensity of her vocal commitment." Jeff Miers, also of The Buffalo News, says of Dion "Her singing voice is absolutely extra-human. She hits notes in full voice, with a controlled vibrato and an incredible conception of pitch, like she's shucking an ear of corn." Stephen Holden of The New York Times states that Dion has "a good-sized arsenal of technical skills. She can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch. And as her duets ... have shown, she is a reliable harmony voice." In an interview with Libération, Jean-Jacques Goldman notes that she has "no problem of accuracy or tempo". According to Kent Nagano, she is "a musician who has a good ear, a refinement, and a degree of perfection that is enviable". Charles Alexander of Time states, "[Her] voice glides effortlessly from deep whispers to dead-on high notes, a sweet siren that combines force with grace."
In her French repertoire, Dion adorns her vocals with more nuances and expressiveness, with the emotional intensity being "more tender and intimate". Additionally, Luc Plamondon, a French singer-songwriter who has worked closely with Dion claims that there are three chanteuses (stylistically) that she uses: the Québécois, the French, and the American. Her self-titled 1992 album was promoted with the slogan "Remember the name because you'll never forget the voice."
Legacy
Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most influential vocalists. She has been referred to as the "Queen of Power Ballads" by the media.. Billboard called Dion the "Queen of Pop". Her music and vocal styling, alongside that of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, have been said to shape how the bulk of modern female pop vocalists sing. These three artists have been widely credited with reviving the power ballad, and in doing so reshaping the adult contemporary radio format, making it one of the most popular formats of the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2002, Billboard named her as the "Best-selling contemporary female artist in history".
According to producer, musician, and former American Idol judge Randy Jackson, Dion, Houston, and Carey are the voices of the modern era. Music critic and Dion biographer Carl Wilson notes that her "fame and influence is also renewed and expressed regularly these days by American Idol, the largest mass musical phenomenon of the past decade, where Celine's stood solidly in its pantheon of singers for young people to emulate". Many contestants on the countless televised talent competitions that have risen at the turn of the millennium often emulate Dion, Houston and Carey and cite them as idols. MTV also praised Dion by saying: "Céline Dion was better than almost anyone at capitalizing on pop’s ability to articulate feelings in sensational, over-the-top ways."
Numerous artists have either mentioned Dion as a major influence or as one of their favourite singers including: Britney Spears, Rihanna, Adele, Josh Groban, Delta Goodrem, Leona Lewis, Jennifer Hudson, Vanessa Hudgens, Kelly Clarkson, Perrie Edwards, Loren Allred, Brazilian singer Wanessa Camargo, Ariana Grande, Sam Smith, Frank Ocean, Ava Max, Charlotte Cardin, and V (from BTS) among many others. Country singer Martina McBride is widely heralded by the press as the Celine Dion of Country music.
Many artists have also praised Dion's voice, singing ability or expressed an interest in working with her including Met Opera conductor and musical director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Beyoncé, Carlos Santana, Elton John, OneRepublic, Coldplay, Sharon Osbourne, Nicole Scherzinger, Ne-Yo, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, Luciano Pavarotti, Bee Gees, Sir George Martin, Justin Bieber, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Drake and Cher.
Timbaland stated "Celine has such a beautiful, mesmerizing voice. She is so talented. I think we could create something that is a classic like she is already." Josh Groban remarked "She's a powerhouse. In this day and age, when more and more studio-produced, tiny-tiny voices are being rewarded ... she has this extraordinary instrument." According to Diane Warren, "Celine is the best singer by far of her generation", an opinion shared by Quincy Jones, Tommy Mottola, and David Foster. Moreover, Shania Twain and Jennifer Lopez have praised her dynamic stage presence, with Jennifer Lopez commenting on American Idol: "Celine gets on stage, she owns the stage, she runs all over that stage, she stops that stage." Leona Lewis is also a huge fan of Céline Dion saying "Celine is someone I aspire to be like in every way. "Gosh – I can't wait. I'm in the middle of picking out dresses at the moment. Celine is definitely one of my heroes. She is amazing." American singer and actress Lea Michelle said that she listened to Céline Dion's music while in the process of making her sophomore album 'Places' and cited her as one of her vocal influences.
Godmother of Soul Patti LaBelle called Dion as one of the greatest singers ever. Pop singer Kelly Clarkson also praised Dion's vocal ability saying: "she has two sets of lungs when she sings." and also called her the most gifted vocalist on the planet.
Dion holds the Guiness World Record for the most Juno Awards won for Album Of The Year (tied with Michael Buble & Arcade Fire). She won 3 out of the 13 nominations she received in the category throughout her career. Dion is the 3rd most decorated artist in Juno Awards history, winning 20 out of the 75 total nominations ever, becoming the most nominated artist in the awards history as well.
In 1997-1998, Dion sold more than 60 million albums, and was estimated to sell a record once every 1.2 seconds. In 2017, Dion broke records across the UK as the highest grossing artist at each UK venue where she performed which included dates at the O2 Arena in London, Leeds First Direct Arena, Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena and the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. John Meglen, president and co-CEO, Concerts West commended her by saying: "She really is the voice of our lifetime."
In 2018, there were over 300,000 Taiwanese fans that clambered for the 20,000 tickets available for Célines first concert ever in Taiwan which caused the system to lag for 30 minutes. The demand caused them to add two additional shows eventually.
Cultural impact
In Francophone music industry
On a cultural level, Dion is credited for introducing francophone music to many non-francophone countries around the globe. Her albums D'eux and S'il suffisait d'aimer remain the best selling francophone albums in history, gaining unprecedented success in non-Francophone markets such as the United Kingdom, Poland, Netherlands, Portugal, Greece, Austria, Japan, and New Zealand. According to RFI Musique, she "has done her bit for French music over the years, assuring the success of French songs which would probably never have got beyond Francophone borders without her ... Without Celine, French record sales would be dramatically lower!" In May 2008, she was awarded France's highest award, as Knight of the Legion of Honour by President of France Nicolas Sarkozy. Sarkozy praised Dion and stated: "France thanks you because your talent and success have contributed to the influence of the French language outside our borders".
In Las Vegas strip
She is also credited for both revitalizing and revolutionizing the entertainment scene in Las Vegas with the gargantuan successes of her residencies there. She signed a multi-million dollar deal worthed $100 million to do a residency in Vegas and is considered one of the most lucrative and risky in the touring industry.
Billboard credits Dion as the one who pioneered modern residencies saying: "Since Dion's debut, hundreds of artists have tried their hand at Vegas residencies, including, most recently, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Usher, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Rod Stewart and Sting. Once considered the domain of artists long past their peak, today's Las Vegas residency shows are big business, generating millions in sales." Moreover, Billboard also said: "She changed history and she completely changed Las Vegas," said Nelson, who notes the new residencies being announced for artists like Cardi B, Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Lopez aren't really at the same production level or scale of what Dion created with her husband René Angélil, as well as Meglen, Nelson and former AEG CEO Tim Leiweke." Dion is popularly referred as the reigning "Queen of Las Vegas" by various media outlets for her impact and legacy in the city.
According to Gary Bongiovanni, president and editor-in-chief of Pollstar, "Celine redefined what artists can do in Las Vegas, helping to make it arguably the busiest entertainment city in the world."
Kurt Melien, vice-president of entertainment at Caesar's Palace stated "Celine was a pioneer without question ... Twenty years ago, we couldn't have got someone the stature of Britney Spears to appear in Vegas. Stars likes her would never have considered it if Celine hadn't paved the way. She changed the face of modern Vegas."
The Guardian listed Dion's Vegas residency as one of the 50 gigs that changed music, crediting her as the one who revived it, further saying: "it was Céline Dion who turned Caesars into the stage for a glorious pop comeback. Her initial five-year run was followed by a further eight years – and prompted copycat turns by Britney Spears, Pink and Katy Perry.
In the economy
Regarding her financial impact on Las Vegas, Stephen Brown, director of the Centre for Business and Economic Research in Las Vegas, commented: "People will come to the city just for her and they will spend money and as a consequence, she has an outsized impact on the economy", then adding "Bigger than Elvis, Sinatra and Liberace put together? Definitely." Estimations indicate that Dion's show will create up to 7,000 indirect jobs and around $114 million worth of new economic activity in each of the three years for which she has been contracted.
In businesses
Forbes also discussed how entrepreneurs can reclaim the power in their business by being like Céline Dion as an example saying: "Well, remember back in 2017 when Dion launched her handbag line? During a press conference, she admitted her late manager (and husband) had always handled everything for her. Every aspect of her shows was pre-decided; every move, appearance and interview was programmed in advance. She just showed up and executed (which she did brilliantly). At the end of her handbag launch press release, she said "Now . . . I'm the boss.” Starting right then and there, she’d be the one calling the shots for her shows, her kids, her handbags and everything else that mattered to her. She was going to do things her way."
In Fashion
Celine Dion has received various acclaims from fashion critics for reinventing her fashion style over the years. The Guardian called her "The Joyous New Queen of Fashion". Harper's Bazaar also praised Dion for being an ultimate fashion risk-taker and called her a "Fashion Chameleon". Billboard dubbed her as "Streetwear Icon" after recapping the global icon's style evolution through the years. Vogue named her as one of music's most exuberant dressers, beloved as much for her glorious voice as her extravagant sense of style. Tatler discussed in an article how Cardi B might be the next Céline Dion of Paris Fashion Week, proving that Céline is the standard for the occasion. Fashion stylist and image architect Law Roach praised Celine Dion, calling her "The Queen of Camp" & "The Queen of Glitter & Sequins". Dion further cemented her name in the fashion world by wearing the reverse tuxedo at 1999 Academy Awards, which became one of the most talked ensembles of that time. Vogue also listed her iconic 1999 reverse tuxedo as one of the most controversial looks of all time saying it was undeniably the highlight of the year. W also listed the iconic ensemble as one of the most memorable dresses of all time. In February 2020, Sergio Guadarrama, a contestant of Project Runway, copied the idea of reverse tuxedo and claimed it was his original idea and had even claimed that he had no idea about the iconic tuxedo, which left the fans of the show disappointed.
Breaking music barriers
Vice discussed how Dion's music made impact in Nigerian culture, saying: "By the 2000s, Celine Dion was basically the queen of Nigerian airwaves. It was impossible to watch TV or listen to the radio without hearing her music – either on adverts, or in Nollywood films featuring heartthrobs like Genevieve Nnaji and Ramsey Nouah."
Billboard also discussed how Dion’s appearance at Jamaica Jazz & Blues changed the festival’s future. According to Walter Elmore, CEO of Art of Music Productions said Dion is by far the most expensive artist he has ever booked, further saying: “I have already received calls from the management of several major US artists who want to perform here next year because they heard Celine’s comments about our show’s production quality,” Elmore said. “Her performance confirms that we can bring the biggest artists on the planet to our little island.”
In 2012, Dion visited Jamaica for the very first time which broke attendance records and caused traffic congestion around the concert venue. Vice discussed how Dion's music has been constant in dancehall clubs for decades, as many Jamaican dancehall artists cover her songs and remixing her ballads into anthems of dance hall. Further adding: "Several current dancehall musicians continue to use utilize Dion’s tunes with the addition of upbeat guitars, pan flutes, and backbeat shuffles that transform the music for consumption by dancehall fans."
Being referenced in songs
The Canadian comedy music group The Arrogant Worms released an album called Dirt in 1999 which contained a song called "Celine Dion", about the singers' stalker-like affection for her. Dion has also been referred/mentioned in various hit songs including "Dark Fantasy" by Kanye West, "911/Mr. Lonely" by Tyler, the Creator, "That Girl" by Pharrell Williams, "Work" by A$AP Ferg, and "What's The Use" by Mac Miller, to name a few.
Cultural honors
In 1999, Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame and was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in January 2004, one which she dedicated to her father, who had died the month prior. In May 2003, she placed at No. 10 on VH1's list of "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era". Dion's album Falling into You is included on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. "My Heart Will Go On" was included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. In 2021, Dion was ranked by Forbes as the third richest woman in entertainment with an estimated net worth of US$460 million. In August 2008, she received an honorary doctorate in music from the Université Laval in Quebec City.
In October 2010, Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador, a program created by the UN in 1999, sharing this accolade with Oscar-winner Susan Sarandon. She also received several state decorations. In 2004, she was awarded the Society of Singers Lifetime Achievement Award.
On 26 July 2013, she was awarded the highest rank of the Order of Canada, the Companion of the Order of Canada, by the Governor General of Canada and the investiture ceremony was held at Citadelle of Quebec, in which they said: "An incomparable artist, she is equally known for her compassion, generosity and commitment to a number of social and humanitarian causes. She is notably the national celebrity patron for Cystic Fibrosis Canada and honorary patron of the CHU Sainte-Justine. In addition, through her foundation, she also helps children in need and their families here in Canada and abroad."
By the end of 1998, Dion was recognized by Billboard as the "Woman of the Year". They also stated how Céline's voice was featured in eight charting albums on Billboard 200 year-end chart which sold 18 million units during a calendar year (excluding her own catalog sales and recent releases at that time).
West University of Timișoara conducted a research study that analyzes Céline Dion's contributions to global music culture in both spatial and temporal terms, In November 2013, Dion was inducted at the American Gaming Association Hall Of Fame for her outstanding contributions to the growth and stature of the gaming industry.
In popular culture
Dion was referenced as an antagonist character named "Feline Dion" from the hit animated series Totally Spies! which was aired in an episode in 2013.
In 2021, French actress and filmmaker Valérie Lemercier released Aline, a film which fictionalized Dion's life with Lemercier playing a singer named "Aline Dieu".
Other activities
Business endeavours
Les Productions Feeling Inc., also known as Feeling Inc. or just Feeling, is an artist management company based in Laval, Québec, Canada, and owned by Dion and her husband and manager, Rene Angélil. She is also founder of Nickels Restaurant food chain. She and her husband also own Le Mirage Golf Club and Schwartz's Restaurant. In association with Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf and Shaquille O'Neal, she opened a popular night club called Pure, located at Caesars Palace.
Dion became an entrepreneur with the establishment of her franchise restaurant Nickels in 1990. She has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997. In 2003, Dion signed a deal with Coty, Inc. to release Celine Dion Parfums. Her latest fragrance, Signature, was released in September 2011 with an advertising campaign by New York agency Kraftworks NYC. Since its inception, Celine Dion Parfums has grossed over $850 million in retail sales. In October 2004, Air Canada hired Dion as part of their promotional campaign to unveil new service products and an updated livery. "You and I", the theme song sung by Dion, was written by advertising executives working for Air Canada.
Dion also launched an eponymous bag and accessories line "Céline Dion Collection". According to Innee-Sedona International, the Asia partner for Bugatti Group said that it already topped $10 million sales after just three collections.
Philanthropy
Dion has actively supported many charity organizations, worldwide. She has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993. She has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine succumbed to the disease at the age of sixteen, in Dion's arms. In 2003, she joined a number of other celebrities, athletes, and politicians, including Josh Groban and Yolanda Adams to support "World Children's Day", a global fundraising effort sponsored by McDonald's. The effort raised money from more than 100 nations and benefited orphanages and children's health organizations. In addition, she has been a major supporter of the T. J. Martell Foundation, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, and many health and educational campaigns. During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, she donated $1 million to the victims of the storm, and held a fund-raising event for the victims of the 2004 Asian tsunami, which subsequently raised more than $1 million. After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, she donated $100,000 to China Children & Teenagers' Fund and sent a letter showing her consolation and support. Since 2004, she is involved, alongside husband René Angelil, with the Québec gay community by supporting the publication of health and HIV prevention materials in Gay Globe Magazine, owned by journalist Roger-Luc Chayer. She is also a member of Canadian charity Artists Against Racism. In November 2018, she launched a gender-neutral clothing line for kids, Celinununu. In 2009, Dion joined an effort along with Leonardo DiCaprio, James Cameron and Kate Winslet, to donate money to support the nursing home fees of the then-last living survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, Millvina Dean. The campaign resulted in $30,000 as donation.
Personal life
As the youngest of 14 children, Dion grew up wearing hand-me-downs and sharing a bed with several sisters. As a baby, she slept in a drawer to save on a crib. She was bullied at school and called "Vampire", owing to her teeth and skinny frame. Local tabloids even dubbed her "Canine Dion" in the teenage years of her career. She often spoke of running home from school to play music in the basement with her brothers and sisters. "I detested school", she would later write in her autobiography. "I had always lived surrounded by adults and children a lot older than me. I learned everything I needed to know from them. As far as I was concerned, real life existed around them." Dion's eldest sister was already in her twenties, married, and pregnant with her first child at the time Dion's mother, Thérèse, was pregnant with Celine.
Dion first met René Angélil, her future husband and manager, in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after her brother, Michel Dondalinger Dion, had sent him a demonstration recording of "Ce n'était qu'un rêve" ("It Was Only a Dream/Nothing But A Dream"), a song she, her mother Thérèse, and her brother Jacques Dion had jointly written. Over subsequent years, Angélil guided her to stardom in francophone territories.
After the dissolution of Angélil's second marriage, he and Dion took a professional break and he spent the major part of the year in Las Vegas, while Dion was learning English and taking dance and vocal lessons in Montreal. Upon his return, "he avoided being alone with me for too long a time", she said in her 2000 autobiography My Story, My Dream. Meanwhile, she kept a photo of Angélil under her pillow, writing, "Before I fell asleep, I slipped it under the pillow, out of fear that my mother, who always shared a room with me, would find it." She also wrote "Less and less could I hide from myself the fact that I was in love with Rene; I had all the symptoms," and "I was in love with a man I couldn't love, who didn't want me to love him, who didn't want to love me." Dion's mother, who traveled everywhere with the singer until she was 19, was initially wary of her daughter's growing infatuation with a much older and twice-divorced Angélil, but Dion was insistent, telling her mother "I'm not a minor. This is a free country. No one has the right to prevent me from loving whoever I want to."
Their professional relationship eventually turned romantic after Dion's win at the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin in 1988; she was 20. The romance was known to only family and friends for five years, though Dion nearly revealed all in a tearful 1992 interview with journalist Lise Payette. Many years later, Payette penned the song "Je cherche l'ombre" for Dion's 2007 album D'elles.
Dion and Angélil became engaged in 1993, on Dion's 25th birthday, and made their relationship public in the liner notes of her 1993 album The Colour of My Love. They married on 17 December 1994, at Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec. On 5 January 2000, Dion and Angélil renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas.
In May 2000, Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in vitro fertilization because of years of failed attempts to conceive. Their first son, René-Charles Angélil, was born on 25 January 2001. Dion suffered a miscarriage in 2009. In May 2010, Angélil announced that she was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in vitro fertilization. On Saturday, 23 October 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, Dion gave birth to fraternal twins by Caesarean section at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, The twins were named Eddy, after Dion's favourite French songwriter, Eddy Marnay, who had also produced her first five albums; and Nelson, after former South African President Nelson Mandela. She appeared with her newborn sons on the cover of 9 December 2010 issue of the Canadian edition of Hello! magazine.
On 14 January 2016, Angélil died of throat cancer. His funeral was held on 22 January 2016, in Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, where he and Dion wed 21 years earlier. The couple's eldest son, René-Charles, gave the eulogy just three days before his 15th birthday. Following Angélil's death, Dion became the sole owner and president of her management and production companies, including CDA Productions and Les Productions Feeling.
Two days after Angélil's deathon what would have been her husband's birthdayDion's brother, Daniel, died aged 59, also of cancer.
On 22 March 2018, Dion's management team announced that she had been dealing with hearing irregularities for the previous 12–18 months due to patulous Eustachian tube and would undergo a minimally invasive surgical procedure to correct the problem after ear-drop medications appeared to be no longer working.
Owing to her slight frame, Dion has for decades been subject of eating disorder rumors, which she has consistently denied: "I don't have an eating problem, and there's nothing more I can say about it". "My work requires me to be in great physical shape. I wouldn't have been able to live up to a hundred shows a year and travel ceaselessly from one end of the world to the other if I had eaten too much or not enough, or if, as certain magazines have claimed, I made myself throw up after each meal." She has often spoken about having been bullied at school and lacking confidence in her early years in the business: "I didn't have, visually, what it took. I was not pretty, I had teeth problems, and I was very skinny. I didn't fit the mold".
Dion took up ballet under the guidance of her former dancer, Naomi Stikeman, who also previously performed for The National Ballet of Canada and La La La Human Steps, and former Cirque du Soleil dancer-turned-fashion-illustrator, Pepe Muñoz, who is also part of her styling team. She is also a skier and a regular at her son René-Charles' hockey games.
Dion resides in Henderson, Nevada, in a house she bought with her husband in 2003. She previously owned homes in Montreal, Quebec, and Jupiter Island, Florida.
Dion's older son René-Charles Angélil loves music and has tried to follow a musical path. Under the stage name Big Tip, he released in May 2018 on his SoundCloud account 6 rap songs including originals "The Kid", "The Apple" and "Never Stop" and two adaptations from The Weeknd songs, "Catwalks" sampling on The Weeknd's "Sidewalks" and a remix of The Weeknd's "Loft Music" as "Loft Music Remix". He also released the 5-track EP CasiNo. 5 in December 2020 using the artistic name RC Angelil. The EP includes the tracks "Mamba Mentality", "Money, Thrills and Rest", "No Ls", "GG4" (featuring PAKKA) and "LV".
Discography
French-language studio albums
La voix du bon Dieu (1981)
Céline Dion chante Noël (1981)
Tellement j'ai d'amour... (1982)
Les chemins de ma maison (1983)
Chants et contes de Noël (1983)
Mélanie (1984)
C'est pour toi (1985)
Incognito (1987)
Dion chante Plamondon (1991)
D'eux (1995)
S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998)
1 fille & 4 types (2003)
D'elles (2007)
Sans attendre (2012)
Encore un soir (2016)
English-language studio albums
Unison (1990)
Celine Dion (1992)
The Colour of My Love (1993)
Falling into You (1996)
Let's Talk About Love (1997)
These Are Special Times (1998)
A New Day Has Come (2002)
One Heart (2003)
Miracle (2004)
Taking Chances (2007)
Loved Me Back to Life (2013)
Courage (2019)
Concert tours and residencies
Tours
Les chemins de ma maison (1983–1984)
Céline Dion en concert (1985)
Tournée Incognito (1988)
Unison Tour (1990–1991)
Celine Dion in Concert (1992–1993)
The Colour of My Love Tour (1994–1995)
D'eux Tour (1995–1996)
Falling into You: Around the World (1996–1997)
Let's Talk About Love World Tour (1998–1999)
Taking Chances World Tour (2008–2009)
Tournée Européenne 2013
Summer Tour 2016
Celine Dion Live 2017
Celine Dion Live 2018
Courage World Tour (2019–2023)
Residencies
A New Day... (2003–2007)
Celine (2011–2019)
Celine (2022)
Filmography
Touched by an Angel
The Nanny
All My Children
La fureur de Céline
Des fleurs sur la neige
Quest for Camelot as Juliana (singing voice)
Céline sur les Plaines
Celine: Through the Eyes of the World
Sur la piste du Marsupilami
Hell's Kitchen
Muppets Most Wanted
References
Bibliography
Céline Dion. Artist direct. Retrieved on 18 December 2005.
"Celine Dion". Contemporary Musicians, Volume 25. Gale Group, 1999.
"Celine Dion". Newsmakers 1995, Issue 4. Gale Research, 1995.
Céline Dion. Rock on the Net. Retrieved 20 November 2005.
Céline Dion. The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2 July 2006
Céline Dion provided by VH1.com Retrieved 16 August 2005.
Dion extends long Las Vegas stint. news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2005.
Durchholz, Daniel. Review: One Heart. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. St. Louis, Mo.: 24 April 2003. p. F.3
The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalist covemagazine.com Retrieved 1 November 2005.
Joel Whitburn Presents the Billboard Hot 100 Charts: The Nineties ()
World Music Awards Diamond Award Retrieved 1 November 2005, (Search by year required)
Further reading
External links
CelineDion.com – Official website operated by Sony Music Canada (English, French).
[ Celine Dion] at AllMusic
[ Celine Dion] at Billboard.com
1968 births
Living people
20th-century Canadian composers
20th-century Canadian women singers
20th-century women composers
21st-century Canadian composers
21st-century Canadian women singers
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550 Music artists
Ballad musicians
Businesspeople from Florida
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Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States
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Canadian women singers
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Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
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Columbia Records artists
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Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Switzerland
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1988
Eurovision Song Contest winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Félix Award winners
French-language singers of Canada
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Grammy Award winners
Ivor Novello Award winners
Juno Award for Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Artist of the Year winners
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Juno Award for International Album of the Year winners
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Las Vegas shows
Musicians from Las Vegas
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People from Charlemagne, Quebec
People from Henderson, Nevada
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Philanthropists from Florida
Philanthropists from Nevada
Philanthropists from Quebec
Pop rock singers
Singers from Quebec
Singers with a three-octave vocal range
Spanish-language singers of Canada
Women restaurateurs
World Music Awards winners | false | [
"Ingrid Bergman was a Swedish actress who appeared in a number of critically acclaimed European and American films and television series. She subsequently received a number of awards, primarily during the 1940s and 1950s, though she did receive some recognition during the 1930s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. She is best remembered for her roles as Isla Lund in Casablanca, and Alicia Huberman in Notorious, but despite the critical success of both films, she was a notable absence from the nominations they received in their subsequent awards seasons.\n\nThe first role for which she received major awards recognition was 1943's For Whom the Bell Tolls, an American war film which was released in the same year as Casablanca, and for which she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, but failed to win, losing to Jennifer Jones for The Song of Bernadette. This was the first of three Academy Award nominations she received three years in a row, along with 1944's Gaslight, an American mystery-thriller film, and 1945's The Bells of St. Mary's, an American drama film. Her performance in Gaslight earned her the first of her two Academy Awards for Best Actress, as well as her first Golden Globe (for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama), resulting from her first of eight eventual nominations and four wins.\n\nOutside of the United States, she also received recognition in the United Kingdom for her performance as Gladys Aylward in the British war film The Inn of the Sixth Happiness, for which she was nominated for the BAFTA for Best Foreign Actress, though she went on to lose to Simone Signoret for Room at the Top. In Italy, too, she came to prominence for her role in Europe '51, an Italian neorealist film, for which she won the Nastro d'Argento for Best Actress. In Germany, she received five Bambi Awards, whilst in France, she was awarded an honorary César in 1976.\n\nBy the 1970s, Bergman had already received two Academy Awards from five nominations, but went on to be nominated twice more, winning for a third time, this time in the category of Best Supporting Actress, for 1974's Murder on the Orient Express, based on the Agatha Christie novel of the same name, for which she also received her first and only BAFTA. Her Oscar nomination for Autumn Sonata was the first she had received for a film in her native language of Swedish. Though she ultimately lost to Jane Fonda for Coming Home, she did win her second David di Donatello for Best Foreign Actress.\n\nBergman won three Academy Awards for acting - two for Best Actress, and one for Best Supporting Actress. She ranks tied for second place in terms of Oscars won, with Walter Brennan (all three for Best Supporting Actor), Jack Nicholson (two for Best Actor, and one for Best Supporting Actor), Meryl Streep (two for Best Actress, and one for Best Supporting Actress), Daniel Day-Lewis (all three for Best Actor) and Frances McDormand (all three for Best Actress). Katharine Hepburn still holds the record, with four (all four for Best Actress).\n\nMajor Film Awards\n\nAcademy Awards\n\nBAFTA Awards\n\nGolden Globe Awards\n\nMajor National Awards\n\nBambi Awards (Germany)\n\nCésar Awards (France)\n\nDavid di Donatello (Italy)\n\nTelevision Awards\n\nEmmy Awards (Primetime)\n\nTheatre Awards\n\nTony Awards\n\nCritics' Awards\n\nItalian National Syndicate of Film Journalists\n\nLos Angeles Film Critics Association\n\nMotion Picture Exhibitor Magazine\n\nNational Board of Review\n\nNational Society of Film Critics\n\nNew York Film Critics Circle\n\nOnline Film & Television Association\n\nPhotoplay\n\nFestival Awards\n\nVenice Film Festival\n\nOther\n\nAll-Time Rankings\n\nGolden Apple Awards\n\nHollywood Walk of Fame\n\nSee also \n\n Ingrid Bergman performances\n\nReferences\n\nBergman, Ingrid",
"Yolanda Toussieng (born 1949) is a two-time Oscar-winning makeup artist. Her first win came at the 1993 Academy Awards for Best Makeup for the film Mrs. Doubtfire, which she shared with Greg Cannom and Ve Neill. The second win was at 1994's 67th Academy Awards for the film Ed Wood, a win she shared with Rick Baker and Ve Neill.\nShe received two more nominations, first during the 2003 Oscars for the film Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, and her fourth nomination was at the 83rd Academy Awards for the film The Way Back. \nShe also won a Daytime Emmy for Pee-wee's Playhouse in 1988.\nShe has done over 60 films since 1982.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nBest Makeup Academy Award winners\nLiving people\n1949 births\nMake-up artists\nDaytime Emmy Award winners"
]
|
[
"Celine Dion",
"2011-2014: Celine, Sans attendre and Loved Me Back to Life",
"What did Celine Dion do in 2011?",
"February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011.",
"Was her tour successful?",
"Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote.",
"Did she win any awards during this time?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_78f1e410e4c0415db79dddeaf75c47aa_0 | What songs were popular on our tour? | 4 | What songs were most popular on Celine Dion's 2011 tour? | Celine Dion | In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. Additionally, for a record sixth time, Dion performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, Dion appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, Dion released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, Dion made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica. In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. Dion began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles. The music video for "Incredible" was uploaded onto Dion's official Vevo channel in early June 2014. On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Celine une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia. CANNOTANSWER | Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame | Céline Marie Claudette Dion (; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. She is noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals. Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French language artist of all time. Her music has incorporated genres such as pop, rock, R&B, gospel, and classical music.
Born into a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, she emerged as a teen star in her home country with a series of French-language albums during the 1980s. She first gained international recognition by winning both the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, where she represented Switzerland. After learning to speak English, she signed on to Epic Records in the United States. In 1990, Dion released her debut English-language album, Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world. Her recordings since have been mainly in English and French although she has also sung in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese, and Chinese.
During the 1990s, she achieved worldwide fame after releasing several best-selling English-language albums in music history, such as Falling into You (1996) and Let's Talk About Love (1997), which were both certified diamond in the US and over 30 million sales worldwide each. She also scored a series of international number-one hits, including "The Power of Love", "Think Twice", "Because You Loved Me", "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", "My Heart Will Go On", and "I'm Your Angel". Dion continued releasing French albums between each English record; D'eux (1995) became the best-selling French-language album of all time, while S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998), Sans attendre (2012), and Encore un soir (2016), were all certified diamond in France. During the 2000s, she built her reputation as a highly successful live performer with A New Day... on the Las Vegas Strip (2003–07), which remains the highest-grossing concert residency of all time, as well as the Taking Chances World Tour (2008–09), one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time.
Dion is also one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with record sales of more than 200 million worldwide. Although her releases have often received mixed critical reception, Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most successful vocalists. She has won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year. Billboard named her the "Queen of Adult Contemporary" for having the most number-one songs on the radio format for a female artist. Dion is the second best-selling female artist in the US during the Nielsen SoundScan, the 8th all-time best-performing top female artist in the United States, and the sixth all-time best-performing female soloist in Billboard 200 history. In 2003, she was honoured by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for selling over 50 million albums in Europe. In 2008, Dion was recognized as the Best-selling International Artist in South Africa.
Life and career
1968–1989: Early life and career beginnings
Dion was born in Charlemagne, Quebec, northeast of Montreal, the youngest of 14 children of Thérèse (née Tanguay, 1927–2020), a homemaker, and Adhémar Dion (1923–2003), a butcher, both of French-Canadian descent. She was raised a Roman Catholic in a poor but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne. Music had always been a major part of the Dion family, and she was named after the song "Céline", which French singer Hugues Aufray had recorded two years before her birth. On 13 August 1973, at the age of five, the young Céline made her first public appearance at her brother Michel's wedding, where she performed Christine Charbonneau's song "Du fil, des aiguilles et du coton". She continued to perform with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar called Le Vieux Baril, "The Old Barrel". From an early age, she had dreamed of being a performer. In a 1994 interview with People magazine, she recalled, "I missed my family and my home, but I don't regret having lost my adolescence. I had one dream: I wanted to be a singer." As a child in Quebec, Dion participated in Girl Guide programs as a member of Girl Guides of Canada.
At age 12, she collaborated with her mother and her brother Jacques to write and compose her first song, "Ce n'était qu'un rêve", whose title translates as "It Was Only a Dream" or "Nothing But A Dream". Her brother Michel sent the recording to music manager René Angélil, whose name he discovered on the back of a Ginette Reno album. Angélil was moved to tears by Dion's voice and decided to make her a star. In 1981, he mortgaged his home to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu, which later became a local No. 1 hit and made her an instant star in Quebec. Her popularity spread to other parts of the world when she competed in the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, and won the musician's award for "Top Performer" as well as the gold medal for "Best Song" with "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi".
By 1983, in addition to becoming the first Canadian artist to receive a gold record in France for the single "D'amour ou d'amitié" ("Of Love or of Friendship"), Dion had also won several Félix Awards, including "Best Female performer" and "Discovery of the Year". Further success came when she represented Switzerland in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Ne partez pas sans moi" and won the contest by a close margin in Dublin, Ireland.
At age 18, after seeing a Michael Jackson performance, Dion told Angélil that she wanted to be a star like Jackson. Though confident in her talent, Angélil realized that her image needed to be changed for her to be marketed worldwide. She receded from the spotlight for a number of months, during which she underwent dental surgery to improve her appearance, and was sent to the École Berlitz in 1989 to polish her English.
In 1989, during a concert on the Incognito tournée, she injured her voice. She consulted the otorhinolaryngologist William Gould, who gave her an ultimatum: have immediate surgery on her vocal cords or do not utilize them at all for three weeks. Dion chose the latter and underwent vocal training with William Riley.
1990–1992: Unison, Dion chante Plamondon, and Celine Dion
Two years after she learned English, Dion made her debut into the Anglophone market with Unison (1990), the lead single having originally been recorded by Laura Branigan. She incorporated the help of many established musicians, including Vito Luprano and Canadian producer David Foster. The album was largely influenced by 1980s soft rock music that quickly found a niche within the adult contemporary radio format. Unison also hit the right notes with critics: Jim Faber of Entertainment Weekly wrote that her vocals were "tastefully unadorned", and that she never attempted to "bring off styles that are beyond her". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic declared it "a fine, sophisticated American debut". Singles from the album included "(If There Was) Any Other Way", "The Last to Know", "Unison", and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now", a mid-tempo soft-rock ballad that made prominent use of the electric guitar. The latter became her first top-ten hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number four. In 1991, Dion was a featured soloist on "Voices That Care", a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm.
Her real international breakthrough came when she duetted with Peabo Bryson on the title track to Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991). It became her first top-ten hit in the UK and her second top-ten hit in the United States. The song earned its songwriters an Academy Award for Best Song and gave Dion her first Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. "Beauty and the Beast" served as the lead single from her 1992 self-titled album, which, like her debut, had a strong pop rock influence combined with elements of soul and classical music. Owing to the success of the lead-off single and her collaborations with David Foster and Diane Warren, the album was even more well-received commercially than Unison; it was certified diamond in Canada and double platinum in the US. The album's second single "If You Asked Me To" (a cover of Patti LaBelle's song from the 1989 movie Licence to Kill) became her first number-one single in Canada and peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Also during this time, Dion released the Francophone album Dion chante Plamondon. The album consisted mostly of covers, but featured four new songs: "Des mots qui sonnent", "Je danse dans ma tête", "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime", and "L'amour existe encore". It was originally released in Canada and France during the 1991–1992 period, then later received an international release in 1994, the first French Celine Dion album to do so. "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)" became a smash hit in France, reaching No. 2 and being certified gold. In Quebec, the album was certified Gold the day it was released.
By 1992, Unison, Céline Dion, and numerous high-profile media appearances had propelled Dion to superstardom in North America. She had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame. However, while she was experiencing rising success in the US, her French fans in Canada criticized her for neglecting them. She would later rebuff these criticisms at the 1991 Félix Awards show, where, after winning "English Artist of the Year", she openly refused to accept the award. She asserted that she was—and would always be—a French, not an English, artist. Apart from her commercial success, there were also changes in her personal life, as Angélil, who was 26 years her senior, transitioned from manager to lover. However, the relationship was kept a secret as they both feared that the public would find their relations inappropriate.
1993–1995: The Colour of My Love and D'eux
In 1993, Dion announced her feelings for her manager by declaring him "the colour of [her] love" in the dedication section of her third English-language album The Colour of My Love. However, instead of criticizing their relationship as she had feared, fans embraced the couple. Eventually, Angélil and Dion married in an extravagant wedding ceremony on 17 December 1994, which was broadcast live on Canadian television.
As with most of her catalogue, The Colour of My Love had over-riding themes of love and romance. It became her most successful record up to that point, selling more than six million copies in the US, two million in Canada, and peaking at No. 1 in many countries. The album also spawned Dion's first US, Canadian, and Australian No. 1 single "The Power of Love" (a remake of Jennifer Rush's 1985 hit), which would become her signature hit in various nations until she reached new career heights in the late 1990s.
The single "When I Fall in Love", a duet with Clive Griffin, achieved moderate success on the US and Canadian charts and was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one. The Colour of My Love also became Dion's first major hit in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. Both the album and the single "Think Twice" simultaneously occupied the top of the British charts for five consecutive weeks. "Think Twice", which remained at No. 1 for seven weeks, eventually became the fourth single by a female artist to sell in excess of one million copies in the UK while the album was eventually certified five-times platinum for two million copies sold.
Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record. Generally, they achieved more credibility than her English-language works. She released À l'Olympia, a live album that was recorded during one of her concerts at the Paris Olympia in 1994. It had one promotional single, a live version of "Calling You", which peaked at seventy-five on the French Singles Chart. She also recorded a bilingual version of "Petit Papa Noël" with Alvin and the Chipmunks for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk. D'eux (also known as The French Album in the United States), was released in 1995, and it would go on to become the best-selling French-language album of all time. The album was mostly written and produced by Jean-Jacques Goldman, and amassed huge success with the singles "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" and "Je sais pas". "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" reached No. 1 in France and stayed at the top position for twelve weeks. It was later certified Platinum in France. The single reached the top ten in the UK and Ireland, a rare accomplishment for a French song. The second single off the album, "Je sais pas", reached No. 1 on the French Singles Chart as well and was certified Silver there.
During the mid-1990s and onward, Dion's albums were generally constructed on the basis of melodramatic soft rock ballads, with sprinklings of up-tempo pop and rare forays into other genres. She collaborated with many renowned writers and producers such as Jim Steinman and David Foster, who helped her to develop a signature sound. While critical reviews fluctuated, her releases performed increasingly well on the international charts, and in 1996, she won the World Music Award for "World's Best-selling Female Recording Artist of the Year" for the third time. By the mid-1990s, she had established herself as one of the best-selling artists in the world.
1996–1999: Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love, and S'il suffisait d'aimer
In the five years since her debut English language album in 1990, Billboard stated that she had already sold 40 million albums worldwide. Falling into You (1996), Dion's fourth English-language album, presented the singer at the height of her popularity and showed a further progression of her music. In an attempt to reach a wider audience, the album combined many elements, such as complex orchestral sounds, African chanting, and elaborate musical effects. Additionally, instruments like the violin, Spanish guitar, trombone, the cavaquinho, and saxophone created a new sound. The singles encompassed a variety of musical styles. The title track "Falling into You" and "River Deep – Mountain High" (a Tina Turner cover) made prominent use of percussion instruments; "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (produced by its writer Jim Steinman) and a remake of Eric Carmen's "All by Myself" maintained a soft-rock atmosphere, combined with the classical sound of the piano; and the No. 1 single "Because You Loved Me", which was written by Diane Warren, was a pop ballad that served as the theme to the 1996 film Up Close and Personal.
Falling into You garnered career-best reviews for Dion. While Dan Leroy wrote that it was not very different from her previous work, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times and Natalie Nichols of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the album was formulaic, other critics, such as Chuck Eddy of Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic, and Daniel Durchholz, lavished the album as "compelling", "passionate", "stylish", "elegant", and "remarkably well-crafted". Falling into You became Dion's most critically and commercially successful album: it topped the charts in many countries and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.
In 2013, CBC Music ranked Falling into You 33rd in their list of the 100 greatest Canadian albums ever. In the United States, the album reached No. 1, and was later certified 11× Platinum for over 11 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album was certified diamond for over one million copies shipped. The IFPI certified Falling into You 9× Platinum, an accolade that has been given to only two other albums in history, with one of the two being Dion's own album, Let's Talk About Love. The album also won Grammy Awards for Best Pop Album and the academy's highest honour, Album of the Year.
Dion was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream" at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In March 1996, she launched the Falling into You Tour in support of her new album, performing concerts around the world for over a year.
She followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love (1997), which was publicized as its sequel. The recording process took place in London, New York City, and Los Angeles, and featured a host of special guests, such as Barbra Streisand on "Tell Him"; the Bee Gees on "Immortality"; and tenor Luciano Pavarotti on "I Hate You Then I Love You". Other musicians included Carole King, Sir George Martin, Bryan Adams and Jamaican singer Diana King, who added a reggae tinge to "Treat Her Like a Lady".
Let's Talk About Love was another major success, reaching No. 1 all over the world, attaining platinum status in twenty-four sales territories, and becoming the fastest selling album of her career. In the United States, the album topped the chart in its seventh week of release, and was later certified 10× Platinum in the US for over 10 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album sold 230,212 copies in its first week of release, which remains a record. It was eventually certified diamond in Canada for over one million copies shipped. The most successful single from the album was the classically influenced ballad "My Heart Will Go On", which was written and composed by James Horner and Will Jennings, and produced by Horner and Walter Afanasieff.
Serving as the love theme for the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic, the song topped the charts across the world and became Dion's signature song. Horner and Jennings won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song, while Dion herself garnered two Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and the most coveted, Record of the Year, (the song itself won four awards, but two were presented to the songwriters). "My Heart Will Go On" and "Think Twice" made her the only female artist in the UK to have two singles to sell more than a million copies. In support of her album, she embarked on the Let's Talk About Love Tour between 1998 and 1999.
Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums: the Christmas album These Are Special Times (1998), the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer, and the compilation album All the Way... A Decade of Song (1999). On These Are Special Times, she co-wrote the song "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day" along with Ric Wake and Peter Zizzo. The album was her most classically influenced yet, with orchestral arrangements found on virtually every track. The album featured the single "I'm Your Angel" (a duet with R. Kelly), which became her fourth US No. 1 single, and a smash hit across the world. The album's second single "The Prayer" (a duet with Andrea Bocelli) served as the soundtrack of the 1998 film Quest for Camelot and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. All the Way... A Decade of Song drew together her most successful hits coupled with seven new songs, including the lead-off single "That's the Way It Is", a cover of Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", and "All the Way", a duet with Frank Sinatra. All the Way became one of the best-selling compilation albums of all time, reaching No. 1 in the United States for three weeks. The album was later certified 7x Platinum in the US for 7 million copies shipped. It also topped the charts in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Her last French-language studio album of the 1990s, S'il suffisait d'aimer, was very successful as well, topping the charts in every major French-speaking country, including France, Switzerland, the Wallonia region of Belgium, and Canada. In France, the album was certified diamond, selling 1.5 million copies. By the end of the 1990s, Dion had sold more than 130 million records worldwide, and had won a slew of industry awards. Her status as one of the music industry's biggest pop divas was further solidified when she was asked to perform on VH1's Divas Live special in 1998, with superstars Aretha Franklin, Gloria Estefan, Shania Twain, and Mariah Carey. That year, she also received two of the highest Canadian honours: "Officer of the Order of Canada for Outstanding Contribution to the World of Contemporary Music" and "Officer of the National Order of Quebec". A year later, she was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame, and was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.
Starting from the mid-1990s, the pop rock influence that was more noticeable in her earlier releases was replaced by a more mature feel. Additionally, the recurring theme of "love" dominated most of her releases, which led to some critics dismissing her music as banal. Other critics, like Elysa Gardner and Jose F. Promis, praised her voice during this period, describing it as a "technical marvel". Steve Dollar, in his review of These Are Special Times, opined that Dion was a "vocal Olympian for whom there ain't no mountain—or scale—high enough".
2000–2003: Hiatus, A New Day Has Come, One Heart, and 1 fille & 4 types
After releasing and promoting thirteen albums during the 1990s, Dion stated that she needed to settle down, and announced on her latest album All the Way... A Decade of Song, that she needed to take a step back from the spotlight and enjoy life. Angélil's diagnosis with esophageal cancer also prompted her to hiatus. While on break, she was unable to escape the spotlight. In 2000, the National Enquirer published a false story about the singer. Brandishing a picture of Dion and her husband, the magazine misquoted her, printing the headline, "Celine — 'I'm Pregnant With Twins!'" She later sued the magazine for more than $20million. The editors of the Enquirer printed an apology and a full retraction to her in the next issue, and donated money to the American Cancer Society in honour of her and her husband. A year after the incident, after undergoing fertility treatments, she gave birth to a son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, on 25 January 2001, in Florida.
Following the 11 September attacks, Dion returned to the music scene, and in a televised performance sang "God Bless America" at the benefit concert America: A Tribute to Heroes. Chuck Taylor of Billboard wrote, "the performance ... brings to mind what has made her one of the celebrated vocalists of our time: the ability to render emotion that shakes the soul. Affecting, meaningful, and filled with grace, this is a musical reflection to share with all of us still searching for ways to cope." She performed it again in 2003 during pregame festivities for Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego. In December 2001, she published her autobiography My Story, My Dream which chronicled her rags-to-riches story.
Dion ended her three-year sabbatical from the music industry with the aptly titled album A New Day Has Come, released in March 2002. The album was her most personal yet, with songs focusing on her motherhood and maturation as a woman such as "A New Day Has Come", and "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)". She stated: "becoming a mother makes you a grown-up." She stated, "A New Day Has Come, for Rene, for me, is the baby. It has everything to do with the baby ... That song "A New Day Has Come" represents very well the mood I'm feeling right now. It represents the whole album." A New Day Has Come debuted at No. 1 in more than 17 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 527,000 copies; marking her first No. 1 debut on the chart, as well as the highest debut sales week of her career in the US. It was eventually certified 3× Platinum in the United States, and 6× Platinum in Canada.
While the album was commercially successful, critical reviews suggested that it was "forgettable" and the lyrics were "lifeless". Both Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone magazine, and Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly, stated that Dion's music had not developed much during her break, and classed her material as trite and mediocre. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine called the album "a lengthy collection of drippy, gooey pop fluffer-nutter". The first single off the album, A New Day Has Come peaked at No.22 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, being an airplay-only release. On the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks, however, the song spent 21 consecutive weeks at No. 1, breaking the record for the longest span at the top. The previous record holders were Phil Collins' You'll Be in My Heart and Dion's own Because You Loved Me, both of which lasted nineteen weeks at No. 1. The album's next single, "I'm Alive", was featured on the soundtrack for Stuart Little 2 (2002), and was ranked number 2 on the European Hot 100 Singles, and number 6 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks in the United States. During 2002, she performed for many benefit concerts, including her second appearance on VH1 Divas Live, a concert to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation, alongside Cher, Anastacia, Dixie Chicks, Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, Cyndi Lauper, Shakira, and Stevie Nicks.
In conjunction with an endorsement deal with Chrysler, she released One Heart (2003), an album that represented her appreciation for life. The album largely consisted of pop and dance music—a deviation from the soaring, melodramatic ballads, for which she had been known. Although the album achieved moderate success, One Heart was met with mixed criticism, and words such as "predictable" and "banal" appeared even in the most lenient reviews. A cover of the 1989 Cyndi Lauper hit "I Drove All Night", released to launch her advertising campaign with Chrysler, incorporated elements of dance-pop and rock and roll. The advertising deal was met with criticism, with some stating that Dion was trying to cater to her sponsors.
After One Heart, she released her next English-language studio album, Miracle (2004). Miracle was a multimedia project conceived by Dion and Australian photographer Anne Geddes and had a theme centring on babies and motherhood. The album was filled with lullabies and other songs of maternal love and inspiration, including covers of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" and John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy". The reviews for Miracle were mixed. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic.com gave the album three of out five stars, stating, "The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience." Chuck Taylor of Billboard magazine wrote that the single "Beautiful Boy" was "an unexpected gem" and called Dion "a timeless, enormously versatile artist", Chuck Arnold of People Magazine, however, labelled the album as excessively sentimental, while Nancy Miller of Entertainment Weekly opined that "the whole earth-mama act is just opportunism, reborn". Miracle debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 in Canada and was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA.
The francophone album 1 fille & 4 types (1 Girl & 4 Guys), released in October 2003, fared better than her previous two releases and showed her trying to distance herself from the "diva" image. She recruited Jean-Jacques Goldman, Gildas Arzel, Eric Benzi, and Jacques Veneruso, with whom she had previously worked on two of her best-selling French albums S'il suffisait d'aimer and D'eux. Labeled "the album of pleasure" by Dion herself, the album cover showed her in a simple and relaxed manner, contrary to the choreographed poses usually found on her album covers. The album achieved widespread commercial success in France, Canada, and Belgium where it reached No. 1. In France, the album debuted at No. 1 and was later certified 2× platinum after selling over 700,000 copies. Critic Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Dion's vocals were "back at top of their game" and that she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while".
Though her albums were commercially successful, they did not achieve the sales or the reception of her previous works. Her songs received less airplay as radio became less embracing of balladeers like Dion, Carey, and Houston, and was focused on more up-tempo, Urban/Hip-hop songs. By 2004, Dion had accumulated sales of more than 175 million albums worldwide and received the Chopard Diamond Award from the World Music Awards for her achievements. According to the official World Music Awards website, the award is rare; it is "not presented every year" and an artist can be presented with the award only for selling "over 100 million albums during their career".
2003–2007: A New Day...
In early 2002, Dion announced a three-year, 600-show contract to appear five nights a week in an entertainment extravaganza, A New Day..., at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. This move was generally seen as risky, but journalist Miriam Nunzio wrote that it was "one of the smartest business decisions in years by any major recording artist". Dion conceived the show after seeing O by Franco Dragone during her break from recording, and it premiered on 25 March 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena specifically designed for her show and modelled after the Roman Colosseum. Many stars attended the opening night including Dick Clark, Alan Thicke, Kathy Griffin, Lance Bass, and Justin Timberlake, who hosted the television special. The show, directed by Dragone and choreographed by the renowned Mia Michaels, was a combination of dance, music, and visual effects. It included Dion performing her biggest hits against an array of dancers and special effects. Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find the singer among the excessive stage ornamentation and dancers. However, he noted that the show had become more enjoyable over the course of its run, because of her improved stage-presence and simplified costumes.
The show was well-received by audiences, despite the complaints of expensive tickets; it routinely sold out until its end in late 2007. Ticket prices averaged $135.33. According to Pollstar, Dion sold 322,000 tickets and grossed US$43.9 million in the first half of 2005, and by July 2005, she had sold out 315 out of 384 shows. By the end of 2005, she grossed more than US$76 million, placing sixth on Billboard's Money Makers list for 2005. Because of the show's success, her contract was extended into 2007 for an undisclosed sum. On 5 January 2007, it was announced that the show would end on 15 December 2007, with tickets for the period after October 2007 having gone on sale from 1 March. According to Billboard, A New Day... is the most successful residency of all time, grossing over US$385 million ($ million in dollars) and drawing nearly three million people to 717 shows. The Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... DVD was released on 10 December 2007, in Europe and the following day in North America.
2007–2010: D'elles, Taking Chances, and Taking Chances Tour
On 21 May 2007, Dion released the French-language album D'elles (About Them), which debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week. It marked her tenth No. 1 album in the SoundScan era, and her eighth to debut at the top position. In Canada, the album has been certified 2× platinum, and within the first month had already shipped half a million units worldwide. D'Elles also reached No. 1 in France and Belgium. The first single "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)" (meaning "And If There Was Only One Woman Left (I Would Be That One)") debuted at the top of the French singles chart a month earlier. Later that same year, she released the English album Taking Chances on 12 November in Europe, and 13 November in North America. Her first English studio album since 2003's One Heart, it featured pop, R&B, and rock inspired music. For this album, she collaborated with John Shanks and ex-Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody, as well as Kristian Lundin, Peer Åström, Linda Perry, Japanese singer Yuna Ito, and R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. Dion stated, "I think this album represents a positive evolution in my career ... I'm feeling strong, maybe a little gutsier than in the past, and just as passionate about music and life as I ever was." She launched her year-long worldwide Taking Chances Tour on 14 February 2008, in South Africa, performing 132 dates in stadiums and arenas across five continents.
The Taking Chances Tour was a great success in the United States, reaching the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Boxscore, having sold out every concert in the US and Canada. In addition, she appeared on Idol Gives Back for a second year in a row. Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, adding to her 53 previous nominations (an all-time record). Her nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year (for Taking Chances), Francophone Album of the Year (for D'elles) and Album of the Year (for both Taking Chances and D'elles). The following year, she was nominated for 3 Juno Awards including the Fan Choice Award, Song of the Year (for Taking Chances), and Music DVD of the Year (for Live in Las Vegas — A New Day...)
On 22 August 2008, Dion presented a free outdoor concert, mostly in French, on the Plains of Abraham, in Québec City, Canada, for the 400th anniversary of Québec City. The celebration gathered approximately 490,000 people. The concert, called Céline sur les Plaines, was released on DVD on 11 November 2008, in Québec and was released on 20 May 2009, in France. Late October 2008 saw the worldwide release of a comprehensive English-language greatest hits album, My Love: Essential Collection.
In May 2009, Dion was named the 20th best-selling artist of the decade and the second-best-selling female artist of the decade in the United States, selling an estimated 17.57 million copies of her albums there since 2000. In June 2009, Forbes reported that she earned $100 million during 2008. In December 2009, Pollstar announced that she was the best-selling solo touring act of the decade and the second-best-selling touring act of the decade, behind only the Dave Matthews Band. she grossed $522.2 million during the decade, a large portion of that sum coming from her five-year residency at Caesars Palace.
On 17 February 2010, Dion released into theatres a documentary film about her Taking Chances Tour, titled, Celine: Through the Eyes of the World. The documentary shows behind-the-scenes footage of her both onstage and offstage, along with footage of her with her family as they travelled the world with her. The distributor is the Sony Pictures subsidiary, Hot Ticket. The film was later released on Blu-ray and DVD on 4 May 2010, along with the CD/DVD, Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert. At the 52nd Grammy Awards in February 2010, Dion joined Carrie Underwood, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, and Smokey Robinson to perform the song "Earth Song" during the 3-D Michael Jackson tribute.
In January 2010, The Los Angeles Times presented its annual list of the top ten largest earners of the year, revealing that Dion took the top spot for the entire decade, with $US747.9 million in total revenue from 2000–2009. The largest haul came from ticket sales, totalling $522.2 million. Additionally, she was named "Artist of the Decade" in her native Canadian province of Québec, announced by the Montréal-based newspaper, Le Journal de Québec in 2009 December. A public online survey asked responders to vote for whom they believe deserved the above-mentioned accolade.
Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, Dion was named the most popular musician in the United States, ahead of U2, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles while factoring in gender, political affiliations, geographic region of residence, and income. Specifically, she was the most popular musician in the female demographic, as well as among all Democrats, those who live in the eastern United States and southern United States, and those who have incomes between US$35k and US$74.9k.
In September 2010, she released the single "Voler", a duet with French singer Michel Sardou. The song was later included on Sardou's album. In addition, it was announced in October 2010 that Dion wrote and composed a new song for Canadian singer, Marc Dupré entitled "Entre deux mondes".
2011–2014: Celine, Sans attendre, and Loved Me Back to Life
In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. In 2018, Billboard stated her residency Celine is the second most successful residency of all time. By the end of 2011, Dion has sold 331,000 albums (despite not releasing any studio album since 2007) and 956,000 digital tracks in the United States.
For a record sixth time, she performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, she appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, she released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, she made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica.
In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. She began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles.
In June 2013, Dion co-produced the show titled "Voices" by Véronic DiCaire at the Bally’s Hotel & Casino’s Jubilee Theatre and was presented 145 times up until 2015.
On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Céline une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia.
2014–present: Husband's death, Encore un soir, Courage, and return to Vegas
On 13 August 2014, Dion announced the indefinite postponement of all her show business activities, including her concert residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and the cancellation of her Asia Tour, because of the worsening of her husband's health after he underwent the removal of a cancerous tumor in December 2013. However, on 20 March 2015, she announced that she would be returning to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in late August 2015. On 14 January 2016, she cancelled the rest of the January performances due to her husband's and her brother's death from cancer. Dion resumed the residency on 23 February to a sold-out crowd and rave reviews.
In October 2015, Dion announced on social media that she had begun working on a new French album, posting a photo by the side of Algerian singer Zaho. Dion's French single, "Encore un soir", was released on 24 May 2016. On 20 May, she released a cover of Queen's song "The Show Must Go On", featuring Lindsey Stirling on violin. She performed "The Show Must Go On" at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards on 22 May, and received the Billboard Icon Award (presented to her by her son, René-Charles Angélil) in recognition of her career spanning over three decades.
The singer's new French album, Encore un soir, was released on 26 August 2016. It features fifteen tracks performed in French and, according to the singer, has a personal choice of the songs – more uplifting lyrics were chosen. Encore un soir topped the charts in France, Canada, Belgium and Switzerland, and was certified Diamond in France, 2× Platinum in Canada and Platinum in Belgium and Switzerland. It has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. In 2016 and 2017, Dion toured Europe and Canada with two sold-out concert tours. On 9 September 2016, she released "Recovering", a song written for her by Pink after Dion's husband René Angélil died in January 2016. Dion also recorded "How Does a Moment Last Forever" for the Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, released in March 2017. Her compilation, Un peu de nous topped the chart in France in July and August 2017.
On 3 May 2018, she released the single "Ashes" from the film Deadpool 2. The remix version of the song topped the US Dance Club Songs chart in July 2018. From June to August 2018, she toured the Asia-Pacific region and grossed $56.5 million from 22 shows. On 24 September 2018, she announced the end of her Las Vegas residency Celine, with the final date set for 8 June 2019. She is working on a new English album. In January 2019, she performed "A Change Is Gonna Come" at the "Aretha! A Grammy Celebration for the Queen of Soul" Franklin's tribute concert, to be broadcast in March 2019. In March 2019, she was one of 11 singers from Quebec, alongside Ginette Reno, Diane Dufresne, Isabelle Boulay, Luce Dufault, Louise Forestier, Laurence Jalbert, Catherine Major, Ariane Moffatt, Marie Denise Pelletier, and Marie-Élaine Thibert, who participated in a supergroup recording of Renée Claude's 1971 single "Tu trouveras la paix" after Claude's diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease was announced. On 3 April 2019, during a Facebook Live event, Dion announced her 2019/2020 Courage World Tour, beginning in Quebec City on 18 September 2019. She also announced a new English language album of the same name, released in November 2019.
On 18 September 2019, Dion released three songs, "Lying Down", "Courage", and "Imperfections" from her upcoming album, Courage. On 26 February 2020, Dion released two songs as exclusive Spotify singles: an acoustic version of Imperfections, and a cover of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game. Isaak joined Dion and sang vocals on the track. On 10 June 2020, Dion announced that her Courage World Tour will kick off again in 2021, after the tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 21 May 2021, it was announced Dion would return to Vegas, in November of the same year, for a limited-run installment of ten dates in collaboration with Resorts World Las Vegas. Billboard listed Dion as the third top paid musician of 2020 (second by female artist), with total of earnings of $17.5 million.
On 15 January 2022, a statement posted to Dion's website and social media accounts announced that the U.S. and Canadian concert dates for March-April 2022 were canceled because of “severe and persistent muscle spasms” that are preventing Dion from performing onstage.
Artistry
Influences
Dion cites idols as varied as Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Charles Aznavour, Carole King, Anne Murray, Barbra Streisand, and the Bee Gees, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with. Her music has been influenced by numerous genres, including pop, rock, gospel, R&B, and soul, and her lyrics focus on themes of poverty, world hunger, and spirituality, with an emphasis on love and romance. After the birth of her first child, her work increasingly focused on maternal love.
Musical style
Dion has faced considerable criticism from critics, who state that her music often retreats behind pop and soul conventions, and is marked by excessive sentimentality. According to Keith Harris of Rolling Stone magazine, "[Dion's] sentimentality is bombastic and defiant rather than demure and retiring ... [she] stands at the end of the chain of drastic devolution that goes Aretha–Whitney–Mariah. Far from being an aberration, Dion actually stands as a symbol of a certain kind of pop sensibility—bigger is better, too much is never enough, and the riper the emotion the more true." Her francophone releases, by contrast, tend to be deeper and more varied than her English releases, and consequently have achieved more credibility.
Critics have stated that Dion's involvement in the production aspect of her music is fundamentally lacking, which results in her work being overproduced and impersonal. However, coming from a family in which all of her siblings were musicians, she dabbled in learning how to play instruments like piano and guitar, and practised with a Fender Stratocaster during the recording sessions for her album Falling into You.
Occasionally, Dion has contributed to the writing of a handful of her English and French songs, as well as writing a few songs for other artists such as Marc Dupre. Additionally, as her career progressed, she found herself taking charge in the production of her albums. On her first English album, which she recorded before she had a firm command of the English language, she expressed disapproval, which could have been avoided if she had assumed more creative input. By the time she released her second English album Celine Dion, she had assumed more control of the production and recording process, hoping to dispel earlier criticisms. She stated, "On the second album I said, 'Well, I have the choice to be afraid one more time and not be 100% happy, or not be afraid and be part of this album.' This is my album." Besides her contributions to some of her early French albums, Dion wrote a few of the songs on Let's Talk About Love (1997) and These Are Special Times (1998).
She is often the subject of media ridicule and parody and is frequently impersonated on shows such as MADtv, Saturday Night Live, South Park, Royal Canadian Air Farce, and This Hour Has 22 Minutes for her strong accent and onstage gesticulations. However, she has stated that she is unaffected by the comments, and is flattered that people take the time to impersonate her. She even invited Ana Gasteyer, who parodied her on SNL, to appear onstage during one of her performances in New York City. While she is rarely politically outspoken, in 2005 following the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Dion appeared on Larry King Live and tearfully criticized the US government's slow response in aiding the victims of the hurricane: "There's people still there waiting to be rescued. To me that is not acceptable ... How can it be so easy to send planes in another country to kill everybody in a second and destroy lives. We need to serve our country." After her interview, she stated, "When I do interviews with Larry King or the big TV shows like that, they put you on the spot, which is very difficult. I do have an opinion, but I'm a singer. I'm not a politician."
Voice and timbre
Dion once claimed to be a mezzo-soprano. However, attempts to adapt classical voice types to other forms of singing have been met with controversy. Without making a classification, Kent Nagano, maestro of the Munich Symphony Orchestra, remarked, "All you just sang was full lyric soprano", after Dion auditioned with two solos from Carmen, wanting to know if she could sing opera. Her timbre has been described as "thin, slightly nasal" with a "raspy" lower register and "bell glass-like high notes".
According to Linda Lister in Divafication: The Deification of Modern Female Pop Stars, she has been described as a reigning "Queen of Pop" for her influence over the recording industry during the 1990s, alongside other female artists, including Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. In a countdown of the "22 Greatest Voices in Music" by Blender Magazine and MTV, she placed ninth (sixth for a female), and she was also placed fourth in Cover Magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists". Dion is often compared to Houston and Carey for her vocal style, and to her idol Barbra Streisand for her voice.
She is often praised for her technical virtuosity. Jim Santella of The Buffalo News writes "Like an iron fist in a velvet glove, the power of Celine Dion's voice is cloaked in a silky vibrato that betrays the intensity of her vocal commitment." Jeff Miers, also of The Buffalo News, says of Dion "Her singing voice is absolutely extra-human. She hits notes in full voice, with a controlled vibrato and an incredible conception of pitch, like she's shucking an ear of corn." Stephen Holden of The New York Times states that Dion has "a good-sized arsenal of technical skills. She can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch. And as her duets ... have shown, she is a reliable harmony voice." In an interview with Libération, Jean-Jacques Goldman notes that she has "no problem of accuracy or tempo". According to Kent Nagano, she is "a musician who has a good ear, a refinement, and a degree of perfection that is enviable". Charles Alexander of Time states, "[Her] voice glides effortlessly from deep whispers to dead-on high notes, a sweet siren that combines force with grace."
In her French repertoire, Dion adorns her vocals with more nuances and expressiveness, with the emotional intensity being "more tender and intimate". Additionally, Luc Plamondon, a French singer-songwriter who has worked closely with Dion claims that there are three chanteuses (stylistically) that she uses: the Québécois, the French, and the American. Her self-titled 1992 album was promoted with the slogan "Remember the name because you'll never forget the voice."
Legacy
Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most influential vocalists. She has been referred to as the "Queen of Power Ballads" by the media.. Billboard called Dion the "Queen of Pop". Her music and vocal styling, alongside that of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, have been said to shape how the bulk of modern female pop vocalists sing. These three artists have been widely credited with reviving the power ballad, and in doing so reshaping the adult contemporary radio format, making it one of the most popular formats of the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2002, Billboard named her as the "Best-selling contemporary female artist in history".
According to producer, musician, and former American Idol judge Randy Jackson, Dion, Houston, and Carey are the voices of the modern era. Music critic and Dion biographer Carl Wilson notes that her "fame and influence is also renewed and expressed regularly these days by American Idol, the largest mass musical phenomenon of the past decade, where Celine's stood solidly in its pantheon of singers for young people to emulate". Many contestants on the countless televised talent competitions that have risen at the turn of the millennium often emulate Dion, Houston and Carey and cite them as idols. MTV also praised Dion by saying: "Céline Dion was better than almost anyone at capitalizing on pop’s ability to articulate feelings in sensational, over-the-top ways."
Numerous artists have either mentioned Dion as a major influence or as one of their favourite singers including: Britney Spears, Rihanna, Adele, Josh Groban, Delta Goodrem, Leona Lewis, Jennifer Hudson, Vanessa Hudgens, Kelly Clarkson, Perrie Edwards, Loren Allred, Brazilian singer Wanessa Camargo, Ariana Grande, Sam Smith, Frank Ocean, Ava Max, Charlotte Cardin, and V (from BTS) among many others. Country singer Martina McBride is widely heralded by the press as the Celine Dion of Country music.
Many artists have also praised Dion's voice, singing ability or expressed an interest in working with her including Met Opera conductor and musical director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Beyoncé, Carlos Santana, Elton John, OneRepublic, Coldplay, Sharon Osbourne, Nicole Scherzinger, Ne-Yo, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, Luciano Pavarotti, Bee Gees, Sir George Martin, Justin Bieber, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Drake and Cher.
Timbaland stated "Celine has such a beautiful, mesmerizing voice. She is so talented. I think we could create something that is a classic like she is already." Josh Groban remarked "She's a powerhouse. In this day and age, when more and more studio-produced, tiny-tiny voices are being rewarded ... she has this extraordinary instrument." According to Diane Warren, "Celine is the best singer by far of her generation", an opinion shared by Quincy Jones, Tommy Mottola, and David Foster. Moreover, Shania Twain and Jennifer Lopez have praised her dynamic stage presence, with Jennifer Lopez commenting on American Idol: "Celine gets on stage, she owns the stage, she runs all over that stage, she stops that stage." Leona Lewis is also a huge fan of Céline Dion saying "Celine is someone I aspire to be like in every way. "Gosh – I can't wait. I'm in the middle of picking out dresses at the moment. Celine is definitely one of my heroes. She is amazing." American singer and actress Lea Michelle said that she listened to Céline Dion's music while in the process of making her sophomore album 'Places' and cited her as one of her vocal influences.
Godmother of Soul Patti LaBelle called Dion as one of the greatest singers ever. Pop singer Kelly Clarkson also praised Dion's vocal ability saying: "she has two sets of lungs when she sings." and also called her the most gifted vocalist on the planet.
Dion holds the Guiness World Record for the most Juno Awards won for Album Of The Year (tied with Michael Buble & Arcade Fire). She won 3 out of the 13 nominations she received in the category throughout her career. Dion is the 3rd most decorated artist in Juno Awards history, winning 20 out of the 75 total nominations ever, becoming the most nominated artist in the awards history as well.
In 1997-1998, Dion sold more than 60 million albums, and was estimated to sell a record once every 1.2 seconds. In 2017, Dion broke records across the UK as the highest grossing artist at each UK venue where she performed which included dates at the O2 Arena in London, Leeds First Direct Arena, Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena and the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. John Meglen, president and co-CEO, Concerts West commended her by saying: "She really is the voice of our lifetime."
In 2018, there were over 300,000 Taiwanese fans that clambered for the 20,000 tickets available for Célines first concert ever in Taiwan which caused the system to lag for 30 minutes. The demand caused them to add two additional shows eventually.
Cultural impact
In Francophone music industry
On a cultural level, Dion is credited for introducing francophone music to many non-francophone countries around the globe. Her albums D'eux and S'il suffisait d'aimer remain the best selling francophone albums in history, gaining unprecedented success in non-Francophone markets such as the United Kingdom, Poland, Netherlands, Portugal, Greece, Austria, Japan, and New Zealand. According to RFI Musique, she "has done her bit for French music over the years, assuring the success of French songs which would probably never have got beyond Francophone borders without her ... Without Celine, French record sales would be dramatically lower!" In May 2008, she was awarded France's highest award, as Knight of the Legion of Honour by President of France Nicolas Sarkozy. Sarkozy praised Dion and stated: "France thanks you because your talent and success have contributed to the influence of the French language outside our borders".
In Las Vegas strip
She is also credited for both revitalizing and revolutionizing the entertainment scene in Las Vegas with the gargantuan successes of her residencies there. She signed a multi-million dollar deal worthed $100 million to do a residency in Vegas and is considered one of the most lucrative and risky in the touring industry.
Billboard credits Dion as the one who pioneered modern residencies saying: "Since Dion's debut, hundreds of artists have tried their hand at Vegas residencies, including, most recently, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Usher, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Rod Stewart and Sting. Once considered the domain of artists long past their peak, today's Las Vegas residency shows are big business, generating millions in sales." Moreover, Billboard also said: "She changed history and she completely changed Las Vegas," said Nelson, who notes the new residencies being announced for artists like Cardi B, Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Lopez aren't really at the same production level or scale of what Dion created with her husband René Angélil, as well as Meglen, Nelson and former AEG CEO Tim Leiweke." Dion is popularly referred as the reigning "Queen of Las Vegas" by various media outlets for her impact and legacy in the city.
According to Gary Bongiovanni, president and editor-in-chief of Pollstar, "Celine redefined what artists can do in Las Vegas, helping to make it arguably the busiest entertainment city in the world."
Kurt Melien, vice-president of entertainment at Caesar's Palace stated "Celine was a pioneer without question ... Twenty years ago, we couldn't have got someone the stature of Britney Spears to appear in Vegas. Stars likes her would never have considered it if Celine hadn't paved the way. She changed the face of modern Vegas."
The Guardian listed Dion's Vegas residency as one of the 50 gigs that changed music, crediting her as the one who revived it, further saying: "it was Céline Dion who turned Caesars into the stage for a glorious pop comeback. Her initial five-year run was followed by a further eight years – and prompted copycat turns by Britney Spears, Pink and Katy Perry.
In the economy
Regarding her financial impact on Las Vegas, Stephen Brown, director of the Centre for Business and Economic Research in Las Vegas, commented: "People will come to the city just for her and they will spend money and as a consequence, she has an outsized impact on the economy", then adding "Bigger than Elvis, Sinatra and Liberace put together? Definitely." Estimations indicate that Dion's show will create up to 7,000 indirect jobs and around $114 million worth of new economic activity in each of the three years for which she has been contracted.
In businesses
Forbes also discussed how entrepreneurs can reclaim the power in their business by being like Céline Dion as an example saying: "Well, remember back in 2017 when Dion launched her handbag line? During a press conference, she admitted her late manager (and husband) had always handled everything for her. Every aspect of her shows was pre-decided; every move, appearance and interview was programmed in advance. She just showed up and executed (which she did brilliantly). At the end of her handbag launch press release, she said "Now . . . I'm the boss.” Starting right then and there, she’d be the one calling the shots for her shows, her kids, her handbags and everything else that mattered to her. She was going to do things her way."
In Fashion
Celine Dion has received various acclaims from fashion critics for reinventing her fashion style over the years. The Guardian called her "The Joyous New Queen of Fashion". Harper's Bazaar also praised Dion for being an ultimate fashion risk-taker and called her a "Fashion Chameleon". Billboard dubbed her as "Streetwear Icon" after recapping the global icon's style evolution through the years. Vogue named her as one of music's most exuberant dressers, beloved as much for her glorious voice as her extravagant sense of style. Tatler discussed in an article how Cardi B might be the next Céline Dion of Paris Fashion Week, proving that Céline is the standard for the occasion. Fashion stylist and image architect Law Roach praised Celine Dion, calling her "The Queen of Camp" & "The Queen of Glitter & Sequins". Dion further cemented her name in the fashion world by wearing the reverse tuxedo at 1999 Academy Awards, which became one of the most talked ensembles of that time. Vogue also listed her iconic 1999 reverse tuxedo as one of the most controversial looks of all time saying it was undeniably the highlight of the year. W also listed the iconic ensemble as one of the most memorable dresses of all time. In February 2020, Sergio Guadarrama, a contestant of Project Runway, copied the idea of reverse tuxedo and claimed it was his original idea and had even claimed that he had no idea about the iconic tuxedo, which left the fans of the show disappointed.
Breaking music barriers
Vice discussed how Dion's music made impact in Nigerian culture, saying: "By the 2000s, Celine Dion was basically the queen of Nigerian airwaves. It was impossible to watch TV or listen to the radio without hearing her music – either on adverts, or in Nollywood films featuring heartthrobs like Genevieve Nnaji and Ramsey Nouah."
Billboard also discussed how Dion’s appearance at Jamaica Jazz & Blues changed the festival’s future. According to Walter Elmore, CEO of Art of Music Productions said Dion is by far the most expensive artist he has ever booked, further saying: “I have already received calls from the management of several major US artists who want to perform here next year because they heard Celine’s comments about our show’s production quality,” Elmore said. “Her performance confirms that we can bring the biggest artists on the planet to our little island.”
In 2012, Dion visited Jamaica for the very first time which broke attendance records and caused traffic congestion around the concert venue. Vice discussed how Dion's music has been constant in dancehall clubs for decades, as many Jamaican dancehall artists cover her songs and remixing her ballads into anthems of dance hall. Further adding: "Several current dancehall musicians continue to use utilize Dion’s tunes with the addition of upbeat guitars, pan flutes, and backbeat shuffles that transform the music for consumption by dancehall fans."
Being referenced in songs
The Canadian comedy music group The Arrogant Worms released an album called Dirt in 1999 which contained a song called "Celine Dion", about the singers' stalker-like affection for her. Dion has also been referred/mentioned in various hit songs including "Dark Fantasy" by Kanye West, "911/Mr. Lonely" by Tyler, the Creator, "That Girl" by Pharrell Williams, "Work" by A$AP Ferg, and "What's The Use" by Mac Miller, to name a few.
Cultural honors
In 1999, Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame and was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in January 2004, one which she dedicated to her father, who had died the month prior. In May 2003, she placed at No. 10 on VH1's list of "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era". Dion's album Falling into You is included on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. "My Heart Will Go On" was included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. In 2021, Dion was ranked by Forbes as the third richest woman in entertainment with an estimated net worth of US$460 million. In August 2008, she received an honorary doctorate in music from the Université Laval in Quebec City.
In October 2010, Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador, a program created by the UN in 1999, sharing this accolade with Oscar-winner Susan Sarandon. She also received several state decorations. In 2004, she was awarded the Society of Singers Lifetime Achievement Award.
On 26 July 2013, she was awarded the highest rank of the Order of Canada, the Companion of the Order of Canada, by the Governor General of Canada and the investiture ceremony was held at Citadelle of Quebec, in which they said: "An incomparable artist, she is equally known for her compassion, generosity and commitment to a number of social and humanitarian causes. She is notably the national celebrity patron for Cystic Fibrosis Canada and honorary patron of the CHU Sainte-Justine. In addition, through her foundation, she also helps children in need and their families here in Canada and abroad."
By the end of 1998, Dion was recognized by Billboard as the "Woman of the Year". They also stated how Céline's voice was featured in eight charting albums on Billboard 200 year-end chart which sold 18 million units during a calendar year (excluding her own catalog sales and recent releases at that time).
West University of Timișoara conducted a research study that analyzes Céline Dion's contributions to global music culture in both spatial and temporal terms, In November 2013, Dion was inducted at the American Gaming Association Hall Of Fame for her outstanding contributions to the growth and stature of the gaming industry.
In popular culture
Dion was referenced as an antagonist character named "Feline Dion" from the hit animated series Totally Spies! which was aired in an episode in 2013.
In 2021, French actress and filmmaker Valérie Lemercier released Aline, a film which fictionalized Dion's life with Lemercier playing a singer named "Aline Dieu".
Other activities
Business endeavours
Les Productions Feeling Inc., also known as Feeling Inc. or just Feeling, is an artist management company based in Laval, Québec, Canada, and owned by Dion and her husband and manager, Rene Angélil. She is also founder of Nickels Restaurant food chain. She and her husband also own Le Mirage Golf Club and Schwartz's Restaurant. In association with Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf and Shaquille O'Neal, she opened a popular night club called Pure, located at Caesars Palace.
Dion became an entrepreneur with the establishment of her franchise restaurant Nickels in 1990. She has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997. In 2003, Dion signed a deal with Coty, Inc. to release Celine Dion Parfums. Her latest fragrance, Signature, was released in September 2011 with an advertising campaign by New York agency Kraftworks NYC. Since its inception, Celine Dion Parfums has grossed over $850 million in retail sales. In October 2004, Air Canada hired Dion as part of their promotional campaign to unveil new service products and an updated livery. "You and I", the theme song sung by Dion, was written by advertising executives working for Air Canada.
Dion also launched an eponymous bag and accessories line "Céline Dion Collection". According to Innee-Sedona International, the Asia partner for Bugatti Group said that it already topped $10 million sales after just three collections.
Philanthropy
Dion has actively supported many charity organizations, worldwide. She has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993. She has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine succumbed to the disease at the age of sixteen, in Dion's arms. In 2003, she joined a number of other celebrities, athletes, and politicians, including Josh Groban and Yolanda Adams to support "World Children's Day", a global fundraising effort sponsored by McDonald's. The effort raised money from more than 100 nations and benefited orphanages and children's health organizations. In addition, she has been a major supporter of the T. J. Martell Foundation, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, and many health and educational campaigns. During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, she donated $1 million to the victims of the storm, and held a fund-raising event for the victims of the 2004 Asian tsunami, which subsequently raised more than $1 million. After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, she donated $100,000 to China Children & Teenagers' Fund and sent a letter showing her consolation and support. Since 2004, she is involved, alongside husband René Angelil, with the Québec gay community by supporting the publication of health and HIV prevention materials in Gay Globe Magazine, owned by journalist Roger-Luc Chayer. She is also a member of Canadian charity Artists Against Racism. In November 2018, she launched a gender-neutral clothing line for kids, Celinununu. In 2009, Dion joined an effort along with Leonardo DiCaprio, James Cameron and Kate Winslet, to donate money to support the nursing home fees of the then-last living survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, Millvina Dean. The campaign resulted in $30,000 as donation.
Personal life
As the youngest of 14 children, Dion grew up wearing hand-me-downs and sharing a bed with several sisters. As a baby, she slept in a drawer to save on a crib. She was bullied at school and called "Vampire", owing to her teeth and skinny frame. Local tabloids even dubbed her "Canine Dion" in the teenage years of her career. She often spoke of running home from school to play music in the basement with her brothers and sisters. "I detested school", she would later write in her autobiography. "I had always lived surrounded by adults and children a lot older than me. I learned everything I needed to know from them. As far as I was concerned, real life existed around them." Dion's eldest sister was already in her twenties, married, and pregnant with her first child at the time Dion's mother, Thérèse, was pregnant with Celine.
Dion first met René Angélil, her future husband and manager, in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after her brother, Michel Dondalinger Dion, had sent him a demonstration recording of "Ce n'était qu'un rêve" ("It Was Only a Dream/Nothing But A Dream"), a song she, her mother Thérèse, and her brother Jacques Dion had jointly written. Over subsequent years, Angélil guided her to stardom in francophone territories.
After the dissolution of Angélil's second marriage, he and Dion took a professional break and he spent the major part of the year in Las Vegas, while Dion was learning English and taking dance and vocal lessons in Montreal. Upon his return, "he avoided being alone with me for too long a time", she said in her 2000 autobiography My Story, My Dream. Meanwhile, she kept a photo of Angélil under her pillow, writing, "Before I fell asleep, I slipped it under the pillow, out of fear that my mother, who always shared a room with me, would find it." She also wrote "Less and less could I hide from myself the fact that I was in love with Rene; I had all the symptoms," and "I was in love with a man I couldn't love, who didn't want me to love him, who didn't want to love me." Dion's mother, who traveled everywhere with the singer until she was 19, was initially wary of her daughter's growing infatuation with a much older and twice-divorced Angélil, but Dion was insistent, telling her mother "I'm not a minor. This is a free country. No one has the right to prevent me from loving whoever I want to."
Their professional relationship eventually turned romantic after Dion's win at the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin in 1988; she was 20. The romance was known to only family and friends for five years, though Dion nearly revealed all in a tearful 1992 interview with journalist Lise Payette. Many years later, Payette penned the song "Je cherche l'ombre" for Dion's 2007 album D'elles.
Dion and Angélil became engaged in 1993, on Dion's 25th birthday, and made their relationship public in the liner notes of her 1993 album The Colour of My Love. They married on 17 December 1994, at Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec. On 5 January 2000, Dion and Angélil renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas.
In May 2000, Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in vitro fertilization because of years of failed attempts to conceive. Their first son, René-Charles Angélil, was born on 25 January 2001. Dion suffered a miscarriage in 2009. In May 2010, Angélil announced that she was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in vitro fertilization. On Saturday, 23 October 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, Dion gave birth to fraternal twins by Caesarean section at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, The twins were named Eddy, after Dion's favourite French songwriter, Eddy Marnay, who had also produced her first five albums; and Nelson, after former South African President Nelson Mandela. She appeared with her newborn sons on the cover of 9 December 2010 issue of the Canadian edition of Hello! magazine.
On 14 January 2016, Angélil died of throat cancer. His funeral was held on 22 January 2016, in Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, where he and Dion wed 21 years earlier. The couple's eldest son, René-Charles, gave the eulogy just three days before his 15th birthday. Following Angélil's death, Dion became the sole owner and president of her management and production companies, including CDA Productions and Les Productions Feeling.
Two days after Angélil's deathon what would have been her husband's birthdayDion's brother, Daniel, died aged 59, also of cancer.
On 22 March 2018, Dion's management team announced that she had been dealing with hearing irregularities for the previous 12–18 months due to patulous Eustachian tube and would undergo a minimally invasive surgical procedure to correct the problem after ear-drop medications appeared to be no longer working.
Owing to her slight frame, Dion has for decades been subject of eating disorder rumors, which she has consistently denied: "I don't have an eating problem, and there's nothing more I can say about it". "My work requires me to be in great physical shape. I wouldn't have been able to live up to a hundred shows a year and travel ceaselessly from one end of the world to the other if I had eaten too much or not enough, or if, as certain magazines have claimed, I made myself throw up after each meal." She has often spoken about having been bullied at school and lacking confidence in her early years in the business: "I didn't have, visually, what it took. I was not pretty, I had teeth problems, and I was very skinny. I didn't fit the mold".
Dion took up ballet under the guidance of her former dancer, Naomi Stikeman, who also previously performed for The National Ballet of Canada and La La La Human Steps, and former Cirque du Soleil dancer-turned-fashion-illustrator, Pepe Muñoz, who is also part of her styling team. She is also a skier and a regular at her son René-Charles' hockey games.
Dion resides in Henderson, Nevada, in a house she bought with her husband in 2003. She previously owned homes in Montreal, Quebec, and Jupiter Island, Florida.
Dion's older son René-Charles Angélil loves music and has tried to follow a musical path. Under the stage name Big Tip, he released in May 2018 on his SoundCloud account 6 rap songs including originals "The Kid", "The Apple" and "Never Stop" and two adaptations from The Weeknd songs, "Catwalks" sampling on The Weeknd's "Sidewalks" and a remix of The Weeknd's "Loft Music" as "Loft Music Remix". He also released the 5-track EP CasiNo. 5 in December 2020 using the artistic name RC Angelil. The EP includes the tracks "Mamba Mentality", "Money, Thrills and Rest", "No Ls", "GG4" (featuring PAKKA) and "LV".
Discography
French-language studio albums
La voix du bon Dieu (1981)
Céline Dion chante Noël (1981)
Tellement j'ai d'amour... (1982)
Les chemins de ma maison (1983)
Chants et contes de Noël (1983)
Mélanie (1984)
C'est pour toi (1985)
Incognito (1987)
Dion chante Plamondon (1991)
D'eux (1995)
S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998)
1 fille & 4 types (2003)
D'elles (2007)
Sans attendre (2012)
Encore un soir (2016)
English-language studio albums
Unison (1990)
Celine Dion (1992)
The Colour of My Love (1993)
Falling into You (1996)
Let's Talk About Love (1997)
These Are Special Times (1998)
A New Day Has Come (2002)
One Heart (2003)
Miracle (2004)
Taking Chances (2007)
Loved Me Back to Life (2013)
Courage (2019)
Concert tours and residencies
Tours
Les chemins de ma maison (1983–1984)
Céline Dion en concert (1985)
Tournée Incognito (1988)
Unison Tour (1990–1991)
Celine Dion in Concert (1992–1993)
The Colour of My Love Tour (1994–1995)
D'eux Tour (1995–1996)
Falling into You: Around the World (1996–1997)
Let's Talk About Love World Tour (1998–1999)
Taking Chances World Tour (2008–2009)
Tournée Européenne 2013
Summer Tour 2016
Celine Dion Live 2017
Celine Dion Live 2018
Courage World Tour (2019–2023)
Residencies
A New Day... (2003–2007)
Celine (2011–2019)
Celine (2022)
Filmography
Touched by an Angel
The Nanny
All My Children
La fureur de Céline
Des fleurs sur la neige
Quest for Camelot as Juliana (singing voice)
Céline sur les Plaines
Celine: Through the Eyes of the World
Sur la piste du Marsupilami
Hell's Kitchen
Muppets Most Wanted
References
Bibliography
Céline Dion. Artist direct. Retrieved on 18 December 2005.
"Celine Dion". Contemporary Musicians, Volume 25. Gale Group, 1999.
"Celine Dion". Newsmakers 1995, Issue 4. Gale Research, 1995.
Céline Dion. Rock on the Net. Retrieved 20 November 2005.
Céline Dion. The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2 July 2006
Céline Dion provided by VH1.com Retrieved 16 August 2005.
Dion extends long Las Vegas stint. news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2005.
Durchholz, Daniel. Review: One Heart. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. St. Louis, Mo.: 24 April 2003. p. F.3
The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalist covemagazine.com Retrieved 1 November 2005.
Joel Whitburn Presents the Billboard Hot 100 Charts: The Nineties ()
World Music Awards Diamond Award Retrieved 1 November 2005, (Search by year required)
Further reading
External links
CelineDion.com – Official website operated by Sony Music Canada (English, French).
[ Celine Dion] at AllMusic
[ Celine Dion] at Billboard.com
1968 births
Living people
20th-century Canadian composers
20th-century Canadian women singers
20th-century women composers
21st-century Canadian composers
21st-century Canadian women singers
21st-century women composers
550 Music artists
Ballad musicians
Businesspeople from Florida
Businesspeople from Quebec
Canadian businesspeople in retailing
Canadian child singers
Canadian contemporary R&B singers
Canadian dance musicians
Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States
Canadian women pop singers
Canadian women rock singers
Canadian women singers
Canadian pop pianists
Canadian restaurateurs
Canadian Roman Catholics
Canadian soft rock musicians
Canadian sopranos
Canadian soul singers
Canadian voice actresses
Canadian women in business
Canadian women philanthropists
Canadian women pianists
Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Columbia Records artists
Companions of the Order of Canada
Epic Records artists
Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Switzerland
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1988
Eurovision Song Contest winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Félix Award winners
French-language singers of Canada
French Quebecers
Grammy Award winners
Ivor Novello Award winners
Juno Award for Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Artist of the Year winners
Juno Award for Dance Recording of the Year winners
Juno Award for Francophone Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for International Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Single of the Year winners
Juno International Achievement Award winners
Las Vegas shows
Musicians from Las Vegas
Officers of the National Order of Quebec
People from Charlemagne, Quebec
People from Henderson, Nevada
People from Jupiter Island, Florida
Philanthropists from Florida
Philanthropists from Nevada
Philanthropists from Quebec
Pop rock singers
Singers from Quebec
Singers with a three-octave vocal range
Spanish-language singers of Canada
Women restaurateurs
World Music Awards winners | true | [
"This is a list of all songs performed by the British pop girl group Girls Aloud.\n\nOriginal songs\n\nCovers\n\nLive songs \n \"Apologize\" – Jo Whiley's Live Lounge, 2008\n \"Beneath Your Beautiful\" – Radio 1 Live Lounge, 2012\n \"Broken Strings\" – Out of Control Tour, 2009\n \"Call Me Maybe\" – Ten: The Hits Tour, 2013\n \"Celebration\" – Children in Need, 2004\n \"Fame\" / \"What a Feeling\" / \"Footloose\" (Musicals Medley) – Chemistry Tour, 2006\n \"I Predict a Riot\" – Chemistry Tour, 2006 (available on The Sound of Girls Aloud rarities bonus disc)\n \"Do You Love Me\" / \"She's Like the Wind\" / \"(I've Had) The Time of My Life\" (Dirty Dancing Medley) – The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits Tour, 2007\n \"Push It\" – Tangled Up Tour, 2008\n \"Rehab\" – Jo Whiley's Live Lounge, 2006 (available on \"Call the Shots\" CD1)\n \"Santa Claus Is Coming to Town\" – Friday Night Project Christmas special, 2007\n \"With Every Heartbeat\" – Jo Whiley's Live Lounge, 2007 (available on \"Can't Speak French\" CD2) / Tangled Up Tour, 2008\n \"Womanizer\" – Out of Control Tour, 2009\n \"You're The One That I Want\" – Greasemaina, 2003\n\nUnreleased songs\nThese songs were recorded by Girls Aloud, but remain unreleased.\n\n\"All I Ever Do\" (COOPER/Brian Higgins/POWELL/ Nick Coler/WOODS/AFFERS)\n\"Little Drops of Heaven\" (LEE S/LOWIS N/Paul Meehan)\n\"Out of Control\" (Sound of the Underground sessions)\n\"Beautiful Villain\" (COOPER/Brian Higgins/POWELL/ Nick Coler/Shaw) \n\"Our Lips Are Sealed\" (The Go-Go's)\n\"Shame\" (Hannah Robinson, Andrew Watkins, Paul Wilson)\n\"Heartstrings\" (COOPER/Brian Higgins/POWELL/ Nick Coler/Shaw/GIRLS ALOUD)\n\"Sorry\" (Alana Hood, John McLaughlin, Sarah Osuji, Stephen Robson, Hannah Thompson)\n\"Where Did The Love Go?\" (Girls Aloud, Brian Higgins)\n\"Wicked Game\" (Chris Isaak)\n\"Sleeping With Sirens\" (COOPER/Brian Higgins/POWELL/ Nick Coler/Shaw)\n\"Bored Stupid\" (Tangled Up sessions)\n\"What A Feeling\" (originally taken from The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits)\n\nSee also \n\n Girls Aloud discography\n List of awards and nominations received by Girls Aloud\n List of Girls Aloud concert tours\n List of best-selling girl groups\n\nFootnotes \n\nA ^ A drastically different demo version of \"Love Machine\" appears on Popjustice: 100% Solid Pop Music.\nB ^ Appears in CD form on the rarities disc of The Sound of Girls Aloud.\nC ^ Outtake from the Chemistry sessions.\nD ^ An alternate demo of \"Wake Me Up\" appears on the rarities disc of The Sound of Girls Aloud.\nE ^ Later appeared on the re-issue of Sound of the Underground.\nF ^ From ITV1's Greasemania.\nG ^ Later appeared on What Will the Neighbours Say?\nH ^ Backing vocals for Franz Ferdinand.\nI ^ Collaboration with Sugababes.\nJ ^ Performed with James Morrison himself at The Girls Aloud Party.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \nOfficial website\n \n \n\n \nGirls Aloud\nGirls Aloud",
"\"Moving On\" is a power ballad by British rock band Asking Alexandria. It was released on 29 July 2014, as the final single from the album From Death to Destiny.\n\nBackground \nIn an interview with Blabbermouth.net, guitarist Ben Bruce commented on the video: \"For the first time in our careers, we are showcasing ourselves in the most sincere light possible. No drugs, no partying, no script, and no bullshit. It's just the five of us completely vulnerable. No matter what the circumstance, being away from those you love and care about is very difficult and drags you down. Luckily for us, we have incredible fans that love and support us and help us through our toughest times. I hope this video gives you all a little bit of a look into our world. Thank you for all of your continued support and for keeping us going.\"\n\nMusic video \nThe music video was released on 12 September 2014. It shows the band members touring. Between the shots of the tour, there are shots of the band members reuniting with relatives or showing messages, such as \"I'll be home soon, I love you\", \"Thinking of you always\", \"Miss you so much\" and shots of the band members smoking, drinking or even crying. The band's official coach bus is shown in the video in the shots when they are traveling on tour. Trivium frontman Matt Heafy, rapper and Body Count frontman Ice-T and his wife Coco Austin make an appearance in the video with them showing messages, \"TeoTorriatte\" and \"I Miss NOBODY\" respectively.\n\nTrack listing\nDigital 45\nMoving On - 4:02\nMoving On (acoustic) - 4:03\n\nPersonnel \n Danny Worsnop – lead vocals, additional guitar\n Ben Bruce – lead guitar, backing vocals\n Cameron Liddell – rhythm guitar\n Sam Bettley – bass\n James Cassells – drums\n\nCharts\n\"Moving On\" is one of the most successful Asking Alexandria songs on the charts, peaking at No. 6 at Billboard's Mainstream Rock Songs.\n\nCertifications\n\nReferences \n\nAsking Alexandria songs\n2014 singles\n2013 songs\nSongs written by Ben Bruce\nSongs written by Danny Worsnop\nSumerian Records singles\nHard rock ballads"
]
|
[
"Celine Dion",
"2011-2014: Celine, Sans attendre and Loved Me Back to Life",
"What did Celine Dion do in 2011?",
"February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011.",
"Was her tour successful?",
"Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote.",
"Did she win any awards during this time?",
"I don't know.",
"What songs were popular on our tour?",
"Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. \"Breakaway\", \"Incredible\" and \"Water and a Flame"
]
| C_78f1e410e4c0415db79dddeaf75c47aa_0 | What else did she do while on tour? | 5 | Besides performing in Belgium and France, what else did Celine Diondo while on tour? | Celine Dion | In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. Additionally, for a record sixth time, Dion performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, Dion appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, Dion released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, Dion made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica. In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. Dion began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles. The music video for "Incredible" was uploaded onto Dion's official Vevo channel in early June 2014. On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Celine une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia. CANNOTANSWER | 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. | Céline Marie Claudette Dion (; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. She is noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals. Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French language artist of all time. Her music has incorporated genres such as pop, rock, R&B, gospel, and classical music.
Born into a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, she emerged as a teen star in her home country with a series of French-language albums during the 1980s. She first gained international recognition by winning both the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, where she represented Switzerland. After learning to speak English, she signed on to Epic Records in the United States. In 1990, Dion released her debut English-language album, Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world. Her recordings since have been mainly in English and French although she has also sung in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese, and Chinese.
During the 1990s, she achieved worldwide fame after releasing several best-selling English-language albums in music history, such as Falling into You (1996) and Let's Talk About Love (1997), which were both certified diamond in the US and over 30 million sales worldwide each. She also scored a series of international number-one hits, including "The Power of Love", "Think Twice", "Because You Loved Me", "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", "My Heart Will Go On", and "I'm Your Angel". Dion continued releasing French albums between each English record; D'eux (1995) became the best-selling French-language album of all time, while S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998), Sans attendre (2012), and Encore un soir (2016), were all certified diamond in France. During the 2000s, she built her reputation as a highly successful live performer with A New Day... on the Las Vegas Strip (2003–07), which remains the highest-grossing concert residency of all time, as well as the Taking Chances World Tour (2008–09), one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time.
Dion is also one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with record sales of more than 200 million worldwide. Although her releases have often received mixed critical reception, Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most successful vocalists. She has won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year. Billboard named her the "Queen of Adult Contemporary" for having the most number-one songs on the radio format for a female artist. Dion is the second best-selling female artist in the US during the Nielsen SoundScan, the 8th all-time best-performing top female artist in the United States, and the sixth all-time best-performing female soloist in Billboard 200 history. In 2003, she was honoured by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for selling over 50 million albums in Europe. In 2008, Dion was recognized as the Best-selling International Artist in South Africa.
Life and career
1968–1989: Early life and career beginnings
Dion was born in Charlemagne, Quebec, northeast of Montreal, the youngest of 14 children of Thérèse (née Tanguay, 1927–2020), a homemaker, and Adhémar Dion (1923–2003), a butcher, both of French-Canadian descent. She was raised a Roman Catholic in a poor but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne. Music had always been a major part of the Dion family, and she was named after the song "Céline", which French singer Hugues Aufray had recorded two years before her birth. On 13 August 1973, at the age of five, the young Céline made her first public appearance at her brother Michel's wedding, where she performed Christine Charbonneau's song "Du fil, des aiguilles et du coton". She continued to perform with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar called Le Vieux Baril, "The Old Barrel". From an early age, she had dreamed of being a performer. In a 1994 interview with People magazine, she recalled, "I missed my family and my home, but I don't regret having lost my adolescence. I had one dream: I wanted to be a singer." As a child in Quebec, Dion participated in Girl Guide programs as a member of Girl Guides of Canada.
At age 12, she collaborated with her mother and her brother Jacques to write and compose her first song, "Ce n'était qu'un rêve", whose title translates as "It Was Only a Dream" or "Nothing But A Dream". Her brother Michel sent the recording to music manager René Angélil, whose name he discovered on the back of a Ginette Reno album. Angélil was moved to tears by Dion's voice and decided to make her a star. In 1981, he mortgaged his home to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu, which later became a local No. 1 hit and made her an instant star in Quebec. Her popularity spread to other parts of the world when she competed in the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, and won the musician's award for "Top Performer" as well as the gold medal for "Best Song" with "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi".
By 1983, in addition to becoming the first Canadian artist to receive a gold record in France for the single "D'amour ou d'amitié" ("Of Love or of Friendship"), Dion had also won several Félix Awards, including "Best Female performer" and "Discovery of the Year". Further success came when she represented Switzerland in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Ne partez pas sans moi" and won the contest by a close margin in Dublin, Ireland.
At age 18, after seeing a Michael Jackson performance, Dion told Angélil that she wanted to be a star like Jackson. Though confident in her talent, Angélil realized that her image needed to be changed for her to be marketed worldwide. She receded from the spotlight for a number of months, during which she underwent dental surgery to improve her appearance, and was sent to the École Berlitz in 1989 to polish her English.
In 1989, during a concert on the Incognito tournée, she injured her voice. She consulted the otorhinolaryngologist William Gould, who gave her an ultimatum: have immediate surgery on her vocal cords or do not utilize them at all for three weeks. Dion chose the latter and underwent vocal training with William Riley.
1990–1992: Unison, Dion chante Plamondon, and Celine Dion
Two years after she learned English, Dion made her debut into the Anglophone market with Unison (1990), the lead single having originally been recorded by Laura Branigan. She incorporated the help of many established musicians, including Vito Luprano and Canadian producer David Foster. The album was largely influenced by 1980s soft rock music that quickly found a niche within the adult contemporary radio format. Unison also hit the right notes with critics: Jim Faber of Entertainment Weekly wrote that her vocals were "tastefully unadorned", and that she never attempted to "bring off styles that are beyond her". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic declared it "a fine, sophisticated American debut". Singles from the album included "(If There Was) Any Other Way", "The Last to Know", "Unison", and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now", a mid-tempo soft-rock ballad that made prominent use of the electric guitar. The latter became her first top-ten hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number four. In 1991, Dion was a featured soloist on "Voices That Care", a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm.
Her real international breakthrough came when she duetted with Peabo Bryson on the title track to Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991). It became her first top-ten hit in the UK and her second top-ten hit in the United States. The song earned its songwriters an Academy Award for Best Song and gave Dion her first Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. "Beauty and the Beast" served as the lead single from her 1992 self-titled album, which, like her debut, had a strong pop rock influence combined with elements of soul and classical music. Owing to the success of the lead-off single and her collaborations with David Foster and Diane Warren, the album was even more well-received commercially than Unison; it was certified diamond in Canada and double platinum in the US. The album's second single "If You Asked Me To" (a cover of Patti LaBelle's song from the 1989 movie Licence to Kill) became her first number-one single in Canada and peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Also during this time, Dion released the Francophone album Dion chante Plamondon. The album consisted mostly of covers, but featured four new songs: "Des mots qui sonnent", "Je danse dans ma tête", "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime", and "L'amour existe encore". It was originally released in Canada and France during the 1991–1992 period, then later received an international release in 1994, the first French Celine Dion album to do so. "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)" became a smash hit in France, reaching No. 2 and being certified gold. In Quebec, the album was certified Gold the day it was released.
By 1992, Unison, Céline Dion, and numerous high-profile media appearances had propelled Dion to superstardom in North America. She had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame. However, while she was experiencing rising success in the US, her French fans in Canada criticized her for neglecting them. She would later rebuff these criticisms at the 1991 Félix Awards show, where, after winning "English Artist of the Year", she openly refused to accept the award. She asserted that she was—and would always be—a French, not an English, artist. Apart from her commercial success, there were also changes in her personal life, as Angélil, who was 26 years her senior, transitioned from manager to lover. However, the relationship was kept a secret as they both feared that the public would find their relations inappropriate.
1993–1995: The Colour of My Love and D'eux
In 1993, Dion announced her feelings for her manager by declaring him "the colour of [her] love" in the dedication section of her third English-language album The Colour of My Love. However, instead of criticizing their relationship as she had feared, fans embraced the couple. Eventually, Angélil and Dion married in an extravagant wedding ceremony on 17 December 1994, which was broadcast live on Canadian television.
As with most of her catalogue, The Colour of My Love had over-riding themes of love and romance. It became her most successful record up to that point, selling more than six million copies in the US, two million in Canada, and peaking at No. 1 in many countries. The album also spawned Dion's first US, Canadian, and Australian No. 1 single "The Power of Love" (a remake of Jennifer Rush's 1985 hit), which would become her signature hit in various nations until she reached new career heights in the late 1990s.
The single "When I Fall in Love", a duet with Clive Griffin, achieved moderate success on the US and Canadian charts and was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one. The Colour of My Love also became Dion's first major hit in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. Both the album and the single "Think Twice" simultaneously occupied the top of the British charts for five consecutive weeks. "Think Twice", which remained at No. 1 for seven weeks, eventually became the fourth single by a female artist to sell in excess of one million copies in the UK while the album was eventually certified five-times platinum for two million copies sold.
Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record. Generally, they achieved more credibility than her English-language works. She released À l'Olympia, a live album that was recorded during one of her concerts at the Paris Olympia in 1994. It had one promotional single, a live version of "Calling You", which peaked at seventy-five on the French Singles Chart. She also recorded a bilingual version of "Petit Papa Noël" with Alvin and the Chipmunks for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk. D'eux (also known as The French Album in the United States), was released in 1995, and it would go on to become the best-selling French-language album of all time. The album was mostly written and produced by Jean-Jacques Goldman, and amassed huge success with the singles "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" and "Je sais pas". "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" reached No. 1 in France and stayed at the top position for twelve weeks. It was later certified Platinum in France. The single reached the top ten in the UK and Ireland, a rare accomplishment for a French song. The second single off the album, "Je sais pas", reached No. 1 on the French Singles Chart as well and was certified Silver there.
During the mid-1990s and onward, Dion's albums were generally constructed on the basis of melodramatic soft rock ballads, with sprinklings of up-tempo pop and rare forays into other genres. She collaborated with many renowned writers and producers such as Jim Steinman and David Foster, who helped her to develop a signature sound. While critical reviews fluctuated, her releases performed increasingly well on the international charts, and in 1996, she won the World Music Award for "World's Best-selling Female Recording Artist of the Year" for the third time. By the mid-1990s, she had established herself as one of the best-selling artists in the world.
1996–1999: Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love, and S'il suffisait d'aimer
In the five years since her debut English language album in 1990, Billboard stated that she had already sold 40 million albums worldwide. Falling into You (1996), Dion's fourth English-language album, presented the singer at the height of her popularity and showed a further progression of her music. In an attempt to reach a wider audience, the album combined many elements, such as complex orchestral sounds, African chanting, and elaborate musical effects. Additionally, instruments like the violin, Spanish guitar, trombone, the cavaquinho, and saxophone created a new sound. The singles encompassed a variety of musical styles. The title track "Falling into You" and "River Deep – Mountain High" (a Tina Turner cover) made prominent use of percussion instruments; "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (produced by its writer Jim Steinman) and a remake of Eric Carmen's "All by Myself" maintained a soft-rock atmosphere, combined with the classical sound of the piano; and the No. 1 single "Because You Loved Me", which was written by Diane Warren, was a pop ballad that served as the theme to the 1996 film Up Close and Personal.
Falling into You garnered career-best reviews for Dion. While Dan Leroy wrote that it was not very different from her previous work, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times and Natalie Nichols of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the album was formulaic, other critics, such as Chuck Eddy of Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic, and Daniel Durchholz, lavished the album as "compelling", "passionate", "stylish", "elegant", and "remarkably well-crafted". Falling into You became Dion's most critically and commercially successful album: it topped the charts in many countries and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.
In 2013, CBC Music ranked Falling into You 33rd in their list of the 100 greatest Canadian albums ever. In the United States, the album reached No. 1, and was later certified 11× Platinum for over 11 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album was certified diamond for over one million copies shipped. The IFPI certified Falling into You 9× Platinum, an accolade that has been given to only two other albums in history, with one of the two being Dion's own album, Let's Talk About Love. The album also won Grammy Awards for Best Pop Album and the academy's highest honour, Album of the Year.
Dion was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream" at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In March 1996, she launched the Falling into You Tour in support of her new album, performing concerts around the world for over a year.
She followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love (1997), which was publicized as its sequel. The recording process took place in London, New York City, and Los Angeles, and featured a host of special guests, such as Barbra Streisand on "Tell Him"; the Bee Gees on "Immortality"; and tenor Luciano Pavarotti on "I Hate You Then I Love You". Other musicians included Carole King, Sir George Martin, Bryan Adams and Jamaican singer Diana King, who added a reggae tinge to "Treat Her Like a Lady".
Let's Talk About Love was another major success, reaching No. 1 all over the world, attaining platinum status in twenty-four sales territories, and becoming the fastest selling album of her career. In the United States, the album topped the chart in its seventh week of release, and was later certified 10× Platinum in the US for over 10 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album sold 230,212 copies in its first week of release, which remains a record. It was eventually certified diamond in Canada for over one million copies shipped. The most successful single from the album was the classically influenced ballad "My Heart Will Go On", which was written and composed by James Horner and Will Jennings, and produced by Horner and Walter Afanasieff.
Serving as the love theme for the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic, the song topped the charts across the world and became Dion's signature song. Horner and Jennings won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song, while Dion herself garnered two Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and the most coveted, Record of the Year, (the song itself won four awards, but two were presented to the songwriters). "My Heart Will Go On" and "Think Twice" made her the only female artist in the UK to have two singles to sell more than a million copies. In support of her album, she embarked on the Let's Talk About Love Tour between 1998 and 1999.
Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums: the Christmas album These Are Special Times (1998), the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer, and the compilation album All the Way... A Decade of Song (1999). On These Are Special Times, she co-wrote the song "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day" along with Ric Wake and Peter Zizzo. The album was her most classically influenced yet, with orchestral arrangements found on virtually every track. The album featured the single "I'm Your Angel" (a duet with R. Kelly), which became her fourth US No. 1 single, and a smash hit across the world. The album's second single "The Prayer" (a duet with Andrea Bocelli) served as the soundtrack of the 1998 film Quest for Camelot and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. All the Way... A Decade of Song drew together her most successful hits coupled with seven new songs, including the lead-off single "That's the Way It Is", a cover of Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", and "All the Way", a duet with Frank Sinatra. All the Way became one of the best-selling compilation albums of all time, reaching No. 1 in the United States for three weeks. The album was later certified 7x Platinum in the US for 7 million copies shipped. It also topped the charts in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Her last French-language studio album of the 1990s, S'il suffisait d'aimer, was very successful as well, topping the charts in every major French-speaking country, including France, Switzerland, the Wallonia region of Belgium, and Canada. In France, the album was certified diamond, selling 1.5 million copies. By the end of the 1990s, Dion had sold more than 130 million records worldwide, and had won a slew of industry awards. Her status as one of the music industry's biggest pop divas was further solidified when she was asked to perform on VH1's Divas Live special in 1998, with superstars Aretha Franklin, Gloria Estefan, Shania Twain, and Mariah Carey. That year, she also received two of the highest Canadian honours: "Officer of the Order of Canada for Outstanding Contribution to the World of Contemporary Music" and "Officer of the National Order of Quebec". A year later, she was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame, and was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.
Starting from the mid-1990s, the pop rock influence that was more noticeable in her earlier releases was replaced by a more mature feel. Additionally, the recurring theme of "love" dominated most of her releases, which led to some critics dismissing her music as banal. Other critics, like Elysa Gardner and Jose F. Promis, praised her voice during this period, describing it as a "technical marvel". Steve Dollar, in his review of These Are Special Times, opined that Dion was a "vocal Olympian for whom there ain't no mountain—or scale—high enough".
2000–2003: Hiatus, A New Day Has Come, One Heart, and 1 fille & 4 types
After releasing and promoting thirteen albums during the 1990s, Dion stated that she needed to settle down, and announced on her latest album All the Way... A Decade of Song, that she needed to take a step back from the spotlight and enjoy life. Angélil's diagnosis with esophageal cancer also prompted her to hiatus. While on break, she was unable to escape the spotlight. In 2000, the National Enquirer published a false story about the singer. Brandishing a picture of Dion and her husband, the magazine misquoted her, printing the headline, "Celine — 'I'm Pregnant With Twins!'" She later sued the magazine for more than $20million. The editors of the Enquirer printed an apology and a full retraction to her in the next issue, and donated money to the American Cancer Society in honour of her and her husband. A year after the incident, after undergoing fertility treatments, she gave birth to a son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, on 25 January 2001, in Florida.
Following the 11 September attacks, Dion returned to the music scene, and in a televised performance sang "God Bless America" at the benefit concert America: A Tribute to Heroes. Chuck Taylor of Billboard wrote, "the performance ... brings to mind what has made her one of the celebrated vocalists of our time: the ability to render emotion that shakes the soul. Affecting, meaningful, and filled with grace, this is a musical reflection to share with all of us still searching for ways to cope." She performed it again in 2003 during pregame festivities for Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego. In December 2001, she published her autobiography My Story, My Dream which chronicled her rags-to-riches story.
Dion ended her three-year sabbatical from the music industry with the aptly titled album A New Day Has Come, released in March 2002. The album was her most personal yet, with songs focusing on her motherhood and maturation as a woman such as "A New Day Has Come", and "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)". She stated: "becoming a mother makes you a grown-up." She stated, "A New Day Has Come, for Rene, for me, is the baby. It has everything to do with the baby ... That song "A New Day Has Come" represents very well the mood I'm feeling right now. It represents the whole album." A New Day Has Come debuted at No. 1 in more than 17 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 527,000 copies; marking her first No. 1 debut on the chart, as well as the highest debut sales week of her career in the US. It was eventually certified 3× Platinum in the United States, and 6× Platinum in Canada.
While the album was commercially successful, critical reviews suggested that it was "forgettable" and the lyrics were "lifeless". Both Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone magazine, and Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly, stated that Dion's music had not developed much during her break, and classed her material as trite and mediocre. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine called the album "a lengthy collection of drippy, gooey pop fluffer-nutter". The first single off the album, A New Day Has Come peaked at No.22 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, being an airplay-only release. On the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks, however, the song spent 21 consecutive weeks at No. 1, breaking the record for the longest span at the top. The previous record holders were Phil Collins' You'll Be in My Heart and Dion's own Because You Loved Me, both of which lasted nineteen weeks at No. 1. The album's next single, "I'm Alive", was featured on the soundtrack for Stuart Little 2 (2002), and was ranked number 2 on the European Hot 100 Singles, and number 6 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks in the United States. During 2002, she performed for many benefit concerts, including her second appearance on VH1 Divas Live, a concert to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation, alongside Cher, Anastacia, Dixie Chicks, Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, Cyndi Lauper, Shakira, and Stevie Nicks.
In conjunction with an endorsement deal with Chrysler, she released One Heart (2003), an album that represented her appreciation for life. The album largely consisted of pop and dance music—a deviation from the soaring, melodramatic ballads, for which she had been known. Although the album achieved moderate success, One Heart was met with mixed criticism, and words such as "predictable" and "banal" appeared even in the most lenient reviews. A cover of the 1989 Cyndi Lauper hit "I Drove All Night", released to launch her advertising campaign with Chrysler, incorporated elements of dance-pop and rock and roll. The advertising deal was met with criticism, with some stating that Dion was trying to cater to her sponsors.
After One Heart, she released her next English-language studio album, Miracle (2004). Miracle was a multimedia project conceived by Dion and Australian photographer Anne Geddes and had a theme centring on babies and motherhood. The album was filled with lullabies and other songs of maternal love and inspiration, including covers of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" and John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy". The reviews for Miracle were mixed. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic.com gave the album three of out five stars, stating, "The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience." Chuck Taylor of Billboard magazine wrote that the single "Beautiful Boy" was "an unexpected gem" and called Dion "a timeless, enormously versatile artist", Chuck Arnold of People Magazine, however, labelled the album as excessively sentimental, while Nancy Miller of Entertainment Weekly opined that "the whole earth-mama act is just opportunism, reborn". Miracle debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 in Canada and was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA.
The francophone album 1 fille & 4 types (1 Girl & 4 Guys), released in October 2003, fared better than her previous two releases and showed her trying to distance herself from the "diva" image. She recruited Jean-Jacques Goldman, Gildas Arzel, Eric Benzi, and Jacques Veneruso, with whom she had previously worked on two of her best-selling French albums S'il suffisait d'aimer and D'eux. Labeled "the album of pleasure" by Dion herself, the album cover showed her in a simple and relaxed manner, contrary to the choreographed poses usually found on her album covers. The album achieved widespread commercial success in France, Canada, and Belgium where it reached No. 1. In France, the album debuted at No. 1 and was later certified 2× platinum after selling over 700,000 copies. Critic Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Dion's vocals were "back at top of their game" and that she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while".
Though her albums were commercially successful, they did not achieve the sales or the reception of her previous works. Her songs received less airplay as radio became less embracing of balladeers like Dion, Carey, and Houston, and was focused on more up-tempo, Urban/Hip-hop songs. By 2004, Dion had accumulated sales of more than 175 million albums worldwide and received the Chopard Diamond Award from the World Music Awards for her achievements. According to the official World Music Awards website, the award is rare; it is "not presented every year" and an artist can be presented with the award only for selling "over 100 million albums during their career".
2003–2007: A New Day...
In early 2002, Dion announced a three-year, 600-show contract to appear five nights a week in an entertainment extravaganza, A New Day..., at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. This move was generally seen as risky, but journalist Miriam Nunzio wrote that it was "one of the smartest business decisions in years by any major recording artist". Dion conceived the show after seeing O by Franco Dragone during her break from recording, and it premiered on 25 March 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena specifically designed for her show and modelled after the Roman Colosseum. Many stars attended the opening night including Dick Clark, Alan Thicke, Kathy Griffin, Lance Bass, and Justin Timberlake, who hosted the television special. The show, directed by Dragone and choreographed by the renowned Mia Michaels, was a combination of dance, music, and visual effects. It included Dion performing her biggest hits against an array of dancers and special effects. Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find the singer among the excessive stage ornamentation and dancers. However, he noted that the show had become more enjoyable over the course of its run, because of her improved stage-presence and simplified costumes.
The show was well-received by audiences, despite the complaints of expensive tickets; it routinely sold out until its end in late 2007. Ticket prices averaged $135.33. According to Pollstar, Dion sold 322,000 tickets and grossed US$43.9 million in the first half of 2005, and by July 2005, she had sold out 315 out of 384 shows. By the end of 2005, she grossed more than US$76 million, placing sixth on Billboard's Money Makers list for 2005. Because of the show's success, her contract was extended into 2007 for an undisclosed sum. On 5 January 2007, it was announced that the show would end on 15 December 2007, with tickets for the period after October 2007 having gone on sale from 1 March. According to Billboard, A New Day... is the most successful residency of all time, grossing over US$385 million ($ million in dollars) and drawing nearly three million people to 717 shows. The Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... DVD was released on 10 December 2007, in Europe and the following day in North America.
2007–2010: D'elles, Taking Chances, and Taking Chances Tour
On 21 May 2007, Dion released the French-language album D'elles (About Them), which debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week. It marked her tenth No. 1 album in the SoundScan era, and her eighth to debut at the top position. In Canada, the album has been certified 2× platinum, and within the first month had already shipped half a million units worldwide. D'Elles also reached No. 1 in France and Belgium. The first single "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)" (meaning "And If There Was Only One Woman Left (I Would Be That One)") debuted at the top of the French singles chart a month earlier. Later that same year, she released the English album Taking Chances on 12 November in Europe, and 13 November in North America. Her first English studio album since 2003's One Heart, it featured pop, R&B, and rock inspired music. For this album, she collaborated with John Shanks and ex-Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody, as well as Kristian Lundin, Peer Åström, Linda Perry, Japanese singer Yuna Ito, and R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. Dion stated, "I think this album represents a positive evolution in my career ... I'm feeling strong, maybe a little gutsier than in the past, and just as passionate about music and life as I ever was." She launched her year-long worldwide Taking Chances Tour on 14 February 2008, in South Africa, performing 132 dates in stadiums and arenas across five continents.
The Taking Chances Tour was a great success in the United States, reaching the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Boxscore, having sold out every concert in the US and Canada. In addition, she appeared on Idol Gives Back for a second year in a row. Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, adding to her 53 previous nominations (an all-time record). Her nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year (for Taking Chances), Francophone Album of the Year (for D'elles) and Album of the Year (for both Taking Chances and D'elles). The following year, she was nominated for 3 Juno Awards including the Fan Choice Award, Song of the Year (for Taking Chances), and Music DVD of the Year (for Live in Las Vegas — A New Day...)
On 22 August 2008, Dion presented a free outdoor concert, mostly in French, on the Plains of Abraham, in Québec City, Canada, for the 400th anniversary of Québec City. The celebration gathered approximately 490,000 people. The concert, called Céline sur les Plaines, was released on DVD on 11 November 2008, in Québec and was released on 20 May 2009, in France. Late October 2008 saw the worldwide release of a comprehensive English-language greatest hits album, My Love: Essential Collection.
In May 2009, Dion was named the 20th best-selling artist of the decade and the second-best-selling female artist of the decade in the United States, selling an estimated 17.57 million copies of her albums there since 2000. In June 2009, Forbes reported that she earned $100 million during 2008. In December 2009, Pollstar announced that she was the best-selling solo touring act of the decade and the second-best-selling touring act of the decade, behind only the Dave Matthews Band. she grossed $522.2 million during the decade, a large portion of that sum coming from her five-year residency at Caesars Palace.
On 17 February 2010, Dion released into theatres a documentary film about her Taking Chances Tour, titled, Celine: Through the Eyes of the World. The documentary shows behind-the-scenes footage of her both onstage and offstage, along with footage of her with her family as they travelled the world with her. The distributor is the Sony Pictures subsidiary, Hot Ticket. The film was later released on Blu-ray and DVD on 4 May 2010, along with the CD/DVD, Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert. At the 52nd Grammy Awards in February 2010, Dion joined Carrie Underwood, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, and Smokey Robinson to perform the song "Earth Song" during the 3-D Michael Jackson tribute.
In January 2010, The Los Angeles Times presented its annual list of the top ten largest earners of the year, revealing that Dion took the top spot for the entire decade, with $US747.9 million in total revenue from 2000–2009. The largest haul came from ticket sales, totalling $522.2 million. Additionally, she was named "Artist of the Decade" in her native Canadian province of Québec, announced by the Montréal-based newspaper, Le Journal de Québec in 2009 December. A public online survey asked responders to vote for whom they believe deserved the above-mentioned accolade.
Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, Dion was named the most popular musician in the United States, ahead of U2, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles while factoring in gender, political affiliations, geographic region of residence, and income. Specifically, she was the most popular musician in the female demographic, as well as among all Democrats, those who live in the eastern United States and southern United States, and those who have incomes between US$35k and US$74.9k.
In September 2010, she released the single "Voler", a duet with French singer Michel Sardou. The song was later included on Sardou's album. In addition, it was announced in October 2010 that Dion wrote and composed a new song for Canadian singer, Marc Dupré entitled "Entre deux mondes".
2011–2014: Celine, Sans attendre, and Loved Me Back to Life
In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. In 2018, Billboard stated her residency Celine is the second most successful residency of all time. By the end of 2011, Dion has sold 331,000 albums (despite not releasing any studio album since 2007) and 956,000 digital tracks in the United States.
For a record sixth time, she performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, she appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, she released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, she made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica.
In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. She began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles.
In June 2013, Dion co-produced the show titled "Voices" by Véronic DiCaire at the Bally’s Hotel & Casino’s Jubilee Theatre and was presented 145 times up until 2015.
On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Céline une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia.
2014–present: Husband's death, Encore un soir, Courage, and return to Vegas
On 13 August 2014, Dion announced the indefinite postponement of all her show business activities, including her concert residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and the cancellation of her Asia Tour, because of the worsening of her husband's health after he underwent the removal of a cancerous tumor in December 2013. However, on 20 March 2015, she announced that she would be returning to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in late August 2015. On 14 January 2016, she cancelled the rest of the January performances due to her husband's and her brother's death from cancer. Dion resumed the residency on 23 February to a sold-out crowd and rave reviews.
In October 2015, Dion announced on social media that she had begun working on a new French album, posting a photo by the side of Algerian singer Zaho. Dion's French single, "Encore un soir", was released on 24 May 2016. On 20 May, she released a cover of Queen's song "The Show Must Go On", featuring Lindsey Stirling on violin. She performed "The Show Must Go On" at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards on 22 May, and received the Billboard Icon Award (presented to her by her son, René-Charles Angélil) in recognition of her career spanning over three decades.
The singer's new French album, Encore un soir, was released on 26 August 2016. It features fifteen tracks performed in French and, according to the singer, has a personal choice of the songs – more uplifting lyrics were chosen. Encore un soir topped the charts in France, Canada, Belgium and Switzerland, and was certified Diamond in France, 2× Platinum in Canada and Platinum in Belgium and Switzerland. It has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. In 2016 and 2017, Dion toured Europe and Canada with two sold-out concert tours. On 9 September 2016, she released "Recovering", a song written for her by Pink after Dion's husband René Angélil died in January 2016. Dion also recorded "How Does a Moment Last Forever" for the Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, released in March 2017. Her compilation, Un peu de nous topped the chart in France in July and August 2017.
On 3 May 2018, she released the single "Ashes" from the film Deadpool 2. The remix version of the song topped the US Dance Club Songs chart in July 2018. From June to August 2018, she toured the Asia-Pacific region and grossed $56.5 million from 22 shows. On 24 September 2018, she announced the end of her Las Vegas residency Celine, with the final date set for 8 June 2019. She is working on a new English album. In January 2019, she performed "A Change Is Gonna Come" at the "Aretha! A Grammy Celebration for the Queen of Soul" Franklin's tribute concert, to be broadcast in March 2019. In March 2019, she was one of 11 singers from Quebec, alongside Ginette Reno, Diane Dufresne, Isabelle Boulay, Luce Dufault, Louise Forestier, Laurence Jalbert, Catherine Major, Ariane Moffatt, Marie Denise Pelletier, and Marie-Élaine Thibert, who participated in a supergroup recording of Renée Claude's 1971 single "Tu trouveras la paix" after Claude's diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease was announced. On 3 April 2019, during a Facebook Live event, Dion announced her 2019/2020 Courage World Tour, beginning in Quebec City on 18 September 2019. She also announced a new English language album of the same name, released in November 2019.
On 18 September 2019, Dion released three songs, "Lying Down", "Courage", and "Imperfections" from her upcoming album, Courage. On 26 February 2020, Dion released two songs as exclusive Spotify singles: an acoustic version of Imperfections, and a cover of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game. Isaak joined Dion and sang vocals on the track. On 10 June 2020, Dion announced that her Courage World Tour will kick off again in 2021, after the tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 21 May 2021, it was announced Dion would return to Vegas, in November of the same year, for a limited-run installment of ten dates in collaboration with Resorts World Las Vegas. Billboard listed Dion as the third top paid musician of 2020 (second by female artist), with total of earnings of $17.5 million.
On 15 January 2022, a statement posted to Dion's website and social media accounts announced that the U.S. and Canadian concert dates for March-April 2022 were canceled because of “severe and persistent muscle spasms” that are preventing Dion from performing onstage.
Artistry
Influences
Dion cites idols as varied as Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Charles Aznavour, Carole King, Anne Murray, Barbra Streisand, and the Bee Gees, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with. Her music has been influenced by numerous genres, including pop, rock, gospel, R&B, and soul, and her lyrics focus on themes of poverty, world hunger, and spirituality, with an emphasis on love and romance. After the birth of her first child, her work increasingly focused on maternal love.
Musical style
Dion has faced considerable criticism from critics, who state that her music often retreats behind pop and soul conventions, and is marked by excessive sentimentality. According to Keith Harris of Rolling Stone magazine, "[Dion's] sentimentality is bombastic and defiant rather than demure and retiring ... [she] stands at the end of the chain of drastic devolution that goes Aretha–Whitney–Mariah. Far from being an aberration, Dion actually stands as a symbol of a certain kind of pop sensibility—bigger is better, too much is never enough, and the riper the emotion the more true." Her francophone releases, by contrast, tend to be deeper and more varied than her English releases, and consequently have achieved more credibility.
Critics have stated that Dion's involvement in the production aspect of her music is fundamentally lacking, which results in her work being overproduced and impersonal. However, coming from a family in which all of her siblings were musicians, she dabbled in learning how to play instruments like piano and guitar, and practised with a Fender Stratocaster during the recording sessions for her album Falling into You.
Occasionally, Dion has contributed to the writing of a handful of her English and French songs, as well as writing a few songs for other artists such as Marc Dupre. Additionally, as her career progressed, she found herself taking charge in the production of her albums. On her first English album, which she recorded before she had a firm command of the English language, she expressed disapproval, which could have been avoided if she had assumed more creative input. By the time she released her second English album Celine Dion, she had assumed more control of the production and recording process, hoping to dispel earlier criticisms. She stated, "On the second album I said, 'Well, I have the choice to be afraid one more time and not be 100% happy, or not be afraid and be part of this album.' This is my album." Besides her contributions to some of her early French albums, Dion wrote a few of the songs on Let's Talk About Love (1997) and These Are Special Times (1998).
She is often the subject of media ridicule and parody and is frequently impersonated on shows such as MADtv, Saturday Night Live, South Park, Royal Canadian Air Farce, and This Hour Has 22 Minutes for her strong accent and onstage gesticulations. However, she has stated that she is unaffected by the comments, and is flattered that people take the time to impersonate her. She even invited Ana Gasteyer, who parodied her on SNL, to appear onstage during one of her performances in New York City. While she is rarely politically outspoken, in 2005 following the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Dion appeared on Larry King Live and tearfully criticized the US government's slow response in aiding the victims of the hurricane: "There's people still there waiting to be rescued. To me that is not acceptable ... How can it be so easy to send planes in another country to kill everybody in a second and destroy lives. We need to serve our country." After her interview, she stated, "When I do interviews with Larry King or the big TV shows like that, they put you on the spot, which is very difficult. I do have an opinion, but I'm a singer. I'm not a politician."
Voice and timbre
Dion once claimed to be a mezzo-soprano. However, attempts to adapt classical voice types to other forms of singing have been met with controversy. Without making a classification, Kent Nagano, maestro of the Munich Symphony Orchestra, remarked, "All you just sang was full lyric soprano", after Dion auditioned with two solos from Carmen, wanting to know if she could sing opera. Her timbre has been described as "thin, slightly nasal" with a "raspy" lower register and "bell glass-like high notes".
According to Linda Lister in Divafication: The Deification of Modern Female Pop Stars, she has been described as a reigning "Queen of Pop" for her influence over the recording industry during the 1990s, alongside other female artists, including Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. In a countdown of the "22 Greatest Voices in Music" by Blender Magazine and MTV, she placed ninth (sixth for a female), and she was also placed fourth in Cover Magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists". Dion is often compared to Houston and Carey for her vocal style, and to her idol Barbra Streisand for her voice.
She is often praised for her technical virtuosity. Jim Santella of The Buffalo News writes "Like an iron fist in a velvet glove, the power of Celine Dion's voice is cloaked in a silky vibrato that betrays the intensity of her vocal commitment." Jeff Miers, also of The Buffalo News, says of Dion "Her singing voice is absolutely extra-human. She hits notes in full voice, with a controlled vibrato and an incredible conception of pitch, like she's shucking an ear of corn." Stephen Holden of The New York Times states that Dion has "a good-sized arsenal of technical skills. She can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch. And as her duets ... have shown, she is a reliable harmony voice." In an interview with Libération, Jean-Jacques Goldman notes that she has "no problem of accuracy or tempo". According to Kent Nagano, she is "a musician who has a good ear, a refinement, and a degree of perfection that is enviable". Charles Alexander of Time states, "[Her] voice glides effortlessly from deep whispers to dead-on high notes, a sweet siren that combines force with grace."
In her French repertoire, Dion adorns her vocals with more nuances and expressiveness, with the emotional intensity being "more tender and intimate". Additionally, Luc Plamondon, a French singer-songwriter who has worked closely with Dion claims that there are three chanteuses (stylistically) that she uses: the Québécois, the French, and the American. Her self-titled 1992 album was promoted with the slogan "Remember the name because you'll never forget the voice."
Legacy
Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most influential vocalists. She has been referred to as the "Queen of Power Ballads" by the media.. Billboard called Dion the "Queen of Pop". Her music and vocal styling, alongside that of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, have been said to shape how the bulk of modern female pop vocalists sing. These three artists have been widely credited with reviving the power ballad, and in doing so reshaping the adult contemporary radio format, making it one of the most popular formats of the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2002, Billboard named her as the "Best-selling contemporary female artist in history".
According to producer, musician, and former American Idol judge Randy Jackson, Dion, Houston, and Carey are the voices of the modern era. Music critic and Dion biographer Carl Wilson notes that her "fame and influence is also renewed and expressed regularly these days by American Idol, the largest mass musical phenomenon of the past decade, where Celine's stood solidly in its pantheon of singers for young people to emulate". Many contestants on the countless televised talent competitions that have risen at the turn of the millennium often emulate Dion, Houston and Carey and cite them as idols. MTV also praised Dion by saying: "Céline Dion was better than almost anyone at capitalizing on pop’s ability to articulate feelings in sensational, over-the-top ways."
Numerous artists have either mentioned Dion as a major influence or as one of their favourite singers including: Britney Spears, Rihanna, Adele, Josh Groban, Delta Goodrem, Leona Lewis, Jennifer Hudson, Vanessa Hudgens, Kelly Clarkson, Perrie Edwards, Loren Allred, Brazilian singer Wanessa Camargo, Ariana Grande, Sam Smith, Frank Ocean, Ava Max, Charlotte Cardin, and V (from BTS) among many others. Country singer Martina McBride is widely heralded by the press as the Celine Dion of Country music.
Many artists have also praised Dion's voice, singing ability or expressed an interest in working with her including Met Opera conductor and musical director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Beyoncé, Carlos Santana, Elton John, OneRepublic, Coldplay, Sharon Osbourne, Nicole Scherzinger, Ne-Yo, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, Luciano Pavarotti, Bee Gees, Sir George Martin, Justin Bieber, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Drake and Cher.
Timbaland stated "Celine has such a beautiful, mesmerizing voice. She is so talented. I think we could create something that is a classic like she is already." Josh Groban remarked "She's a powerhouse. In this day and age, when more and more studio-produced, tiny-tiny voices are being rewarded ... she has this extraordinary instrument." According to Diane Warren, "Celine is the best singer by far of her generation", an opinion shared by Quincy Jones, Tommy Mottola, and David Foster. Moreover, Shania Twain and Jennifer Lopez have praised her dynamic stage presence, with Jennifer Lopez commenting on American Idol: "Celine gets on stage, she owns the stage, she runs all over that stage, she stops that stage." Leona Lewis is also a huge fan of Céline Dion saying "Celine is someone I aspire to be like in every way. "Gosh – I can't wait. I'm in the middle of picking out dresses at the moment. Celine is definitely one of my heroes. She is amazing." American singer and actress Lea Michelle said that she listened to Céline Dion's music while in the process of making her sophomore album 'Places' and cited her as one of her vocal influences.
Godmother of Soul Patti LaBelle called Dion as one of the greatest singers ever. Pop singer Kelly Clarkson also praised Dion's vocal ability saying: "she has two sets of lungs when she sings." and also called her the most gifted vocalist on the planet.
Dion holds the Guiness World Record for the most Juno Awards won for Album Of The Year (tied with Michael Buble & Arcade Fire). She won 3 out of the 13 nominations she received in the category throughout her career. Dion is the 3rd most decorated artist in Juno Awards history, winning 20 out of the 75 total nominations ever, becoming the most nominated artist in the awards history as well.
In 1997-1998, Dion sold more than 60 million albums, and was estimated to sell a record once every 1.2 seconds. In 2017, Dion broke records across the UK as the highest grossing artist at each UK venue where she performed which included dates at the O2 Arena in London, Leeds First Direct Arena, Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena and the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. John Meglen, president and co-CEO, Concerts West commended her by saying: "She really is the voice of our lifetime."
In 2018, there were over 300,000 Taiwanese fans that clambered for the 20,000 tickets available for Célines first concert ever in Taiwan which caused the system to lag for 30 minutes. The demand caused them to add two additional shows eventually.
Cultural impact
In Francophone music industry
On a cultural level, Dion is credited for introducing francophone music to many non-francophone countries around the globe. Her albums D'eux and S'il suffisait d'aimer remain the best selling francophone albums in history, gaining unprecedented success in non-Francophone markets such as the United Kingdom, Poland, Netherlands, Portugal, Greece, Austria, Japan, and New Zealand. According to RFI Musique, she "has done her bit for French music over the years, assuring the success of French songs which would probably never have got beyond Francophone borders without her ... Without Celine, French record sales would be dramatically lower!" In May 2008, she was awarded France's highest award, as Knight of the Legion of Honour by President of France Nicolas Sarkozy. Sarkozy praised Dion and stated: "France thanks you because your talent and success have contributed to the influence of the French language outside our borders".
In Las Vegas strip
She is also credited for both revitalizing and revolutionizing the entertainment scene in Las Vegas with the gargantuan successes of her residencies there. She signed a multi-million dollar deal worthed $100 million to do a residency in Vegas and is considered one of the most lucrative and risky in the touring industry.
Billboard credits Dion as the one who pioneered modern residencies saying: "Since Dion's debut, hundreds of artists have tried their hand at Vegas residencies, including, most recently, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Usher, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Rod Stewart and Sting. Once considered the domain of artists long past their peak, today's Las Vegas residency shows are big business, generating millions in sales." Moreover, Billboard also said: "She changed history and she completely changed Las Vegas," said Nelson, who notes the new residencies being announced for artists like Cardi B, Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Lopez aren't really at the same production level or scale of what Dion created with her husband René Angélil, as well as Meglen, Nelson and former AEG CEO Tim Leiweke." Dion is popularly referred as the reigning "Queen of Las Vegas" by various media outlets for her impact and legacy in the city.
According to Gary Bongiovanni, president and editor-in-chief of Pollstar, "Celine redefined what artists can do in Las Vegas, helping to make it arguably the busiest entertainment city in the world."
Kurt Melien, vice-president of entertainment at Caesar's Palace stated "Celine was a pioneer without question ... Twenty years ago, we couldn't have got someone the stature of Britney Spears to appear in Vegas. Stars likes her would never have considered it if Celine hadn't paved the way. She changed the face of modern Vegas."
The Guardian listed Dion's Vegas residency as one of the 50 gigs that changed music, crediting her as the one who revived it, further saying: "it was Céline Dion who turned Caesars into the stage for a glorious pop comeback. Her initial five-year run was followed by a further eight years – and prompted copycat turns by Britney Spears, Pink and Katy Perry.
In the economy
Regarding her financial impact on Las Vegas, Stephen Brown, director of the Centre for Business and Economic Research in Las Vegas, commented: "People will come to the city just for her and they will spend money and as a consequence, she has an outsized impact on the economy", then adding "Bigger than Elvis, Sinatra and Liberace put together? Definitely." Estimations indicate that Dion's show will create up to 7,000 indirect jobs and around $114 million worth of new economic activity in each of the three years for which she has been contracted.
In businesses
Forbes also discussed how entrepreneurs can reclaim the power in their business by being like Céline Dion as an example saying: "Well, remember back in 2017 when Dion launched her handbag line? During a press conference, she admitted her late manager (and husband) had always handled everything for her. Every aspect of her shows was pre-decided; every move, appearance and interview was programmed in advance. She just showed up and executed (which she did brilliantly). At the end of her handbag launch press release, she said "Now . . . I'm the boss.” Starting right then and there, she’d be the one calling the shots for her shows, her kids, her handbags and everything else that mattered to her. She was going to do things her way."
In Fashion
Celine Dion has received various acclaims from fashion critics for reinventing her fashion style over the years. The Guardian called her "The Joyous New Queen of Fashion". Harper's Bazaar also praised Dion for being an ultimate fashion risk-taker and called her a "Fashion Chameleon". Billboard dubbed her as "Streetwear Icon" after recapping the global icon's style evolution through the years. Vogue named her as one of music's most exuberant dressers, beloved as much for her glorious voice as her extravagant sense of style. Tatler discussed in an article how Cardi B might be the next Céline Dion of Paris Fashion Week, proving that Céline is the standard for the occasion. Fashion stylist and image architect Law Roach praised Celine Dion, calling her "The Queen of Camp" & "The Queen of Glitter & Sequins". Dion further cemented her name in the fashion world by wearing the reverse tuxedo at 1999 Academy Awards, which became one of the most talked ensembles of that time. Vogue also listed her iconic 1999 reverse tuxedo as one of the most controversial looks of all time saying it was undeniably the highlight of the year. W also listed the iconic ensemble as one of the most memorable dresses of all time. In February 2020, Sergio Guadarrama, a contestant of Project Runway, copied the idea of reverse tuxedo and claimed it was his original idea and had even claimed that he had no idea about the iconic tuxedo, which left the fans of the show disappointed.
Breaking music barriers
Vice discussed how Dion's music made impact in Nigerian culture, saying: "By the 2000s, Celine Dion was basically the queen of Nigerian airwaves. It was impossible to watch TV or listen to the radio without hearing her music – either on adverts, or in Nollywood films featuring heartthrobs like Genevieve Nnaji and Ramsey Nouah."
Billboard also discussed how Dion’s appearance at Jamaica Jazz & Blues changed the festival’s future. According to Walter Elmore, CEO of Art of Music Productions said Dion is by far the most expensive artist he has ever booked, further saying: “I have already received calls from the management of several major US artists who want to perform here next year because they heard Celine’s comments about our show’s production quality,” Elmore said. “Her performance confirms that we can bring the biggest artists on the planet to our little island.”
In 2012, Dion visited Jamaica for the very first time which broke attendance records and caused traffic congestion around the concert venue. Vice discussed how Dion's music has been constant in dancehall clubs for decades, as many Jamaican dancehall artists cover her songs and remixing her ballads into anthems of dance hall. Further adding: "Several current dancehall musicians continue to use utilize Dion’s tunes with the addition of upbeat guitars, pan flutes, and backbeat shuffles that transform the music for consumption by dancehall fans."
Being referenced in songs
The Canadian comedy music group The Arrogant Worms released an album called Dirt in 1999 which contained a song called "Celine Dion", about the singers' stalker-like affection for her. Dion has also been referred/mentioned in various hit songs including "Dark Fantasy" by Kanye West, "911/Mr. Lonely" by Tyler, the Creator, "That Girl" by Pharrell Williams, "Work" by A$AP Ferg, and "What's The Use" by Mac Miller, to name a few.
Cultural honors
In 1999, Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame and was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in January 2004, one which she dedicated to her father, who had died the month prior. In May 2003, she placed at No. 10 on VH1's list of "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era". Dion's album Falling into You is included on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. "My Heart Will Go On" was included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. In 2021, Dion was ranked by Forbes as the third richest woman in entertainment with an estimated net worth of US$460 million. In August 2008, she received an honorary doctorate in music from the Université Laval in Quebec City.
In October 2010, Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador, a program created by the UN in 1999, sharing this accolade with Oscar-winner Susan Sarandon. She also received several state decorations. In 2004, she was awarded the Society of Singers Lifetime Achievement Award.
On 26 July 2013, she was awarded the highest rank of the Order of Canada, the Companion of the Order of Canada, by the Governor General of Canada and the investiture ceremony was held at Citadelle of Quebec, in which they said: "An incomparable artist, she is equally known for her compassion, generosity and commitment to a number of social and humanitarian causes. She is notably the national celebrity patron for Cystic Fibrosis Canada and honorary patron of the CHU Sainte-Justine. In addition, through her foundation, she also helps children in need and their families here in Canada and abroad."
By the end of 1998, Dion was recognized by Billboard as the "Woman of the Year". They also stated how Céline's voice was featured in eight charting albums on Billboard 200 year-end chart which sold 18 million units during a calendar year (excluding her own catalog sales and recent releases at that time).
West University of Timișoara conducted a research study that analyzes Céline Dion's contributions to global music culture in both spatial and temporal terms, In November 2013, Dion was inducted at the American Gaming Association Hall Of Fame for her outstanding contributions to the growth and stature of the gaming industry.
In popular culture
Dion was referenced as an antagonist character named "Feline Dion" from the hit animated series Totally Spies! which was aired in an episode in 2013.
In 2021, French actress and filmmaker Valérie Lemercier released Aline, a film which fictionalized Dion's life with Lemercier playing a singer named "Aline Dieu".
Other activities
Business endeavours
Les Productions Feeling Inc., also known as Feeling Inc. or just Feeling, is an artist management company based in Laval, Québec, Canada, and owned by Dion and her husband and manager, Rene Angélil. She is also founder of Nickels Restaurant food chain. She and her husband also own Le Mirage Golf Club and Schwartz's Restaurant. In association with Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf and Shaquille O'Neal, she opened a popular night club called Pure, located at Caesars Palace.
Dion became an entrepreneur with the establishment of her franchise restaurant Nickels in 1990. She has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997. In 2003, Dion signed a deal with Coty, Inc. to release Celine Dion Parfums. Her latest fragrance, Signature, was released in September 2011 with an advertising campaign by New York agency Kraftworks NYC. Since its inception, Celine Dion Parfums has grossed over $850 million in retail sales. In October 2004, Air Canada hired Dion as part of their promotional campaign to unveil new service products and an updated livery. "You and I", the theme song sung by Dion, was written by advertising executives working for Air Canada.
Dion also launched an eponymous bag and accessories line "Céline Dion Collection". According to Innee-Sedona International, the Asia partner for Bugatti Group said that it already topped $10 million sales after just three collections.
Philanthropy
Dion has actively supported many charity organizations, worldwide. She has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993. She has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine succumbed to the disease at the age of sixteen, in Dion's arms. In 2003, she joined a number of other celebrities, athletes, and politicians, including Josh Groban and Yolanda Adams to support "World Children's Day", a global fundraising effort sponsored by McDonald's. The effort raised money from more than 100 nations and benefited orphanages and children's health organizations. In addition, she has been a major supporter of the T. J. Martell Foundation, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, and many health and educational campaigns. During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, she donated $1 million to the victims of the storm, and held a fund-raising event for the victims of the 2004 Asian tsunami, which subsequently raised more than $1 million. After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, she donated $100,000 to China Children & Teenagers' Fund and sent a letter showing her consolation and support. Since 2004, she is involved, alongside husband René Angelil, with the Québec gay community by supporting the publication of health and HIV prevention materials in Gay Globe Magazine, owned by journalist Roger-Luc Chayer. She is also a member of Canadian charity Artists Against Racism. In November 2018, she launched a gender-neutral clothing line for kids, Celinununu. In 2009, Dion joined an effort along with Leonardo DiCaprio, James Cameron and Kate Winslet, to donate money to support the nursing home fees of the then-last living survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, Millvina Dean. The campaign resulted in $30,000 as donation.
Personal life
As the youngest of 14 children, Dion grew up wearing hand-me-downs and sharing a bed with several sisters. As a baby, she slept in a drawer to save on a crib. She was bullied at school and called "Vampire", owing to her teeth and skinny frame. Local tabloids even dubbed her "Canine Dion" in the teenage years of her career. She often spoke of running home from school to play music in the basement with her brothers and sisters. "I detested school", she would later write in her autobiography. "I had always lived surrounded by adults and children a lot older than me. I learned everything I needed to know from them. As far as I was concerned, real life existed around them." Dion's eldest sister was already in her twenties, married, and pregnant with her first child at the time Dion's mother, Thérèse, was pregnant with Celine.
Dion first met René Angélil, her future husband and manager, in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after her brother, Michel Dondalinger Dion, had sent him a demonstration recording of "Ce n'était qu'un rêve" ("It Was Only a Dream/Nothing But A Dream"), a song she, her mother Thérèse, and her brother Jacques Dion had jointly written. Over subsequent years, Angélil guided her to stardom in francophone territories.
After the dissolution of Angélil's second marriage, he and Dion took a professional break and he spent the major part of the year in Las Vegas, while Dion was learning English and taking dance and vocal lessons in Montreal. Upon his return, "he avoided being alone with me for too long a time", she said in her 2000 autobiography My Story, My Dream. Meanwhile, she kept a photo of Angélil under her pillow, writing, "Before I fell asleep, I slipped it under the pillow, out of fear that my mother, who always shared a room with me, would find it." She also wrote "Less and less could I hide from myself the fact that I was in love with Rene; I had all the symptoms," and "I was in love with a man I couldn't love, who didn't want me to love him, who didn't want to love me." Dion's mother, who traveled everywhere with the singer until she was 19, was initially wary of her daughter's growing infatuation with a much older and twice-divorced Angélil, but Dion was insistent, telling her mother "I'm not a minor. This is a free country. No one has the right to prevent me from loving whoever I want to."
Their professional relationship eventually turned romantic after Dion's win at the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin in 1988; she was 20. The romance was known to only family and friends for five years, though Dion nearly revealed all in a tearful 1992 interview with journalist Lise Payette. Many years later, Payette penned the song "Je cherche l'ombre" for Dion's 2007 album D'elles.
Dion and Angélil became engaged in 1993, on Dion's 25th birthday, and made their relationship public in the liner notes of her 1993 album The Colour of My Love. They married on 17 December 1994, at Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec. On 5 January 2000, Dion and Angélil renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas.
In May 2000, Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in vitro fertilization because of years of failed attempts to conceive. Their first son, René-Charles Angélil, was born on 25 January 2001. Dion suffered a miscarriage in 2009. In May 2010, Angélil announced that she was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in vitro fertilization. On Saturday, 23 October 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, Dion gave birth to fraternal twins by Caesarean section at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, The twins were named Eddy, after Dion's favourite French songwriter, Eddy Marnay, who had also produced her first five albums; and Nelson, after former South African President Nelson Mandela. She appeared with her newborn sons on the cover of 9 December 2010 issue of the Canadian edition of Hello! magazine.
On 14 January 2016, Angélil died of throat cancer. His funeral was held on 22 January 2016, in Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, where he and Dion wed 21 years earlier. The couple's eldest son, René-Charles, gave the eulogy just three days before his 15th birthday. Following Angélil's death, Dion became the sole owner and president of her management and production companies, including CDA Productions and Les Productions Feeling.
Two days after Angélil's deathon what would have been her husband's birthdayDion's brother, Daniel, died aged 59, also of cancer.
On 22 March 2018, Dion's management team announced that she had been dealing with hearing irregularities for the previous 12–18 months due to patulous Eustachian tube and would undergo a minimally invasive surgical procedure to correct the problem after ear-drop medications appeared to be no longer working.
Owing to her slight frame, Dion has for decades been subject of eating disorder rumors, which she has consistently denied: "I don't have an eating problem, and there's nothing more I can say about it". "My work requires me to be in great physical shape. I wouldn't have been able to live up to a hundred shows a year and travel ceaselessly from one end of the world to the other if I had eaten too much or not enough, or if, as certain magazines have claimed, I made myself throw up after each meal." She has often spoken about having been bullied at school and lacking confidence in her early years in the business: "I didn't have, visually, what it took. I was not pretty, I had teeth problems, and I was very skinny. I didn't fit the mold".
Dion took up ballet under the guidance of her former dancer, Naomi Stikeman, who also previously performed for The National Ballet of Canada and La La La Human Steps, and former Cirque du Soleil dancer-turned-fashion-illustrator, Pepe Muñoz, who is also part of her styling team. She is also a skier and a regular at her son René-Charles' hockey games.
Dion resides in Henderson, Nevada, in a house she bought with her husband in 2003. She previously owned homes in Montreal, Quebec, and Jupiter Island, Florida.
Dion's older son René-Charles Angélil loves music and has tried to follow a musical path. Under the stage name Big Tip, he released in May 2018 on his SoundCloud account 6 rap songs including originals "The Kid", "The Apple" and "Never Stop" and two adaptations from The Weeknd songs, "Catwalks" sampling on The Weeknd's "Sidewalks" and a remix of The Weeknd's "Loft Music" as "Loft Music Remix". He also released the 5-track EP CasiNo. 5 in December 2020 using the artistic name RC Angelil. The EP includes the tracks "Mamba Mentality", "Money, Thrills and Rest", "No Ls", "GG4" (featuring PAKKA) and "LV".
Discography
French-language studio albums
La voix du bon Dieu (1981)
Céline Dion chante Noël (1981)
Tellement j'ai d'amour... (1982)
Les chemins de ma maison (1983)
Chants et contes de Noël (1983)
Mélanie (1984)
C'est pour toi (1985)
Incognito (1987)
Dion chante Plamondon (1991)
D'eux (1995)
S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998)
1 fille & 4 types (2003)
D'elles (2007)
Sans attendre (2012)
Encore un soir (2016)
English-language studio albums
Unison (1990)
Celine Dion (1992)
The Colour of My Love (1993)
Falling into You (1996)
Let's Talk About Love (1997)
These Are Special Times (1998)
A New Day Has Come (2002)
One Heart (2003)
Miracle (2004)
Taking Chances (2007)
Loved Me Back to Life (2013)
Courage (2019)
Concert tours and residencies
Tours
Les chemins de ma maison (1983–1984)
Céline Dion en concert (1985)
Tournée Incognito (1988)
Unison Tour (1990–1991)
Celine Dion in Concert (1992–1993)
The Colour of My Love Tour (1994–1995)
D'eux Tour (1995–1996)
Falling into You: Around the World (1996–1997)
Let's Talk About Love World Tour (1998–1999)
Taking Chances World Tour (2008–2009)
Tournée Européenne 2013
Summer Tour 2016
Celine Dion Live 2017
Celine Dion Live 2018
Courage World Tour (2019–2023)
Residencies
A New Day... (2003–2007)
Celine (2011–2019)
Celine (2022)
Filmography
Touched by an Angel
The Nanny
All My Children
La fureur de Céline
Des fleurs sur la neige
Quest for Camelot as Juliana (singing voice)
Céline sur les Plaines
Celine: Through the Eyes of the World
Sur la piste du Marsupilami
Hell's Kitchen
Muppets Most Wanted
References
Bibliography
Céline Dion. Artist direct. Retrieved on 18 December 2005.
"Celine Dion". Contemporary Musicians, Volume 25. Gale Group, 1999.
"Celine Dion". Newsmakers 1995, Issue 4. Gale Research, 1995.
Céline Dion. Rock on the Net. Retrieved 20 November 2005.
Céline Dion. The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2 July 2006
Céline Dion provided by VH1.com Retrieved 16 August 2005.
Dion extends long Las Vegas stint. news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2005.
Durchholz, Daniel. Review: One Heart. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. St. Louis, Mo.: 24 April 2003. p. F.3
The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalist covemagazine.com Retrieved 1 November 2005.
Joel Whitburn Presents the Billboard Hot 100 Charts: The Nineties ()
World Music Awards Diamond Award Retrieved 1 November 2005, (Search by year required)
Further reading
External links
CelineDion.com – Official website operated by Sony Music Canada (English, French).
[ Celine Dion] at AllMusic
[ Celine Dion] at Billboard.com
1968 births
Living people
20th-century Canadian composers
20th-century Canadian women singers
20th-century women composers
21st-century Canadian composers
21st-century Canadian women singers
21st-century women composers
550 Music artists
Ballad musicians
Businesspeople from Florida
Businesspeople from Quebec
Canadian businesspeople in retailing
Canadian child singers
Canadian contemporary R&B singers
Canadian dance musicians
Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States
Canadian women pop singers
Canadian women rock singers
Canadian women singers
Canadian pop pianists
Canadian restaurateurs
Canadian Roman Catholics
Canadian soft rock musicians
Canadian sopranos
Canadian soul singers
Canadian voice actresses
Canadian women in business
Canadian women philanthropists
Canadian women pianists
Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Columbia Records artists
Companions of the Order of Canada
Epic Records artists
Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Switzerland
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1988
Eurovision Song Contest winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Félix Award winners
French-language singers of Canada
French Quebecers
Grammy Award winners
Ivor Novello Award winners
Juno Award for Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Artist of the Year winners
Juno Award for Dance Recording of the Year winners
Juno Award for Francophone Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for International Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Single of the Year winners
Juno International Achievement Award winners
Las Vegas shows
Musicians from Las Vegas
Officers of the National Order of Quebec
People from Charlemagne, Quebec
People from Henderson, Nevada
People from Jupiter Island, Florida
Philanthropists from Florida
Philanthropists from Nevada
Philanthropists from Quebec
Pop rock singers
Singers from Quebec
Singers with a three-octave vocal range
Spanish-language singers of Canada
Women restaurateurs
World Music Awards winners | true | [
"Fame Kills: Starring Kanye West and Lady Gaga was a planned co-headlining concert tour by American record producer and vocalist Kanye West, and singer Lady Gaga. For the tour, which would have supported West's fourth album 808s & Heartbreak (2008) and Gaga's The Fame Monster EP (2009), the pair conceived a production that would unite their different musical audiences. The tour was scheduled to run from November 2009 to January 2010, but was canceled after public controversy regarding West's interruption of Taylor Swift's Best Female Video speech at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. Shortly after the cancellation, Gaga embarked on her own tour, The Monster Ball Tour, while West took a break from his career.\n\nBackground and development\n\nIn June 2009, West announced on The View he would be touring with Gaga, but she would not perform as an opening act. \"She's talented and so incredible that she's not an opening act\", he said. \"We're doing it together, with no opening act.\" In August, Gaga expressed her belief that the tour would be \"one of the most groundbreaking moments in touring history.\" Before the singer agreed to collaborate with West, she demanded that the tour would remain accessible to her gay fans. \"I'm gay\", she recalled telling West in an interview with Out magazine, \"my music is gay. My show is gay. And I love that it's gay. And I love my gay fans and they're all going to be coming to our show. And it's going to remain gay.\"\n\nThe tour's stage was designed by Gaga and West as a traverse; \"Instead of being on just one end of the arena, the stage traverses the entire arena\", Gaga noted. \"It's not really in-the-round; it's more of a runway.\" The concept of the tour was to feature the performers on opposite ends of the stage, with Gaga's end representing \"home and humble beginnings\" and West's end representing \"the fame\", with the two fighting for each other's positions throughout the show. West would perform his singles, Gaga would perform hers, and then the duo would perform several duets.\n\nGaga said she enjoyed designing Fame Kills with West, calling themselves \"creative kindreds.\" She explained that they did not plan to tour for themselves, but rather for \"everybody else\"; the goal of the tour would have been to bring two different groups of fans and music enthusiasts together. \"I make pop music and Kanye's fans love pop music because he has changed what hip-hop means\", she said. \"For me, the tour is more about just bringing people together and having a big dance party. The show is a celebration of creativity, art, fashion and choreography.\" She also noted that West showed her a lot during the creative planning of the show, such as one instance where Gaga wanted to put side panels on the stage that would have obstructed the view for some fans. \"He was like, 'I'm not selling a ticket to a fan who can't see the show,' and he's right\", she said.\n\nA promotional video for the tour was released in September 2009. West posted the video on his blog accompanied by the text, \"What happened to all the rock stars? The fame killed them!\" The 30-second clip features slow-motion footage of a topless Gaga being carried by a man presumed to be West. Daniel Kreps from Rolling Stone described it as \"soft 70s porn\", while adding that he had \"no idea what [the text in the video] has to do with the 30-second clip, but we're sure it'll start to make more sense as more promos roll out as we approach the tour's launch.\"\n\nCancellation\n\nFollowing singer Taylor Swift's win for the music video \"You Belong with Me\" at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards for Best Female Video, West stormed the stage, grabbed Swift's microphone, and declared that singer Beyoncé deserved the award for her \"Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)\" video. He declared, \"Yo, Taylor, I'm really happy for you, and I'm going to let you finish, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time.\" West was profusely criticized by celebrities and fans alike over the incident. Following the interruption, the status of Fame Kills was rumored to be in question. A representative from a US urban radio station commented: \"I think this could potentially affect his upcoming tour with Lady Gaga. This isn't an urban tour — urban audiences can be a bit more forgiving than mainstream audiences are. I can see him going on stage and people booing him. It's unfortunate.\" Less than a week after the ticket sales began, the tour was canceled but no reason was given.\n\nVarious rumors circulated as to why the tour was canceled. It was suspected that it was canceled due to poor ticket sales, feuding between Gaga and West's management teams, and Gaga's desire to play in smaller venues. Gaga's choreographer, Laurieann Gibson, said the tour was terminated due to \"creative differences\" between the singers. Gaga claimed that the cancellation was a mutual decision, and added that she would soon embark on her own headlining tour The Monster Ball Tour in the coming weeks, while West would be taking a break from his career. In 2016, West claimed that Gaga had been solely responsible for canceling the tour following the MTV incident.\n\nGaga was scheduled to begin The Monster Ball Tour in March 2010, but following the cancellation of Fame Kills, The Monster Ball Tour began in November 2009. Gaga said that while she was inspired by what she and West had planned to do with the Fame Kills tour, she decided not to use any of the ideas and concepts they created together, citing integrity.\n\nScheduled tour dates\nAll tour dates were canceled.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nDid Video (Music Awards) Kill the Lady Gaga-Kanye West Tour? E!\n\n2009 in American music\n2010 in American music\nCancelled concert tours\nCo-headlining concert tours\nKanye West concert tours\nLady Gaga concert tours",
"\"What Do I Have to Do\" is a song performed by Australian singer and songwriter Kylie Minogue taken from her third studio album, Rhythm of Love (1990). The song was written and produced by Stock, Aitken & Waterman. Originally, the song was planned to be released after the single \"Better the Devil You Know\", but instead \"Step Back in Time\" was released and this was released as the third single on 21 January 1991. The song received positive reviews from most music critics, who thought the song was an instant rave classic.\n\nThe song peaked at number eleven in her native Australia. The song did however peak at number six in the United Kingdom, becoming a success there. The song was also hit in France and The Netherlands.\n\nThe song has been performed on most of Minogue's concert tours, including her Rhythm of Love Tour, Let's Get to It Tour and Intimate and Live Tour. The song has also been performed at the Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour and the Homecoming Tour, and has been most recently been performed at her Aphrodite World Tour.\n\nBackground\nThere are three official promotional mixes of the song. The early unreleased first version is synth orienated and has multilayered vocals. Much of the synth was omitted and the drums, bass and vocals were toned down for the second album version. The third version, the 7\" Mix, contains a newer drum track, multilayered vocals in the chorus and relies much less on the synthesizers than on the album version. This version of the song also contains samples from American comedian Sam Kinison, and was used for the music video. In the UK a limited edition 7″ single came with postcards with shots from the video.\n\nOriginally, \"What Do I Have To Do\" was planned to be released as the follow-up single to \"Better the Devil You Know\", but was later released as the third single off the album instead, and the track was specially remixed for single release. The 1999 biographical book Girl Next Door identified this track as Kylie's favourite to perform live.\n\nThe single artwork was photographed by Robert Erdmann.\n\nReception\n\nCritical response\n\"What Do I Have To Do?\" received very positive reviews from many music critics. Jason Shawahn from About.com said the song, along with \"Better The Devil You Know\" and \"Wouldn't Change a Thing\", \"are nothing if not pop masterpieces.\" He also labeled it as a \"pop classic\". Quentin Harrison from Albumism noted it as \"luxuriant electro-pop\", adding that Ian Curnow and Phil Harding \"rework it into an appetizing, but accessible house ditty that emphasizes unity between the single's beat and Minogue's supple vocal.\" While reviewing Rhythm of Love, Chris True from AllMusic highlighted the song as an album standout. NME voted it as the thirtieth best track of 1991. Eleanor Levy from Record Mirror described it as \"more mature, in a Hi-NRG, Bronski Beatish way.\" She added, \"More straightforward rhythm than formula pop song, it fizzes predictably rather than sparkles but, like Kylie's ever-elongating fringe, will no doubt grow and grow.\" Caroline Sullivan from Smash Hits called it \"supreme\", and said the song \"sees a return to the reassuring old Kylie-sound\". While reviewing Ultimate Kylie, Mark Edwards from Stylus Magazine gave it a positive remark, saying that along with \"Shocked\" and \"Give Me Just a Little More Time\", they \"were great songs and suddenly Kylie was a little bit cool.\"\n\nChart performance\n\"What Do I Have to Do\" debuted at number twenty-seven on the Australian Singles Chart, until rising and peaking at number eleven, staying there for two consecutive weeks. The song then debuted at number ninety-nine on the Dutch Top 40, until peaking at number eighty-one for one week. The song then debuted and peaked at number fifty on the French Singles Chart.\n\nImpact and legacy\nEnglish DJ and record producer Nicky Holloway chose \"What Do I Have to Do\" as one of his top 10 vinyl thrills in 1996, saying, \"I've had so much fun with this over the years. You don't realise what you're dancing to until it's too late to stop! It's got a long intro so people are dancing away and don't realise that it's Kylie Minogue until they're sucked into it.\"\n\nMusic video\n\nThe music video for the song was directed by Dave Hogan. In relation to this video, Minogue is quoted as saying \"how many Hollywood stars can you look like in three and a half minutes...\". Her younger sister Dannii Minogue also appears in the video. The music video begins with clips of the dance scene intercut with Minogue emerging from a swimming pool and her love interest seeing her with another man. The love interest is played by Zane O'Donnell, the same model who would appear in the video for Minogue's subsequent single \"Shocked\". \nMinogue then goes out to the balcony overlooking a fairground and the man follows. The video then shifts to the man watching Minogue dancing with a female friend in a club. The next scene is Minogue waking up in her lover's bed as he prepares to leave the bedroom. After this, Minogue singing on the bed is intercut with scenes of her singing and dancing in front of a white backdrop. The video goes back to her and her friend having fun in the club as the man stares at her again. Later, she sits on the bench overlooking the scene and takes a glance at a lookalike of her lover next to her. Following this, she gets up to dance as the man watches. Finally, she gets a tattoo of a black panther on her back and shows it to her lover. The video concludes with all of Minogue's performance scenes intercut with her doing the ironing in a Gingham Apron and on a date with her lover. The final shot is of Minogue and her lover walking across a bridge.\n\nWhile reviewing the DVD version of Greatest Hits for Amazon.co.uk, John Galilee said \"Her most outrageous but greatest video moment is where she parodies certain movie stars in the chic video for \"What Do I Have to Do?\", and because of her heavy eye make-up almost earns herself the title drag-queen Kylie (watch out for sister Dannii who briefly stars in the video, wearing a blonde wig).\"\n\nFormats and track listings\nThese are the formats and track listings of major single releases of \"What Do I Have to Do\".\n\n 7\" vinyl single\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix) – 3:32\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Instrumental) – 3:48\n\n 12\" vinyl single\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix) – 7:48\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Instrumental) – 5:08\n\n CD single\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix) – 3:32\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix) – 7:48\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Instrumental) – 5:08\n\n iTunes Digital EP – Remixes\n(Not available at time of original release. Released for the first time as part of iTunes PWL archive release in 2009)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (12\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Between the Sheets Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Album Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 12\" Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 12\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 7\" Backing Track)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 7\" Instrumental)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 7\" Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers 12\" Mix)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Movers & Shakers Do the Dub)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix)\n\n iTunes Digital EP – The Original Synth Mixes (released 8 November 2010)\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Billy The Fish Mix: Part I) 3:44\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Billy The Fish Mix: Part II) 7:30\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Original 12\" Mix) 7:09\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Album Mix II) 8:42\n\n iTunes Digital EP – What Do I Have to Do?\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Mix) — 3:33\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Pumpin' Mix) — 7:47\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Album Mix) — 8:07\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Instrumental) — 3:33\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Extended Instrumental) — 5:07\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (7\" Backing Track) — 3:33\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Instrumental) — 3:43\n \"What Do I Have to Do\" (Album Backing Track) — 3:43\n \"Things Can Only Get Better\" (Album Instrumental) — 3:55\n \"Things Can Only Get Better\" (Album Backing Track) — 3:55\n\nLive performances\nMinogue performed the song on the following concert tours:\n Rhythm of Love Tour\n Let's Get to It Tour\n Intimate and Live Tour\n On a Night Like This Tour\n Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour (as part of the \"Smiley Kylie Medley\")\n Showgirl: The Homecoming Tour (as part of the \"Everything Taboo Medley\")\n For You, for Me (as part of the \"Everything Taboo Medley\")\n Aphrodite World Tour\nSummer 2019\n\nThe song was also performed on:\n An Audience with Kylie Minogue 2001 TV special, performed as part of the hits medley.\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nReferences\n\n1991 singles\nKylie Minogue songs\nSong recordings produced by Stock Aitken Waterman\nSongs written by Mike Stock (musician)\nSongs written by Matt Aitken\nSongs written by Pete Waterman\n1990 songs\nMushroom Records singles\nPete Waterman Entertainment singles\nTorch songs\nEurodance songs"
]
|
[
"Celine Dion",
"2011-2014: Celine, Sans attendre and Loved Me Back to Life",
"What did Celine Dion do in 2011?",
"February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011.",
"Was her tour successful?",
"Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote.",
"Did she win any awards during this time?",
"I don't know.",
"What songs were popular on our tour?",
"Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. \"Breakaway\", \"Incredible\" and \"Water and a Flame",
"What else did she do while on tour?",
"1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder."
]
| C_78f1e410e4c0415db79dddeaf75c47aa_0 | Who else did she work with? | 6 | Besides Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder, who else did Celine Dione work with? | Celine Dion | In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. Additionally, for a record sixth time, Dion performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, Dion appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, Dion released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, Dion made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica. In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. Dion began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles. The music video for "Incredible" was uploaded onto Dion's official Vevo channel in early June 2014. On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Celine une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia. CANNOTANSWER | To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, | Céline Marie Claudette Dion (; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. She is noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals. Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French language artist of all time. Her music has incorporated genres such as pop, rock, R&B, gospel, and classical music.
Born into a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, she emerged as a teen star in her home country with a series of French-language albums during the 1980s. She first gained international recognition by winning both the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, where she represented Switzerland. After learning to speak English, she signed on to Epic Records in the United States. In 1990, Dion released her debut English-language album, Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world. Her recordings since have been mainly in English and French although she has also sung in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese, and Chinese.
During the 1990s, she achieved worldwide fame after releasing several best-selling English-language albums in music history, such as Falling into You (1996) and Let's Talk About Love (1997), which were both certified diamond in the US and over 30 million sales worldwide each. She also scored a series of international number-one hits, including "The Power of Love", "Think Twice", "Because You Loved Me", "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", "My Heart Will Go On", and "I'm Your Angel". Dion continued releasing French albums between each English record; D'eux (1995) became the best-selling French-language album of all time, while S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998), Sans attendre (2012), and Encore un soir (2016), were all certified diamond in France. During the 2000s, she built her reputation as a highly successful live performer with A New Day... on the Las Vegas Strip (2003–07), which remains the highest-grossing concert residency of all time, as well as the Taking Chances World Tour (2008–09), one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time.
Dion is also one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with record sales of more than 200 million worldwide. Although her releases have often received mixed critical reception, Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most successful vocalists. She has won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year. Billboard named her the "Queen of Adult Contemporary" for having the most number-one songs on the radio format for a female artist. Dion is the second best-selling female artist in the US during the Nielsen SoundScan, the 8th all-time best-performing top female artist in the United States, and the sixth all-time best-performing female soloist in Billboard 200 history. In 2003, she was honoured by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for selling over 50 million albums in Europe. In 2008, Dion was recognized as the Best-selling International Artist in South Africa.
Life and career
1968–1989: Early life and career beginnings
Dion was born in Charlemagne, Quebec, northeast of Montreal, the youngest of 14 children of Thérèse (née Tanguay, 1927–2020), a homemaker, and Adhémar Dion (1923–2003), a butcher, both of French-Canadian descent. She was raised a Roman Catholic in a poor but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne. Music had always been a major part of the Dion family, and she was named after the song "Céline", which French singer Hugues Aufray had recorded two years before her birth. On 13 August 1973, at the age of five, the young Céline made her first public appearance at her brother Michel's wedding, where she performed Christine Charbonneau's song "Du fil, des aiguilles et du coton". She continued to perform with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar called Le Vieux Baril, "The Old Barrel". From an early age, she had dreamed of being a performer. In a 1994 interview with People magazine, she recalled, "I missed my family and my home, but I don't regret having lost my adolescence. I had one dream: I wanted to be a singer." As a child in Quebec, Dion participated in Girl Guide programs as a member of Girl Guides of Canada.
At age 12, she collaborated with her mother and her brother Jacques to write and compose her first song, "Ce n'était qu'un rêve", whose title translates as "It Was Only a Dream" or "Nothing But A Dream". Her brother Michel sent the recording to music manager René Angélil, whose name he discovered on the back of a Ginette Reno album. Angélil was moved to tears by Dion's voice and decided to make her a star. In 1981, he mortgaged his home to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu, which later became a local No. 1 hit and made her an instant star in Quebec. Her popularity spread to other parts of the world when she competed in the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, and won the musician's award for "Top Performer" as well as the gold medal for "Best Song" with "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi".
By 1983, in addition to becoming the first Canadian artist to receive a gold record in France for the single "D'amour ou d'amitié" ("Of Love or of Friendship"), Dion had also won several Félix Awards, including "Best Female performer" and "Discovery of the Year". Further success came when she represented Switzerland in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Ne partez pas sans moi" and won the contest by a close margin in Dublin, Ireland.
At age 18, after seeing a Michael Jackson performance, Dion told Angélil that she wanted to be a star like Jackson. Though confident in her talent, Angélil realized that her image needed to be changed for her to be marketed worldwide. She receded from the spotlight for a number of months, during which she underwent dental surgery to improve her appearance, and was sent to the École Berlitz in 1989 to polish her English.
In 1989, during a concert on the Incognito tournée, she injured her voice. She consulted the otorhinolaryngologist William Gould, who gave her an ultimatum: have immediate surgery on her vocal cords or do not utilize them at all for three weeks. Dion chose the latter and underwent vocal training with William Riley.
1990–1992: Unison, Dion chante Plamondon, and Celine Dion
Two years after she learned English, Dion made her debut into the Anglophone market with Unison (1990), the lead single having originally been recorded by Laura Branigan. She incorporated the help of many established musicians, including Vito Luprano and Canadian producer David Foster. The album was largely influenced by 1980s soft rock music that quickly found a niche within the adult contemporary radio format. Unison also hit the right notes with critics: Jim Faber of Entertainment Weekly wrote that her vocals were "tastefully unadorned", and that she never attempted to "bring off styles that are beyond her". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic declared it "a fine, sophisticated American debut". Singles from the album included "(If There Was) Any Other Way", "The Last to Know", "Unison", and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now", a mid-tempo soft-rock ballad that made prominent use of the electric guitar. The latter became her first top-ten hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number four. In 1991, Dion was a featured soloist on "Voices That Care", a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm.
Her real international breakthrough came when she duetted with Peabo Bryson on the title track to Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991). It became her first top-ten hit in the UK and her second top-ten hit in the United States. The song earned its songwriters an Academy Award for Best Song and gave Dion her first Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. "Beauty and the Beast" served as the lead single from her 1992 self-titled album, which, like her debut, had a strong pop rock influence combined with elements of soul and classical music. Owing to the success of the lead-off single and her collaborations with David Foster and Diane Warren, the album was even more well-received commercially than Unison; it was certified diamond in Canada and double platinum in the US. The album's second single "If You Asked Me To" (a cover of Patti LaBelle's song from the 1989 movie Licence to Kill) became her first number-one single in Canada and peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Also during this time, Dion released the Francophone album Dion chante Plamondon. The album consisted mostly of covers, but featured four new songs: "Des mots qui sonnent", "Je danse dans ma tête", "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime", and "L'amour existe encore". It was originally released in Canada and France during the 1991–1992 period, then later received an international release in 1994, the first French Celine Dion album to do so. "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)" became a smash hit in France, reaching No. 2 and being certified gold. In Quebec, the album was certified Gold the day it was released.
By 1992, Unison, Céline Dion, and numerous high-profile media appearances had propelled Dion to superstardom in North America. She had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame. However, while she was experiencing rising success in the US, her French fans in Canada criticized her for neglecting them. She would later rebuff these criticisms at the 1991 Félix Awards show, where, after winning "English Artist of the Year", she openly refused to accept the award. She asserted that she was—and would always be—a French, not an English, artist. Apart from her commercial success, there were also changes in her personal life, as Angélil, who was 26 years her senior, transitioned from manager to lover. However, the relationship was kept a secret as they both feared that the public would find their relations inappropriate.
1993–1995: The Colour of My Love and D'eux
In 1993, Dion announced her feelings for her manager by declaring him "the colour of [her] love" in the dedication section of her third English-language album The Colour of My Love. However, instead of criticizing their relationship as she had feared, fans embraced the couple. Eventually, Angélil and Dion married in an extravagant wedding ceremony on 17 December 1994, which was broadcast live on Canadian television.
As with most of her catalogue, The Colour of My Love had over-riding themes of love and romance. It became her most successful record up to that point, selling more than six million copies in the US, two million in Canada, and peaking at No. 1 in many countries. The album also spawned Dion's first US, Canadian, and Australian No. 1 single "The Power of Love" (a remake of Jennifer Rush's 1985 hit), which would become her signature hit in various nations until she reached new career heights in the late 1990s.
The single "When I Fall in Love", a duet with Clive Griffin, achieved moderate success on the US and Canadian charts and was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one. The Colour of My Love also became Dion's first major hit in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. Both the album and the single "Think Twice" simultaneously occupied the top of the British charts for five consecutive weeks. "Think Twice", which remained at No. 1 for seven weeks, eventually became the fourth single by a female artist to sell in excess of one million copies in the UK while the album was eventually certified five-times platinum for two million copies sold.
Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record. Generally, they achieved more credibility than her English-language works. She released À l'Olympia, a live album that was recorded during one of her concerts at the Paris Olympia in 1994. It had one promotional single, a live version of "Calling You", which peaked at seventy-five on the French Singles Chart. She also recorded a bilingual version of "Petit Papa Noël" with Alvin and the Chipmunks for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk. D'eux (also known as The French Album in the United States), was released in 1995, and it would go on to become the best-selling French-language album of all time. The album was mostly written and produced by Jean-Jacques Goldman, and amassed huge success with the singles "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" and "Je sais pas". "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" reached No. 1 in France and stayed at the top position for twelve weeks. It was later certified Platinum in France. The single reached the top ten in the UK and Ireland, a rare accomplishment for a French song. The second single off the album, "Je sais pas", reached No. 1 on the French Singles Chart as well and was certified Silver there.
During the mid-1990s and onward, Dion's albums were generally constructed on the basis of melodramatic soft rock ballads, with sprinklings of up-tempo pop and rare forays into other genres. She collaborated with many renowned writers and producers such as Jim Steinman and David Foster, who helped her to develop a signature sound. While critical reviews fluctuated, her releases performed increasingly well on the international charts, and in 1996, she won the World Music Award for "World's Best-selling Female Recording Artist of the Year" for the third time. By the mid-1990s, she had established herself as one of the best-selling artists in the world.
1996–1999: Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love, and S'il suffisait d'aimer
In the five years since her debut English language album in 1990, Billboard stated that she had already sold 40 million albums worldwide. Falling into You (1996), Dion's fourth English-language album, presented the singer at the height of her popularity and showed a further progression of her music. In an attempt to reach a wider audience, the album combined many elements, such as complex orchestral sounds, African chanting, and elaborate musical effects. Additionally, instruments like the violin, Spanish guitar, trombone, the cavaquinho, and saxophone created a new sound. The singles encompassed a variety of musical styles. The title track "Falling into You" and "River Deep – Mountain High" (a Tina Turner cover) made prominent use of percussion instruments; "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (produced by its writer Jim Steinman) and a remake of Eric Carmen's "All by Myself" maintained a soft-rock atmosphere, combined with the classical sound of the piano; and the No. 1 single "Because You Loved Me", which was written by Diane Warren, was a pop ballad that served as the theme to the 1996 film Up Close and Personal.
Falling into You garnered career-best reviews for Dion. While Dan Leroy wrote that it was not very different from her previous work, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times and Natalie Nichols of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the album was formulaic, other critics, such as Chuck Eddy of Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic, and Daniel Durchholz, lavished the album as "compelling", "passionate", "stylish", "elegant", and "remarkably well-crafted". Falling into You became Dion's most critically and commercially successful album: it topped the charts in many countries and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.
In 2013, CBC Music ranked Falling into You 33rd in their list of the 100 greatest Canadian albums ever. In the United States, the album reached No. 1, and was later certified 11× Platinum for over 11 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album was certified diamond for over one million copies shipped. The IFPI certified Falling into You 9× Platinum, an accolade that has been given to only two other albums in history, with one of the two being Dion's own album, Let's Talk About Love. The album also won Grammy Awards for Best Pop Album and the academy's highest honour, Album of the Year.
Dion was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream" at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In March 1996, she launched the Falling into You Tour in support of her new album, performing concerts around the world for over a year.
She followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love (1997), which was publicized as its sequel. The recording process took place in London, New York City, and Los Angeles, and featured a host of special guests, such as Barbra Streisand on "Tell Him"; the Bee Gees on "Immortality"; and tenor Luciano Pavarotti on "I Hate You Then I Love You". Other musicians included Carole King, Sir George Martin, Bryan Adams and Jamaican singer Diana King, who added a reggae tinge to "Treat Her Like a Lady".
Let's Talk About Love was another major success, reaching No. 1 all over the world, attaining platinum status in twenty-four sales territories, and becoming the fastest selling album of her career. In the United States, the album topped the chart in its seventh week of release, and was later certified 10× Platinum in the US for over 10 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album sold 230,212 copies in its first week of release, which remains a record. It was eventually certified diamond in Canada for over one million copies shipped. The most successful single from the album was the classically influenced ballad "My Heart Will Go On", which was written and composed by James Horner and Will Jennings, and produced by Horner and Walter Afanasieff.
Serving as the love theme for the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic, the song topped the charts across the world and became Dion's signature song. Horner and Jennings won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song, while Dion herself garnered two Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and the most coveted, Record of the Year, (the song itself won four awards, but two were presented to the songwriters). "My Heart Will Go On" and "Think Twice" made her the only female artist in the UK to have two singles to sell more than a million copies. In support of her album, she embarked on the Let's Talk About Love Tour between 1998 and 1999.
Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums: the Christmas album These Are Special Times (1998), the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer, and the compilation album All the Way... A Decade of Song (1999). On These Are Special Times, she co-wrote the song "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day" along with Ric Wake and Peter Zizzo. The album was her most classically influenced yet, with orchestral arrangements found on virtually every track. The album featured the single "I'm Your Angel" (a duet with R. Kelly), which became her fourth US No. 1 single, and a smash hit across the world. The album's second single "The Prayer" (a duet with Andrea Bocelli) served as the soundtrack of the 1998 film Quest for Camelot and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. All the Way... A Decade of Song drew together her most successful hits coupled with seven new songs, including the lead-off single "That's the Way It Is", a cover of Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", and "All the Way", a duet with Frank Sinatra. All the Way became one of the best-selling compilation albums of all time, reaching No. 1 in the United States for three weeks. The album was later certified 7x Platinum in the US for 7 million copies shipped. It also topped the charts in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Her last French-language studio album of the 1990s, S'il suffisait d'aimer, was very successful as well, topping the charts in every major French-speaking country, including France, Switzerland, the Wallonia region of Belgium, and Canada. In France, the album was certified diamond, selling 1.5 million copies. By the end of the 1990s, Dion had sold more than 130 million records worldwide, and had won a slew of industry awards. Her status as one of the music industry's biggest pop divas was further solidified when she was asked to perform on VH1's Divas Live special in 1998, with superstars Aretha Franklin, Gloria Estefan, Shania Twain, and Mariah Carey. That year, she also received two of the highest Canadian honours: "Officer of the Order of Canada for Outstanding Contribution to the World of Contemporary Music" and "Officer of the National Order of Quebec". A year later, she was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame, and was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.
Starting from the mid-1990s, the pop rock influence that was more noticeable in her earlier releases was replaced by a more mature feel. Additionally, the recurring theme of "love" dominated most of her releases, which led to some critics dismissing her music as banal. Other critics, like Elysa Gardner and Jose F. Promis, praised her voice during this period, describing it as a "technical marvel". Steve Dollar, in his review of These Are Special Times, opined that Dion was a "vocal Olympian for whom there ain't no mountain—or scale—high enough".
2000–2003: Hiatus, A New Day Has Come, One Heart, and 1 fille & 4 types
After releasing and promoting thirteen albums during the 1990s, Dion stated that she needed to settle down, and announced on her latest album All the Way... A Decade of Song, that she needed to take a step back from the spotlight and enjoy life. Angélil's diagnosis with esophageal cancer also prompted her to hiatus. While on break, she was unable to escape the spotlight. In 2000, the National Enquirer published a false story about the singer. Brandishing a picture of Dion and her husband, the magazine misquoted her, printing the headline, "Celine — 'I'm Pregnant With Twins!'" She later sued the magazine for more than $20million. The editors of the Enquirer printed an apology and a full retraction to her in the next issue, and donated money to the American Cancer Society in honour of her and her husband. A year after the incident, after undergoing fertility treatments, she gave birth to a son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, on 25 January 2001, in Florida.
Following the 11 September attacks, Dion returned to the music scene, and in a televised performance sang "God Bless America" at the benefit concert America: A Tribute to Heroes. Chuck Taylor of Billboard wrote, "the performance ... brings to mind what has made her one of the celebrated vocalists of our time: the ability to render emotion that shakes the soul. Affecting, meaningful, and filled with grace, this is a musical reflection to share with all of us still searching for ways to cope." She performed it again in 2003 during pregame festivities for Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego. In December 2001, she published her autobiography My Story, My Dream which chronicled her rags-to-riches story.
Dion ended her three-year sabbatical from the music industry with the aptly titled album A New Day Has Come, released in March 2002. The album was her most personal yet, with songs focusing on her motherhood and maturation as a woman such as "A New Day Has Come", and "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)". She stated: "becoming a mother makes you a grown-up." She stated, "A New Day Has Come, for Rene, for me, is the baby. It has everything to do with the baby ... That song "A New Day Has Come" represents very well the mood I'm feeling right now. It represents the whole album." A New Day Has Come debuted at No. 1 in more than 17 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 527,000 copies; marking her first No. 1 debut on the chart, as well as the highest debut sales week of her career in the US. It was eventually certified 3× Platinum in the United States, and 6× Platinum in Canada.
While the album was commercially successful, critical reviews suggested that it was "forgettable" and the lyrics were "lifeless". Both Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone magazine, and Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly, stated that Dion's music had not developed much during her break, and classed her material as trite and mediocre. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine called the album "a lengthy collection of drippy, gooey pop fluffer-nutter". The first single off the album, A New Day Has Come peaked at No.22 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, being an airplay-only release. On the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks, however, the song spent 21 consecutive weeks at No. 1, breaking the record for the longest span at the top. The previous record holders were Phil Collins' You'll Be in My Heart and Dion's own Because You Loved Me, both of which lasted nineteen weeks at No. 1. The album's next single, "I'm Alive", was featured on the soundtrack for Stuart Little 2 (2002), and was ranked number 2 on the European Hot 100 Singles, and number 6 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks in the United States. During 2002, she performed for many benefit concerts, including her second appearance on VH1 Divas Live, a concert to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation, alongside Cher, Anastacia, Dixie Chicks, Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, Cyndi Lauper, Shakira, and Stevie Nicks.
In conjunction with an endorsement deal with Chrysler, she released One Heart (2003), an album that represented her appreciation for life. The album largely consisted of pop and dance music—a deviation from the soaring, melodramatic ballads, for which she had been known. Although the album achieved moderate success, One Heart was met with mixed criticism, and words such as "predictable" and "banal" appeared even in the most lenient reviews. A cover of the 1989 Cyndi Lauper hit "I Drove All Night", released to launch her advertising campaign with Chrysler, incorporated elements of dance-pop and rock and roll. The advertising deal was met with criticism, with some stating that Dion was trying to cater to her sponsors.
After One Heart, she released her next English-language studio album, Miracle (2004). Miracle was a multimedia project conceived by Dion and Australian photographer Anne Geddes and had a theme centring on babies and motherhood. The album was filled with lullabies and other songs of maternal love and inspiration, including covers of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" and John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy". The reviews for Miracle were mixed. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic.com gave the album three of out five stars, stating, "The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience." Chuck Taylor of Billboard magazine wrote that the single "Beautiful Boy" was "an unexpected gem" and called Dion "a timeless, enormously versatile artist", Chuck Arnold of People Magazine, however, labelled the album as excessively sentimental, while Nancy Miller of Entertainment Weekly opined that "the whole earth-mama act is just opportunism, reborn". Miracle debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 in Canada and was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA.
The francophone album 1 fille & 4 types (1 Girl & 4 Guys), released in October 2003, fared better than her previous two releases and showed her trying to distance herself from the "diva" image. She recruited Jean-Jacques Goldman, Gildas Arzel, Eric Benzi, and Jacques Veneruso, with whom she had previously worked on two of her best-selling French albums S'il suffisait d'aimer and D'eux. Labeled "the album of pleasure" by Dion herself, the album cover showed her in a simple and relaxed manner, contrary to the choreographed poses usually found on her album covers. The album achieved widespread commercial success in France, Canada, and Belgium where it reached No. 1. In France, the album debuted at No. 1 and was later certified 2× platinum after selling over 700,000 copies. Critic Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Dion's vocals were "back at top of their game" and that she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while".
Though her albums were commercially successful, they did not achieve the sales or the reception of her previous works. Her songs received less airplay as radio became less embracing of balladeers like Dion, Carey, and Houston, and was focused on more up-tempo, Urban/Hip-hop songs. By 2004, Dion had accumulated sales of more than 175 million albums worldwide and received the Chopard Diamond Award from the World Music Awards for her achievements. According to the official World Music Awards website, the award is rare; it is "not presented every year" and an artist can be presented with the award only for selling "over 100 million albums during their career".
2003–2007: A New Day...
In early 2002, Dion announced a three-year, 600-show contract to appear five nights a week in an entertainment extravaganza, A New Day..., at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. This move was generally seen as risky, but journalist Miriam Nunzio wrote that it was "one of the smartest business decisions in years by any major recording artist". Dion conceived the show after seeing O by Franco Dragone during her break from recording, and it premiered on 25 March 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena specifically designed for her show and modelled after the Roman Colosseum. Many stars attended the opening night including Dick Clark, Alan Thicke, Kathy Griffin, Lance Bass, and Justin Timberlake, who hosted the television special. The show, directed by Dragone and choreographed by the renowned Mia Michaels, was a combination of dance, music, and visual effects. It included Dion performing her biggest hits against an array of dancers and special effects. Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find the singer among the excessive stage ornamentation and dancers. However, he noted that the show had become more enjoyable over the course of its run, because of her improved stage-presence and simplified costumes.
The show was well-received by audiences, despite the complaints of expensive tickets; it routinely sold out until its end in late 2007. Ticket prices averaged $135.33. According to Pollstar, Dion sold 322,000 tickets and grossed US$43.9 million in the first half of 2005, and by July 2005, she had sold out 315 out of 384 shows. By the end of 2005, she grossed more than US$76 million, placing sixth on Billboard's Money Makers list for 2005. Because of the show's success, her contract was extended into 2007 for an undisclosed sum. On 5 January 2007, it was announced that the show would end on 15 December 2007, with tickets for the period after October 2007 having gone on sale from 1 March. According to Billboard, A New Day... is the most successful residency of all time, grossing over US$385 million ($ million in dollars) and drawing nearly three million people to 717 shows. The Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... DVD was released on 10 December 2007, in Europe and the following day in North America.
2007–2010: D'elles, Taking Chances, and Taking Chances Tour
On 21 May 2007, Dion released the French-language album D'elles (About Them), which debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week. It marked her tenth No. 1 album in the SoundScan era, and her eighth to debut at the top position. In Canada, the album has been certified 2× platinum, and within the first month had already shipped half a million units worldwide. D'Elles also reached No. 1 in France and Belgium. The first single "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)" (meaning "And If There Was Only One Woman Left (I Would Be That One)") debuted at the top of the French singles chart a month earlier. Later that same year, she released the English album Taking Chances on 12 November in Europe, and 13 November in North America. Her first English studio album since 2003's One Heart, it featured pop, R&B, and rock inspired music. For this album, she collaborated with John Shanks and ex-Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody, as well as Kristian Lundin, Peer Åström, Linda Perry, Japanese singer Yuna Ito, and R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. Dion stated, "I think this album represents a positive evolution in my career ... I'm feeling strong, maybe a little gutsier than in the past, and just as passionate about music and life as I ever was." She launched her year-long worldwide Taking Chances Tour on 14 February 2008, in South Africa, performing 132 dates in stadiums and arenas across five continents.
The Taking Chances Tour was a great success in the United States, reaching the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Boxscore, having sold out every concert in the US and Canada. In addition, she appeared on Idol Gives Back for a second year in a row. Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, adding to her 53 previous nominations (an all-time record). Her nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year (for Taking Chances), Francophone Album of the Year (for D'elles) and Album of the Year (for both Taking Chances and D'elles). The following year, she was nominated for 3 Juno Awards including the Fan Choice Award, Song of the Year (for Taking Chances), and Music DVD of the Year (for Live in Las Vegas — A New Day...)
On 22 August 2008, Dion presented a free outdoor concert, mostly in French, on the Plains of Abraham, in Québec City, Canada, for the 400th anniversary of Québec City. The celebration gathered approximately 490,000 people. The concert, called Céline sur les Plaines, was released on DVD on 11 November 2008, in Québec and was released on 20 May 2009, in France. Late October 2008 saw the worldwide release of a comprehensive English-language greatest hits album, My Love: Essential Collection.
In May 2009, Dion was named the 20th best-selling artist of the decade and the second-best-selling female artist of the decade in the United States, selling an estimated 17.57 million copies of her albums there since 2000. In June 2009, Forbes reported that she earned $100 million during 2008. In December 2009, Pollstar announced that she was the best-selling solo touring act of the decade and the second-best-selling touring act of the decade, behind only the Dave Matthews Band. she grossed $522.2 million during the decade, a large portion of that sum coming from her five-year residency at Caesars Palace.
On 17 February 2010, Dion released into theatres a documentary film about her Taking Chances Tour, titled, Celine: Through the Eyes of the World. The documentary shows behind-the-scenes footage of her both onstage and offstage, along with footage of her with her family as they travelled the world with her. The distributor is the Sony Pictures subsidiary, Hot Ticket. The film was later released on Blu-ray and DVD on 4 May 2010, along with the CD/DVD, Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert. At the 52nd Grammy Awards in February 2010, Dion joined Carrie Underwood, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, and Smokey Robinson to perform the song "Earth Song" during the 3-D Michael Jackson tribute.
In January 2010, The Los Angeles Times presented its annual list of the top ten largest earners of the year, revealing that Dion took the top spot for the entire decade, with $US747.9 million in total revenue from 2000–2009. The largest haul came from ticket sales, totalling $522.2 million. Additionally, she was named "Artist of the Decade" in her native Canadian province of Québec, announced by the Montréal-based newspaper, Le Journal de Québec in 2009 December. A public online survey asked responders to vote for whom they believe deserved the above-mentioned accolade.
Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, Dion was named the most popular musician in the United States, ahead of U2, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles while factoring in gender, political affiliations, geographic region of residence, and income. Specifically, she was the most popular musician in the female demographic, as well as among all Democrats, those who live in the eastern United States and southern United States, and those who have incomes between US$35k and US$74.9k.
In September 2010, she released the single "Voler", a duet with French singer Michel Sardou. The song was later included on Sardou's album. In addition, it was announced in October 2010 that Dion wrote and composed a new song for Canadian singer, Marc Dupré entitled "Entre deux mondes".
2011–2014: Celine, Sans attendre, and Loved Me Back to Life
In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. In 2018, Billboard stated her residency Celine is the second most successful residency of all time. By the end of 2011, Dion has sold 331,000 albums (despite not releasing any studio album since 2007) and 956,000 digital tracks in the United States.
For a record sixth time, she performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, she appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, she released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, she made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica.
In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. She began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles.
In June 2013, Dion co-produced the show titled "Voices" by Véronic DiCaire at the Bally’s Hotel & Casino’s Jubilee Theatre and was presented 145 times up until 2015.
On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Céline une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia.
2014–present: Husband's death, Encore un soir, Courage, and return to Vegas
On 13 August 2014, Dion announced the indefinite postponement of all her show business activities, including her concert residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and the cancellation of her Asia Tour, because of the worsening of her husband's health after he underwent the removal of a cancerous tumor in December 2013. However, on 20 March 2015, she announced that she would be returning to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in late August 2015. On 14 January 2016, she cancelled the rest of the January performances due to her husband's and her brother's death from cancer. Dion resumed the residency on 23 February to a sold-out crowd and rave reviews.
In October 2015, Dion announced on social media that she had begun working on a new French album, posting a photo by the side of Algerian singer Zaho. Dion's French single, "Encore un soir", was released on 24 May 2016. On 20 May, she released a cover of Queen's song "The Show Must Go On", featuring Lindsey Stirling on violin. She performed "The Show Must Go On" at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards on 22 May, and received the Billboard Icon Award (presented to her by her son, René-Charles Angélil) in recognition of her career spanning over three decades.
The singer's new French album, Encore un soir, was released on 26 August 2016. It features fifteen tracks performed in French and, according to the singer, has a personal choice of the songs – more uplifting lyrics were chosen. Encore un soir topped the charts in France, Canada, Belgium and Switzerland, and was certified Diamond in France, 2× Platinum in Canada and Platinum in Belgium and Switzerland. It has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. In 2016 and 2017, Dion toured Europe and Canada with two sold-out concert tours. On 9 September 2016, she released "Recovering", a song written for her by Pink after Dion's husband René Angélil died in January 2016. Dion also recorded "How Does a Moment Last Forever" for the Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, released in March 2017. Her compilation, Un peu de nous topped the chart in France in July and August 2017.
On 3 May 2018, she released the single "Ashes" from the film Deadpool 2. The remix version of the song topped the US Dance Club Songs chart in July 2018. From June to August 2018, she toured the Asia-Pacific region and grossed $56.5 million from 22 shows. On 24 September 2018, she announced the end of her Las Vegas residency Celine, with the final date set for 8 June 2019. She is working on a new English album. In January 2019, she performed "A Change Is Gonna Come" at the "Aretha! A Grammy Celebration for the Queen of Soul" Franklin's tribute concert, to be broadcast in March 2019. In March 2019, she was one of 11 singers from Quebec, alongside Ginette Reno, Diane Dufresne, Isabelle Boulay, Luce Dufault, Louise Forestier, Laurence Jalbert, Catherine Major, Ariane Moffatt, Marie Denise Pelletier, and Marie-Élaine Thibert, who participated in a supergroup recording of Renée Claude's 1971 single "Tu trouveras la paix" after Claude's diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease was announced. On 3 April 2019, during a Facebook Live event, Dion announced her 2019/2020 Courage World Tour, beginning in Quebec City on 18 September 2019. She also announced a new English language album of the same name, released in November 2019.
On 18 September 2019, Dion released three songs, "Lying Down", "Courage", and "Imperfections" from her upcoming album, Courage. On 26 February 2020, Dion released two songs as exclusive Spotify singles: an acoustic version of Imperfections, and a cover of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game. Isaak joined Dion and sang vocals on the track. On 10 June 2020, Dion announced that her Courage World Tour will kick off again in 2021, after the tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 21 May 2021, it was announced Dion would return to Vegas, in November of the same year, for a limited-run installment of ten dates in collaboration with Resorts World Las Vegas. Billboard listed Dion as the third top paid musician of 2020 (second by female artist), with total of earnings of $17.5 million.
On 15 January 2022, a statement posted to Dion's website and social media accounts announced that the U.S. and Canadian concert dates for March-April 2022 were canceled because of “severe and persistent muscle spasms” that are preventing Dion from performing onstage.
Artistry
Influences
Dion cites idols as varied as Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Charles Aznavour, Carole King, Anne Murray, Barbra Streisand, and the Bee Gees, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with. Her music has been influenced by numerous genres, including pop, rock, gospel, R&B, and soul, and her lyrics focus on themes of poverty, world hunger, and spirituality, with an emphasis on love and romance. After the birth of her first child, her work increasingly focused on maternal love.
Musical style
Dion has faced considerable criticism from critics, who state that her music often retreats behind pop and soul conventions, and is marked by excessive sentimentality. According to Keith Harris of Rolling Stone magazine, "[Dion's] sentimentality is bombastic and defiant rather than demure and retiring ... [she] stands at the end of the chain of drastic devolution that goes Aretha–Whitney–Mariah. Far from being an aberration, Dion actually stands as a symbol of a certain kind of pop sensibility—bigger is better, too much is never enough, and the riper the emotion the more true." Her francophone releases, by contrast, tend to be deeper and more varied than her English releases, and consequently have achieved more credibility.
Critics have stated that Dion's involvement in the production aspect of her music is fundamentally lacking, which results in her work being overproduced and impersonal. However, coming from a family in which all of her siblings were musicians, she dabbled in learning how to play instruments like piano and guitar, and practised with a Fender Stratocaster during the recording sessions for her album Falling into You.
Occasionally, Dion has contributed to the writing of a handful of her English and French songs, as well as writing a few songs for other artists such as Marc Dupre. Additionally, as her career progressed, she found herself taking charge in the production of her albums. On her first English album, which she recorded before she had a firm command of the English language, she expressed disapproval, which could have been avoided if she had assumed more creative input. By the time she released her second English album Celine Dion, she had assumed more control of the production and recording process, hoping to dispel earlier criticisms. She stated, "On the second album I said, 'Well, I have the choice to be afraid one more time and not be 100% happy, or not be afraid and be part of this album.' This is my album." Besides her contributions to some of her early French albums, Dion wrote a few of the songs on Let's Talk About Love (1997) and These Are Special Times (1998).
She is often the subject of media ridicule and parody and is frequently impersonated on shows such as MADtv, Saturday Night Live, South Park, Royal Canadian Air Farce, and This Hour Has 22 Minutes for her strong accent and onstage gesticulations. However, she has stated that she is unaffected by the comments, and is flattered that people take the time to impersonate her. She even invited Ana Gasteyer, who parodied her on SNL, to appear onstage during one of her performances in New York City. While she is rarely politically outspoken, in 2005 following the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Dion appeared on Larry King Live and tearfully criticized the US government's slow response in aiding the victims of the hurricane: "There's people still there waiting to be rescued. To me that is not acceptable ... How can it be so easy to send planes in another country to kill everybody in a second and destroy lives. We need to serve our country." After her interview, she stated, "When I do interviews with Larry King or the big TV shows like that, they put you on the spot, which is very difficult. I do have an opinion, but I'm a singer. I'm not a politician."
Voice and timbre
Dion once claimed to be a mezzo-soprano. However, attempts to adapt classical voice types to other forms of singing have been met with controversy. Without making a classification, Kent Nagano, maestro of the Munich Symphony Orchestra, remarked, "All you just sang was full lyric soprano", after Dion auditioned with two solos from Carmen, wanting to know if she could sing opera. Her timbre has been described as "thin, slightly nasal" with a "raspy" lower register and "bell glass-like high notes".
According to Linda Lister in Divafication: The Deification of Modern Female Pop Stars, she has been described as a reigning "Queen of Pop" for her influence over the recording industry during the 1990s, alongside other female artists, including Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. In a countdown of the "22 Greatest Voices in Music" by Blender Magazine and MTV, she placed ninth (sixth for a female), and she was also placed fourth in Cover Magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists". Dion is often compared to Houston and Carey for her vocal style, and to her idol Barbra Streisand for her voice.
She is often praised for her technical virtuosity. Jim Santella of The Buffalo News writes "Like an iron fist in a velvet glove, the power of Celine Dion's voice is cloaked in a silky vibrato that betrays the intensity of her vocal commitment." Jeff Miers, also of The Buffalo News, says of Dion "Her singing voice is absolutely extra-human. She hits notes in full voice, with a controlled vibrato and an incredible conception of pitch, like she's shucking an ear of corn." Stephen Holden of The New York Times states that Dion has "a good-sized arsenal of technical skills. She can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch. And as her duets ... have shown, she is a reliable harmony voice." In an interview with Libération, Jean-Jacques Goldman notes that she has "no problem of accuracy or tempo". According to Kent Nagano, she is "a musician who has a good ear, a refinement, and a degree of perfection that is enviable". Charles Alexander of Time states, "[Her] voice glides effortlessly from deep whispers to dead-on high notes, a sweet siren that combines force with grace."
In her French repertoire, Dion adorns her vocals with more nuances and expressiveness, with the emotional intensity being "more tender and intimate". Additionally, Luc Plamondon, a French singer-songwriter who has worked closely with Dion claims that there are three chanteuses (stylistically) that she uses: the Québécois, the French, and the American. Her self-titled 1992 album was promoted with the slogan "Remember the name because you'll never forget the voice."
Legacy
Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most influential vocalists. She has been referred to as the "Queen of Power Ballads" by the media.. Billboard called Dion the "Queen of Pop". Her music and vocal styling, alongside that of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, have been said to shape how the bulk of modern female pop vocalists sing. These three artists have been widely credited with reviving the power ballad, and in doing so reshaping the adult contemporary radio format, making it one of the most popular formats of the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2002, Billboard named her as the "Best-selling contemporary female artist in history".
According to producer, musician, and former American Idol judge Randy Jackson, Dion, Houston, and Carey are the voices of the modern era. Music critic and Dion biographer Carl Wilson notes that her "fame and influence is also renewed and expressed regularly these days by American Idol, the largest mass musical phenomenon of the past decade, where Celine's stood solidly in its pantheon of singers for young people to emulate". Many contestants on the countless televised talent competitions that have risen at the turn of the millennium often emulate Dion, Houston and Carey and cite them as idols. MTV also praised Dion by saying: "Céline Dion was better than almost anyone at capitalizing on pop’s ability to articulate feelings in sensational, over-the-top ways."
Numerous artists have either mentioned Dion as a major influence or as one of their favourite singers including: Britney Spears, Rihanna, Adele, Josh Groban, Delta Goodrem, Leona Lewis, Jennifer Hudson, Vanessa Hudgens, Kelly Clarkson, Perrie Edwards, Loren Allred, Brazilian singer Wanessa Camargo, Ariana Grande, Sam Smith, Frank Ocean, Ava Max, Charlotte Cardin, and V (from BTS) among many others. Country singer Martina McBride is widely heralded by the press as the Celine Dion of Country music.
Many artists have also praised Dion's voice, singing ability or expressed an interest in working with her including Met Opera conductor and musical director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Beyoncé, Carlos Santana, Elton John, OneRepublic, Coldplay, Sharon Osbourne, Nicole Scherzinger, Ne-Yo, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, Luciano Pavarotti, Bee Gees, Sir George Martin, Justin Bieber, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Drake and Cher.
Timbaland stated "Celine has such a beautiful, mesmerizing voice. She is so talented. I think we could create something that is a classic like she is already." Josh Groban remarked "She's a powerhouse. In this day and age, when more and more studio-produced, tiny-tiny voices are being rewarded ... she has this extraordinary instrument." According to Diane Warren, "Celine is the best singer by far of her generation", an opinion shared by Quincy Jones, Tommy Mottola, and David Foster. Moreover, Shania Twain and Jennifer Lopez have praised her dynamic stage presence, with Jennifer Lopez commenting on American Idol: "Celine gets on stage, she owns the stage, she runs all over that stage, she stops that stage." Leona Lewis is also a huge fan of Céline Dion saying "Celine is someone I aspire to be like in every way. "Gosh – I can't wait. I'm in the middle of picking out dresses at the moment. Celine is definitely one of my heroes. She is amazing." American singer and actress Lea Michelle said that she listened to Céline Dion's music while in the process of making her sophomore album 'Places' and cited her as one of her vocal influences.
Godmother of Soul Patti LaBelle called Dion as one of the greatest singers ever. Pop singer Kelly Clarkson also praised Dion's vocal ability saying: "she has two sets of lungs when she sings." and also called her the most gifted vocalist on the planet.
Dion holds the Guiness World Record for the most Juno Awards won for Album Of The Year (tied with Michael Buble & Arcade Fire). She won 3 out of the 13 nominations she received in the category throughout her career. Dion is the 3rd most decorated artist in Juno Awards history, winning 20 out of the 75 total nominations ever, becoming the most nominated artist in the awards history as well.
In 1997-1998, Dion sold more than 60 million albums, and was estimated to sell a record once every 1.2 seconds. In 2017, Dion broke records across the UK as the highest grossing artist at each UK venue where she performed which included dates at the O2 Arena in London, Leeds First Direct Arena, Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena and the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. John Meglen, president and co-CEO, Concerts West commended her by saying: "She really is the voice of our lifetime."
In 2018, there were over 300,000 Taiwanese fans that clambered for the 20,000 tickets available for Célines first concert ever in Taiwan which caused the system to lag for 30 minutes. The demand caused them to add two additional shows eventually.
Cultural impact
In Francophone music industry
On a cultural level, Dion is credited for introducing francophone music to many non-francophone countries around the globe. Her albums D'eux and S'il suffisait d'aimer remain the best selling francophone albums in history, gaining unprecedented success in non-Francophone markets such as the United Kingdom, Poland, Netherlands, Portugal, Greece, Austria, Japan, and New Zealand. According to RFI Musique, she "has done her bit for French music over the years, assuring the success of French songs which would probably never have got beyond Francophone borders without her ... Without Celine, French record sales would be dramatically lower!" In May 2008, she was awarded France's highest award, as Knight of the Legion of Honour by President of France Nicolas Sarkozy. Sarkozy praised Dion and stated: "France thanks you because your talent and success have contributed to the influence of the French language outside our borders".
In Las Vegas strip
She is also credited for both revitalizing and revolutionizing the entertainment scene in Las Vegas with the gargantuan successes of her residencies there. She signed a multi-million dollar deal worthed $100 million to do a residency in Vegas and is considered one of the most lucrative and risky in the touring industry.
Billboard credits Dion as the one who pioneered modern residencies saying: "Since Dion's debut, hundreds of artists have tried their hand at Vegas residencies, including, most recently, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Usher, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Rod Stewart and Sting. Once considered the domain of artists long past their peak, today's Las Vegas residency shows are big business, generating millions in sales." Moreover, Billboard also said: "She changed history and she completely changed Las Vegas," said Nelson, who notes the new residencies being announced for artists like Cardi B, Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Lopez aren't really at the same production level or scale of what Dion created with her husband René Angélil, as well as Meglen, Nelson and former AEG CEO Tim Leiweke." Dion is popularly referred as the reigning "Queen of Las Vegas" by various media outlets for her impact and legacy in the city.
According to Gary Bongiovanni, president and editor-in-chief of Pollstar, "Celine redefined what artists can do in Las Vegas, helping to make it arguably the busiest entertainment city in the world."
Kurt Melien, vice-president of entertainment at Caesar's Palace stated "Celine was a pioneer without question ... Twenty years ago, we couldn't have got someone the stature of Britney Spears to appear in Vegas. Stars likes her would never have considered it if Celine hadn't paved the way. She changed the face of modern Vegas."
The Guardian listed Dion's Vegas residency as one of the 50 gigs that changed music, crediting her as the one who revived it, further saying: "it was Céline Dion who turned Caesars into the stage for a glorious pop comeback. Her initial five-year run was followed by a further eight years – and prompted copycat turns by Britney Spears, Pink and Katy Perry.
In the economy
Regarding her financial impact on Las Vegas, Stephen Brown, director of the Centre for Business and Economic Research in Las Vegas, commented: "People will come to the city just for her and they will spend money and as a consequence, she has an outsized impact on the economy", then adding "Bigger than Elvis, Sinatra and Liberace put together? Definitely." Estimations indicate that Dion's show will create up to 7,000 indirect jobs and around $114 million worth of new economic activity in each of the three years for which she has been contracted.
In businesses
Forbes also discussed how entrepreneurs can reclaim the power in their business by being like Céline Dion as an example saying: "Well, remember back in 2017 when Dion launched her handbag line? During a press conference, she admitted her late manager (and husband) had always handled everything for her. Every aspect of her shows was pre-decided; every move, appearance and interview was programmed in advance. She just showed up and executed (which she did brilliantly). At the end of her handbag launch press release, she said "Now . . . I'm the boss.” Starting right then and there, she’d be the one calling the shots for her shows, her kids, her handbags and everything else that mattered to her. She was going to do things her way."
In Fashion
Celine Dion has received various acclaims from fashion critics for reinventing her fashion style over the years. The Guardian called her "The Joyous New Queen of Fashion". Harper's Bazaar also praised Dion for being an ultimate fashion risk-taker and called her a "Fashion Chameleon". Billboard dubbed her as "Streetwear Icon" after recapping the global icon's style evolution through the years. Vogue named her as one of music's most exuberant dressers, beloved as much for her glorious voice as her extravagant sense of style. Tatler discussed in an article how Cardi B might be the next Céline Dion of Paris Fashion Week, proving that Céline is the standard for the occasion. Fashion stylist and image architect Law Roach praised Celine Dion, calling her "The Queen of Camp" & "The Queen of Glitter & Sequins". Dion further cemented her name in the fashion world by wearing the reverse tuxedo at 1999 Academy Awards, which became one of the most talked ensembles of that time. Vogue also listed her iconic 1999 reverse tuxedo as one of the most controversial looks of all time saying it was undeniably the highlight of the year. W also listed the iconic ensemble as one of the most memorable dresses of all time. In February 2020, Sergio Guadarrama, a contestant of Project Runway, copied the idea of reverse tuxedo and claimed it was his original idea and had even claimed that he had no idea about the iconic tuxedo, which left the fans of the show disappointed.
Breaking music barriers
Vice discussed how Dion's music made impact in Nigerian culture, saying: "By the 2000s, Celine Dion was basically the queen of Nigerian airwaves. It was impossible to watch TV or listen to the radio without hearing her music – either on adverts, or in Nollywood films featuring heartthrobs like Genevieve Nnaji and Ramsey Nouah."
Billboard also discussed how Dion’s appearance at Jamaica Jazz & Blues changed the festival’s future. According to Walter Elmore, CEO of Art of Music Productions said Dion is by far the most expensive artist he has ever booked, further saying: “I have already received calls from the management of several major US artists who want to perform here next year because they heard Celine’s comments about our show’s production quality,” Elmore said. “Her performance confirms that we can bring the biggest artists on the planet to our little island.”
In 2012, Dion visited Jamaica for the very first time which broke attendance records and caused traffic congestion around the concert venue. Vice discussed how Dion's music has been constant in dancehall clubs for decades, as many Jamaican dancehall artists cover her songs and remixing her ballads into anthems of dance hall. Further adding: "Several current dancehall musicians continue to use utilize Dion’s tunes with the addition of upbeat guitars, pan flutes, and backbeat shuffles that transform the music for consumption by dancehall fans."
Being referenced in songs
The Canadian comedy music group The Arrogant Worms released an album called Dirt in 1999 which contained a song called "Celine Dion", about the singers' stalker-like affection for her. Dion has also been referred/mentioned in various hit songs including "Dark Fantasy" by Kanye West, "911/Mr. Lonely" by Tyler, the Creator, "That Girl" by Pharrell Williams, "Work" by A$AP Ferg, and "What's The Use" by Mac Miller, to name a few.
Cultural honors
In 1999, Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame and was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in January 2004, one which she dedicated to her father, who had died the month prior. In May 2003, she placed at No. 10 on VH1's list of "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era". Dion's album Falling into You is included on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. "My Heart Will Go On" was included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. In 2021, Dion was ranked by Forbes as the third richest woman in entertainment with an estimated net worth of US$460 million. In August 2008, she received an honorary doctorate in music from the Université Laval in Quebec City.
In October 2010, Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador, a program created by the UN in 1999, sharing this accolade with Oscar-winner Susan Sarandon. She also received several state decorations. In 2004, she was awarded the Society of Singers Lifetime Achievement Award.
On 26 July 2013, she was awarded the highest rank of the Order of Canada, the Companion of the Order of Canada, by the Governor General of Canada and the investiture ceremony was held at Citadelle of Quebec, in which they said: "An incomparable artist, she is equally known for her compassion, generosity and commitment to a number of social and humanitarian causes. She is notably the national celebrity patron for Cystic Fibrosis Canada and honorary patron of the CHU Sainte-Justine. In addition, through her foundation, she also helps children in need and their families here in Canada and abroad."
By the end of 1998, Dion was recognized by Billboard as the "Woman of the Year". They also stated how Céline's voice was featured in eight charting albums on Billboard 200 year-end chart which sold 18 million units during a calendar year (excluding her own catalog sales and recent releases at that time).
West University of Timișoara conducted a research study that analyzes Céline Dion's contributions to global music culture in both spatial and temporal terms, In November 2013, Dion was inducted at the American Gaming Association Hall Of Fame for her outstanding contributions to the growth and stature of the gaming industry.
In popular culture
Dion was referenced as an antagonist character named "Feline Dion" from the hit animated series Totally Spies! which was aired in an episode in 2013.
In 2021, French actress and filmmaker Valérie Lemercier released Aline, a film which fictionalized Dion's life with Lemercier playing a singer named "Aline Dieu".
Other activities
Business endeavours
Les Productions Feeling Inc., also known as Feeling Inc. or just Feeling, is an artist management company based in Laval, Québec, Canada, and owned by Dion and her husband and manager, Rene Angélil. She is also founder of Nickels Restaurant food chain. She and her husband also own Le Mirage Golf Club and Schwartz's Restaurant. In association with Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf and Shaquille O'Neal, she opened a popular night club called Pure, located at Caesars Palace.
Dion became an entrepreneur with the establishment of her franchise restaurant Nickels in 1990. She has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997. In 2003, Dion signed a deal with Coty, Inc. to release Celine Dion Parfums. Her latest fragrance, Signature, was released in September 2011 with an advertising campaign by New York agency Kraftworks NYC. Since its inception, Celine Dion Parfums has grossed over $850 million in retail sales. In October 2004, Air Canada hired Dion as part of their promotional campaign to unveil new service products and an updated livery. "You and I", the theme song sung by Dion, was written by advertising executives working for Air Canada.
Dion also launched an eponymous bag and accessories line "Céline Dion Collection". According to Innee-Sedona International, the Asia partner for Bugatti Group said that it already topped $10 million sales after just three collections.
Philanthropy
Dion has actively supported many charity organizations, worldwide. She has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993. She has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine succumbed to the disease at the age of sixteen, in Dion's arms. In 2003, she joined a number of other celebrities, athletes, and politicians, including Josh Groban and Yolanda Adams to support "World Children's Day", a global fundraising effort sponsored by McDonald's. The effort raised money from more than 100 nations and benefited orphanages and children's health organizations. In addition, she has been a major supporter of the T. J. Martell Foundation, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, and many health and educational campaigns. During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, she donated $1 million to the victims of the storm, and held a fund-raising event for the victims of the 2004 Asian tsunami, which subsequently raised more than $1 million. After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, she donated $100,000 to China Children & Teenagers' Fund and sent a letter showing her consolation and support. Since 2004, she is involved, alongside husband René Angelil, with the Québec gay community by supporting the publication of health and HIV prevention materials in Gay Globe Magazine, owned by journalist Roger-Luc Chayer. She is also a member of Canadian charity Artists Against Racism. In November 2018, she launched a gender-neutral clothing line for kids, Celinununu. In 2009, Dion joined an effort along with Leonardo DiCaprio, James Cameron and Kate Winslet, to donate money to support the nursing home fees of the then-last living survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, Millvina Dean. The campaign resulted in $30,000 as donation.
Personal life
As the youngest of 14 children, Dion grew up wearing hand-me-downs and sharing a bed with several sisters. As a baby, she slept in a drawer to save on a crib. She was bullied at school and called "Vampire", owing to her teeth and skinny frame. Local tabloids even dubbed her "Canine Dion" in the teenage years of her career. She often spoke of running home from school to play music in the basement with her brothers and sisters. "I detested school", she would later write in her autobiography. "I had always lived surrounded by adults and children a lot older than me. I learned everything I needed to know from them. As far as I was concerned, real life existed around them." Dion's eldest sister was already in her twenties, married, and pregnant with her first child at the time Dion's mother, Thérèse, was pregnant with Celine.
Dion first met René Angélil, her future husband and manager, in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after her brother, Michel Dondalinger Dion, had sent him a demonstration recording of "Ce n'était qu'un rêve" ("It Was Only a Dream/Nothing But A Dream"), a song she, her mother Thérèse, and her brother Jacques Dion had jointly written. Over subsequent years, Angélil guided her to stardom in francophone territories.
After the dissolution of Angélil's second marriage, he and Dion took a professional break and he spent the major part of the year in Las Vegas, while Dion was learning English and taking dance and vocal lessons in Montreal. Upon his return, "he avoided being alone with me for too long a time", she said in her 2000 autobiography My Story, My Dream. Meanwhile, she kept a photo of Angélil under her pillow, writing, "Before I fell asleep, I slipped it under the pillow, out of fear that my mother, who always shared a room with me, would find it." She also wrote "Less and less could I hide from myself the fact that I was in love with Rene; I had all the symptoms," and "I was in love with a man I couldn't love, who didn't want me to love him, who didn't want to love me." Dion's mother, who traveled everywhere with the singer until she was 19, was initially wary of her daughter's growing infatuation with a much older and twice-divorced Angélil, but Dion was insistent, telling her mother "I'm not a minor. This is a free country. No one has the right to prevent me from loving whoever I want to."
Their professional relationship eventually turned romantic after Dion's win at the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin in 1988; she was 20. The romance was known to only family and friends for five years, though Dion nearly revealed all in a tearful 1992 interview with journalist Lise Payette. Many years later, Payette penned the song "Je cherche l'ombre" for Dion's 2007 album D'elles.
Dion and Angélil became engaged in 1993, on Dion's 25th birthday, and made their relationship public in the liner notes of her 1993 album The Colour of My Love. They married on 17 December 1994, at Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec. On 5 January 2000, Dion and Angélil renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas.
In May 2000, Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in vitro fertilization because of years of failed attempts to conceive. Their first son, René-Charles Angélil, was born on 25 January 2001. Dion suffered a miscarriage in 2009. In May 2010, Angélil announced that she was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in vitro fertilization. On Saturday, 23 October 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, Dion gave birth to fraternal twins by Caesarean section at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, The twins were named Eddy, after Dion's favourite French songwriter, Eddy Marnay, who had also produced her first five albums; and Nelson, after former South African President Nelson Mandela. She appeared with her newborn sons on the cover of 9 December 2010 issue of the Canadian edition of Hello! magazine.
On 14 January 2016, Angélil died of throat cancer. His funeral was held on 22 January 2016, in Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, where he and Dion wed 21 years earlier. The couple's eldest son, René-Charles, gave the eulogy just three days before his 15th birthday. Following Angélil's death, Dion became the sole owner and president of her management and production companies, including CDA Productions and Les Productions Feeling.
Two days after Angélil's deathon what would have been her husband's birthdayDion's brother, Daniel, died aged 59, also of cancer.
On 22 March 2018, Dion's management team announced that she had been dealing with hearing irregularities for the previous 12–18 months due to patulous Eustachian tube and would undergo a minimally invasive surgical procedure to correct the problem after ear-drop medications appeared to be no longer working.
Owing to her slight frame, Dion has for decades been subject of eating disorder rumors, which she has consistently denied: "I don't have an eating problem, and there's nothing more I can say about it". "My work requires me to be in great physical shape. I wouldn't have been able to live up to a hundred shows a year and travel ceaselessly from one end of the world to the other if I had eaten too much or not enough, or if, as certain magazines have claimed, I made myself throw up after each meal." She has often spoken about having been bullied at school and lacking confidence in her early years in the business: "I didn't have, visually, what it took. I was not pretty, I had teeth problems, and I was very skinny. I didn't fit the mold".
Dion took up ballet under the guidance of her former dancer, Naomi Stikeman, who also previously performed for The National Ballet of Canada and La La La Human Steps, and former Cirque du Soleil dancer-turned-fashion-illustrator, Pepe Muñoz, who is also part of her styling team. She is also a skier and a regular at her son René-Charles' hockey games.
Dion resides in Henderson, Nevada, in a house she bought with her husband in 2003. She previously owned homes in Montreal, Quebec, and Jupiter Island, Florida.
Dion's older son René-Charles Angélil loves music and has tried to follow a musical path. Under the stage name Big Tip, he released in May 2018 on his SoundCloud account 6 rap songs including originals "The Kid", "The Apple" and "Never Stop" and two adaptations from The Weeknd songs, "Catwalks" sampling on The Weeknd's "Sidewalks" and a remix of The Weeknd's "Loft Music" as "Loft Music Remix". He also released the 5-track EP CasiNo. 5 in December 2020 using the artistic name RC Angelil. The EP includes the tracks "Mamba Mentality", "Money, Thrills and Rest", "No Ls", "GG4" (featuring PAKKA) and "LV".
Discography
French-language studio albums
La voix du bon Dieu (1981)
Céline Dion chante Noël (1981)
Tellement j'ai d'amour... (1982)
Les chemins de ma maison (1983)
Chants et contes de Noël (1983)
Mélanie (1984)
C'est pour toi (1985)
Incognito (1987)
Dion chante Plamondon (1991)
D'eux (1995)
S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998)
1 fille & 4 types (2003)
D'elles (2007)
Sans attendre (2012)
Encore un soir (2016)
English-language studio albums
Unison (1990)
Celine Dion (1992)
The Colour of My Love (1993)
Falling into You (1996)
Let's Talk About Love (1997)
These Are Special Times (1998)
A New Day Has Come (2002)
One Heart (2003)
Miracle (2004)
Taking Chances (2007)
Loved Me Back to Life (2013)
Courage (2019)
Concert tours and residencies
Tours
Les chemins de ma maison (1983–1984)
Céline Dion en concert (1985)
Tournée Incognito (1988)
Unison Tour (1990–1991)
Celine Dion in Concert (1992–1993)
The Colour of My Love Tour (1994–1995)
D'eux Tour (1995–1996)
Falling into You: Around the World (1996–1997)
Let's Talk About Love World Tour (1998–1999)
Taking Chances World Tour (2008–2009)
Tournée Européenne 2013
Summer Tour 2016
Celine Dion Live 2017
Celine Dion Live 2018
Courage World Tour (2019–2023)
Residencies
A New Day... (2003–2007)
Celine (2011–2019)
Celine (2022)
Filmography
Touched by an Angel
The Nanny
All My Children
La fureur de Céline
Des fleurs sur la neige
Quest for Camelot as Juliana (singing voice)
Céline sur les Plaines
Celine: Through the Eyes of the World
Sur la piste du Marsupilami
Hell's Kitchen
Muppets Most Wanted
References
Bibliography
Céline Dion. Artist direct. Retrieved on 18 December 2005.
"Celine Dion". Contemporary Musicians, Volume 25. Gale Group, 1999.
"Celine Dion". Newsmakers 1995, Issue 4. Gale Research, 1995.
Céline Dion. Rock on the Net. Retrieved 20 November 2005.
Céline Dion. The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2 July 2006
Céline Dion provided by VH1.com Retrieved 16 August 2005.
Dion extends long Las Vegas stint. news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2005.
Durchholz, Daniel. Review: One Heart. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. St. Louis, Mo.: 24 April 2003. p. F.3
The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalist covemagazine.com Retrieved 1 November 2005.
Joel Whitburn Presents the Billboard Hot 100 Charts: The Nineties ()
World Music Awards Diamond Award Retrieved 1 November 2005, (Search by year required)
Further reading
External links
CelineDion.com – Official website operated by Sony Music Canada (English, French).
[ Celine Dion] at AllMusic
[ Celine Dion] at Billboard.com
1968 births
Living people
20th-century Canadian composers
20th-century Canadian women singers
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Ballad musicians
Businesspeople from Florida
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Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
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Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1988
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Las Vegas shows
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Philanthropists from Florida
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World Music Awards winners | true | [
"Else Freiin von Richthofen (October 8, 1874 - December 22, 1973) was among the early female social scientists in Germany.\n\nLife and career\nElisabeth Helene Amalie Sophie Freiin (Baroness) von Richthofen (also known as Else Jaffé) was born into the German nobility at Château-Salins (France). Her father was Friedrich Ernst Emil Ludwig Freiherr von Richthofen (1844-1915), an engineer in the Imperial German Army, and Anna Elise Lydia Marquier (1852-1930).\n\nWhile Else von Richthofen started her professional career as a teacher, she enrolled at Heidelberg University at a time when this was still very unusual for women; she was one of just four female students at the time. She earned a doctorate in economics in 1901 and started to work as a labour inspector in Karlsruhe. \n\nShe married (1865-1921), another former student of Max Weber, in 1902, and he was a well-known economist and entrepreneur. It was Jaffé who bought the journal Archiv für Sozialwissenschaft und Sozialpolitik of which Max Weber became one of the editors. With Jaffé, she had three children, Friedel (born 1903), Marianne (born 1905) and Hans (born 1909). \n\nElse became acquainted to intellectuals and authors, including the sociologists and economists Max Weber and Alfred Weber, the psychoanalyst Otto Gross, the writer Fanny zu Reventlow and others. She started an affair with Otto Gross with whom she had a fourth child, Peter (1907-ca. 1915). She also had an affair with her former professor Max Weber and his brother Alfred Weber, with whom she lived together in the same house for several years after her husband died.\n\nReferences\n\nFurther reading\nJanet Byrne: A Genius for Living - A Biography of Frieda Lawrence, Bloomsbury, 1995.\nGreen, Martin Burgess: The Von Richthofen Sisters\n\nExternal links \nfinding aid for Else von Richthofen papers, 1898-1985 at Tufts Digital Collections and Archives\n\nGerman baronesses\nElse von Richthofen\n1874 births\n1973 deaths",
"Else Gabriel (b. 1962) is a German performance artist and educator.\n\nBiography\nElse Gabriel was born in Halberstadt, East Germany in 1962. She studied at the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts. Else was a key artist in the alternative arts scene that formed by late 1980s. Along with Micha Brendel, Rainer Gorb, and Via Lewandowsky. She was a member of Autoperforatsionsartisten (Auto perforation artists). The Autoperforatsionsartisten, an East German performance art group, combined fluxus and neodada with body art and installations in a multimedia spectacle. In addition to performance art, Else is known for her photographs, in which she combined personal text with images. Though this format did not appear to be logically tied, her intent behind this is to produce an associative, sensual frame of reference.\n\nSince 1991, she has been a part of the group (e.) Twin Gabriel with her partner Ulf Wrede. Gabriel was included in the 1991 exhibition Berlin Divided: Sissel Tolas, Milovan Markovic, Else Gabriel, Rolf Julius at MoMA. In 2019 she was included in the exhibit The Medea Insurrection: Radical Women Artists Behind the Iron Curtain at Wende Museum in Culver City, California.\n\nShe has taught at the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, California and lectured at the University of Hamburg, the University of Kassel, the University of Kiel and Saarland University. Since 2009 she has taught in Berlin at Kunsthochschule Berlin-Weißensee, in the Sculpture Department.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n(e.) Twin Gabriel website\n2016 radio interview with Gabriel on KCRW Berlin\nhttps://www.are.na/block/10839375 JHU “East German Art and the Permeability of the Berlin Wall”\nhttps://www.are.na/block/10839551. Aperture x Princeton “Another Country (mention)\nhttps://performingtheeast.com/else-gabriel/\n\n1962 births\n20th-century German women artists\n21st-century German women artists\nGerman performance artists\nPeople from Halberstadt\nLiving people"
]
|
[
"Celine Dion",
"2011-2014: Celine, Sans attendre and Loved Me Back to Life",
"What did Celine Dion do in 2011?",
"February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011.",
"Was her tour successful?",
"Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote.",
"Did she win any awards during this time?",
"I don't know.",
"What songs were popular on our tour?",
"Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. \"Breakaway\", \"Incredible\" and \"Water and a Flame",
"What else did she do while on tour?",
"1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder.",
"Who else did she work with?",
"To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season,"
]
| C_78f1e410e4c0415db79dddeaf75c47aa_0 | Did she make other TV appearences? | 7 | Besides the Oprah Winfrey show, did Celine Dione make other TV appearences? | Celine Dion | In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. Additionally, for a record sixth time, Dion performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, Dion appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, Dion released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, Dion made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica. In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. Dion began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles. The music video for "Incredible" was uploaded onto Dion's official Vevo channel in early June 2014. On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Celine une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia. CANNOTANSWER | "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. | Céline Marie Claudette Dion (; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. She is noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals. Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French language artist of all time. Her music has incorporated genres such as pop, rock, R&B, gospel, and classical music.
Born into a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, she emerged as a teen star in her home country with a series of French-language albums during the 1980s. She first gained international recognition by winning both the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, where she represented Switzerland. After learning to speak English, she signed on to Epic Records in the United States. In 1990, Dion released her debut English-language album, Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world. Her recordings since have been mainly in English and French although she has also sung in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese, and Chinese.
During the 1990s, she achieved worldwide fame after releasing several best-selling English-language albums in music history, such as Falling into You (1996) and Let's Talk About Love (1997), which were both certified diamond in the US and over 30 million sales worldwide each. She also scored a series of international number-one hits, including "The Power of Love", "Think Twice", "Because You Loved Me", "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", "My Heart Will Go On", and "I'm Your Angel". Dion continued releasing French albums between each English record; D'eux (1995) became the best-selling French-language album of all time, while S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998), Sans attendre (2012), and Encore un soir (2016), were all certified diamond in France. During the 2000s, she built her reputation as a highly successful live performer with A New Day... on the Las Vegas Strip (2003–07), which remains the highest-grossing concert residency of all time, as well as the Taking Chances World Tour (2008–09), one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time.
Dion is also one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with record sales of more than 200 million worldwide. Although her releases have often received mixed critical reception, Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most successful vocalists. She has won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year. Billboard named her the "Queen of Adult Contemporary" for having the most number-one songs on the radio format for a female artist. Dion is the second best-selling female artist in the US during the Nielsen SoundScan, the 8th all-time best-performing top female artist in the United States, and the sixth all-time best-performing female soloist in Billboard 200 history. In 2003, she was honoured by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for selling over 50 million albums in Europe. In 2008, Dion was recognized as the Best-selling International Artist in South Africa.
Life and career
1968–1989: Early life and career beginnings
Dion was born in Charlemagne, Quebec, northeast of Montreal, the youngest of 14 children of Thérèse (née Tanguay, 1927–2020), a homemaker, and Adhémar Dion (1923–2003), a butcher, both of French-Canadian descent. She was raised a Roman Catholic in a poor but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne. Music had always been a major part of the Dion family, and she was named after the song "Céline", which French singer Hugues Aufray had recorded two years before her birth. On 13 August 1973, at the age of five, the young Céline made her first public appearance at her brother Michel's wedding, where she performed Christine Charbonneau's song "Du fil, des aiguilles et du coton". She continued to perform with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar called Le Vieux Baril, "The Old Barrel". From an early age, she had dreamed of being a performer. In a 1994 interview with People magazine, she recalled, "I missed my family and my home, but I don't regret having lost my adolescence. I had one dream: I wanted to be a singer." As a child in Quebec, Dion participated in Girl Guide programs as a member of Girl Guides of Canada.
At age 12, she collaborated with her mother and her brother Jacques to write and compose her first song, "Ce n'était qu'un rêve", whose title translates as "It Was Only a Dream" or "Nothing But A Dream". Her brother Michel sent the recording to music manager René Angélil, whose name he discovered on the back of a Ginette Reno album. Angélil was moved to tears by Dion's voice and decided to make her a star. In 1981, he mortgaged his home to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu, which later became a local No. 1 hit and made her an instant star in Quebec. Her popularity spread to other parts of the world when she competed in the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, and won the musician's award for "Top Performer" as well as the gold medal for "Best Song" with "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi".
By 1983, in addition to becoming the first Canadian artist to receive a gold record in France for the single "D'amour ou d'amitié" ("Of Love or of Friendship"), Dion had also won several Félix Awards, including "Best Female performer" and "Discovery of the Year". Further success came when she represented Switzerland in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Ne partez pas sans moi" and won the contest by a close margin in Dublin, Ireland.
At age 18, after seeing a Michael Jackson performance, Dion told Angélil that she wanted to be a star like Jackson. Though confident in her talent, Angélil realized that her image needed to be changed for her to be marketed worldwide. She receded from the spotlight for a number of months, during which she underwent dental surgery to improve her appearance, and was sent to the École Berlitz in 1989 to polish her English.
In 1989, during a concert on the Incognito tournée, she injured her voice. She consulted the otorhinolaryngologist William Gould, who gave her an ultimatum: have immediate surgery on her vocal cords or do not utilize them at all for three weeks. Dion chose the latter and underwent vocal training with William Riley.
1990–1992: Unison, Dion chante Plamondon, and Celine Dion
Two years after she learned English, Dion made her debut into the Anglophone market with Unison (1990), the lead single having originally been recorded by Laura Branigan. She incorporated the help of many established musicians, including Vito Luprano and Canadian producer David Foster. The album was largely influenced by 1980s soft rock music that quickly found a niche within the adult contemporary radio format. Unison also hit the right notes with critics: Jim Faber of Entertainment Weekly wrote that her vocals were "tastefully unadorned", and that she never attempted to "bring off styles that are beyond her". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic declared it "a fine, sophisticated American debut". Singles from the album included "(If There Was) Any Other Way", "The Last to Know", "Unison", and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now", a mid-tempo soft-rock ballad that made prominent use of the electric guitar. The latter became her first top-ten hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number four. In 1991, Dion was a featured soloist on "Voices That Care", a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm.
Her real international breakthrough came when she duetted with Peabo Bryson on the title track to Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991). It became her first top-ten hit in the UK and her second top-ten hit in the United States. The song earned its songwriters an Academy Award for Best Song and gave Dion her first Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. "Beauty and the Beast" served as the lead single from her 1992 self-titled album, which, like her debut, had a strong pop rock influence combined with elements of soul and classical music. Owing to the success of the lead-off single and her collaborations with David Foster and Diane Warren, the album was even more well-received commercially than Unison; it was certified diamond in Canada and double platinum in the US. The album's second single "If You Asked Me To" (a cover of Patti LaBelle's song from the 1989 movie Licence to Kill) became her first number-one single in Canada and peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Also during this time, Dion released the Francophone album Dion chante Plamondon. The album consisted mostly of covers, but featured four new songs: "Des mots qui sonnent", "Je danse dans ma tête", "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime", and "L'amour existe encore". It was originally released in Canada and France during the 1991–1992 period, then later received an international release in 1994, the first French Celine Dion album to do so. "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)" became a smash hit in France, reaching No. 2 and being certified gold. In Quebec, the album was certified Gold the day it was released.
By 1992, Unison, Céline Dion, and numerous high-profile media appearances had propelled Dion to superstardom in North America. She had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame. However, while she was experiencing rising success in the US, her French fans in Canada criticized her for neglecting them. She would later rebuff these criticisms at the 1991 Félix Awards show, where, after winning "English Artist of the Year", she openly refused to accept the award. She asserted that she was—and would always be—a French, not an English, artist. Apart from her commercial success, there were also changes in her personal life, as Angélil, who was 26 years her senior, transitioned from manager to lover. However, the relationship was kept a secret as they both feared that the public would find their relations inappropriate.
1993–1995: The Colour of My Love and D'eux
In 1993, Dion announced her feelings for her manager by declaring him "the colour of [her] love" in the dedication section of her third English-language album The Colour of My Love. However, instead of criticizing their relationship as she had feared, fans embraced the couple. Eventually, Angélil and Dion married in an extravagant wedding ceremony on 17 December 1994, which was broadcast live on Canadian television.
As with most of her catalogue, The Colour of My Love had over-riding themes of love and romance. It became her most successful record up to that point, selling more than six million copies in the US, two million in Canada, and peaking at No. 1 in many countries. The album also spawned Dion's first US, Canadian, and Australian No. 1 single "The Power of Love" (a remake of Jennifer Rush's 1985 hit), which would become her signature hit in various nations until she reached new career heights in the late 1990s.
The single "When I Fall in Love", a duet with Clive Griffin, achieved moderate success on the US and Canadian charts and was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one. The Colour of My Love also became Dion's first major hit in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. Both the album and the single "Think Twice" simultaneously occupied the top of the British charts for five consecutive weeks. "Think Twice", which remained at No. 1 for seven weeks, eventually became the fourth single by a female artist to sell in excess of one million copies in the UK while the album was eventually certified five-times platinum for two million copies sold.
Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record. Generally, they achieved more credibility than her English-language works. She released À l'Olympia, a live album that was recorded during one of her concerts at the Paris Olympia in 1994. It had one promotional single, a live version of "Calling You", which peaked at seventy-five on the French Singles Chart. She also recorded a bilingual version of "Petit Papa Noël" with Alvin and the Chipmunks for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk. D'eux (also known as The French Album in the United States), was released in 1995, and it would go on to become the best-selling French-language album of all time. The album was mostly written and produced by Jean-Jacques Goldman, and amassed huge success with the singles "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" and "Je sais pas". "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" reached No. 1 in France and stayed at the top position for twelve weeks. It was later certified Platinum in France. The single reached the top ten in the UK and Ireland, a rare accomplishment for a French song. The second single off the album, "Je sais pas", reached No. 1 on the French Singles Chart as well and was certified Silver there.
During the mid-1990s and onward, Dion's albums were generally constructed on the basis of melodramatic soft rock ballads, with sprinklings of up-tempo pop and rare forays into other genres. She collaborated with many renowned writers and producers such as Jim Steinman and David Foster, who helped her to develop a signature sound. While critical reviews fluctuated, her releases performed increasingly well on the international charts, and in 1996, she won the World Music Award for "World's Best-selling Female Recording Artist of the Year" for the third time. By the mid-1990s, she had established herself as one of the best-selling artists in the world.
1996–1999: Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love, and S'il suffisait d'aimer
In the five years since her debut English language album in 1990, Billboard stated that she had already sold 40 million albums worldwide. Falling into You (1996), Dion's fourth English-language album, presented the singer at the height of her popularity and showed a further progression of her music. In an attempt to reach a wider audience, the album combined many elements, such as complex orchestral sounds, African chanting, and elaborate musical effects. Additionally, instruments like the violin, Spanish guitar, trombone, the cavaquinho, and saxophone created a new sound. The singles encompassed a variety of musical styles. The title track "Falling into You" and "River Deep – Mountain High" (a Tina Turner cover) made prominent use of percussion instruments; "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (produced by its writer Jim Steinman) and a remake of Eric Carmen's "All by Myself" maintained a soft-rock atmosphere, combined with the classical sound of the piano; and the No. 1 single "Because You Loved Me", which was written by Diane Warren, was a pop ballad that served as the theme to the 1996 film Up Close and Personal.
Falling into You garnered career-best reviews for Dion. While Dan Leroy wrote that it was not very different from her previous work, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times and Natalie Nichols of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the album was formulaic, other critics, such as Chuck Eddy of Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic, and Daniel Durchholz, lavished the album as "compelling", "passionate", "stylish", "elegant", and "remarkably well-crafted". Falling into You became Dion's most critically and commercially successful album: it topped the charts in many countries and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.
In 2013, CBC Music ranked Falling into You 33rd in their list of the 100 greatest Canadian albums ever. In the United States, the album reached No. 1, and was later certified 11× Platinum for over 11 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album was certified diamond for over one million copies shipped. The IFPI certified Falling into You 9× Platinum, an accolade that has been given to only two other albums in history, with one of the two being Dion's own album, Let's Talk About Love. The album also won Grammy Awards for Best Pop Album and the academy's highest honour, Album of the Year.
Dion was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream" at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In March 1996, she launched the Falling into You Tour in support of her new album, performing concerts around the world for over a year.
She followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love (1997), which was publicized as its sequel. The recording process took place in London, New York City, and Los Angeles, and featured a host of special guests, such as Barbra Streisand on "Tell Him"; the Bee Gees on "Immortality"; and tenor Luciano Pavarotti on "I Hate You Then I Love You". Other musicians included Carole King, Sir George Martin, Bryan Adams and Jamaican singer Diana King, who added a reggae tinge to "Treat Her Like a Lady".
Let's Talk About Love was another major success, reaching No. 1 all over the world, attaining platinum status in twenty-four sales territories, and becoming the fastest selling album of her career. In the United States, the album topped the chart in its seventh week of release, and was later certified 10× Platinum in the US for over 10 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album sold 230,212 copies in its first week of release, which remains a record. It was eventually certified diamond in Canada for over one million copies shipped. The most successful single from the album was the classically influenced ballad "My Heart Will Go On", which was written and composed by James Horner and Will Jennings, and produced by Horner and Walter Afanasieff.
Serving as the love theme for the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic, the song topped the charts across the world and became Dion's signature song. Horner and Jennings won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song, while Dion herself garnered two Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and the most coveted, Record of the Year, (the song itself won four awards, but two were presented to the songwriters). "My Heart Will Go On" and "Think Twice" made her the only female artist in the UK to have two singles to sell more than a million copies. In support of her album, she embarked on the Let's Talk About Love Tour between 1998 and 1999.
Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums: the Christmas album These Are Special Times (1998), the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer, and the compilation album All the Way... A Decade of Song (1999). On These Are Special Times, she co-wrote the song "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day" along with Ric Wake and Peter Zizzo. The album was her most classically influenced yet, with orchestral arrangements found on virtually every track. The album featured the single "I'm Your Angel" (a duet with R. Kelly), which became her fourth US No. 1 single, and a smash hit across the world. The album's second single "The Prayer" (a duet with Andrea Bocelli) served as the soundtrack of the 1998 film Quest for Camelot and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. All the Way... A Decade of Song drew together her most successful hits coupled with seven new songs, including the lead-off single "That's the Way It Is", a cover of Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", and "All the Way", a duet with Frank Sinatra. All the Way became one of the best-selling compilation albums of all time, reaching No. 1 in the United States for three weeks. The album was later certified 7x Platinum in the US for 7 million copies shipped. It also topped the charts in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Her last French-language studio album of the 1990s, S'il suffisait d'aimer, was very successful as well, topping the charts in every major French-speaking country, including France, Switzerland, the Wallonia region of Belgium, and Canada. In France, the album was certified diamond, selling 1.5 million copies. By the end of the 1990s, Dion had sold more than 130 million records worldwide, and had won a slew of industry awards. Her status as one of the music industry's biggest pop divas was further solidified when she was asked to perform on VH1's Divas Live special in 1998, with superstars Aretha Franklin, Gloria Estefan, Shania Twain, and Mariah Carey. That year, she also received two of the highest Canadian honours: "Officer of the Order of Canada for Outstanding Contribution to the World of Contemporary Music" and "Officer of the National Order of Quebec". A year later, she was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame, and was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.
Starting from the mid-1990s, the pop rock influence that was more noticeable in her earlier releases was replaced by a more mature feel. Additionally, the recurring theme of "love" dominated most of her releases, which led to some critics dismissing her music as banal. Other critics, like Elysa Gardner and Jose F. Promis, praised her voice during this period, describing it as a "technical marvel". Steve Dollar, in his review of These Are Special Times, opined that Dion was a "vocal Olympian for whom there ain't no mountain—or scale—high enough".
2000–2003: Hiatus, A New Day Has Come, One Heart, and 1 fille & 4 types
After releasing and promoting thirteen albums during the 1990s, Dion stated that she needed to settle down, and announced on her latest album All the Way... A Decade of Song, that she needed to take a step back from the spotlight and enjoy life. Angélil's diagnosis with esophageal cancer also prompted her to hiatus. While on break, she was unable to escape the spotlight. In 2000, the National Enquirer published a false story about the singer. Brandishing a picture of Dion and her husband, the magazine misquoted her, printing the headline, "Celine — 'I'm Pregnant With Twins!'" She later sued the magazine for more than $20million. The editors of the Enquirer printed an apology and a full retraction to her in the next issue, and donated money to the American Cancer Society in honour of her and her husband. A year after the incident, after undergoing fertility treatments, she gave birth to a son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, on 25 January 2001, in Florida.
Following the 11 September attacks, Dion returned to the music scene, and in a televised performance sang "God Bless America" at the benefit concert America: A Tribute to Heroes. Chuck Taylor of Billboard wrote, "the performance ... brings to mind what has made her one of the celebrated vocalists of our time: the ability to render emotion that shakes the soul. Affecting, meaningful, and filled with grace, this is a musical reflection to share with all of us still searching for ways to cope." She performed it again in 2003 during pregame festivities for Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego. In December 2001, she published her autobiography My Story, My Dream which chronicled her rags-to-riches story.
Dion ended her three-year sabbatical from the music industry with the aptly titled album A New Day Has Come, released in March 2002. The album was her most personal yet, with songs focusing on her motherhood and maturation as a woman such as "A New Day Has Come", and "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)". She stated: "becoming a mother makes you a grown-up." She stated, "A New Day Has Come, for Rene, for me, is the baby. It has everything to do with the baby ... That song "A New Day Has Come" represents very well the mood I'm feeling right now. It represents the whole album." A New Day Has Come debuted at No. 1 in more than 17 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 527,000 copies; marking her first No. 1 debut on the chart, as well as the highest debut sales week of her career in the US. It was eventually certified 3× Platinum in the United States, and 6× Platinum in Canada.
While the album was commercially successful, critical reviews suggested that it was "forgettable" and the lyrics were "lifeless". Both Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone magazine, and Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly, stated that Dion's music had not developed much during her break, and classed her material as trite and mediocre. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine called the album "a lengthy collection of drippy, gooey pop fluffer-nutter". The first single off the album, A New Day Has Come peaked at No.22 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, being an airplay-only release. On the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks, however, the song spent 21 consecutive weeks at No. 1, breaking the record for the longest span at the top. The previous record holders were Phil Collins' You'll Be in My Heart and Dion's own Because You Loved Me, both of which lasted nineteen weeks at No. 1. The album's next single, "I'm Alive", was featured on the soundtrack for Stuart Little 2 (2002), and was ranked number 2 on the European Hot 100 Singles, and number 6 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks in the United States. During 2002, she performed for many benefit concerts, including her second appearance on VH1 Divas Live, a concert to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation, alongside Cher, Anastacia, Dixie Chicks, Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, Cyndi Lauper, Shakira, and Stevie Nicks.
In conjunction with an endorsement deal with Chrysler, she released One Heart (2003), an album that represented her appreciation for life. The album largely consisted of pop and dance music—a deviation from the soaring, melodramatic ballads, for which she had been known. Although the album achieved moderate success, One Heart was met with mixed criticism, and words such as "predictable" and "banal" appeared even in the most lenient reviews. A cover of the 1989 Cyndi Lauper hit "I Drove All Night", released to launch her advertising campaign with Chrysler, incorporated elements of dance-pop and rock and roll. The advertising deal was met with criticism, with some stating that Dion was trying to cater to her sponsors.
After One Heart, she released her next English-language studio album, Miracle (2004). Miracle was a multimedia project conceived by Dion and Australian photographer Anne Geddes and had a theme centring on babies and motherhood. The album was filled with lullabies and other songs of maternal love and inspiration, including covers of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" and John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy". The reviews for Miracle were mixed. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic.com gave the album three of out five stars, stating, "The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience." Chuck Taylor of Billboard magazine wrote that the single "Beautiful Boy" was "an unexpected gem" and called Dion "a timeless, enormously versatile artist", Chuck Arnold of People Magazine, however, labelled the album as excessively sentimental, while Nancy Miller of Entertainment Weekly opined that "the whole earth-mama act is just opportunism, reborn". Miracle debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 in Canada and was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA.
The francophone album 1 fille & 4 types (1 Girl & 4 Guys), released in October 2003, fared better than her previous two releases and showed her trying to distance herself from the "diva" image. She recruited Jean-Jacques Goldman, Gildas Arzel, Eric Benzi, and Jacques Veneruso, with whom she had previously worked on two of her best-selling French albums S'il suffisait d'aimer and D'eux. Labeled "the album of pleasure" by Dion herself, the album cover showed her in a simple and relaxed manner, contrary to the choreographed poses usually found on her album covers. The album achieved widespread commercial success in France, Canada, and Belgium where it reached No. 1. In France, the album debuted at No. 1 and was later certified 2× platinum after selling over 700,000 copies. Critic Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Dion's vocals were "back at top of their game" and that she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while".
Though her albums were commercially successful, they did not achieve the sales or the reception of her previous works. Her songs received less airplay as radio became less embracing of balladeers like Dion, Carey, and Houston, and was focused on more up-tempo, Urban/Hip-hop songs. By 2004, Dion had accumulated sales of more than 175 million albums worldwide and received the Chopard Diamond Award from the World Music Awards for her achievements. According to the official World Music Awards website, the award is rare; it is "not presented every year" and an artist can be presented with the award only for selling "over 100 million albums during their career".
2003–2007: A New Day...
In early 2002, Dion announced a three-year, 600-show contract to appear five nights a week in an entertainment extravaganza, A New Day..., at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. This move was generally seen as risky, but journalist Miriam Nunzio wrote that it was "one of the smartest business decisions in years by any major recording artist". Dion conceived the show after seeing O by Franco Dragone during her break from recording, and it premiered on 25 March 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena specifically designed for her show and modelled after the Roman Colosseum. Many stars attended the opening night including Dick Clark, Alan Thicke, Kathy Griffin, Lance Bass, and Justin Timberlake, who hosted the television special. The show, directed by Dragone and choreographed by the renowned Mia Michaels, was a combination of dance, music, and visual effects. It included Dion performing her biggest hits against an array of dancers and special effects. Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find the singer among the excessive stage ornamentation and dancers. However, he noted that the show had become more enjoyable over the course of its run, because of her improved stage-presence and simplified costumes.
The show was well-received by audiences, despite the complaints of expensive tickets; it routinely sold out until its end in late 2007. Ticket prices averaged $135.33. According to Pollstar, Dion sold 322,000 tickets and grossed US$43.9 million in the first half of 2005, and by July 2005, she had sold out 315 out of 384 shows. By the end of 2005, she grossed more than US$76 million, placing sixth on Billboard's Money Makers list for 2005. Because of the show's success, her contract was extended into 2007 for an undisclosed sum. On 5 January 2007, it was announced that the show would end on 15 December 2007, with tickets for the period after October 2007 having gone on sale from 1 March. According to Billboard, A New Day... is the most successful residency of all time, grossing over US$385 million ($ million in dollars) and drawing nearly three million people to 717 shows. The Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... DVD was released on 10 December 2007, in Europe and the following day in North America.
2007–2010: D'elles, Taking Chances, and Taking Chances Tour
On 21 May 2007, Dion released the French-language album D'elles (About Them), which debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week. It marked her tenth No. 1 album in the SoundScan era, and her eighth to debut at the top position. In Canada, the album has been certified 2× platinum, and within the first month had already shipped half a million units worldwide. D'Elles also reached No. 1 in France and Belgium. The first single "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)" (meaning "And If There Was Only One Woman Left (I Would Be That One)") debuted at the top of the French singles chart a month earlier. Later that same year, she released the English album Taking Chances on 12 November in Europe, and 13 November in North America. Her first English studio album since 2003's One Heart, it featured pop, R&B, and rock inspired music. For this album, she collaborated with John Shanks and ex-Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody, as well as Kristian Lundin, Peer Åström, Linda Perry, Japanese singer Yuna Ito, and R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. Dion stated, "I think this album represents a positive evolution in my career ... I'm feeling strong, maybe a little gutsier than in the past, and just as passionate about music and life as I ever was." She launched her year-long worldwide Taking Chances Tour on 14 February 2008, in South Africa, performing 132 dates in stadiums and arenas across five continents.
The Taking Chances Tour was a great success in the United States, reaching the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Boxscore, having sold out every concert in the US and Canada. In addition, she appeared on Idol Gives Back for a second year in a row. Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, adding to her 53 previous nominations (an all-time record). Her nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year (for Taking Chances), Francophone Album of the Year (for D'elles) and Album of the Year (for both Taking Chances and D'elles). The following year, she was nominated for 3 Juno Awards including the Fan Choice Award, Song of the Year (for Taking Chances), and Music DVD of the Year (for Live in Las Vegas — A New Day...)
On 22 August 2008, Dion presented a free outdoor concert, mostly in French, on the Plains of Abraham, in Québec City, Canada, for the 400th anniversary of Québec City. The celebration gathered approximately 490,000 people. The concert, called Céline sur les Plaines, was released on DVD on 11 November 2008, in Québec and was released on 20 May 2009, in France. Late October 2008 saw the worldwide release of a comprehensive English-language greatest hits album, My Love: Essential Collection.
In May 2009, Dion was named the 20th best-selling artist of the decade and the second-best-selling female artist of the decade in the United States, selling an estimated 17.57 million copies of her albums there since 2000. In June 2009, Forbes reported that she earned $100 million during 2008. In December 2009, Pollstar announced that she was the best-selling solo touring act of the decade and the second-best-selling touring act of the decade, behind only the Dave Matthews Band. she grossed $522.2 million during the decade, a large portion of that sum coming from her five-year residency at Caesars Palace.
On 17 February 2010, Dion released into theatres a documentary film about her Taking Chances Tour, titled, Celine: Through the Eyes of the World. The documentary shows behind-the-scenes footage of her both onstage and offstage, along with footage of her with her family as they travelled the world with her. The distributor is the Sony Pictures subsidiary, Hot Ticket. The film was later released on Blu-ray and DVD on 4 May 2010, along with the CD/DVD, Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert. At the 52nd Grammy Awards in February 2010, Dion joined Carrie Underwood, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, and Smokey Robinson to perform the song "Earth Song" during the 3-D Michael Jackson tribute.
In January 2010, The Los Angeles Times presented its annual list of the top ten largest earners of the year, revealing that Dion took the top spot for the entire decade, with $US747.9 million in total revenue from 2000–2009. The largest haul came from ticket sales, totalling $522.2 million. Additionally, she was named "Artist of the Decade" in her native Canadian province of Québec, announced by the Montréal-based newspaper, Le Journal de Québec in 2009 December. A public online survey asked responders to vote for whom they believe deserved the above-mentioned accolade.
Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, Dion was named the most popular musician in the United States, ahead of U2, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles while factoring in gender, political affiliations, geographic region of residence, and income. Specifically, she was the most popular musician in the female demographic, as well as among all Democrats, those who live in the eastern United States and southern United States, and those who have incomes between US$35k and US$74.9k.
In September 2010, she released the single "Voler", a duet with French singer Michel Sardou. The song was later included on Sardou's album. In addition, it was announced in October 2010 that Dion wrote and composed a new song for Canadian singer, Marc Dupré entitled "Entre deux mondes".
2011–2014: Celine, Sans attendre, and Loved Me Back to Life
In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. In 2018, Billboard stated her residency Celine is the second most successful residency of all time. By the end of 2011, Dion has sold 331,000 albums (despite not releasing any studio album since 2007) and 956,000 digital tracks in the United States.
For a record sixth time, she performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, she appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, she released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, she made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica.
In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. She began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles.
In June 2013, Dion co-produced the show titled "Voices" by Véronic DiCaire at the Bally’s Hotel & Casino’s Jubilee Theatre and was presented 145 times up until 2015.
On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Céline une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia.
2014–present: Husband's death, Encore un soir, Courage, and return to Vegas
On 13 August 2014, Dion announced the indefinite postponement of all her show business activities, including her concert residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and the cancellation of her Asia Tour, because of the worsening of her husband's health after he underwent the removal of a cancerous tumor in December 2013. However, on 20 March 2015, she announced that she would be returning to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in late August 2015. On 14 January 2016, she cancelled the rest of the January performances due to her husband's and her brother's death from cancer. Dion resumed the residency on 23 February to a sold-out crowd and rave reviews.
In October 2015, Dion announced on social media that she had begun working on a new French album, posting a photo by the side of Algerian singer Zaho. Dion's French single, "Encore un soir", was released on 24 May 2016. On 20 May, she released a cover of Queen's song "The Show Must Go On", featuring Lindsey Stirling on violin. She performed "The Show Must Go On" at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards on 22 May, and received the Billboard Icon Award (presented to her by her son, René-Charles Angélil) in recognition of her career spanning over three decades.
The singer's new French album, Encore un soir, was released on 26 August 2016. It features fifteen tracks performed in French and, according to the singer, has a personal choice of the songs – more uplifting lyrics were chosen. Encore un soir topped the charts in France, Canada, Belgium and Switzerland, and was certified Diamond in France, 2× Platinum in Canada and Platinum in Belgium and Switzerland. It has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. In 2016 and 2017, Dion toured Europe and Canada with two sold-out concert tours. On 9 September 2016, she released "Recovering", a song written for her by Pink after Dion's husband René Angélil died in January 2016. Dion also recorded "How Does a Moment Last Forever" for the Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, released in March 2017. Her compilation, Un peu de nous topped the chart in France in July and August 2017.
On 3 May 2018, she released the single "Ashes" from the film Deadpool 2. The remix version of the song topped the US Dance Club Songs chart in July 2018. From June to August 2018, she toured the Asia-Pacific region and grossed $56.5 million from 22 shows. On 24 September 2018, she announced the end of her Las Vegas residency Celine, with the final date set for 8 June 2019. She is working on a new English album. In January 2019, she performed "A Change Is Gonna Come" at the "Aretha! A Grammy Celebration for the Queen of Soul" Franklin's tribute concert, to be broadcast in March 2019. In March 2019, she was one of 11 singers from Quebec, alongside Ginette Reno, Diane Dufresne, Isabelle Boulay, Luce Dufault, Louise Forestier, Laurence Jalbert, Catherine Major, Ariane Moffatt, Marie Denise Pelletier, and Marie-Élaine Thibert, who participated in a supergroup recording of Renée Claude's 1971 single "Tu trouveras la paix" after Claude's diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease was announced. On 3 April 2019, during a Facebook Live event, Dion announced her 2019/2020 Courage World Tour, beginning in Quebec City on 18 September 2019. She also announced a new English language album of the same name, released in November 2019.
On 18 September 2019, Dion released three songs, "Lying Down", "Courage", and "Imperfections" from her upcoming album, Courage. On 26 February 2020, Dion released two songs as exclusive Spotify singles: an acoustic version of Imperfections, and a cover of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game. Isaak joined Dion and sang vocals on the track. On 10 June 2020, Dion announced that her Courage World Tour will kick off again in 2021, after the tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 21 May 2021, it was announced Dion would return to Vegas, in November of the same year, for a limited-run installment of ten dates in collaboration with Resorts World Las Vegas. Billboard listed Dion as the third top paid musician of 2020 (second by female artist), with total of earnings of $17.5 million.
On 15 January 2022, a statement posted to Dion's website and social media accounts announced that the U.S. and Canadian concert dates for March-April 2022 were canceled because of “severe and persistent muscle spasms” that are preventing Dion from performing onstage.
Artistry
Influences
Dion cites idols as varied as Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Charles Aznavour, Carole King, Anne Murray, Barbra Streisand, and the Bee Gees, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with. Her music has been influenced by numerous genres, including pop, rock, gospel, R&B, and soul, and her lyrics focus on themes of poverty, world hunger, and spirituality, with an emphasis on love and romance. After the birth of her first child, her work increasingly focused on maternal love.
Musical style
Dion has faced considerable criticism from critics, who state that her music often retreats behind pop and soul conventions, and is marked by excessive sentimentality. According to Keith Harris of Rolling Stone magazine, "[Dion's] sentimentality is bombastic and defiant rather than demure and retiring ... [she] stands at the end of the chain of drastic devolution that goes Aretha–Whitney–Mariah. Far from being an aberration, Dion actually stands as a symbol of a certain kind of pop sensibility—bigger is better, too much is never enough, and the riper the emotion the more true." Her francophone releases, by contrast, tend to be deeper and more varied than her English releases, and consequently have achieved more credibility.
Critics have stated that Dion's involvement in the production aspect of her music is fundamentally lacking, which results in her work being overproduced and impersonal. However, coming from a family in which all of her siblings were musicians, she dabbled in learning how to play instruments like piano and guitar, and practised with a Fender Stratocaster during the recording sessions for her album Falling into You.
Occasionally, Dion has contributed to the writing of a handful of her English and French songs, as well as writing a few songs for other artists such as Marc Dupre. Additionally, as her career progressed, she found herself taking charge in the production of her albums. On her first English album, which she recorded before she had a firm command of the English language, she expressed disapproval, which could have been avoided if she had assumed more creative input. By the time she released her second English album Celine Dion, she had assumed more control of the production and recording process, hoping to dispel earlier criticisms. She stated, "On the second album I said, 'Well, I have the choice to be afraid one more time and not be 100% happy, or not be afraid and be part of this album.' This is my album." Besides her contributions to some of her early French albums, Dion wrote a few of the songs on Let's Talk About Love (1997) and These Are Special Times (1998).
She is often the subject of media ridicule and parody and is frequently impersonated on shows such as MADtv, Saturday Night Live, South Park, Royal Canadian Air Farce, and This Hour Has 22 Minutes for her strong accent and onstage gesticulations. However, she has stated that she is unaffected by the comments, and is flattered that people take the time to impersonate her. She even invited Ana Gasteyer, who parodied her on SNL, to appear onstage during one of her performances in New York City. While she is rarely politically outspoken, in 2005 following the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Dion appeared on Larry King Live and tearfully criticized the US government's slow response in aiding the victims of the hurricane: "There's people still there waiting to be rescued. To me that is not acceptable ... How can it be so easy to send planes in another country to kill everybody in a second and destroy lives. We need to serve our country." After her interview, she stated, "When I do interviews with Larry King or the big TV shows like that, they put you on the spot, which is very difficult. I do have an opinion, but I'm a singer. I'm not a politician."
Voice and timbre
Dion once claimed to be a mezzo-soprano. However, attempts to adapt classical voice types to other forms of singing have been met with controversy. Without making a classification, Kent Nagano, maestro of the Munich Symphony Orchestra, remarked, "All you just sang was full lyric soprano", after Dion auditioned with two solos from Carmen, wanting to know if she could sing opera. Her timbre has been described as "thin, slightly nasal" with a "raspy" lower register and "bell glass-like high notes".
According to Linda Lister in Divafication: The Deification of Modern Female Pop Stars, she has been described as a reigning "Queen of Pop" for her influence over the recording industry during the 1990s, alongside other female artists, including Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. In a countdown of the "22 Greatest Voices in Music" by Blender Magazine and MTV, she placed ninth (sixth for a female), and she was also placed fourth in Cover Magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists". Dion is often compared to Houston and Carey for her vocal style, and to her idol Barbra Streisand for her voice.
She is often praised for her technical virtuosity. Jim Santella of The Buffalo News writes "Like an iron fist in a velvet glove, the power of Celine Dion's voice is cloaked in a silky vibrato that betrays the intensity of her vocal commitment." Jeff Miers, also of The Buffalo News, says of Dion "Her singing voice is absolutely extra-human. She hits notes in full voice, with a controlled vibrato and an incredible conception of pitch, like she's shucking an ear of corn." Stephen Holden of The New York Times states that Dion has "a good-sized arsenal of technical skills. She can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch. And as her duets ... have shown, she is a reliable harmony voice." In an interview with Libération, Jean-Jacques Goldman notes that she has "no problem of accuracy or tempo". According to Kent Nagano, she is "a musician who has a good ear, a refinement, and a degree of perfection that is enviable". Charles Alexander of Time states, "[Her] voice glides effortlessly from deep whispers to dead-on high notes, a sweet siren that combines force with grace."
In her French repertoire, Dion adorns her vocals with more nuances and expressiveness, with the emotional intensity being "more tender and intimate". Additionally, Luc Plamondon, a French singer-songwriter who has worked closely with Dion claims that there are three chanteuses (stylistically) that she uses: the Québécois, the French, and the American. Her self-titled 1992 album was promoted with the slogan "Remember the name because you'll never forget the voice."
Legacy
Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most influential vocalists. She has been referred to as the "Queen of Power Ballads" by the media.. Billboard called Dion the "Queen of Pop". Her music and vocal styling, alongside that of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, have been said to shape how the bulk of modern female pop vocalists sing. These three artists have been widely credited with reviving the power ballad, and in doing so reshaping the adult contemporary radio format, making it one of the most popular formats of the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2002, Billboard named her as the "Best-selling contemporary female artist in history".
According to producer, musician, and former American Idol judge Randy Jackson, Dion, Houston, and Carey are the voices of the modern era. Music critic and Dion biographer Carl Wilson notes that her "fame and influence is also renewed and expressed regularly these days by American Idol, the largest mass musical phenomenon of the past decade, where Celine's stood solidly in its pantheon of singers for young people to emulate". Many contestants on the countless televised talent competitions that have risen at the turn of the millennium often emulate Dion, Houston and Carey and cite them as idols. MTV also praised Dion by saying: "Céline Dion was better than almost anyone at capitalizing on pop’s ability to articulate feelings in sensational, over-the-top ways."
Numerous artists have either mentioned Dion as a major influence or as one of their favourite singers including: Britney Spears, Rihanna, Adele, Josh Groban, Delta Goodrem, Leona Lewis, Jennifer Hudson, Vanessa Hudgens, Kelly Clarkson, Perrie Edwards, Loren Allred, Brazilian singer Wanessa Camargo, Ariana Grande, Sam Smith, Frank Ocean, Ava Max, Charlotte Cardin, and V (from BTS) among many others. Country singer Martina McBride is widely heralded by the press as the Celine Dion of Country music.
Many artists have also praised Dion's voice, singing ability or expressed an interest in working with her including Met Opera conductor and musical director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Beyoncé, Carlos Santana, Elton John, OneRepublic, Coldplay, Sharon Osbourne, Nicole Scherzinger, Ne-Yo, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, Luciano Pavarotti, Bee Gees, Sir George Martin, Justin Bieber, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Drake and Cher.
Timbaland stated "Celine has such a beautiful, mesmerizing voice. She is so talented. I think we could create something that is a classic like she is already." Josh Groban remarked "She's a powerhouse. In this day and age, when more and more studio-produced, tiny-tiny voices are being rewarded ... she has this extraordinary instrument." According to Diane Warren, "Celine is the best singer by far of her generation", an opinion shared by Quincy Jones, Tommy Mottola, and David Foster. Moreover, Shania Twain and Jennifer Lopez have praised her dynamic stage presence, with Jennifer Lopez commenting on American Idol: "Celine gets on stage, she owns the stage, she runs all over that stage, she stops that stage." Leona Lewis is also a huge fan of Céline Dion saying "Celine is someone I aspire to be like in every way. "Gosh – I can't wait. I'm in the middle of picking out dresses at the moment. Celine is definitely one of my heroes. She is amazing." American singer and actress Lea Michelle said that she listened to Céline Dion's music while in the process of making her sophomore album 'Places' and cited her as one of her vocal influences.
Godmother of Soul Patti LaBelle called Dion as one of the greatest singers ever. Pop singer Kelly Clarkson also praised Dion's vocal ability saying: "she has two sets of lungs when she sings." and also called her the most gifted vocalist on the planet.
Dion holds the Guiness World Record for the most Juno Awards won for Album Of The Year (tied with Michael Buble & Arcade Fire). She won 3 out of the 13 nominations she received in the category throughout her career. Dion is the 3rd most decorated artist in Juno Awards history, winning 20 out of the 75 total nominations ever, becoming the most nominated artist in the awards history as well.
In 1997-1998, Dion sold more than 60 million albums, and was estimated to sell a record once every 1.2 seconds. In 2017, Dion broke records across the UK as the highest grossing artist at each UK venue where she performed which included dates at the O2 Arena in London, Leeds First Direct Arena, Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena and the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. John Meglen, president and co-CEO, Concerts West commended her by saying: "She really is the voice of our lifetime."
In 2018, there were over 300,000 Taiwanese fans that clambered for the 20,000 tickets available for Célines first concert ever in Taiwan which caused the system to lag for 30 minutes. The demand caused them to add two additional shows eventually.
Cultural impact
In Francophone music industry
On a cultural level, Dion is credited for introducing francophone music to many non-francophone countries around the globe. Her albums D'eux and S'il suffisait d'aimer remain the best selling francophone albums in history, gaining unprecedented success in non-Francophone markets such as the United Kingdom, Poland, Netherlands, Portugal, Greece, Austria, Japan, and New Zealand. According to RFI Musique, she "has done her bit for French music over the years, assuring the success of French songs which would probably never have got beyond Francophone borders without her ... Without Celine, French record sales would be dramatically lower!" In May 2008, she was awarded France's highest award, as Knight of the Legion of Honour by President of France Nicolas Sarkozy. Sarkozy praised Dion and stated: "France thanks you because your talent and success have contributed to the influence of the French language outside our borders".
In Las Vegas strip
She is also credited for both revitalizing and revolutionizing the entertainment scene in Las Vegas with the gargantuan successes of her residencies there. She signed a multi-million dollar deal worthed $100 million to do a residency in Vegas and is considered one of the most lucrative and risky in the touring industry.
Billboard credits Dion as the one who pioneered modern residencies saying: "Since Dion's debut, hundreds of artists have tried their hand at Vegas residencies, including, most recently, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Usher, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Rod Stewart and Sting. Once considered the domain of artists long past their peak, today's Las Vegas residency shows are big business, generating millions in sales." Moreover, Billboard also said: "She changed history and she completely changed Las Vegas," said Nelson, who notes the new residencies being announced for artists like Cardi B, Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Lopez aren't really at the same production level or scale of what Dion created with her husband René Angélil, as well as Meglen, Nelson and former AEG CEO Tim Leiweke." Dion is popularly referred as the reigning "Queen of Las Vegas" by various media outlets for her impact and legacy in the city.
According to Gary Bongiovanni, president and editor-in-chief of Pollstar, "Celine redefined what artists can do in Las Vegas, helping to make it arguably the busiest entertainment city in the world."
Kurt Melien, vice-president of entertainment at Caesar's Palace stated "Celine was a pioneer without question ... Twenty years ago, we couldn't have got someone the stature of Britney Spears to appear in Vegas. Stars likes her would never have considered it if Celine hadn't paved the way. She changed the face of modern Vegas."
The Guardian listed Dion's Vegas residency as one of the 50 gigs that changed music, crediting her as the one who revived it, further saying: "it was Céline Dion who turned Caesars into the stage for a glorious pop comeback. Her initial five-year run was followed by a further eight years – and prompted copycat turns by Britney Spears, Pink and Katy Perry.
In the economy
Regarding her financial impact on Las Vegas, Stephen Brown, director of the Centre for Business and Economic Research in Las Vegas, commented: "People will come to the city just for her and they will spend money and as a consequence, she has an outsized impact on the economy", then adding "Bigger than Elvis, Sinatra and Liberace put together? Definitely." Estimations indicate that Dion's show will create up to 7,000 indirect jobs and around $114 million worth of new economic activity in each of the three years for which she has been contracted.
In businesses
Forbes also discussed how entrepreneurs can reclaim the power in their business by being like Céline Dion as an example saying: "Well, remember back in 2017 when Dion launched her handbag line? During a press conference, she admitted her late manager (and husband) had always handled everything for her. Every aspect of her shows was pre-decided; every move, appearance and interview was programmed in advance. She just showed up and executed (which she did brilliantly). At the end of her handbag launch press release, she said "Now . . . I'm the boss.” Starting right then and there, she’d be the one calling the shots for her shows, her kids, her handbags and everything else that mattered to her. She was going to do things her way."
In Fashion
Celine Dion has received various acclaims from fashion critics for reinventing her fashion style over the years. The Guardian called her "The Joyous New Queen of Fashion". Harper's Bazaar also praised Dion for being an ultimate fashion risk-taker and called her a "Fashion Chameleon". Billboard dubbed her as "Streetwear Icon" after recapping the global icon's style evolution through the years. Vogue named her as one of music's most exuberant dressers, beloved as much for her glorious voice as her extravagant sense of style. Tatler discussed in an article how Cardi B might be the next Céline Dion of Paris Fashion Week, proving that Céline is the standard for the occasion. Fashion stylist and image architect Law Roach praised Celine Dion, calling her "The Queen of Camp" & "The Queen of Glitter & Sequins". Dion further cemented her name in the fashion world by wearing the reverse tuxedo at 1999 Academy Awards, which became one of the most talked ensembles of that time. Vogue also listed her iconic 1999 reverse tuxedo as one of the most controversial looks of all time saying it was undeniably the highlight of the year. W also listed the iconic ensemble as one of the most memorable dresses of all time. In February 2020, Sergio Guadarrama, a contestant of Project Runway, copied the idea of reverse tuxedo and claimed it was his original idea and had even claimed that he had no idea about the iconic tuxedo, which left the fans of the show disappointed.
Breaking music barriers
Vice discussed how Dion's music made impact in Nigerian culture, saying: "By the 2000s, Celine Dion was basically the queen of Nigerian airwaves. It was impossible to watch TV or listen to the radio without hearing her music – either on adverts, or in Nollywood films featuring heartthrobs like Genevieve Nnaji and Ramsey Nouah."
Billboard also discussed how Dion’s appearance at Jamaica Jazz & Blues changed the festival’s future. According to Walter Elmore, CEO of Art of Music Productions said Dion is by far the most expensive artist he has ever booked, further saying: “I have already received calls from the management of several major US artists who want to perform here next year because they heard Celine’s comments about our show’s production quality,” Elmore said. “Her performance confirms that we can bring the biggest artists on the planet to our little island.”
In 2012, Dion visited Jamaica for the very first time which broke attendance records and caused traffic congestion around the concert venue. Vice discussed how Dion's music has been constant in dancehall clubs for decades, as many Jamaican dancehall artists cover her songs and remixing her ballads into anthems of dance hall. Further adding: "Several current dancehall musicians continue to use utilize Dion’s tunes with the addition of upbeat guitars, pan flutes, and backbeat shuffles that transform the music for consumption by dancehall fans."
Being referenced in songs
The Canadian comedy music group The Arrogant Worms released an album called Dirt in 1999 which contained a song called "Celine Dion", about the singers' stalker-like affection for her. Dion has also been referred/mentioned in various hit songs including "Dark Fantasy" by Kanye West, "911/Mr. Lonely" by Tyler, the Creator, "That Girl" by Pharrell Williams, "Work" by A$AP Ferg, and "What's The Use" by Mac Miller, to name a few.
Cultural honors
In 1999, Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame and was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in January 2004, one which she dedicated to her father, who had died the month prior. In May 2003, she placed at No. 10 on VH1's list of "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era". Dion's album Falling into You is included on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. "My Heart Will Go On" was included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. In 2021, Dion was ranked by Forbes as the third richest woman in entertainment with an estimated net worth of US$460 million. In August 2008, she received an honorary doctorate in music from the Université Laval in Quebec City.
In October 2010, Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador, a program created by the UN in 1999, sharing this accolade with Oscar-winner Susan Sarandon. She also received several state decorations. In 2004, she was awarded the Society of Singers Lifetime Achievement Award.
On 26 July 2013, she was awarded the highest rank of the Order of Canada, the Companion of the Order of Canada, by the Governor General of Canada and the investiture ceremony was held at Citadelle of Quebec, in which they said: "An incomparable artist, she is equally known for her compassion, generosity and commitment to a number of social and humanitarian causes. She is notably the national celebrity patron for Cystic Fibrosis Canada and honorary patron of the CHU Sainte-Justine. In addition, through her foundation, she also helps children in need and their families here in Canada and abroad."
By the end of 1998, Dion was recognized by Billboard as the "Woman of the Year". They also stated how Céline's voice was featured in eight charting albums on Billboard 200 year-end chart which sold 18 million units during a calendar year (excluding her own catalog sales and recent releases at that time).
West University of Timișoara conducted a research study that analyzes Céline Dion's contributions to global music culture in both spatial and temporal terms, In November 2013, Dion was inducted at the American Gaming Association Hall Of Fame for her outstanding contributions to the growth and stature of the gaming industry.
In popular culture
Dion was referenced as an antagonist character named "Feline Dion" from the hit animated series Totally Spies! which was aired in an episode in 2013.
In 2021, French actress and filmmaker Valérie Lemercier released Aline, a film which fictionalized Dion's life with Lemercier playing a singer named "Aline Dieu".
Other activities
Business endeavours
Les Productions Feeling Inc., also known as Feeling Inc. or just Feeling, is an artist management company based in Laval, Québec, Canada, and owned by Dion and her husband and manager, Rene Angélil. She is also founder of Nickels Restaurant food chain. She and her husband also own Le Mirage Golf Club and Schwartz's Restaurant. In association with Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf and Shaquille O'Neal, she opened a popular night club called Pure, located at Caesars Palace.
Dion became an entrepreneur with the establishment of her franchise restaurant Nickels in 1990. She has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997. In 2003, Dion signed a deal with Coty, Inc. to release Celine Dion Parfums. Her latest fragrance, Signature, was released in September 2011 with an advertising campaign by New York agency Kraftworks NYC. Since its inception, Celine Dion Parfums has grossed over $850 million in retail sales. In October 2004, Air Canada hired Dion as part of their promotional campaign to unveil new service products and an updated livery. "You and I", the theme song sung by Dion, was written by advertising executives working for Air Canada.
Dion also launched an eponymous bag and accessories line "Céline Dion Collection". According to Innee-Sedona International, the Asia partner for Bugatti Group said that it already topped $10 million sales after just three collections.
Philanthropy
Dion has actively supported many charity organizations, worldwide. She has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993. She has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine succumbed to the disease at the age of sixteen, in Dion's arms. In 2003, she joined a number of other celebrities, athletes, and politicians, including Josh Groban and Yolanda Adams to support "World Children's Day", a global fundraising effort sponsored by McDonald's. The effort raised money from more than 100 nations and benefited orphanages and children's health organizations. In addition, she has been a major supporter of the T. J. Martell Foundation, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, and many health and educational campaigns. During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, she donated $1 million to the victims of the storm, and held a fund-raising event for the victims of the 2004 Asian tsunami, which subsequently raised more than $1 million. After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, she donated $100,000 to China Children & Teenagers' Fund and sent a letter showing her consolation and support. Since 2004, she is involved, alongside husband René Angelil, with the Québec gay community by supporting the publication of health and HIV prevention materials in Gay Globe Magazine, owned by journalist Roger-Luc Chayer. She is also a member of Canadian charity Artists Against Racism. In November 2018, she launched a gender-neutral clothing line for kids, Celinununu. In 2009, Dion joined an effort along with Leonardo DiCaprio, James Cameron and Kate Winslet, to donate money to support the nursing home fees of the then-last living survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, Millvina Dean. The campaign resulted in $30,000 as donation.
Personal life
As the youngest of 14 children, Dion grew up wearing hand-me-downs and sharing a bed with several sisters. As a baby, she slept in a drawer to save on a crib. She was bullied at school and called "Vampire", owing to her teeth and skinny frame. Local tabloids even dubbed her "Canine Dion" in the teenage years of her career. She often spoke of running home from school to play music in the basement with her brothers and sisters. "I detested school", she would later write in her autobiography. "I had always lived surrounded by adults and children a lot older than me. I learned everything I needed to know from them. As far as I was concerned, real life existed around them." Dion's eldest sister was already in her twenties, married, and pregnant with her first child at the time Dion's mother, Thérèse, was pregnant with Celine.
Dion first met René Angélil, her future husband and manager, in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after her brother, Michel Dondalinger Dion, had sent him a demonstration recording of "Ce n'était qu'un rêve" ("It Was Only a Dream/Nothing But A Dream"), a song she, her mother Thérèse, and her brother Jacques Dion had jointly written. Over subsequent years, Angélil guided her to stardom in francophone territories.
After the dissolution of Angélil's second marriage, he and Dion took a professional break and he spent the major part of the year in Las Vegas, while Dion was learning English and taking dance and vocal lessons in Montreal. Upon his return, "he avoided being alone with me for too long a time", she said in her 2000 autobiography My Story, My Dream. Meanwhile, she kept a photo of Angélil under her pillow, writing, "Before I fell asleep, I slipped it under the pillow, out of fear that my mother, who always shared a room with me, would find it." She also wrote "Less and less could I hide from myself the fact that I was in love with Rene; I had all the symptoms," and "I was in love with a man I couldn't love, who didn't want me to love him, who didn't want to love me." Dion's mother, who traveled everywhere with the singer until she was 19, was initially wary of her daughter's growing infatuation with a much older and twice-divorced Angélil, but Dion was insistent, telling her mother "I'm not a minor. This is a free country. No one has the right to prevent me from loving whoever I want to."
Their professional relationship eventually turned romantic after Dion's win at the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin in 1988; she was 20. The romance was known to only family and friends for five years, though Dion nearly revealed all in a tearful 1992 interview with journalist Lise Payette. Many years later, Payette penned the song "Je cherche l'ombre" for Dion's 2007 album D'elles.
Dion and Angélil became engaged in 1993, on Dion's 25th birthday, and made their relationship public in the liner notes of her 1993 album The Colour of My Love. They married on 17 December 1994, at Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec. On 5 January 2000, Dion and Angélil renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas.
In May 2000, Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in vitro fertilization because of years of failed attempts to conceive. Their first son, René-Charles Angélil, was born on 25 January 2001. Dion suffered a miscarriage in 2009. In May 2010, Angélil announced that she was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in vitro fertilization. On Saturday, 23 October 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, Dion gave birth to fraternal twins by Caesarean section at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, The twins were named Eddy, after Dion's favourite French songwriter, Eddy Marnay, who had also produced her first five albums; and Nelson, after former South African President Nelson Mandela. She appeared with her newborn sons on the cover of 9 December 2010 issue of the Canadian edition of Hello! magazine.
On 14 January 2016, Angélil died of throat cancer. His funeral was held on 22 January 2016, in Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, where he and Dion wed 21 years earlier. The couple's eldest son, René-Charles, gave the eulogy just three days before his 15th birthday. Following Angélil's death, Dion became the sole owner and president of her management and production companies, including CDA Productions and Les Productions Feeling.
Two days after Angélil's deathon what would have been her husband's birthdayDion's brother, Daniel, died aged 59, also of cancer.
On 22 March 2018, Dion's management team announced that she had been dealing with hearing irregularities for the previous 12–18 months due to patulous Eustachian tube and would undergo a minimally invasive surgical procedure to correct the problem after ear-drop medications appeared to be no longer working.
Owing to her slight frame, Dion has for decades been subject of eating disorder rumors, which she has consistently denied: "I don't have an eating problem, and there's nothing more I can say about it". "My work requires me to be in great physical shape. I wouldn't have been able to live up to a hundred shows a year and travel ceaselessly from one end of the world to the other if I had eaten too much or not enough, or if, as certain magazines have claimed, I made myself throw up after each meal." She has often spoken about having been bullied at school and lacking confidence in her early years in the business: "I didn't have, visually, what it took. I was not pretty, I had teeth problems, and I was very skinny. I didn't fit the mold".
Dion took up ballet under the guidance of her former dancer, Naomi Stikeman, who also previously performed for The National Ballet of Canada and La La La Human Steps, and former Cirque du Soleil dancer-turned-fashion-illustrator, Pepe Muñoz, who is also part of her styling team. She is also a skier and a regular at her son René-Charles' hockey games.
Dion resides in Henderson, Nevada, in a house she bought with her husband in 2003. She previously owned homes in Montreal, Quebec, and Jupiter Island, Florida.
Dion's older son René-Charles Angélil loves music and has tried to follow a musical path. Under the stage name Big Tip, he released in May 2018 on his SoundCloud account 6 rap songs including originals "The Kid", "The Apple" and "Never Stop" and two adaptations from The Weeknd songs, "Catwalks" sampling on The Weeknd's "Sidewalks" and a remix of The Weeknd's "Loft Music" as "Loft Music Remix". He also released the 5-track EP CasiNo. 5 in December 2020 using the artistic name RC Angelil. The EP includes the tracks "Mamba Mentality", "Money, Thrills and Rest", "No Ls", "GG4" (featuring PAKKA) and "LV".
Discography
French-language studio albums
La voix du bon Dieu (1981)
Céline Dion chante Noël (1981)
Tellement j'ai d'amour... (1982)
Les chemins de ma maison (1983)
Chants et contes de Noël (1983)
Mélanie (1984)
C'est pour toi (1985)
Incognito (1987)
Dion chante Plamondon (1991)
D'eux (1995)
S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998)
1 fille & 4 types (2003)
D'elles (2007)
Sans attendre (2012)
Encore un soir (2016)
English-language studio albums
Unison (1990)
Celine Dion (1992)
The Colour of My Love (1993)
Falling into You (1996)
Let's Talk About Love (1997)
These Are Special Times (1998)
A New Day Has Come (2002)
One Heart (2003)
Miracle (2004)
Taking Chances (2007)
Loved Me Back to Life (2013)
Courage (2019)
Concert tours and residencies
Tours
Les chemins de ma maison (1983–1984)
Céline Dion en concert (1985)
Tournée Incognito (1988)
Unison Tour (1990–1991)
Celine Dion in Concert (1992–1993)
The Colour of My Love Tour (1994–1995)
D'eux Tour (1995–1996)
Falling into You: Around the World (1996–1997)
Let's Talk About Love World Tour (1998–1999)
Taking Chances World Tour (2008–2009)
Tournée Européenne 2013
Summer Tour 2016
Celine Dion Live 2017
Celine Dion Live 2018
Courage World Tour (2019–2023)
Residencies
A New Day... (2003–2007)
Celine (2011–2019)
Celine (2022)
Filmography
Touched by an Angel
The Nanny
All My Children
La fureur de Céline
Des fleurs sur la neige
Quest for Camelot as Juliana (singing voice)
Céline sur les Plaines
Celine: Through the Eyes of the World
Sur la piste du Marsupilami
Hell's Kitchen
Muppets Most Wanted
References
Bibliography
Céline Dion. Artist direct. Retrieved on 18 December 2005.
"Celine Dion". Contemporary Musicians, Volume 25. Gale Group, 1999.
"Celine Dion". Newsmakers 1995, Issue 4. Gale Research, 1995.
Céline Dion. Rock on the Net. Retrieved 20 November 2005.
Céline Dion. The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2 July 2006
Céline Dion provided by VH1.com Retrieved 16 August 2005.
Dion extends long Las Vegas stint. news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2005.
Durchholz, Daniel. Review: One Heart. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. St. Louis, Mo.: 24 April 2003. p. F.3
The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalist covemagazine.com Retrieved 1 November 2005.
Joel Whitburn Presents the Billboard Hot 100 Charts: The Nineties ()
World Music Awards Diamond Award Retrieved 1 November 2005, (Search by year required)
Further reading
External links
CelineDion.com – Official website operated by Sony Music Canada (English, French).
[ Celine Dion] at AllMusic
[ Celine Dion] at Billboard.com
1968 births
Living people
20th-century Canadian composers
20th-century Canadian women singers
20th-century women composers
21st-century Canadian composers
21st-century Canadian women singers
21st-century women composers
550 Music artists
Ballad musicians
Businesspeople from Florida
Businesspeople from Quebec
Canadian businesspeople in retailing
Canadian child singers
Canadian contemporary R&B singers
Canadian dance musicians
Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States
Canadian women pop singers
Canadian women rock singers
Canadian women singers
Canadian pop pianists
Canadian restaurateurs
Canadian Roman Catholics
Canadian soft rock musicians
Canadian sopranos
Canadian soul singers
Canadian voice actresses
Canadian women in business
Canadian women philanthropists
Canadian women pianists
Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Columbia Records artists
Companions of the Order of Canada
Epic Records artists
Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Switzerland
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1988
Eurovision Song Contest winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Félix Award winners
French-language singers of Canada
French Quebecers
Grammy Award winners
Ivor Novello Award winners
Juno Award for Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Artist of the Year winners
Juno Award for Dance Recording of the Year winners
Juno Award for Francophone Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for International Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Single of the Year winners
Juno International Achievement Award winners
Las Vegas shows
Musicians from Las Vegas
Officers of the National Order of Quebec
People from Charlemagne, Quebec
People from Henderson, Nevada
People from Jupiter Island, Florida
Philanthropists from Florida
Philanthropists from Nevada
Philanthropists from Quebec
Pop rock singers
Singers from Quebec
Singers with a three-octave vocal range
Spanish-language singers of Canada
Women restaurateurs
World Music Awards winners | true | [
"Elspeth Duxbury (23 April 190910 March 1967) was a British actress born in Mhow, India.\n\nKnown primarily for working in theatre, she had one television role in 1938 but did not make her big screen debut until 1960 in the Terry-Thomas hit comedy Make Mine Mink.\n\nShe followed this with a role on Alfred Hitchcock Presents the following year in the episode \"I Spy\". Concentrating more on theatre, she had two further television roles, one a biography of Alexander Graham Bell and the other in the twice weekly BBC comedy drama series Swizzlewick.\n\nIn 1966, she appeared in two films, including the fourth St Trinian's film, The Great St Trinian's Train Robbery.\n\nHer final screen role (and one she had performed on stage) was a televised version of the well known farce Big Bad Mouse with Eric Sykes and Jimmy Edwards.\n\nElspeth Duxbury was found dead in her room, at the St Martin's Hotel, London, on 10 March 1967 aged 57.\n\nFilmography\n\n1938 Laugh with Me (TV) (as Sophia Kimberley)\n1960 Make Mine Mink (as Elizabeth Pinkie Pinkerton)\n1961 Alfred Hitchcock Presents (episode I Spy) (TV series) (as Gladys)\n1964 Swizzlewick (TV series) (as Miss. Oldacre)\n1965 Alexander Graham Bell (TV) (as Mrs. Tweedie)\n1966 The Great St Trinian's Train Robbery (as Veronica Bledlow)\n1966 The Yellow Hat (as Customer)\n1966 Big Bad Mouse (TV) (as Miss Spencer)\n\nExternal links\n\nStill of Elspeth Duxbury (far left) on the set of Make Mine Mink\n\n1909 births\n1967 deaths\nBritish film actresses\nBritish television actresses\nBritish stage actresses\n20th-century British actresses\nPeople from Mhow\nBritish people in colonial India",
"Jodie McMullen (born 15 February 1974) is a former Miss Australia in 1996. During the international beauty pageant, she did not make the top 10 but won the Miss Congeniality award. Later she went on to become a film actress, model and television presenter.\n\nShe starred in \"Requiem\" with Jason Connery; and more recently has worked as a freelance writer, writing for the Listings Magazine, International Woman's Monthly, and several other online and print magazines.\n\nIn 2007 she made her UK TV debut, with a role in the TV series \"Honest\", an ITV drama based on a hit show from New Zealand.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nOfficial website for Jodie McMullen\n\n1974 births\nAustralian beauty pageant winners\nLiving people\nMiss Universe 1996 contestants"
]
|
[
"Celine Dion",
"2011-2014: Celine, Sans attendre and Loved Me Back to Life",
"What did Celine Dion do in 2011?",
"February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011.",
"Was her tour successful?",
"Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote.",
"Did she win any awards during this time?",
"I don't know.",
"What songs were popular on our tour?",
"Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. \"Breakaway\", \"Incredible\" and \"Water and a Flame",
"What else did she do while on tour?",
"1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder.",
"Who else did she work with?",
"To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season,",
"Did she make other TV appearences?",
"\"Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show\". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada."
]
| C_78f1e410e4c0415db79dddeaf75c47aa_0 | Did she have other tours? | 8 | Besides Celine's tours in 2011 and 2013, Did Celine Dione have other tours? | Celine Dion | In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. Additionally, for a record sixth time, Dion performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, Dion appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, Dion released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, Dion made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica. In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. Dion began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles. The music video for "Incredible" was uploaded onto Dion's official Vevo channel in early June 2014. On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Celine une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia. CANNOTANSWER | an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica. | Céline Marie Claudette Dion (; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. She is noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals. Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French language artist of all time. Her music has incorporated genres such as pop, rock, R&B, gospel, and classical music.
Born into a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, she emerged as a teen star in her home country with a series of French-language albums during the 1980s. She first gained international recognition by winning both the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, where she represented Switzerland. After learning to speak English, she signed on to Epic Records in the United States. In 1990, Dion released her debut English-language album, Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world. Her recordings since have been mainly in English and French although she has also sung in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese, and Chinese.
During the 1990s, she achieved worldwide fame after releasing several best-selling English-language albums in music history, such as Falling into You (1996) and Let's Talk About Love (1997), which were both certified diamond in the US and over 30 million sales worldwide each. She also scored a series of international number-one hits, including "The Power of Love", "Think Twice", "Because You Loved Me", "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", "My Heart Will Go On", and "I'm Your Angel". Dion continued releasing French albums between each English record; D'eux (1995) became the best-selling French-language album of all time, while S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998), Sans attendre (2012), and Encore un soir (2016), were all certified diamond in France. During the 2000s, she built her reputation as a highly successful live performer with A New Day... on the Las Vegas Strip (2003–07), which remains the highest-grossing concert residency of all time, as well as the Taking Chances World Tour (2008–09), one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time.
Dion is also one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with record sales of more than 200 million worldwide. Although her releases have often received mixed critical reception, Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most successful vocalists. She has won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year. Billboard named her the "Queen of Adult Contemporary" for having the most number-one songs on the radio format for a female artist. Dion is the second best-selling female artist in the US during the Nielsen SoundScan, the 8th all-time best-performing top female artist in the United States, and the sixth all-time best-performing female soloist in Billboard 200 history. In 2003, she was honoured by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for selling over 50 million albums in Europe. In 2008, Dion was recognized as the Best-selling International Artist in South Africa.
Life and career
1968–1989: Early life and career beginnings
Dion was born in Charlemagne, Quebec, northeast of Montreal, the youngest of 14 children of Thérèse (née Tanguay, 1927–2020), a homemaker, and Adhémar Dion (1923–2003), a butcher, both of French-Canadian descent. She was raised a Roman Catholic in a poor but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne. Music had always been a major part of the Dion family, and she was named after the song "Céline", which French singer Hugues Aufray had recorded two years before her birth. On 13 August 1973, at the age of five, the young Céline made her first public appearance at her brother Michel's wedding, where she performed Christine Charbonneau's song "Du fil, des aiguilles et du coton". She continued to perform with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar called Le Vieux Baril, "The Old Barrel". From an early age, she had dreamed of being a performer. In a 1994 interview with People magazine, she recalled, "I missed my family and my home, but I don't regret having lost my adolescence. I had one dream: I wanted to be a singer." As a child in Quebec, Dion participated in Girl Guide programs as a member of Girl Guides of Canada.
At age 12, she collaborated with her mother and her brother Jacques to write and compose her first song, "Ce n'était qu'un rêve", whose title translates as "It Was Only a Dream" or "Nothing But A Dream". Her brother Michel sent the recording to music manager René Angélil, whose name he discovered on the back of a Ginette Reno album. Angélil was moved to tears by Dion's voice and decided to make her a star. In 1981, he mortgaged his home to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu, which later became a local No. 1 hit and made her an instant star in Quebec. Her popularity spread to other parts of the world when she competed in the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, and won the musician's award for "Top Performer" as well as the gold medal for "Best Song" with "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi".
By 1983, in addition to becoming the first Canadian artist to receive a gold record in France for the single "D'amour ou d'amitié" ("Of Love or of Friendship"), Dion had also won several Félix Awards, including "Best Female performer" and "Discovery of the Year". Further success came when she represented Switzerland in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Ne partez pas sans moi" and won the contest by a close margin in Dublin, Ireland.
At age 18, after seeing a Michael Jackson performance, Dion told Angélil that she wanted to be a star like Jackson. Though confident in her talent, Angélil realized that her image needed to be changed for her to be marketed worldwide. She receded from the spotlight for a number of months, during which she underwent dental surgery to improve her appearance, and was sent to the École Berlitz in 1989 to polish her English.
In 1989, during a concert on the Incognito tournée, she injured her voice. She consulted the otorhinolaryngologist William Gould, who gave her an ultimatum: have immediate surgery on her vocal cords or do not utilize them at all for three weeks. Dion chose the latter and underwent vocal training with William Riley.
1990–1992: Unison, Dion chante Plamondon, and Celine Dion
Two years after she learned English, Dion made her debut into the Anglophone market with Unison (1990), the lead single having originally been recorded by Laura Branigan. She incorporated the help of many established musicians, including Vito Luprano and Canadian producer David Foster. The album was largely influenced by 1980s soft rock music that quickly found a niche within the adult contemporary radio format. Unison also hit the right notes with critics: Jim Faber of Entertainment Weekly wrote that her vocals were "tastefully unadorned", and that she never attempted to "bring off styles that are beyond her". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic declared it "a fine, sophisticated American debut". Singles from the album included "(If There Was) Any Other Way", "The Last to Know", "Unison", and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now", a mid-tempo soft-rock ballad that made prominent use of the electric guitar. The latter became her first top-ten hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number four. In 1991, Dion was a featured soloist on "Voices That Care", a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm.
Her real international breakthrough came when she duetted with Peabo Bryson on the title track to Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991). It became her first top-ten hit in the UK and her second top-ten hit in the United States. The song earned its songwriters an Academy Award for Best Song and gave Dion her first Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. "Beauty and the Beast" served as the lead single from her 1992 self-titled album, which, like her debut, had a strong pop rock influence combined with elements of soul and classical music. Owing to the success of the lead-off single and her collaborations with David Foster and Diane Warren, the album was even more well-received commercially than Unison; it was certified diamond in Canada and double platinum in the US. The album's second single "If You Asked Me To" (a cover of Patti LaBelle's song from the 1989 movie Licence to Kill) became her first number-one single in Canada and peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Also during this time, Dion released the Francophone album Dion chante Plamondon. The album consisted mostly of covers, but featured four new songs: "Des mots qui sonnent", "Je danse dans ma tête", "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime", and "L'amour existe encore". It was originally released in Canada and France during the 1991–1992 period, then later received an international release in 1994, the first French Celine Dion album to do so. "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)" became a smash hit in France, reaching No. 2 and being certified gold. In Quebec, the album was certified Gold the day it was released.
By 1992, Unison, Céline Dion, and numerous high-profile media appearances had propelled Dion to superstardom in North America. She had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame. However, while she was experiencing rising success in the US, her French fans in Canada criticized her for neglecting them. She would later rebuff these criticisms at the 1991 Félix Awards show, where, after winning "English Artist of the Year", she openly refused to accept the award. She asserted that she was—and would always be—a French, not an English, artist. Apart from her commercial success, there were also changes in her personal life, as Angélil, who was 26 years her senior, transitioned from manager to lover. However, the relationship was kept a secret as they both feared that the public would find their relations inappropriate.
1993–1995: The Colour of My Love and D'eux
In 1993, Dion announced her feelings for her manager by declaring him "the colour of [her] love" in the dedication section of her third English-language album The Colour of My Love. However, instead of criticizing their relationship as she had feared, fans embraced the couple. Eventually, Angélil and Dion married in an extravagant wedding ceremony on 17 December 1994, which was broadcast live on Canadian television.
As with most of her catalogue, The Colour of My Love had over-riding themes of love and romance. It became her most successful record up to that point, selling more than six million copies in the US, two million in Canada, and peaking at No. 1 in many countries. The album also spawned Dion's first US, Canadian, and Australian No. 1 single "The Power of Love" (a remake of Jennifer Rush's 1985 hit), which would become her signature hit in various nations until she reached new career heights in the late 1990s.
The single "When I Fall in Love", a duet with Clive Griffin, achieved moderate success on the US and Canadian charts and was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one. The Colour of My Love also became Dion's first major hit in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. Both the album and the single "Think Twice" simultaneously occupied the top of the British charts for five consecutive weeks. "Think Twice", which remained at No. 1 for seven weeks, eventually became the fourth single by a female artist to sell in excess of one million copies in the UK while the album was eventually certified five-times platinum for two million copies sold.
Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record. Generally, they achieved more credibility than her English-language works. She released À l'Olympia, a live album that was recorded during one of her concerts at the Paris Olympia in 1994. It had one promotional single, a live version of "Calling You", which peaked at seventy-five on the French Singles Chart. She also recorded a bilingual version of "Petit Papa Noël" with Alvin and the Chipmunks for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk. D'eux (also known as The French Album in the United States), was released in 1995, and it would go on to become the best-selling French-language album of all time. The album was mostly written and produced by Jean-Jacques Goldman, and amassed huge success with the singles "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" and "Je sais pas". "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" reached No. 1 in France and stayed at the top position for twelve weeks. It was later certified Platinum in France. The single reached the top ten in the UK and Ireland, a rare accomplishment for a French song. The second single off the album, "Je sais pas", reached No. 1 on the French Singles Chart as well and was certified Silver there.
During the mid-1990s and onward, Dion's albums were generally constructed on the basis of melodramatic soft rock ballads, with sprinklings of up-tempo pop and rare forays into other genres. She collaborated with many renowned writers and producers such as Jim Steinman and David Foster, who helped her to develop a signature sound. While critical reviews fluctuated, her releases performed increasingly well on the international charts, and in 1996, she won the World Music Award for "World's Best-selling Female Recording Artist of the Year" for the third time. By the mid-1990s, she had established herself as one of the best-selling artists in the world.
1996–1999: Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love, and S'il suffisait d'aimer
In the five years since her debut English language album in 1990, Billboard stated that she had already sold 40 million albums worldwide. Falling into You (1996), Dion's fourth English-language album, presented the singer at the height of her popularity and showed a further progression of her music. In an attempt to reach a wider audience, the album combined many elements, such as complex orchestral sounds, African chanting, and elaborate musical effects. Additionally, instruments like the violin, Spanish guitar, trombone, the cavaquinho, and saxophone created a new sound. The singles encompassed a variety of musical styles. The title track "Falling into You" and "River Deep – Mountain High" (a Tina Turner cover) made prominent use of percussion instruments; "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (produced by its writer Jim Steinman) and a remake of Eric Carmen's "All by Myself" maintained a soft-rock atmosphere, combined with the classical sound of the piano; and the No. 1 single "Because You Loved Me", which was written by Diane Warren, was a pop ballad that served as the theme to the 1996 film Up Close and Personal.
Falling into You garnered career-best reviews for Dion. While Dan Leroy wrote that it was not very different from her previous work, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times and Natalie Nichols of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the album was formulaic, other critics, such as Chuck Eddy of Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic, and Daniel Durchholz, lavished the album as "compelling", "passionate", "stylish", "elegant", and "remarkably well-crafted". Falling into You became Dion's most critically and commercially successful album: it topped the charts in many countries and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.
In 2013, CBC Music ranked Falling into You 33rd in their list of the 100 greatest Canadian albums ever. In the United States, the album reached No. 1, and was later certified 11× Platinum for over 11 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album was certified diamond for over one million copies shipped. The IFPI certified Falling into You 9× Platinum, an accolade that has been given to only two other albums in history, with one of the two being Dion's own album, Let's Talk About Love. The album also won Grammy Awards for Best Pop Album and the academy's highest honour, Album of the Year.
Dion was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream" at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In March 1996, she launched the Falling into You Tour in support of her new album, performing concerts around the world for over a year.
She followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love (1997), which was publicized as its sequel. The recording process took place in London, New York City, and Los Angeles, and featured a host of special guests, such as Barbra Streisand on "Tell Him"; the Bee Gees on "Immortality"; and tenor Luciano Pavarotti on "I Hate You Then I Love You". Other musicians included Carole King, Sir George Martin, Bryan Adams and Jamaican singer Diana King, who added a reggae tinge to "Treat Her Like a Lady".
Let's Talk About Love was another major success, reaching No. 1 all over the world, attaining platinum status in twenty-four sales territories, and becoming the fastest selling album of her career. In the United States, the album topped the chart in its seventh week of release, and was later certified 10× Platinum in the US for over 10 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album sold 230,212 copies in its first week of release, which remains a record. It was eventually certified diamond in Canada for over one million copies shipped. The most successful single from the album was the classically influenced ballad "My Heart Will Go On", which was written and composed by James Horner and Will Jennings, and produced by Horner and Walter Afanasieff.
Serving as the love theme for the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic, the song topped the charts across the world and became Dion's signature song. Horner and Jennings won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song, while Dion herself garnered two Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and the most coveted, Record of the Year, (the song itself won four awards, but two were presented to the songwriters). "My Heart Will Go On" and "Think Twice" made her the only female artist in the UK to have two singles to sell more than a million copies. In support of her album, she embarked on the Let's Talk About Love Tour between 1998 and 1999.
Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums: the Christmas album These Are Special Times (1998), the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer, and the compilation album All the Way... A Decade of Song (1999). On These Are Special Times, she co-wrote the song "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day" along with Ric Wake and Peter Zizzo. The album was her most classically influenced yet, with orchestral arrangements found on virtually every track. The album featured the single "I'm Your Angel" (a duet with R. Kelly), which became her fourth US No. 1 single, and a smash hit across the world. The album's second single "The Prayer" (a duet with Andrea Bocelli) served as the soundtrack of the 1998 film Quest for Camelot and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. All the Way... A Decade of Song drew together her most successful hits coupled with seven new songs, including the lead-off single "That's the Way It Is", a cover of Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", and "All the Way", a duet with Frank Sinatra. All the Way became one of the best-selling compilation albums of all time, reaching No. 1 in the United States for three weeks. The album was later certified 7x Platinum in the US for 7 million copies shipped. It also topped the charts in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Her last French-language studio album of the 1990s, S'il suffisait d'aimer, was very successful as well, topping the charts in every major French-speaking country, including France, Switzerland, the Wallonia region of Belgium, and Canada. In France, the album was certified diamond, selling 1.5 million copies. By the end of the 1990s, Dion had sold more than 130 million records worldwide, and had won a slew of industry awards. Her status as one of the music industry's biggest pop divas was further solidified when she was asked to perform on VH1's Divas Live special in 1998, with superstars Aretha Franklin, Gloria Estefan, Shania Twain, and Mariah Carey. That year, she also received two of the highest Canadian honours: "Officer of the Order of Canada for Outstanding Contribution to the World of Contemporary Music" and "Officer of the National Order of Quebec". A year later, she was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame, and was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.
Starting from the mid-1990s, the pop rock influence that was more noticeable in her earlier releases was replaced by a more mature feel. Additionally, the recurring theme of "love" dominated most of her releases, which led to some critics dismissing her music as banal. Other critics, like Elysa Gardner and Jose F. Promis, praised her voice during this period, describing it as a "technical marvel". Steve Dollar, in his review of These Are Special Times, opined that Dion was a "vocal Olympian for whom there ain't no mountain—or scale—high enough".
2000–2003: Hiatus, A New Day Has Come, One Heart, and 1 fille & 4 types
After releasing and promoting thirteen albums during the 1990s, Dion stated that she needed to settle down, and announced on her latest album All the Way... A Decade of Song, that she needed to take a step back from the spotlight and enjoy life. Angélil's diagnosis with esophageal cancer also prompted her to hiatus. While on break, she was unable to escape the spotlight. In 2000, the National Enquirer published a false story about the singer. Brandishing a picture of Dion and her husband, the magazine misquoted her, printing the headline, "Celine — 'I'm Pregnant With Twins!'" She later sued the magazine for more than $20million. The editors of the Enquirer printed an apology and a full retraction to her in the next issue, and donated money to the American Cancer Society in honour of her and her husband. A year after the incident, after undergoing fertility treatments, she gave birth to a son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, on 25 January 2001, in Florida.
Following the 11 September attacks, Dion returned to the music scene, and in a televised performance sang "God Bless America" at the benefit concert America: A Tribute to Heroes. Chuck Taylor of Billboard wrote, "the performance ... brings to mind what has made her one of the celebrated vocalists of our time: the ability to render emotion that shakes the soul. Affecting, meaningful, and filled with grace, this is a musical reflection to share with all of us still searching for ways to cope." She performed it again in 2003 during pregame festivities for Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego. In December 2001, she published her autobiography My Story, My Dream which chronicled her rags-to-riches story.
Dion ended her three-year sabbatical from the music industry with the aptly titled album A New Day Has Come, released in March 2002. The album was her most personal yet, with songs focusing on her motherhood and maturation as a woman such as "A New Day Has Come", and "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)". She stated: "becoming a mother makes you a grown-up." She stated, "A New Day Has Come, for Rene, for me, is the baby. It has everything to do with the baby ... That song "A New Day Has Come" represents very well the mood I'm feeling right now. It represents the whole album." A New Day Has Come debuted at No. 1 in more than 17 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 527,000 copies; marking her first No. 1 debut on the chart, as well as the highest debut sales week of her career in the US. It was eventually certified 3× Platinum in the United States, and 6× Platinum in Canada.
While the album was commercially successful, critical reviews suggested that it was "forgettable" and the lyrics were "lifeless". Both Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone magazine, and Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly, stated that Dion's music had not developed much during her break, and classed her material as trite and mediocre. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine called the album "a lengthy collection of drippy, gooey pop fluffer-nutter". The first single off the album, A New Day Has Come peaked at No.22 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, being an airplay-only release. On the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks, however, the song spent 21 consecutive weeks at No. 1, breaking the record for the longest span at the top. The previous record holders were Phil Collins' You'll Be in My Heart and Dion's own Because You Loved Me, both of which lasted nineteen weeks at No. 1. The album's next single, "I'm Alive", was featured on the soundtrack for Stuart Little 2 (2002), and was ranked number 2 on the European Hot 100 Singles, and number 6 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks in the United States. During 2002, she performed for many benefit concerts, including her second appearance on VH1 Divas Live, a concert to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation, alongside Cher, Anastacia, Dixie Chicks, Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, Cyndi Lauper, Shakira, and Stevie Nicks.
In conjunction with an endorsement deal with Chrysler, she released One Heart (2003), an album that represented her appreciation for life. The album largely consisted of pop and dance music—a deviation from the soaring, melodramatic ballads, for which she had been known. Although the album achieved moderate success, One Heart was met with mixed criticism, and words such as "predictable" and "banal" appeared even in the most lenient reviews. A cover of the 1989 Cyndi Lauper hit "I Drove All Night", released to launch her advertising campaign with Chrysler, incorporated elements of dance-pop and rock and roll. The advertising deal was met with criticism, with some stating that Dion was trying to cater to her sponsors.
After One Heart, she released her next English-language studio album, Miracle (2004). Miracle was a multimedia project conceived by Dion and Australian photographer Anne Geddes and had a theme centring on babies and motherhood. The album was filled with lullabies and other songs of maternal love and inspiration, including covers of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" and John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy". The reviews for Miracle were mixed. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic.com gave the album three of out five stars, stating, "The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience." Chuck Taylor of Billboard magazine wrote that the single "Beautiful Boy" was "an unexpected gem" and called Dion "a timeless, enormously versatile artist", Chuck Arnold of People Magazine, however, labelled the album as excessively sentimental, while Nancy Miller of Entertainment Weekly opined that "the whole earth-mama act is just opportunism, reborn". Miracle debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 in Canada and was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA.
The francophone album 1 fille & 4 types (1 Girl & 4 Guys), released in October 2003, fared better than her previous two releases and showed her trying to distance herself from the "diva" image. She recruited Jean-Jacques Goldman, Gildas Arzel, Eric Benzi, and Jacques Veneruso, with whom she had previously worked on two of her best-selling French albums S'il suffisait d'aimer and D'eux. Labeled "the album of pleasure" by Dion herself, the album cover showed her in a simple and relaxed manner, contrary to the choreographed poses usually found on her album covers. The album achieved widespread commercial success in France, Canada, and Belgium where it reached No. 1. In France, the album debuted at No. 1 and was later certified 2× platinum after selling over 700,000 copies. Critic Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Dion's vocals were "back at top of their game" and that she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while".
Though her albums were commercially successful, they did not achieve the sales or the reception of her previous works. Her songs received less airplay as radio became less embracing of balladeers like Dion, Carey, and Houston, and was focused on more up-tempo, Urban/Hip-hop songs. By 2004, Dion had accumulated sales of more than 175 million albums worldwide and received the Chopard Diamond Award from the World Music Awards for her achievements. According to the official World Music Awards website, the award is rare; it is "not presented every year" and an artist can be presented with the award only for selling "over 100 million albums during their career".
2003–2007: A New Day...
In early 2002, Dion announced a three-year, 600-show contract to appear five nights a week in an entertainment extravaganza, A New Day..., at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. This move was generally seen as risky, but journalist Miriam Nunzio wrote that it was "one of the smartest business decisions in years by any major recording artist". Dion conceived the show after seeing O by Franco Dragone during her break from recording, and it premiered on 25 March 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena specifically designed for her show and modelled after the Roman Colosseum. Many stars attended the opening night including Dick Clark, Alan Thicke, Kathy Griffin, Lance Bass, and Justin Timberlake, who hosted the television special. The show, directed by Dragone and choreographed by the renowned Mia Michaels, was a combination of dance, music, and visual effects. It included Dion performing her biggest hits against an array of dancers and special effects. Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find the singer among the excessive stage ornamentation and dancers. However, he noted that the show had become more enjoyable over the course of its run, because of her improved stage-presence and simplified costumes.
The show was well-received by audiences, despite the complaints of expensive tickets; it routinely sold out until its end in late 2007. Ticket prices averaged $135.33. According to Pollstar, Dion sold 322,000 tickets and grossed US$43.9 million in the first half of 2005, and by July 2005, she had sold out 315 out of 384 shows. By the end of 2005, she grossed more than US$76 million, placing sixth on Billboard's Money Makers list for 2005. Because of the show's success, her contract was extended into 2007 for an undisclosed sum. On 5 January 2007, it was announced that the show would end on 15 December 2007, with tickets for the period after October 2007 having gone on sale from 1 March. According to Billboard, A New Day... is the most successful residency of all time, grossing over US$385 million ($ million in dollars) and drawing nearly three million people to 717 shows. The Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... DVD was released on 10 December 2007, in Europe and the following day in North America.
2007–2010: D'elles, Taking Chances, and Taking Chances Tour
On 21 May 2007, Dion released the French-language album D'elles (About Them), which debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week. It marked her tenth No. 1 album in the SoundScan era, and her eighth to debut at the top position. In Canada, the album has been certified 2× platinum, and within the first month had already shipped half a million units worldwide. D'Elles also reached No. 1 in France and Belgium. The first single "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)" (meaning "And If There Was Only One Woman Left (I Would Be That One)") debuted at the top of the French singles chart a month earlier. Later that same year, she released the English album Taking Chances on 12 November in Europe, and 13 November in North America. Her first English studio album since 2003's One Heart, it featured pop, R&B, and rock inspired music. For this album, she collaborated with John Shanks and ex-Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody, as well as Kristian Lundin, Peer Åström, Linda Perry, Japanese singer Yuna Ito, and R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. Dion stated, "I think this album represents a positive evolution in my career ... I'm feeling strong, maybe a little gutsier than in the past, and just as passionate about music and life as I ever was." She launched her year-long worldwide Taking Chances Tour on 14 February 2008, in South Africa, performing 132 dates in stadiums and arenas across five continents.
The Taking Chances Tour was a great success in the United States, reaching the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Boxscore, having sold out every concert in the US and Canada. In addition, she appeared on Idol Gives Back for a second year in a row. Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, adding to her 53 previous nominations (an all-time record). Her nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year (for Taking Chances), Francophone Album of the Year (for D'elles) and Album of the Year (for both Taking Chances and D'elles). The following year, she was nominated for 3 Juno Awards including the Fan Choice Award, Song of the Year (for Taking Chances), and Music DVD of the Year (for Live in Las Vegas — A New Day...)
On 22 August 2008, Dion presented a free outdoor concert, mostly in French, on the Plains of Abraham, in Québec City, Canada, for the 400th anniversary of Québec City. The celebration gathered approximately 490,000 people. The concert, called Céline sur les Plaines, was released on DVD on 11 November 2008, in Québec and was released on 20 May 2009, in France. Late October 2008 saw the worldwide release of a comprehensive English-language greatest hits album, My Love: Essential Collection.
In May 2009, Dion was named the 20th best-selling artist of the decade and the second-best-selling female artist of the decade in the United States, selling an estimated 17.57 million copies of her albums there since 2000. In June 2009, Forbes reported that she earned $100 million during 2008. In December 2009, Pollstar announced that she was the best-selling solo touring act of the decade and the second-best-selling touring act of the decade, behind only the Dave Matthews Band. she grossed $522.2 million during the decade, a large portion of that sum coming from her five-year residency at Caesars Palace.
On 17 February 2010, Dion released into theatres a documentary film about her Taking Chances Tour, titled, Celine: Through the Eyes of the World. The documentary shows behind-the-scenes footage of her both onstage and offstage, along with footage of her with her family as they travelled the world with her. The distributor is the Sony Pictures subsidiary, Hot Ticket. The film was later released on Blu-ray and DVD on 4 May 2010, along with the CD/DVD, Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert. At the 52nd Grammy Awards in February 2010, Dion joined Carrie Underwood, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, and Smokey Robinson to perform the song "Earth Song" during the 3-D Michael Jackson tribute.
In January 2010, The Los Angeles Times presented its annual list of the top ten largest earners of the year, revealing that Dion took the top spot for the entire decade, with $US747.9 million in total revenue from 2000–2009. The largest haul came from ticket sales, totalling $522.2 million. Additionally, she was named "Artist of the Decade" in her native Canadian province of Québec, announced by the Montréal-based newspaper, Le Journal de Québec in 2009 December. A public online survey asked responders to vote for whom they believe deserved the above-mentioned accolade.
Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, Dion was named the most popular musician in the United States, ahead of U2, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles while factoring in gender, political affiliations, geographic region of residence, and income. Specifically, she was the most popular musician in the female demographic, as well as among all Democrats, those who live in the eastern United States and southern United States, and those who have incomes between US$35k and US$74.9k.
In September 2010, she released the single "Voler", a duet with French singer Michel Sardou. The song was later included on Sardou's album. In addition, it was announced in October 2010 that Dion wrote and composed a new song for Canadian singer, Marc Dupré entitled "Entre deux mondes".
2011–2014: Celine, Sans attendre, and Loved Me Back to Life
In an interview with People magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she would be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning 15 March 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. To promote her return to Las Vegas, Dion made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 21 February, during the show's final season, marking her record twenty-seventh appearance. In 2018, Billboard stated her residency Celine is the second most successful residency of all time. By the end of 2011, Dion has sold 331,000 albums (despite not releasing any studio album since 2007) and 956,000 digital tracks in the United States.
For a record sixth time, she performed at the 83rd Academy Awards, where she sang the song "Smile", as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On 4 September, she appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and presented a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms" from her new Las Vegas show. On 1 October 2011, the OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, detailing the months before, during and after her pregnancy, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll asking 780 participants which celebrity they would most like to sit next to on an airplane. Dion was the top favourite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, she released the 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums Collection, called "Signature". On 15 September, she made an appearance at the free concert of world-famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli, in Central Park in New York. In 2012, she performed at the 16th Jazz and Blues Festival in Jamaica.
In October 2012, Sony Music Entertainment released The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster in Asia. She began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012. The French-language album, Sans attendre was released on 2 November 2012, and was a smash success in all French-speaking territories, especially in France where it achieved diamond status. The English-language album was postponed to 1 November 2013. Titled Loved Me Back to Life, it included collaborations with an exceptional team of songwriters and producers, including duets with Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder. The lead single, "Loved Me Back to Life" was released on 3 September 2013. Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France. "Breakaway", "Incredible" and "Water and a Flame" were chosen as next singles.
In June 2013, Dion co-produced the show titled "Voices" by Véronic DiCaire at the Bally’s Hotel & Casino’s Jubilee Theatre and was presented 145 times up until 2015.
On 16 May 2014, Dion released a three-disc set (2CD/DVD and 2CD/Blu-ray) titled Céline une seule fois / Live 2013, which reached top ten on the album charts in France, Canada and Belgium Wallonia.
2014–present: Husband's death, Encore un soir, Courage, and return to Vegas
On 13 August 2014, Dion announced the indefinite postponement of all her show business activities, including her concert residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and the cancellation of her Asia Tour, because of the worsening of her husband's health after he underwent the removal of a cancerous tumor in December 2013. However, on 20 March 2015, she announced that she would be returning to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in late August 2015. On 14 January 2016, she cancelled the rest of the January performances due to her husband's and her brother's death from cancer. Dion resumed the residency on 23 February to a sold-out crowd and rave reviews.
In October 2015, Dion announced on social media that she had begun working on a new French album, posting a photo by the side of Algerian singer Zaho. Dion's French single, "Encore un soir", was released on 24 May 2016. On 20 May, she released a cover of Queen's song "The Show Must Go On", featuring Lindsey Stirling on violin. She performed "The Show Must Go On" at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards on 22 May, and received the Billboard Icon Award (presented to her by her son, René-Charles Angélil) in recognition of her career spanning over three decades.
The singer's new French album, Encore un soir, was released on 26 August 2016. It features fifteen tracks performed in French and, according to the singer, has a personal choice of the songs – more uplifting lyrics were chosen. Encore un soir topped the charts in France, Canada, Belgium and Switzerland, and was certified Diamond in France, 2× Platinum in Canada and Platinum in Belgium and Switzerland. It has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. In 2016 and 2017, Dion toured Europe and Canada with two sold-out concert tours. On 9 September 2016, she released "Recovering", a song written for her by Pink after Dion's husband René Angélil died in January 2016. Dion also recorded "How Does a Moment Last Forever" for the Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, released in March 2017. Her compilation, Un peu de nous topped the chart in France in July and August 2017.
On 3 May 2018, she released the single "Ashes" from the film Deadpool 2. The remix version of the song topped the US Dance Club Songs chart in July 2018. From June to August 2018, she toured the Asia-Pacific region and grossed $56.5 million from 22 shows. On 24 September 2018, she announced the end of her Las Vegas residency Celine, with the final date set for 8 June 2019. She is working on a new English album. In January 2019, she performed "A Change Is Gonna Come" at the "Aretha! A Grammy Celebration for the Queen of Soul" Franklin's tribute concert, to be broadcast in March 2019. In March 2019, she was one of 11 singers from Quebec, alongside Ginette Reno, Diane Dufresne, Isabelle Boulay, Luce Dufault, Louise Forestier, Laurence Jalbert, Catherine Major, Ariane Moffatt, Marie Denise Pelletier, and Marie-Élaine Thibert, who participated in a supergroup recording of Renée Claude's 1971 single "Tu trouveras la paix" after Claude's diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease was announced. On 3 April 2019, during a Facebook Live event, Dion announced her 2019/2020 Courage World Tour, beginning in Quebec City on 18 September 2019. She also announced a new English language album of the same name, released in November 2019.
On 18 September 2019, Dion released three songs, "Lying Down", "Courage", and "Imperfections" from her upcoming album, Courage. On 26 February 2020, Dion released two songs as exclusive Spotify singles: an acoustic version of Imperfections, and a cover of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game. Isaak joined Dion and sang vocals on the track. On 10 June 2020, Dion announced that her Courage World Tour will kick off again in 2021, after the tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 21 May 2021, it was announced Dion would return to Vegas, in November of the same year, for a limited-run installment of ten dates in collaboration with Resorts World Las Vegas. Billboard listed Dion as the third top paid musician of 2020 (second by female artist), with total of earnings of $17.5 million.
On 15 January 2022, a statement posted to Dion's website and social media accounts announced that the U.S. and Canadian concert dates for March-April 2022 were canceled because of “severe and persistent muscle spasms” that are preventing Dion from performing onstage.
Artistry
Influences
Dion cites idols as varied as Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Charles Aznavour, Carole King, Anne Murray, Barbra Streisand, and the Bee Gees, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with. Her music has been influenced by numerous genres, including pop, rock, gospel, R&B, and soul, and her lyrics focus on themes of poverty, world hunger, and spirituality, with an emphasis on love and romance. After the birth of her first child, her work increasingly focused on maternal love.
Musical style
Dion has faced considerable criticism from critics, who state that her music often retreats behind pop and soul conventions, and is marked by excessive sentimentality. According to Keith Harris of Rolling Stone magazine, "[Dion's] sentimentality is bombastic and defiant rather than demure and retiring ... [she] stands at the end of the chain of drastic devolution that goes Aretha–Whitney–Mariah. Far from being an aberration, Dion actually stands as a symbol of a certain kind of pop sensibility—bigger is better, too much is never enough, and the riper the emotion the more true." Her francophone releases, by contrast, tend to be deeper and more varied than her English releases, and consequently have achieved more credibility.
Critics have stated that Dion's involvement in the production aspect of her music is fundamentally lacking, which results in her work being overproduced and impersonal. However, coming from a family in which all of her siblings were musicians, she dabbled in learning how to play instruments like piano and guitar, and practised with a Fender Stratocaster during the recording sessions for her album Falling into You.
Occasionally, Dion has contributed to the writing of a handful of her English and French songs, as well as writing a few songs for other artists such as Marc Dupre. Additionally, as her career progressed, she found herself taking charge in the production of her albums. On her first English album, which she recorded before she had a firm command of the English language, she expressed disapproval, which could have been avoided if she had assumed more creative input. By the time she released her second English album Celine Dion, she had assumed more control of the production and recording process, hoping to dispel earlier criticisms. She stated, "On the second album I said, 'Well, I have the choice to be afraid one more time and not be 100% happy, or not be afraid and be part of this album.' This is my album." Besides her contributions to some of her early French albums, Dion wrote a few of the songs on Let's Talk About Love (1997) and These Are Special Times (1998).
She is often the subject of media ridicule and parody and is frequently impersonated on shows such as MADtv, Saturday Night Live, South Park, Royal Canadian Air Farce, and This Hour Has 22 Minutes for her strong accent and onstage gesticulations. However, she has stated that she is unaffected by the comments, and is flattered that people take the time to impersonate her. She even invited Ana Gasteyer, who parodied her on SNL, to appear onstage during one of her performances in New York City. While she is rarely politically outspoken, in 2005 following the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Dion appeared on Larry King Live and tearfully criticized the US government's slow response in aiding the victims of the hurricane: "There's people still there waiting to be rescued. To me that is not acceptable ... How can it be so easy to send planes in another country to kill everybody in a second and destroy lives. We need to serve our country." After her interview, she stated, "When I do interviews with Larry King or the big TV shows like that, they put you on the spot, which is very difficult. I do have an opinion, but I'm a singer. I'm not a politician."
Voice and timbre
Dion once claimed to be a mezzo-soprano. However, attempts to adapt classical voice types to other forms of singing have been met with controversy. Without making a classification, Kent Nagano, maestro of the Munich Symphony Orchestra, remarked, "All you just sang was full lyric soprano", after Dion auditioned with two solos from Carmen, wanting to know if she could sing opera. Her timbre has been described as "thin, slightly nasal" with a "raspy" lower register and "bell glass-like high notes".
According to Linda Lister in Divafication: The Deification of Modern Female Pop Stars, she has been described as a reigning "Queen of Pop" for her influence over the recording industry during the 1990s, alongside other female artists, including Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. In a countdown of the "22 Greatest Voices in Music" by Blender Magazine and MTV, she placed ninth (sixth for a female), and she was also placed fourth in Cover Magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists". Dion is often compared to Houston and Carey for her vocal style, and to her idol Barbra Streisand for her voice.
She is often praised for her technical virtuosity. Jim Santella of The Buffalo News writes "Like an iron fist in a velvet glove, the power of Celine Dion's voice is cloaked in a silky vibrato that betrays the intensity of her vocal commitment." Jeff Miers, also of The Buffalo News, says of Dion "Her singing voice is absolutely extra-human. She hits notes in full voice, with a controlled vibrato and an incredible conception of pitch, like she's shucking an ear of corn." Stephen Holden of The New York Times states that Dion has "a good-sized arsenal of technical skills. She can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch. And as her duets ... have shown, she is a reliable harmony voice." In an interview with Libération, Jean-Jacques Goldman notes that she has "no problem of accuracy or tempo". According to Kent Nagano, she is "a musician who has a good ear, a refinement, and a degree of perfection that is enviable". Charles Alexander of Time states, "[Her] voice glides effortlessly from deep whispers to dead-on high notes, a sweet siren that combines force with grace."
In her French repertoire, Dion adorns her vocals with more nuances and expressiveness, with the emotional intensity being "more tender and intimate". Additionally, Luc Plamondon, a French singer-songwriter who has worked closely with Dion claims that there are three chanteuses (stylistically) that she uses: the Québécois, the French, and the American. Her self-titled 1992 album was promoted with the slogan "Remember the name because you'll never forget the voice."
Legacy
Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most influential vocalists. She has been referred to as the "Queen of Power Ballads" by the media.. Billboard called Dion the "Queen of Pop". Her music and vocal styling, alongside that of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, have been said to shape how the bulk of modern female pop vocalists sing. These three artists have been widely credited with reviving the power ballad, and in doing so reshaping the adult contemporary radio format, making it one of the most popular formats of the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2002, Billboard named her as the "Best-selling contemporary female artist in history".
According to producer, musician, and former American Idol judge Randy Jackson, Dion, Houston, and Carey are the voices of the modern era. Music critic and Dion biographer Carl Wilson notes that her "fame and influence is also renewed and expressed regularly these days by American Idol, the largest mass musical phenomenon of the past decade, where Celine's stood solidly in its pantheon of singers for young people to emulate". Many contestants on the countless televised talent competitions that have risen at the turn of the millennium often emulate Dion, Houston and Carey and cite them as idols. MTV also praised Dion by saying: "Céline Dion was better than almost anyone at capitalizing on pop’s ability to articulate feelings in sensational, over-the-top ways."
Numerous artists have either mentioned Dion as a major influence or as one of their favourite singers including: Britney Spears, Rihanna, Adele, Josh Groban, Delta Goodrem, Leona Lewis, Jennifer Hudson, Vanessa Hudgens, Kelly Clarkson, Perrie Edwards, Loren Allred, Brazilian singer Wanessa Camargo, Ariana Grande, Sam Smith, Frank Ocean, Ava Max, Charlotte Cardin, and V (from BTS) among many others. Country singer Martina McBride is widely heralded by the press as the Celine Dion of Country music.
Many artists have also praised Dion's voice, singing ability or expressed an interest in working with her including Met Opera conductor and musical director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Beyoncé, Carlos Santana, Elton John, OneRepublic, Coldplay, Sharon Osbourne, Nicole Scherzinger, Ne-Yo, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, Luciano Pavarotti, Bee Gees, Sir George Martin, Justin Bieber, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Drake and Cher.
Timbaland stated "Celine has such a beautiful, mesmerizing voice. She is so talented. I think we could create something that is a classic like she is already." Josh Groban remarked "She's a powerhouse. In this day and age, when more and more studio-produced, tiny-tiny voices are being rewarded ... she has this extraordinary instrument." According to Diane Warren, "Celine is the best singer by far of her generation", an opinion shared by Quincy Jones, Tommy Mottola, and David Foster. Moreover, Shania Twain and Jennifer Lopez have praised her dynamic stage presence, with Jennifer Lopez commenting on American Idol: "Celine gets on stage, she owns the stage, she runs all over that stage, she stops that stage." Leona Lewis is also a huge fan of Céline Dion saying "Celine is someone I aspire to be like in every way. "Gosh – I can't wait. I'm in the middle of picking out dresses at the moment. Celine is definitely one of my heroes. She is amazing." American singer and actress Lea Michelle said that she listened to Céline Dion's music while in the process of making her sophomore album 'Places' and cited her as one of her vocal influences.
Godmother of Soul Patti LaBelle called Dion as one of the greatest singers ever. Pop singer Kelly Clarkson also praised Dion's vocal ability saying: "she has two sets of lungs when she sings." and also called her the most gifted vocalist on the planet.
Dion holds the Guiness World Record for the most Juno Awards won for Album Of The Year (tied with Michael Buble & Arcade Fire). She won 3 out of the 13 nominations she received in the category throughout her career. Dion is the 3rd most decorated artist in Juno Awards history, winning 20 out of the 75 total nominations ever, becoming the most nominated artist in the awards history as well.
In 1997-1998, Dion sold more than 60 million albums, and was estimated to sell a record once every 1.2 seconds. In 2017, Dion broke records across the UK as the highest grossing artist at each UK venue where she performed which included dates at the O2 Arena in London, Leeds First Direct Arena, Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena and the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. John Meglen, president and co-CEO, Concerts West commended her by saying: "She really is the voice of our lifetime."
In 2018, there were over 300,000 Taiwanese fans that clambered for the 20,000 tickets available for Célines first concert ever in Taiwan which caused the system to lag for 30 minutes. The demand caused them to add two additional shows eventually.
Cultural impact
In Francophone music industry
On a cultural level, Dion is credited for introducing francophone music to many non-francophone countries around the globe. Her albums D'eux and S'il suffisait d'aimer remain the best selling francophone albums in history, gaining unprecedented success in non-Francophone markets such as the United Kingdom, Poland, Netherlands, Portugal, Greece, Austria, Japan, and New Zealand. According to RFI Musique, she "has done her bit for French music over the years, assuring the success of French songs which would probably never have got beyond Francophone borders without her ... Without Celine, French record sales would be dramatically lower!" In May 2008, she was awarded France's highest award, as Knight of the Legion of Honour by President of France Nicolas Sarkozy. Sarkozy praised Dion and stated: "France thanks you because your talent and success have contributed to the influence of the French language outside our borders".
In Las Vegas strip
She is also credited for both revitalizing and revolutionizing the entertainment scene in Las Vegas with the gargantuan successes of her residencies there. She signed a multi-million dollar deal worthed $100 million to do a residency in Vegas and is considered one of the most lucrative and risky in the touring industry.
Billboard credits Dion as the one who pioneered modern residencies saying: "Since Dion's debut, hundreds of artists have tried their hand at Vegas residencies, including, most recently, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Usher, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Rod Stewart and Sting. Once considered the domain of artists long past their peak, today's Las Vegas residency shows are big business, generating millions in sales." Moreover, Billboard also said: "She changed history and she completely changed Las Vegas," said Nelson, who notes the new residencies being announced for artists like Cardi B, Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Lopez aren't really at the same production level or scale of what Dion created with her husband René Angélil, as well as Meglen, Nelson and former AEG CEO Tim Leiweke." Dion is popularly referred as the reigning "Queen of Las Vegas" by various media outlets for her impact and legacy in the city.
According to Gary Bongiovanni, president and editor-in-chief of Pollstar, "Celine redefined what artists can do in Las Vegas, helping to make it arguably the busiest entertainment city in the world."
Kurt Melien, vice-president of entertainment at Caesar's Palace stated "Celine was a pioneer without question ... Twenty years ago, we couldn't have got someone the stature of Britney Spears to appear in Vegas. Stars likes her would never have considered it if Celine hadn't paved the way. She changed the face of modern Vegas."
The Guardian listed Dion's Vegas residency as one of the 50 gigs that changed music, crediting her as the one who revived it, further saying: "it was Céline Dion who turned Caesars into the stage for a glorious pop comeback. Her initial five-year run was followed by a further eight years – and prompted copycat turns by Britney Spears, Pink and Katy Perry.
In the economy
Regarding her financial impact on Las Vegas, Stephen Brown, director of the Centre for Business and Economic Research in Las Vegas, commented: "People will come to the city just for her and they will spend money and as a consequence, she has an outsized impact on the economy", then adding "Bigger than Elvis, Sinatra and Liberace put together? Definitely." Estimations indicate that Dion's show will create up to 7,000 indirect jobs and around $114 million worth of new economic activity in each of the three years for which she has been contracted.
In businesses
Forbes also discussed how entrepreneurs can reclaim the power in their business by being like Céline Dion as an example saying: "Well, remember back in 2017 when Dion launched her handbag line? During a press conference, she admitted her late manager (and husband) had always handled everything for her. Every aspect of her shows was pre-decided; every move, appearance and interview was programmed in advance. She just showed up and executed (which she did brilliantly). At the end of her handbag launch press release, she said "Now . . . I'm the boss.” Starting right then and there, she’d be the one calling the shots for her shows, her kids, her handbags and everything else that mattered to her. She was going to do things her way."
In Fashion
Celine Dion has received various acclaims from fashion critics for reinventing her fashion style over the years. The Guardian called her "The Joyous New Queen of Fashion". Harper's Bazaar also praised Dion for being an ultimate fashion risk-taker and called her a "Fashion Chameleon". Billboard dubbed her as "Streetwear Icon" after recapping the global icon's style evolution through the years. Vogue named her as one of music's most exuberant dressers, beloved as much for her glorious voice as her extravagant sense of style. Tatler discussed in an article how Cardi B might be the next Céline Dion of Paris Fashion Week, proving that Céline is the standard for the occasion. Fashion stylist and image architect Law Roach praised Celine Dion, calling her "The Queen of Camp" & "The Queen of Glitter & Sequins". Dion further cemented her name in the fashion world by wearing the reverse tuxedo at 1999 Academy Awards, which became one of the most talked ensembles of that time. Vogue also listed her iconic 1999 reverse tuxedo as one of the most controversial looks of all time saying it was undeniably the highlight of the year. W also listed the iconic ensemble as one of the most memorable dresses of all time. In February 2020, Sergio Guadarrama, a contestant of Project Runway, copied the idea of reverse tuxedo and claimed it was his original idea and had even claimed that he had no idea about the iconic tuxedo, which left the fans of the show disappointed.
Breaking music barriers
Vice discussed how Dion's music made impact in Nigerian culture, saying: "By the 2000s, Celine Dion was basically the queen of Nigerian airwaves. It was impossible to watch TV or listen to the radio without hearing her music – either on adverts, or in Nollywood films featuring heartthrobs like Genevieve Nnaji and Ramsey Nouah."
Billboard also discussed how Dion’s appearance at Jamaica Jazz & Blues changed the festival’s future. According to Walter Elmore, CEO of Art of Music Productions said Dion is by far the most expensive artist he has ever booked, further saying: “I have already received calls from the management of several major US artists who want to perform here next year because they heard Celine’s comments about our show’s production quality,” Elmore said. “Her performance confirms that we can bring the biggest artists on the planet to our little island.”
In 2012, Dion visited Jamaica for the very first time which broke attendance records and caused traffic congestion around the concert venue. Vice discussed how Dion's music has been constant in dancehall clubs for decades, as many Jamaican dancehall artists cover her songs and remixing her ballads into anthems of dance hall. Further adding: "Several current dancehall musicians continue to use utilize Dion’s tunes with the addition of upbeat guitars, pan flutes, and backbeat shuffles that transform the music for consumption by dancehall fans."
Being referenced in songs
The Canadian comedy music group The Arrogant Worms released an album called Dirt in 1999 which contained a song called "Celine Dion", about the singers' stalker-like affection for her. Dion has also been referred/mentioned in various hit songs including "Dark Fantasy" by Kanye West, "911/Mr. Lonely" by Tyler, the Creator, "That Girl" by Pharrell Williams, "Work" by A$AP Ferg, and "What's The Use" by Mac Miller, to name a few.
Cultural honors
In 1999, Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame and was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in January 2004, one which she dedicated to her father, who had died the month prior. In May 2003, she placed at No. 10 on VH1's list of "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era". Dion's album Falling into You is included on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. "My Heart Will Go On" was included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. In 2021, Dion was ranked by Forbes as the third richest woman in entertainment with an estimated net worth of US$460 million. In August 2008, she received an honorary doctorate in music from the Université Laval in Quebec City.
In October 2010, Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador, a program created by the UN in 1999, sharing this accolade with Oscar-winner Susan Sarandon. She also received several state decorations. In 2004, she was awarded the Society of Singers Lifetime Achievement Award.
On 26 July 2013, she was awarded the highest rank of the Order of Canada, the Companion of the Order of Canada, by the Governor General of Canada and the investiture ceremony was held at Citadelle of Quebec, in which they said: "An incomparable artist, she is equally known for her compassion, generosity and commitment to a number of social and humanitarian causes. She is notably the national celebrity patron for Cystic Fibrosis Canada and honorary patron of the CHU Sainte-Justine. In addition, through her foundation, she also helps children in need and their families here in Canada and abroad."
By the end of 1998, Dion was recognized by Billboard as the "Woman of the Year". They also stated how Céline's voice was featured in eight charting albums on Billboard 200 year-end chart which sold 18 million units during a calendar year (excluding her own catalog sales and recent releases at that time).
West University of Timișoara conducted a research study that analyzes Céline Dion's contributions to global music culture in both spatial and temporal terms, In November 2013, Dion was inducted at the American Gaming Association Hall Of Fame for her outstanding contributions to the growth and stature of the gaming industry.
In popular culture
Dion was referenced as an antagonist character named "Feline Dion" from the hit animated series Totally Spies! which was aired in an episode in 2013.
In 2021, French actress and filmmaker Valérie Lemercier released Aline, a film which fictionalized Dion's life with Lemercier playing a singer named "Aline Dieu".
Other activities
Business endeavours
Les Productions Feeling Inc., also known as Feeling Inc. or just Feeling, is an artist management company based in Laval, Québec, Canada, and owned by Dion and her husband and manager, Rene Angélil. She is also founder of Nickels Restaurant food chain. She and her husband also own Le Mirage Golf Club and Schwartz's Restaurant. In association with Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf and Shaquille O'Neal, she opened a popular night club called Pure, located at Caesars Palace.
Dion became an entrepreneur with the establishment of her franchise restaurant Nickels in 1990. She has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997. In 2003, Dion signed a deal with Coty, Inc. to release Celine Dion Parfums. Her latest fragrance, Signature, was released in September 2011 with an advertising campaign by New York agency Kraftworks NYC. Since its inception, Celine Dion Parfums has grossed over $850 million in retail sales. In October 2004, Air Canada hired Dion as part of their promotional campaign to unveil new service products and an updated livery. "You and I", the theme song sung by Dion, was written by advertising executives working for Air Canada.
Dion also launched an eponymous bag and accessories line "Céline Dion Collection". According to Innee-Sedona International, the Asia partner for Bugatti Group said that it already topped $10 million sales after just three collections.
Philanthropy
Dion has actively supported many charity organizations, worldwide. She has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993. She has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine succumbed to the disease at the age of sixteen, in Dion's arms. In 2003, she joined a number of other celebrities, athletes, and politicians, including Josh Groban and Yolanda Adams to support "World Children's Day", a global fundraising effort sponsored by McDonald's. The effort raised money from more than 100 nations and benefited orphanages and children's health organizations. In addition, she has been a major supporter of the T. J. Martell Foundation, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, and many health and educational campaigns. During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, she donated $1 million to the victims of the storm, and held a fund-raising event for the victims of the 2004 Asian tsunami, which subsequently raised more than $1 million. After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, she donated $100,000 to China Children & Teenagers' Fund and sent a letter showing her consolation and support. Since 2004, she is involved, alongside husband René Angelil, with the Québec gay community by supporting the publication of health and HIV prevention materials in Gay Globe Magazine, owned by journalist Roger-Luc Chayer. She is also a member of Canadian charity Artists Against Racism. In November 2018, she launched a gender-neutral clothing line for kids, Celinununu. In 2009, Dion joined an effort along with Leonardo DiCaprio, James Cameron and Kate Winslet, to donate money to support the nursing home fees of the then-last living survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, Millvina Dean. The campaign resulted in $30,000 as donation.
Personal life
As the youngest of 14 children, Dion grew up wearing hand-me-downs and sharing a bed with several sisters. As a baby, she slept in a drawer to save on a crib. She was bullied at school and called "Vampire", owing to her teeth and skinny frame. Local tabloids even dubbed her "Canine Dion" in the teenage years of her career. She often spoke of running home from school to play music in the basement with her brothers and sisters. "I detested school", she would later write in her autobiography. "I had always lived surrounded by adults and children a lot older than me. I learned everything I needed to know from them. As far as I was concerned, real life existed around them." Dion's eldest sister was already in her twenties, married, and pregnant with her first child at the time Dion's mother, Thérèse, was pregnant with Celine.
Dion first met René Angélil, her future husband and manager, in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after her brother, Michel Dondalinger Dion, had sent him a demonstration recording of "Ce n'était qu'un rêve" ("It Was Only a Dream/Nothing But A Dream"), a song she, her mother Thérèse, and her brother Jacques Dion had jointly written. Over subsequent years, Angélil guided her to stardom in francophone territories.
After the dissolution of Angélil's second marriage, he and Dion took a professional break and he spent the major part of the year in Las Vegas, while Dion was learning English and taking dance and vocal lessons in Montreal. Upon his return, "he avoided being alone with me for too long a time", she said in her 2000 autobiography My Story, My Dream. Meanwhile, she kept a photo of Angélil under her pillow, writing, "Before I fell asleep, I slipped it under the pillow, out of fear that my mother, who always shared a room with me, would find it." She also wrote "Less and less could I hide from myself the fact that I was in love with Rene; I had all the symptoms," and "I was in love with a man I couldn't love, who didn't want me to love him, who didn't want to love me." Dion's mother, who traveled everywhere with the singer until she was 19, was initially wary of her daughter's growing infatuation with a much older and twice-divorced Angélil, but Dion was insistent, telling her mother "I'm not a minor. This is a free country. No one has the right to prevent me from loving whoever I want to."
Their professional relationship eventually turned romantic after Dion's win at the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin in 1988; she was 20. The romance was known to only family and friends for five years, though Dion nearly revealed all in a tearful 1992 interview with journalist Lise Payette. Many years later, Payette penned the song "Je cherche l'ombre" for Dion's 2007 album D'elles.
Dion and Angélil became engaged in 1993, on Dion's 25th birthday, and made their relationship public in the liner notes of her 1993 album The Colour of My Love. They married on 17 December 1994, at Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec. On 5 January 2000, Dion and Angélil renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas.
In May 2000, Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in vitro fertilization because of years of failed attempts to conceive. Their first son, René-Charles Angélil, was born on 25 January 2001. Dion suffered a miscarriage in 2009. In May 2010, Angélil announced that she was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in vitro fertilization. On Saturday, 23 October 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, Dion gave birth to fraternal twins by Caesarean section at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, The twins were named Eddy, after Dion's favourite French songwriter, Eddy Marnay, who had also produced her first five albums; and Nelson, after former South African President Nelson Mandela. She appeared with her newborn sons on the cover of 9 December 2010 issue of the Canadian edition of Hello! magazine.
On 14 January 2016, Angélil died of throat cancer. His funeral was held on 22 January 2016, in Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, where he and Dion wed 21 years earlier. The couple's eldest son, René-Charles, gave the eulogy just three days before his 15th birthday. Following Angélil's death, Dion became the sole owner and president of her management and production companies, including CDA Productions and Les Productions Feeling.
Two days after Angélil's deathon what would have been her husband's birthdayDion's brother, Daniel, died aged 59, also of cancer.
On 22 March 2018, Dion's management team announced that she had been dealing with hearing irregularities for the previous 12–18 months due to patulous Eustachian tube and would undergo a minimally invasive surgical procedure to correct the problem after ear-drop medications appeared to be no longer working.
Owing to her slight frame, Dion has for decades been subject of eating disorder rumors, which she has consistently denied: "I don't have an eating problem, and there's nothing more I can say about it". "My work requires me to be in great physical shape. I wouldn't have been able to live up to a hundred shows a year and travel ceaselessly from one end of the world to the other if I had eaten too much or not enough, or if, as certain magazines have claimed, I made myself throw up after each meal." She has often spoken about having been bullied at school and lacking confidence in her early years in the business: "I didn't have, visually, what it took. I was not pretty, I had teeth problems, and I was very skinny. I didn't fit the mold".
Dion took up ballet under the guidance of her former dancer, Naomi Stikeman, who also previously performed for The National Ballet of Canada and La La La Human Steps, and former Cirque du Soleil dancer-turned-fashion-illustrator, Pepe Muñoz, who is also part of her styling team. She is also a skier and a regular at her son René-Charles' hockey games.
Dion resides in Henderson, Nevada, in a house she bought with her husband in 2003. She previously owned homes in Montreal, Quebec, and Jupiter Island, Florida.
Dion's older son René-Charles Angélil loves music and has tried to follow a musical path. Under the stage name Big Tip, he released in May 2018 on his SoundCloud account 6 rap songs including originals "The Kid", "The Apple" and "Never Stop" and two adaptations from The Weeknd songs, "Catwalks" sampling on The Weeknd's "Sidewalks" and a remix of The Weeknd's "Loft Music" as "Loft Music Remix". He also released the 5-track EP CasiNo. 5 in December 2020 using the artistic name RC Angelil. The EP includes the tracks "Mamba Mentality", "Money, Thrills and Rest", "No Ls", "GG4" (featuring PAKKA) and "LV".
Discography
French-language studio albums
La voix du bon Dieu (1981)
Céline Dion chante Noël (1981)
Tellement j'ai d'amour... (1982)
Les chemins de ma maison (1983)
Chants et contes de Noël (1983)
Mélanie (1984)
C'est pour toi (1985)
Incognito (1987)
Dion chante Plamondon (1991)
D'eux (1995)
S'il suffisait d'aimer (1998)
1 fille & 4 types (2003)
D'elles (2007)
Sans attendre (2012)
Encore un soir (2016)
English-language studio albums
Unison (1990)
Celine Dion (1992)
The Colour of My Love (1993)
Falling into You (1996)
Let's Talk About Love (1997)
These Are Special Times (1998)
A New Day Has Come (2002)
One Heart (2003)
Miracle (2004)
Taking Chances (2007)
Loved Me Back to Life (2013)
Courage (2019)
Concert tours and residencies
Tours
Les chemins de ma maison (1983–1984)
Céline Dion en concert (1985)
Tournée Incognito (1988)
Unison Tour (1990–1991)
Celine Dion in Concert (1992–1993)
The Colour of My Love Tour (1994–1995)
D'eux Tour (1995–1996)
Falling into You: Around the World (1996–1997)
Let's Talk About Love World Tour (1998–1999)
Taking Chances World Tour (2008–2009)
Tournée Européenne 2013
Summer Tour 2016
Celine Dion Live 2017
Celine Dion Live 2018
Courage World Tour (2019–2023)
Residencies
A New Day... (2003–2007)
Celine (2011–2019)
Celine (2022)
Filmography
Touched by an Angel
The Nanny
All My Children
La fureur de Céline
Des fleurs sur la neige
Quest for Camelot as Juliana (singing voice)
Céline sur les Plaines
Celine: Through the Eyes of the World
Sur la piste du Marsupilami
Hell's Kitchen
Muppets Most Wanted
References
Bibliography
Céline Dion. Artist direct. Retrieved on 18 December 2005.
"Celine Dion". Contemporary Musicians, Volume 25. Gale Group, 1999.
"Celine Dion". Newsmakers 1995, Issue 4. Gale Research, 1995.
Céline Dion. Rock on the Net. Retrieved 20 November 2005.
Céline Dion. The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2 July 2006
Céline Dion provided by VH1.com Retrieved 16 August 2005.
Dion extends long Las Vegas stint. news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2005.
Durchholz, Daniel. Review: One Heart. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. St. Louis, Mo.: 24 April 2003. p. F.3
The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalist covemagazine.com Retrieved 1 November 2005.
Joel Whitburn Presents the Billboard Hot 100 Charts: The Nineties ()
World Music Awards Diamond Award Retrieved 1 November 2005, (Search by year required)
Further reading
External links
CelineDion.com – Official website operated by Sony Music Canada (English, French).
[ Celine Dion] at AllMusic
[ Celine Dion] at Billboard.com
1968 births
Living people
20th-century Canadian composers
20th-century Canadian women singers
20th-century women composers
21st-century Canadian composers
21st-century Canadian women singers
21st-century women composers
550 Music artists
Ballad musicians
Businesspeople from Florida
Businesspeople from Quebec
Canadian businesspeople in retailing
Canadian child singers
Canadian contemporary R&B singers
Canadian dance musicians
Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States
Canadian women pop singers
Canadian women rock singers
Canadian women singers
Canadian pop pianists
Canadian restaurateurs
Canadian Roman Catholics
Canadian soft rock musicians
Canadian sopranos
Canadian soul singers
Canadian voice actresses
Canadian women in business
Canadian women philanthropists
Canadian women pianists
Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Columbia Records artists
Companions of the Order of Canada
Epic Records artists
Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Switzerland
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1988
Eurovision Song Contest winners
FAO Goodwill ambassadors
Félix Award winners
French-language singers of Canada
French Quebecers
Grammy Award winners
Ivor Novello Award winners
Juno Award for Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Artist of the Year winners
Juno Award for Dance Recording of the Year winners
Juno Award for Francophone Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for International Album of the Year winners
Juno Award for Single of the Year winners
Juno International Achievement Award winners
Las Vegas shows
Musicians from Las Vegas
Officers of the National Order of Quebec
People from Charlemagne, Quebec
People from Henderson, Nevada
People from Jupiter Island, Florida
Philanthropists from Florida
Philanthropists from Nevada
Philanthropists from Quebec
Pop rock singers
Singers from Quebec
Singers with a three-octave vocal range
Spanish-language singers of Canada
Women restaurateurs
World Music Awards winners | true | [
"A List of tours, concerts and festivals held by Lebanese singer Layal Abboud.\nAbboud abstains from performing during Islamic month of Ramadan. After the end of Ramadan, on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, she restart her concert managing.\n\nTours and concerts\n\nOther notable appearances\n\nReferences \n\nLists of concert tours",
"The Triple Crown of Cycling is a term used in road bicycle racing to denote the achievement of winning three major titles in the same season, usually but not always the Giro d'Italia, the Tour de France and the UCI World Road Race Championship.\n\nIt is considered by many fans of the sport to be the greatest 'single' achievement in cycling. Although mostly it means winning the Giro d'Italia, the Tour de France and the Road World Cycling Championship in one calendar year, occasionally a broader definition is also seen where the victory in the Giro d'Italia can be exchanged for the Vuelta a España; this alternative has gained traction as the Vuelta, historically the least prestigious Grand Tour, has gained in reputation and importance. A hat-trick which did not include the Tour de France and the World title would not generally be considered as the Triple Crown.\n\nSo far, the triple crown of cycling (in both the narrower and the broader definition) has been achieved by only two cyclists, Eddy Merckx and Stephen Roche. Requiring a cyclist who is excellent as both a general classification rider, and a classics racer, it is considered the hardest achievement professional road bicycle racing in the same year.\n\nDespite the prestige of the achievement, the Triple Crown of cycling is not an official title, and there is no physical award given for its accomplishment.\n\nTriple crowns won\nThe Triple Crown has only been achieved twice (both times by winning Giro/Tour/Worlds):\n\nNear wins\nSome cyclists have been close to winning the triple crown of cycling, winning two of the three requirements.\nAmong those who came close are Italian Fausto Coppi, Frenchman Bernard Hinault, and later Spaniard Miguel Indurain, who finished second in the World Championships in 1993.\n\nWinning two grand tours in one year\nCoppi was the first rider in the history of the sport to win the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France in the same year which he did twice in 1949 and 1952. At the World road race championships in 1949 Coppi came third behind Rik Van Steenbergen of Belgium and Ferdi Kübler of Switzerland. Merckx was the first rider to win the triple crown but he had already come close to winning it in 1972 when he won both the Tour and the Giro, coming fourth in the World road race. After his disappointment, Merckx broke the world hour record several weeks later.\n\nIreland's Stephen Roche won the Giro and Tour in 1987. Later that year, with victory at the World road race championship in Villach in Austria, Roche became only the second to win the Triple Crown of Cycling.\n\nIndurain won the Giro-Tour double in both 1992 and 1993 and in both years he was very active in the World Road Race. In 1992 he finished sixth but in 1993 Indurain was very close to winning the Triple crown when he finished second behind Lance Armstrong.\n\nWinning one grand tour and world championship in one year\nHinault was aiming for winning the triple crown during the 1980 season. That year he won the 1980 Giro d'Italia before going on to the 1980 Tour de France. However, during the Tour, Hinault suffered from knee injury and despite winning three stages, he left the race while leading the general classification. Several weeks later he became world champion in Salanches.\nIn the table below are the results in other grand tours of cyclists who won the world championship and a grand tour in one year. DNF (did not finish) indicates that the cyclist started the race, but did not finish; DNE (did not enter) indicates that the cyclist did not enter the race.\n\nOther definitions\n\nWinning all three grand tours in a career\n\nNo rider has ever won all three grand tours in a single calendar year although Chris Froome and Jacques Anquetil won all three grand tours in just over nine months spanning two calendar years. Winning all three grand tours (Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España ) in a career is sometimes called a grand tour career triple crown, although more usually it would be described as a career grand slam.\n\nOnly seven riders have achieved this feat, and only one, Eddy Merckx has achieved both a classic Triple Crown and a career clean sweep of Grand Tour titles (He also achieved a career clean sweep of Monument classics, the 5 most prestigious one-day classic races).\n\nOnly Bernard Hinault and Alberto Contador have achieved multiple career grand tour triple crowns, both having won each race at least twice.\n\nIn bold the win that achieved a grand tour career triple crown.\n\n designates a World Championship winner.\n\nWinning all three grand tours in one year\nThe definition of Triple Crown of Cycling can also mean winning all three Grand Tours in the same year. As of 2020, this has not been achieved. Only 39 times has a cyclist finished all three grand tours in one year, and of these 39 only Raphaël Géminiani (in 1955) and Gastone Nencini (in 1957) managed to finish in the top ten in each tour. In 2016, Alejandro Valverde was close to accomplishing the same feat – he finished 3rd in the Giro d'Italia, 6th in the Tour de France, and was in the top three after the first half of the Vuelta of Spain, but lost 11 minutes in the 14th stage before recovering to finish in 12th place in overall standings, less than 2 minutes behind 10th place.\n\nIn 2010, Alberto Contador's new team manager Bjarne Riis claimed that Contador could win all three grand tours in the same year, but his main rival Andy Schleck said it would be impossible.\n\n''All the jerseys'' \nWhile no rider has ever won all three grand tours in a single calendar year, three riders have won the three Grand tours consecutively across two seasons, thus holding ''all the jerseys'' at one time.\n\nEddy Merckx won four consecutive grand tours in 1972–1973: Giro 1972, Tour 1972, Vuelta 1973, and Giro 1973.\n\nBernard Hinault won three consecutive grand tours in 1982–1983: Giro 1982, Tour 1982, and Vuelta 1983. \n\nChris Froome won three consecutive grand tours in 2017–2018: Tour 2017, Vuelta 2017 and Giro 2018 before finishing 3rd in Tour 2018.\n\nCompleting all three grand tours in one year\n\nCyclists who have completed all three grand tours in the same year\nAs of 2016, 39 riders completed all three grand tours in the same year:\n6 times – Adam Hansen (AUS) – 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017\n4 times – Marino Lejarreta (ESP) – 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991\n3 times – Bernardo Ruiz (ESP) – 1955, 1956, 1957\n2 times – Eduardo Chozas (ESP) – 1990, 1991\n2 times – Carlos Sastre (ESP) – 2006, 2010\n\nList of riders and results\n\nWinning world titles in three disciplines\nAfter Marianne Vos had won world titles in road race (2006), cyclo-cross (2006) and track points race (2008), she was said to have won the triple crown of cycling. In 2014, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot won the World Championship road race and followed this in 2015 with the world championships in cross-country mountain biking and cyclocross, which meant she held world titles in three cycling disciplines simultaneously.\n\nTriple Crown of Track Cycling \nsprint\nteam sprint\nkeirin\n\nReferences\n\nRoad bicycle racing terminology\nGrand Tour (cycling)"
]
|
[
"Kenneth Anger",
"2000-present: Return to filmmaking"
]
| C_c583f69dfee641ab893b517127b42e26_0 | Why did he return? | 1 | Why did Kenneth Anger return to film making? | Kenneth Anger | For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls. Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London. Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to heavily sue those making accusations against them. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Kenneth Anger (born Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer, February 3, 1927) is an American underground experimental filmmaker, actor, and author. Working exclusively in short films, he has produced almost forty works since 1937, nine of which have been grouped together as the "Magick Lantern Cycle". His films variously merge surrealism with homoeroticism and the occult, and have been described as containing "elements of erotica, documentary, psychodrama, and spectacle". Anger himself has been described as "one of America's first openly gay filmmakers, and certainly the first whose work addressed homosexuality in an undisguised, self-implicating manner", and his "role in rendering gay culture visible within American cinema, commercial or otherwise, is impossible to overestimate", with several being released prior to the legalization of homosexual acts between consenting adults in the United States. He has also focused upon occult themes in many of his films, being fascinated by the English gnostic mage and poet Aleister Crowley, and is an adherent of Thelema, the religion Crowley founded.
Born to a middle-class Christian Presbyterian family in Santa Monica, California, Anger would later claim to have been a child actor who appeared in the film A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935); the accuracy of this claim has come under dispute. He began making short films when he was ten years old, although his first film to gain any recognition, the homoerotic Fireworks (1947), would only be produced a decade later. The controversial nature of the work led to him being put on trial on obscenity charges, but he was acquitted. A friendship and working relationship began subsequently with pioneering sexologist Alfred Kinsey. Moving to Europe, Anger produced a number of other shorts inspired by the artistic avant-garde scene on the continent, such as Rabbit's Moon (released 1971) and Eaux d'Artifice (1953).
Returning to the United States in 1953, he set about working on several new projects, including the films Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954), Scorpio Rising (1964), Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), and the gossip book Hollywood Babylon (1965). The latter would become infamous for various dubious and sensationalist claims, many of which were later disproven, though some do remain as urban legends. Getting to know several notable countercultural figures of the time, including Tennessee Williams, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jimmy Page, Marianne Faithfull and Anton LaVey, Anger involved them in his subsequent Thelemite-themed works, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) and Lucifer Rising (1972). Following his failure to produce a sequel to Lucifer Rising, which he attempted through the mid-1980s, Anger retired from filmmaking, instead focusing on Hollywood Babylon II (1984). At the dawn of the 21st century he once more returned to filmmaking, producing shorts for various film festivals and events.
Anger has described filmmakers such as Auguste and Louis Lumière, Georges Méliès, and Maya Deren as influences, and has been cited as an important influence on later film directors like Martin Scorsese, David Lynch and John Waters. He has also been described as having "a profound impact on the work of many other filmmakers and artists, as well as on music video as an emergent art form using dream sequence, dance, fantasy, and narrative".
Biography
1927–35: Early life
Anger was born in Santa Monica, California, as Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer on February 3, 1927. Despite his family being Presbyterians, he became more interested in the occult. His father, Wilbur Anglemyer, was of German ancestry, and had been born in Troy, Ohio, while his disabled mother, Lillian Coler (who was the older of the pair), claimed English ancestry. The pair had met at the Ohio State University and after marrying had their first child, Jean Anglemyer, in 1918, followed by a second, Robert "Bob" Anglemyer, in 1921. That year they moved to Santa Monica to be near Lillian's mother, Bertha Coler, who herself had recently moved there. It was here where Wilbur got a job working as an electrical engineer at Douglas Aircraft, bringing in enough money so that they could live comfortably as a middle-class family.
Kenneth, their third and final child, was born in 1927, but growing up he would fail to get along with either his parents or his siblings. His brother Bob later claimed that being the youngest child, Kenneth had been spoilt by his mother and grandmother, and as such had become somewhat "bratty." His grandmother, Bertha, was a big influence on the young Kenneth, and indeed helped to maintain the family financially during the Great Depression of the 1930s. It was she who first took Kenneth to the cinema, to see a double bill of The Singing Fool and Thunder Over Mexico and also encouraged his artistic interests. She herself later moved into a house in Hollywood with another woman, Miss Diggy, who equally encouraged Kenneth. He developed an early interest in film, and enjoyed reading the movie tie-in Big Little books. He would later relate that "I was a child prodigy who never got smarter." He retrospected his attendance at the Santa Monica Cotillon where child stars were encouraged to mix with non-famous children and through this met Shirley Temple, with whom he danced on one occasion.
It was in 1935, he would later claim, that Anger had the chance to appear in a Hollywood film, taking the role of the Changeling Prince in the 1935 Warner Brothers film A Midsummer Night's Dream. Set photographs and studio production reports (on file in the Warner Brothers collection at University of Southern California, and the Warner Bros. collection of studio key books at George Eastman House in Rochester, New York) in fact contradict Anger's claims, conclusively proving that the character was played by a girl named Sheila Brown. Anger's unofficial biographer, Bill Landis, remarked in 1995 that the Changeling Prince was definitely "Anger as a child; visually, he's immediately recognizable".
1937–46: First films
Anger's first film was created in 1937, when he was ten years old. The short, titled Ferdinand the Bull, had been shot on the remains of 16 mm film that had been left unused after the Anglemyer's had made home movies with it on a family vacation to Yosemite National Park,. In Ferdinand the Bull, which has never been made publicly available, Kenneth dressed as a matador, wearing a cape, while two of his friends from the Boy Scouts played the bull. His second work, Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat, which Anger himself often considers to be his first proper film, was made from footage of children playing during the summer, accompanied with popular songs by bands, including the Ink Spots. Anger had created Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat in 1941, when he was fourteen, shortly before the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent entry of the United States into the Second World War. The following year he produced another amateur film, Prisoner of Mars, which was heavily influenced by Flash Gordon. In this science fiction-inspired feature, in which he played the protagonist, he added elements taken from the Greek mythological myth of the Minotaur and constructed a small volcano in his back yard to create a home-made special effect. Many of these early films are considered lost, with Anger burning much of his previous work in 1967.
In 1944, the Anglemyers moved to Hollywood to move in with family, and Kenneth began attending Beverly Hills High School. It was here, he met Maxine Peterson, who had once been the stand-in for Shirley Temple, and he asked her – alongside another classmate and an older woman – to appear in his next film project, which he initially called Demigods, later retitled as Escape Episode. Revolving partially around the occult, it was filmed in a "spooky old castle" in Hollywood, and was subsequently screened at the Coronet Theatre on North La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles. Around this time, Anger also began attending the screenings of silent films held at Clara Grossman's art gallery, through which he met a fellow filmmaker, Curtis Harrington, with whom he formed Creative Film Associates (CFA). Harrington is said to have introduced Anger to the work of Aleister Crowley. Crowley's philosophy of Thelema would exert a profound influence on the remainder of Anger's career. CFA was founded to distribute experimental films or "underground films" such as those of Maya Deren, John and James Whitney, as well as Anger's and Harrington's.
In high school, Anger started to become interested in the occult, which he had first indirectly encountered through reading L. Frank Baum's Oz books as a child, with their accompanying Rosicrucian philosophies. Kenneth was very interested in the works of the French ceremonial magician Eliphas Levi, as well as Sir James Frazer's The Golden Bough, although his favorite writings were those of the English occultist Aleister Crowley. Crowley had founded a religion known as Thelema based upon a spiritual experience that he had in Egypt in 1904, in which he claimed a being known as Aiwass had contacted him and recited to him The Book of the Law. Subsequent to his exposure to Crowley, Anger converted to Thelema.
1947–49: Fireworks and early career
As Anger discovered his homosexuality, at a time when homosexual acts were still illegal in the United States, he began associating with the underground gay scene. At some point in the mid-1940s, he was arrested by the police in a "homosexual entrapment", after which he decided to move out of his parents' home, gaining his own sparse apartment largely financed by his grandmother, and abandoning the name Anglemyer in favor of Anger. He started attending the University of Southern California, where he studied cinema, and also began experimenting with the use of mind-altering drugs like cannabis and peyote. It was then that he decided to produce a film that would deal with his sexuality, just as other gay avant-garde film makers like Willard Maas were doing in that decade. The result was the short film Fireworks, which was created in 1947 but only exhibited publicly in 1948.
Upon release of the work, Anger was arrested on obscenity charges. He was acquitted, after the case went to the Supreme Court of California, which deemed it to be art rather than pornography. Anger made the claim to have been seventeen years old when he made it, despite the fact that he was actually twenty, presumably to present himself as more of an enfant terrible. A homoerotic work lasting only 14 minutes, Fireworks revolves around a young man (played by Anger himself) associating with various navy sailors, who eventually turn on him, stripping him naked and beating him to death, ripping open his chest to find a compass inside. Several fireworks then explode, accompanied by a burning Christmas tree and the final shot shows the young man lying in bed next to another shirtless man. Of this film, Anger would later state in 1966 that "This flick is all I have to say about being 17, the United States Navy, American Christmas and the fourth of July." He would continuously alter and adapt the film up until 1980, with it finally being distributed on VHS in 1986.
One of the first people to buy a copy of Fireworks was the sexologist Dr. Alfred Kinsey of the Institute for Sex Research. He and Anger struck up a friendship that would last until the doctor's death, during which time Anger aided Kinsey in his research. According to Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis, Kinsey became a "father figure" whom Anger "could both interact with and emulate." Meanwhile, in 1949 Anger began work on a film called Puce Women, which unlike Fireworks was filmed in color. It starred Yvonne Marquis as a glamorous woman going about her daily life; Anger would later state that "Puce Women was my love affair with Hollywood ... with all the great goddesses of the silent screen. They were to be filmed in their homes; I was, in effect, filming ghosts." A lack of funding meant that only one scene was ever produced, which was eventually released under the title Puce Moment. That same year, Anger directed The Love That Whirls, a film based upon Aztec human sacrifice but, because of the nudity that it contained, it was destroyed by technicians at the film lab, who deemed it to be obscene.
1950–53: France, Rabbit's Moon and Eaux d'Artifice
In 1950, Anger moved to Paris, France, where he initially stayed with friends of his (who themselves had been forced to leave Hollywood after being blacklisted for formerly having belonged to trade union organisations). He would later remark that he travelled to the country after receiving a letter from the French director Jean Cocteau in which he told Anger of his admiration for Fireworks (shown in 1949 at Festival du Film Maudit in Biarritz, France). Upon arrival, Anger and Cocteau became friends, with the Frenchman giving the young protege his permission to make a movie of his ballet The Young Man and Death, although at the time there were no financial backers for the project. While in Paris he continued producing short films; in 1950 he started filming on Rabbit's Moon, which was also known as La Lune des Lapins and revolved around a clown who was staring up at the moon, in which a rabbit lived, something found within Japanese mythology. Anger produced 20 minutes of footage at the Films du Pantheon Studio in the city before he was rushed out of the studio, leaving the film uncompleted. He stored the footage in the disorganized archives of the Cinémathèque Française, and only collected it again in 1970, when he finally finished and released Rabbit's Moon. It was at the Cinémathèque Française that he was given by the head, Henri Langlois, prints of Sergei Eisenstein's Que Viva Mexico!, which he attempted to put into Eisenstein's original order.
In 1953, he travelled to Rome, Italy where he planned to make a film about the sixteenth century occultist Cardinal d'Este. To do so, he began filming at the garden of the Villa d'Este in Tivoli, in which a lady in eighteenth century dress walked through the gardens, which featured many waterfalls (an allusion to the fact that d'Este allegedly sexually enjoyed urination), accompanied by the music of Vivaldi. This was supposedly going to be only the first of four scenes, but the others were not made; the resulting one-scene film was titled Eaux d'Artifice. As Anger's biographer Bill Landis remarked, "It's one of Anger's most tranquil works; his editing makes it soft, lush, and inviting. Eaux d'Artifice remains a secretive romp through a private garden, all for the masked figure's and the viewer-voyeur's pleasure."
1953–60: Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome and Hollywood Babylon
In 1953, soon after the production of Eaux d'Artifice, Anger's mother died and he temporarily returned to the United States in order to assist with the distribution of her estate. It was during this return that he began to once more immerse himself in the artistic scene of California, befriending the film maker Stan Brakhage, who had been inspired by Fireworks, and the two collaborated on producing a film, but it was confiscated at the film lab for obscenity and presumably destroyed. Around this time, two of Anger's friends, the couple Renate Druks and Paul Mathiesin held a party based upon the theme of "Come As Your Madness"; Anger himself attended dressed in drag as the ancient Greek goddess Hekate. The party and its many costumes inspired Anger, who produced a painting of it, and asked several of those who attended to appear in a new film that he was creating – Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome. Inauguration, which was created in 1954, was a 38-minute surrealist work featuring many Crowleyan and Thelemite themes, with many of the various characters personifying various pagan gods such as Isis, Osiris and Pan. One of the actresses in the film was Marjorie Cameron, the widow of Jack Parsons, the influential American Thelemite who had died a few years previously, while Anger himself played Hecate. He would subsequently exhibit the film at various European film festivals, winning the Prix du Ciné-Club Belge and the Prix de l'Age d'Or, as well as screening it in the form of a projected triptych at Expo 58, the World Fair held in Brussels in 1958.
In 1955, Anger and his friend Alfred Kinsey traveled to the derelict Abbey of Thelema in Cefalù, Sicily, to film a short documentary titled Thelema Abbey. The abbey itself had been used by Aleister Crowley for his commune during the 1920s, and Anger restored many of the erotic wall-paintings that were found there, as well as performing certain Crowleyan rituals at the site. The documentary was made for the British television series Omnibus, but was later lost. The following year Kinsey died and Anger decided to return to Paris, where he was described at the time as being "extremely remote and lonely".
In desperate need of money, Anger and ghostwriter Elliott Stein wrote a book titled Hollywood Babylon in which he collected together gossip regarding celebrities, some of which he claims he had been told. This included claiming (with no corroboration or citing of sources) that Rudolph Valentino liked to play a sexually submissive role to dominant women, that Walt Disney was a drug user, addicted to opiates (reflected in the character of Goofy, who's perpetually stoned on cannabis), as well as describing the nature of the deaths of Peg Entwistle and Lupe Vélez. The work was not published in the United States initially, and it was first released by the French publisher Jean-Jacques Pauvert. A pirated (and incomplete) version was first published in the U.S. in 1965, with the official American version not being published until 1974. Now with some financial backing from the publication of Hollywood Babylon, his next film project was The Story of O; it was essentially a piece of erotica featuring a heterosexual couple engaged in sadomasochistic sexual activities, although it refrained from showing any explicit sexual images.
1961–65: Scorpio Rising and Kustom Kar Kommandos
In 1961, Anger once more returned to America, where he lived for a time with Marjorie Cameron. Meanwhile, he began work on a new feature, a film about the emerging biker subculture, which he titled Scorpio Rising. For this, he employed a biker named Richard McAuley, and filmed him and some of his friends messing around, adding to it scenes of McAuley, or "Scorpio" as he became known, desecrating a derelict church. Anger incorporated more controversial visuals into the piece, including Nazi iconography, nudity, and clips of the life of Jesus Christ taken from Family Films' The Living Bible: Last Journey to Jerusalem. In Scorpio Rising, Anger intercuts images of Christ from the cheap religious film with those of Scorpio. The whole film has a soundtrack made up of popular 1960s songs, including "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton, "Torture" by Kris Jensen and "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March. Anger himself described the film as "a death mirror held up to American culture ... Thanatos in chrome, black leather, and bursting jeans." It immediately became popular on the underground cinema scene although was soon brought to court with complaints claiming that it was obscene. The jury ruled in favor of the prosecutors, and Scorpio Rising was banned, although this ban was subsequently overturned on appeal to the California State Supreme Court.
With Scorpio Rising finished and Anger now living in San Francisco, he went to the Ford Foundation, which had just started a program of giving out grants to filmmakers. He showed them his ideas for a new artistic short, titled Kustom Kar Kommandos, which they approved of, and gave him a grant of $10,000. However, Anger spent much of the money on living expenses and making alterations to some of his earlier films, meaning that by the time he actually created Kustom Kar Kommandos, it was only one scene long. This homoerotic film involved various shots of a young man polishing a drag strip racing car, accompanied with a pink background and the song "Dream Lover" by The Paris Sisters. Soon after, Anger struck a deal that allowed Hollywood Babylon to be officially published in the United States for the first time, where it proved a success, selling two million copies during the 1960s, and around the same time Anger also translated Lo Duca's History of Eroticism into English for American publication.
1966–69: The hippie movement and Invocation of My Demon Brother
The mid-1960s saw the emergence of the hippie scene and the increasing use of the mind-altering drugs that Anger himself had been using for many years. In particular, the hallucinogen LSD, which at the time was still legal in the United States, was very popular, and in 1966 Anger released a version of his earlier film, Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome titled the "Sacred Mushroom Edition" which was screened to people while taking LSD, thereby heightening their sensory experience. By this time, Anger had become well known throughout the underground scene in the United States, and several cinemas across the country screened his better known films all in one event. With this growing fame, Anger began to react to publicity in much the same way as his idol Aleister Crowley had done, for instance describing himself as "the most monstrous moviemaker in the underground", a pun on the fact that Crowley had been labelled "the wickedest man in the world" by the British tabloids in the 1920s. Anger's fame on the underground circuit allowed him to increasingly associate with other celebrities, including Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan who named Anger as godfather to Zeena Schreck (LaVey's daughter). Despite Anger and LaVey's differing philosophies, the two became good friends and would remain so for many years. However, Anger also held a resentment towards certain celebrities, namely Andy Warhol, who at the time was achieving success not only in the art world but also in the underground film scene. In 1980, Anger threw paint over the front door of a house that Warhol had recently moved out of.
In 1966, Anger moved into the ground floor of a large nineteenth-century Victorian house in San Francisco known as the Russian Embassy. Around this time he began planning a new film titled Lucifer Rising echoing his Thelemite beliefs about the emerging Aeon of Horus. He tattooed the name of Lucifer upon his chest and began searching for a young man who could symbolically become Lucifer, "the Crowned and Conquering Child" of the new Aeon, for Lucifer Rising. While living at the Russian Embassy, he met and lived with various young men who could fit the position. Finally, he settled upon Bobby Beausoleil for the role of Lucifer. Beausoleil founded a band, the Magic Powerhouse of Oz, in order to record the music for the film. In 1967, Anger said that the footage which he had been filming for Lucifer Rising had been stolen, placing the blame on Beausoleil, who would deny the claims. Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis quotes Beausoleil who states, "what had happened was that Kenneth had spent all the money that was invested in Lucifer Rising" and that he therefore invented the story to satisfy the film's creditors. Beausoleil and Anger fell out, with the former getting involved with Charles Manson and his cult, the Family, eventually carrying out Manson's bidding by torturing and murdering Gary Hinman.
In the October 26, 1967 issue of Village Voice, Anger publicly reinvented himself by placing a full-page advert declaring "In Memoriam. Kenneth Anger. Filmmaker 1947–1967". He soon publicly reappeared, this time to claim that he had burned all of his early work. The following year he travelled to London where he first met John Paul Getty, Jr., who became Anger's patron, and where he also met and befriended Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, members of The Rolling Stones, as well as actress/model Anita Pallenberg. Anger then decided to use much of the footage created for Lucifer Rising in a new film of his, Invocation of My Demon Brother, which starred Beausoleil, LaVey, Jagger and Richards, as well as Anger himself, and the music for which had been composed by Jagger. It was released in 1969, and explored many of the Thelemic themes that Anger had originally intended for Lucifer Rising. Author Gary Lachman believes the film "inaugurat[ed] the midnight movie cult at the Elgin Theatre." The story of the film, its making, and the people involved are the inspiration for the novel Sway, by Zachary Lazar.
1970–81: Lucifer Rising
Having used up much of the footage originally intended for Lucifer Rising for Invocation of My Demon Brother, Anger again set about to create "Lucifer Rising", a symbolic analogy of the coming Aeon of Horus as prophesied in the Thelemic sacred text, The Book of the Law. Anger persuaded the singer and actress Marianne Faithfull to appear in it. He also tried to convince his friend Mick Jagger to play the part of Lucifer in the film but Jagger refused. Instead he offered his brother Chris for the part. Anger accepted, but was not happy about it. Anger subsequently filmed eight minutes of film and showed it to the British National Film Finance Corporation who agreed to provide £15,000 in order for Anger to complete it – something that caused a level of outrage in the British press. With this money, he could afford to fly the cast and crew to both Germany and Egypt for filming. Anger befriended Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page around this time, the two sharing a great interest in Crowley. At Page's invitation, Anger travelled to Page's new home, Crowley's former residence Boleskine House located on the shores of Loch Ness in Scotland, to help the musician exorcise the building of what Page believed to be a headless man's ghost. Page subsequently agreed to produce the soundtrack for Lucifer Rising, and used the editing suite which was in the basement of his London home to shape the music which he produced. Anger later fell out with Page's partner Charlotte, who kicked him out of the house. In retaliation, Anger called a press conference in which he ridiculed Page and threatened to "throw a Kenneth Anger curse" on him. Page's music was dumped from the film and replaced in 1979 by music written and recorded by the imprisoned Bobby Beausoleil, with whom Anger had reconciled.
Meanwhile, Anger, who moved to a small apartment on the upper east side of Manhattan, took the footage that he had filmed for Rabbit's Moon in the 1950s, finally releasing the film in 1972, and again in a shorter version in 1979. Around the same time he also added a new soundtrack to Puce Moment and re-released it. It was also around this time that the publisher Marvin Miller produced a low budget documentary film based on Hollywood Babylon without Anger's permission, which upset Anger and led to a lawsuit. He also created a short film titled Senators in Bondage which was only available to private collectors and which has never been made publicly available, and had plans to make a film about Aleister Crowley titled The Wickedest Man in the World, but this project never got off the ground. In 1980, he holidayed with his friend, the playwright Tennessee Williams.
It was in 1981, a decade after starting the project, that he finally finished and released the 30-minute-long Lucifer Rising. Based upon the Thelemite concept that mankind had entered a new period known as the Aeon of Horus, Lucifer Rising was full of occult symbolism, starring Miriam Gibril as the Ancient Egyptian goddess Isis and Donald Cammell as her consort Osiris, as well as Marianne Faithfull as Jewish mythological figure Lilith and Leslie Huggins as Lucifer himself. Anger once again appeared in the film, starring as the Magus, the same role that he played in Invocation to My Demon Brother. He had surrealistically combined the roles that these characters played with footage of volcanoes, various ancient Egyptian temples and a Crowleyan adept reading from the man's texts.
1982–99: Retirement
Soon after the release of Lucifer Rising, a PBS documentary of Anger and his films was made, titled Kenneth Anger's Magick, which was directed by Kit Fitzgerald, who later recalled interviewing him in his New York flat on a very hot July evening, during which Anger revealed that he was so broke that he had been forced to sell his air conditioner. Anger himself considered producing other films that would continue on from Lucifer Rising in a series, and he began referring to his finished film as "Part I: Sign Language", to be followed by two further parts. Nonetheless, these projects would never be finished, and Anger himself would not produce any further films for nearly two decades. In need of money, Anger subsequently released Hollywood Babylon II in 1984, as well as continuing to screen his films at various festivals and at universities, and continuing to attempt to produce Lucifer Rising II; around this time he began wearing an eyepatch to these public events, something likely due to him having been beaten up and getting a bruised eye, a story that he would bring up in various interviews, although partly changing who it was who had beaten him up in various versions of the story. In 1984, a notorious incident occurred when Anger was invited to appear on The Coca Crystal Show, however upon arriving at the studio he demanded that somebody pay for his taxi ride there, and when they refused, he attacked the talent coordinator Maureen Ivice and tried to drag her into his taxi, before she was rescued by other members of staff – Anger reportedly escaped the scene by flinging a $100 bill at the cab driver and screaming "GET ME OUT OF HERE!"
In 1986, he sold the video rights to his films, which finally appeared on VHS, allowing them to have greater publicity. The following year he attended the Avignon Film Festival in France where his work was being celebrated in commemoration of the fortieth anniversary of Fireworks. Soon after this, he appeared in Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon, a BBC documentary for the Arena series directed by Nigel Finch. In 1991, Anger moved to West Arenas Boulevard in Palm Springs, California, living in what was formerly the estate of his good friend Ruby Keeler where the British Film Institute sent Rebecca Wood to assist him in writing an autobiography, which was never actually produced. Instead, in 1995, Bill Landis, who had been an associate of Anger's in the early 1980s, wrote an unofficial biography of him, which Anger himself condemned, describing Landis as "an avowed enemy".
In 1993, Anger visited Sydney and lectured at a season of his films at the Australian Film Institute Cinema in Paddington. In an interview given at the time with Black and White magazine, Anger said he was staying in King's Cross and was putting the finishing touches to the final treatment on a feature film about Australian artist and occultist Rosaleen Norton. This project was unrealised.
2000–present: Return to filmmaking
For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls.
Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London.
Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to sue those making accusations against them.
Themes
Several recurring themes can be seen within Anger's cinematic work. One of the most notable of these is homoeroticism; this was first seen in Fireworks (1947), which was based around Anger's own homosexual awakening, and featured various navy officers flexing their muscles, and a white liquid (often thought of as symbolising semen), pouring over the protagonist's body. Similar homoerotic imagery is found in Scorpio Rising (1963), which stars a muscled, topless, leather-clad biker, and Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), where a young man sensually polishes a car, with close up shots of his tight-fitting jeans and crotch. Images of naked men also appear in Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969), where they are eventually filmed wrestling, and in Anger Sees Red (2004), in which a muscled, topless man performs press-ups.
Another recurring theme in Anger's films is that of the occult, particularly the symbolism of his own esoteric religion, Thelema. This is visible in Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, Invocation of My Demon Brother and Lucifer Rising, all of which are based around the Thelemite concept of the Aeon of Horus and feature actors portraying various pagan gods. Anger himself linked the creation of film to the occult, particularly the practice of ceremonial magic, something that Aleister Crowley had been a noted practitioner of, and Anger once stated that "making a movie is casting a spell."
One of the central recurring images found in Anger's work is the concept of flames and light; in Fireworks there are various examples of this, including a burning Christmas tree, and it subsequently appears in many of his other works as well. This relates to the concept of Lucifer, a deity whom Anger devoted one of his films to, and whose name is Latin for "light bearer".
In many of his films, heavy use is made of music, both classical and pop, to accompany the visual imagery. For instance, in Scorpio Rising he makes use of the 1950s pop songs "Torture" by Kris Jensen, "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March and "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton. He first used music to accompany visuals in the 1941 work Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat?, where he used tracks by the Mills Brothers. His use of popular music to accompany his films has been cited as a key influence on the development of music videos and of MTV, although he has stated his dislike for the whole music video industry. On one occasion the band Combustible Edison asked him if he would direct a video to accompany their song "Bluebeard" but he declined the offer, believing that while music could be used to accompany film, it was pointless to do it the other way around.
Awards
Maya Deren Award, 1996
Silver Lake Film Festival Spirit of Silver Lake Award (2000)
San Francisco International Film Festival Golden Gate Persistence of Vision Award (2001)
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Douglas Edwards Independent/Experimental Film/Video Award (2002), "for his body of work"; tied with Michael Snow, for *Corpus Callosum
Anthology Film Archives, Life Achievement Award (2010)
Personal life
Anger has always been an "extremely private individual," although he has given various interviews over the years, with one interviewer, David Wingrove, describing him in 2008 as "a joy. Gentle, soft-spoken, immaculately tanned, he looks a good two decades younger than his 78 years". In such interviews, he refuses to disclose information on his name change from Anglemeyer to Anger, telling an interviewer who brought the topic up in 2004 that "You're being impertinent. It says Anger on my passport, that's all you need to know. I would stay away from that subject if I were you." In a 2010 interview, however, he stated that, "I just condensed my name. I knew it would be like a label, a logo. It's easy to remember." Anger is openly gay. He once joked that he was "somewhat to the right of the KKK" in his views about black people, opening him up to criticism for racism, though this was likely a "Crowley-esque joke". He supports the Tibetan independence movement.
Anger is an acknowledged Thelemite and belongs to the main Thelemic organization, the Ordo Templi Orientis. He viewed many of the men he associated with as living embodiments of Lucifer, a symbol of the Aeon of Horus in Thelemic philosophy, and had his own name inked onto his chest with the Lucifer tattoo. Anger has shown an interest in various other religious movements, particularly those that relate in some way to occultism. For instance, Kenneth was a lifelong friend of Anton LaVey from before the founding of the Church of Satan in the 1960s and even lived with him and his family during the 1980s. LaVey also made an appearance in one of Anger's films, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) as a devilish priest. Anger describes himself as a "pagan" and refuses to consider himself to be a Satanist. He also characterized Wicca as being a "lunar", feminine religion in contrast with the "solar" masculinity of Thelema.
Filmography
Books
References
Notes
Citations
Works cited
Further reading
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008). Cinema, Messianism and Crime, Parkett 83, pp. 197-205.
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008), 1000 WORDS; KENNETH ANGER, Artforum, September, pp. 412-415.
.
External links
bentclouds.com. Essay on Kustom Kar Kommandos Non-Normative Sex in Kustom Kar Kommandos.
The Film Journal. Review of Alice Hutchison's book on Anger
Artforum 1000 Words
Esquire Kenneth Anger: Where The Bodies Are Buried, by Mick Brown.
1927 births
American experimental filmmakers
American male child actors
American Modern Pagans
American non-fiction writers
American people of German descent
American Thelemites
Film directors from California
American gay actors
Gay artists
American gay writers
LGBT film directors
LGBT people from California
LGBT screenwriters
LGBT writers from the United States
Living people
Male actors from Santa Monica, California
Psychedelic drug advocates
Writers from Santa Monica, California
American people of English descent | false | [
"Why Bother? is the third studio album from the Detroit band ADULT. All tracks are written and produced by Adam Lee Miller and Nicola Kuperus. Sam Consiglio, a contributor to the band's previous album, Gimmie Trouble, did not return to record this album for undisclosed reasons.\n\nTrack listing\n\"Red Herring\"\n\"The Mythology of Psychosis\"\n\"Good Deeds\"\n\"I Feel Worse When I'm With You\"\n\"The Importance of Being Folk Part I\"\n\"Inclined to Vomit\"\n\"You Don't Worry Enough\"\n\"Cultivation\"\n\"Herd Me\"\n\"R.S.x\"\n\"Plagued by Fear\"\n\"I Should Care\"\n\"The Importance of Being Folk Part II\"\n\"Harvest\"\n\nExternal links\nWhy Bother? at Official ADULT. Site\n\n2007 albums\nAdult (band) albums\nThrill Jockey albums",
"\"Llangollen Market\" is a song from early 19th century Wales. It is known to have been performed at an eisteddfod at Llangollen in 1858.\n\nThe text of the song survives in a manuscript held by the National Museum of Wales, which came into the possession of singer Mary Davies, a co-founder of the Welsh Folk-Song Society.\n\nThe song tells the tale of a young man from the Llangollen area going off to war and leaving behind his broken-hearted girlfriend. Originally written in English, the song has been translated into Welsh and recorded by several artists such as Siân James, Siobhan Owen, Calennig and Siwsann George.\n\nLyrics\nIt’s far beyond the mountains that look so distant here,\nTo fight his country’s battles, last Mayday went my dear;\nAh, well shall I remember with bitter sighs the day,\nWhy, Owen, did you leave me? At home why did I stay?\n\nAh, cruel was my father that did my flight restrain,\nAnd I was cruel-hearted that did at home remain,\nWith you, my love, contented, I’d journey far away;\nWhy, Owen, did you leave me? At home why did I stay?\n\nWhile thinking of my Owen, my eyes with tears do fill,\nAnd then my mother chides me because my wheel stands still,\nBut how can I think of spinning when my Owen’s far away;\nWhy, Owen, did you leave me? At home why did I stay?\n\nTo market at Llangollen each morning do I go,\nBut how to strike a bargain no longer do I know;\nMy father chides at evening, my mother all the day;\nWhy, Owen, did you leave me, at home why did I stay?\n\nOh, would it please kind heaven to shield my love from harm,\nTo clasp him to my bosom would every care disarm,\nBut alas, I fear, 'tis distant - that happy, happy day;\nWhy, Owen, did you leave me, at home why did stay?\n\nReferences\n\nWelsh folk songs"
]
|
[
"Kenneth Anger",
"2000-present: Return to filmmaking",
"Why did he return?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_c583f69dfee641ab893b517127b42e26_0 | What was his first project back in to film making? | 2 | What was Kenneth Anger's first project back in to film making? | Kenneth Anger | For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls. Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London. Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to heavily sue those making accusations against them. CANNOTANSWER | Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, | Kenneth Anger (born Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer, February 3, 1927) is an American underground experimental filmmaker, actor, and author. Working exclusively in short films, he has produced almost forty works since 1937, nine of which have been grouped together as the "Magick Lantern Cycle". His films variously merge surrealism with homoeroticism and the occult, and have been described as containing "elements of erotica, documentary, psychodrama, and spectacle". Anger himself has been described as "one of America's first openly gay filmmakers, and certainly the first whose work addressed homosexuality in an undisguised, self-implicating manner", and his "role in rendering gay culture visible within American cinema, commercial or otherwise, is impossible to overestimate", with several being released prior to the legalization of homosexual acts between consenting adults in the United States. He has also focused upon occult themes in many of his films, being fascinated by the English gnostic mage and poet Aleister Crowley, and is an adherent of Thelema, the religion Crowley founded.
Born to a middle-class Christian Presbyterian family in Santa Monica, California, Anger would later claim to have been a child actor who appeared in the film A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935); the accuracy of this claim has come under dispute. He began making short films when he was ten years old, although his first film to gain any recognition, the homoerotic Fireworks (1947), would only be produced a decade later. The controversial nature of the work led to him being put on trial on obscenity charges, but he was acquitted. A friendship and working relationship began subsequently with pioneering sexologist Alfred Kinsey. Moving to Europe, Anger produced a number of other shorts inspired by the artistic avant-garde scene on the continent, such as Rabbit's Moon (released 1971) and Eaux d'Artifice (1953).
Returning to the United States in 1953, he set about working on several new projects, including the films Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954), Scorpio Rising (1964), Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), and the gossip book Hollywood Babylon (1965). The latter would become infamous for various dubious and sensationalist claims, many of which were later disproven, though some do remain as urban legends. Getting to know several notable countercultural figures of the time, including Tennessee Williams, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jimmy Page, Marianne Faithfull and Anton LaVey, Anger involved them in his subsequent Thelemite-themed works, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) and Lucifer Rising (1972). Following his failure to produce a sequel to Lucifer Rising, which he attempted through the mid-1980s, Anger retired from filmmaking, instead focusing on Hollywood Babylon II (1984). At the dawn of the 21st century he once more returned to filmmaking, producing shorts for various film festivals and events.
Anger has described filmmakers such as Auguste and Louis Lumière, Georges Méliès, and Maya Deren as influences, and has been cited as an important influence on later film directors like Martin Scorsese, David Lynch and John Waters. He has also been described as having "a profound impact on the work of many other filmmakers and artists, as well as on music video as an emergent art form using dream sequence, dance, fantasy, and narrative".
Biography
1927–35: Early life
Anger was born in Santa Monica, California, as Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer on February 3, 1927. Despite his family being Presbyterians, he became more interested in the occult. His father, Wilbur Anglemyer, was of German ancestry, and had been born in Troy, Ohio, while his disabled mother, Lillian Coler (who was the older of the pair), claimed English ancestry. The pair had met at the Ohio State University and after marrying had their first child, Jean Anglemyer, in 1918, followed by a second, Robert "Bob" Anglemyer, in 1921. That year they moved to Santa Monica to be near Lillian's mother, Bertha Coler, who herself had recently moved there. It was here where Wilbur got a job working as an electrical engineer at Douglas Aircraft, bringing in enough money so that they could live comfortably as a middle-class family.
Kenneth, their third and final child, was born in 1927, but growing up he would fail to get along with either his parents or his siblings. His brother Bob later claimed that being the youngest child, Kenneth had been spoilt by his mother and grandmother, and as such had become somewhat "bratty." His grandmother, Bertha, was a big influence on the young Kenneth, and indeed helped to maintain the family financially during the Great Depression of the 1930s. It was she who first took Kenneth to the cinema, to see a double bill of The Singing Fool and Thunder Over Mexico and also encouraged his artistic interests. She herself later moved into a house in Hollywood with another woman, Miss Diggy, who equally encouraged Kenneth. He developed an early interest in film, and enjoyed reading the movie tie-in Big Little books. He would later relate that "I was a child prodigy who never got smarter." He retrospected his attendance at the Santa Monica Cotillon where child stars were encouraged to mix with non-famous children and through this met Shirley Temple, with whom he danced on one occasion.
It was in 1935, he would later claim, that Anger had the chance to appear in a Hollywood film, taking the role of the Changeling Prince in the 1935 Warner Brothers film A Midsummer Night's Dream. Set photographs and studio production reports (on file in the Warner Brothers collection at University of Southern California, and the Warner Bros. collection of studio key books at George Eastman House in Rochester, New York) in fact contradict Anger's claims, conclusively proving that the character was played by a girl named Sheila Brown. Anger's unofficial biographer, Bill Landis, remarked in 1995 that the Changeling Prince was definitely "Anger as a child; visually, he's immediately recognizable".
1937–46: First films
Anger's first film was created in 1937, when he was ten years old. The short, titled Ferdinand the Bull, had been shot on the remains of 16 mm film that had been left unused after the Anglemyer's had made home movies with it on a family vacation to Yosemite National Park,. In Ferdinand the Bull, which has never been made publicly available, Kenneth dressed as a matador, wearing a cape, while two of his friends from the Boy Scouts played the bull. His second work, Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat, which Anger himself often considers to be his first proper film, was made from footage of children playing during the summer, accompanied with popular songs by bands, including the Ink Spots. Anger had created Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat in 1941, when he was fourteen, shortly before the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent entry of the United States into the Second World War. The following year he produced another amateur film, Prisoner of Mars, which was heavily influenced by Flash Gordon. In this science fiction-inspired feature, in which he played the protagonist, he added elements taken from the Greek mythological myth of the Minotaur and constructed a small volcano in his back yard to create a home-made special effect. Many of these early films are considered lost, with Anger burning much of his previous work in 1967.
In 1944, the Anglemyers moved to Hollywood to move in with family, and Kenneth began attending Beverly Hills High School. It was here, he met Maxine Peterson, who had once been the stand-in for Shirley Temple, and he asked her – alongside another classmate and an older woman – to appear in his next film project, which he initially called Demigods, later retitled as Escape Episode. Revolving partially around the occult, it was filmed in a "spooky old castle" in Hollywood, and was subsequently screened at the Coronet Theatre on North La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles. Around this time, Anger also began attending the screenings of silent films held at Clara Grossman's art gallery, through which he met a fellow filmmaker, Curtis Harrington, with whom he formed Creative Film Associates (CFA). Harrington is said to have introduced Anger to the work of Aleister Crowley. Crowley's philosophy of Thelema would exert a profound influence on the remainder of Anger's career. CFA was founded to distribute experimental films or "underground films" such as those of Maya Deren, John and James Whitney, as well as Anger's and Harrington's.
In high school, Anger started to become interested in the occult, which he had first indirectly encountered through reading L. Frank Baum's Oz books as a child, with their accompanying Rosicrucian philosophies. Kenneth was very interested in the works of the French ceremonial magician Eliphas Levi, as well as Sir James Frazer's The Golden Bough, although his favorite writings were those of the English occultist Aleister Crowley. Crowley had founded a religion known as Thelema based upon a spiritual experience that he had in Egypt in 1904, in which he claimed a being known as Aiwass had contacted him and recited to him The Book of the Law. Subsequent to his exposure to Crowley, Anger converted to Thelema.
1947–49: Fireworks and early career
As Anger discovered his homosexuality, at a time when homosexual acts were still illegal in the United States, he began associating with the underground gay scene. At some point in the mid-1940s, he was arrested by the police in a "homosexual entrapment", after which he decided to move out of his parents' home, gaining his own sparse apartment largely financed by his grandmother, and abandoning the name Anglemyer in favor of Anger. He started attending the University of Southern California, where he studied cinema, and also began experimenting with the use of mind-altering drugs like cannabis and peyote. It was then that he decided to produce a film that would deal with his sexuality, just as other gay avant-garde film makers like Willard Maas were doing in that decade. The result was the short film Fireworks, which was created in 1947 but only exhibited publicly in 1948.
Upon release of the work, Anger was arrested on obscenity charges. He was acquitted, after the case went to the Supreme Court of California, which deemed it to be art rather than pornography. Anger made the claim to have been seventeen years old when he made it, despite the fact that he was actually twenty, presumably to present himself as more of an enfant terrible. A homoerotic work lasting only 14 minutes, Fireworks revolves around a young man (played by Anger himself) associating with various navy sailors, who eventually turn on him, stripping him naked and beating him to death, ripping open his chest to find a compass inside. Several fireworks then explode, accompanied by a burning Christmas tree and the final shot shows the young man lying in bed next to another shirtless man. Of this film, Anger would later state in 1966 that "This flick is all I have to say about being 17, the United States Navy, American Christmas and the fourth of July." He would continuously alter and adapt the film up until 1980, with it finally being distributed on VHS in 1986.
One of the first people to buy a copy of Fireworks was the sexologist Dr. Alfred Kinsey of the Institute for Sex Research. He and Anger struck up a friendship that would last until the doctor's death, during which time Anger aided Kinsey in his research. According to Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis, Kinsey became a "father figure" whom Anger "could both interact with and emulate." Meanwhile, in 1949 Anger began work on a film called Puce Women, which unlike Fireworks was filmed in color. It starred Yvonne Marquis as a glamorous woman going about her daily life; Anger would later state that "Puce Women was my love affair with Hollywood ... with all the great goddesses of the silent screen. They were to be filmed in their homes; I was, in effect, filming ghosts." A lack of funding meant that only one scene was ever produced, which was eventually released under the title Puce Moment. That same year, Anger directed The Love That Whirls, a film based upon Aztec human sacrifice but, because of the nudity that it contained, it was destroyed by technicians at the film lab, who deemed it to be obscene.
1950–53: France, Rabbit's Moon and Eaux d'Artifice
In 1950, Anger moved to Paris, France, where he initially stayed with friends of his (who themselves had been forced to leave Hollywood after being blacklisted for formerly having belonged to trade union organisations). He would later remark that he travelled to the country after receiving a letter from the French director Jean Cocteau in which he told Anger of his admiration for Fireworks (shown in 1949 at Festival du Film Maudit in Biarritz, France). Upon arrival, Anger and Cocteau became friends, with the Frenchman giving the young protege his permission to make a movie of his ballet The Young Man and Death, although at the time there were no financial backers for the project. While in Paris he continued producing short films; in 1950 he started filming on Rabbit's Moon, which was also known as La Lune des Lapins and revolved around a clown who was staring up at the moon, in which a rabbit lived, something found within Japanese mythology. Anger produced 20 minutes of footage at the Films du Pantheon Studio in the city before he was rushed out of the studio, leaving the film uncompleted. He stored the footage in the disorganized archives of the Cinémathèque Française, and only collected it again in 1970, when he finally finished and released Rabbit's Moon. It was at the Cinémathèque Française that he was given by the head, Henri Langlois, prints of Sergei Eisenstein's Que Viva Mexico!, which he attempted to put into Eisenstein's original order.
In 1953, he travelled to Rome, Italy where he planned to make a film about the sixteenth century occultist Cardinal d'Este. To do so, he began filming at the garden of the Villa d'Este in Tivoli, in which a lady in eighteenth century dress walked through the gardens, which featured many waterfalls (an allusion to the fact that d'Este allegedly sexually enjoyed urination), accompanied by the music of Vivaldi. This was supposedly going to be only the first of four scenes, but the others were not made; the resulting one-scene film was titled Eaux d'Artifice. As Anger's biographer Bill Landis remarked, "It's one of Anger's most tranquil works; his editing makes it soft, lush, and inviting. Eaux d'Artifice remains a secretive romp through a private garden, all for the masked figure's and the viewer-voyeur's pleasure."
1953–60: Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome and Hollywood Babylon
In 1953, soon after the production of Eaux d'Artifice, Anger's mother died and he temporarily returned to the United States in order to assist with the distribution of her estate. It was during this return that he began to once more immerse himself in the artistic scene of California, befriending the film maker Stan Brakhage, who had been inspired by Fireworks, and the two collaborated on producing a film, but it was confiscated at the film lab for obscenity and presumably destroyed. Around this time, two of Anger's friends, the couple Renate Druks and Paul Mathiesin held a party based upon the theme of "Come As Your Madness"; Anger himself attended dressed in drag as the ancient Greek goddess Hekate. The party and its many costumes inspired Anger, who produced a painting of it, and asked several of those who attended to appear in a new film that he was creating – Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome. Inauguration, which was created in 1954, was a 38-minute surrealist work featuring many Crowleyan and Thelemite themes, with many of the various characters personifying various pagan gods such as Isis, Osiris and Pan. One of the actresses in the film was Marjorie Cameron, the widow of Jack Parsons, the influential American Thelemite who had died a few years previously, while Anger himself played Hecate. He would subsequently exhibit the film at various European film festivals, winning the Prix du Ciné-Club Belge and the Prix de l'Age d'Or, as well as screening it in the form of a projected triptych at Expo 58, the World Fair held in Brussels in 1958.
In 1955, Anger and his friend Alfred Kinsey traveled to the derelict Abbey of Thelema in Cefalù, Sicily, to film a short documentary titled Thelema Abbey. The abbey itself had been used by Aleister Crowley for his commune during the 1920s, and Anger restored many of the erotic wall-paintings that were found there, as well as performing certain Crowleyan rituals at the site. The documentary was made for the British television series Omnibus, but was later lost. The following year Kinsey died and Anger decided to return to Paris, where he was described at the time as being "extremely remote and lonely".
In desperate need of money, Anger and ghostwriter Elliott Stein wrote a book titled Hollywood Babylon in which he collected together gossip regarding celebrities, some of which he claims he had been told. This included claiming (with no corroboration or citing of sources) that Rudolph Valentino liked to play a sexually submissive role to dominant women, that Walt Disney was a drug user, addicted to opiates (reflected in the character of Goofy, who's perpetually stoned on cannabis), as well as describing the nature of the deaths of Peg Entwistle and Lupe Vélez. The work was not published in the United States initially, and it was first released by the French publisher Jean-Jacques Pauvert. A pirated (and incomplete) version was first published in the U.S. in 1965, with the official American version not being published until 1974. Now with some financial backing from the publication of Hollywood Babylon, his next film project was The Story of O; it was essentially a piece of erotica featuring a heterosexual couple engaged in sadomasochistic sexual activities, although it refrained from showing any explicit sexual images.
1961–65: Scorpio Rising and Kustom Kar Kommandos
In 1961, Anger once more returned to America, where he lived for a time with Marjorie Cameron. Meanwhile, he began work on a new feature, a film about the emerging biker subculture, which he titled Scorpio Rising. For this, he employed a biker named Richard McAuley, and filmed him and some of his friends messing around, adding to it scenes of McAuley, or "Scorpio" as he became known, desecrating a derelict church. Anger incorporated more controversial visuals into the piece, including Nazi iconography, nudity, and clips of the life of Jesus Christ taken from Family Films' The Living Bible: Last Journey to Jerusalem. In Scorpio Rising, Anger intercuts images of Christ from the cheap religious film with those of Scorpio. The whole film has a soundtrack made up of popular 1960s songs, including "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton, "Torture" by Kris Jensen and "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March. Anger himself described the film as "a death mirror held up to American culture ... Thanatos in chrome, black leather, and bursting jeans." It immediately became popular on the underground cinema scene although was soon brought to court with complaints claiming that it was obscene. The jury ruled in favor of the prosecutors, and Scorpio Rising was banned, although this ban was subsequently overturned on appeal to the California State Supreme Court.
With Scorpio Rising finished and Anger now living in San Francisco, he went to the Ford Foundation, which had just started a program of giving out grants to filmmakers. He showed them his ideas for a new artistic short, titled Kustom Kar Kommandos, which they approved of, and gave him a grant of $10,000. However, Anger spent much of the money on living expenses and making alterations to some of his earlier films, meaning that by the time he actually created Kustom Kar Kommandos, it was only one scene long. This homoerotic film involved various shots of a young man polishing a drag strip racing car, accompanied with a pink background and the song "Dream Lover" by The Paris Sisters. Soon after, Anger struck a deal that allowed Hollywood Babylon to be officially published in the United States for the first time, where it proved a success, selling two million copies during the 1960s, and around the same time Anger also translated Lo Duca's History of Eroticism into English for American publication.
1966–69: The hippie movement and Invocation of My Demon Brother
The mid-1960s saw the emergence of the hippie scene and the increasing use of the mind-altering drugs that Anger himself had been using for many years. In particular, the hallucinogen LSD, which at the time was still legal in the United States, was very popular, and in 1966 Anger released a version of his earlier film, Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome titled the "Sacred Mushroom Edition" which was screened to people while taking LSD, thereby heightening their sensory experience. By this time, Anger had become well known throughout the underground scene in the United States, and several cinemas across the country screened his better known films all in one event. With this growing fame, Anger began to react to publicity in much the same way as his idol Aleister Crowley had done, for instance describing himself as "the most monstrous moviemaker in the underground", a pun on the fact that Crowley had been labelled "the wickedest man in the world" by the British tabloids in the 1920s. Anger's fame on the underground circuit allowed him to increasingly associate with other celebrities, including Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan who named Anger as godfather to Zeena Schreck (LaVey's daughter). Despite Anger and LaVey's differing philosophies, the two became good friends and would remain so for many years. However, Anger also held a resentment towards certain celebrities, namely Andy Warhol, who at the time was achieving success not only in the art world but also in the underground film scene. In 1980, Anger threw paint over the front door of a house that Warhol had recently moved out of.
In 1966, Anger moved into the ground floor of a large nineteenth-century Victorian house in San Francisco known as the Russian Embassy. Around this time he began planning a new film titled Lucifer Rising echoing his Thelemite beliefs about the emerging Aeon of Horus. He tattooed the name of Lucifer upon his chest and began searching for a young man who could symbolically become Lucifer, "the Crowned and Conquering Child" of the new Aeon, for Lucifer Rising. While living at the Russian Embassy, he met and lived with various young men who could fit the position. Finally, he settled upon Bobby Beausoleil for the role of Lucifer. Beausoleil founded a band, the Magic Powerhouse of Oz, in order to record the music for the film. In 1967, Anger said that the footage which he had been filming for Lucifer Rising had been stolen, placing the blame on Beausoleil, who would deny the claims. Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis quotes Beausoleil who states, "what had happened was that Kenneth had spent all the money that was invested in Lucifer Rising" and that he therefore invented the story to satisfy the film's creditors. Beausoleil and Anger fell out, with the former getting involved with Charles Manson and his cult, the Family, eventually carrying out Manson's bidding by torturing and murdering Gary Hinman.
In the October 26, 1967 issue of Village Voice, Anger publicly reinvented himself by placing a full-page advert declaring "In Memoriam. Kenneth Anger. Filmmaker 1947–1967". He soon publicly reappeared, this time to claim that he had burned all of his early work. The following year he travelled to London where he first met John Paul Getty, Jr., who became Anger's patron, and where he also met and befriended Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, members of The Rolling Stones, as well as actress/model Anita Pallenberg. Anger then decided to use much of the footage created for Lucifer Rising in a new film of his, Invocation of My Demon Brother, which starred Beausoleil, LaVey, Jagger and Richards, as well as Anger himself, and the music for which had been composed by Jagger. It was released in 1969, and explored many of the Thelemic themes that Anger had originally intended for Lucifer Rising. Author Gary Lachman believes the film "inaugurat[ed] the midnight movie cult at the Elgin Theatre." The story of the film, its making, and the people involved are the inspiration for the novel Sway, by Zachary Lazar.
1970–81: Lucifer Rising
Having used up much of the footage originally intended for Lucifer Rising for Invocation of My Demon Brother, Anger again set about to create "Lucifer Rising", a symbolic analogy of the coming Aeon of Horus as prophesied in the Thelemic sacred text, The Book of the Law. Anger persuaded the singer and actress Marianne Faithfull to appear in it. He also tried to convince his friend Mick Jagger to play the part of Lucifer in the film but Jagger refused. Instead he offered his brother Chris for the part. Anger accepted, but was not happy about it. Anger subsequently filmed eight minutes of film and showed it to the British National Film Finance Corporation who agreed to provide £15,000 in order for Anger to complete it – something that caused a level of outrage in the British press. With this money, he could afford to fly the cast and crew to both Germany and Egypt for filming. Anger befriended Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page around this time, the two sharing a great interest in Crowley. At Page's invitation, Anger travelled to Page's new home, Crowley's former residence Boleskine House located on the shores of Loch Ness in Scotland, to help the musician exorcise the building of what Page believed to be a headless man's ghost. Page subsequently agreed to produce the soundtrack for Lucifer Rising, and used the editing suite which was in the basement of his London home to shape the music which he produced. Anger later fell out with Page's partner Charlotte, who kicked him out of the house. In retaliation, Anger called a press conference in which he ridiculed Page and threatened to "throw a Kenneth Anger curse" on him. Page's music was dumped from the film and replaced in 1979 by music written and recorded by the imprisoned Bobby Beausoleil, with whom Anger had reconciled.
Meanwhile, Anger, who moved to a small apartment on the upper east side of Manhattan, took the footage that he had filmed for Rabbit's Moon in the 1950s, finally releasing the film in 1972, and again in a shorter version in 1979. Around the same time he also added a new soundtrack to Puce Moment and re-released it. It was also around this time that the publisher Marvin Miller produced a low budget documentary film based on Hollywood Babylon without Anger's permission, which upset Anger and led to a lawsuit. He also created a short film titled Senators in Bondage which was only available to private collectors and which has never been made publicly available, and had plans to make a film about Aleister Crowley titled The Wickedest Man in the World, but this project never got off the ground. In 1980, he holidayed with his friend, the playwright Tennessee Williams.
It was in 1981, a decade after starting the project, that he finally finished and released the 30-minute-long Lucifer Rising. Based upon the Thelemite concept that mankind had entered a new period known as the Aeon of Horus, Lucifer Rising was full of occult symbolism, starring Miriam Gibril as the Ancient Egyptian goddess Isis and Donald Cammell as her consort Osiris, as well as Marianne Faithfull as Jewish mythological figure Lilith and Leslie Huggins as Lucifer himself. Anger once again appeared in the film, starring as the Magus, the same role that he played in Invocation to My Demon Brother. He had surrealistically combined the roles that these characters played with footage of volcanoes, various ancient Egyptian temples and a Crowleyan adept reading from the man's texts.
1982–99: Retirement
Soon after the release of Lucifer Rising, a PBS documentary of Anger and his films was made, titled Kenneth Anger's Magick, which was directed by Kit Fitzgerald, who later recalled interviewing him in his New York flat on a very hot July evening, during which Anger revealed that he was so broke that he had been forced to sell his air conditioner. Anger himself considered producing other films that would continue on from Lucifer Rising in a series, and he began referring to his finished film as "Part I: Sign Language", to be followed by two further parts. Nonetheless, these projects would never be finished, and Anger himself would not produce any further films for nearly two decades. In need of money, Anger subsequently released Hollywood Babylon II in 1984, as well as continuing to screen his films at various festivals and at universities, and continuing to attempt to produce Lucifer Rising II; around this time he began wearing an eyepatch to these public events, something likely due to him having been beaten up and getting a bruised eye, a story that he would bring up in various interviews, although partly changing who it was who had beaten him up in various versions of the story. In 1984, a notorious incident occurred when Anger was invited to appear on The Coca Crystal Show, however upon arriving at the studio he demanded that somebody pay for his taxi ride there, and when they refused, he attacked the talent coordinator Maureen Ivice and tried to drag her into his taxi, before she was rescued by other members of staff – Anger reportedly escaped the scene by flinging a $100 bill at the cab driver and screaming "GET ME OUT OF HERE!"
In 1986, he sold the video rights to his films, which finally appeared on VHS, allowing them to have greater publicity. The following year he attended the Avignon Film Festival in France where his work was being celebrated in commemoration of the fortieth anniversary of Fireworks. Soon after this, he appeared in Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon, a BBC documentary for the Arena series directed by Nigel Finch. In 1991, Anger moved to West Arenas Boulevard in Palm Springs, California, living in what was formerly the estate of his good friend Ruby Keeler where the British Film Institute sent Rebecca Wood to assist him in writing an autobiography, which was never actually produced. Instead, in 1995, Bill Landis, who had been an associate of Anger's in the early 1980s, wrote an unofficial biography of him, which Anger himself condemned, describing Landis as "an avowed enemy".
In 1993, Anger visited Sydney and lectured at a season of his films at the Australian Film Institute Cinema in Paddington. In an interview given at the time with Black and White magazine, Anger said he was staying in King's Cross and was putting the finishing touches to the final treatment on a feature film about Australian artist and occultist Rosaleen Norton. This project was unrealised.
2000–present: Return to filmmaking
For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls.
Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London.
Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to sue those making accusations against them.
Themes
Several recurring themes can be seen within Anger's cinematic work. One of the most notable of these is homoeroticism; this was first seen in Fireworks (1947), which was based around Anger's own homosexual awakening, and featured various navy officers flexing their muscles, and a white liquid (often thought of as symbolising semen), pouring over the protagonist's body. Similar homoerotic imagery is found in Scorpio Rising (1963), which stars a muscled, topless, leather-clad biker, and Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), where a young man sensually polishes a car, with close up shots of his tight-fitting jeans and crotch. Images of naked men also appear in Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969), where they are eventually filmed wrestling, and in Anger Sees Red (2004), in which a muscled, topless man performs press-ups.
Another recurring theme in Anger's films is that of the occult, particularly the symbolism of his own esoteric religion, Thelema. This is visible in Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, Invocation of My Demon Brother and Lucifer Rising, all of which are based around the Thelemite concept of the Aeon of Horus and feature actors portraying various pagan gods. Anger himself linked the creation of film to the occult, particularly the practice of ceremonial magic, something that Aleister Crowley had been a noted practitioner of, and Anger once stated that "making a movie is casting a spell."
One of the central recurring images found in Anger's work is the concept of flames and light; in Fireworks there are various examples of this, including a burning Christmas tree, and it subsequently appears in many of his other works as well. This relates to the concept of Lucifer, a deity whom Anger devoted one of his films to, and whose name is Latin for "light bearer".
In many of his films, heavy use is made of music, both classical and pop, to accompany the visual imagery. For instance, in Scorpio Rising he makes use of the 1950s pop songs "Torture" by Kris Jensen, "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March and "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton. He first used music to accompany visuals in the 1941 work Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat?, where he used tracks by the Mills Brothers. His use of popular music to accompany his films has been cited as a key influence on the development of music videos and of MTV, although he has stated his dislike for the whole music video industry. On one occasion the band Combustible Edison asked him if he would direct a video to accompany their song "Bluebeard" but he declined the offer, believing that while music could be used to accompany film, it was pointless to do it the other way around.
Awards
Maya Deren Award, 1996
Silver Lake Film Festival Spirit of Silver Lake Award (2000)
San Francisco International Film Festival Golden Gate Persistence of Vision Award (2001)
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Douglas Edwards Independent/Experimental Film/Video Award (2002), "for his body of work"; tied with Michael Snow, for *Corpus Callosum
Anthology Film Archives, Life Achievement Award (2010)
Personal life
Anger has always been an "extremely private individual," although he has given various interviews over the years, with one interviewer, David Wingrove, describing him in 2008 as "a joy. Gentle, soft-spoken, immaculately tanned, he looks a good two decades younger than his 78 years". In such interviews, he refuses to disclose information on his name change from Anglemeyer to Anger, telling an interviewer who brought the topic up in 2004 that "You're being impertinent. It says Anger on my passport, that's all you need to know. I would stay away from that subject if I were you." In a 2010 interview, however, he stated that, "I just condensed my name. I knew it would be like a label, a logo. It's easy to remember." Anger is openly gay. He once joked that he was "somewhat to the right of the KKK" in his views about black people, opening him up to criticism for racism, though this was likely a "Crowley-esque joke". He supports the Tibetan independence movement.
Anger is an acknowledged Thelemite and belongs to the main Thelemic organization, the Ordo Templi Orientis. He viewed many of the men he associated with as living embodiments of Lucifer, a symbol of the Aeon of Horus in Thelemic philosophy, and had his own name inked onto his chest with the Lucifer tattoo. Anger has shown an interest in various other religious movements, particularly those that relate in some way to occultism. For instance, Kenneth was a lifelong friend of Anton LaVey from before the founding of the Church of Satan in the 1960s and even lived with him and his family during the 1980s. LaVey also made an appearance in one of Anger's films, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) as a devilish priest. Anger describes himself as a "pagan" and refuses to consider himself to be a Satanist. He also characterized Wicca as being a "lunar", feminine religion in contrast with the "solar" masculinity of Thelema.
Filmography
Books
References
Notes
Citations
Works cited
Further reading
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008). Cinema, Messianism and Crime, Parkett 83, pp. 197-205.
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008), 1000 WORDS; KENNETH ANGER, Artforum, September, pp. 412-415.
.
External links
bentclouds.com. Essay on Kustom Kar Kommandos Non-Normative Sex in Kustom Kar Kommandos.
The Film Journal. Review of Alice Hutchison's book on Anger
Artforum 1000 Words
Esquire Kenneth Anger: Where The Bodies Are Buried, by Mick Brown.
1927 births
American experimental filmmakers
American male child actors
American Modern Pagans
American non-fiction writers
American people of German descent
American Thelemites
Film directors from California
American gay actors
Gay artists
American gay writers
LGBT film directors
LGBT people from California
LGBT screenwriters
LGBT writers from the United States
Living people
Male actors from Santa Monica, California
Psychedelic drug advocates
Writers from Santa Monica, California
American people of English descent | true | [
"Flash Gordon The Official Story of the Film is a book by John Walsh published November 27, 2020. This is a behind the scenes look at the making of the film Flash Gordon from 1980. Walsh had previously written Harryhausen: The Lost Movies\n\nOverview\nThe book features new interviews with cast and creative, including stars Sam J. Jones and Brian Blessed and director Mike Hodges, who wrote the foreword, as well as behind-the-scenes photography.\n\nJohn Walsh, film-maker and author, retrieved about 40 designs for director Nicolas Roeg's unmade version of the film from the British Film Institute archives. In an interview with Dalya Alberge of The Observer, Walsh describes the unseen materials from who attempted the make the film in the late 1970s: “It’s public knowledge that Roeg worked on the film’s development. What hasn’t been seen is its artwork.” \n\nForbidden Planet TV's Andrew Sumner interviewed Walsh about the task of tracking down the missing images for the book and why it has taken so long for the film to receive its new status as a cult classic.\n\nIn an interview with The Book of Man, Walsh explained the difficulty of getting this book agreed for publication. “My plan to write a book about the making of the film was a long process. After writing Harryhausen: The Lost Movies for Titan Books, in 2019. I planned to follow up with a book on the making of Flash Gordon. Wondering why no one had thought of making this before I was confident my publisher would say yes, and they did. What I didn’t expect was what followed. For years my publisher and many others had tried and failed to secure the rights to get a book about the making of the film published. I was warned by a friend who worked in as an attorney in Hollywood that the rights for the project were a hornet’s nest. For eight months, I worked with the various rights holders and along the way, uncovered another uncomfortable truth. Even if I can secure the rights to pen this making-of book, there are very few images that will help tell the story or convince readers it is worth shelling out £35.00.” \n\nJosh Weiss at Syfy Wire wrote about the task of getting an accurate picture of a film that was over 40 years old. Walsh said: \"I had to go around to each and every person who took part in the film, find out what they thought was the truth, then go back to them, and actually verify,\" he added. A lot of what happened in 40 years was that people had created their own mythology. I started with Post-It notes, then got a massive whiteboard in my office, and got loads of cards and had to do strings and everything. [I noted] where the evidence was confirmed, where it was contradictory, and who I could go back to, and how I could try and get people to admit they were wrong or maybe find out that they were wrong.\"\n\nBBC Online’s Nicholas Barber discussed with Walsh the appeal of the film and how it was portrayed in the book. “In 1980, if you’d just seen Superman and The Empire Strikes Back, you would have been underwhelmed by the flying and the other special effects. But time has been kind to Flash Gordon. Once you stop obsessing over the technical aspects, you can see that it was meant to be quite stylised, and the energy very much comes through.”\n\nDen of Geek’s Kirsten Howard asked Walsh what the most surprising revelation he discovered writing the book. “There were two big moments. The first was when I discovered there had been an entirely different film planned – and we got the artwork, it’s in the book. Then, I found out that the film was supposed to have an entirely different ending.”\n\nIn 2021 the book was nominated as Book for the Year for the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards\n\nPublication\nPublished in November 2020 by Titan Books.\n\nFurther reading\n\nExternal links\n Official website\n\nReferences\n\n2020 non-fiction books\nBooks about film directors\nCoffee table books\nHistory of film\nFlash Gordon",
"Ramesh Selvan is an Indian film director, who has made Tamil films.\n\nCareer\nRamesh Selvan made his debut as a film maker with the action film Ulavuthurai (1998) starring Vijayakanth in lead role before making the revenge drama Jananam (2003) starring Arun Vijay. He then began directing a project titled Runway with Prashanth, but after a few schedules it had run into financial problems.\n\nRamesh announced that he would be making a comeback in early 2010, revealing that he was working a project titled Kalavaram with Sathyaraj in the lead role. Kalavaram was revealed to be based on a true story, that of the biggest riot that has ever taken place in Tamil Nadu, with Sathyaraj playing a deputy police commissioner who heads an investigation commission. The release of the film was pushed back several times, leaving the project which began in 2010, in development hell. Plans to release the film in August 2013 were also unsuccessful due to a high number of other films seeking theatres for release. Ramesh revealed that the producer of Thalaivaa, Chandraprakash, asked him to delay the release of Kalavaram to get more theatre space for his film. In return, Chandraprakash reportedly told Ramesh that he would purchase and distribute his film under his Sri Mishri Productions banner. Ramesh then alleged that the producer backed out of his commitments. The film eventually released in January 2014 to below average reviews. In mid 2012, Ramesh was signed up to direct a film titled Thalaivan featuring newcomer Bas and filmed it after finishing work on Kalavaram. In June 2013, he issued a press release distancing himself from the project, indicating that he had suffered health problems as a result of his strenuous work on the project and that he had to complete his other venture, Kalavaram (2014).\n\nFilmography\n\nReferences\n\nLiving people\n21st-century Indian film directors\nTamil-language film directors\nYear of birth missing (living people)\n20th-century Indian film directors"
]
|
[
"Kenneth Anger",
"2000-present: Return to filmmaking",
"Why did he return?",
"I don't know.",
"What was his first project back in to film making?",
"Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette,"
]
| C_c583f69dfee641ab893b517127b42e26_0 | did it do well? | 3 | Did Kenneth Anger's short film Don't Smoke That Cigarette do well? | Kenneth Anger | For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls. Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London. Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to heavily sue those making accusations against them. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Kenneth Anger (born Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer, February 3, 1927) is an American underground experimental filmmaker, actor, and author. Working exclusively in short films, he has produced almost forty works since 1937, nine of which have been grouped together as the "Magick Lantern Cycle". His films variously merge surrealism with homoeroticism and the occult, and have been described as containing "elements of erotica, documentary, psychodrama, and spectacle". Anger himself has been described as "one of America's first openly gay filmmakers, and certainly the first whose work addressed homosexuality in an undisguised, self-implicating manner", and his "role in rendering gay culture visible within American cinema, commercial or otherwise, is impossible to overestimate", with several being released prior to the legalization of homosexual acts between consenting adults in the United States. He has also focused upon occult themes in many of his films, being fascinated by the English gnostic mage and poet Aleister Crowley, and is an adherent of Thelema, the religion Crowley founded.
Born to a middle-class Christian Presbyterian family in Santa Monica, California, Anger would later claim to have been a child actor who appeared in the film A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935); the accuracy of this claim has come under dispute. He began making short films when he was ten years old, although his first film to gain any recognition, the homoerotic Fireworks (1947), would only be produced a decade later. The controversial nature of the work led to him being put on trial on obscenity charges, but he was acquitted. A friendship and working relationship began subsequently with pioneering sexologist Alfred Kinsey. Moving to Europe, Anger produced a number of other shorts inspired by the artistic avant-garde scene on the continent, such as Rabbit's Moon (released 1971) and Eaux d'Artifice (1953).
Returning to the United States in 1953, he set about working on several new projects, including the films Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954), Scorpio Rising (1964), Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), and the gossip book Hollywood Babylon (1965). The latter would become infamous for various dubious and sensationalist claims, many of which were later disproven, though some do remain as urban legends. Getting to know several notable countercultural figures of the time, including Tennessee Williams, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jimmy Page, Marianne Faithfull and Anton LaVey, Anger involved them in his subsequent Thelemite-themed works, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) and Lucifer Rising (1972). Following his failure to produce a sequel to Lucifer Rising, which he attempted through the mid-1980s, Anger retired from filmmaking, instead focusing on Hollywood Babylon II (1984). At the dawn of the 21st century he once more returned to filmmaking, producing shorts for various film festivals and events.
Anger has described filmmakers such as Auguste and Louis Lumière, Georges Méliès, and Maya Deren as influences, and has been cited as an important influence on later film directors like Martin Scorsese, David Lynch and John Waters. He has also been described as having "a profound impact on the work of many other filmmakers and artists, as well as on music video as an emergent art form using dream sequence, dance, fantasy, and narrative".
Biography
1927–35: Early life
Anger was born in Santa Monica, California, as Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer on February 3, 1927. Despite his family being Presbyterians, he became more interested in the occult. His father, Wilbur Anglemyer, was of German ancestry, and had been born in Troy, Ohio, while his disabled mother, Lillian Coler (who was the older of the pair), claimed English ancestry. The pair had met at the Ohio State University and after marrying had their first child, Jean Anglemyer, in 1918, followed by a second, Robert "Bob" Anglemyer, in 1921. That year they moved to Santa Monica to be near Lillian's mother, Bertha Coler, who herself had recently moved there. It was here where Wilbur got a job working as an electrical engineer at Douglas Aircraft, bringing in enough money so that they could live comfortably as a middle-class family.
Kenneth, their third and final child, was born in 1927, but growing up he would fail to get along with either his parents or his siblings. His brother Bob later claimed that being the youngest child, Kenneth had been spoilt by his mother and grandmother, and as such had become somewhat "bratty." His grandmother, Bertha, was a big influence on the young Kenneth, and indeed helped to maintain the family financially during the Great Depression of the 1930s. It was she who first took Kenneth to the cinema, to see a double bill of The Singing Fool and Thunder Over Mexico and also encouraged his artistic interests. She herself later moved into a house in Hollywood with another woman, Miss Diggy, who equally encouraged Kenneth. He developed an early interest in film, and enjoyed reading the movie tie-in Big Little books. He would later relate that "I was a child prodigy who never got smarter." He retrospected his attendance at the Santa Monica Cotillon where child stars were encouraged to mix with non-famous children and through this met Shirley Temple, with whom he danced on one occasion.
It was in 1935, he would later claim, that Anger had the chance to appear in a Hollywood film, taking the role of the Changeling Prince in the 1935 Warner Brothers film A Midsummer Night's Dream. Set photographs and studio production reports (on file in the Warner Brothers collection at University of Southern California, and the Warner Bros. collection of studio key books at George Eastman House in Rochester, New York) in fact contradict Anger's claims, conclusively proving that the character was played by a girl named Sheila Brown. Anger's unofficial biographer, Bill Landis, remarked in 1995 that the Changeling Prince was definitely "Anger as a child; visually, he's immediately recognizable".
1937–46: First films
Anger's first film was created in 1937, when he was ten years old. The short, titled Ferdinand the Bull, had been shot on the remains of 16 mm film that had been left unused after the Anglemyer's had made home movies with it on a family vacation to Yosemite National Park,. In Ferdinand the Bull, which has never been made publicly available, Kenneth dressed as a matador, wearing a cape, while two of his friends from the Boy Scouts played the bull. His second work, Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat, which Anger himself often considers to be his first proper film, was made from footage of children playing during the summer, accompanied with popular songs by bands, including the Ink Spots. Anger had created Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat in 1941, when he was fourteen, shortly before the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent entry of the United States into the Second World War. The following year he produced another amateur film, Prisoner of Mars, which was heavily influenced by Flash Gordon. In this science fiction-inspired feature, in which he played the protagonist, he added elements taken from the Greek mythological myth of the Minotaur and constructed a small volcano in his back yard to create a home-made special effect. Many of these early films are considered lost, with Anger burning much of his previous work in 1967.
In 1944, the Anglemyers moved to Hollywood to move in with family, and Kenneth began attending Beverly Hills High School. It was here, he met Maxine Peterson, who had once been the stand-in for Shirley Temple, and he asked her – alongside another classmate and an older woman – to appear in his next film project, which he initially called Demigods, later retitled as Escape Episode. Revolving partially around the occult, it was filmed in a "spooky old castle" in Hollywood, and was subsequently screened at the Coronet Theatre on North La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles. Around this time, Anger also began attending the screenings of silent films held at Clara Grossman's art gallery, through which he met a fellow filmmaker, Curtis Harrington, with whom he formed Creative Film Associates (CFA). Harrington is said to have introduced Anger to the work of Aleister Crowley. Crowley's philosophy of Thelema would exert a profound influence on the remainder of Anger's career. CFA was founded to distribute experimental films or "underground films" such as those of Maya Deren, John and James Whitney, as well as Anger's and Harrington's.
In high school, Anger started to become interested in the occult, which he had first indirectly encountered through reading L. Frank Baum's Oz books as a child, with their accompanying Rosicrucian philosophies. Kenneth was very interested in the works of the French ceremonial magician Eliphas Levi, as well as Sir James Frazer's The Golden Bough, although his favorite writings were those of the English occultist Aleister Crowley. Crowley had founded a religion known as Thelema based upon a spiritual experience that he had in Egypt in 1904, in which he claimed a being known as Aiwass had contacted him and recited to him The Book of the Law. Subsequent to his exposure to Crowley, Anger converted to Thelema.
1947–49: Fireworks and early career
As Anger discovered his homosexuality, at a time when homosexual acts were still illegal in the United States, he began associating with the underground gay scene. At some point in the mid-1940s, he was arrested by the police in a "homosexual entrapment", after which he decided to move out of his parents' home, gaining his own sparse apartment largely financed by his grandmother, and abandoning the name Anglemyer in favor of Anger. He started attending the University of Southern California, where he studied cinema, and also began experimenting with the use of mind-altering drugs like cannabis and peyote. It was then that he decided to produce a film that would deal with his sexuality, just as other gay avant-garde film makers like Willard Maas were doing in that decade. The result was the short film Fireworks, which was created in 1947 but only exhibited publicly in 1948.
Upon release of the work, Anger was arrested on obscenity charges. He was acquitted, after the case went to the Supreme Court of California, which deemed it to be art rather than pornography. Anger made the claim to have been seventeen years old when he made it, despite the fact that he was actually twenty, presumably to present himself as more of an enfant terrible. A homoerotic work lasting only 14 minutes, Fireworks revolves around a young man (played by Anger himself) associating with various navy sailors, who eventually turn on him, stripping him naked and beating him to death, ripping open his chest to find a compass inside. Several fireworks then explode, accompanied by a burning Christmas tree and the final shot shows the young man lying in bed next to another shirtless man. Of this film, Anger would later state in 1966 that "This flick is all I have to say about being 17, the United States Navy, American Christmas and the fourth of July." He would continuously alter and adapt the film up until 1980, with it finally being distributed on VHS in 1986.
One of the first people to buy a copy of Fireworks was the sexologist Dr. Alfred Kinsey of the Institute for Sex Research. He and Anger struck up a friendship that would last until the doctor's death, during which time Anger aided Kinsey in his research. According to Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis, Kinsey became a "father figure" whom Anger "could both interact with and emulate." Meanwhile, in 1949 Anger began work on a film called Puce Women, which unlike Fireworks was filmed in color. It starred Yvonne Marquis as a glamorous woman going about her daily life; Anger would later state that "Puce Women was my love affair with Hollywood ... with all the great goddesses of the silent screen. They were to be filmed in their homes; I was, in effect, filming ghosts." A lack of funding meant that only one scene was ever produced, which was eventually released under the title Puce Moment. That same year, Anger directed The Love That Whirls, a film based upon Aztec human sacrifice but, because of the nudity that it contained, it was destroyed by technicians at the film lab, who deemed it to be obscene.
1950–53: France, Rabbit's Moon and Eaux d'Artifice
In 1950, Anger moved to Paris, France, where he initially stayed with friends of his (who themselves had been forced to leave Hollywood after being blacklisted for formerly having belonged to trade union organisations). He would later remark that he travelled to the country after receiving a letter from the French director Jean Cocteau in which he told Anger of his admiration for Fireworks (shown in 1949 at Festival du Film Maudit in Biarritz, France). Upon arrival, Anger and Cocteau became friends, with the Frenchman giving the young protege his permission to make a movie of his ballet The Young Man and Death, although at the time there were no financial backers for the project. While in Paris he continued producing short films; in 1950 he started filming on Rabbit's Moon, which was also known as La Lune des Lapins and revolved around a clown who was staring up at the moon, in which a rabbit lived, something found within Japanese mythology. Anger produced 20 minutes of footage at the Films du Pantheon Studio in the city before he was rushed out of the studio, leaving the film uncompleted. He stored the footage in the disorganized archives of the Cinémathèque Française, and only collected it again in 1970, when he finally finished and released Rabbit's Moon. It was at the Cinémathèque Française that he was given by the head, Henri Langlois, prints of Sergei Eisenstein's Que Viva Mexico!, which he attempted to put into Eisenstein's original order.
In 1953, he travelled to Rome, Italy where he planned to make a film about the sixteenth century occultist Cardinal d'Este. To do so, he began filming at the garden of the Villa d'Este in Tivoli, in which a lady in eighteenth century dress walked through the gardens, which featured many waterfalls (an allusion to the fact that d'Este allegedly sexually enjoyed urination), accompanied by the music of Vivaldi. This was supposedly going to be only the first of four scenes, but the others were not made; the resulting one-scene film was titled Eaux d'Artifice. As Anger's biographer Bill Landis remarked, "It's one of Anger's most tranquil works; his editing makes it soft, lush, and inviting. Eaux d'Artifice remains a secretive romp through a private garden, all for the masked figure's and the viewer-voyeur's pleasure."
1953–60: Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome and Hollywood Babylon
In 1953, soon after the production of Eaux d'Artifice, Anger's mother died and he temporarily returned to the United States in order to assist with the distribution of her estate. It was during this return that he began to once more immerse himself in the artistic scene of California, befriending the film maker Stan Brakhage, who had been inspired by Fireworks, and the two collaborated on producing a film, but it was confiscated at the film lab for obscenity and presumably destroyed. Around this time, two of Anger's friends, the couple Renate Druks and Paul Mathiesin held a party based upon the theme of "Come As Your Madness"; Anger himself attended dressed in drag as the ancient Greek goddess Hekate. The party and its many costumes inspired Anger, who produced a painting of it, and asked several of those who attended to appear in a new film that he was creating – Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome. Inauguration, which was created in 1954, was a 38-minute surrealist work featuring many Crowleyan and Thelemite themes, with many of the various characters personifying various pagan gods such as Isis, Osiris and Pan. One of the actresses in the film was Marjorie Cameron, the widow of Jack Parsons, the influential American Thelemite who had died a few years previously, while Anger himself played Hecate. He would subsequently exhibit the film at various European film festivals, winning the Prix du Ciné-Club Belge and the Prix de l'Age d'Or, as well as screening it in the form of a projected triptych at Expo 58, the World Fair held in Brussels in 1958.
In 1955, Anger and his friend Alfred Kinsey traveled to the derelict Abbey of Thelema in Cefalù, Sicily, to film a short documentary titled Thelema Abbey. The abbey itself had been used by Aleister Crowley for his commune during the 1920s, and Anger restored many of the erotic wall-paintings that were found there, as well as performing certain Crowleyan rituals at the site. The documentary was made for the British television series Omnibus, but was later lost. The following year Kinsey died and Anger decided to return to Paris, where he was described at the time as being "extremely remote and lonely".
In desperate need of money, Anger and ghostwriter Elliott Stein wrote a book titled Hollywood Babylon in which he collected together gossip regarding celebrities, some of which he claims he had been told. This included claiming (with no corroboration or citing of sources) that Rudolph Valentino liked to play a sexually submissive role to dominant women, that Walt Disney was a drug user, addicted to opiates (reflected in the character of Goofy, who's perpetually stoned on cannabis), as well as describing the nature of the deaths of Peg Entwistle and Lupe Vélez. The work was not published in the United States initially, and it was first released by the French publisher Jean-Jacques Pauvert. A pirated (and incomplete) version was first published in the U.S. in 1965, with the official American version not being published until 1974. Now with some financial backing from the publication of Hollywood Babylon, his next film project was The Story of O; it was essentially a piece of erotica featuring a heterosexual couple engaged in sadomasochistic sexual activities, although it refrained from showing any explicit sexual images.
1961–65: Scorpio Rising and Kustom Kar Kommandos
In 1961, Anger once more returned to America, where he lived for a time with Marjorie Cameron. Meanwhile, he began work on a new feature, a film about the emerging biker subculture, which he titled Scorpio Rising. For this, he employed a biker named Richard McAuley, and filmed him and some of his friends messing around, adding to it scenes of McAuley, or "Scorpio" as he became known, desecrating a derelict church. Anger incorporated more controversial visuals into the piece, including Nazi iconography, nudity, and clips of the life of Jesus Christ taken from Family Films' The Living Bible: Last Journey to Jerusalem. In Scorpio Rising, Anger intercuts images of Christ from the cheap religious film with those of Scorpio. The whole film has a soundtrack made up of popular 1960s songs, including "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton, "Torture" by Kris Jensen and "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March. Anger himself described the film as "a death mirror held up to American culture ... Thanatos in chrome, black leather, and bursting jeans." It immediately became popular on the underground cinema scene although was soon brought to court with complaints claiming that it was obscene. The jury ruled in favor of the prosecutors, and Scorpio Rising was banned, although this ban was subsequently overturned on appeal to the California State Supreme Court.
With Scorpio Rising finished and Anger now living in San Francisco, he went to the Ford Foundation, which had just started a program of giving out grants to filmmakers. He showed them his ideas for a new artistic short, titled Kustom Kar Kommandos, which they approved of, and gave him a grant of $10,000. However, Anger spent much of the money on living expenses and making alterations to some of his earlier films, meaning that by the time he actually created Kustom Kar Kommandos, it was only one scene long. This homoerotic film involved various shots of a young man polishing a drag strip racing car, accompanied with a pink background and the song "Dream Lover" by The Paris Sisters. Soon after, Anger struck a deal that allowed Hollywood Babylon to be officially published in the United States for the first time, where it proved a success, selling two million copies during the 1960s, and around the same time Anger also translated Lo Duca's History of Eroticism into English for American publication.
1966–69: The hippie movement and Invocation of My Demon Brother
The mid-1960s saw the emergence of the hippie scene and the increasing use of the mind-altering drugs that Anger himself had been using for many years. In particular, the hallucinogen LSD, which at the time was still legal in the United States, was very popular, and in 1966 Anger released a version of his earlier film, Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome titled the "Sacred Mushroom Edition" which was screened to people while taking LSD, thereby heightening their sensory experience. By this time, Anger had become well known throughout the underground scene in the United States, and several cinemas across the country screened his better known films all in one event. With this growing fame, Anger began to react to publicity in much the same way as his idol Aleister Crowley had done, for instance describing himself as "the most monstrous moviemaker in the underground", a pun on the fact that Crowley had been labelled "the wickedest man in the world" by the British tabloids in the 1920s. Anger's fame on the underground circuit allowed him to increasingly associate with other celebrities, including Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan who named Anger as godfather to Zeena Schreck (LaVey's daughter). Despite Anger and LaVey's differing philosophies, the two became good friends and would remain so for many years. However, Anger also held a resentment towards certain celebrities, namely Andy Warhol, who at the time was achieving success not only in the art world but also in the underground film scene. In 1980, Anger threw paint over the front door of a house that Warhol had recently moved out of.
In 1966, Anger moved into the ground floor of a large nineteenth-century Victorian house in San Francisco known as the Russian Embassy. Around this time he began planning a new film titled Lucifer Rising echoing his Thelemite beliefs about the emerging Aeon of Horus. He tattooed the name of Lucifer upon his chest and began searching for a young man who could symbolically become Lucifer, "the Crowned and Conquering Child" of the new Aeon, for Lucifer Rising. While living at the Russian Embassy, he met and lived with various young men who could fit the position. Finally, he settled upon Bobby Beausoleil for the role of Lucifer. Beausoleil founded a band, the Magic Powerhouse of Oz, in order to record the music for the film. In 1967, Anger said that the footage which he had been filming for Lucifer Rising had been stolen, placing the blame on Beausoleil, who would deny the claims. Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis quotes Beausoleil who states, "what had happened was that Kenneth had spent all the money that was invested in Lucifer Rising" and that he therefore invented the story to satisfy the film's creditors. Beausoleil and Anger fell out, with the former getting involved with Charles Manson and his cult, the Family, eventually carrying out Manson's bidding by torturing and murdering Gary Hinman.
In the October 26, 1967 issue of Village Voice, Anger publicly reinvented himself by placing a full-page advert declaring "In Memoriam. Kenneth Anger. Filmmaker 1947–1967". He soon publicly reappeared, this time to claim that he had burned all of his early work. The following year he travelled to London where he first met John Paul Getty, Jr., who became Anger's patron, and where he also met and befriended Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, members of The Rolling Stones, as well as actress/model Anita Pallenberg. Anger then decided to use much of the footage created for Lucifer Rising in a new film of his, Invocation of My Demon Brother, which starred Beausoleil, LaVey, Jagger and Richards, as well as Anger himself, and the music for which had been composed by Jagger. It was released in 1969, and explored many of the Thelemic themes that Anger had originally intended for Lucifer Rising. Author Gary Lachman believes the film "inaugurat[ed] the midnight movie cult at the Elgin Theatre." The story of the film, its making, and the people involved are the inspiration for the novel Sway, by Zachary Lazar.
1970–81: Lucifer Rising
Having used up much of the footage originally intended for Lucifer Rising for Invocation of My Demon Brother, Anger again set about to create "Lucifer Rising", a symbolic analogy of the coming Aeon of Horus as prophesied in the Thelemic sacred text, The Book of the Law. Anger persuaded the singer and actress Marianne Faithfull to appear in it. He also tried to convince his friend Mick Jagger to play the part of Lucifer in the film but Jagger refused. Instead he offered his brother Chris for the part. Anger accepted, but was not happy about it. Anger subsequently filmed eight minutes of film and showed it to the British National Film Finance Corporation who agreed to provide £15,000 in order for Anger to complete it – something that caused a level of outrage in the British press. With this money, he could afford to fly the cast and crew to both Germany and Egypt for filming. Anger befriended Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page around this time, the two sharing a great interest in Crowley. At Page's invitation, Anger travelled to Page's new home, Crowley's former residence Boleskine House located on the shores of Loch Ness in Scotland, to help the musician exorcise the building of what Page believed to be a headless man's ghost. Page subsequently agreed to produce the soundtrack for Lucifer Rising, and used the editing suite which was in the basement of his London home to shape the music which he produced. Anger later fell out with Page's partner Charlotte, who kicked him out of the house. In retaliation, Anger called a press conference in which he ridiculed Page and threatened to "throw a Kenneth Anger curse" on him. Page's music was dumped from the film and replaced in 1979 by music written and recorded by the imprisoned Bobby Beausoleil, with whom Anger had reconciled.
Meanwhile, Anger, who moved to a small apartment on the upper east side of Manhattan, took the footage that he had filmed for Rabbit's Moon in the 1950s, finally releasing the film in 1972, and again in a shorter version in 1979. Around the same time he also added a new soundtrack to Puce Moment and re-released it. It was also around this time that the publisher Marvin Miller produced a low budget documentary film based on Hollywood Babylon without Anger's permission, which upset Anger and led to a lawsuit. He also created a short film titled Senators in Bondage which was only available to private collectors and which has never been made publicly available, and had plans to make a film about Aleister Crowley titled The Wickedest Man in the World, but this project never got off the ground. In 1980, he holidayed with his friend, the playwright Tennessee Williams.
It was in 1981, a decade after starting the project, that he finally finished and released the 30-minute-long Lucifer Rising. Based upon the Thelemite concept that mankind had entered a new period known as the Aeon of Horus, Lucifer Rising was full of occult symbolism, starring Miriam Gibril as the Ancient Egyptian goddess Isis and Donald Cammell as her consort Osiris, as well as Marianne Faithfull as Jewish mythological figure Lilith and Leslie Huggins as Lucifer himself. Anger once again appeared in the film, starring as the Magus, the same role that he played in Invocation to My Demon Brother. He had surrealistically combined the roles that these characters played with footage of volcanoes, various ancient Egyptian temples and a Crowleyan adept reading from the man's texts.
1982–99: Retirement
Soon after the release of Lucifer Rising, a PBS documentary of Anger and his films was made, titled Kenneth Anger's Magick, which was directed by Kit Fitzgerald, who later recalled interviewing him in his New York flat on a very hot July evening, during which Anger revealed that he was so broke that he had been forced to sell his air conditioner. Anger himself considered producing other films that would continue on from Lucifer Rising in a series, and he began referring to his finished film as "Part I: Sign Language", to be followed by two further parts. Nonetheless, these projects would never be finished, and Anger himself would not produce any further films for nearly two decades. In need of money, Anger subsequently released Hollywood Babylon II in 1984, as well as continuing to screen his films at various festivals and at universities, and continuing to attempt to produce Lucifer Rising II; around this time he began wearing an eyepatch to these public events, something likely due to him having been beaten up and getting a bruised eye, a story that he would bring up in various interviews, although partly changing who it was who had beaten him up in various versions of the story. In 1984, a notorious incident occurred when Anger was invited to appear on The Coca Crystal Show, however upon arriving at the studio he demanded that somebody pay for his taxi ride there, and when they refused, he attacked the talent coordinator Maureen Ivice and tried to drag her into his taxi, before she was rescued by other members of staff – Anger reportedly escaped the scene by flinging a $100 bill at the cab driver and screaming "GET ME OUT OF HERE!"
In 1986, he sold the video rights to his films, which finally appeared on VHS, allowing them to have greater publicity. The following year he attended the Avignon Film Festival in France where his work was being celebrated in commemoration of the fortieth anniversary of Fireworks. Soon after this, he appeared in Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon, a BBC documentary for the Arena series directed by Nigel Finch. In 1991, Anger moved to West Arenas Boulevard in Palm Springs, California, living in what was formerly the estate of his good friend Ruby Keeler where the British Film Institute sent Rebecca Wood to assist him in writing an autobiography, which was never actually produced. Instead, in 1995, Bill Landis, who had been an associate of Anger's in the early 1980s, wrote an unofficial biography of him, which Anger himself condemned, describing Landis as "an avowed enemy".
In 1993, Anger visited Sydney and lectured at a season of his films at the Australian Film Institute Cinema in Paddington. In an interview given at the time with Black and White magazine, Anger said he was staying in King's Cross and was putting the finishing touches to the final treatment on a feature film about Australian artist and occultist Rosaleen Norton. This project was unrealised.
2000–present: Return to filmmaking
For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls.
Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London.
Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to sue those making accusations against them.
Themes
Several recurring themes can be seen within Anger's cinematic work. One of the most notable of these is homoeroticism; this was first seen in Fireworks (1947), which was based around Anger's own homosexual awakening, and featured various navy officers flexing their muscles, and a white liquid (often thought of as symbolising semen), pouring over the protagonist's body. Similar homoerotic imagery is found in Scorpio Rising (1963), which stars a muscled, topless, leather-clad biker, and Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), where a young man sensually polishes a car, with close up shots of his tight-fitting jeans and crotch. Images of naked men also appear in Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969), where they are eventually filmed wrestling, and in Anger Sees Red (2004), in which a muscled, topless man performs press-ups.
Another recurring theme in Anger's films is that of the occult, particularly the symbolism of his own esoteric religion, Thelema. This is visible in Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, Invocation of My Demon Brother and Lucifer Rising, all of which are based around the Thelemite concept of the Aeon of Horus and feature actors portraying various pagan gods. Anger himself linked the creation of film to the occult, particularly the practice of ceremonial magic, something that Aleister Crowley had been a noted practitioner of, and Anger once stated that "making a movie is casting a spell."
One of the central recurring images found in Anger's work is the concept of flames and light; in Fireworks there are various examples of this, including a burning Christmas tree, and it subsequently appears in many of his other works as well. This relates to the concept of Lucifer, a deity whom Anger devoted one of his films to, and whose name is Latin for "light bearer".
In many of his films, heavy use is made of music, both classical and pop, to accompany the visual imagery. For instance, in Scorpio Rising he makes use of the 1950s pop songs "Torture" by Kris Jensen, "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March and "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton. He first used music to accompany visuals in the 1941 work Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat?, where he used tracks by the Mills Brothers. His use of popular music to accompany his films has been cited as a key influence on the development of music videos and of MTV, although he has stated his dislike for the whole music video industry. On one occasion the band Combustible Edison asked him if he would direct a video to accompany their song "Bluebeard" but he declined the offer, believing that while music could be used to accompany film, it was pointless to do it the other way around.
Awards
Maya Deren Award, 1996
Silver Lake Film Festival Spirit of Silver Lake Award (2000)
San Francisco International Film Festival Golden Gate Persistence of Vision Award (2001)
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Douglas Edwards Independent/Experimental Film/Video Award (2002), "for his body of work"; tied with Michael Snow, for *Corpus Callosum
Anthology Film Archives, Life Achievement Award (2010)
Personal life
Anger has always been an "extremely private individual," although he has given various interviews over the years, with one interviewer, David Wingrove, describing him in 2008 as "a joy. Gentle, soft-spoken, immaculately tanned, he looks a good two decades younger than his 78 years". In such interviews, he refuses to disclose information on his name change from Anglemeyer to Anger, telling an interviewer who brought the topic up in 2004 that "You're being impertinent. It says Anger on my passport, that's all you need to know. I would stay away from that subject if I were you." In a 2010 interview, however, he stated that, "I just condensed my name. I knew it would be like a label, a logo. It's easy to remember." Anger is openly gay. He once joked that he was "somewhat to the right of the KKK" in his views about black people, opening him up to criticism for racism, though this was likely a "Crowley-esque joke". He supports the Tibetan independence movement.
Anger is an acknowledged Thelemite and belongs to the main Thelemic organization, the Ordo Templi Orientis. He viewed many of the men he associated with as living embodiments of Lucifer, a symbol of the Aeon of Horus in Thelemic philosophy, and had his own name inked onto his chest with the Lucifer tattoo. Anger has shown an interest in various other religious movements, particularly those that relate in some way to occultism. For instance, Kenneth was a lifelong friend of Anton LaVey from before the founding of the Church of Satan in the 1960s and even lived with him and his family during the 1980s. LaVey also made an appearance in one of Anger's films, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) as a devilish priest. Anger describes himself as a "pagan" and refuses to consider himself to be a Satanist. He also characterized Wicca as being a "lunar", feminine religion in contrast with the "solar" masculinity of Thelema.
Filmography
Books
References
Notes
Citations
Works cited
Further reading
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008). Cinema, Messianism and Crime, Parkett 83, pp. 197-205.
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008), 1000 WORDS; KENNETH ANGER, Artforum, September, pp. 412-415.
.
External links
bentclouds.com. Essay on Kustom Kar Kommandos Non-Normative Sex in Kustom Kar Kommandos.
The Film Journal. Review of Alice Hutchison's book on Anger
Artforum 1000 Words
Esquire Kenneth Anger: Where The Bodies Are Buried, by Mick Brown.
1927 births
American experimental filmmakers
American male child actors
American Modern Pagans
American non-fiction writers
American people of German descent
American Thelemites
Film directors from California
American gay actors
Gay artists
American gay writers
LGBT film directors
LGBT people from California
LGBT screenwriters
LGBT writers from the United States
Living people
Male actors from Santa Monica, California
Psychedelic drug advocates
Writers from Santa Monica, California
American people of English descent | false | [
"This One's for You is the sixth album by R&B crooner Teddy Pendergrass. It was released just after a bad car accident Pendergrass was involved in, which left him paralyzed from the waist down due to a spinal cord injury. The album did not do as well as his previous albums did on the Billboard 200, peaking at only #59, but it did do well on the R&B album chart, reaching #6. Only one single was released, \"I Can't Win for Losing\", which peaked at only #32 on the R&B charts.\n\nTrack listing\n \"I Can't Win for Losing\" 4:16 (Victor Carstarphen, Gene McFadden, John Whitehead)\n \"This One's for You\" 6:18 (Barry Manilow, Marty Panzer)\n \"Loving You Was Good\" 3:35 (LeRoy Bell, Casey James)\n \"This Gift of Life\" 4:27 (Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff)\n \"Now Tell Me That You Love Me\" 5:15 (Gamble, Huff)\n \"It's Up to You (What You Do With Your Life)\" 5:37 (Gamble, Huff)\n \"Don't Leave Me out Along the Road\" 3:34 (Richard Roebuck)\n \"Only to You\" 3:53 (Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson)\n\nReferences\n\n1982 albums\nTeddy Pendergrass albums\nAlbums produced by Kenneth Gamble\nAlbums produced by Leon Huff\nAlbums produced by Thom Bell\nAlbums produced by Ashford & Simpson\nAlbums arranged by Bobby Martin\nAlbums recorded at Sigma Sound Studios\nPhiladelphia International Records albums",
"Follow Me is the second album of Dutch singer Do.\n\nIt did well in the Netherlands, debuting at #8 in the Mega Top 100 (album chart).\n\nAlbum information\nAfter her successful debut album Do she began working on her second album with her best friend and musical partner Glenn Corneille. They made a basis for the next album but Glenn Corneille died in a car disaster. However, Do needed to go on, so she started again where she left off.\n\nThe album contains 12 songs. Do co-wrote 3 songs; Love Me, Tune Into Me and When Everything is Gone. It features several different music genres, such as Pop, Jazz, Gospel and Country.\n\nTrack listing\n\nChart positions\n\nReferences\n.\n\n2006 albums\nDo (singer) albums\nSony BMG albums"
]
|
[
"Kenneth Anger",
"2000-present: Return to filmmaking",
"Why did he return?",
"I don't know.",
"What was his first project back in to film making?",
"Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette,",
"did it do well?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_c583f69dfee641ab893b517127b42e26_0 | Did he relased any other film works? | 4 | Did Kenneth Anger relase any other film works aside from Don't Smoke That Cigarette after returning to film making? | Kenneth Anger | For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls. Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London. Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to heavily sue those making accusations against them. CANNOTANSWER | followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, | Kenneth Anger (born Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer, February 3, 1927) is an American underground experimental filmmaker, actor, and author. Working exclusively in short films, he has produced almost forty works since 1937, nine of which have been grouped together as the "Magick Lantern Cycle". His films variously merge surrealism with homoeroticism and the occult, and have been described as containing "elements of erotica, documentary, psychodrama, and spectacle". Anger himself has been described as "one of America's first openly gay filmmakers, and certainly the first whose work addressed homosexuality in an undisguised, self-implicating manner", and his "role in rendering gay culture visible within American cinema, commercial or otherwise, is impossible to overestimate", with several being released prior to the legalization of homosexual acts between consenting adults in the United States. He has also focused upon occult themes in many of his films, being fascinated by the English gnostic mage and poet Aleister Crowley, and is an adherent of Thelema, the religion Crowley founded.
Born to a middle-class Christian Presbyterian family in Santa Monica, California, Anger would later claim to have been a child actor who appeared in the film A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935); the accuracy of this claim has come under dispute. He began making short films when he was ten years old, although his first film to gain any recognition, the homoerotic Fireworks (1947), would only be produced a decade later. The controversial nature of the work led to him being put on trial on obscenity charges, but he was acquitted. A friendship and working relationship began subsequently with pioneering sexologist Alfred Kinsey. Moving to Europe, Anger produced a number of other shorts inspired by the artistic avant-garde scene on the continent, such as Rabbit's Moon (released 1971) and Eaux d'Artifice (1953).
Returning to the United States in 1953, he set about working on several new projects, including the films Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954), Scorpio Rising (1964), Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), and the gossip book Hollywood Babylon (1965). The latter would become infamous for various dubious and sensationalist claims, many of which were later disproven, though some do remain as urban legends. Getting to know several notable countercultural figures of the time, including Tennessee Williams, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jimmy Page, Marianne Faithfull and Anton LaVey, Anger involved them in his subsequent Thelemite-themed works, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) and Lucifer Rising (1972). Following his failure to produce a sequel to Lucifer Rising, which he attempted through the mid-1980s, Anger retired from filmmaking, instead focusing on Hollywood Babylon II (1984). At the dawn of the 21st century he once more returned to filmmaking, producing shorts for various film festivals and events.
Anger has described filmmakers such as Auguste and Louis Lumière, Georges Méliès, and Maya Deren as influences, and has been cited as an important influence on later film directors like Martin Scorsese, David Lynch and John Waters. He has also been described as having "a profound impact on the work of many other filmmakers and artists, as well as on music video as an emergent art form using dream sequence, dance, fantasy, and narrative".
Biography
1927–35: Early life
Anger was born in Santa Monica, California, as Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer on February 3, 1927. Despite his family being Presbyterians, he became more interested in the occult. His father, Wilbur Anglemyer, was of German ancestry, and had been born in Troy, Ohio, while his disabled mother, Lillian Coler (who was the older of the pair), claimed English ancestry. The pair had met at the Ohio State University and after marrying had their first child, Jean Anglemyer, in 1918, followed by a second, Robert "Bob" Anglemyer, in 1921. That year they moved to Santa Monica to be near Lillian's mother, Bertha Coler, who herself had recently moved there. It was here where Wilbur got a job working as an electrical engineer at Douglas Aircraft, bringing in enough money so that they could live comfortably as a middle-class family.
Kenneth, their third and final child, was born in 1927, but growing up he would fail to get along with either his parents or his siblings. His brother Bob later claimed that being the youngest child, Kenneth had been spoilt by his mother and grandmother, and as such had become somewhat "bratty." His grandmother, Bertha, was a big influence on the young Kenneth, and indeed helped to maintain the family financially during the Great Depression of the 1930s. It was she who first took Kenneth to the cinema, to see a double bill of The Singing Fool and Thunder Over Mexico and also encouraged his artistic interests. She herself later moved into a house in Hollywood with another woman, Miss Diggy, who equally encouraged Kenneth. He developed an early interest in film, and enjoyed reading the movie tie-in Big Little books. He would later relate that "I was a child prodigy who never got smarter." He retrospected his attendance at the Santa Monica Cotillon where child stars were encouraged to mix with non-famous children and through this met Shirley Temple, with whom he danced on one occasion.
It was in 1935, he would later claim, that Anger had the chance to appear in a Hollywood film, taking the role of the Changeling Prince in the 1935 Warner Brothers film A Midsummer Night's Dream. Set photographs and studio production reports (on file in the Warner Brothers collection at University of Southern California, and the Warner Bros. collection of studio key books at George Eastman House in Rochester, New York) in fact contradict Anger's claims, conclusively proving that the character was played by a girl named Sheila Brown. Anger's unofficial biographer, Bill Landis, remarked in 1995 that the Changeling Prince was definitely "Anger as a child; visually, he's immediately recognizable".
1937–46: First films
Anger's first film was created in 1937, when he was ten years old. The short, titled Ferdinand the Bull, had been shot on the remains of 16 mm film that had been left unused after the Anglemyer's had made home movies with it on a family vacation to Yosemite National Park,. In Ferdinand the Bull, which has never been made publicly available, Kenneth dressed as a matador, wearing a cape, while two of his friends from the Boy Scouts played the bull. His second work, Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat, which Anger himself often considers to be his first proper film, was made from footage of children playing during the summer, accompanied with popular songs by bands, including the Ink Spots. Anger had created Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat in 1941, when he was fourteen, shortly before the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent entry of the United States into the Second World War. The following year he produced another amateur film, Prisoner of Mars, which was heavily influenced by Flash Gordon. In this science fiction-inspired feature, in which he played the protagonist, he added elements taken from the Greek mythological myth of the Minotaur and constructed a small volcano in his back yard to create a home-made special effect. Many of these early films are considered lost, with Anger burning much of his previous work in 1967.
In 1944, the Anglemyers moved to Hollywood to move in with family, and Kenneth began attending Beverly Hills High School. It was here, he met Maxine Peterson, who had once been the stand-in for Shirley Temple, and he asked her – alongside another classmate and an older woman – to appear in his next film project, which he initially called Demigods, later retitled as Escape Episode. Revolving partially around the occult, it was filmed in a "spooky old castle" in Hollywood, and was subsequently screened at the Coronet Theatre on North La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles. Around this time, Anger also began attending the screenings of silent films held at Clara Grossman's art gallery, through which he met a fellow filmmaker, Curtis Harrington, with whom he formed Creative Film Associates (CFA). Harrington is said to have introduced Anger to the work of Aleister Crowley. Crowley's philosophy of Thelema would exert a profound influence on the remainder of Anger's career. CFA was founded to distribute experimental films or "underground films" such as those of Maya Deren, John and James Whitney, as well as Anger's and Harrington's.
In high school, Anger started to become interested in the occult, which he had first indirectly encountered through reading L. Frank Baum's Oz books as a child, with their accompanying Rosicrucian philosophies. Kenneth was very interested in the works of the French ceremonial magician Eliphas Levi, as well as Sir James Frazer's The Golden Bough, although his favorite writings were those of the English occultist Aleister Crowley. Crowley had founded a religion known as Thelema based upon a spiritual experience that he had in Egypt in 1904, in which he claimed a being known as Aiwass had contacted him and recited to him The Book of the Law. Subsequent to his exposure to Crowley, Anger converted to Thelema.
1947–49: Fireworks and early career
As Anger discovered his homosexuality, at a time when homosexual acts were still illegal in the United States, he began associating with the underground gay scene. At some point in the mid-1940s, he was arrested by the police in a "homosexual entrapment", after which he decided to move out of his parents' home, gaining his own sparse apartment largely financed by his grandmother, and abandoning the name Anglemyer in favor of Anger. He started attending the University of Southern California, where he studied cinema, and also began experimenting with the use of mind-altering drugs like cannabis and peyote. It was then that he decided to produce a film that would deal with his sexuality, just as other gay avant-garde film makers like Willard Maas were doing in that decade. The result was the short film Fireworks, which was created in 1947 but only exhibited publicly in 1948.
Upon release of the work, Anger was arrested on obscenity charges. He was acquitted, after the case went to the Supreme Court of California, which deemed it to be art rather than pornography. Anger made the claim to have been seventeen years old when he made it, despite the fact that he was actually twenty, presumably to present himself as more of an enfant terrible. A homoerotic work lasting only 14 minutes, Fireworks revolves around a young man (played by Anger himself) associating with various navy sailors, who eventually turn on him, stripping him naked and beating him to death, ripping open his chest to find a compass inside. Several fireworks then explode, accompanied by a burning Christmas tree and the final shot shows the young man lying in bed next to another shirtless man. Of this film, Anger would later state in 1966 that "This flick is all I have to say about being 17, the United States Navy, American Christmas and the fourth of July." He would continuously alter and adapt the film up until 1980, with it finally being distributed on VHS in 1986.
One of the first people to buy a copy of Fireworks was the sexologist Dr. Alfred Kinsey of the Institute for Sex Research. He and Anger struck up a friendship that would last until the doctor's death, during which time Anger aided Kinsey in his research. According to Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis, Kinsey became a "father figure" whom Anger "could both interact with and emulate." Meanwhile, in 1949 Anger began work on a film called Puce Women, which unlike Fireworks was filmed in color. It starred Yvonne Marquis as a glamorous woman going about her daily life; Anger would later state that "Puce Women was my love affair with Hollywood ... with all the great goddesses of the silent screen. They were to be filmed in their homes; I was, in effect, filming ghosts." A lack of funding meant that only one scene was ever produced, which was eventually released under the title Puce Moment. That same year, Anger directed The Love That Whirls, a film based upon Aztec human sacrifice but, because of the nudity that it contained, it was destroyed by technicians at the film lab, who deemed it to be obscene.
1950–53: France, Rabbit's Moon and Eaux d'Artifice
In 1950, Anger moved to Paris, France, where he initially stayed with friends of his (who themselves had been forced to leave Hollywood after being blacklisted for formerly having belonged to trade union organisations). He would later remark that he travelled to the country after receiving a letter from the French director Jean Cocteau in which he told Anger of his admiration for Fireworks (shown in 1949 at Festival du Film Maudit in Biarritz, France). Upon arrival, Anger and Cocteau became friends, with the Frenchman giving the young protege his permission to make a movie of his ballet The Young Man and Death, although at the time there were no financial backers for the project. While in Paris he continued producing short films; in 1950 he started filming on Rabbit's Moon, which was also known as La Lune des Lapins and revolved around a clown who was staring up at the moon, in which a rabbit lived, something found within Japanese mythology. Anger produced 20 minutes of footage at the Films du Pantheon Studio in the city before he was rushed out of the studio, leaving the film uncompleted. He stored the footage in the disorganized archives of the Cinémathèque Française, and only collected it again in 1970, when he finally finished and released Rabbit's Moon. It was at the Cinémathèque Française that he was given by the head, Henri Langlois, prints of Sergei Eisenstein's Que Viva Mexico!, which he attempted to put into Eisenstein's original order.
In 1953, he travelled to Rome, Italy where he planned to make a film about the sixteenth century occultist Cardinal d'Este. To do so, he began filming at the garden of the Villa d'Este in Tivoli, in which a lady in eighteenth century dress walked through the gardens, which featured many waterfalls (an allusion to the fact that d'Este allegedly sexually enjoyed urination), accompanied by the music of Vivaldi. This was supposedly going to be only the first of four scenes, but the others were not made; the resulting one-scene film was titled Eaux d'Artifice. As Anger's biographer Bill Landis remarked, "It's one of Anger's most tranquil works; his editing makes it soft, lush, and inviting. Eaux d'Artifice remains a secretive romp through a private garden, all for the masked figure's and the viewer-voyeur's pleasure."
1953–60: Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome and Hollywood Babylon
In 1953, soon after the production of Eaux d'Artifice, Anger's mother died and he temporarily returned to the United States in order to assist with the distribution of her estate. It was during this return that he began to once more immerse himself in the artistic scene of California, befriending the film maker Stan Brakhage, who had been inspired by Fireworks, and the two collaborated on producing a film, but it was confiscated at the film lab for obscenity and presumably destroyed. Around this time, two of Anger's friends, the couple Renate Druks and Paul Mathiesin held a party based upon the theme of "Come As Your Madness"; Anger himself attended dressed in drag as the ancient Greek goddess Hekate. The party and its many costumes inspired Anger, who produced a painting of it, and asked several of those who attended to appear in a new film that he was creating – Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome. Inauguration, which was created in 1954, was a 38-minute surrealist work featuring many Crowleyan and Thelemite themes, with many of the various characters personifying various pagan gods such as Isis, Osiris and Pan. One of the actresses in the film was Marjorie Cameron, the widow of Jack Parsons, the influential American Thelemite who had died a few years previously, while Anger himself played Hecate. He would subsequently exhibit the film at various European film festivals, winning the Prix du Ciné-Club Belge and the Prix de l'Age d'Or, as well as screening it in the form of a projected triptych at Expo 58, the World Fair held in Brussels in 1958.
In 1955, Anger and his friend Alfred Kinsey traveled to the derelict Abbey of Thelema in Cefalù, Sicily, to film a short documentary titled Thelema Abbey. The abbey itself had been used by Aleister Crowley for his commune during the 1920s, and Anger restored many of the erotic wall-paintings that were found there, as well as performing certain Crowleyan rituals at the site. The documentary was made for the British television series Omnibus, but was later lost. The following year Kinsey died and Anger decided to return to Paris, where he was described at the time as being "extremely remote and lonely".
In desperate need of money, Anger and ghostwriter Elliott Stein wrote a book titled Hollywood Babylon in which he collected together gossip regarding celebrities, some of which he claims he had been told. This included claiming (with no corroboration or citing of sources) that Rudolph Valentino liked to play a sexually submissive role to dominant women, that Walt Disney was a drug user, addicted to opiates (reflected in the character of Goofy, who's perpetually stoned on cannabis), as well as describing the nature of the deaths of Peg Entwistle and Lupe Vélez. The work was not published in the United States initially, and it was first released by the French publisher Jean-Jacques Pauvert. A pirated (and incomplete) version was first published in the U.S. in 1965, with the official American version not being published until 1974. Now with some financial backing from the publication of Hollywood Babylon, his next film project was The Story of O; it was essentially a piece of erotica featuring a heterosexual couple engaged in sadomasochistic sexual activities, although it refrained from showing any explicit sexual images.
1961–65: Scorpio Rising and Kustom Kar Kommandos
In 1961, Anger once more returned to America, where he lived for a time with Marjorie Cameron. Meanwhile, he began work on a new feature, a film about the emerging biker subculture, which he titled Scorpio Rising. For this, he employed a biker named Richard McAuley, and filmed him and some of his friends messing around, adding to it scenes of McAuley, or "Scorpio" as he became known, desecrating a derelict church. Anger incorporated more controversial visuals into the piece, including Nazi iconography, nudity, and clips of the life of Jesus Christ taken from Family Films' The Living Bible: Last Journey to Jerusalem. In Scorpio Rising, Anger intercuts images of Christ from the cheap religious film with those of Scorpio. The whole film has a soundtrack made up of popular 1960s songs, including "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton, "Torture" by Kris Jensen and "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March. Anger himself described the film as "a death mirror held up to American culture ... Thanatos in chrome, black leather, and bursting jeans." It immediately became popular on the underground cinema scene although was soon brought to court with complaints claiming that it was obscene. The jury ruled in favor of the prosecutors, and Scorpio Rising was banned, although this ban was subsequently overturned on appeal to the California State Supreme Court.
With Scorpio Rising finished and Anger now living in San Francisco, he went to the Ford Foundation, which had just started a program of giving out grants to filmmakers. He showed them his ideas for a new artistic short, titled Kustom Kar Kommandos, which they approved of, and gave him a grant of $10,000. However, Anger spent much of the money on living expenses and making alterations to some of his earlier films, meaning that by the time he actually created Kustom Kar Kommandos, it was only one scene long. This homoerotic film involved various shots of a young man polishing a drag strip racing car, accompanied with a pink background and the song "Dream Lover" by The Paris Sisters. Soon after, Anger struck a deal that allowed Hollywood Babylon to be officially published in the United States for the first time, where it proved a success, selling two million copies during the 1960s, and around the same time Anger also translated Lo Duca's History of Eroticism into English for American publication.
1966–69: The hippie movement and Invocation of My Demon Brother
The mid-1960s saw the emergence of the hippie scene and the increasing use of the mind-altering drugs that Anger himself had been using for many years. In particular, the hallucinogen LSD, which at the time was still legal in the United States, was very popular, and in 1966 Anger released a version of his earlier film, Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome titled the "Sacred Mushroom Edition" which was screened to people while taking LSD, thereby heightening their sensory experience. By this time, Anger had become well known throughout the underground scene in the United States, and several cinemas across the country screened his better known films all in one event. With this growing fame, Anger began to react to publicity in much the same way as his idol Aleister Crowley had done, for instance describing himself as "the most monstrous moviemaker in the underground", a pun on the fact that Crowley had been labelled "the wickedest man in the world" by the British tabloids in the 1920s. Anger's fame on the underground circuit allowed him to increasingly associate with other celebrities, including Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan who named Anger as godfather to Zeena Schreck (LaVey's daughter). Despite Anger and LaVey's differing philosophies, the two became good friends and would remain so for many years. However, Anger also held a resentment towards certain celebrities, namely Andy Warhol, who at the time was achieving success not only in the art world but also in the underground film scene. In 1980, Anger threw paint over the front door of a house that Warhol had recently moved out of.
In 1966, Anger moved into the ground floor of a large nineteenth-century Victorian house in San Francisco known as the Russian Embassy. Around this time he began planning a new film titled Lucifer Rising echoing his Thelemite beliefs about the emerging Aeon of Horus. He tattooed the name of Lucifer upon his chest and began searching for a young man who could symbolically become Lucifer, "the Crowned and Conquering Child" of the new Aeon, for Lucifer Rising. While living at the Russian Embassy, he met and lived with various young men who could fit the position. Finally, he settled upon Bobby Beausoleil for the role of Lucifer. Beausoleil founded a band, the Magic Powerhouse of Oz, in order to record the music for the film. In 1967, Anger said that the footage which he had been filming for Lucifer Rising had been stolen, placing the blame on Beausoleil, who would deny the claims. Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis quotes Beausoleil who states, "what had happened was that Kenneth had spent all the money that was invested in Lucifer Rising" and that he therefore invented the story to satisfy the film's creditors. Beausoleil and Anger fell out, with the former getting involved with Charles Manson and his cult, the Family, eventually carrying out Manson's bidding by torturing and murdering Gary Hinman.
In the October 26, 1967 issue of Village Voice, Anger publicly reinvented himself by placing a full-page advert declaring "In Memoriam. Kenneth Anger. Filmmaker 1947–1967". He soon publicly reappeared, this time to claim that he had burned all of his early work. The following year he travelled to London where he first met John Paul Getty, Jr., who became Anger's patron, and where he also met and befriended Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, members of The Rolling Stones, as well as actress/model Anita Pallenberg. Anger then decided to use much of the footage created for Lucifer Rising in a new film of his, Invocation of My Demon Brother, which starred Beausoleil, LaVey, Jagger and Richards, as well as Anger himself, and the music for which had been composed by Jagger. It was released in 1969, and explored many of the Thelemic themes that Anger had originally intended for Lucifer Rising. Author Gary Lachman believes the film "inaugurat[ed] the midnight movie cult at the Elgin Theatre." The story of the film, its making, and the people involved are the inspiration for the novel Sway, by Zachary Lazar.
1970–81: Lucifer Rising
Having used up much of the footage originally intended for Lucifer Rising for Invocation of My Demon Brother, Anger again set about to create "Lucifer Rising", a symbolic analogy of the coming Aeon of Horus as prophesied in the Thelemic sacred text, The Book of the Law. Anger persuaded the singer and actress Marianne Faithfull to appear in it. He also tried to convince his friend Mick Jagger to play the part of Lucifer in the film but Jagger refused. Instead he offered his brother Chris for the part. Anger accepted, but was not happy about it. Anger subsequently filmed eight minutes of film and showed it to the British National Film Finance Corporation who agreed to provide £15,000 in order for Anger to complete it – something that caused a level of outrage in the British press. With this money, he could afford to fly the cast and crew to both Germany and Egypt for filming. Anger befriended Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page around this time, the two sharing a great interest in Crowley. At Page's invitation, Anger travelled to Page's new home, Crowley's former residence Boleskine House located on the shores of Loch Ness in Scotland, to help the musician exorcise the building of what Page believed to be a headless man's ghost. Page subsequently agreed to produce the soundtrack for Lucifer Rising, and used the editing suite which was in the basement of his London home to shape the music which he produced. Anger later fell out with Page's partner Charlotte, who kicked him out of the house. In retaliation, Anger called a press conference in which he ridiculed Page and threatened to "throw a Kenneth Anger curse" on him. Page's music was dumped from the film and replaced in 1979 by music written and recorded by the imprisoned Bobby Beausoleil, with whom Anger had reconciled.
Meanwhile, Anger, who moved to a small apartment on the upper east side of Manhattan, took the footage that he had filmed for Rabbit's Moon in the 1950s, finally releasing the film in 1972, and again in a shorter version in 1979. Around the same time he also added a new soundtrack to Puce Moment and re-released it. It was also around this time that the publisher Marvin Miller produced a low budget documentary film based on Hollywood Babylon without Anger's permission, which upset Anger and led to a lawsuit. He also created a short film titled Senators in Bondage which was only available to private collectors and which has never been made publicly available, and had plans to make a film about Aleister Crowley titled The Wickedest Man in the World, but this project never got off the ground. In 1980, he holidayed with his friend, the playwright Tennessee Williams.
It was in 1981, a decade after starting the project, that he finally finished and released the 30-minute-long Lucifer Rising. Based upon the Thelemite concept that mankind had entered a new period known as the Aeon of Horus, Lucifer Rising was full of occult symbolism, starring Miriam Gibril as the Ancient Egyptian goddess Isis and Donald Cammell as her consort Osiris, as well as Marianne Faithfull as Jewish mythological figure Lilith and Leslie Huggins as Lucifer himself. Anger once again appeared in the film, starring as the Magus, the same role that he played in Invocation to My Demon Brother. He had surrealistically combined the roles that these characters played with footage of volcanoes, various ancient Egyptian temples and a Crowleyan adept reading from the man's texts.
1982–99: Retirement
Soon after the release of Lucifer Rising, a PBS documentary of Anger and his films was made, titled Kenneth Anger's Magick, which was directed by Kit Fitzgerald, who later recalled interviewing him in his New York flat on a very hot July evening, during which Anger revealed that he was so broke that he had been forced to sell his air conditioner. Anger himself considered producing other films that would continue on from Lucifer Rising in a series, and he began referring to his finished film as "Part I: Sign Language", to be followed by two further parts. Nonetheless, these projects would never be finished, and Anger himself would not produce any further films for nearly two decades. In need of money, Anger subsequently released Hollywood Babylon II in 1984, as well as continuing to screen his films at various festivals and at universities, and continuing to attempt to produce Lucifer Rising II; around this time he began wearing an eyepatch to these public events, something likely due to him having been beaten up and getting a bruised eye, a story that he would bring up in various interviews, although partly changing who it was who had beaten him up in various versions of the story. In 1984, a notorious incident occurred when Anger was invited to appear on The Coca Crystal Show, however upon arriving at the studio he demanded that somebody pay for his taxi ride there, and when they refused, he attacked the talent coordinator Maureen Ivice and tried to drag her into his taxi, before she was rescued by other members of staff – Anger reportedly escaped the scene by flinging a $100 bill at the cab driver and screaming "GET ME OUT OF HERE!"
In 1986, he sold the video rights to his films, which finally appeared on VHS, allowing them to have greater publicity. The following year he attended the Avignon Film Festival in France where his work was being celebrated in commemoration of the fortieth anniversary of Fireworks. Soon after this, he appeared in Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon, a BBC documentary for the Arena series directed by Nigel Finch. In 1991, Anger moved to West Arenas Boulevard in Palm Springs, California, living in what was formerly the estate of his good friend Ruby Keeler where the British Film Institute sent Rebecca Wood to assist him in writing an autobiography, which was never actually produced. Instead, in 1995, Bill Landis, who had been an associate of Anger's in the early 1980s, wrote an unofficial biography of him, which Anger himself condemned, describing Landis as "an avowed enemy".
In 1993, Anger visited Sydney and lectured at a season of his films at the Australian Film Institute Cinema in Paddington. In an interview given at the time with Black and White magazine, Anger said he was staying in King's Cross and was putting the finishing touches to the final treatment on a feature film about Australian artist and occultist Rosaleen Norton. This project was unrealised.
2000–present: Return to filmmaking
For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls.
Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London.
Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to sue those making accusations against them.
Themes
Several recurring themes can be seen within Anger's cinematic work. One of the most notable of these is homoeroticism; this was first seen in Fireworks (1947), which was based around Anger's own homosexual awakening, and featured various navy officers flexing their muscles, and a white liquid (often thought of as symbolising semen), pouring over the protagonist's body. Similar homoerotic imagery is found in Scorpio Rising (1963), which stars a muscled, topless, leather-clad biker, and Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), where a young man sensually polishes a car, with close up shots of his tight-fitting jeans and crotch. Images of naked men also appear in Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969), where they are eventually filmed wrestling, and in Anger Sees Red (2004), in which a muscled, topless man performs press-ups.
Another recurring theme in Anger's films is that of the occult, particularly the symbolism of his own esoteric religion, Thelema. This is visible in Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, Invocation of My Demon Brother and Lucifer Rising, all of which are based around the Thelemite concept of the Aeon of Horus and feature actors portraying various pagan gods. Anger himself linked the creation of film to the occult, particularly the practice of ceremonial magic, something that Aleister Crowley had been a noted practitioner of, and Anger once stated that "making a movie is casting a spell."
One of the central recurring images found in Anger's work is the concept of flames and light; in Fireworks there are various examples of this, including a burning Christmas tree, and it subsequently appears in many of his other works as well. This relates to the concept of Lucifer, a deity whom Anger devoted one of his films to, and whose name is Latin for "light bearer".
In many of his films, heavy use is made of music, both classical and pop, to accompany the visual imagery. For instance, in Scorpio Rising he makes use of the 1950s pop songs "Torture" by Kris Jensen, "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March and "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton. He first used music to accompany visuals in the 1941 work Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat?, where he used tracks by the Mills Brothers. His use of popular music to accompany his films has been cited as a key influence on the development of music videos and of MTV, although he has stated his dislike for the whole music video industry. On one occasion the band Combustible Edison asked him if he would direct a video to accompany their song "Bluebeard" but he declined the offer, believing that while music could be used to accompany film, it was pointless to do it the other way around.
Awards
Maya Deren Award, 1996
Silver Lake Film Festival Spirit of Silver Lake Award (2000)
San Francisco International Film Festival Golden Gate Persistence of Vision Award (2001)
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Douglas Edwards Independent/Experimental Film/Video Award (2002), "for his body of work"; tied with Michael Snow, for *Corpus Callosum
Anthology Film Archives, Life Achievement Award (2010)
Personal life
Anger has always been an "extremely private individual," although he has given various interviews over the years, with one interviewer, David Wingrove, describing him in 2008 as "a joy. Gentle, soft-spoken, immaculately tanned, he looks a good two decades younger than his 78 years". In such interviews, he refuses to disclose information on his name change from Anglemeyer to Anger, telling an interviewer who brought the topic up in 2004 that "You're being impertinent. It says Anger on my passport, that's all you need to know. I would stay away from that subject if I were you." In a 2010 interview, however, he stated that, "I just condensed my name. I knew it would be like a label, a logo. It's easy to remember." Anger is openly gay. He once joked that he was "somewhat to the right of the KKK" in his views about black people, opening him up to criticism for racism, though this was likely a "Crowley-esque joke". He supports the Tibetan independence movement.
Anger is an acknowledged Thelemite and belongs to the main Thelemic organization, the Ordo Templi Orientis. He viewed many of the men he associated with as living embodiments of Lucifer, a symbol of the Aeon of Horus in Thelemic philosophy, and had his own name inked onto his chest with the Lucifer tattoo. Anger has shown an interest in various other religious movements, particularly those that relate in some way to occultism. For instance, Kenneth was a lifelong friend of Anton LaVey from before the founding of the Church of Satan in the 1960s and even lived with him and his family during the 1980s. LaVey also made an appearance in one of Anger's films, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) as a devilish priest. Anger describes himself as a "pagan" and refuses to consider himself to be a Satanist. He also characterized Wicca as being a "lunar", feminine religion in contrast with the "solar" masculinity of Thelema.
Filmography
Books
References
Notes
Citations
Works cited
Further reading
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008). Cinema, Messianism and Crime, Parkett 83, pp. 197-205.
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008), 1000 WORDS; KENNETH ANGER, Artforum, September, pp. 412-415.
.
External links
bentclouds.com. Essay on Kustom Kar Kommandos Non-Normative Sex in Kustom Kar Kommandos.
The Film Journal. Review of Alice Hutchison's book on Anger
Artforum 1000 Words
Esquire Kenneth Anger: Where The Bodies Are Buried, by Mick Brown.
1927 births
American experimental filmmakers
American male child actors
American Modern Pagans
American non-fiction writers
American people of German descent
American Thelemites
Film directors from California
American gay actors
Gay artists
American gay writers
LGBT film directors
LGBT people from California
LGBT screenwriters
LGBT writers from the United States
Living people
Male actors from Santa Monica, California
Psychedelic drug advocates
Writers from Santa Monica, California
American people of English descent | true | [
"To All My Friends On Shore is a 1972 television film drama starring Bill Cosby, and co-starring Gloria Foster. Cosby not only starred in the film, but produced it and worked on the film's music.\n\nPlot\nBlue (Cosby) works as a skycap for an airport. At the same time he works a second job as a junk scavenger. His wife Serena (Foster) works as a maid and is going to school trying to become a nurse. Blue is busy working trying to save money to buy his family a house so they can leave the projects. His young son, Vandy (Hines), resents him because he won't let him have any fun like his friends. It is eventually discovered that Vandy has sickle cell anemia. It is then that Blue realizes what he should spend his time on - being with his family.\n\nCast\nBill Cosby....Blue\nGloria Foster....Serena Blue\nDennis Hines....Evander \"Vandy\" Blue Jr.\n\nProduction\nThis was one of a string of film/TV productions Bill Cosby did in the 1970s. After he did The Bill Cosby Show (1969-1971), Cosby did other works. He did this film plus Man and Boy and Hickey & Boggs, the latter of which paired him with his I Spy co star Robert Culp. In addition he produced the Saturday morning series Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids which ran on CBS until the 1980s. Although Cosby did drama, he stayed with it in brief and concentrated on comedy; during this time, he worked with Gloria Foster, who appeared in other Cosby shows and films. As the 1970s closed, Cosby stayed with Fat Albert and worked on variety shows for Prime Time that ultimately bombed and were cancelled, including Cos.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nTo All My Friends on Shore at URBTPlus\n\nAmerican drama films\n1970s drama films\nAmerican television films\nAmerican films",
"Alan Pauls (born 22 April 1959 in Buenos Aires) is an Argentine writer, literary critic and screenwriter. An early essay he did on Betrayed by Rita Hayworth by Manuel Puig is said to show his interest in him as an \"experimental writer.\" Although Pauls has expressed skepticism about the avant-garde as any form of program, preferring to see it as a \"toolbox.\" Among his own experimental works is Wasabi from 1994. He also had a longstanding interest in film and his later work El pasado was adapted to film in 2007. He wrote a \"History of\" trilogy with the titles being History of crying, History of hair, and History of money. He has additionally served as a visiting professor at Princeton University.\n\nSelected works\n\nBooks\n\nEssays\n\nFilmography\n\nHonors and fellowships\n\nExternal links \n \n Biography\n\nReferences \n\n1959 births\nLiving people\nArgentine male writers\nWriters from Buenos Aires\nPrix Roger Caillois recipients"
]
|
[
"Kenneth Anger",
"2000-present: Return to filmmaking",
"Why did he return?",
"I don't know.",
"What was his first project back in to film making?",
"Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette,",
"did it do well?",
"I don't know.",
"Did he relased any other film works?",
"followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang,"
]
| C_c583f69dfee641ab893b517127b42e26_0 | What was his best film work recently? | 5 | What was Kenneth Anger's best film work recently? | Kenneth Anger | For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls. Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London. Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to heavily sue those making accusations against them. CANNOTANSWER | Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, | Kenneth Anger (born Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer, February 3, 1927) is an American underground experimental filmmaker, actor, and author. Working exclusively in short films, he has produced almost forty works since 1937, nine of which have been grouped together as the "Magick Lantern Cycle". His films variously merge surrealism with homoeroticism and the occult, and have been described as containing "elements of erotica, documentary, psychodrama, and spectacle". Anger himself has been described as "one of America's first openly gay filmmakers, and certainly the first whose work addressed homosexuality in an undisguised, self-implicating manner", and his "role in rendering gay culture visible within American cinema, commercial or otherwise, is impossible to overestimate", with several being released prior to the legalization of homosexual acts between consenting adults in the United States. He has also focused upon occult themes in many of his films, being fascinated by the English gnostic mage and poet Aleister Crowley, and is an adherent of Thelema, the religion Crowley founded.
Born to a middle-class Christian Presbyterian family in Santa Monica, California, Anger would later claim to have been a child actor who appeared in the film A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935); the accuracy of this claim has come under dispute. He began making short films when he was ten years old, although his first film to gain any recognition, the homoerotic Fireworks (1947), would only be produced a decade later. The controversial nature of the work led to him being put on trial on obscenity charges, but he was acquitted. A friendship and working relationship began subsequently with pioneering sexologist Alfred Kinsey. Moving to Europe, Anger produced a number of other shorts inspired by the artistic avant-garde scene on the continent, such as Rabbit's Moon (released 1971) and Eaux d'Artifice (1953).
Returning to the United States in 1953, he set about working on several new projects, including the films Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954), Scorpio Rising (1964), Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), and the gossip book Hollywood Babylon (1965). The latter would become infamous for various dubious and sensationalist claims, many of which were later disproven, though some do remain as urban legends. Getting to know several notable countercultural figures of the time, including Tennessee Williams, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jimmy Page, Marianne Faithfull and Anton LaVey, Anger involved them in his subsequent Thelemite-themed works, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) and Lucifer Rising (1972). Following his failure to produce a sequel to Lucifer Rising, which he attempted through the mid-1980s, Anger retired from filmmaking, instead focusing on Hollywood Babylon II (1984). At the dawn of the 21st century he once more returned to filmmaking, producing shorts for various film festivals and events.
Anger has described filmmakers such as Auguste and Louis Lumière, Georges Méliès, and Maya Deren as influences, and has been cited as an important influence on later film directors like Martin Scorsese, David Lynch and John Waters. He has also been described as having "a profound impact on the work of many other filmmakers and artists, as well as on music video as an emergent art form using dream sequence, dance, fantasy, and narrative".
Biography
1927–35: Early life
Anger was born in Santa Monica, California, as Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer on February 3, 1927. Despite his family being Presbyterians, he became more interested in the occult. His father, Wilbur Anglemyer, was of German ancestry, and had been born in Troy, Ohio, while his disabled mother, Lillian Coler (who was the older of the pair), claimed English ancestry. The pair had met at the Ohio State University and after marrying had their first child, Jean Anglemyer, in 1918, followed by a second, Robert "Bob" Anglemyer, in 1921. That year they moved to Santa Monica to be near Lillian's mother, Bertha Coler, who herself had recently moved there. It was here where Wilbur got a job working as an electrical engineer at Douglas Aircraft, bringing in enough money so that they could live comfortably as a middle-class family.
Kenneth, their third and final child, was born in 1927, but growing up he would fail to get along with either his parents or his siblings. His brother Bob later claimed that being the youngest child, Kenneth had been spoilt by his mother and grandmother, and as such had become somewhat "bratty." His grandmother, Bertha, was a big influence on the young Kenneth, and indeed helped to maintain the family financially during the Great Depression of the 1930s. It was she who first took Kenneth to the cinema, to see a double bill of The Singing Fool and Thunder Over Mexico and also encouraged his artistic interests. She herself later moved into a house in Hollywood with another woman, Miss Diggy, who equally encouraged Kenneth. He developed an early interest in film, and enjoyed reading the movie tie-in Big Little books. He would later relate that "I was a child prodigy who never got smarter." He retrospected his attendance at the Santa Monica Cotillon where child stars were encouraged to mix with non-famous children and through this met Shirley Temple, with whom he danced on one occasion.
It was in 1935, he would later claim, that Anger had the chance to appear in a Hollywood film, taking the role of the Changeling Prince in the 1935 Warner Brothers film A Midsummer Night's Dream. Set photographs and studio production reports (on file in the Warner Brothers collection at University of Southern California, and the Warner Bros. collection of studio key books at George Eastman House in Rochester, New York) in fact contradict Anger's claims, conclusively proving that the character was played by a girl named Sheila Brown. Anger's unofficial biographer, Bill Landis, remarked in 1995 that the Changeling Prince was definitely "Anger as a child; visually, he's immediately recognizable".
1937–46: First films
Anger's first film was created in 1937, when he was ten years old. The short, titled Ferdinand the Bull, had been shot on the remains of 16 mm film that had been left unused after the Anglemyer's had made home movies with it on a family vacation to Yosemite National Park,. In Ferdinand the Bull, which has never been made publicly available, Kenneth dressed as a matador, wearing a cape, while two of his friends from the Boy Scouts played the bull. His second work, Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat, which Anger himself often considers to be his first proper film, was made from footage of children playing during the summer, accompanied with popular songs by bands, including the Ink Spots. Anger had created Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat in 1941, when he was fourteen, shortly before the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent entry of the United States into the Second World War. The following year he produced another amateur film, Prisoner of Mars, which was heavily influenced by Flash Gordon. In this science fiction-inspired feature, in which he played the protagonist, he added elements taken from the Greek mythological myth of the Minotaur and constructed a small volcano in his back yard to create a home-made special effect. Many of these early films are considered lost, with Anger burning much of his previous work in 1967.
In 1944, the Anglemyers moved to Hollywood to move in with family, and Kenneth began attending Beverly Hills High School. It was here, he met Maxine Peterson, who had once been the stand-in for Shirley Temple, and he asked her – alongside another classmate and an older woman – to appear in his next film project, which he initially called Demigods, later retitled as Escape Episode. Revolving partially around the occult, it was filmed in a "spooky old castle" in Hollywood, and was subsequently screened at the Coronet Theatre on North La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles. Around this time, Anger also began attending the screenings of silent films held at Clara Grossman's art gallery, through which he met a fellow filmmaker, Curtis Harrington, with whom he formed Creative Film Associates (CFA). Harrington is said to have introduced Anger to the work of Aleister Crowley. Crowley's philosophy of Thelema would exert a profound influence on the remainder of Anger's career. CFA was founded to distribute experimental films or "underground films" such as those of Maya Deren, John and James Whitney, as well as Anger's and Harrington's.
In high school, Anger started to become interested in the occult, which he had first indirectly encountered through reading L. Frank Baum's Oz books as a child, with their accompanying Rosicrucian philosophies. Kenneth was very interested in the works of the French ceremonial magician Eliphas Levi, as well as Sir James Frazer's The Golden Bough, although his favorite writings were those of the English occultist Aleister Crowley. Crowley had founded a religion known as Thelema based upon a spiritual experience that he had in Egypt in 1904, in which he claimed a being known as Aiwass had contacted him and recited to him The Book of the Law. Subsequent to his exposure to Crowley, Anger converted to Thelema.
1947–49: Fireworks and early career
As Anger discovered his homosexuality, at a time when homosexual acts were still illegal in the United States, he began associating with the underground gay scene. At some point in the mid-1940s, he was arrested by the police in a "homosexual entrapment", after which he decided to move out of his parents' home, gaining his own sparse apartment largely financed by his grandmother, and abandoning the name Anglemyer in favor of Anger. He started attending the University of Southern California, where he studied cinema, and also began experimenting with the use of mind-altering drugs like cannabis and peyote. It was then that he decided to produce a film that would deal with his sexuality, just as other gay avant-garde film makers like Willard Maas were doing in that decade. The result was the short film Fireworks, which was created in 1947 but only exhibited publicly in 1948.
Upon release of the work, Anger was arrested on obscenity charges. He was acquitted, after the case went to the Supreme Court of California, which deemed it to be art rather than pornography. Anger made the claim to have been seventeen years old when he made it, despite the fact that he was actually twenty, presumably to present himself as more of an enfant terrible. A homoerotic work lasting only 14 minutes, Fireworks revolves around a young man (played by Anger himself) associating with various navy sailors, who eventually turn on him, stripping him naked and beating him to death, ripping open his chest to find a compass inside. Several fireworks then explode, accompanied by a burning Christmas tree and the final shot shows the young man lying in bed next to another shirtless man. Of this film, Anger would later state in 1966 that "This flick is all I have to say about being 17, the United States Navy, American Christmas and the fourth of July." He would continuously alter and adapt the film up until 1980, with it finally being distributed on VHS in 1986.
One of the first people to buy a copy of Fireworks was the sexologist Dr. Alfred Kinsey of the Institute for Sex Research. He and Anger struck up a friendship that would last until the doctor's death, during which time Anger aided Kinsey in his research. According to Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis, Kinsey became a "father figure" whom Anger "could both interact with and emulate." Meanwhile, in 1949 Anger began work on a film called Puce Women, which unlike Fireworks was filmed in color. It starred Yvonne Marquis as a glamorous woman going about her daily life; Anger would later state that "Puce Women was my love affair with Hollywood ... with all the great goddesses of the silent screen. They were to be filmed in their homes; I was, in effect, filming ghosts." A lack of funding meant that only one scene was ever produced, which was eventually released under the title Puce Moment. That same year, Anger directed The Love That Whirls, a film based upon Aztec human sacrifice but, because of the nudity that it contained, it was destroyed by technicians at the film lab, who deemed it to be obscene.
1950–53: France, Rabbit's Moon and Eaux d'Artifice
In 1950, Anger moved to Paris, France, where he initially stayed with friends of his (who themselves had been forced to leave Hollywood after being blacklisted for formerly having belonged to trade union organisations). He would later remark that he travelled to the country after receiving a letter from the French director Jean Cocteau in which he told Anger of his admiration for Fireworks (shown in 1949 at Festival du Film Maudit in Biarritz, France). Upon arrival, Anger and Cocteau became friends, with the Frenchman giving the young protege his permission to make a movie of his ballet The Young Man and Death, although at the time there were no financial backers for the project. While in Paris he continued producing short films; in 1950 he started filming on Rabbit's Moon, which was also known as La Lune des Lapins and revolved around a clown who was staring up at the moon, in which a rabbit lived, something found within Japanese mythology. Anger produced 20 minutes of footage at the Films du Pantheon Studio in the city before he was rushed out of the studio, leaving the film uncompleted. He stored the footage in the disorganized archives of the Cinémathèque Française, and only collected it again in 1970, when he finally finished and released Rabbit's Moon. It was at the Cinémathèque Française that he was given by the head, Henri Langlois, prints of Sergei Eisenstein's Que Viva Mexico!, which he attempted to put into Eisenstein's original order.
In 1953, he travelled to Rome, Italy where he planned to make a film about the sixteenth century occultist Cardinal d'Este. To do so, he began filming at the garden of the Villa d'Este in Tivoli, in which a lady in eighteenth century dress walked through the gardens, which featured many waterfalls (an allusion to the fact that d'Este allegedly sexually enjoyed urination), accompanied by the music of Vivaldi. This was supposedly going to be only the first of four scenes, but the others were not made; the resulting one-scene film was titled Eaux d'Artifice. As Anger's biographer Bill Landis remarked, "It's one of Anger's most tranquil works; his editing makes it soft, lush, and inviting. Eaux d'Artifice remains a secretive romp through a private garden, all for the masked figure's and the viewer-voyeur's pleasure."
1953–60: Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome and Hollywood Babylon
In 1953, soon after the production of Eaux d'Artifice, Anger's mother died and he temporarily returned to the United States in order to assist with the distribution of her estate. It was during this return that he began to once more immerse himself in the artistic scene of California, befriending the film maker Stan Brakhage, who had been inspired by Fireworks, and the two collaborated on producing a film, but it was confiscated at the film lab for obscenity and presumably destroyed. Around this time, two of Anger's friends, the couple Renate Druks and Paul Mathiesin held a party based upon the theme of "Come As Your Madness"; Anger himself attended dressed in drag as the ancient Greek goddess Hekate. The party and its many costumes inspired Anger, who produced a painting of it, and asked several of those who attended to appear in a new film that he was creating – Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome. Inauguration, which was created in 1954, was a 38-minute surrealist work featuring many Crowleyan and Thelemite themes, with many of the various characters personifying various pagan gods such as Isis, Osiris and Pan. One of the actresses in the film was Marjorie Cameron, the widow of Jack Parsons, the influential American Thelemite who had died a few years previously, while Anger himself played Hecate. He would subsequently exhibit the film at various European film festivals, winning the Prix du Ciné-Club Belge and the Prix de l'Age d'Or, as well as screening it in the form of a projected triptych at Expo 58, the World Fair held in Brussels in 1958.
In 1955, Anger and his friend Alfred Kinsey traveled to the derelict Abbey of Thelema in Cefalù, Sicily, to film a short documentary titled Thelema Abbey. The abbey itself had been used by Aleister Crowley for his commune during the 1920s, and Anger restored many of the erotic wall-paintings that were found there, as well as performing certain Crowleyan rituals at the site. The documentary was made for the British television series Omnibus, but was later lost. The following year Kinsey died and Anger decided to return to Paris, where he was described at the time as being "extremely remote and lonely".
In desperate need of money, Anger and ghostwriter Elliott Stein wrote a book titled Hollywood Babylon in which he collected together gossip regarding celebrities, some of which he claims he had been told. This included claiming (with no corroboration or citing of sources) that Rudolph Valentino liked to play a sexually submissive role to dominant women, that Walt Disney was a drug user, addicted to opiates (reflected in the character of Goofy, who's perpetually stoned on cannabis), as well as describing the nature of the deaths of Peg Entwistle and Lupe Vélez. The work was not published in the United States initially, and it was first released by the French publisher Jean-Jacques Pauvert. A pirated (and incomplete) version was first published in the U.S. in 1965, with the official American version not being published until 1974. Now with some financial backing from the publication of Hollywood Babylon, his next film project was The Story of O; it was essentially a piece of erotica featuring a heterosexual couple engaged in sadomasochistic sexual activities, although it refrained from showing any explicit sexual images.
1961–65: Scorpio Rising and Kustom Kar Kommandos
In 1961, Anger once more returned to America, where he lived for a time with Marjorie Cameron. Meanwhile, he began work on a new feature, a film about the emerging biker subculture, which he titled Scorpio Rising. For this, he employed a biker named Richard McAuley, and filmed him and some of his friends messing around, adding to it scenes of McAuley, or "Scorpio" as he became known, desecrating a derelict church. Anger incorporated more controversial visuals into the piece, including Nazi iconography, nudity, and clips of the life of Jesus Christ taken from Family Films' The Living Bible: Last Journey to Jerusalem. In Scorpio Rising, Anger intercuts images of Christ from the cheap religious film with those of Scorpio. The whole film has a soundtrack made up of popular 1960s songs, including "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton, "Torture" by Kris Jensen and "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March. Anger himself described the film as "a death mirror held up to American culture ... Thanatos in chrome, black leather, and bursting jeans." It immediately became popular on the underground cinema scene although was soon brought to court with complaints claiming that it was obscene. The jury ruled in favor of the prosecutors, and Scorpio Rising was banned, although this ban was subsequently overturned on appeal to the California State Supreme Court.
With Scorpio Rising finished and Anger now living in San Francisco, he went to the Ford Foundation, which had just started a program of giving out grants to filmmakers. He showed them his ideas for a new artistic short, titled Kustom Kar Kommandos, which they approved of, and gave him a grant of $10,000. However, Anger spent much of the money on living expenses and making alterations to some of his earlier films, meaning that by the time he actually created Kustom Kar Kommandos, it was only one scene long. This homoerotic film involved various shots of a young man polishing a drag strip racing car, accompanied with a pink background and the song "Dream Lover" by The Paris Sisters. Soon after, Anger struck a deal that allowed Hollywood Babylon to be officially published in the United States for the first time, where it proved a success, selling two million copies during the 1960s, and around the same time Anger also translated Lo Duca's History of Eroticism into English for American publication.
1966–69: The hippie movement and Invocation of My Demon Brother
The mid-1960s saw the emergence of the hippie scene and the increasing use of the mind-altering drugs that Anger himself had been using for many years. In particular, the hallucinogen LSD, which at the time was still legal in the United States, was very popular, and in 1966 Anger released a version of his earlier film, Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome titled the "Sacred Mushroom Edition" which was screened to people while taking LSD, thereby heightening their sensory experience. By this time, Anger had become well known throughout the underground scene in the United States, and several cinemas across the country screened his better known films all in one event. With this growing fame, Anger began to react to publicity in much the same way as his idol Aleister Crowley had done, for instance describing himself as "the most monstrous moviemaker in the underground", a pun on the fact that Crowley had been labelled "the wickedest man in the world" by the British tabloids in the 1920s. Anger's fame on the underground circuit allowed him to increasingly associate with other celebrities, including Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan who named Anger as godfather to Zeena Schreck (LaVey's daughter). Despite Anger and LaVey's differing philosophies, the two became good friends and would remain so for many years. However, Anger also held a resentment towards certain celebrities, namely Andy Warhol, who at the time was achieving success not only in the art world but also in the underground film scene. In 1980, Anger threw paint over the front door of a house that Warhol had recently moved out of.
In 1966, Anger moved into the ground floor of a large nineteenth-century Victorian house in San Francisco known as the Russian Embassy. Around this time he began planning a new film titled Lucifer Rising echoing his Thelemite beliefs about the emerging Aeon of Horus. He tattooed the name of Lucifer upon his chest and began searching for a young man who could symbolically become Lucifer, "the Crowned and Conquering Child" of the new Aeon, for Lucifer Rising. While living at the Russian Embassy, he met and lived with various young men who could fit the position. Finally, he settled upon Bobby Beausoleil for the role of Lucifer. Beausoleil founded a band, the Magic Powerhouse of Oz, in order to record the music for the film. In 1967, Anger said that the footage which he had been filming for Lucifer Rising had been stolen, placing the blame on Beausoleil, who would deny the claims. Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis quotes Beausoleil who states, "what had happened was that Kenneth had spent all the money that was invested in Lucifer Rising" and that he therefore invented the story to satisfy the film's creditors. Beausoleil and Anger fell out, with the former getting involved with Charles Manson and his cult, the Family, eventually carrying out Manson's bidding by torturing and murdering Gary Hinman.
In the October 26, 1967 issue of Village Voice, Anger publicly reinvented himself by placing a full-page advert declaring "In Memoriam. Kenneth Anger. Filmmaker 1947–1967". He soon publicly reappeared, this time to claim that he had burned all of his early work. The following year he travelled to London where he first met John Paul Getty, Jr., who became Anger's patron, and where he also met and befriended Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, members of The Rolling Stones, as well as actress/model Anita Pallenberg. Anger then decided to use much of the footage created for Lucifer Rising in a new film of his, Invocation of My Demon Brother, which starred Beausoleil, LaVey, Jagger and Richards, as well as Anger himself, and the music for which had been composed by Jagger. It was released in 1969, and explored many of the Thelemic themes that Anger had originally intended for Lucifer Rising. Author Gary Lachman believes the film "inaugurat[ed] the midnight movie cult at the Elgin Theatre." The story of the film, its making, and the people involved are the inspiration for the novel Sway, by Zachary Lazar.
1970–81: Lucifer Rising
Having used up much of the footage originally intended for Lucifer Rising for Invocation of My Demon Brother, Anger again set about to create "Lucifer Rising", a symbolic analogy of the coming Aeon of Horus as prophesied in the Thelemic sacred text, The Book of the Law. Anger persuaded the singer and actress Marianne Faithfull to appear in it. He also tried to convince his friend Mick Jagger to play the part of Lucifer in the film but Jagger refused. Instead he offered his brother Chris for the part. Anger accepted, but was not happy about it. Anger subsequently filmed eight minutes of film and showed it to the British National Film Finance Corporation who agreed to provide £15,000 in order for Anger to complete it – something that caused a level of outrage in the British press. With this money, he could afford to fly the cast and crew to both Germany and Egypt for filming. Anger befriended Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page around this time, the two sharing a great interest in Crowley. At Page's invitation, Anger travelled to Page's new home, Crowley's former residence Boleskine House located on the shores of Loch Ness in Scotland, to help the musician exorcise the building of what Page believed to be a headless man's ghost. Page subsequently agreed to produce the soundtrack for Lucifer Rising, and used the editing suite which was in the basement of his London home to shape the music which he produced. Anger later fell out with Page's partner Charlotte, who kicked him out of the house. In retaliation, Anger called a press conference in which he ridiculed Page and threatened to "throw a Kenneth Anger curse" on him. Page's music was dumped from the film and replaced in 1979 by music written and recorded by the imprisoned Bobby Beausoleil, with whom Anger had reconciled.
Meanwhile, Anger, who moved to a small apartment on the upper east side of Manhattan, took the footage that he had filmed for Rabbit's Moon in the 1950s, finally releasing the film in 1972, and again in a shorter version in 1979. Around the same time he also added a new soundtrack to Puce Moment and re-released it. It was also around this time that the publisher Marvin Miller produced a low budget documentary film based on Hollywood Babylon without Anger's permission, which upset Anger and led to a lawsuit. He also created a short film titled Senators in Bondage which was only available to private collectors and which has never been made publicly available, and had plans to make a film about Aleister Crowley titled The Wickedest Man in the World, but this project never got off the ground. In 1980, he holidayed with his friend, the playwright Tennessee Williams.
It was in 1981, a decade after starting the project, that he finally finished and released the 30-minute-long Lucifer Rising. Based upon the Thelemite concept that mankind had entered a new period known as the Aeon of Horus, Lucifer Rising was full of occult symbolism, starring Miriam Gibril as the Ancient Egyptian goddess Isis and Donald Cammell as her consort Osiris, as well as Marianne Faithfull as Jewish mythological figure Lilith and Leslie Huggins as Lucifer himself. Anger once again appeared in the film, starring as the Magus, the same role that he played in Invocation to My Demon Brother. He had surrealistically combined the roles that these characters played with footage of volcanoes, various ancient Egyptian temples and a Crowleyan adept reading from the man's texts.
1982–99: Retirement
Soon after the release of Lucifer Rising, a PBS documentary of Anger and his films was made, titled Kenneth Anger's Magick, which was directed by Kit Fitzgerald, who later recalled interviewing him in his New York flat on a very hot July evening, during which Anger revealed that he was so broke that he had been forced to sell his air conditioner. Anger himself considered producing other films that would continue on from Lucifer Rising in a series, and he began referring to his finished film as "Part I: Sign Language", to be followed by two further parts. Nonetheless, these projects would never be finished, and Anger himself would not produce any further films for nearly two decades. In need of money, Anger subsequently released Hollywood Babylon II in 1984, as well as continuing to screen his films at various festivals and at universities, and continuing to attempt to produce Lucifer Rising II; around this time he began wearing an eyepatch to these public events, something likely due to him having been beaten up and getting a bruised eye, a story that he would bring up in various interviews, although partly changing who it was who had beaten him up in various versions of the story. In 1984, a notorious incident occurred when Anger was invited to appear on The Coca Crystal Show, however upon arriving at the studio he demanded that somebody pay for his taxi ride there, and when they refused, he attacked the talent coordinator Maureen Ivice and tried to drag her into his taxi, before she was rescued by other members of staff – Anger reportedly escaped the scene by flinging a $100 bill at the cab driver and screaming "GET ME OUT OF HERE!"
In 1986, he sold the video rights to his films, which finally appeared on VHS, allowing them to have greater publicity. The following year he attended the Avignon Film Festival in France where his work was being celebrated in commemoration of the fortieth anniversary of Fireworks. Soon after this, he appeared in Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon, a BBC documentary for the Arena series directed by Nigel Finch. In 1991, Anger moved to West Arenas Boulevard in Palm Springs, California, living in what was formerly the estate of his good friend Ruby Keeler where the British Film Institute sent Rebecca Wood to assist him in writing an autobiography, which was never actually produced. Instead, in 1995, Bill Landis, who had been an associate of Anger's in the early 1980s, wrote an unofficial biography of him, which Anger himself condemned, describing Landis as "an avowed enemy".
In 1993, Anger visited Sydney and lectured at a season of his films at the Australian Film Institute Cinema in Paddington. In an interview given at the time with Black and White magazine, Anger said he was staying in King's Cross and was putting the finishing touches to the final treatment on a feature film about Australian artist and occultist Rosaleen Norton. This project was unrealised.
2000–present: Return to filmmaking
For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls.
Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London.
Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to sue those making accusations against them.
Themes
Several recurring themes can be seen within Anger's cinematic work. One of the most notable of these is homoeroticism; this was first seen in Fireworks (1947), which was based around Anger's own homosexual awakening, and featured various navy officers flexing their muscles, and a white liquid (often thought of as symbolising semen), pouring over the protagonist's body. Similar homoerotic imagery is found in Scorpio Rising (1963), which stars a muscled, topless, leather-clad biker, and Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), where a young man sensually polishes a car, with close up shots of his tight-fitting jeans and crotch. Images of naked men also appear in Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969), where they are eventually filmed wrestling, and in Anger Sees Red (2004), in which a muscled, topless man performs press-ups.
Another recurring theme in Anger's films is that of the occult, particularly the symbolism of his own esoteric religion, Thelema. This is visible in Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, Invocation of My Demon Brother and Lucifer Rising, all of which are based around the Thelemite concept of the Aeon of Horus and feature actors portraying various pagan gods. Anger himself linked the creation of film to the occult, particularly the practice of ceremonial magic, something that Aleister Crowley had been a noted practitioner of, and Anger once stated that "making a movie is casting a spell."
One of the central recurring images found in Anger's work is the concept of flames and light; in Fireworks there are various examples of this, including a burning Christmas tree, and it subsequently appears in many of his other works as well. This relates to the concept of Lucifer, a deity whom Anger devoted one of his films to, and whose name is Latin for "light bearer".
In many of his films, heavy use is made of music, both classical and pop, to accompany the visual imagery. For instance, in Scorpio Rising he makes use of the 1950s pop songs "Torture" by Kris Jensen, "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March and "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton. He first used music to accompany visuals in the 1941 work Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat?, where he used tracks by the Mills Brothers. His use of popular music to accompany his films has been cited as a key influence on the development of music videos and of MTV, although he has stated his dislike for the whole music video industry. On one occasion the band Combustible Edison asked him if he would direct a video to accompany their song "Bluebeard" but he declined the offer, believing that while music could be used to accompany film, it was pointless to do it the other way around.
Awards
Maya Deren Award, 1996
Silver Lake Film Festival Spirit of Silver Lake Award (2000)
San Francisco International Film Festival Golden Gate Persistence of Vision Award (2001)
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Douglas Edwards Independent/Experimental Film/Video Award (2002), "for his body of work"; tied with Michael Snow, for *Corpus Callosum
Anthology Film Archives, Life Achievement Award (2010)
Personal life
Anger has always been an "extremely private individual," although he has given various interviews over the years, with one interviewer, David Wingrove, describing him in 2008 as "a joy. Gentle, soft-spoken, immaculately tanned, he looks a good two decades younger than his 78 years". In such interviews, he refuses to disclose information on his name change from Anglemeyer to Anger, telling an interviewer who brought the topic up in 2004 that "You're being impertinent. It says Anger on my passport, that's all you need to know. I would stay away from that subject if I were you." In a 2010 interview, however, he stated that, "I just condensed my name. I knew it would be like a label, a logo. It's easy to remember." Anger is openly gay. He once joked that he was "somewhat to the right of the KKK" in his views about black people, opening him up to criticism for racism, though this was likely a "Crowley-esque joke". He supports the Tibetan independence movement.
Anger is an acknowledged Thelemite and belongs to the main Thelemic organization, the Ordo Templi Orientis. He viewed many of the men he associated with as living embodiments of Lucifer, a symbol of the Aeon of Horus in Thelemic philosophy, and had his own name inked onto his chest with the Lucifer tattoo. Anger has shown an interest in various other religious movements, particularly those that relate in some way to occultism. For instance, Kenneth was a lifelong friend of Anton LaVey from before the founding of the Church of Satan in the 1960s and even lived with him and his family during the 1980s. LaVey also made an appearance in one of Anger's films, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) as a devilish priest. Anger describes himself as a "pagan" and refuses to consider himself to be a Satanist. He also characterized Wicca as being a "lunar", feminine religion in contrast with the "solar" masculinity of Thelema.
Filmography
Books
References
Notes
Citations
Works cited
Further reading
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008). Cinema, Messianism and Crime, Parkett 83, pp. 197-205.
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008), 1000 WORDS; KENNETH ANGER, Artforum, September, pp. 412-415.
.
External links
bentclouds.com. Essay on Kustom Kar Kommandos Non-Normative Sex in Kustom Kar Kommandos.
The Film Journal. Review of Alice Hutchison's book on Anger
Artforum 1000 Words
Esquire Kenneth Anger: Where The Bodies Are Buried, by Mick Brown.
1927 births
American experimental filmmakers
American male child actors
American Modern Pagans
American non-fiction writers
American people of German descent
American Thelemites
Film directors from California
American gay actors
Gay artists
American gay writers
LGBT film directors
LGBT people from California
LGBT screenwriters
LGBT writers from the United States
Living people
Male actors from Santa Monica, California
Psychedelic drug advocates
Writers from Santa Monica, California
American people of English descent | true | [
"Lee Smith, ACE, (born June 10, 1960) is an Australian film editor who has worked in the film industry since the 1980s. He began his film career as a sound editor before establishing himself as an editor. His breakthrough came when he began collaborating with director Peter Weir. Smith is best known for his work on several of Christopher Nolan's films, including Batman Begins (2005), The Dark Knight (2008), Inception (2010), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Interstellar (2014) and Dunkirk (2017), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Film Editing.\n\nLife and career\nSmith was born in Harefield, Middlesex. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Film Editing for Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2004) and The Dark Knight (2008). He was also nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Editing for The Dark Knight and for Inception (2010). He was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Sound for The Piano (1993). He began his career as a sound editor/sound designer for films such as Dead Calm (1989), The Piano (1993) (for which he was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Sound), The Portrait of a Lady (1996) and Holy Smoke! (1999). Smith was also editing films during this interval; he was one of the editors for RoboCop 2 (1990).\n\nHe began his notable collaboration with director Peter Weir on the 1982 film The Year of Living Dangerously, on which he was an associate editor working with Weir's longtime editor William M. Anderson. He was credited as a co-editor with Anderson for Fearless (1993) and for The Truman Show (1998). He was the sole editor for Weir's Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003), for which Smith was nominated for the Academy Award for Film Editing and for an \"Eddie Award\" from the American Cinema Editors.\n\nMore recently, Smith has edited seven films with director Christopher Nolan. He was nominated for a second Academy Award and American Cinema Editors Award for The Dark Knight (2008). In 2010, he received another nomination for the American Cinema Editors Award for his editing work on Inception; Inception was listed as the 35th best-edited film of all time in a 2012 survey of members of the Motion Picture Editors Guild. In 2018, he received an Academy Award for his work on Nolan's Dunkirk.\n\nFilmography\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nAmerican Cinema Editors\nAustralian film editors\nBest Film Editing Academy Award winners\nLiving people\n1960 births\nAmerican film editors",
"Johan Söderqvist (born 11 February 1966) is a Swedish film score composer.\n\nPersonal life \nJohan Söderqvist was born in Täby, outside Stockholm in Sweden, he attended the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, studying composition and arranging.\n\nCareer \nSöderqvist was a keyboard player in many different jazz bands and folk music groups and has toured extensively around the world before concentrating his activities on composition for film, television, radio and theatre.\n\nHe wrote his first film score for Agnes Cecilia in 1991 and since then he has written numerous scores for film and television, including nine scores for films directed by the acclaimed Danish director Susanne Bier. Among those titles are the award-winning score for Brothers (2004), After the Wedding (2006) and Things We Lost in the Fire (2007), where he collaborated with Academy Award-winning composer Gustavo Santaolalla, and most recently the Best Foreign Language Oscar-winning In a Better World (2010) . He has also made a prize-winning score to Tomas Alfredson film Let the Right One In (2008) and the music to the Oscar-nominated Norwegian film Kon-Tiki (2012).\n\nIn 2005 and 2009, Söderqvist was nominated as Best Composer by the European Film Academy for his Brothers (2004) and Let the Right One In (2008) scores. The Brothers score was also awarded for Best Film Music in Cannes as well as the 'Rencontres cinématographiques de Cannes' Award for Best Music in Film. Söderqvist also was one of the main composers of 2016 video game Battlefield 1 and Battlefield V. His latest work was on the Norwegian film Amundsen, which was released in February 2019.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nOfficial Johan Söderqvist website\n\n1966 births\nSwedish composers\nSwedish male composers\nSwedish film score composers\nMale film score composers\nLiving people\nVarèse Sarabande Records artists"
]
|
[
"Kenneth Anger",
"2000-present: Return to filmmaking",
"Why did he return?",
"I don't know.",
"What was his first project back in to film making?",
"Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette,",
"did it do well?",
"I don't know.",
"Did he relased any other film works?",
"followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang,",
"What was his best film work recently?",
"Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it,"
]
| C_c583f69dfee641ab893b517127b42e26_0 | Did he have any recent films? | 6 | Did Kenneth Anger have any recent films in addition to Hollywood Babylon III? | Kenneth Anger | For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls. Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London. Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to heavily sue those making accusations against them. CANNOTANSWER | 2009 short film "Night of Pan | Kenneth Anger (born Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer, February 3, 1927) is an American underground experimental filmmaker, actor, and author. Working exclusively in short films, he has produced almost forty works since 1937, nine of which have been grouped together as the "Magick Lantern Cycle". His films variously merge surrealism with homoeroticism and the occult, and have been described as containing "elements of erotica, documentary, psychodrama, and spectacle". Anger himself has been described as "one of America's first openly gay filmmakers, and certainly the first whose work addressed homosexuality in an undisguised, self-implicating manner", and his "role in rendering gay culture visible within American cinema, commercial or otherwise, is impossible to overestimate", with several being released prior to the legalization of homosexual acts between consenting adults in the United States. He has also focused upon occult themes in many of his films, being fascinated by the English gnostic mage and poet Aleister Crowley, and is an adherent of Thelema, the religion Crowley founded.
Born to a middle-class Christian Presbyterian family in Santa Monica, California, Anger would later claim to have been a child actor who appeared in the film A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935); the accuracy of this claim has come under dispute. He began making short films when he was ten years old, although his first film to gain any recognition, the homoerotic Fireworks (1947), would only be produced a decade later. The controversial nature of the work led to him being put on trial on obscenity charges, but he was acquitted. A friendship and working relationship began subsequently with pioneering sexologist Alfred Kinsey. Moving to Europe, Anger produced a number of other shorts inspired by the artistic avant-garde scene on the continent, such as Rabbit's Moon (released 1971) and Eaux d'Artifice (1953).
Returning to the United States in 1953, he set about working on several new projects, including the films Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954), Scorpio Rising (1964), Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), and the gossip book Hollywood Babylon (1965). The latter would become infamous for various dubious and sensationalist claims, many of which were later disproven, though some do remain as urban legends. Getting to know several notable countercultural figures of the time, including Tennessee Williams, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jimmy Page, Marianne Faithfull and Anton LaVey, Anger involved them in his subsequent Thelemite-themed works, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) and Lucifer Rising (1972). Following his failure to produce a sequel to Lucifer Rising, which he attempted through the mid-1980s, Anger retired from filmmaking, instead focusing on Hollywood Babylon II (1984). At the dawn of the 21st century he once more returned to filmmaking, producing shorts for various film festivals and events.
Anger has described filmmakers such as Auguste and Louis Lumière, Georges Méliès, and Maya Deren as influences, and has been cited as an important influence on later film directors like Martin Scorsese, David Lynch and John Waters. He has also been described as having "a profound impact on the work of many other filmmakers and artists, as well as on music video as an emergent art form using dream sequence, dance, fantasy, and narrative".
Biography
1927–35: Early life
Anger was born in Santa Monica, California, as Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer on February 3, 1927. Despite his family being Presbyterians, he became more interested in the occult. His father, Wilbur Anglemyer, was of German ancestry, and had been born in Troy, Ohio, while his disabled mother, Lillian Coler (who was the older of the pair), claimed English ancestry. The pair had met at the Ohio State University and after marrying had their first child, Jean Anglemyer, in 1918, followed by a second, Robert "Bob" Anglemyer, in 1921. That year they moved to Santa Monica to be near Lillian's mother, Bertha Coler, who herself had recently moved there. It was here where Wilbur got a job working as an electrical engineer at Douglas Aircraft, bringing in enough money so that they could live comfortably as a middle-class family.
Kenneth, their third and final child, was born in 1927, but growing up he would fail to get along with either his parents or his siblings. His brother Bob later claimed that being the youngest child, Kenneth had been spoilt by his mother and grandmother, and as such had become somewhat "bratty." His grandmother, Bertha, was a big influence on the young Kenneth, and indeed helped to maintain the family financially during the Great Depression of the 1930s. It was she who first took Kenneth to the cinema, to see a double bill of The Singing Fool and Thunder Over Mexico and also encouraged his artistic interests. She herself later moved into a house in Hollywood with another woman, Miss Diggy, who equally encouraged Kenneth. He developed an early interest in film, and enjoyed reading the movie tie-in Big Little books. He would later relate that "I was a child prodigy who never got smarter." He retrospected his attendance at the Santa Monica Cotillon where child stars were encouraged to mix with non-famous children and through this met Shirley Temple, with whom he danced on one occasion.
It was in 1935, he would later claim, that Anger had the chance to appear in a Hollywood film, taking the role of the Changeling Prince in the 1935 Warner Brothers film A Midsummer Night's Dream. Set photographs and studio production reports (on file in the Warner Brothers collection at University of Southern California, and the Warner Bros. collection of studio key books at George Eastman House in Rochester, New York) in fact contradict Anger's claims, conclusively proving that the character was played by a girl named Sheila Brown. Anger's unofficial biographer, Bill Landis, remarked in 1995 that the Changeling Prince was definitely "Anger as a child; visually, he's immediately recognizable".
1937–46: First films
Anger's first film was created in 1937, when he was ten years old. The short, titled Ferdinand the Bull, had been shot on the remains of 16 mm film that had been left unused after the Anglemyer's had made home movies with it on a family vacation to Yosemite National Park,. In Ferdinand the Bull, which has never been made publicly available, Kenneth dressed as a matador, wearing a cape, while two of his friends from the Boy Scouts played the bull. His second work, Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat, which Anger himself often considers to be his first proper film, was made from footage of children playing during the summer, accompanied with popular songs by bands, including the Ink Spots. Anger had created Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat in 1941, when he was fourteen, shortly before the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent entry of the United States into the Second World War. The following year he produced another amateur film, Prisoner of Mars, which was heavily influenced by Flash Gordon. In this science fiction-inspired feature, in which he played the protagonist, he added elements taken from the Greek mythological myth of the Minotaur and constructed a small volcano in his back yard to create a home-made special effect. Many of these early films are considered lost, with Anger burning much of his previous work in 1967.
In 1944, the Anglemyers moved to Hollywood to move in with family, and Kenneth began attending Beverly Hills High School. It was here, he met Maxine Peterson, who had once been the stand-in for Shirley Temple, and he asked her – alongside another classmate and an older woman – to appear in his next film project, which he initially called Demigods, later retitled as Escape Episode. Revolving partially around the occult, it was filmed in a "spooky old castle" in Hollywood, and was subsequently screened at the Coronet Theatre on North La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles. Around this time, Anger also began attending the screenings of silent films held at Clara Grossman's art gallery, through which he met a fellow filmmaker, Curtis Harrington, with whom he formed Creative Film Associates (CFA). Harrington is said to have introduced Anger to the work of Aleister Crowley. Crowley's philosophy of Thelema would exert a profound influence on the remainder of Anger's career. CFA was founded to distribute experimental films or "underground films" such as those of Maya Deren, John and James Whitney, as well as Anger's and Harrington's.
In high school, Anger started to become interested in the occult, which he had first indirectly encountered through reading L. Frank Baum's Oz books as a child, with their accompanying Rosicrucian philosophies. Kenneth was very interested in the works of the French ceremonial magician Eliphas Levi, as well as Sir James Frazer's The Golden Bough, although his favorite writings were those of the English occultist Aleister Crowley. Crowley had founded a religion known as Thelema based upon a spiritual experience that he had in Egypt in 1904, in which he claimed a being known as Aiwass had contacted him and recited to him The Book of the Law. Subsequent to his exposure to Crowley, Anger converted to Thelema.
1947–49: Fireworks and early career
As Anger discovered his homosexuality, at a time when homosexual acts were still illegal in the United States, he began associating with the underground gay scene. At some point in the mid-1940s, he was arrested by the police in a "homosexual entrapment", after which he decided to move out of his parents' home, gaining his own sparse apartment largely financed by his grandmother, and abandoning the name Anglemyer in favor of Anger. He started attending the University of Southern California, where he studied cinema, and also began experimenting with the use of mind-altering drugs like cannabis and peyote. It was then that he decided to produce a film that would deal with his sexuality, just as other gay avant-garde film makers like Willard Maas were doing in that decade. The result was the short film Fireworks, which was created in 1947 but only exhibited publicly in 1948.
Upon release of the work, Anger was arrested on obscenity charges. He was acquitted, after the case went to the Supreme Court of California, which deemed it to be art rather than pornography. Anger made the claim to have been seventeen years old when he made it, despite the fact that he was actually twenty, presumably to present himself as more of an enfant terrible. A homoerotic work lasting only 14 minutes, Fireworks revolves around a young man (played by Anger himself) associating with various navy sailors, who eventually turn on him, stripping him naked and beating him to death, ripping open his chest to find a compass inside. Several fireworks then explode, accompanied by a burning Christmas tree and the final shot shows the young man lying in bed next to another shirtless man. Of this film, Anger would later state in 1966 that "This flick is all I have to say about being 17, the United States Navy, American Christmas and the fourth of July." He would continuously alter and adapt the film up until 1980, with it finally being distributed on VHS in 1986.
One of the first people to buy a copy of Fireworks was the sexologist Dr. Alfred Kinsey of the Institute for Sex Research. He and Anger struck up a friendship that would last until the doctor's death, during which time Anger aided Kinsey in his research. According to Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis, Kinsey became a "father figure" whom Anger "could both interact with and emulate." Meanwhile, in 1949 Anger began work on a film called Puce Women, which unlike Fireworks was filmed in color. It starred Yvonne Marquis as a glamorous woman going about her daily life; Anger would later state that "Puce Women was my love affair with Hollywood ... with all the great goddesses of the silent screen. They were to be filmed in their homes; I was, in effect, filming ghosts." A lack of funding meant that only one scene was ever produced, which was eventually released under the title Puce Moment. That same year, Anger directed The Love That Whirls, a film based upon Aztec human sacrifice but, because of the nudity that it contained, it was destroyed by technicians at the film lab, who deemed it to be obscene.
1950–53: France, Rabbit's Moon and Eaux d'Artifice
In 1950, Anger moved to Paris, France, where he initially stayed with friends of his (who themselves had been forced to leave Hollywood after being blacklisted for formerly having belonged to trade union organisations). He would later remark that he travelled to the country after receiving a letter from the French director Jean Cocteau in which he told Anger of his admiration for Fireworks (shown in 1949 at Festival du Film Maudit in Biarritz, France). Upon arrival, Anger and Cocteau became friends, with the Frenchman giving the young protege his permission to make a movie of his ballet The Young Man and Death, although at the time there were no financial backers for the project. While in Paris he continued producing short films; in 1950 he started filming on Rabbit's Moon, which was also known as La Lune des Lapins and revolved around a clown who was staring up at the moon, in which a rabbit lived, something found within Japanese mythology. Anger produced 20 minutes of footage at the Films du Pantheon Studio in the city before he was rushed out of the studio, leaving the film uncompleted. He stored the footage in the disorganized archives of the Cinémathèque Française, and only collected it again in 1970, when he finally finished and released Rabbit's Moon. It was at the Cinémathèque Française that he was given by the head, Henri Langlois, prints of Sergei Eisenstein's Que Viva Mexico!, which he attempted to put into Eisenstein's original order.
In 1953, he travelled to Rome, Italy where he planned to make a film about the sixteenth century occultist Cardinal d'Este. To do so, he began filming at the garden of the Villa d'Este in Tivoli, in which a lady in eighteenth century dress walked through the gardens, which featured many waterfalls (an allusion to the fact that d'Este allegedly sexually enjoyed urination), accompanied by the music of Vivaldi. This was supposedly going to be only the first of four scenes, but the others were not made; the resulting one-scene film was titled Eaux d'Artifice. As Anger's biographer Bill Landis remarked, "It's one of Anger's most tranquil works; his editing makes it soft, lush, and inviting. Eaux d'Artifice remains a secretive romp through a private garden, all for the masked figure's and the viewer-voyeur's pleasure."
1953–60: Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome and Hollywood Babylon
In 1953, soon after the production of Eaux d'Artifice, Anger's mother died and he temporarily returned to the United States in order to assist with the distribution of her estate. It was during this return that he began to once more immerse himself in the artistic scene of California, befriending the film maker Stan Brakhage, who had been inspired by Fireworks, and the two collaborated on producing a film, but it was confiscated at the film lab for obscenity and presumably destroyed. Around this time, two of Anger's friends, the couple Renate Druks and Paul Mathiesin held a party based upon the theme of "Come As Your Madness"; Anger himself attended dressed in drag as the ancient Greek goddess Hekate. The party and its many costumes inspired Anger, who produced a painting of it, and asked several of those who attended to appear in a new film that he was creating – Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome. Inauguration, which was created in 1954, was a 38-minute surrealist work featuring many Crowleyan and Thelemite themes, with many of the various characters personifying various pagan gods such as Isis, Osiris and Pan. One of the actresses in the film was Marjorie Cameron, the widow of Jack Parsons, the influential American Thelemite who had died a few years previously, while Anger himself played Hecate. He would subsequently exhibit the film at various European film festivals, winning the Prix du Ciné-Club Belge and the Prix de l'Age d'Or, as well as screening it in the form of a projected triptych at Expo 58, the World Fair held in Brussels in 1958.
In 1955, Anger and his friend Alfred Kinsey traveled to the derelict Abbey of Thelema in Cefalù, Sicily, to film a short documentary titled Thelema Abbey. The abbey itself had been used by Aleister Crowley for his commune during the 1920s, and Anger restored many of the erotic wall-paintings that were found there, as well as performing certain Crowleyan rituals at the site. The documentary was made for the British television series Omnibus, but was later lost. The following year Kinsey died and Anger decided to return to Paris, where he was described at the time as being "extremely remote and lonely".
In desperate need of money, Anger and ghostwriter Elliott Stein wrote a book titled Hollywood Babylon in which he collected together gossip regarding celebrities, some of which he claims he had been told. This included claiming (with no corroboration or citing of sources) that Rudolph Valentino liked to play a sexually submissive role to dominant women, that Walt Disney was a drug user, addicted to opiates (reflected in the character of Goofy, who's perpetually stoned on cannabis), as well as describing the nature of the deaths of Peg Entwistle and Lupe Vélez. The work was not published in the United States initially, and it was first released by the French publisher Jean-Jacques Pauvert. A pirated (and incomplete) version was first published in the U.S. in 1965, with the official American version not being published until 1974. Now with some financial backing from the publication of Hollywood Babylon, his next film project was The Story of O; it was essentially a piece of erotica featuring a heterosexual couple engaged in sadomasochistic sexual activities, although it refrained from showing any explicit sexual images.
1961–65: Scorpio Rising and Kustom Kar Kommandos
In 1961, Anger once more returned to America, where he lived for a time with Marjorie Cameron. Meanwhile, he began work on a new feature, a film about the emerging biker subculture, which he titled Scorpio Rising. For this, he employed a biker named Richard McAuley, and filmed him and some of his friends messing around, adding to it scenes of McAuley, or "Scorpio" as he became known, desecrating a derelict church. Anger incorporated more controversial visuals into the piece, including Nazi iconography, nudity, and clips of the life of Jesus Christ taken from Family Films' The Living Bible: Last Journey to Jerusalem. In Scorpio Rising, Anger intercuts images of Christ from the cheap religious film with those of Scorpio. The whole film has a soundtrack made up of popular 1960s songs, including "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton, "Torture" by Kris Jensen and "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March. Anger himself described the film as "a death mirror held up to American culture ... Thanatos in chrome, black leather, and bursting jeans." It immediately became popular on the underground cinema scene although was soon brought to court with complaints claiming that it was obscene. The jury ruled in favor of the prosecutors, and Scorpio Rising was banned, although this ban was subsequently overturned on appeal to the California State Supreme Court.
With Scorpio Rising finished and Anger now living in San Francisco, he went to the Ford Foundation, which had just started a program of giving out grants to filmmakers. He showed them his ideas for a new artistic short, titled Kustom Kar Kommandos, which they approved of, and gave him a grant of $10,000. However, Anger spent much of the money on living expenses and making alterations to some of his earlier films, meaning that by the time he actually created Kustom Kar Kommandos, it was only one scene long. This homoerotic film involved various shots of a young man polishing a drag strip racing car, accompanied with a pink background and the song "Dream Lover" by The Paris Sisters. Soon after, Anger struck a deal that allowed Hollywood Babylon to be officially published in the United States for the first time, where it proved a success, selling two million copies during the 1960s, and around the same time Anger also translated Lo Duca's History of Eroticism into English for American publication.
1966–69: The hippie movement and Invocation of My Demon Brother
The mid-1960s saw the emergence of the hippie scene and the increasing use of the mind-altering drugs that Anger himself had been using for many years. In particular, the hallucinogen LSD, which at the time was still legal in the United States, was very popular, and in 1966 Anger released a version of his earlier film, Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome titled the "Sacred Mushroom Edition" which was screened to people while taking LSD, thereby heightening their sensory experience. By this time, Anger had become well known throughout the underground scene in the United States, and several cinemas across the country screened his better known films all in one event. With this growing fame, Anger began to react to publicity in much the same way as his idol Aleister Crowley had done, for instance describing himself as "the most monstrous moviemaker in the underground", a pun on the fact that Crowley had been labelled "the wickedest man in the world" by the British tabloids in the 1920s. Anger's fame on the underground circuit allowed him to increasingly associate with other celebrities, including Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan who named Anger as godfather to Zeena Schreck (LaVey's daughter). Despite Anger and LaVey's differing philosophies, the two became good friends and would remain so for many years. However, Anger also held a resentment towards certain celebrities, namely Andy Warhol, who at the time was achieving success not only in the art world but also in the underground film scene. In 1980, Anger threw paint over the front door of a house that Warhol had recently moved out of.
In 1966, Anger moved into the ground floor of a large nineteenth-century Victorian house in San Francisco known as the Russian Embassy. Around this time he began planning a new film titled Lucifer Rising echoing his Thelemite beliefs about the emerging Aeon of Horus. He tattooed the name of Lucifer upon his chest and began searching for a young man who could symbolically become Lucifer, "the Crowned and Conquering Child" of the new Aeon, for Lucifer Rising. While living at the Russian Embassy, he met and lived with various young men who could fit the position. Finally, he settled upon Bobby Beausoleil for the role of Lucifer. Beausoleil founded a band, the Magic Powerhouse of Oz, in order to record the music for the film. In 1967, Anger said that the footage which he had been filming for Lucifer Rising had been stolen, placing the blame on Beausoleil, who would deny the claims. Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis quotes Beausoleil who states, "what had happened was that Kenneth had spent all the money that was invested in Lucifer Rising" and that he therefore invented the story to satisfy the film's creditors. Beausoleil and Anger fell out, with the former getting involved with Charles Manson and his cult, the Family, eventually carrying out Manson's bidding by torturing and murdering Gary Hinman.
In the October 26, 1967 issue of Village Voice, Anger publicly reinvented himself by placing a full-page advert declaring "In Memoriam. Kenneth Anger. Filmmaker 1947–1967". He soon publicly reappeared, this time to claim that he had burned all of his early work. The following year he travelled to London where he first met John Paul Getty, Jr., who became Anger's patron, and where he also met and befriended Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, members of The Rolling Stones, as well as actress/model Anita Pallenberg. Anger then decided to use much of the footage created for Lucifer Rising in a new film of his, Invocation of My Demon Brother, which starred Beausoleil, LaVey, Jagger and Richards, as well as Anger himself, and the music for which had been composed by Jagger. It was released in 1969, and explored many of the Thelemic themes that Anger had originally intended for Lucifer Rising. Author Gary Lachman believes the film "inaugurat[ed] the midnight movie cult at the Elgin Theatre." The story of the film, its making, and the people involved are the inspiration for the novel Sway, by Zachary Lazar.
1970–81: Lucifer Rising
Having used up much of the footage originally intended for Lucifer Rising for Invocation of My Demon Brother, Anger again set about to create "Lucifer Rising", a symbolic analogy of the coming Aeon of Horus as prophesied in the Thelemic sacred text, The Book of the Law. Anger persuaded the singer and actress Marianne Faithfull to appear in it. He also tried to convince his friend Mick Jagger to play the part of Lucifer in the film but Jagger refused. Instead he offered his brother Chris for the part. Anger accepted, but was not happy about it. Anger subsequently filmed eight minutes of film and showed it to the British National Film Finance Corporation who agreed to provide £15,000 in order for Anger to complete it – something that caused a level of outrage in the British press. With this money, he could afford to fly the cast and crew to both Germany and Egypt for filming. Anger befriended Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page around this time, the two sharing a great interest in Crowley. At Page's invitation, Anger travelled to Page's new home, Crowley's former residence Boleskine House located on the shores of Loch Ness in Scotland, to help the musician exorcise the building of what Page believed to be a headless man's ghost. Page subsequently agreed to produce the soundtrack for Lucifer Rising, and used the editing suite which was in the basement of his London home to shape the music which he produced. Anger later fell out with Page's partner Charlotte, who kicked him out of the house. In retaliation, Anger called a press conference in which he ridiculed Page and threatened to "throw a Kenneth Anger curse" on him. Page's music was dumped from the film and replaced in 1979 by music written and recorded by the imprisoned Bobby Beausoleil, with whom Anger had reconciled.
Meanwhile, Anger, who moved to a small apartment on the upper east side of Manhattan, took the footage that he had filmed for Rabbit's Moon in the 1950s, finally releasing the film in 1972, and again in a shorter version in 1979. Around the same time he also added a new soundtrack to Puce Moment and re-released it. It was also around this time that the publisher Marvin Miller produced a low budget documentary film based on Hollywood Babylon without Anger's permission, which upset Anger and led to a lawsuit. He also created a short film titled Senators in Bondage which was only available to private collectors and which has never been made publicly available, and had plans to make a film about Aleister Crowley titled The Wickedest Man in the World, but this project never got off the ground. In 1980, he holidayed with his friend, the playwright Tennessee Williams.
It was in 1981, a decade after starting the project, that he finally finished and released the 30-minute-long Lucifer Rising. Based upon the Thelemite concept that mankind had entered a new period known as the Aeon of Horus, Lucifer Rising was full of occult symbolism, starring Miriam Gibril as the Ancient Egyptian goddess Isis and Donald Cammell as her consort Osiris, as well as Marianne Faithfull as Jewish mythological figure Lilith and Leslie Huggins as Lucifer himself. Anger once again appeared in the film, starring as the Magus, the same role that he played in Invocation to My Demon Brother. He had surrealistically combined the roles that these characters played with footage of volcanoes, various ancient Egyptian temples and a Crowleyan adept reading from the man's texts.
1982–99: Retirement
Soon after the release of Lucifer Rising, a PBS documentary of Anger and his films was made, titled Kenneth Anger's Magick, which was directed by Kit Fitzgerald, who later recalled interviewing him in his New York flat on a very hot July evening, during which Anger revealed that he was so broke that he had been forced to sell his air conditioner. Anger himself considered producing other films that would continue on from Lucifer Rising in a series, and he began referring to his finished film as "Part I: Sign Language", to be followed by two further parts. Nonetheless, these projects would never be finished, and Anger himself would not produce any further films for nearly two decades. In need of money, Anger subsequently released Hollywood Babylon II in 1984, as well as continuing to screen his films at various festivals and at universities, and continuing to attempt to produce Lucifer Rising II; around this time he began wearing an eyepatch to these public events, something likely due to him having been beaten up and getting a bruised eye, a story that he would bring up in various interviews, although partly changing who it was who had beaten him up in various versions of the story. In 1984, a notorious incident occurred when Anger was invited to appear on The Coca Crystal Show, however upon arriving at the studio he demanded that somebody pay for his taxi ride there, and when they refused, he attacked the talent coordinator Maureen Ivice and tried to drag her into his taxi, before she was rescued by other members of staff – Anger reportedly escaped the scene by flinging a $100 bill at the cab driver and screaming "GET ME OUT OF HERE!"
In 1986, he sold the video rights to his films, which finally appeared on VHS, allowing them to have greater publicity. The following year he attended the Avignon Film Festival in France where his work was being celebrated in commemoration of the fortieth anniversary of Fireworks. Soon after this, he appeared in Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon, a BBC documentary for the Arena series directed by Nigel Finch. In 1991, Anger moved to West Arenas Boulevard in Palm Springs, California, living in what was formerly the estate of his good friend Ruby Keeler where the British Film Institute sent Rebecca Wood to assist him in writing an autobiography, which was never actually produced. Instead, in 1995, Bill Landis, who had been an associate of Anger's in the early 1980s, wrote an unofficial biography of him, which Anger himself condemned, describing Landis as "an avowed enemy".
In 1993, Anger visited Sydney and lectured at a season of his films at the Australian Film Institute Cinema in Paddington. In an interview given at the time with Black and White magazine, Anger said he was staying in King's Cross and was putting the finishing touches to the final treatment on a feature film about Australian artist and occultist Rosaleen Norton. This project was unrealised.
2000–present: Return to filmmaking
For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls.
Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London.
Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to sue those making accusations against them.
Themes
Several recurring themes can be seen within Anger's cinematic work. One of the most notable of these is homoeroticism; this was first seen in Fireworks (1947), which was based around Anger's own homosexual awakening, and featured various navy officers flexing their muscles, and a white liquid (often thought of as symbolising semen), pouring over the protagonist's body. Similar homoerotic imagery is found in Scorpio Rising (1963), which stars a muscled, topless, leather-clad biker, and Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), where a young man sensually polishes a car, with close up shots of his tight-fitting jeans and crotch. Images of naked men also appear in Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969), where they are eventually filmed wrestling, and in Anger Sees Red (2004), in which a muscled, topless man performs press-ups.
Another recurring theme in Anger's films is that of the occult, particularly the symbolism of his own esoteric religion, Thelema. This is visible in Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, Invocation of My Demon Brother and Lucifer Rising, all of which are based around the Thelemite concept of the Aeon of Horus and feature actors portraying various pagan gods. Anger himself linked the creation of film to the occult, particularly the practice of ceremonial magic, something that Aleister Crowley had been a noted practitioner of, and Anger once stated that "making a movie is casting a spell."
One of the central recurring images found in Anger's work is the concept of flames and light; in Fireworks there are various examples of this, including a burning Christmas tree, and it subsequently appears in many of his other works as well. This relates to the concept of Lucifer, a deity whom Anger devoted one of his films to, and whose name is Latin for "light bearer".
In many of his films, heavy use is made of music, both classical and pop, to accompany the visual imagery. For instance, in Scorpio Rising he makes use of the 1950s pop songs "Torture" by Kris Jensen, "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March and "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton. He first used music to accompany visuals in the 1941 work Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat?, where he used tracks by the Mills Brothers. His use of popular music to accompany his films has been cited as a key influence on the development of music videos and of MTV, although he has stated his dislike for the whole music video industry. On one occasion the band Combustible Edison asked him if he would direct a video to accompany their song "Bluebeard" but he declined the offer, believing that while music could be used to accompany film, it was pointless to do it the other way around.
Awards
Maya Deren Award, 1996
Silver Lake Film Festival Spirit of Silver Lake Award (2000)
San Francisco International Film Festival Golden Gate Persistence of Vision Award (2001)
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Douglas Edwards Independent/Experimental Film/Video Award (2002), "for his body of work"; tied with Michael Snow, for *Corpus Callosum
Anthology Film Archives, Life Achievement Award (2010)
Personal life
Anger has always been an "extremely private individual," although he has given various interviews over the years, with one interviewer, David Wingrove, describing him in 2008 as "a joy. Gentle, soft-spoken, immaculately tanned, he looks a good two decades younger than his 78 years". In such interviews, he refuses to disclose information on his name change from Anglemeyer to Anger, telling an interviewer who brought the topic up in 2004 that "You're being impertinent. It says Anger on my passport, that's all you need to know. I would stay away from that subject if I were you." In a 2010 interview, however, he stated that, "I just condensed my name. I knew it would be like a label, a logo. It's easy to remember." Anger is openly gay. He once joked that he was "somewhat to the right of the KKK" in his views about black people, opening him up to criticism for racism, though this was likely a "Crowley-esque joke". He supports the Tibetan independence movement.
Anger is an acknowledged Thelemite and belongs to the main Thelemic organization, the Ordo Templi Orientis. He viewed many of the men he associated with as living embodiments of Lucifer, a symbol of the Aeon of Horus in Thelemic philosophy, and had his own name inked onto his chest with the Lucifer tattoo. Anger has shown an interest in various other religious movements, particularly those that relate in some way to occultism. For instance, Kenneth was a lifelong friend of Anton LaVey from before the founding of the Church of Satan in the 1960s and even lived with him and his family during the 1980s. LaVey also made an appearance in one of Anger's films, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) as a devilish priest. Anger describes himself as a "pagan" and refuses to consider himself to be a Satanist. He also characterized Wicca as being a "lunar", feminine religion in contrast with the "solar" masculinity of Thelema.
Filmography
Books
References
Notes
Citations
Works cited
Further reading
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008). Cinema, Messianism and Crime, Parkett 83, pp. 197-205.
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008), 1000 WORDS; KENNETH ANGER, Artforum, September, pp. 412-415.
.
External links
bentclouds.com. Essay on Kustom Kar Kommandos Non-Normative Sex in Kustom Kar Kommandos.
The Film Journal. Review of Alice Hutchison's book on Anger
Artforum 1000 Words
Esquire Kenneth Anger: Where The Bodies Are Buried, by Mick Brown.
1927 births
American experimental filmmakers
American male child actors
American Modern Pagans
American non-fiction writers
American people of German descent
American Thelemites
Film directors from California
American gay actors
Gay artists
American gay writers
LGBT film directors
LGBT people from California
LGBT screenwriters
LGBT writers from the United States
Living people
Male actors from Santa Monica, California
Psychedelic drug advocates
Writers from Santa Monica, California
American people of English descent | true | [
"The following are Filipino films that earned at least 50 million pesos in 2012 during their screenings.\n\nNote\n\n Box Office Mojo, a reliable third party box office revenue tracker, does not track any revenues earned during any Metro Manila Film Festival editions. So the official figures by film entries during the festival are only estimates taken from any recent updates from credible and reliable sources such as a film's production outfit, or from any news agencies. Also, Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) did not release the official gross sales of each of the films. To verify the figures, see individual sources for the references.\n\nColor key\n\nReferences\n\nPhilippines\nCinema of the Philippines",
"The following are Filipino films that at least earned 50 million pesos in 2013 during their respective screenings.\n\nNote\n\n Box Office Mojo, a reliable third party box office revenue tracker, does not track any revenues earned during any Metro Manila Film Festival editions. So the official figures by film entries during the festival are only estimates taken from any recent updates from credible and reliable sources such as a film's production outfit, or from any news agencies. Also, Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) did not release the official gross sales of each of the films. To verify the figures, see individual sources for the references.\n\nColor key\n\nReferences\n\nPhilippines\nCinema of the Philippines"
]
|
[
"Kenneth Anger",
"2000-present: Return to filmmaking",
"Why did he return?",
"I don't know.",
"What was his first project back in to film making?",
"Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette,",
"did it do well?",
"I don't know.",
"Did he relased any other film works?",
"followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang,",
"What was his best film work recently?",
"Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it,",
"Did he have any recent films?",
"2009 short film \"Night of Pan"
]
| C_c583f69dfee641ab893b517127b42e26_0 | Did it do well? | 7 | Did Kenneth Anger's 2009 short film Night of Pan do well? | Kenneth Anger | For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls. Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London. Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to heavily sue those making accusations against them. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Kenneth Anger (born Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer, February 3, 1927) is an American underground experimental filmmaker, actor, and author. Working exclusively in short films, he has produced almost forty works since 1937, nine of which have been grouped together as the "Magick Lantern Cycle". His films variously merge surrealism with homoeroticism and the occult, and have been described as containing "elements of erotica, documentary, psychodrama, and spectacle". Anger himself has been described as "one of America's first openly gay filmmakers, and certainly the first whose work addressed homosexuality in an undisguised, self-implicating manner", and his "role in rendering gay culture visible within American cinema, commercial or otherwise, is impossible to overestimate", with several being released prior to the legalization of homosexual acts between consenting adults in the United States. He has also focused upon occult themes in many of his films, being fascinated by the English gnostic mage and poet Aleister Crowley, and is an adherent of Thelema, the religion Crowley founded.
Born to a middle-class Christian Presbyterian family in Santa Monica, California, Anger would later claim to have been a child actor who appeared in the film A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935); the accuracy of this claim has come under dispute. He began making short films when he was ten years old, although his first film to gain any recognition, the homoerotic Fireworks (1947), would only be produced a decade later. The controversial nature of the work led to him being put on trial on obscenity charges, but he was acquitted. A friendship and working relationship began subsequently with pioneering sexologist Alfred Kinsey. Moving to Europe, Anger produced a number of other shorts inspired by the artistic avant-garde scene on the continent, such as Rabbit's Moon (released 1971) and Eaux d'Artifice (1953).
Returning to the United States in 1953, he set about working on several new projects, including the films Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954), Scorpio Rising (1964), Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), and the gossip book Hollywood Babylon (1965). The latter would become infamous for various dubious and sensationalist claims, many of which were later disproven, though some do remain as urban legends. Getting to know several notable countercultural figures of the time, including Tennessee Williams, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jimmy Page, Marianne Faithfull and Anton LaVey, Anger involved them in his subsequent Thelemite-themed works, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) and Lucifer Rising (1972). Following his failure to produce a sequel to Lucifer Rising, which he attempted through the mid-1980s, Anger retired from filmmaking, instead focusing on Hollywood Babylon II (1984). At the dawn of the 21st century he once more returned to filmmaking, producing shorts for various film festivals and events.
Anger has described filmmakers such as Auguste and Louis Lumière, Georges Méliès, and Maya Deren as influences, and has been cited as an important influence on later film directors like Martin Scorsese, David Lynch and John Waters. He has also been described as having "a profound impact on the work of many other filmmakers and artists, as well as on music video as an emergent art form using dream sequence, dance, fantasy, and narrative".
Biography
1927–35: Early life
Anger was born in Santa Monica, California, as Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer on February 3, 1927. Despite his family being Presbyterians, he became more interested in the occult. His father, Wilbur Anglemyer, was of German ancestry, and had been born in Troy, Ohio, while his disabled mother, Lillian Coler (who was the older of the pair), claimed English ancestry. The pair had met at the Ohio State University and after marrying had their first child, Jean Anglemyer, in 1918, followed by a second, Robert "Bob" Anglemyer, in 1921. That year they moved to Santa Monica to be near Lillian's mother, Bertha Coler, who herself had recently moved there. It was here where Wilbur got a job working as an electrical engineer at Douglas Aircraft, bringing in enough money so that they could live comfortably as a middle-class family.
Kenneth, their third and final child, was born in 1927, but growing up he would fail to get along with either his parents or his siblings. His brother Bob later claimed that being the youngest child, Kenneth had been spoilt by his mother and grandmother, and as such had become somewhat "bratty." His grandmother, Bertha, was a big influence on the young Kenneth, and indeed helped to maintain the family financially during the Great Depression of the 1930s. It was she who first took Kenneth to the cinema, to see a double bill of The Singing Fool and Thunder Over Mexico and also encouraged his artistic interests. She herself later moved into a house in Hollywood with another woman, Miss Diggy, who equally encouraged Kenneth. He developed an early interest in film, and enjoyed reading the movie tie-in Big Little books. He would later relate that "I was a child prodigy who never got smarter." He retrospected his attendance at the Santa Monica Cotillon where child stars were encouraged to mix with non-famous children and through this met Shirley Temple, with whom he danced on one occasion.
It was in 1935, he would later claim, that Anger had the chance to appear in a Hollywood film, taking the role of the Changeling Prince in the 1935 Warner Brothers film A Midsummer Night's Dream. Set photographs and studio production reports (on file in the Warner Brothers collection at University of Southern California, and the Warner Bros. collection of studio key books at George Eastman House in Rochester, New York) in fact contradict Anger's claims, conclusively proving that the character was played by a girl named Sheila Brown. Anger's unofficial biographer, Bill Landis, remarked in 1995 that the Changeling Prince was definitely "Anger as a child; visually, he's immediately recognizable".
1937–46: First films
Anger's first film was created in 1937, when he was ten years old. The short, titled Ferdinand the Bull, had been shot on the remains of 16 mm film that had been left unused after the Anglemyer's had made home movies with it on a family vacation to Yosemite National Park,. In Ferdinand the Bull, which has never been made publicly available, Kenneth dressed as a matador, wearing a cape, while two of his friends from the Boy Scouts played the bull. His second work, Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat, which Anger himself often considers to be his first proper film, was made from footage of children playing during the summer, accompanied with popular songs by bands, including the Ink Spots. Anger had created Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat in 1941, when he was fourteen, shortly before the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent entry of the United States into the Second World War. The following year he produced another amateur film, Prisoner of Mars, which was heavily influenced by Flash Gordon. In this science fiction-inspired feature, in which he played the protagonist, he added elements taken from the Greek mythological myth of the Minotaur and constructed a small volcano in his back yard to create a home-made special effect. Many of these early films are considered lost, with Anger burning much of his previous work in 1967.
In 1944, the Anglemyers moved to Hollywood to move in with family, and Kenneth began attending Beverly Hills High School. It was here, he met Maxine Peterson, who had once been the stand-in for Shirley Temple, and he asked her – alongside another classmate and an older woman – to appear in his next film project, which he initially called Demigods, later retitled as Escape Episode. Revolving partially around the occult, it was filmed in a "spooky old castle" in Hollywood, and was subsequently screened at the Coronet Theatre on North La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles. Around this time, Anger also began attending the screenings of silent films held at Clara Grossman's art gallery, through which he met a fellow filmmaker, Curtis Harrington, with whom he formed Creative Film Associates (CFA). Harrington is said to have introduced Anger to the work of Aleister Crowley. Crowley's philosophy of Thelema would exert a profound influence on the remainder of Anger's career. CFA was founded to distribute experimental films or "underground films" such as those of Maya Deren, John and James Whitney, as well as Anger's and Harrington's.
In high school, Anger started to become interested in the occult, which he had first indirectly encountered through reading L. Frank Baum's Oz books as a child, with their accompanying Rosicrucian philosophies. Kenneth was very interested in the works of the French ceremonial magician Eliphas Levi, as well as Sir James Frazer's The Golden Bough, although his favorite writings were those of the English occultist Aleister Crowley. Crowley had founded a religion known as Thelema based upon a spiritual experience that he had in Egypt in 1904, in which he claimed a being known as Aiwass had contacted him and recited to him The Book of the Law. Subsequent to his exposure to Crowley, Anger converted to Thelema.
1947–49: Fireworks and early career
As Anger discovered his homosexuality, at a time when homosexual acts were still illegal in the United States, he began associating with the underground gay scene. At some point in the mid-1940s, he was arrested by the police in a "homosexual entrapment", after which he decided to move out of his parents' home, gaining his own sparse apartment largely financed by his grandmother, and abandoning the name Anglemyer in favor of Anger. He started attending the University of Southern California, where he studied cinema, and also began experimenting with the use of mind-altering drugs like cannabis and peyote. It was then that he decided to produce a film that would deal with his sexuality, just as other gay avant-garde film makers like Willard Maas were doing in that decade. The result was the short film Fireworks, which was created in 1947 but only exhibited publicly in 1948.
Upon release of the work, Anger was arrested on obscenity charges. He was acquitted, after the case went to the Supreme Court of California, which deemed it to be art rather than pornography. Anger made the claim to have been seventeen years old when he made it, despite the fact that he was actually twenty, presumably to present himself as more of an enfant terrible. A homoerotic work lasting only 14 minutes, Fireworks revolves around a young man (played by Anger himself) associating with various navy sailors, who eventually turn on him, stripping him naked and beating him to death, ripping open his chest to find a compass inside. Several fireworks then explode, accompanied by a burning Christmas tree and the final shot shows the young man lying in bed next to another shirtless man. Of this film, Anger would later state in 1966 that "This flick is all I have to say about being 17, the United States Navy, American Christmas and the fourth of July." He would continuously alter and adapt the film up until 1980, with it finally being distributed on VHS in 1986.
One of the first people to buy a copy of Fireworks was the sexologist Dr. Alfred Kinsey of the Institute for Sex Research. He and Anger struck up a friendship that would last until the doctor's death, during which time Anger aided Kinsey in his research. According to Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis, Kinsey became a "father figure" whom Anger "could both interact with and emulate." Meanwhile, in 1949 Anger began work on a film called Puce Women, which unlike Fireworks was filmed in color. It starred Yvonne Marquis as a glamorous woman going about her daily life; Anger would later state that "Puce Women was my love affair with Hollywood ... with all the great goddesses of the silent screen. They were to be filmed in their homes; I was, in effect, filming ghosts." A lack of funding meant that only one scene was ever produced, which was eventually released under the title Puce Moment. That same year, Anger directed The Love That Whirls, a film based upon Aztec human sacrifice but, because of the nudity that it contained, it was destroyed by technicians at the film lab, who deemed it to be obscene.
1950–53: France, Rabbit's Moon and Eaux d'Artifice
In 1950, Anger moved to Paris, France, where he initially stayed with friends of his (who themselves had been forced to leave Hollywood after being blacklisted for formerly having belonged to trade union organisations). He would later remark that he travelled to the country after receiving a letter from the French director Jean Cocteau in which he told Anger of his admiration for Fireworks (shown in 1949 at Festival du Film Maudit in Biarritz, France). Upon arrival, Anger and Cocteau became friends, with the Frenchman giving the young protege his permission to make a movie of his ballet The Young Man and Death, although at the time there were no financial backers for the project. While in Paris he continued producing short films; in 1950 he started filming on Rabbit's Moon, which was also known as La Lune des Lapins and revolved around a clown who was staring up at the moon, in which a rabbit lived, something found within Japanese mythology. Anger produced 20 minutes of footage at the Films du Pantheon Studio in the city before he was rushed out of the studio, leaving the film uncompleted. He stored the footage in the disorganized archives of the Cinémathèque Française, and only collected it again in 1970, when he finally finished and released Rabbit's Moon. It was at the Cinémathèque Française that he was given by the head, Henri Langlois, prints of Sergei Eisenstein's Que Viva Mexico!, which he attempted to put into Eisenstein's original order.
In 1953, he travelled to Rome, Italy where he planned to make a film about the sixteenth century occultist Cardinal d'Este. To do so, he began filming at the garden of the Villa d'Este in Tivoli, in which a lady in eighteenth century dress walked through the gardens, which featured many waterfalls (an allusion to the fact that d'Este allegedly sexually enjoyed urination), accompanied by the music of Vivaldi. This was supposedly going to be only the first of four scenes, but the others were not made; the resulting one-scene film was titled Eaux d'Artifice. As Anger's biographer Bill Landis remarked, "It's one of Anger's most tranquil works; his editing makes it soft, lush, and inviting. Eaux d'Artifice remains a secretive romp through a private garden, all for the masked figure's and the viewer-voyeur's pleasure."
1953–60: Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome and Hollywood Babylon
In 1953, soon after the production of Eaux d'Artifice, Anger's mother died and he temporarily returned to the United States in order to assist with the distribution of her estate. It was during this return that he began to once more immerse himself in the artistic scene of California, befriending the film maker Stan Brakhage, who had been inspired by Fireworks, and the two collaborated on producing a film, but it was confiscated at the film lab for obscenity and presumably destroyed. Around this time, two of Anger's friends, the couple Renate Druks and Paul Mathiesin held a party based upon the theme of "Come As Your Madness"; Anger himself attended dressed in drag as the ancient Greek goddess Hekate. The party and its many costumes inspired Anger, who produced a painting of it, and asked several of those who attended to appear in a new film that he was creating – Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome. Inauguration, which was created in 1954, was a 38-minute surrealist work featuring many Crowleyan and Thelemite themes, with many of the various characters personifying various pagan gods such as Isis, Osiris and Pan. One of the actresses in the film was Marjorie Cameron, the widow of Jack Parsons, the influential American Thelemite who had died a few years previously, while Anger himself played Hecate. He would subsequently exhibit the film at various European film festivals, winning the Prix du Ciné-Club Belge and the Prix de l'Age d'Or, as well as screening it in the form of a projected triptych at Expo 58, the World Fair held in Brussels in 1958.
In 1955, Anger and his friend Alfred Kinsey traveled to the derelict Abbey of Thelema in Cefalù, Sicily, to film a short documentary titled Thelema Abbey. The abbey itself had been used by Aleister Crowley for his commune during the 1920s, and Anger restored many of the erotic wall-paintings that were found there, as well as performing certain Crowleyan rituals at the site. The documentary was made for the British television series Omnibus, but was later lost. The following year Kinsey died and Anger decided to return to Paris, where he was described at the time as being "extremely remote and lonely".
In desperate need of money, Anger and ghostwriter Elliott Stein wrote a book titled Hollywood Babylon in which he collected together gossip regarding celebrities, some of which he claims he had been told. This included claiming (with no corroboration or citing of sources) that Rudolph Valentino liked to play a sexually submissive role to dominant women, that Walt Disney was a drug user, addicted to opiates (reflected in the character of Goofy, who's perpetually stoned on cannabis), as well as describing the nature of the deaths of Peg Entwistle and Lupe Vélez. The work was not published in the United States initially, and it was first released by the French publisher Jean-Jacques Pauvert. A pirated (and incomplete) version was first published in the U.S. in 1965, with the official American version not being published until 1974. Now with some financial backing from the publication of Hollywood Babylon, his next film project was The Story of O; it was essentially a piece of erotica featuring a heterosexual couple engaged in sadomasochistic sexual activities, although it refrained from showing any explicit sexual images.
1961–65: Scorpio Rising and Kustom Kar Kommandos
In 1961, Anger once more returned to America, where he lived for a time with Marjorie Cameron. Meanwhile, he began work on a new feature, a film about the emerging biker subculture, which he titled Scorpio Rising. For this, he employed a biker named Richard McAuley, and filmed him and some of his friends messing around, adding to it scenes of McAuley, or "Scorpio" as he became known, desecrating a derelict church. Anger incorporated more controversial visuals into the piece, including Nazi iconography, nudity, and clips of the life of Jesus Christ taken from Family Films' The Living Bible: Last Journey to Jerusalem. In Scorpio Rising, Anger intercuts images of Christ from the cheap religious film with those of Scorpio. The whole film has a soundtrack made up of popular 1960s songs, including "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton, "Torture" by Kris Jensen and "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March. Anger himself described the film as "a death mirror held up to American culture ... Thanatos in chrome, black leather, and bursting jeans." It immediately became popular on the underground cinema scene although was soon brought to court with complaints claiming that it was obscene. The jury ruled in favor of the prosecutors, and Scorpio Rising was banned, although this ban was subsequently overturned on appeal to the California State Supreme Court.
With Scorpio Rising finished and Anger now living in San Francisco, he went to the Ford Foundation, which had just started a program of giving out grants to filmmakers. He showed them his ideas for a new artistic short, titled Kustom Kar Kommandos, which they approved of, and gave him a grant of $10,000. However, Anger spent much of the money on living expenses and making alterations to some of his earlier films, meaning that by the time he actually created Kustom Kar Kommandos, it was only one scene long. This homoerotic film involved various shots of a young man polishing a drag strip racing car, accompanied with a pink background and the song "Dream Lover" by The Paris Sisters. Soon after, Anger struck a deal that allowed Hollywood Babylon to be officially published in the United States for the first time, where it proved a success, selling two million copies during the 1960s, and around the same time Anger also translated Lo Duca's History of Eroticism into English for American publication.
1966–69: The hippie movement and Invocation of My Demon Brother
The mid-1960s saw the emergence of the hippie scene and the increasing use of the mind-altering drugs that Anger himself had been using for many years. In particular, the hallucinogen LSD, which at the time was still legal in the United States, was very popular, and in 1966 Anger released a version of his earlier film, Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome titled the "Sacred Mushroom Edition" which was screened to people while taking LSD, thereby heightening their sensory experience. By this time, Anger had become well known throughout the underground scene in the United States, and several cinemas across the country screened his better known films all in one event. With this growing fame, Anger began to react to publicity in much the same way as his idol Aleister Crowley had done, for instance describing himself as "the most monstrous moviemaker in the underground", a pun on the fact that Crowley had been labelled "the wickedest man in the world" by the British tabloids in the 1920s. Anger's fame on the underground circuit allowed him to increasingly associate with other celebrities, including Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan who named Anger as godfather to Zeena Schreck (LaVey's daughter). Despite Anger and LaVey's differing philosophies, the two became good friends and would remain so for many years. However, Anger also held a resentment towards certain celebrities, namely Andy Warhol, who at the time was achieving success not only in the art world but also in the underground film scene. In 1980, Anger threw paint over the front door of a house that Warhol had recently moved out of.
In 1966, Anger moved into the ground floor of a large nineteenth-century Victorian house in San Francisco known as the Russian Embassy. Around this time he began planning a new film titled Lucifer Rising echoing his Thelemite beliefs about the emerging Aeon of Horus. He tattooed the name of Lucifer upon his chest and began searching for a young man who could symbolically become Lucifer, "the Crowned and Conquering Child" of the new Aeon, for Lucifer Rising. While living at the Russian Embassy, he met and lived with various young men who could fit the position. Finally, he settled upon Bobby Beausoleil for the role of Lucifer. Beausoleil founded a band, the Magic Powerhouse of Oz, in order to record the music for the film. In 1967, Anger said that the footage which he had been filming for Lucifer Rising had been stolen, placing the blame on Beausoleil, who would deny the claims. Anger's unofficial biographer Bill Landis quotes Beausoleil who states, "what had happened was that Kenneth had spent all the money that was invested in Lucifer Rising" and that he therefore invented the story to satisfy the film's creditors. Beausoleil and Anger fell out, with the former getting involved with Charles Manson and his cult, the Family, eventually carrying out Manson's bidding by torturing and murdering Gary Hinman.
In the October 26, 1967 issue of Village Voice, Anger publicly reinvented himself by placing a full-page advert declaring "In Memoriam. Kenneth Anger. Filmmaker 1947–1967". He soon publicly reappeared, this time to claim that he had burned all of his early work. The following year he travelled to London where he first met John Paul Getty, Jr., who became Anger's patron, and where he also met and befriended Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, members of The Rolling Stones, as well as actress/model Anita Pallenberg. Anger then decided to use much of the footage created for Lucifer Rising in a new film of his, Invocation of My Demon Brother, which starred Beausoleil, LaVey, Jagger and Richards, as well as Anger himself, and the music for which had been composed by Jagger. It was released in 1969, and explored many of the Thelemic themes that Anger had originally intended for Lucifer Rising. Author Gary Lachman believes the film "inaugurat[ed] the midnight movie cult at the Elgin Theatre." The story of the film, its making, and the people involved are the inspiration for the novel Sway, by Zachary Lazar.
1970–81: Lucifer Rising
Having used up much of the footage originally intended for Lucifer Rising for Invocation of My Demon Brother, Anger again set about to create "Lucifer Rising", a symbolic analogy of the coming Aeon of Horus as prophesied in the Thelemic sacred text, The Book of the Law. Anger persuaded the singer and actress Marianne Faithfull to appear in it. He also tried to convince his friend Mick Jagger to play the part of Lucifer in the film but Jagger refused. Instead he offered his brother Chris for the part. Anger accepted, but was not happy about it. Anger subsequently filmed eight minutes of film and showed it to the British National Film Finance Corporation who agreed to provide £15,000 in order for Anger to complete it – something that caused a level of outrage in the British press. With this money, he could afford to fly the cast and crew to both Germany and Egypt for filming. Anger befriended Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page around this time, the two sharing a great interest in Crowley. At Page's invitation, Anger travelled to Page's new home, Crowley's former residence Boleskine House located on the shores of Loch Ness in Scotland, to help the musician exorcise the building of what Page believed to be a headless man's ghost. Page subsequently agreed to produce the soundtrack for Lucifer Rising, and used the editing suite which was in the basement of his London home to shape the music which he produced. Anger later fell out with Page's partner Charlotte, who kicked him out of the house. In retaliation, Anger called a press conference in which he ridiculed Page and threatened to "throw a Kenneth Anger curse" on him. Page's music was dumped from the film and replaced in 1979 by music written and recorded by the imprisoned Bobby Beausoleil, with whom Anger had reconciled.
Meanwhile, Anger, who moved to a small apartment on the upper east side of Manhattan, took the footage that he had filmed for Rabbit's Moon in the 1950s, finally releasing the film in 1972, and again in a shorter version in 1979. Around the same time he also added a new soundtrack to Puce Moment and re-released it. It was also around this time that the publisher Marvin Miller produced a low budget documentary film based on Hollywood Babylon without Anger's permission, which upset Anger and led to a lawsuit. He also created a short film titled Senators in Bondage which was only available to private collectors and which has never been made publicly available, and had plans to make a film about Aleister Crowley titled The Wickedest Man in the World, but this project never got off the ground. In 1980, he holidayed with his friend, the playwright Tennessee Williams.
It was in 1981, a decade after starting the project, that he finally finished and released the 30-minute-long Lucifer Rising. Based upon the Thelemite concept that mankind had entered a new period known as the Aeon of Horus, Lucifer Rising was full of occult symbolism, starring Miriam Gibril as the Ancient Egyptian goddess Isis and Donald Cammell as her consort Osiris, as well as Marianne Faithfull as Jewish mythological figure Lilith and Leslie Huggins as Lucifer himself. Anger once again appeared in the film, starring as the Magus, the same role that he played in Invocation to My Demon Brother. He had surrealistically combined the roles that these characters played with footage of volcanoes, various ancient Egyptian temples and a Crowleyan adept reading from the man's texts.
1982–99: Retirement
Soon after the release of Lucifer Rising, a PBS documentary of Anger and his films was made, titled Kenneth Anger's Magick, which was directed by Kit Fitzgerald, who later recalled interviewing him in his New York flat on a very hot July evening, during which Anger revealed that he was so broke that he had been forced to sell his air conditioner. Anger himself considered producing other films that would continue on from Lucifer Rising in a series, and he began referring to his finished film as "Part I: Sign Language", to be followed by two further parts. Nonetheless, these projects would never be finished, and Anger himself would not produce any further films for nearly two decades. In need of money, Anger subsequently released Hollywood Babylon II in 1984, as well as continuing to screen his films at various festivals and at universities, and continuing to attempt to produce Lucifer Rising II; around this time he began wearing an eyepatch to these public events, something likely due to him having been beaten up and getting a bruised eye, a story that he would bring up in various interviews, although partly changing who it was who had beaten him up in various versions of the story. In 1984, a notorious incident occurred when Anger was invited to appear on The Coca Crystal Show, however upon arriving at the studio he demanded that somebody pay for his taxi ride there, and when they refused, he attacked the talent coordinator Maureen Ivice and tried to drag her into his taxi, before she was rescued by other members of staff – Anger reportedly escaped the scene by flinging a $100 bill at the cab driver and screaming "GET ME OUT OF HERE!"
In 1986, he sold the video rights to his films, which finally appeared on VHS, allowing them to have greater publicity. The following year he attended the Avignon Film Festival in France where his work was being celebrated in commemoration of the fortieth anniversary of Fireworks. Soon after this, he appeared in Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon, a BBC documentary for the Arena series directed by Nigel Finch. In 1991, Anger moved to West Arenas Boulevard in Palm Springs, California, living in what was formerly the estate of his good friend Ruby Keeler where the British Film Institute sent Rebecca Wood to assist him in writing an autobiography, which was never actually produced. Instead, in 1995, Bill Landis, who had been an associate of Anger's in the early 1980s, wrote an unofficial biography of him, which Anger himself condemned, describing Landis as "an avowed enemy".
In 1993, Anger visited Sydney and lectured at a season of his films at the Australian Film Institute Cinema in Paddington. In an interview given at the time with Black and White magazine, Anger said he was staying in King's Cross and was putting the finishing touches to the final treatment on a feature film about Australian artist and occultist Rosaleen Norton. This project was unrealised.
2000–present: Return to filmmaking
For twenty years from the early 1980s, Anger released no new material. In 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, Anger began screening a new short film, the anti-smoking Don't Smoke That Cigarette, followed a year later by The Man We Want to Hang, which comprised images of Aleister Crowley's paintings that had been exhibited at a temporary exhibition in Bloomsbury, London. In 2004, he began showing Anger Sees Red, a short surrealistic film starring himself, and the same year also began showing another work, Patriotic Penis. He soon followed this with a flurry of other shorts, including Mouse Heaven, which consisted of images of Mickey Mouse memorabilia, Ich Will! and Uniform Attraction, all of which he showed at various public appearances. Anger's most recent project has been the Technicolor Skull with musician Brian Butler, described as a "magick ritual of light and sound in the context of a live performance", in which Anger plays the theremin, and Butler plays the guitar and other electronic instruments, behind a psychedelic backdrop of colors and skulls.
Anger makes an appearance in the 2008 feature documentary by Nik Sheehan about Brion Gysin and the Dreamachine titled FLicKeR. Anger also appears alongside Vincent Gallo in the 2009 short film "Night of Pan" written and directed by Brian Butler. In 2009 his work was featured in a retrospective exhibition at the MoMA PS1 in New York City, and the following year a similar exhibition took place in London.
Anger has finished writing Hollywood Babylon III, but has not yet published it, fearing severe legal repercussions if he did so. Of this he has stated that "The main reason I didn't bring it out was that I had a whole section on Tom Cruise and the Scientologists. I'm not a friend of the Scientologists." Despite withholding legal action against the highly critical 2015 film Going Clear, the Church of Scientology was known on earlier occasions to sue those making accusations against them.
Themes
Several recurring themes can be seen within Anger's cinematic work. One of the most notable of these is homoeroticism; this was first seen in Fireworks (1947), which was based around Anger's own homosexual awakening, and featured various navy officers flexing their muscles, and a white liquid (often thought of as symbolising semen), pouring over the protagonist's body. Similar homoerotic imagery is found in Scorpio Rising (1963), which stars a muscled, topless, leather-clad biker, and Kustom Kar Kommandos (1965), where a young man sensually polishes a car, with close up shots of his tight-fitting jeans and crotch. Images of naked men also appear in Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969), where they are eventually filmed wrestling, and in Anger Sees Red (2004), in which a muscled, topless man performs press-ups.
Another recurring theme in Anger's films is that of the occult, particularly the symbolism of his own esoteric religion, Thelema. This is visible in Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, Invocation of My Demon Brother and Lucifer Rising, all of which are based around the Thelemite concept of the Aeon of Horus and feature actors portraying various pagan gods. Anger himself linked the creation of film to the occult, particularly the practice of ceremonial magic, something that Aleister Crowley had been a noted practitioner of, and Anger once stated that "making a movie is casting a spell."
One of the central recurring images found in Anger's work is the concept of flames and light; in Fireworks there are various examples of this, including a burning Christmas tree, and it subsequently appears in many of his other works as well. This relates to the concept of Lucifer, a deity whom Anger devoted one of his films to, and whose name is Latin for "light bearer".
In many of his films, heavy use is made of music, both classical and pop, to accompany the visual imagery. For instance, in Scorpio Rising he makes use of the 1950s pop songs "Torture" by Kris Jensen, "I Will Follow Him" by Little Peggy March and "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton. He first used music to accompany visuals in the 1941 work Who Has Been Rocking My Dreamboat?, where he used tracks by the Mills Brothers. His use of popular music to accompany his films has been cited as a key influence on the development of music videos and of MTV, although he has stated his dislike for the whole music video industry. On one occasion the band Combustible Edison asked him if he would direct a video to accompany their song "Bluebeard" but he declined the offer, believing that while music could be used to accompany film, it was pointless to do it the other way around.
Awards
Maya Deren Award, 1996
Silver Lake Film Festival Spirit of Silver Lake Award (2000)
San Francisco International Film Festival Golden Gate Persistence of Vision Award (2001)
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Douglas Edwards Independent/Experimental Film/Video Award (2002), "for his body of work"; tied with Michael Snow, for *Corpus Callosum
Anthology Film Archives, Life Achievement Award (2010)
Personal life
Anger has always been an "extremely private individual," although he has given various interviews over the years, with one interviewer, David Wingrove, describing him in 2008 as "a joy. Gentle, soft-spoken, immaculately tanned, he looks a good two decades younger than his 78 years". In such interviews, he refuses to disclose information on his name change from Anglemeyer to Anger, telling an interviewer who brought the topic up in 2004 that "You're being impertinent. It says Anger on my passport, that's all you need to know. I would stay away from that subject if I were you." In a 2010 interview, however, he stated that, "I just condensed my name. I knew it would be like a label, a logo. It's easy to remember." Anger is openly gay. He once joked that he was "somewhat to the right of the KKK" in his views about black people, opening him up to criticism for racism, though this was likely a "Crowley-esque joke". He supports the Tibetan independence movement.
Anger is an acknowledged Thelemite and belongs to the main Thelemic organization, the Ordo Templi Orientis. He viewed many of the men he associated with as living embodiments of Lucifer, a symbol of the Aeon of Horus in Thelemic philosophy, and had his own name inked onto his chest with the Lucifer tattoo. Anger has shown an interest in various other religious movements, particularly those that relate in some way to occultism. For instance, Kenneth was a lifelong friend of Anton LaVey from before the founding of the Church of Satan in the 1960s and even lived with him and his family during the 1980s. LaVey also made an appearance in one of Anger's films, Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969) as a devilish priest. Anger describes himself as a "pagan" and refuses to consider himself to be a Satanist. He also characterized Wicca as being a "lunar", feminine religion in contrast with the "solar" masculinity of Thelema.
Filmography
Books
References
Notes
Citations
Works cited
Further reading
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008). Cinema, Messianism and Crime, Parkett 83, pp. 197-205.
Eaton, Thomas Dylan (2008), 1000 WORDS; KENNETH ANGER, Artforum, September, pp. 412-415.
.
External links
bentclouds.com. Essay on Kustom Kar Kommandos Non-Normative Sex in Kustom Kar Kommandos.
The Film Journal. Review of Alice Hutchison's book on Anger
Artforum 1000 Words
Esquire Kenneth Anger: Where The Bodies Are Buried, by Mick Brown.
1927 births
American experimental filmmakers
American male child actors
American Modern Pagans
American non-fiction writers
American people of German descent
American Thelemites
Film directors from California
American gay actors
Gay artists
American gay writers
LGBT film directors
LGBT people from California
LGBT screenwriters
LGBT writers from the United States
Living people
Male actors from Santa Monica, California
Psychedelic drug advocates
Writers from Santa Monica, California
American people of English descent | false | [
"This One's for You is the sixth album by R&B crooner Teddy Pendergrass. It was released just after a bad car accident Pendergrass was involved in, which left him paralyzed from the waist down due to a spinal cord injury. The album did not do as well as his previous albums did on the Billboard 200, peaking at only #59, but it did do well on the R&B album chart, reaching #6. Only one single was released, \"I Can't Win for Losing\", which peaked at only #32 on the R&B charts.\n\nTrack listing\n \"I Can't Win for Losing\" 4:16 (Victor Carstarphen, Gene McFadden, John Whitehead)\n \"This One's for You\" 6:18 (Barry Manilow, Marty Panzer)\n \"Loving You Was Good\" 3:35 (LeRoy Bell, Casey James)\n \"This Gift of Life\" 4:27 (Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff)\n \"Now Tell Me That You Love Me\" 5:15 (Gamble, Huff)\n \"It's Up to You (What You Do With Your Life)\" 5:37 (Gamble, Huff)\n \"Don't Leave Me out Along the Road\" 3:34 (Richard Roebuck)\n \"Only to You\" 3:53 (Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson)\n\nReferences\n\n1982 albums\nTeddy Pendergrass albums\nAlbums produced by Kenneth Gamble\nAlbums produced by Leon Huff\nAlbums produced by Thom Bell\nAlbums produced by Ashford & Simpson\nAlbums arranged by Bobby Martin\nAlbums recorded at Sigma Sound Studios\nPhiladelphia International Records albums",
"Follow Me is the second album of Dutch singer Do.\n\nIt did well in the Netherlands, debuting at #8 in the Mega Top 100 (album chart).\n\nAlbum information\nAfter her successful debut album Do she began working on her second album with her best friend and musical partner Glenn Corneille. They made a basis for the next album but Glenn Corneille died in a car disaster. However, Do needed to go on, so she started again where she left off.\n\nThe album contains 12 songs. Do co-wrote 3 songs; Love Me, Tune Into Me and When Everything is Gone. It features several different music genres, such as Pop, Jazz, Gospel and Country.\n\nTrack listing\n\nChart positions\n\nReferences\n.\n\n2006 albums\nDo (singer) albums\nSony BMG albums"
]
|
[
"Foo Fighters",
"There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1998-2001)"
]
| C_44cfa9f1a9614dc1970959a59917acbd_0 | Are there any hit tracks on this album? | 1 | Are there any hit tracks on the Foo Fighters' There Is Nathing Left To Lose album? | Foo Fighters | In 1998, Foo Fighters traveled to Grohl's home state of Virginia to write music for its third album. However, Grohl and Stahl were unable to co-operate as songwriters; Grohl told Kerrang! in 1999, "in those few weeks it just seemed like the three of us were moving in one direction and Franz wasn't". Grohl was distraught over the decision to fire Stahl, as the two had been friends since childhood. Shortly after that, Mendel called Grohl to say he was quitting the band to reunite with Sunny Day Real Estate, only to reverse his decision the next day. The remaining trio of Grohl, Mendel, and Hawkins spent the next several months recording the band's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, in Grohl's Virginia home studio that he bought and built. The album spawned several singles, including "Learn to Fly", the band's first single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors", "Generator", "Next Year" and "Breakout". Before the release of the album, Capitol president Gary Gersh was forced out of the label. Given Grohl's history with Gersh, Foo Fighters' contract had included a "key man clause" that allowed them to leave the label upon Gersh's departure. They subsequently left Capitol and signed with RCA, who later acquired the rights to the band's Capitol albums. After recording for There Is Nothing Left to Lose was completed, the band auditioned a number of potential guitarists, and eventually settled on Chris Shiflett, who performs with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, and previously performed with California punk band, No Use for a Name. Shiflett initially joined the band as touring guitarist, but achieved full-time status prior to the recording of the group's fourth album. In January 2000, Nate Mendel led a benefit concert in Hollywood for AIDS denialist group Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives with a speech by founder Christine Maggiore and free copies of her book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong? Additionally, the band's official website had linked to the group's website. The full band was shown in a documentary for Alive & Well declaring their support before a performance. Links and references to Alive & Well have since been removed and no further mentions or shows of support have been made. Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen, of whom the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. In March of that year, Grohl and Hawkins inducted the band into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and joined them on stage for a rendition of the Queen 1976 classic "Tie Your Mother Down", with Hawkins playing drums alongside Roger Taylor, while Grohl was playing rhythm guitar and handling vocal duties. Guitarist Brian May added a guitar track to Foo Fighters' second cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar", which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Mission: Impossible 2. In 2002, guitarist May contributed guitar work to "Tired of You" and an outtake called "Knucklehead". The bands have performed together on several occasions since, including VH1 Rock Honors and Foo Fighters' headlining concert in Hyde Park. CANNOTANSWER | "Learn to Fly", the band's first single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors", "Generator", "Next Year" and "Breakout". | Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in 1994 in Seattle, Washington. The band was founded by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of Nirvana after the suicide of Kurt Cobain. The group took its name from foo fighter, a nickname coined by Allied aircraft pilots for UFOs and other aerial phenomena. Over the course of their career, Foo Fighters have won 12 Grammy Awards, including Best Rock Album four times. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021, their first year of eligibility.
Prior to the release of Foo Fighters' 1995 debut album Foo Fighters, which featured Grohl as the only official member, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both formerly of Sunny Day Real Estate, as well as Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear. The band began with performances in Portland, Oregon. Goldsmith quit during the recording of their second album The Colour and the Shape (1997); most of the drum parts were re-recorded by Grohl. Smear departed soon afterward but appeared as a guest with the band frequently from 2005; he rejoined in 2010.
Smear and Goldsmith were replaced by Franz Stahl and Taylor Hawkins; Stahl was fired before the recording of the group's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999). The band briefly continued as a trio until Chris Shiflett joined on guitar after the completion of There Is Nothing Left to Lose. Foo Fighters released their fourth album, One by One, in 2002. It was followed with the two-disc In Your Honor (2005), which was split between acoustic songs and heavier material. Foo Fighters released their sixth album, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, in 2007.
For Foo Fighters' seventh studio album, Wasting Light (2011), produced by Butch Vig, Smear returned as a full member. Sonic Highways (2014) was released as the soundtrack to the television miniseries directed by Grohl. Concrete and Gold (2017) was the second Foo Fighters album to reach number one in the United States and their first studio album to feature longtime session and touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee as a full member. In 2021, the band released their tenth album, Medicine at Midnight.
History
Background and first demos (1990–1994)
In 1990, Dave Grohl joined the grunge band Nirvana as drummer. During tours, he took a guitar with him and wrote songs, but was too intimidated to share them with the band; he was "in awe" of the songs written by frontman Kurt Cobain. Grohl occasionally booked studio time to record demos and covers, issuing an album of demos, Pocketwatch, under the pseudonym Late! in 1992.
Nirvana disbanded after the death of Cobain in 1994. Grohl received offers to work with various artists; press rumors indicated he might join Pearl Jam, and he almost accepted a position as drummer in Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Grohl later said: "I was supposed to just join another band and be a drummer the rest of my life. I thought that I would rather do what no one expected me to do." Grohl instead entered Robert Lang Studios in October 1994 to record 15 of his own songs. With the exception of a guitar part on "X-Static", played by Greg Dulli of the Afghan Whigs, Grohl played every instrument and sang every vocal. He completed an album's worth of material in five days and handed out cassette copies of the sessions to his friends for feedback.
Grohl hoped to stay anonymous and release the recordings in a limited run under the name Foo Fighters, taken from foo fighter, a World War II term for unidentified flying objects. He hoped the name would lead listeners to assume the music was made by several people. He said later: "Had I actually considered this to be a career, I probably would have called it something else, because it's the stupidest fucking band name in the world." The demo tape circulated in the industry, creating interest among record labels.
Formation and debut album (1994–1995)
Grohl formed a band to support the album. He spoke to Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic about joining the group, but they decided against it; Grohl said it would have felt "really natural" for them to work together, but would have been "weird" for the others and place more pressure on Grohl. Instead, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both of the recently disbanded Seattle group Sunny Day Real Estate. Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear joined as second guitarist. Grohl licensed the album to Capitol Records, releasing it on his new label, Roswell Records.
Foo Fighters made their live public debut on February 23, 1995, at the Jambalaya Club in Arcata, California, followed by performances at Satyricon in Portland on March 3 and the Velvet Elvis in Seattle on March 4. The show on March 3 had been part of a benefit gig for the investigation of the rape and murder of Gits singer Mia Zapata. Grohl refused to do interviews or tour large venues to promote the album. Foo Fighters undertook their first major tour in the spring of 1995, opening for Mike Watt. The band's first single, "This Is a Call", was released in June 1995, and its debut album Foo Fighters was released the next month. "I'll Stick Around," "For All the Cows," and "Big Me" were released as subsequent singles. The band spent the following months on tour, including their first appearance at the Reading Festival in England in August.
The Colour and the Shape (1996–1997)
After touring through the spring of 1996, Foo Fighters entered Bear Creek Studio in Woodinville, Washington, with producer Gil Norton to record its second album. While Grohl once again wrote all the songs, the rest of the band collaborated on the arrangements. With the sessions nearly complete, Grohl took the rough mixes to Los Angeles, intending to finish his vocal and guitar parts. While there, Grohl realized that he was not happy with the drumming and replaced most of Goldsmith's drum tracks with his own. Though Grohl hoped that Goldsmith would still play on the tour, Goldsmith felt betrayed and left the band.
In need of a replacement for Goldsmith, Grohl contacted Alanis Morissette's touring drummer Taylor Hawkins for a recommendation. Grohl was surprised when Hawkins volunteered himself. Hawkins made his debut with the group in time for the release of its second album, The Colour and the Shape, in May 1997. The album included the singles "Monkey Wrench", "Everlong", "My Hero", and "Walking After You".
Smear left Foo Fighters in 1997, citing exhaustion and burnout, and was replaced by Grohl's former Scream bandmate Franz Stahl. Stahl toured with Foo Fighters for the next few months and appeared on two tracks recorded for movie soundtracks, a re-recording of "Walking After You" for The X-Files and A320 for Godzilla. A B-side from the "My Hero" single, "Dear Lover," appeared in the horror film Scream 2. The tour for The Colour and the Shape album in 1998 included performances at Glastonbury Festival (on the main stage) and the Reading Festival.
There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1998–2001)
In 1998, Foo Fighters traveled to Grohl's home state of Virginia to write their third album. However, Grohl and Stahl were unable to co-operate as songwriters; Grohl told Kerrang! in 1999, "in those few weeks it just seemed like the three of us were moving in one direction and Franz wasn't." Grohl was distraught over the decision to fire Stahl as the two had been friends since childhood. Shortly after that, Mendel called Grohl to say he was quitting to reunite with Sunny Day Real Estate, only to reverse his decision the next day. The remaining trio of Grohl, Mendel, and Hawkins spent several months recording the band's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, in Grohl's home studio. The album spawned several singles, including "Learn to Fly", the band's first to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors," "Generator," "Next Year," and "Breakout."
Before the release of the album, Capitol Records president Gary Gersh was forced out of the label. Given Grohl's history with Gersh, Foo Fighters' contract had included a "key man clause" that allowed them to leave the label upon Gersh's departure. They left Capitol and signed with RCA, who later acquired the rights to the band's Capitol albums.
After recording There Is Nothing Left to Lose was completed, the band auditioned a number of potential guitarists and settled on Chris Shiflett, who performed with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes and California punk band No Use for a Name. Shiflett initially joined as a touring guitarist but achieved full-time status prior to the recording of the group's fourth album.
In January 2000, Nate Mendel led a benefit concert in Hollywood for AIDS denialist group Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives with a speech by founder Christine Maggiore and free copies of her self-published book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong? Additionally, the band's official website featured a section devoted to Alive & Well. Sandra Thurman, then director of the Office of National AIDS Policy stated this was "extraordinarily irresponsible behavior" because "there is no doubt about the link between HIV and AIDS in the respected scientific community." Links and references to Alive & Well were removed from the band's website by March 2003.
Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen as the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. In March of that year, Grohl and Hawkins inducted them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and joined them to perform the 1976 classic, Tie Your Mother Down, with Hawkins playing drums alongside Roger Taylor. Guitarist Brian May added a guitar track to Foo Fighters' second cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar," which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Mission: Impossible 2. In 2002, guitarist May contributed guitar work to Tired of You and an outtake called Knucklehead. The bands have performed together on several occasions since, including VH1 Rock Honors and Foo Fighters' headlining concert in Hyde Park.
One by One (2001–2004)
Near the end of 2001, the band reconvened to record its fourth album. After spending four months in a Los Angeles studio, the album "just didn't sound right" and the band had no confidence it would sell very well. With the album not reaching their expectations amid much infighting, Grohl spent some time helping Queens of the Stone Age complete their 2002 album Songs for the Deaf. Once that album was finished and touring had started for both Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age, the band was on the verge of breaking up entirely. Grohl reunited with Hawkins, Shiflett, and Mendel to play the Coachella Festival, alternating days with Queens of the Stone Age. Hawkins and Grohl talked about resuming work on One by One and after a very satisfying performance the following day, they agreed to stay together. The group re-recorded nearly all of the album (save Tired of You) in a ten-day stretch at Grohl's home studio in Alexandria, Virginia, the following month. The original version of One by One, referred to by the band as Million Dollar Demos, has never been released in its entirety although seven tracks were leaked online in 2012 and 2015.
The album was released in October 2002 under the title One by One. Singles from the album included "All My Life," "Times Like These," "Low," and "Have It All." The tour for the album included a headline performance at the 2002 Reading and Leeds Festivals.
For most of its history, the band chose to stay away from the political realm. However, in 2004, upon learning that George W. Bush's presidential campaign was using "Times Like These" at rallies, Grohl decided to lend his public support to John Kerry's campaign, saying, "There's no way of stopping the president playing your songs, so I went out and played it for John Kerry's people instead, where I thought the message would kinda make more sense." Grohl attended several Kerry rallies and occasionally performed solo acoustic sets. The entire band joined Grohl for a performance in Arizona coinciding with one of the presidential debates.
In Your Honor (2005–2006)
Having spent a year and a half touring behind One by One, Grohl did not want to rush into recording another Foo Fighters record. Initially Grohl intended to write acoustic material by himself but eventually the project involved the entire band. To record its fifth album, the band shifted to Los Angeles and built a recording studio, dubbed Studio 606 West. Grohl insisted that the album be divided into two discs–one full of rock songs, the other featuring acoustic tracks. In Your Honor was released in June 2005. The album's singles included Best of You, DOA, Resolve, and No Way Back/Cold Day in the Sun.
During September and October 2005, the band toured with Weezer on what was billed as the Foozer Tour. Foo Fighters played a headline performance at the 2005 Reading and Leeds Festivals. On June 17, 2006, Foo Fighters performed their largest non-festival headlining concert to date at London's Hyde Park. Motörhead's Lemmy joined the band on stage to sing Shake Your Blood from Dave Grohl's Probot album. As a surprise performance, Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen appeared to play part of We Will Rock You as a lead in to Tie Your Mother Down.
In further support of In Your Honor, the band organized a short acoustic tour for the summer of 2006. Members who had performed with them in late 2005 appeared, such as Pat Smear, Petra Haden on violin and backing vocals, Drew Hester on percussion, and Rami Jaffee of The Wallflowers on keyboard and piano. While much of the setlist focused on In Your Honors acoustic half, the band also used the opportunity to play lesser-known songs, such as Ain't It The Life, Floaty, and See You. The band also performed Marigold, a Pocketwatch-era song that was best known as a Nirvana B side.
In November 2006, the band released their first ever live CD, Skin and Bones, featuring fifteen performances captured over a three-night stint in Los Angeles.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace and Greatest Hits (2007–2009)
For the follow-up to In Your Honor, the band recruited The Colour and the Shape producer Gil Norton. Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was released on September 25, 2007. The album's first single, The Pretender, was issued to radio in early August. In mid-to-late 2007 The Pretender topped Billboard's Modern Rock chart for a record 19 weeks. The second single, Long Road to Ruin, was released in December 2007, supported by a music video directed by longtime collaborator Jesse Peretz (formerly of the Lemonheads). Other singles included Let It Die and Cheer Up, Boys (Your Make Up Is Running).
In October 2007, Foo Fighters started their world tour in support of the album. The band performed shows throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Asia, including headlining the Virgin Mobile Festival in Baltimore on August 9. At the European MTV Music Awards in 2007, Pat Smear confirmed his return to the band.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was nominated for five Grammy Awards in 2008. Foo Fighters went home with Best Rock Album and Best Hard Rock Performance (for The Pretender). The album was also nominated for Album of the Year, while The Pretender was also nominated for Record of the Year and Best Rock Song.
On June 7, 2008, the band played Wembley Stadium, London, and was joined by Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin to play Rock and Roll (with Grohl on drums and Hawkins on vocals) and Ramble On (sung by Grohl, drums by Hawkins). As Page and Jones left the stage before a final encore of Best Of You, an ecstatic Grohl shouted "Welcome to the greatest fucking day of my whole entire life!". Throughout the tour for Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, Foo Fighters had been writing and practicing new songs at sound checks. After Foo Fighters had completed this tour in September 2008, they recorded 13 new songs in studio 606, shortly after announcing a hiatus from touring (which would last until January 2011). These sessions likely lasted from late 2008 – early 2009. While the members of Foo Fighters had initially planned for their new album (composed of songs from this recording session) to have come out in 2009 with almost no touring support, they ultimately decided to shelve most of the songs from these sessions. Three of these songs were later released — Wheels and Word Forward (on their 2009 compilation album, Greatest Hits); and a newly recorded version of Rope (which ended up making the final cut of Wasting Light).
In order to promote their greatest hits album, Foo Fighters performed an online show at studio 606 in October 2009 during which the band took fan requests.
Wasting Light (2010–2012)
In August 2010, the band began recording their seventh studio album with producer Butch Vig, who had previously produced the two new tracks for the band's Greatest Hits album. The album was recorded in Dave Grohl's garage using only analog equipment. The album won five Grammys and was nominated for six. The recording was analog to tape and used no computers, not even to mix or master. Vig said in an interview with MTV that the album was entirely analog until post-mastering. Pat Smear was present in many photos posted by Grohl on Twitter and a press release in December confirmed Smear played on every track on the album and was considered a core member of the band once again.
The first single from Wasting Light, Rope, was released to radio in February 2011. On April 16, 2011, Foo Fighters released an album of covers, Medium Rare, as a limited-edition vinyl for Record Store Day. The promotion for the album has been highly praised for its originality. Wasting Light debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, becoming the band's first album to do so. Other singles for the album included Walk, Arlandria, These Days, and Bridge Burning.
Alongside Wasting Lights release, Foo Fighters released a rockumentary, directed by Academy Award-winner James Moll. The film, titled Back and Forth, chronicles the band's career. Then current and past members, and producer Butch Vig, tell the story of the band through interviews. After debuting on March 15, 2011, at the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, it was released on DVD three months later.
On May 21, 2011, Foo Fighters headlined the middle day of the Hangout Music Festival in Gulf Shores, Alabama. On June 4, 2011, they played a surprise set at the 2011 KROQ Weenie Roast. They also headlined two sold-out shows at the Milton Keynes National Bowl on July 2 and 3, joined on stage by artists such as Alice Cooper, Seasick Steve, and John Paul Jones. They headlined the final night at the 20th anniversary of Lollapalooza in Chicago's Grant Park on August 7, 2011, performing part of their set in a driving rainstorm.
In September 2011 before a show in Kansas City, the band performed a parody song in front of a protest by the Westboro Baptist Church. It mocked the church's opposition to homosexuality and was performed in the same faux-trucker garb that was seen in the band's Hot Buns promotional video.
It was announced on September 28, 2011, that Foo Fighters would be performing during the closing ceremony of Blizzard Entertainment's annual video game convention, BlizzCon.
On August 27, 2012, Foo Fighters ended their European tour with a headline performance at Reading and Leeds Festival. On September 5, the band performed a show at the Fillmore in Charlotte, North Carolina, as a benefit for Rock the Vote. The show, which occurred at the same time as the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, was announced only two weeks prior. Tickets to the 2000-person capacity venue sold out in under 60 seconds, setting a record for the site. The band set another personal record during the show itself, being the longest that the band had played to date at just under 3.5 hours with a setlist of 36 songs. On September 21, the band headlined the Music Midtown Festival in Atlanta, Georgia. The following evening, they headlined the DeLuna Festival in Pensacola Beach, Florida. On September 29, the band performed at the Global Citizens' Festival before embarking on a break.
Sonic Highways (2013–2015)
Despite initially announcing a break after supporting Wasting Light, Grohl stated in January 2013 that the band had started writing material for an eighth studio album. On February 20, 2013, at the Brit Awards, Grohl said he was resuming work on the album the following day.
On September 6, 2013, Shiflett posted a photo to his Instagram account that indicated 13 songs were being recorded and later described it as "pretty fucking fun". Rami Jaffee has recorded parts for three songs, one of which was In the Way. Butch Vig, who worked with the band on Wasting Light, confirmed via Twitter in late August 2013 that he was producing the album. The band confirmed that it would end its hiatus by playing two shows in Mexico City on December 11 and 13. On October 31, a video appeared on the official Foo Fighters YouTube channel showing a motorcyclist, later revealed to be Erik Estrada, delivering each of the band members an invitation to play in Mexico.
On January 16, 2014, a picture was posted to Foo Fighters' Facebook page with several master tapes labeled LP 8. On May 15, it was announced that the album would be released in November and that the Foo Fighters would commemorate the album and their 20th anniversary with an HBO TV series directed by Grohl titled Sonic Highways. Eight songs were written and recorded in eight studios in eight different American cities with video capturing the history and feel of each town. On July 30, Butch Vig revealed that the Foo Fighters had finished recording and mixing the album and that it was slated to be released a month after the premiere of the TV show.
In June 2014, the band agreed to play a show in Richmond, Virginia, that was entirely crowd-funded by fans on the website Tilt.com. The show took place on September 17 before 1,500 fans. The band played 23 songs over the course of two and a half hours. Foo Fighters announced their tour would include performances in Cape Town on December 10 and Johannesburg on December 13. The band played three performances under the alias The Holy Shits in September 2014; the first at the Concorde 2 club in Brighton, England, where Grohl invited lead singer Jay Apperley of the tribute band UK Foo Fighters on stage to sing, followed by the House of Vans and the Islington Assembly Hall. On September 14, 2014, the band performed at the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games, their first official show in England since closing Reading Festival in 2012. They closed out the 2014 VooDoo Music and Arts Festival in New Orleans on November 2, 2014, in a two and a half hour performance that included an appearance from New Orleans native Trombone Shorty, who played This is a Call with the band.
On August 8, the band released a short clip of their latest work, titled 8. On August 11, the band announced that the new album would be titled Sonic Highways and released on November 10, 2014. An international tour, dubbed the Sonic Highways World Tour, followed with performances in South Africa in December and South America in January 2015. It continued to Australia and New Zealand in February and March.
On May 20, 2015, the Foo Fighters were the final musical act to perform on Late Show with David Letterman, continuing their long association with the host as he wrapped up his 33-year career in late night television. The show ended with a montage of Letterman highlights while the Foo Fighters played "Everlong", which Letterman said had significant meaning for him after his open-heart surgery in 2000. The band postponed their international tour to make the appearance; the tour resumed on May 24, with a performance at Radio 1's Big Weekend in Norwich, England.
On June 12, Grohl fell from the stage in Gothenburg, Sweden, during the group's second song, breaking his leg. The band continued playing while Grohl received medical attention, who then returned to the stage to finish the last two hours of the band's set from a chair while a medic tended to his leg. After the concert, Grohl was flown to London for surgery, requiring six metal pins to stabilize the fracture. As a result of the injury, the band canceled its remaining European tour dates.
In July, one thousand Italian fans held the Rockin' 1000 gathering in Cesena, Italy, performing Learn to Fly and asking Foo Fighters to come play in the town. The performance video went viral and impressed Grohl, resulting in the band appearing in Cesena on November 3.
Saint Cecilia EP and Concrete and Gold (2015–2019)
The Foo Fighters planned to follow their international tour with a North American tour to promote Sonic Highways, beginning with a special Fourth of July event in Washington, D.C., that would commemorate the band's 20th anniversary. The all-day event was to be held at Washington's RFK Stadium featuring performances by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Heart, LL Cool J, Gary Clark Jr., and Buddy Guy. Dave Grohl's injury initially led to speculation that the band would drop out of the event but they later confirmed they would perform; however, the injury did prevent them from headlining the 2015 Glastonbury Festival. The band performed for 48,000 people with Grohl in a custom-built moving throne which he claimed to have designed himself while on painkillers.
Beginning with the show on July 4, the Foo Fighters re-branded the North American tour as the Broken Leg Tour. The band continued to use the name at later North American performances. Prior to their August 21 concert at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri, the band rickrolled protesting members of the Westboro Baptist Church, as they had also done in 2011.
On November 23, 2015, a surprise release following a month-long countdown clock on the Foo Fighters' website revealed the free EP Saint Cecilia, including a single of the same name. Alongside its release, Grohl announced that the band would be going on an indefinite hiatus. In response to growing rumors of the band breaking up, the band released a mockumentary video in March 2016 portraying Grohl leaving the band to pursue an electronic music career and Nick Lachey (formerly of 98 Degrees) becoming the group's new singer, ending with: "For the millionth time, we're not breaking up. And nobody's going fucking solo!" In May 2016, Shiflett stated that the band still had no particular plans for reforming but assured that it would happen eventually.
Grohl announced that the band would spend much of 2017 recording their ninth studio album. On June 1, 2017, their new single "Run" was released. Run topped the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart the following month. The band confirmed touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee was officially the sixth member of the group. On June 20, 2017, the band announced that their new album, Concrete and Gold, would be released in September. On August 23, 2017, The Sky Is a Neighborhood was released as the second single and topped the Mainstream Rock chart. The Line was released in promotion of the album and later as the third single in 2018. Concrete and Gold was officially released on September 15, 2017, produced by Greg Kurstin. The album is noted as deriving influence from Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and The Beatles. Concrete and Gold also features Justin Timberlake on vocals for Make It Right, Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men on backing vocals for the song Concrete and Gold, and Paul McCartney on the drums for Sunday Rain. The band began touring in June 2017, including headlining the Glastonbury Festival 2017. The tour in support of Concrete and Gold was extended to October 2018.
Medicine at Midnight and induction into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2019–present)
In October 2019, the band announced that they were recording their tenth studio album based on demos by Grohl. In November 2019, the band began releasing a series of EPs under the umbrella name of the Foo Files, largely consisting of previously released B sides and live performances. By February 2020, Grohl announced that the new album was complete but by May, it was delayed indefinitely because of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying, "We've kind of shelved it for now to figure out exactly when it's going to happen."
Starting in November 2020, promotion for the album ramped up. Its title, Medicine at Midnight, and release date, February 5, 2021, were announced. The band released three singles ahead of the album: "Shame Shame", "No Son of Mine", and "Waiting on a War". In January, the band performed at the US Presidential Inauguration of Joe Biden.
On February 10, 2021, Foo Fighters were announced as one of the 2021 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees in their first year of eligibility as their debut album had been released 25 years prior. On May 12, 2021, Foo Fighters were announced as one of 6 performer inductees.
For Record Store Day on July 17, 2021, the Foo Fighters released an album of disco covers, Hail Satin, under the name Dee Gees. The album contains four Bee Gees covers, a cover of Andy Gibb's "Shadow Dancing", plus five live versions of Medicine at Midnight tracks.
On December 2, 2021, a video was uploaded to the band's YouTube, which announced Studio 666, a rock and roll comedy horror film starring the members of the band. The trailer was released on January 11, 2022, and has a release date of February 25.
Musical style and legacy
Foo Fighters have been described as grunge, alternative rock, post-grunge, and hard rock. They were initially compared to Grohl's previous group, Nirvana. Grohl acknowledged that Kurt Cobain was an influence on his songwriting: "Through Kurt, I saw the beauty of minimalism and the importance of music that's stripped down." Foo Fighters also used the technique of shifting between quiet verses and loud choruses, which Grohl said was influenced by the members of Nirvana "liking The Knack, Bay City Rollers, Beatles, and ABBA as much as we liked Flipper and Black Flag, I suppose."
Writing and recording songs for their first album by himself, Grohl intended for the guitar riffs to be as rhythmic as possible. He approached the guitar in a similar manner to his drumming, assigning various drum parts to strings on the instrument. This allowed him to piece together songs easily; he said, "I could hear the song in my head before it was finished." Once Grohl assembled a full band, the members assisted in song arrangements. Pitchfork described Grohl and the band as "his generation's answer to Tom Petty—a consistent hit machine pumping out working-class rock."
The band members meld melodic and heavy elements. Grohl noted in 1997, "We all love music, whether it's the Beatles or Queen or punk rock. I think the lure of punk rock was the energy and immediacy; the need to thrash stuff around. But at the same time, we're all suckers for a beautiful melody, you know? So it is just natural." Grohl said in 2005, "I love being in a rock band, but I don't know if I necessarily wanna be in an alternative rock band from the 1990s for the rest of my life." Grohl noted that the band's acoustic tour was an attempt to broaden the group's sound.
Band membersCurrent members Dave Grohl – lead vocals, guitar (1994–present)
Pat Smear – guitar (1995–1997, 2010–present; session/touring member 2005–2010), backing vocals (1995–1997)
Chris Shiflett – guitar, backing vocals (1999–present)
Nate Mendel – bass (1995–present)
Taylor Hawkins – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1997–present)
Rami Jaffee – keyboard, piano (2017–present; session/touring member 2005–2017)Former members Franz Stahl – guitar, backing vocals (1997–1999)
William Goldsmith – drums, percussion (1995–1997)
Timeline
DiscographyStudio albums'''
Foo Fighters (1995)
The Colour and the Shape (1997)
There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999)
One by One (2002)
In Your Honor (2005)
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace (2007)
Wasting Light (2011)
Sonic Highways (2014)
Concrete and Gold (2017)
Medicine at Midnight (2021)
Awards and nominations
Foo Fighters first received a Grammy Award for their music video for Learn to Fly in 2000, and they have won ten others. These include four Grammys in the Best Rock Album category for There Is Nothing Left to Lose, One by One, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace and Wasting Light, and three awards for Best Hard Rock Performance for the songs All My Life, The Pretender and White Limo. The band also received three Kerrang! Awards. At the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards, the band won Best Rock Video for Walk. They won the Radio Contraband Major Label Artist of the Year in 2011 and 2014. The band won Song of the Year for Something From Nothing and Album of the Year for Sonic Highways both in 2014.
On February 12, 2012, the band performed at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards playing Walk along with the remix version of Rope, featuring deadmau5. The band was nominated for six Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year, Best Rock Performance, Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance, Best Rock Song, Best Rock Album and Best Long Form Music Video (for Back and Forth''). They won five of the six, losing only to Adele in the Album of the Year category.
In 2021, Foo Fighters were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in their first year of eligibility.
In 2021, the band was announced as recipients of the first-ever global icon award at the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards.
References
External links
Alternative rock groups from Washington (state)
American post-grunge musical groups
Grunge musical groups
Brit Award winners
Grammy Award winners
Hard rock musical groups from Washington (state)
Kerrang! Awards winners
Musical groups established in 1994
Musical groups from Seattle
NME Awards winners
Nirvana (band)
RCA Records artists
Articles which contain graphical timelines
Late Show with David Letterman
1994 establishments in Washington (state) | false | [
"Album #2 – also known as The Outsiders Album #2 or simply #2 – is the second studio album by the Outsiders.\n\nRelease data\n\nThe album was released in the LP format on Capitol in September 1966 in both monaural and stereophonic editions (catalogue numbers T 2568 and ST 2568, respectively).\n\nAlthough never released individually as a CD, the band's first two albums were reissued on Liberty Bell as a \"two-fer\" CD, along with bonus tracks (catalogue number PCD 4365).\n\nNotes on the tracks\n\nOriginal LP\n\nThis LP is more of a \"blue-eyed soul\" album than Time Won't Let Me. Other than \"My Girl\", the tracks on their first album all fit solidly into the rock category, while this is true of only a minority of the tracks on this album. Only one of the band's many singles is included, their second biggest seller \"Respectable\". Also known as \"(She's So) Respectable\" and \"Respectable (What Kind of Girl Is This)\", this song was written and released as a single by the Isley Brothers in 1959; though not a hit at that time, the song became more prominent when it was included on the Yardbirds' debut album, Five Live Yardbirds (1964). Its flip side, \"Lost in My World\" is an original song by the band (written by Tom King and Chet Kelley) and is a different song from the flip side of the 1970 single that was issued in the name the Outsiders and later re-credited to Climax.\n\nThe \"B\" sides of the Outsiders''' last two singles on Capitol – which were not released until late 1967 and 1968 – are also included on this album. \"I Will Love You\" was co-written by Shelby Flint, who included it on her first album in 1961; it was also a minor 1963 hit for Richard Chamberlain. \"Oh How it Hurts\" is a different song from the title song and first single from Barbara Mason's 1968 album.\n\nThough not so well known as their earlier Number One hit \"My Girl\", \"Since I Lost My Baby\" was a Top 20 pop hit and a Top 5 R&B hit for the Temptations in mid-1965. The Tommy James and the Shondells version of \"Hanky Panky\" became a Number One hit in July 1966, shortly before the release of this album; when originally released by the Raindrops, it was a very different song with a slower and more sensual beat. \"Cool Jerk\" – which is, incidentally, one of the few covers recorded by the Go-Go's – was a popular pop and R&B hit that was released by the Capitols in July 1966, again within weeks of the release of this album.\n\nAnother cover, \"(Just Like) Romeo and Juliet\" was a 1964 hit by the Reflections; another version of the song by Michael and the Messengers was included on the original Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era, 1965-1968 compilation album. One of the lesser known covers on the album, \"Wine Wine Wine\" was written in 1962 by The Nightcaps; a version that was recorded by Bobby Fuller several years before his smash hit \"I Fought the Law\" was included on Pebbles, Volume 2.\n\nCD Bonus Tracks\nThe first six bonus tracks are the sides from the last four singles by the band other than the two \"B\" sides that are included on Album #2; these songs are not included on any of the band's 1960s albums. The last two bonus tracks are alternate versions of two songs that are actually by Climax – Sonny Geraci's band after the Outsiders broke up – although \"Think I'm Falling\" was first released under the name the Outsiders before Tom King won the rights to the band name in a lawsuit. \"Rock and Roll Heaven\" went on to be a major hit song by the Righteous Brothers, but not until 1974.\n\nPersonnel\n Tom King, rhythm guitar, tenor saxophone, vocals, arranger Sonny Geraci, lead vocals Mert Madsen, bass guitar Bill Bruno, \"lead guitar\"\n Ricky Biagiola \"drums\"\n Ronnie Harkai, drums'\n Chet Kelley, songwriter\n Mike Geraci, saxophone\n Evan Vanguard, horns\n Tommy Baker, horns and strings arrangements\n\nTrack listing\nAll tracks composed by Tom King and Chet Kelley; except where indicated\n\nSide 1\n\n \"(Just Like) Romeo and Juliet\" (Bob Hamilton, Freddie Gorman)\n \"Lost in My World\"\n \"Since I Lost My Baby\" (Smokey Robinson, Warren Moore)\n \"Cool Jerk\" (Donald Storball)\n \"Oh How it Hurts\"\n \"I Will Love You\"\n\nSide 2\n \"Respectable\" (O'Kelly Isley, Ronald Isley, Rudolph Isley)\n \"Hanky Panky\" (Ellie Greenwich, Jeff Barry)\n \"Lonely Man\"\n \"Wine Wine Wine\" (Billy Joe Shine, David Swartz, Gene Haufler, Jack Allday, Mario Deboub)\n \"Backwards, Upside Down\"\n\nBonus tracks\nWhen released by Liberty Bell, the CD included the tracks on Time Won't Let Me in the same order as on that LP, followed by the tracks on this album in the same order, then these bonus tracks (30 tracks in all):\n\n \"Gotta Leave Us Alone\"\n \"I Just Can't See You Anymore\"\n \"I'll See You in the Summertime\"\n \"And Now You Want My Sympathy\"\n \"Little Bit of Lovin'\"\n \"We Ain't Gonna Make It\"\n \"Think I'm Falling\", group version\n \"Rock and Roll Heaven\", alternate version\n\n1966 albums\nThe Outsiders (American band) albums\nCapitol Records albums",
"\"Living in a Dream\" is the first single from Canadian alternative rock band Finger Eleven's sixth album, Life Turns Electric. It was released in August 2010. This song, along with \"Paralyzer\" from their last album, has a \"dance-rock\" feel to the track.\n\nThe song failed to be as big a hit internationally as the last album's lead single, \"Paralyzer\" was, failing to hit the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States and reaching the top five on any rock format.\n\nThe song was used as the official theme song for the 2011 WWE Royal Rumble event that is produced by WWE.\n\nMusic video\nThe music video released on October 21, 2010. It shows the band performing in a dark room.\n\nChart performance\n\"Living In a Dream\" did moderately well on the rock tracks, although underperforming the lead single \"Paralyzer\" from their previous album Them vs. You vs. Me. In the U.S., the single had strong debuts on both the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks and Alternative Songs. \"Living in a Dream\" eventually become a top 10 hit on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks and a top 15 hit on the Alternative Songs chart. The single failed to chart on the Hot 100, though. The song has also gone top 50 in Canada.\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\n2010 singles\nFinger Eleven songs\n2010 songs\nSongs written by Gregg Wattenberg\nWind-up Records singles"
]
|
[
"Foo Fighters",
"There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1998-2001)",
"Are there any hit tracks on this album?",
"\"Learn to Fly\", the band's first single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included \"Stacked Actors\", \"Generator\", \"Next Year\" and \"Breakout\"."
]
| C_44cfa9f1a9614dc1970959a59917acbd_0 | Did they tour for this album? | 2 | Did the Foo Fighters go on tour for their There Is Nothing Left to Lose album? | Foo Fighters | In 1998, Foo Fighters traveled to Grohl's home state of Virginia to write music for its third album. However, Grohl and Stahl were unable to co-operate as songwriters; Grohl told Kerrang! in 1999, "in those few weeks it just seemed like the three of us were moving in one direction and Franz wasn't". Grohl was distraught over the decision to fire Stahl, as the two had been friends since childhood. Shortly after that, Mendel called Grohl to say he was quitting the band to reunite with Sunny Day Real Estate, only to reverse his decision the next day. The remaining trio of Grohl, Mendel, and Hawkins spent the next several months recording the band's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, in Grohl's Virginia home studio that he bought and built. The album spawned several singles, including "Learn to Fly", the band's first single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors", "Generator", "Next Year" and "Breakout". Before the release of the album, Capitol president Gary Gersh was forced out of the label. Given Grohl's history with Gersh, Foo Fighters' contract had included a "key man clause" that allowed them to leave the label upon Gersh's departure. They subsequently left Capitol and signed with RCA, who later acquired the rights to the band's Capitol albums. After recording for There Is Nothing Left to Lose was completed, the band auditioned a number of potential guitarists, and eventually settled on Chris Shiflett, who performs with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, and previously performed with California punk band, No Use for a Name. Shiflett initially joined the band as touring guitarist, but achieved full-time status prior to the recording of the group's fourth album. In January 2000, Nate Mendel led a benefit concert in Hollywood for AIDS denialist group Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives with a speech by founder Christine Maggiore and free copies of her book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong? Additionally, the band's official website had linked to the group's website. The full band was shown in a documentary for Alive & Well declaring their support before a performance. Links and references to Alive & Well have since been removed and no further mentions or shows of support have been made. Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen, of whom the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. In March of that year, Grohl and Hawkins inducted the band into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and joined them on stage for a rendition of the Queen 1976 classic "Tie Your Mother Down", with Hawkins playing drums alongside Roger Taylor, while Grohl was playing rhythm guitar and handling vocal duties. Guitarist Brian May added a guitar track to Foo Fighters' second cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar", which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Mission: Impossible 2. In 2002, guitarist May contributed guitar work to "Tired of You" and an outtake called "Knucklehead". The bands have performed together on several occasions since, including VH1 Rock Honors and Foo Fighters' headlining concert in Hyde Park. CANNOTANSWER | Shiflett initially joined the band as touring guitarist, | Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in 1994 in Seattle, Washington. The band was founded by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of Nirvana after the suicide of Kurt Cobain. The group took its name from foo fighter, a nickname coined by Allied aircraft pilots for UFOs and other aerial phenomena. Over the course of their career, Foo Fighters have won 12 Grammy Awards, including Best Rock Album four times. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021, their first year of eligibility.
Prior to the release of Foo Fighters' 1995 debut album Foo Fighters, which featured Grohl as the only official member, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both formerly of Sunny Day Real Estate, as well as Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear. The band began with performances in Portland, Oregon. Goldsmith quit during the recording of their second album The Colour and the Shape (1997); most of the drum parts were re-recorded by Grohl. Smear departed soon afterward but appeared as a guest with the band frequently from 2005; he rejoined in 2010.
Smear and Goldsmith were replaced by Franz Stahl and Taylor Hawkins; Stahl was fired before the recording of the group's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999). The band briefly continued as a trio until Chris Shiflett joined on guitar after the completion of There Is Nothing Left to Lose. Foo Fighters released their fourth album, One by One, in 2002. It was followed with the two-disc In Your Honor (2005), which was split between acoustic songs and heavier material. Foo Fighters released their sixth album, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, in 2007.
For Foo Fighters' seventh studio album, Wasting Light (2011), produced by Butch Vig, Smear returned as a full member. Sonic Highways (2014) was released as the soundtrack to the television miniseries directed by Grohl. Concrete and Gold (2017) was the second Foo Fighters album to reach number one in the United States and their first studio album to feature longtime session and touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee as a full member. In 2021, the band released their tenth album, Medicine at Midnight.
History
Background and first demos (1990–1994)
In 1990, Dave Grohl joined the grunge band Nirvana as drummer. During tours, he took a guitar with him and wrote songs, but was too intimidated to share them with the band; he was "in awe" of the songs written by frontman Kurt Cobain. Grohl occasionally booked studio time to record demos and covers, issuing an album of demos, Pocketwatch, under the pseudonym Late! in 1992.
Nirvana disbanded after the death of Cobain in 1994. Grohl received offers to work with various artists; press rumors indicated he might join Pearl Jam, and he almost accepted a position as drummer in Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Grohl later said: "I was supposed to just join another band and be a drummer the rest of my life. I thought that I would rather do what no one expected me to do." Grohl instead entered Robert Lang Studios in October 1994 to record 15 of his own songs. With the exception of a guitar part on "X-Static", played by Greg Dulli of the Afghan Whigs, Grohl played every instrument and sang every vocal. He completed an album's worth of material in five days and handed out cassette copies of the sessions to his friends for feedback.
Grohl hoped to stay anonymous and release the recordings in a limited run under the name Foo Fighters, taken from foo fighter, a World War II term for unidentified flying objects. He hoped the name would lead listeners to assume the music was made by several people. He said later: "Had I actually considered this to be a career, I probably would have called it something else, because it's the stupidest fucking band name in the world." The demo tape circulated in the industry, creating interest among record labels.
Formation and debut album (1994–1995)
Grohl formed a band to support the album. He spoke to Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic about joining the group, but they decided against it; Grohl said it would have felt "really natural" for them to work together, but would have been "weird" for the others and place more pressure on Grohl. Instead, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both of the recently disbanded Seattle group Sunny Day Real Estate. Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear joined as second guitarist. Grohl licensed the album to Capitol Records, releasing it on his new label, Roswell Records.
Foo Fighters made their live public debut on February 23, 1995, at the Jambalaya Club in Arcata, California, followed by performances at Satyricon in Portland on March 3 and the Velvet Elvis in Seattle on March 4. The show on March 3 had been part of a benefit gig for the investigation of the rape and murder of Gits singer Mia Zapata. Grohl refused to do interviews or tour large venues to promote the album. Foo Fighters undertook their first major tour in the spring of 1995, opening for Mike Watt. The band's first single, "This Is a Call", was released in June 1995, and its debut album Foo Fighters was released the next month. "I'll Stick Around," "For All the Cows," and "Big Me" were released as subsequent singles. The band spent the following months on tour, including their first appearance at the Reading Festival in England in August.
The Colour and the Shape (1996–1997)
After touring through the spring of 1996, Foo Fighters entered Bear Creek Studio in Woodinville, Washington, with producer Gil Norton to record its second album. While Grohl once again wrote all the songs, the rest of the band collaborated on the arrangements. With the sessions nearly complete, Grohl took the rough mixes to Los Angeles, intending to finish his vocal and guitar parts. While there, Grohl realized that he was not happy with the drumming and replaced most of Goldsmith's drum tracks with his own. Though Grohl hoped that Goldsmith would still play on the tour, Goldsmith felt betrayed and left the band.
In need of a replacement for Goldsmith, Grohl contacted Alanis Morissette's touring drummer Taylor Hawkins for a recommendation. Grohl was surprised when Hawkins volunteered himself. Hawkins made his debut with the group in time for the release of its second album, The Colour and the Shape, in May 1997. The album included the singles "Monkey Wrench", "Everlong", "My Hero", and "Walking After You".
Smear left Foo Fighters in 1997, citing exhaustion and burnout, and was replaced by Grohl's former Scream bandmate Franz Stahl. Stahl toured with Foo Fighters for the next few months and appeared on two tracks recorded for movie soundtracks, a re-recording of "Walking After You" for The X-Files and A320 for Godzilla. A B-side from the "My Hero" single, "Dear Lover," appeared in the horror film Scream 2. The tour for The Colour and the Shape album in 1998 included performances at Glastonbury Festival (on the main stage) and the Reading Festival.
There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1998–2001)
In 1998, Foo Fighters traveled to Grohl's home state of Virginia to write their third album. However, Grohl and Stahl were unable to co-operate as songwriters; Grohl told Kerrang! in 1999, "in those few weeks it just seemed like the three of us were moving in one direction and Franz wasn't." Grohl was distraught over the decision to fire Stahl as the two had been friends since childhood. Shortly after that, Mendel called Grohl to say he was quitting to reunite with Sunny Day Real Estate, only to reverse his decision the next day. The remaining trio of Grohl, Mendel, and Hawkins spent several months recording the band's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, in Grohl's home studio. The album spawned several singles, including "Learn to Fly", the band's first to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors," "Generator," "Next Year," and "Breakout."
Before the release of the album, Capitol Records president Gary Gersh was forced out of the label. Given Grohl's history with Gersh, Foo Fighters' contract had included a "key man clause" that allowed them to leave the label upon Gersh's departure. They left Capitol and signed with RCA, who later acquired the rights to the band's Capitol albums.
After recording There Is Nothing Left to Lose was completed, the band auditioned a number of potential guitarists and settled on Chris Shiflett, who performed with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes and California punk band No Use for a Name. Shiflett initially joined as a touring guitarist but achieved full-time status prior to the recording of the group's fourth album.
In January 2000, Nate Mendel led a benefit concert in Hollywood for AIDS denialist group Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives with a speech by founder Christine Maggiore and free copies of her self-published book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong? Additionally, the band's official website featured a section devoted to Alive & Well. Sandra Thurman, then director of the Office of National AIDS Policy stated this was "extraordinarily irresponsible behavior" because "there is no doubt about the link between HIV and AIDS in the respected scientific community." Links and references to Alive & Well were removed from the band's website by March 2003.
Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen as the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. In March of that year, Grohl and Hawkins inducted them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and joined them to perform the 1976 classic, Tie Your Mother Down, with Hawkins playing drums alongside Roger Taylor. Guitarist Brian May added a guitar track to Foo Fighters' second cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar," which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Mission: Impossible 2. In 2002, guitarist May contributed guitar work to Tired of You and an outtake called Knucklehead. The bands have performed together on several occasions since, including VH1 Rock Honors and Foo Fighters' headlining concert in Hyde Park.
One by One (2001–2004)
Near the end of 2001, the band reconvened to record its fourth album. After spending four months in a Los Angeles studio, the album "just didn't sound right" and the band had no confidence it would sell very well. With the album not reaching their expectations amid much infighting, Grohl spent some time helping Queens of the Stone Age complete their 2002 album Songs for the Deaf. Once that album was finished and touring had started for both Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age, the band was on the verge of breaking up entirely. Grohl reunited with Hawkins, Shiflett, and Mendel to play the Coachella Festival, alternating days with Queens of the Stone Age. Hawkins and Grohl talked about resuming work on One by One and after a very satisfying performance the following day, they agreed to stay together. The group re-recorded nearly all of the album (save Tired of You) in a ten-day stretch at Grohl's home studio in Alexandria, Virginia, the following month. The original version of One by One, referred to by the band as Million Dollar Demos, has never been released in its entirety although seven tracks were leaked online in 2012 and 2015.
The album was released in October 2002 under the title One by One. Singles from the album included "All My Life," "Times Like These," "Low," and "Have It All." The tour for the album included a headline performance at the 2002 Reading and Leeds Festivals.
For most of its history, the band chose to stay away from the political realm. However, in 2004, upon learning that George W. Bush's presidential campaign was using "Times Like These" at rallies, Grohl decided to lend his public support to John Kerry's campaign, saying, "There's no way of stopping the president playing your songs, so I went out and played it for John Kerry's people instead, where I thought the message would kinda make more sense." Grohl attended several Kerry rallies and occasionally performed solo acoustic sets. The entire band joined Grohl for a performance in Arizona coinciding with one of the presidential debates.
In Your Honor (2005–2006)
Having spent a year and a half touring behind One by One, Grohl did not want to rush into recording another Foo Fighters record. Initially Grohl intended to write acoustic material by himself but eventually the project involved the entire band. To record its fifth album, the band shifted to Los Angeles and built a recording studio, dubbed Studio 606 West. Grohl insisted that the album be divided into two discs–one full of rock songs, the other featuring acoustic tracks. In Your Honor was released in June 2005. The album's singles included Best of You, DOA, Resolve, and No Way Back/Cold Day in the Sun.
During September and October 2005, the band toured with Weezer on what was billed as the Foozer Tour. Foo Fighters played a headline performance at the 2005 Reading and Leeds Festivals. On June 17, 2006, Foo Fighters performed their largest non-festival headlining concert to date at London's Hyde Park. Motörhead's Lemmy joined the band on stage to sing Shake Your Blood from Dave Grohl's Probot album. As a surprise performance, Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen appeared to play part of We Will Rock You as a lead in to Tie Your Mother Down.
In further support of In Your Honor, the band organized a short acoustic tour for the summer of 2006. Members who had performed with them in late 2005 appeared, such as Pat Smear, Petra Haden on violin and backing vocals, Drew Hester on percussion, and Rami Jaffee of The Wallflowers on keyboard and piano. While much of the setlist focused on In Your Honors acoustic half, the band also used the opportunity to play lesser-known songs, such as Ain't It The Life, Floaty, and See You. The band also performed Marigold, a Pocketwatch-era song that was best known as a Nirvana B side.
In November 2006, the band released their first ever live CD, Skin and Bones, featuring fifteen performances captured over a three-night stint in Los Angeles.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace and Greatest Hits (2007–2009)
For the follow-up to In Your Honor, the band recruited The Colour and the Shape producer Gil Norton. Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was released on September 25, 2007. The album's first single, The Pretender, was issued to radio in early August. In mid-to-late 2007 The Pretender topped Billboard's Modern Rock chart for a record 19 weeks. The second single, Long Road to Ruin, was released in December 2007, supported by a music video directed by longtime collaborator Jesse Peretz (formerly of the Lemonheads). Other singles included Let It Die and Cheer Up, Boys (Your Make Up Is Running).
In October 2007, Foo Fighters started their world tour in support of the album. The band performed shows throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Asia, including headlining the Virgin Mobile Festival in Baltimore on August 9. At the European MTV Music Awards in 2007, Pat Smear confirmed his return to the band.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was nominated for five Grammy Awards in 2008. Foo Fighters went home with Best Rock Album and Best Hard Rock Performance (for The Pretender). The album was also nominated for Album of the Year, while The Pretender was also nominated for Record of the Year and Best Rock Song.
On June 7, 2008, the band played Wembley Stadium, London, and was joined by Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin to play Rock and Roll (with Grohl on drums and Hawkins on vocals) and Ramble On (sung by Grohl, drums by Hawkins). As Page and Jones left the stage before a final encore of Best Of You, an ecstatic Grohl shouted "Welcome to the greatest fucking day of my whole entire life!". Throughout the tour for Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, Foo Fighters had been writing and practicing new songs at sound checks. After Foo Fighters had completed this tour in September 2008, they recorded 13 new songs in studio 606, shortly after announcing a hiatus from touring (which would last until January 2011). These sessions likely lasted from late 2008 – early 2009. While the members of Foo Fighters had initially planned for their new album (composed of songs from this recording session) to have come out in 2009 with almost no touring support, they ultimately decided to shelve most of the songs from these sessions. Three of these songs were later released — Wheels and Word Forward (on their 2009 compilation album, Greatest Hits); and a newly recorded version of Rope (which ended up making the final cut of Wasting Light).
In order to promote their greatest hits album, Foo Fighters performed an online show at studio 606 in October 2009 during which the band took fan requests.
Wasting Light (2010–2012)
In August 2010, the band began recording their seventh studio album with producer Butch Vig, who had previously produced the two new tracks for the band's Greatest Hits album. The album was recorded in Dave Grohl's garage using only analog equipment. The album won five Grammys and was nominated for six. The recording was analog to tape and used no computers, not even to mix or master. Vig said in an interview with MTV that the album was entirely analog until post-mastering. Pat Smear was present in many photos posted by Grohl on Twitter and a press release in December confirmed Smear played on every track on the album and was considered a core member of the band once again.
The first single from Wasting Light, Rope, was released to radio in February 2011. On April 16, 2011, Foo Fighters released an album of covers, Medium Rare, as a limited-edition vinyl for Record Store Day. The promotion for the album has been highly praised for its originality. Wasting Light debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, becoming the band's first album to do so. Other singles for the album included Walk, Arlandria, These Days, and Bridge Burning.
Alongside Wasting Lights release, Foo Fighters released a rockumentary, directed by Academy Award-winner James Moll. The film, titled Back and Forth, chronicles the band's career. Then current and past members, and producer Butch Vig, tell the story of the band through interviews. After debuting on March 15, 2011, at the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, it was released on DVD three months later.
On May 21, 2011, Foo Fighters headlined the middle day of the Hangout Music Festival in Gulf Shores, Alabama. On June 4, 2011, they played a surprise set at the 2011 KROQ Weenie Roast. They also headlined two sold-out shows at the Milton Keynes National Bowl on July 2 and 3, joined on stage by artists such as Alice Cooper, Seasick Steve, and John Paul Jones. They headlined the final night at the 20th anniversary of Lollapalooza in Chicago's Grant Park on August 7, 2011, performing part of their set in a driving rainstorm.
In September 2011 before a show in Kansas City, the band performed a parody song in front of a protest by the Westboro Baptist Church. It mocked the church's opposition to homosexuality and was performed in the same faux-trucker garb that was seen in the band's Hot Buns promotional video.
It was announced on September 28, 2011, that Foo Fighters would be performing during the closing ceremony of Blizzard Entertainment's annual video game convention, BlizzCon.
On August 27, 2012, Foo Fighters ended their European tour with a headline performance at Reading and Leeds Festival. On September 5, the band performed a show at the Fillmore in Charlotte, North Carolina, as a benefit for Rock the Vote. The show, which occurred at the same time as the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, was announced only two weeks prior. Tickets to the 2000-person capacity venue sold out in under 60 seconds, setting a record for the site. The band set another personal record during the show itself, being the longest that the band had played to date at just under 3.5 hours with a setlist of 36 songs. On September 21, the band headlined the Music Midtown Festival in Atlanta, Georgia. The following evening, they headlined the DeLuna Festival in Pensacola Beach, Florida. On September 29, the band performed at the Global Citizens' Festival before embarking on a break.
Sonic Highways (2013–2015)
Despite initially announcing a break after supporting Wasting Light, Grohl stated in January 2013 that the band had started writing material for an eighth studio album. On February 20, 2013, at the Brit Awards, Grohl said he was resuming work on the album the following day.
On September 6, 2013, Shiflett posted a photo to his Instagram account that indicated 13 songs were being recorded and later described it as "pretty fucking fun". Rami Jaffee has recorded parts for three songs, one of which was In the Way. Butch Vig, who worked with the band on Wasting Light, confirmed via Twitter in late August 2013 that he was producing the album. The band confirmed that it would end its hiatus by playing two shows in Mexico City on December 11 and 13. On October 31, a video appeared on the official Foo Fighters YouTube channel showing a motorcyclist, later revealed to be Erik Estrada, delivering each of the band members an invitation to play in Mexico.
On January 16, 2014, a picture was posted to Foo Fighters' Facebook page with several master tapes labeled LP 8. On May 15, it was announced that the album would be released in November and that the Foo Fighters would commemorate the album and their 20th anniversary with an HBO TV series directed by Grohl titled Sonic Highways. Eight songs were written and recorded in eight studios in eight different American cities with video capturing the history and feel of each town. On July 30, Butch Vig revealed that the Foo Fighters had finished recording and mixing the album and that it was slated to be released a month after the premiere of the TV show.
In June 2014, the band agreed to play a show in Richmond, Virginia, that was entirely crowd-funded by fans on the website Tilt.com. The show took place on September 17 before 1,500 fans. The band played 23 songs over the course of two and a half hours. Foo Fighters announced their tour would include performances in Cape Town on December 10 and Johannesburg on December 13. The band played three performances under the alias The Holy Shits in September 2014; the first at the Concorde 2 club in Brighton, England, where Grohl invited lead singer Jay Apperley of the tribute band UK Foo Fighters on stage to sing, followed by the House of Vans and the Islington Assembly Hall. On September 14, 2014, the band performed at the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games, their first official show in England since closing Reading Festival in 2012. They closed out the 2014 VooDoo Music and Arts Festival in New Orleans on November 2, 2014, in a two and a half hour performance that included an appearance from New Orleans native Trombone Shorty, who played This is a Call with the band.
On August 8, the band released a short clip of their latest work, titled 8. On August 11, the band announced that the new album would be titled Sonic Highways and released on November 10, 2014. An international tour, dubbed the Sonic Highways World Tour, followed with performances in South Africa in December and South America in January 2015. It continued to Australia and New Zealand in February and March.
On May 20, 2015, the Foo Fighters were the final musical act to perform on Late Show with David Letterman, continuing their long association with the host as he wrapped up his 33-year career in late night television. The show ended with a montage of Letterman highlights while the Foo Fighters played "Everlong", which Letterman said had significant meaning for him after his open-heart surgery in 2000. The band postponed their international tour to make the appearance; the tour resumed on May 24, with a performance at Radio 1's Big Weekend in Norwich, England.
On June 12, Grohl fell from the stage in Gothenburg, Sweden, during the group's second song, breaking his leg. The band continued playing while Grohl received medical attention, who then returned to the stage to finish the last two hours of the band's set from a chair while a medic tended to his leg. After the concert, Grohl was flown to London for surgery, requiring six metal pins to stabilize the fracture. As a result of the injury, the band canceled its remaining European tour dates.
In July, one thousand Italian fans held the Rockin' 1000 gathering in Cesena, Italy, performing Learn to Fly and asking Foo Fighters to come play in the town. The performance video went viral and impressed Grohl, resulting in the band appearing in Cesena on November 3.
Saint Cecilia EP and Concrete and Gold (2015–2019)
The Foo Fighters planned to follow their international tour with a North American tour to promote Sonic Highways, beginning with a special Fourth of July event in Washington, D.C., that would commemorate the band's 20th anniversary. The all-day event was to be held at Washington's RFK Stadium featuring performances by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Heart, LL Cool J, Gary Clark Jr., and Buddy Guy. Dave Grohl's injury initially led to speculation that the band would drop out of the event but they later confirmed they would perform; however, the injury did prevent them from headlining the 2015 Glastonbury Festival. The band performed for 48,000 people with Grohl in a custom-built moving throne which he claimed to have designed himself while on painkillers.
Beginning with the show on July 4, the Foo Fighters re-branded the North American tour as the Broken Leg Tour. The band continued to use the name at later North American performances. Prior to their August 21 concert at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri, the band rickrolled protesting members of the Westboro Baptist Church, as they had also done in 2011.
On November 23, 2015, a surprise release following a month-long countdown clock on the Foo Fighters' website revealed the free EP Saint Cecilia, including a single of the same name. Alongside its release, Grohl announced that the band would be going on an indefinite hiatus. In response to growing rumors of the band breaking up, the band released a mockumentary video in March 2016 portraying Grohl leaving the band to pursue an electronic music career and Nick Lachey (formerly of 98 Degrees) becoming the group's new singer, ending with: "For the millionth time, we're not breaking up. And nobody's going fucking solo!" In May 2016, Shiflett stated that the band still had no particular plans for reforming but assured that it would happen eventually.
Grohl announced that the band would spend much of 2017 recording their ninth studio album. On June 1, 2017, their new single "Run" was released. Run topped the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart the following month. The band confirmed touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee was officially the sixth member of the group. On June 20, 2017, the band announced that their new album, Concrete and Gold, would be released in September. On August 23, 2017, The Sky Is a Neighborhood was released as the second single and topped the Mainstream Rock chart. The Line was released in promotion of the album and later as the third single in 2018. Concrete and Gold was officially released on September 15, 2017, produced by Greg Kurstin. The album is noted as deriving influence from Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and The Beatles. Concrete and Gold also features Justin Timberlake on vocals for Make It Right, Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men on backing vocals for the song Concrete and Gold, and Paul McCartney on the drums for Sunday Rain. The band began touring in June 2017, including headlining the Glastonbury Festival 2017. The tour in support of Concrete and Gold was extended to October 2018.
Medicine at Midnight and induction into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2019–present)
In October 2019, the band announced that they were recording their tenth studio album based on demos by Grohl. In November 2019, the band began releasing a series of EPs under the umbrella name of the Foo Files, largely consisting of previously released B sides and live performances. By February 2020, Grohl announced that the new album was complete but by May, it was delayed indefinitely because of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying, "We've kind of shelved it for now to figure out exactly when it's going to happen."
Starting in November 2020, promotion for the album ramped up. Its title, Medicine at Midnight, and release date, February 5, 2021, were announced. The band released three singles ahead of the album: "Shame Shame", "No Son of Mine", and "Waiting on a War". In January, the band performed at the US Presidential Inauguration of Joe Biden.
On February 10, 2021, Foo Fighters were announced as one of the 2021 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees in their first year of eligibility as their debut album had been released 25 years prior. On May 12, 2021, Foo Fighters were announced as one of 6 performer inductees.
For Record Store Day on July 17, 2021, the Foo Fighters released an album of disco covers, Hail Satin, under the name Dee Gees. The album contains four Bee Gees covers, a cover of Andy Gibb's "Shadow Dancing", plus five live versions of Medicine at Midnight tracks.
On December 2, 2021, a video was uploaded to the band's YouTube, which announced Studio 666, a rock and roll comedy horror film starring the members of the band. The trailer was released on January 11, 2022, and has a release date of February 25.
Musical style and legacy
Foo Fighters have been described as grunge, alternative rock, post-grunge, and hard rock. They were initially compared to Grohl's previous group, Nirvana. Grohl acknowledged that Kurt Cobain was an influence on his songwriting: "Through Kurt, I saw the beauty of minimalism and the importance of music that's stripped down." Foo Fighters also used the technique of shifting between quiet verses and loud choruses, which Grohl said was influenced by the members of Nirvana "liking The Knack, Bay City Rollers, Beatles, and ABBA as much as we liked Flipper and Black Flag, I suppose."
Writing and recording songs for their first album by himself, Grohl intended for the guitar riffs to be as rhythmic as possible. He approached the guitar in a similar manner to his drumming, assigning various drum parts to strings on the instrument. This allowed him to piece together songs easily; he said, "I could hear the song in my head before it was finished." Once Grohl assembled a full band, the members assisted in song arrangements. Pitchfork described Grohl and the band as "his generation's answer to Tom Petty—a consistent hit machine pumping out working-class rock."
The band members meld melodic and heavy elements. Grohl noted in 1997, "We all love music, whether it's the Beatles or Queen or punk rock. I think the lure of punk rock was the energy and immediacy; the need to thrash stuff around. But at the same time, we're all suckers for a beautiful melody, you know? So it is just natural." Grohl said in 2005, "I love being in a rock band, but I don't know if I necessarily wanna be in an alternative rock band from the 1990s for the rest of my life." Grohl noted that the band's acoustic tour was an attempt to broaden the group's sound.
Band membersCurrent members Dave Grohl – lead vocals, guitar (1994–present)
Pat Smear – guitar (1995–1997, 2010–present; session/touring member 2005–2010), backing vocals (1995–1997)
Chris Shiflett – guitar, backing vocals (1999–present)
Nate Mendel – bass (1995–present)
Taylor Hawkins – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1997–present)
Rami Jaffee – keyboard, piano (2017–present; session/touring member 2005–2017)Former members Franz Stahl – guitar, backing vocals (1997–1999)
William Goldsmith – drums, percussion (1995–1997)
Timeline
DiscographyStudio albums'''
Foo Fighters (1995)
The Colour and the Shape (1997)
There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999)
One by One (2002)
In Your Honor (2005)
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace (2007)
Wasting Light (2011)
Sonic Highways (2014)
Concrete and Gold (2017)
Medicine at Midnight (2021)
Awards and nominations
Foo Fighters first received a Grammy Award for their music video for Learn to Fly in 2000, and they have won ten others. These include four Grammys in the Best Rock Album category for There Is Nothing Left to Lose, One by One, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace and Wasting Light, and three awards for Best Hard Rock Performance for the songs All My Life, The Pretender and White Limo. The band also received three Kerrang! Awards. At the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards, the band won Best Rock Video for Walk. They won the Radio Contraband Major Label Artist of the Year in 2011 and 2014. The band won Song of the Year for Something From Nothing and Album of the Year for Sonic Highways both in 2014.
On February 12, 2012, the band performed at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards playing Walk along with the remix version of Rope, featuring deadmau5. The band was nominated for six Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year, Best Rock Performance, Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance, Best Rock Song, Best Rock Album and Best Long Form Music Video (for Back and Forth''). They won five of the six, losing only to Adele in the Album of the Year category.
In 2021, Foo Fighters were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in their first year of eligibility.
In 2021, the band was announced as recipients of the first-ever global icon award at the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards.
References
External links
Alternative rock groups from Washington (state)
American post-grunge musical groups
Grunge musical groups
Brit Award winners
Grammy Award winners
Hard rock musical groups from Washington (state)
Kerrang! Awards winners
Musical groups established in 1994
Musical groups from Seattle
NME Awards winners
Nirvana (band)
RCA Records artists
Articles which contain graphical timelines
Late Show with David Letterman
1994 establishments in Washington (state) | false | [
"Height Keech is the stage name of Baltimore rapper and podcaster Dan Keech (born September 22, 1981). He is best known as the founder and frontman for the group Height With Friends. Before forming Height With Friends, he released three solo albums and six EPs between 2000 and 2009. Keech interviews artists and musicians on his weekly podcast Height Zone World, which debuted in July 2014.\n\nHistory\n\nWounds\n\nHeight began rapping in the Baltimore-based Wounds, a five man group with Jones, Mickey Free, Shields and Chris Freeland. After releasing two cassette-only EP's, Wounds released one self-titled full length album in December 1999. They did a two-week tour in June 2000. Wounds continued occasionally playing shows around the east coast until 2001, when they disbanded as a live act.\n\nSelf-Titled Solo Debut and Tour\n\nIn August 2000, Height joined the indie hip-hop group Dogg and Pony, for their tour with San Francisco punk band The Deepthroats. Height wrote part of his first solo album during the tour, and the members of Dogg and Pony offered to put out the album on Dogg Pony Records. Shortly after the tour, Height did his first solo show, opening for Animal Collective at The Cooler in Brooklyn.\n\nThe first Height album was recorded in September 2000. Production was handled by all members of the Wounds crew, with vocal assistance by Grand Buffet, The Plural MC and MC Dogg. The album was supported by a six-week tour with Grand Buffet in November and December 2000. Due to internal strife at the label, the album ended up not coming out in time for the tour. Height did another midwestern tour with Jones in August 2001.\n\nAfter that tour, Height went on a hiatus from solo shows. He occasionally performed as a hype man for Cex, but he didn't play his own material again for over a year. In October 2002, Height was featured on three tracks from Cex's Tall, Dark and Handcuffed, on Tigerbeat6 Records. This was the first nationally distributed record of which Height was a part.\n\nI Have A Gun/Bow and Height\n\nIn July 2003, Height released his second album, I Have A Gun. The production was handled almost entirely by Shields, with recording and mixing by Zach Poff. Height did one solo tour to promote the album.\n\nShortly after, Height joined Mickey Free (a.k.a. Bow n' Arrow) to form Bow and Height. They became a duo, performing each other's solo songs, as well as some new collaborations. They did five tours throughout 2004, touring the US and Canada with Dan Deacon, Lost It, Grand Buffet and Oxes.\n\nIn December 2004, Bow and Height disbanded. Height returned to performing as a solo act, starting with a northeastern tour with Dan Deacon.\n\nSolo Touring\n\nIn February 2005, Height set out on a 50-day tour with Dan Deacon. Halfway through the trip, Height's car was totaled in Fresno, California. He flew back to Baltimore, while Dan Deacon completed part of the tour by Greyhound bus. They met up again in Pittsburgh, where they completed the last ten days of the tour together, along with Mickey Free.\n\nIn the fall of that year, Jones became an occasional part of Height's live set, DJing and adding effects to Height's vocals. Jones would join on for two out of the five Height tours that occurred throughout 2005-2006.\n\nRound Robin Tours\n\nIn October 2006, Height toured as part of the Wham City Round Robin Tour, once again with Jones as DJ.\n\nIn 2008, toured again as part of The Baltimore Round Robin tour, this time with Jones and King Rhythm as his band mates.\n\nSince 2006, Height has been putting together an annual event called the All Rap Round Robin, in Baltimore.\n\nUtility Fog\n\nIn Fall 2006, Height released a short-run EP of rarities, called Utility Fog. He would go on to release four EP's in the Utility Fog series, releasing the final EP of the series in 2009.\n\nWinterize The Game\n\nIn February 2007, Height released the full length album, Winterize The Game, on Grand Man Records. This was the first Height album to be recorded and mixed entirely by Mickey Free.\n\nDuring this time, Jones had become a full-time part of the live show. He joined Height for three coast-to-coast US tours, a Canadian tour, two east coast tours, and many regional other local /regional shows. For two of those tours, King Rhythm was also part of the show, triggering samples live and doing back-up vocals.\n\nPerforming with Grand Buffet\n\nIn March 2007, Height accompanied Grand Buffet for their week of shows opening for Of Montreal. Only meant as a road trip, the trip resulted in Height becoming a part of the Grand Buffet's set, performing the Grand Buffet/Height collaborations, \"Bad Weather\" and \"These Dreams are Fucked.\" Throughout 2007 and 2008, Height would regularly perform as part of Grand Buffet's show, for their tours with Of Montreal, MGMT and Streetlght Manifesto.\n\nHeight With Friends\n\nIn December 2008, Height began performing with Mickey Free, Emily Slaughter and Travis Allen. They began billing themselves as Height With Friends. The name change was intended to help present the project as an official band, without distancing themselves from the earlier Height material. The name change was also meant to acknowledge a new, more collaborative production style.\n\nAlthough they continued to perform some older Height songs, their new songs were specifically created to be performed live, by multiple vocalists. The line-up would change frequently. In addition to the original cast, they would also be joined by Gavin Riley, Brendan Richmond, Liz Aeby, Cathy Cathodic, Bob O'Brien and Plucky Walker of Flesh Epic.\n\nBaltimore Highlands\n\nBaltimore Highlands, the first record under the name Height With Friends, was released on Wham City Records in January 2009. The album was created by a more collaborative approach, with multiple producers working together on most tracks. In an interview about the album with Butterteam.com, Jones described the album's production as being like a \"chain letter,\" with each producer adding an element and passing it on to someone else.\n\nIn May 2009, the album was supported by the Wham City Records Is Real Tour, with Ed Schrader. They went on three other tours supporting the album that year, with Nuclear Power Pants, Thank You, Future Islands and Lord Grunge as tour mates.\n\nThis album was followed by the release of the Baltimore Highlands Remix Album, which was released in October 2009. It contained remixes by Tobacco, San Serac, Lesser Gonzalez, Drew Swinburne, Cex, Ms. Paintbursh, PT Burnem, King Rhythm, Jones, AK, LOWD, DJ Authentic, Gavin Riley and Al Lover.\n\nBed of Seeds\n\nBed of Seeds was written, recorded and mixed between Fall 2009 and Spring 2010. Much of the recording took place during a ten-day session in a makeshift studio in a cabin in Deep Creek Lake, Maryland. The album's production was financed by Normative Records. The label folded as the album was being mixed, but the record was picked up by Friends Records and released in May 2010.\n\nThis is the first Height With Friends project largely created with live instruments. The majority of the album's songs stray from the beats and rhymes format, employing chord structures and production styles from other forms of music. The rhyme schemes themselves sometimes resemble folk or pop verses, more than they do standard sixteen bar rap verses.\n\nThe album was initially promoted with a two-month tour in April and May 2010. The April portion of the tour was with Nuclear Power Pants. Due to problems at the pressing plant, the vinyl was not available until the tail end of the tour. They continued promoting the album with two more short tours in 2010, then a 51-day tour in February 2011. For their last tour in support of Bed Of Seeds, Height With Friends joined PT Burnem for The Rap Ambassadors Tour. The tour went to Russia, Ukraine, Romania, Hungary, Poland, Croatia and France.\n\nShark Tank\n\nShark Tank is a side project that pairs Height with Lord Grunge, Mickey Free and Brendan Richmond.\nIn February 2011, Shark Tank released their debut self-titled album. They did a small run of east coast shows to support the release.\n\nVideos\n\nHeight With Friends has four videos, and Height has one video of this solo material. The video for their song \"Mike Stone,\" was directed by Justin Barnes and produced by Team G. It was nominated for an award for Best Music Video at the 2010 SXSW Film Festival.\n\nHeight Zone World Podcast\n\nKeech interviews mostly Baltimore artists and musicians for his podcast. Each episode is hosted on Spilce Today and features an original homage album cover by Mike Riley. It has been streaming weekly since June 2014 and has featured such guests as Jenn Wasner, Dan Deacon, Sam Herring, Girl Talk, and Ed Schrader.\n\nDiscography\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Official website\n Height Zone World Podcast\n\nRappers from Baltimore\nLiving people\n1981 births\n21st-century American rappers",
"Travel III EP is the sixth album by the Christian rock band Future of Forestry, and the third in the \"Travel Series.\" The recording of the album “officially” started on February 11. It was released on June 29, 2010. Frontman Eric Owyoung wrote all of the songs for this EP and his wife, Tamara Owyoung, painted the cover art for the album. The band subsequently departed on what was called \"The 3 Tour\" to go along with the release. The tour was self-booked and took place in the West and Midwest regions of the United States starting on June 27, 2010 and ending on July 13, 2010.\n\nTrack listing\nThe names (and respective order) of the songs were released on the band's Myspace page leading up to the release of the CD, as they did for the rest of the Travel Series EPs. However, on Travel III, for the first time, Future of Forestry released the tracks out-of-order.\n\n \"Bold and Underlined\" - 4:04\n \"Working to Be Loved\" - 3:48\n \"Did You Lose Yourself\" - 4:47\n \"Protection\" - 4:14\n \"Horizon Rainfall\" - 2:53\n \"Your Day's Not Over\" - 5:00\n\nAwards\nThe album was nominated for a Dove Award for Rock Album of the Year at the 42nd GMA Dove Awards.\n\nReferences \n\n2010 EPs\nFuture of Forestry albums"
]
|
[
"Foo Fighters",
"There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1998-2001)",
"Are there any hit tracks on this album?",
"\"Learn to Fly\", the band's first single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included \"Stacked Actors\", \"Generator\", \"Next Year\" and \"Breakout\".",
"Did they tour for this album?",
"Shiflett initially joined the band as touring guitarist,"
]
| C_44cfa9f1a9614dc1970959a59917acbd_0 | did they win any awards? | 3 | Did the Foo Fighters win any awards for their There Is Nothing Left to Lose album ? | Foo Fighters | In 1998, Foo Fighters traveled to Grohl's home state of Virginia to write music for its third album. However, Grohl and Stahl were unable to co-operate as songwriters; Grohl told Kerrang! in 1999, "in those few weeks it just seemed like the three of us were moving in one direction and Franz wasn't". Grohl was distraught over the decision to fire Stahl, as the two had been friends since childhood. Shortly after that, Mendel called Grohl to say he was quitting the band to reunite with Sunny Day Real Estate, only to reverse his decision the next day. The remaining trio of Grohl, Mendel, and Hawkins spent the next several months recording the band's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, in Grohl's Virginia home studio that he bought and built. The album spawned several singles, including "Learn to Fly", the band's first single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors", "Generator", "Next Year" and "Breakout". Before the release of the album, Capitol president Gary Gersh was forced out of the label. Given Grohl's history with Gersh, Foo Fighters' contract had included a "key man clause" that allowed them to leave the label upon Gersh's departure. They subsequently left Capitol and signed with RCA, who later acquired the rights to the band's Capitol albums. After recording for There Is Nothing Left to Lose was completed, the band auditioned a number of potential guitarists, and eventually settled on Chris Shiflett, who performs with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, and previously performed with California punk band, No Use for a Name. Shiflett initially joined the band as touring guitarist, but achieved full-time status prior to the recording of the group's fourth album. In January 2000, Nate Mendel led a benefit concert in Hollywood for AIDS denialist group Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives with a speech by founder Christine Maggiore and free copies of her book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong? Additionally, the band's official website had linked to the group's website. The full band was shown in a documentary for Alive & Well declaring their support before a performance. Links and references to Alive & Well have since been removed and no further mentions or shows of support have been made. Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen, of whom the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. In March of that year, Grohl and Hawkins inducted the band into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and joined them on stage for a rendition of the Queen 1976 classic "Tie Your Mother Down", with Hawkins playing drums alongside Roger Taylor, while Grohl was playing rhythm guitar and handling vocal duties. Guitarist Brian May added a guitar track to Foo Fighters' second cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar", which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Mission: Impossible 2. In 2002, guitarist May contributed guitar work to "Tired of You" and an outtake called "Knucklehead". The bands have performed together on several occasions since, including VH1 Rock Honors and Foo Fighters' headlining concert in Hyde Park. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in 1994 in Seattle, Washington. The band was founded by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of Nirvana after the suicide of Kurt Cobain. The group took its name from foo fighter, a nickname coined by Allied aircraft pilots for UFOs and other aerial phenomena. Over the course of their career, Foo Fighters have won 12 Grammy Awards, including Best Rock Album four times. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021, their first year of eligibility.
Prior to the release of Foo Fighters' 1995 debut album Foo Fighters, which featured Grohl as the only official member, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both formerly of Sunny Day Real Estate, as well as Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear. The band began with performances in Portland, Oregon. Goldsmith quit during the recording of their second album The Colour and the Shape (1997); most of the drum parts were re-recorded by Grohl. Smear departed soon afterward but appeared as a guest with the band frequently from 2005; he rejoined in 2010.
Smear and Goldsmith were replaced by Franz Stahl and Taylor Hawkins; Stahl was fired before the recording of the group's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999). The band briefly continued as a trio until Chris Shiflett joined on guitar after the completion of There Is Nothing Left to Lose. Foo Fighters released their fourth album, One by One, in 2002. It was followed with the two-disc In Your Honor (2005), which was split between acoustic songs and heavier material. Foo Fighters released their sixth album, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, in 2007.
For Foo Fighters' seventh studio album, Wasting Light (2011), produced by Butch Vig, Smear returned as a full member. Sonic Highways (2014) was released as the soundtrack to the television miniseries directed by Grohl. Concrete and Gold (2017) was the second Foo Fighters album to reach number one in the United States and their first studio album to feature longtime session and touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee as a full member. In 2021, the band released their tenth album, Medicine at Midnight.
History
Background and first demos (1990–1994)
In 1990, Dave Grohl joined the grunge band Nirvana as drummer. During tours, he took a guitar with him and wrote songs, but was too intimidated to share them with the band; he was "in awe" of the songs written by frontman Kurt Cobain. Grohl occasionally booked studio time to record demos and covers, issuing an album of demos, Pocketwatch, under the pseudonym Late! in 1992.
Nirvana disbanded after the death of Cobain in 1994. Grohl received offers to work with various artists; press rumors indicated he might join Pearl Jam, and he almost accepted a position as drummer in Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Grohl later said: "I was supposed to just join another band and be a drummer the rest of my life. I thought that I would rather do what no one expected me to do." Grohl instead entered Robert Lang Studios in October 1994 to record 15 of his own songs. With the exception of a guitar part on "X-Static", played by Greg Dulli of the Afghan Whigs, Grohl played every instrument and sang every vocal. He completed an album's worth of material in five days and handed out cassette copies of the sessions to his friends for feedback.
Grohl hoped to stay anonymous and release the recordings in a limited run under the name Foo Fighters, taken from foo fighter, a World War II term for unidentified flying objects. He hoped the name would lead listeners to assume the music was made by several people. He said later: "Had I actually considered this to be a career, I probably would have called it something else, because it's the stupidest fucking band name in the world." The demo tape circulated in the industry, creating interest among record labels.
Formation and debut album (1994–1995)
Grohl formed a band to support the album. He spoke to Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic about joining the group, but they decided against it; Grohl said it would have felt "really natural" for them to work together, but would have been "weird" for the others and place more pressure on Grohl. Instead, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both of the recently disbanded Seattle group Sunny Day Real Estate. Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear joined as second guitarist. Grohl licensed the album to Capitol Records, releasing it on his new label, Roswell Records.
Foo Fighters made their live public debut on February 23, 1995, at the Jambalaya Club in Arcata, California, followed by performances at Satyricon in Portland on March 3 and the Velvet Elvis in Seattle on March 4. The show on March 3 had been part of a benefit gig for the investigation of the rape and murder of Gits singer Mia Zapata. Grohl refused to do interviews or tour large venues to promote the album. Foo Fighters undertook their first major tour in the spring of 1995, opening for Mike Watt. The band's first single, "This Is a Call", was released in June 1995, and its debut album Foo Fighters was released the next month. "I'll Stick Around," "For All the Cows," and "Big Me" were released as subsequent singles. The band spent the following months on tour, including their first appearance at the Reading Festival in England in August.
The Colour and the Shape (1996–1997)
After touring through the spring of 1996, Foo Fighters entered Bear Creek Studio in Woodinville, Washington, with producer Gil Norton to record its second album. While Grohl once again wrote all the songs, the rest of the band collaborated on the arrangements. With the sessions nearly complete, Grohl took the rough mixes to Los Angeles, intending to finish his vocal and guitar parts. While there, Grohl realized that he was not happy with the drumming and replaced most of Goldsmith's drum tracks with his own. Though Grohl hoped that Goldsmith would still play on the tour, Goldsmith felt betrayed and left the band.
In need of a replacement for Goldsmith, Grohl contacted Alanis Morissette's touring drummer Taylor Hawkins for a recommendation. Grohl was surprised when Hawkins volunteered himself. Hawkins made his debut with the group in time for the release of its second album, The Colour and the Shape, in May 1997. The album included the singles "Monkey Wrench", "Everlong", "My Hero", and "Walking After You".
Smear left Foo Fighters in 1997, citing exhaustion and burnout, and was replaced by Grohl's former Scream bandmate Franz Stahl. Stahl toured with Foo Fighters for the next few months and appeared on two tracks recorded for movie soundtracks, a re-recording of "Walking After You" for The X-Files and A320 for Godzilla. A B-side from the "My Hero" single, "Dear Lover," appeared in the horror film Scream 2. The tour for The Colour and the Shape album in 1998 included performances at Glastonbury Festival (on the main stage) and the Reading Festival.
There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1998–2001)
In 1998, Foo Fighters traveled to Grohl's home state of Virginia to write their third album. However, Grohl and Stahl were unable to co-operate as songwriters; Grohl told Kerrang! in 1999, "in those few weeks it just seemed like the three of us were moving in one direction and Franz wasn't." Grohl was distraught over the decision to fire Stahl as the two had been friends since childhood. Shortly after that, Mendel called Grohl to say he was quitting to reunite with Sunny Day Real Estate, only to reverse his decision the next day. The remaining trio of Grohl, Mendel, and Hawkins spent several months recording the band's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, in Grohl's home studio. The album spawned several singles, including "Learn to Fly", the band's first to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors," "Generator," "Next Year," and "Breakout."
Before the release of the album, Capitol Records president Gary Gersh was forced out of the label. Given Grohl's history with Gersh, Foo Fighters' contract had included a "key man clause" that allowed them to leave the label upon Gersh's departure. They left Capitol and signed with RCA, who later acquired the rights to the band's Capitol albums.
After recording There Is Nothing Left to Lose was completed, the band auditioned a number of potential guitarists and settled on Chris Shiflett, who performed with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes and California punk band No Use for a Name. Shiflett initially joined as a touring guitarist but achieved full-time status prior to the recording of the group's fourth album.
In January 2000, Nate Mendel led a benefit concert in Hollywood for AIDS denialist group Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives with a speech by founder Christine Maggiore and free copies of her self-published book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong? Additionally, the band's official website featured a section devoted to Alive & Well. Sandra Thurman, then director of the Office of National AIDS Policy stated this was "extraordinarily irresponsible behavior" because "there is no doubt about the link between HIV and AIDS in the respected scientific community." Links and references to Alive & Well were removed from the band's website by March 2003.
Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen as the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. In March of that year, Grohl and Hawkins inducted them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and joined them to perform the 1976 classic, Tie Your Mother Down, with Hawkins playing drums alongside Roger Taylor. Guitarist Brian May added a guitar track to Foo Fighters' second cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar," which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Mission: Impossible 2. In 2002, guitarist May contributed guitar work to Tired of You and an outtake called Knucklehead. The bands have performed together on several occasions since, including VH1 Rock Honors and Foo Fighters' headlining concert in Hyde Park.
One by One (2001–2004)
Near the end of 2001, the band reconvened to record its fourth album. After spending four months in a Los Angeles studio, the album "just didn't sound right" and the band had no confidence it would sell very well. With the album not reaching their expectations amid much infighting, Grohl spent some time helping Queens of the Stone Age complete their 2002 album Songs for the Deaf. Once that album was finished and touring had started for both Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age, the band was on the verge of breaking up entirely. Grohl reunited with Hawkins, Shiflett, and Mendel to play the Coachella Festival, alternating days with Queens of the Stone Age. Hawkins and Grohl talked about resuming work on One by One and after a very satisfying performance the following day, they agreed to stay together. The group re-recorded nearly all of the album (save Tired of You) in a ten-day stretch at Grohl's home studio in Alexandria, Virginia, the following month. The original version of One by One, referred to by the band as Million Dollar Demos, has never been released in its entirety although seven tracks were leaked online in 2012 and 2015.
The album was released in October 2002 under the title One by One. Singles from the album included "All My Life," "Times Like These," "Low," and "Have It All." The tour for the album included a headline performance at the 2002 Reading and Leeds Festivals.
For most of its history, the band chose to stay away from the political realm. However, in 2004, upon learning that George W. Bush's presidential campaign was using "Times Like These" at rallies, Grohl decided to lend his public support to John Kerry's campaign, saying, "There's no way of stopping the president playing your songs, so I went out and played it for John Kerry's people instead, where I thought the message would kinda make more sense." Grohl attended several Kerry rallies and occasionally performed solo acoustic sets. The entire band joined Grohl for a performance in Arizona coinciding with one of the presidential debates.
In Your Honor (2005–2006)
Having spent a year and a half touring behind One by One, Grohl did not want to rush into recording another Foo Fighters record. Initially Grohl intended to write acoustic material by himself but eventually the project involved the entire band. To record its fifth album, the band shifted to Los Angeles and built a recording studio, dubbed Studio 606 West. Grohl insisted that the album be divided into two discs–one full of rock songs, the other featuring acoustic tracks. In Your Honor was released in June 2005. The album's singles included Best of You, DOA, Resolve, and No Way Back/Cold Day in the Sun.
During September and October 2005, the band toured with Weezer on what was billed as the Foozer Tour. Foo Fighters played a headline performance at the 2005 Reading and Leeds Festivals. On June 17, 2006, Foo Fighters performed their largest non-festival headlining concert to date at London's Hyde Park. Motörhead's Lemmy joined the band on stage to sing Shake Your Blood from Dave Grohl's Probot album. As a surprise performance, Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen appeared to play part of We Will Rock You as a lead in to Tie Your Mother Down.
In further support of In Your Honor, the band organized a short acoustic tour for the summer of 2006. Members who had performed with them in late 2005 appeared, such as Pat Smear, Petra Haden on violin and backing vocals, Drew Hester on percussion, and Rami Jaffee of The Wallflowers on keyboard and piano. While much of the setlist focused on In Your Honors acoustic half, the band also used the opportunity to play lesser-known songs, such as Ain't It The Life, Floaty, and See You. The band also performed Marigold, a Pocketwatch-era song that was best known as a Nirvana B side.
In November 2006, the band released their first ever live CD, Skin and Bones, featuring fifteen performances captured over a three-night stint in Los Angeles.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace and Greatest Hits (2007–2009)
For the follow-up to In Your Honor, the band recruited The Colour and the Shape producer Gil Norton. Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was released on September 25, 2007. The album's first single, The Pretender, was issued to radio in early August. In mid-to-late 2007 The Pretender topped Billboard's Modern Rock chart for a record 19 weeks. The second single, Long Road to Ruin, was released in December 2007, supported by a music video directed by longtime collaborator Jesse Peretz (formerly of the Lemonheads). Other singles included Let It Die and Cheer Up, Boys (Your Make Up Is Running).
In October 2007, Foo Fighters started their world tour in support of the album. The band performed shows throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Asia, including headlining the Virgin Mobile Festival in Baltimore on August 9. At the European MTV Music Awards in 2007, Pat Smear confirmed his return to the band.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was nominated for five Grammy Awards in 2008. Foo Fighters went home with Best Rock Album and Best Hard Rock Performance (for The Pretender). The album was also nominated for Album of the Year, while The Pretender was also nominated for Record of the Year and Best Rock Song.
On June 7, 2008, the band played Wembley Stadium, London, and was joined by Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin to play Rock and Roll (with Grohl on drums and Hawkins on vocals) and Ramble On (sung by Grohl, drums by Hawkins). As Page and Jones left the stage before a final encore of Best Of You, an ecstatic Grohl shouted "Welcome to the greatest fucking day of my whole entire life!". Throughout the tour for Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, Foo Fighters had been writing and practicing new songs at sound checks. After Foo Fighters had completed this tour in September 2008, they recorded 13 new songs in studio 606, shortly after announcing a hiatus from touring (which would last until January 2011). These sessions likely lasted from late 2008 – early 2009. While the members of Foo Fighters had initially planned for their new album (composed of songs from this recording session) to have come out in 2009 with almost no touring support, they ultimately decided to shelve most of the songs from these sessions. Three of these songs were later released — Wheels and Word Forward (on their 2009 compilation album, Greatest Hits); and a newly recorded version of Rope (which ended up making the final cut of Wasting Light).
In order to promote their greatest hits album, Foo Fighters performed an online show at studio 606 in October 2009 during which the band took fan requests.
Wasting Light (2010–2012)
In August 2010, the band began recording their seventh studio album with producer Butch Vig, who had previously produced the two new tracks for the band's Greatest Hits album. The album was recorded in Dave Grohl's garage using only analog equipment. The album won five Grammys and was nominated for six. The recording was analog to tape and used no computers, not even to mix or master. Vig said in an interview with MTV that the album was entirely analog until post-mastering. Pat Smear was present in many photos posted by Grohl on Twitter and a press release in December confirmed Smear played on every track on the album and was considered a core member of the band once again.
The first single from Wasting Light, Rope, was released to radio in February 2011. On April 16, 2011, Foo Fighters released an album of covers, Medium Rare, as a limited-edition vinyl for Record Store Day. The promotion for the album has been highly praised for its originality. Wasting Light debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, becoming the band's first album to do so. Other singles for the album included Walk, Arlandria, These Days, and Bridge Burning.
Alongside Wasting Lights release, Foo Fighters released a rockumentary, directed by Academy Award-winner James Moll. The film, titled Back and Forth, chronicles the band's career. Then current and past members, and producer Butch Vig, tell the story of the band through interviews. After debuting on March 15, 2011, at the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, it was released on DVD three months later.
On May 21, 2011, Foo Fighters headlined the middle day of the Hangout Music Festival in Gulf Shores, Alabama. On June 4, 2011, they played a surprise set at the 2011 KROQ Weenie Roast. They also headlined two sold-out shows at the Milton Keynes National Bowl on July 2 and 3, joined on stage by artists such as Alice Cooper, Seasick Steve, and John Paul Jones. They headlined the final night at the 20th anniversary of Lollapalooza in Chicago's Grant Park on August 7, 2011, performing part of their set in a driving rainstorm.
In September 2011 before a show in Kansas City, the band performed a parody song in front of a protest by the Westboro Baptist Church. It mocked the church's opposition to homosexuality and was performed in the same faux-trucker garb that was seen in the band's Hot Buns promotional video.
It was announced on September 28, 2011, that Foo Fighters would be performing during the closing ceremony of Blizzard Entertainment's annual video game convention, BlizzCon.
On August 27, 2012, Foo Fighters ended their European tour with a headline performance at Reading and Leeds Festival. On September 5, the band performed a show at the Fillmore in Charlotte, North Carolina, as a benefit for Rock the Vote. The show, which occurred at the same time as the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, was announced only two weeks prior. Tickets to the 2000-person capacity venue sold out in under 60 seconds, setting a record for the site. The band set another personal record during the show itself, being the longest that the band had played to date at just under 3.5 hours with a setlist of 36 songs. On September 21, the band headlined the Music Midtown Festival in Atlanta, Georgia. The following evening, they headlined the DeLuna Festival in Pensacola Beach, Florida. On September 29, the band performed at the Global Citizens' Festival before embarking on a break.
Sonic Highways (2013–2015)
Despite initially announcing a break after supporting Wasting Light, Grohl stated in January 2013 that the band had started writing material for an eighth studio album. On February 20, 2013, at the Brit Awards, Grohl said he was resuming work on the album the following day.
On September 6, 2013, Shiflett posted a photo to his Instagram account that indicated 13 songs were being recorded and later described it as "pretty fucking fun". Rami Jaffee has recorded parts for three songs, one of which was In the Way. Butch Vig, who worked with the band on Wasting Light, confirmed via Twitter in late August 2013 that he was producing the album. The band confirmed that it would end its hiatus by playing two shows in Mexico City on December 11 and 13. On October 31, a video appeared on the official Foo Fighters YouTube channel showing a motorcyclist, later revealed to be Erik Estrada, delivering each of the band members an invitation to play in Mexico.
On January 16, 2014, a picture was posted to Foo Fighters' Facebook page with several master tapes labeled LP 8. On May 15, it was announced that the album would be released in November and that the Foo Fighters would commemorate the album and their 20th anniversary with an HBO TV series directed by Grohl titled Sonic Highways. Eight songs were written and recorded in eight studios in eight different American cities with video capturing the history and feel of each town. On July 30, Butch Vig revealed that the Foo Fighters had finished recording and mixing the album and that it was slated to be released a month after the premiere of the TV show.
In June 2014, the band agreed to play a show in Richmond, Virginia, that was entirely crowd-funded by fans on the website Tilt.com. The show took place on September 17 before 1,500 fans. The band played 23 songs over the course of two and a half hours. Foo Fighters announced their tour would include performances in Cape Town on December 10 and Johannesburg on December 13. The band played three performances under the alias The Holy Shits in September 2014; the first at the Concorde 2 club in Brighton, England, where Grohl invited lead singer Jay Apperley of the tribute band UK Foo Fighters on stage to sing, followed by the House of Vans and the Islington Assembly Hall. On September 14, 2014, the band performed at the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games, their first official show in England since closing Reading Festival in 2012. They closed out the 2014 VooDoo Music and Arts Festival in New Orleans on November 2, 2014, in a two and a half hour performance that included an appearance from New Orleans native Trombone Shorty, who played This is a Call with the band.
On August 8, the band released a short clip of their latest work, titled 8. On August 11, the band announced that the new album would be titled Sonic Highways and released on November 10, 2014. An international tour, dubbed the Sonic Highways World Tour, followed with performances in South Africa in December and South America in January 2015. It continued to Australia and New Zealand in February and March.
On May 20, 2015, the Foo Fighters were the final musical act to perform on Late Show with David Letterman, continuing their long association with the host as he wrapped up his 33-year career in late night television. The show ended with a montage of Letterman highlights while the Foo Fighters played "Everlong", which Letterman said had significant meaning for him after his open-heart surgery in 2000. The band postponed their international tour to make the appearance; the tour resumed on May 24, with a performance at Radio 1's Big Weekend in Norwich, England.
On June 12, Grohl fell from the stage in Gothenburg, Sweden, during the group's second song, breaking his leg. The band continued playing while Grohl received medical attention, who then returned to the stage to finish the last two hours of the band's set from a chair while a medic tended to his leg. After the concert, Grohl was flown to London for surgery, requiring six metal pins to stabilize the fracture. As a result of the injury, the band canceled its remaining European tour dates.
In July, one thousand Italian fans held the Rockin' 1000 gathering in Cesena, Italy, performing Learn to Fly and asking Foo Fighters to come play in the town. The performance video went viral and impressed Grohl, resulting in the band appearing in Cesena on November 3.
Saint Cecilia EP and Concrete and Gold (2015–2019)
The Foo Fighters planned to follow their international tour with a North American tour to promote Sonic Highways, beginning with a special Fourth of July event in Washington, D.C., that would commemorate the band's 20th anniversary. The all-day event was to be held at Washington's RFK Stadium featuring performances by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Heart, LL Cool J, Gary Clark Jr., and Buddy Guy. Dave Grohl's injury initially led to speculation that the band would drop out of the event but they later confirmed they would perform; however, the injury did prevent them from headlining the 2015 Glastonbury Festival. The band performed for 48,000 people with Grohl in a custom-built moving throne which he claimed to have designed himself while on painkillers.
Beginning with the show on July 4, the Foo Fighters re-branded the North American tour as the Broken Leg Tour. The band continued to use the name at later North American performances. Prior to their August 21 concert at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri, the band rickrolled protesting members of the Westboro Baptist Church, as they had also done in 2011.
On November 23, 2015, a surprise release following a month-long countdown clock on the Foo Fighters' website revealed the free EP Saint Cecilia, including a single of the same name. Alongside its release, Grohl announced that the band would be going on an indefinite hiatus. In response to growing rumors of the band breaking up, the band released a mockumentary video in March 2016 portraying Grohl leaving the band to pursue an electronic music career and Nick Lachey (formerly of 98 Degrees) becoming the group's new singer, ending with: "For the millionth time, we're not breaking up. And nobody's going fucking solo!" In May 2016, Shiflett stated that the band still had no particular plans for reforming but assured that it would happen eventually.
Grohl announced that the band would spend much of 2017 recording their ninth studio album. On June 1, 2017, their new single "Run" was released. Run topped the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart the following month. The band confirmed touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee was officially the sixth member of the group. On June 20, 2017, the band announced that their new album, Concrete and Gold, would be released in September. On August 23, 2017, The Sky Is a Neighborhood was released as the second single and topped the Mainstream Rock chart. The Line was released in promotion of the album and later as the third single in 2018. Concrete and Gold was officially released on September 15, 2017, produced by Greg Kurstin. The album is noted as deriving influence from Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and The Beatles. Concrete and Gold also features Justin Timberlake on vocals for Make It Right, Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men on backing vocals for the song Concrete and Gold, and Paul McCartney on the drums for Sunday Rain. The band began touring in June 2017, including headlining the Glastonbury Festival 2017. The tour in support of Concrete and Gold was extended to October 2018.
Medicine at Midnight and induction into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2019–present)
In October 2019, the band announced that they were recording their tenth studio album based on demos by Grohl. In November 2019, the band began releasing a series of EPs under the umbrella name of the Foo Files, largely consisting of previously released B sides and live performances. By February 2020, Grohl announced that the new album was complete but by May, it was delayed indefinitely because of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying, "We've kind of shelved it for now to figure out exactly when it's going to happen."
Starting in November 2020, promotion for the album ramped up. Its title, Medicine at Midnight, and release date, February 5, 2021, were announced. The band released three singles ahead of the album: "Shame Shame", "No Son of Mine", and "Waiting on a War". In January, the band performed at the US Presidential Inauguration of Joe Biden.
On February 10, 2021, Foo Fighters were announced as one of the 2021 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees in their first year of eligibility as their debut album had been released 25 years prior. On May 12, 2021, Foo Fighters were announced as one of 6 performer inductees.
For Record Store Day on July 17, 2021, the Foo Fighters released an album of disco covers, Hail Satin, under the name Dee Gees. The album contains four Bee Gees covers, a cover of Andy Gibb's "Shadow Dancing", plus five live versions of Medicine at Midnight tracks.
On December 2, 2021, a video was uploaded to the band's YouTube, which announced Studio 666, a rock and roll comedy horror film starring the members of the band. The trailer was released on January 11, 2022, and has a release date of February 25.
Musical style and legacy
Foo Fighters have been described as grunge, alternative rock, post-grunge, and hard rock. They were initially compared to Grohl's previous group, Nirvana. Grohl acknowledged that Kurt Cobain was an influence on his songwriting: "Through Kurt, I saw the beauty of minimalism and the importance of music that's stripped down." Foo Fighters also used the technique of shifting between quiet verses and loud choruses, which Grohl said was influenced by the members of Nirvana "liking The Knack, Bay City Rollers, Beatles, and ABBA as much as we liked Flipper and Black Flag, I suppose."
Writing and recording songs for their first album by himself, Grohl intended for the guitar riffs to be as rhythmic as possible. He approached the guitar in a similar manner to his drumming, assigning various drum parts to strings on the instrument. This allowed him to piece together songs easily; he said, "I could hear the song in my head before it was finished." Once Grohl assembled a full band, the members assisted in song arrangements. Pitchfork described Grohl and the band as "his generation's answer to Tom Petty—a consistent hit machine pumping out working-class rock."
The band members meld melodic and heavy elements. Grohl noted in 1997, "We all love music, whether it's the Beatles or Queen or punk rock. I think the lure of punk rock was the energy and immediacy; the need to thrash stuff around. But at the same time, we're all suckers for a beautiful melody, you know? So it is just natural." Grohl said in 2005, "I love being in a rock band, but I don't know if I necessarily wanna be in an alternative rock band from the 1990s for the rest of my life." Grohl noted that the band's acoustic tour was an attempt to broaden the group's sound.
Band membersCurrent members Dave Grohl – lead vocals, guitar (1994–present)
Pat Smear – guitar (1995–1997, 2010–present; session/touring member 2005–2010), backing vocals (1995–1997)
Chris Shiflett – guitar, backing vocals (1999–present)
Nate Mendel – bass (1995–present)
Taylor Hawkins – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1997–present)
Rami Jaffee – keyboard, piano (2017–present; session/touring member 2005–2017)Former members Franz Stahl – guitar, backing vocals (1997–1999)
William Goldsmith – drums, percussion (1995–1997)
Timeline
DiscographyStudio albums'''
Foo Fighters (1995)
The Colour and the Shape (1997)
There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999)
One by One (2002)
In Your Honor (2005)
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace (2007)
Wasting Light (2011)
Sonic Highways (2014)
Concrete and Gold (2017)
Medicine at Midnight (2021)
Awards and nominations
Foo Fighters first received a Grammy Award for their music video for Learn to Fly in 2000, and they have won ten others. These include four Grammys in the Best Rock Album category for There Is Nothing Left to Lose, One by One, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace and Wasting Light, and three awards for Best Hard Rock Performance for the songs All My Life, The Pretender and White Limo. The band also received three Kerrang! Awards. At the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards, the band won Best Rock Video for Walk. They won the Radio Contraband Major Label Artist of the Year in 2011 and 2014. The band won Song of the Year for Something From Nothing and Album of the Year for Sonic Highways both in 2014.
On February 12, 2012, the band performed at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards playing Walk along with the remix version of Rope, featuring deadmau5. The band was nominated for six Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year, Best Rock Performance, Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance, Best Rock Song, Best Rock Album and Best Long Form Music Video (for Back and Forth''). They won five of the six, losing only to Adele in the Album of the Year category.
In 2021, Foo Fighters were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in their first year of eligibility.
In 2021, the band was announced as recipients of the first-ever global icon award at the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards.
References
External links
Alternative rock groups from Washington (state)
American post-grunge musical groups
Grunge musical groups
Brit Award winners
Grammy Award winners
Hard rock musical groups from Washington (state)
Kerrang! Awards winners
Musical groups established in 1994
Musical groups from Seattle
NME Awards winners
Nirvana (band)
RCA Records artists
Articles which contain graphical timelines
Late Show with David Letterman
1994 establishments in Washington (state) | false | [
"Le Cousin is a 1997 French film directed by Alain Corneau.\n\nPlot \nThe film deals with the relationship of the police and an informant in the drug scene.\n\nAwards and nominations\nLe Cousin was nominated for 5 César Awards but did not win in any category.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1997 films\n1997 crime films\nFilms about drugs\nFilms directed by Alain Corneau\nFrench crime films\nFrench films\nFrench-language films",
"The African National Congress was a political party in Trinidad and Tobago. The party first contested national elections in 1961, when it received just 0.5% of the vote and failed to win a seat. They did not put forward any candidates for the 1966 elections, but returned for the 1971 elections, in which they received 2.4% of the vote, but again failed to win a seat as the People's National Movement won all 36. The party did not contest any further elections.\n\nReferences\n\nDefunct political parties in Trinidad and Tobago"
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"Are there any hit tracks on this album?",
"\"Learn to Fly\", the band's first single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included \"Stacked Actors\", \"Generator\", \"Next Year\" and \"Breakout\".",
"Did they tour for this album?",
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| C_44cfa9f1a9614dc1970959a59917acbd_0 | any interesting facts about this article? | 4 | Are there any interesting facts about the Foo Fighters, There Is Nothing Left to Lose article? | Foo Fighters | In 1998, Foo Fighters traveled to Grohl's home state of Virginia to write music for its third album. However, Grohl and Stahl were unable to co-operate as songwriters; Grohl told Kerrang! in 1999, "in those few weeks it just seemed like the three of us were moving in one direction and Franz wasn't". Grohl was distraught over the decision to fire Stahl, as the two had been friends since childhood. Shortly after that, Mendel called Grohl to say he was quitting the band to reunite with Sunny Day Real Estate, only to reverse his decision the next day. The remaining trio of Grohl, Mendel, and Hawkins spent the next several months recording the band's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, in Grohl's Virginia home studio that he bought and built. The album spawned several singles, including "Learn to Fly", the band's first single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors", "Generator", "Next Year" and "Breakout". Before the release of the album, Capitol president Gary Gersh was forced out of the label. Given Grohl's history with Gersh, Foo Fighters' contract had included a "key man clause" that allowed them to leave the label upon Gersh's departure. They subsequently left Capitol and signed with RCA, who later acquired the rights to the band's Capitol albums. After recording for There Is Nothing Left to Lose was completed, the band auditioned a number of potential guitarists, and eventually settled on Chris Shiflett, who performs with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, and previously performed with California punk band, No Use for a Name. Shiflett initially joined the band as touring guitarist, but achieved full-time status prior to the recording of the group's fourth album. In January 2000, Nate Mendel led a benefit concert in Hollywood for AIDS denialist group Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives with a speech by founder Christine Maggiore and free copies of her book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong? Additionally, the band's official website had linked to the group's website. The full band was shown in a documentary for Alive & Well declaring their support before a performance. Links and references to Alive & Well have since been removed and no further mentions or shows of support have been made. Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen, of whom the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. In March of that year, Grohl and Hawkins inducted the band into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and joined them on stage for a rendition of the Queen 1976 classic "Tie Your Mother Down", with Hawkins playing drums alongside Roger Taylor, while Grohl was playing rhythm guitar and handling vocal duties. Guitarist Brian May added a guitar track to Foo Fighters' second cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar", which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Mission: Impossible 2. In 2002, guitarist May contributed guitar work to "Tired of You" and an outtake called "Knucklehead". The bands have performed together on several occasions since, including VH1 Rock Honors and Foo Fighters' headlining concert in Hyde Park. CANNOTANSWER | Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen, of whom the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. | Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in 1994 in Seattle, Washington. The band was founded by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of Nirvana after the suicide of Kurt Cobain. The group took its name from foo fighter, a nickname coined by Allied aircraft pilots for UFOs and other aerial phenomena. Over the course of their career, Foo Fighters have won 12 Grammy Awards, including Best Rock Album four times. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021, their first year of eligibility.
Prior to the release of Foo Fighters' 1995 debut album Foo Fighters, which featured Grohl as the only official member, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both formerly of Sunny Day Real Estate, as well as Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear. The band began with performances in Portland, Oregon. Goldsmith quit during the recording of their second album The Colour and the Shape (1997); most of the drum parts were re-recorded by Grohl. Smear departed soon afterward but appeared as a guest with the band frequently from 2005; he rejoined in 2010.
Smear and Goldsmith were replaced by Franz Stahl and Taylor Hawkins; Stahl was fired before the recording of the group's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999). The band briefly continued as a trio until Chris Shiflett joined on guitar after the completion of There Is Nothing Left to Lose. Foo Fighters released their fourth album, One by One, in 2002. It was followed with the two-disc In Your Honor (2005), which was split between acoustic songs and heavier material. Foo Fighters released their sixth album, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, in 2007.
For Foo Fighters' seventh studio album, Wasting Light (2011), produced by Butch Vig, Smear returned as a full member. Sonic Highways (2014) was released as the soundtrack to the television miniseries directed by Grohl. Concrete and Gold (2017) was the second Foo Fighters album to reach number one in the United States and their first studio album to feature longtime session and touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee as a full member. In 2021, the band released their tenth album, Medicine at Midnight.
History
Background and first demos (1990–1994)
In 1990, Dave Grohl joined the grunge band Nirvana as drummer. During tours, he took a guitar with him and wrote songs, but was too intimidated to share them with the band; he was "in awe" of the songs written by frontman Kurt Cobain. Grohl occasionally booked studio time to record demos and covers, issuing an album of demos, Pocketwatch, under the pseudonym Late! in 1992.
Nirvana disbanded after the death of Cobain in 1994. Grohl received offers to work with various artists; press rumors indicated he might join Pearl Jam, and he almost accepted a position as drummer in Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Grohl later said: "I was supposed to just join another band and be a drummer the rest of my life. I thought that I would rather do what no one expected me to do." Grohl instead entered Robert Lang Studios in October 1994 to record 15 of his own songs. With the exception of a guitar part on "X-Static", played by Greg Dulli of the Afghan Whigs, Grohl played every instrument and sang every vocal. He completed an album's worth of material in five days and handed out cassette copies of the sessions to his friends for feedback.
Grohl hoped to stay anonymous and release the recordings in a limited run under the name Foo Fighters, taken from foo fighter, a World War II term for unidentified flying objects. He hoped the name would lead listeners to assume the music was made by several people. He said later: "Had I actually considered this to be a career, I probably would have called it something else, because it's the stupidest fucking band name in the world." The demo tape circulated in the industry, creating interest among record labels.
Formation and debut album (1994–1995)
Grohl formed a band to support the album. He spoke to Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic about joining the group, but they decided against it; Grohl said it would have felt "really natural" for them to work together, but would have been "weird" for the others and place more pressure on Grohl. Instead, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both of the recently disbanded Seattle group Sunny Day Real Estate. Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear joined as second guitarist. Grohl licensed the album to Capitol Records, releasing it on his new label, Roswell Records.
Foo Fighters made their live public debut on February 23, 1995, at the Jambalaya Club in Arcata, California, followed by performances at Satyricon in Portland on March 3 and the Velvet Elvis in Seattle on March 4. The show on March 3 had been part of a benefit gig for the investigation of the rape and murder of Gits singer Mia Zapata. Grohl refused to do interviews or tour large venues to promote the album. Foo Fighters undertook their first major tour in the spring of 1995, opening for Mike Watt. The band's first single, "This Is a Call", was released in June 1995, and its debut album Foo Fighters was released the next month. "I'll Stick Around," "For All the Cows," and "Big Me" were released as subsequent singles. The band spent the following months on tour, including their first appearance at the Reading Festival in England in August.
The Colour and the Shape (1996–1997)
After touring through the spring of 1996, Foo Fighters entered Bear Creek Studio in Woodinville, Washington, with producer Gil Norton to record its second album. While Grohl once again wrote all the songs, the rest of the band collaborated on the arrangements. With the sessions nearly complete, Grohl took the rough mixes to Los Angeles, intending to finish his vocal and guitar parts. While there, Grohl realized that he was not happy with the drumming and replaced most of Goldsmith's drum tracks with his own. Though Grohl hoped that Goldsmith would still play on the tour, Goldsmith felt betrayed and left the band.
In need of a replacement for Goldsmith, Grohl contacted Alanis Morissette's touring drummer Taylor Hawkins for a recommendation. Grohl was surprised when Hawkins volunteered himself. Hawkins made his debut with the group in time for the release of its second album, The Colour and the Shape, in May 1997. The album included the singles "Monkey Wrench", "Everlong", "My Hero", and "Walking After You".
Smear left Foo Fighters in 1997, citing exhaustion and burnout, and was replaced by Grohl's former Scream bandmate Franz Stahl. Stahl toured with Foo Fighters for the next few months and appeared on two tracks recorded for movie soundtracks, a re-recording of "Walking After You" for The X-Files and A320 for Godzilla. A B-side from the "My Hero" single, "Dear Lover," appeared in the horror film Scream 2. The tour for The Colour and the Shape album in 1998 included performances at Glastonbury Festival (on the main stage) and the Reading Festival.
There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1998–2001)
In 1998, Foo Fighters traveled to Grohl's home state of Virginia to write their third album. However, Grohl and Stahl were unable to co-operate as songwriters; Grohl told Kerrang! in 1999, "in those few weeks it just seemed like the three of us were moving in one direction and Franz wasn't." Grohl was distraught over the decision to fire Stahl as the two had been friends since childhood. Shortly after that, Mendel called Grohl to say he was quitting to reunite with Sunny Day Real Estate, only to reverse his decision the next day. The remaining trio of Grohl, Mendel, and Hawkins spent several months recording the band's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, in Grohl's home studio. The album spawned several singles, including "Learn to Fly", the band's first to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors," "Generator," "Next Year," and "Breakout."
Before the release of the album, Capitol Records president Gary Gersh was forced out of the label. Given Grohl's history with Gersh, Foo Fighters' contract had included a "key man clause" that allowed them to leave the label upon Gersh's departure. They left Capitol and signed with RCA, who later acquired the rights to the band's Capitol albums.
After recording There Is Nothing Left to Lose was completed, the band auditioned a number of potential guitarists and settled on Chris Shiflett, who performed with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes and California punk band No Use for a Name. Shiflett initially joined as a touring guitarist but achieved full-time status prior to the recording of the group's fourth album.
In January 2000, Nate Mendel led a benefit concert in Hollywood for AIDS denialist group Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives with a speech by founder Christine Maggiore and free copies of her self-published book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong? Additionally, the band's official website featured a section devoted to Alive & Well. Sandra Thurman, then director of the Office of National AIDS Policy stated this was "extraordinarily irresponsible behavior" because "there is no doubt about the link between HIV and AIDS in the respected scientific community." Links and references to Alive & Well were removed from the band's website by March 2003.
Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen as the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. In March of that year, Grohl and Hawkins inducted them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and joined them to perform the 1976 classic, Tie Your Mother Down, with Hawkins playing drums alongside Roger Taylor. Guitarist Brian May added a guitar track to Foo Fighters' second cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar," which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Mission: Impossible 2. In 2002, guitarist May contributed guitar work to Tired of You and an outtake called Knucklehead. The bands have performed together on several occasions since, including VH1 Rock Honors and Foo Fighters' headlining concert in Hyde Park.
One by One (2001–2004)
Near the end of 2001, the band reconvened to record its fourth album. After spending four months in a Los Angeles studio, the album "just didn't sound right" and the band had no confidence it would sell very well. With the album not reaching their expectations amid much infighting, Grohl spent some time helping Queens of the Stone Age complete their 2002 album Songs for the Deaf. Once that album was finished and touring had started for both Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age, the band was on the verge of breaking up entirely. Grohl reunited with Hawkins, Shiflett, and Mendel to play the Coachella Festival, alternating days with Queens of the Stone Age. Hawkins and Grohl talked about resuming work on One by One and after a very satisfying performance the following day, they agreed to stay together. The group re-recorded nearly all of the album (save Tired of You) in a ten-day stretch at Grohl's home studio in Alexandria, Virginia, the following month. The original version of One by One, referred to by the band as Million Dollar Demos, has never been released in its entirety although seven tracks were leaked online in 2012 and 2015.
The album was released in October 2002 under the title One by One. Singles from the album included "All My Life," "Times Like These," "Low," and "Have It All." The tour for the album included a headline performance at the 2002 Reading and Leeds Festivals.
For most of its history, the band chose to stay away from the political realm. However, in 2004, upon learning that George W. Bush's presidential campaign was using "Times Like These" at rallies, Grohl decided to lend his public support to John Kerry's campaign, saying, "There's no way of stopping the president playing your songs, so I went out and played it for John Kerry's people instead, where I thought the message would kinda make more sense." Grohl attended several Kerry rallies and occasionally performed solo acoustic sets. The entire band joined Grohl for a performance in Arizona coinciding with one of the presidential debates.
In Your Honor (2005–2006)
Having spent a year and a half touring behind One by One, Grohl did not want to rush into recording another Foo Fighters record. Initially Grohl intended to write acoustic material by himself but eventually the project involved the entire band. To record its fifth album, the band shifted to Los Angeles and built a recording studio, dubbed Studio 606 West. Grohl insisted that the album be divided into two discs–one full of rock songs, the other featuring acoustic tracks. In Your Honor was released in June 2005. The album's singles included Best of You, DOA, Resolve, and No Way Back/Cold Day in the Sun.
During September and October 2005, the band toured with Weezer on what was billed as the Foozer Tour. Foo Fighters played a headline performance at the 2005 Reading and Leeds Festivals. On June 17, 2006, Foo Fighters performed their largest non-festival headlining concert to date at London's Hyde Park. Motörhead's Lemmy joined the band on stage to sing Shake Your Blood from Dave Grohl's Probot album. As a surprise performance, Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen appeared to play part of We Will Rock You as a lead in to Tie Your Mother Down.
In further support of In Your Honor, the band organized a short acoustic tour for the summer of 2006. Members who had performed with them in late 2005 appeared, such as Pat Smear, Petra Haden on violin and backing vocals, Drew Hester on percussion, and Rami Jaffee of The Wallflowers on keyboard and piano. While much of the setlist focused on In Your Honors acoustic half, the band also used the opportunity to play lesser-known songs, such as Ain't It The Life, Floaty, and See You. The band also performed Marigold, a Pocketwatch-era song that was best known as a Nirvana B side.
In November 2006, the band released their first ever live CD, Skin and Bones, featuring fifteen performances captured over a three-night stint in Los Angeles.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace and Greatest Hits (2007–2009)
For the follow-up to In Your Honor, the band recruited The Colour and the Shape producer Gil Norton. Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was released on September 25, 2007. The album's first single, The Pretender, was issued to radio in early August. In mid-to-late 2007 The Pretender topped Billboard's Modern Rock chart for a record 19 weeks. The second single, Long Road to Ruin, was released in December 2007, supported by a music video directed by longtime collaborator Jesse Peretz (formerly of the Lemonheads). Other singles included Let It Die and Cheer Up, Boys (Your Make Up Is Running).
In October 2007, Foo Fighters started their world tour in support of the album. The band performed shows throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Asia, including headlining the Virgin Mobile Festival in Baltimore on August 9. At the European MTV Music Awards in 2007, Pat Smear confirmed his return to the band.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was nominated for five Grammy Awards in 2008. Foo Fighters went home with Best Rock Album and Best Hard Rock Performance (for The Pretender). The album was also nominated for Album of the Year, while The Pretender was also nominated for Record of the Year and Best Rock Song.
On June 7, 2008, the band played Wembley Stadium, London, and was joined by Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin to play Rock and Roll (with Grohl on drums and Hawkins on vocals) and Ramble On (sung by Grohl, drums by Hawkins). As Page and Jones left the stage before a final encore of Best Of You, an ecstatic Grohl shouted "Welcome to the greatest fucking day of my whole entire life!". Throughout the tour for Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, Foo Fighters had been writing and practicing new songs at sound checks. After Foo Fighters had completed this tour in September 2008, they recorded 13 new songs in studio 606, shortly after announcing a hiatus from touring (which would last until January 2011). These sessions likely lasted from late 2008 – early 2009. While the members of Foo Fighters had initially planned for their new album (composed of songs from this recording session) to have come out in 2009 with almost no touring support, they ultimately decided to shelve most of the songs from these sessions. Three of these songs were later released — Wheels and Word Forward (on their 2009 compilation album, Greatest Hits); and a newly recorded version of Rope (which ended up making the final cut of Wasting Light).
In order to promote their greatest hits album, Foo Fighters performed an online show at studio 606 in October 2009 during which the band took fan requests.
Wasting Light (2010–2012)
In August 2010, the band began recording their seventh studio album with producer Butch Vig, who had previously produced the two new tracks for the band's Greatest Hits album. The album was recorded in Dave Grohl's garage using only analog equipment. The album won five Grammys and was nominated for six. The recording was analog to tape and used no computers, not even to mix or master. Vig said in an interview with MTV that the album was entirely analog until post-mastering. Pat Smear was present in many photos posted by Grohl on Twitter and a press release in December confirmed Smear played on every track on the album and was considered a core member of the band once again.
The first single from Wasting Light, Rope, was released to radio in February 2011. On April 16, 2011, Foo Fighters released an album of covers, Medium Rare, as a limited-edition vinyl for Record Store Day. The promotion for the album has been highly praised for its originality. Wasting Light debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, becoming the band's first album to do so. Other singles for the album included Walk, Arlandria, These Days, and Bridge Burning.
Alongside Wasting Lights release, Foo Fighters released a rockumentary, directed by Academy Award-winner James Moll. The film, titled Back and Forth, chronicles the band's career. Then current and past members, and producer Butch Vig, tell the story of the band through interviews. After debuting on March 15, 2011, at the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, it was released on DVD three months later.
On May 21, 2011, Foo Fighters headlined the middle day of the Hangout Music Festival in Gulf Shores, Alabama. On June 4, 2011, they played a surprise set at the 2011 KROQ Weenie Roast. They also headlined two sold-out shows at the Milton Keynes National Bowl on July 2 and 3, joined on stage by artists such as Alice Cooper, Seasick Steve, and John Paul Jones. They headlined the final night at the 20th anniversary of Lollapalooza in Chicago's Grant Park on August 7, 2011, performing part of their set in a driving rainstorm.
In September 2011 before a show in Kansas City, the band performed a parody song in front of a protest by the Westboro Baptist Church. It mocked the church's opposition to homosexuality and was performed in the same faux-trucker garb that was seen in the band's Hot Buns promotional video.
It was announced on September 28, 2011, that Foo Fighters would be performing during the closing ceremony of Blizzard Entertainment's annual video game convention, BlizzCon.
On August 27, 2012, Foo Fighters ended their European tour with a headline performance at Reading and Leeds Festival. On September 5, the band performed a show at the Fillmore in Charlotte, North Carolina, as a benefit for Rock the Vote. The show, which occurred at the same time as the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, was announced only two weeks prior. Tickets to the 2000-person capacity venue sold out in under 60 seconds, setting a record for the site. The band set another personal record during the show itself, being the longest that the band had played to date at just under 3.5 hours with a setlist of 36 songs. On September 21, the band headlined the Music Midtown Festival in Atlanta, Georgia. The following evening, they headlined the DeLuna Festival in Pensacola Beach, Florida. On September 29, the band performed at the Global Citizens' Festival before embarking on a break.
Sonic Highways (2013–2015)
Despite initially announcing a break after supporting Wasting Light, Grohl stated in January 2013 that the band had started writing material for an eighth studio album. On February 20, 2013, at the Brit Awards, Grohl said he was resuming work on the album the following day.
On September 6, 2013, Shiflett posted a photo to his Instagram account that indicated 13 songs were being recorded and later described it as "pretty fucking fun". Rami Jaffee has recorded parts for three songs, one of which was In the Way. Butch Vig, who worked with the band on Wasting Light, confirmed via Twitter in late August 2013 that he was producing the album. The band confirmed that it would end its hiatus by playing two shows in Mexico City on December 11 and 13. On October 31, a video appeared on the official Foo Fighters YouTube channel showing a motorcyclist, later revealed to be Erik Estrada, delivering each of the band members an invitation to play in Mexico.
On January 16, 2014, a picture was posted to Foo Fighters' Facebook page with several master tapes labeled LP 8. On May 15, it was announced that the album would be released in November and that the Foo Fighters would commemorate the album and their 20th anniversary with an HBO TV series directed by Grohl titled Sonic Highways. Eight songs were written and recorded in eight studios in eight different American cities with video capturing the history and feel of each town. On July 30, Butch Vig revealed that the Foo Fighters had finished recording and mixing the album and that it was slated to be released a month after the premiere of the TV show.
In June 2014, the band agreed to play a show in Richmond, Virginia, that was entirely crowd-funded by fans on the website Tilt.com. The show took place on September 17 before 1,500 fans. The band played 23 songs over the course of two and a half hours. Foo Fighters announced their tour would include performances in Cape Town on December 10 and Johannesburg on December 13. The band played three performances under the alias The Holy Shits in September 2014; the first at the Concorde 2 club in Brighton, England, where Grohl invited lead singer Jay Apperley of the tribute band UK Foo Fighters on stage to sing, followed by the House of Vans and the Islington Assembly Hall. On September 14, 2014, the band performed at the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games, their first official show in England since closing Reading Festival in 2012. They closed out the 2014 VooDoo Music and Arts Festival in New Orleans on November 2, 2014, in a two and a half hour performance that included an appearance from New Orleans native Trombone Shorty, who played This is a Call with the band.
On August 8, the band released a short clip of their latest work, titled 8. On August 11, the band announced that the new album would be titled Sonic Highways and released on November 10, 2014. An international tour, dubbed the Sonic Highways World Tour, followed with performances in South Africa in December and South America in January 2015. It continued to Australia and New Zealand in February and March.
On May 20, 2015, the Foo Fighters were the final musical act to perform on Late Show with David Letterman, continuing their long association with the host as he wrapped up his 33-year career in late night television. The show ended with a montage of Letterman highlights while the Foo Fighters played "Everlong", which Letterman said had significant meaning for him after his open-heart surgery in 2000. The band postponed their international tour to make the appearance; the tour resumed on May 24, with a performance at Radio 1's Big Weekend in Norwich, England.
On June 12, Grohl fell from the stage in Gothenburg, Sweden, during the group's second song, breaking his leg. The band continued playing while Grohl received medical attention, who then returned to the stage to finish the last two hours of the band's set from a chair while a medic tended to his leg. After the concert, Grohl was flown to London for surgery, requiring six metal pins to stabilize the fracture. As a result of the injury, the band canceled its remaining European tour dates.
In July, one thousand Italian fans held the Rockin' 1000 gathering in Cesena, Italy, performing Learn to Fly and asking Foo Fighters to come play in the town. The performance video went viral and impressed Grohl, resulting in the band appearing in Cesena on November 3.
Saint Cecilia EP and Concrete and Gold (2015–2019)
The Foo Fighters planned to follow their international tour with a North American tour to promote Sonic Highways, beginning with a special Fourth of July event in Washington, D.C., that would commemorate the band's 20th anniversary. The all-day event was to be held at Washington's RFK Stadium featuring performances by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Heart, LL Cool J, Gary Clark Jr., and Buddy Guy. Dave Grohl's injury initially led to speculation that the band would drop out of the event but they later confirmed they would perform; however, the injury did prevent them from headlining the 2015 Glastonbury Festival. The band performed for 48,000 people with Grohl in a custom-built moving throne which he claimed to have designed himself while on painkillers.
Beginning with the show on July 4, the Foo Fighters re-branded the North American tour as the Broken Leg Tour. The band continued to use the name at later North American performances. Prior to their August 21 concert at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri, the band rickrolled protesting members of the Westboro Baptist Church, as they had also done in 2011.
On November 23, 2015, a surprise release following a month-long countdown clock on the Foo Fighters' website revealed the free EP Saint Cecilia, including a single of the same name. Alongside its release, Grohl announced that the band would be going on an indefinite hiatus. In response to growing rumors of the band breaking up, the band released a mockumentary video in March 2016 portraying Grohl leaving the band to pursue an electronic music career and Nick Lachey (formerly of 98 Degrees) becoming the group's new singer, ending with: "For the millionth time, we're not breaking up. And nobody's going fucking solo!" In May 2016, Shiflett stated that the band still had no particular plans for reforming but assured that it would happen eventually.
Grohl announced that the band would spend much of 2017 recording their ninth studio album. On June 1, 2017, their new single "Run" was released. Run topped the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart the following month. The band confirmed touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee was officially the sixth member of the group. On June 20, 2017, the band announced that their new album, Concrete and Gold, would be released in September. On August 23, 2017, The Sky Is a Neighborhood was released as the second single and topped the Mainstream Rock chart. The Line was released in promotion of the album and later as the third single in 2018. Concrete and Gold was officially released on September 15, 2017, produced by Greg Kurstin. The album is noted as deriving influence from Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and The Beatles. Concrete and Gold also features Justin Timberlake on vocals for Make It Right, Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men on backing vocals for the song Concrete and Gold, and Paul McCartney on the drums for Sunday Rain. The band began touring in June 2017, including headlining the Glastonbury Festival 2017. The tour in support of Concrete and Gold was extended to October 2018.
Medicine at Midnight and induction into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2019–present)
In October 2019, the band announced that they were recording their tenth studio album based on demos by Grohl. In November 2019, the band began releasing a series of EPs under the umbrella name of the Foo Files, largely consisting of previously released B sides and live performances. By February 2020, Grohl announced that the new album was complete but by May, it was delayed indefinitely because of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying, "We've kind of shelved it for now to figure out exactly when it's going to happen."
Starting in November 2020, promotion for the album ramped up. Its title, Medicine at Midnight, and release date, February 5, 2021, were announced. The band released three singles ahead of the album: "Shame Shame", "No Son of Mine", and "Waiting on a War". In January, the band performed at the US Presidential Inauguration of Joe Biden.
On February 10, 2021, Foo Fighters were announced as one of the 2021 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees in their first year of eligibility as their debut album had been released 25 years prior. On May 12, 2021, Foo Fighters were announced as one of 6 performer inductees.
For Record Store Day on July 17, 2021, the Foo Fighters released an album of disco covers, Hail Satin, under the name Dee Gees. The album contains four Bee Gees covers, a cover of Andy Gibb's "Shadow Dancing", plus five live versions of Medicine at Midnight tracks.
On December 2, 2021, a video was uploaded to the band's YouTube, which announced Studio 666, a rock and roll comedy horror film starring the members of the band. The trailer was released on January 11, 2022, and has a release date of February 25.
Musical style and legacy
Foo Fighters have been described as grunge, alternative rock, post-grunge, and hard rock. They were initially compared to Grohl's previous group, Nirvana. Grohl acknowledged that Kurt Cobain was an influence on his songwriting: "Through Kurt, I saw the beauty of minimalism and the importance of music that's stripped down." Foo Fighters also used the technique of shifting between quiet verses and loud choruses, which Grohl said was influenced by the members of Nirvana "liking The Knack, Bay City Rollers, Beatles, and ABBA as much as we liked Flipper and Black Flag, I suppose."
Writing and recording songs for their first album by himself, Grohl intended for the guitar riffs to be as rhythmic as possible. He approached the guitar in a similar manner to his drumming, assigning various drum parts to strings on the instrument. This allowed him to piece together songs easily; he said, "I could hear the song in my head before it was finished." Once Grohl assembled a full band, the members assisted in song arrangements. Pitchfork described Grohl and the band as "his generation's answer to Tom Petty—a consistent hit machine pumping out working-class rock."
The band members meld melodic and heavy elements. Grohl noted in 1997, "We all love music, whether it's the Beatles or Queen or punk rock. I think the lure of punk rock was the energy and immediacy; the need to thrash stuff around. But at the same time, we're all suckers for a beautiful melody, you know? So it is just natural." Grohl said in 2005, "I love being in a rock band, but I don't know if I necessarily wanna be in an alternative rock band from the 1990s for the rest of my life." Grohl noted that the band's acoustic tour was an attempt to broaden the group's sound.
Band membersCurrent members Dave Grohl – lead vocals, guitar (1994–present)
Pat Smear – guitar (1995–1997, 2010–present; session/touring member 2005–2010), backing vocals (1995–1997)
Chris Shiflett – guitar, backing vocals (1999–present)
Nate Mendel – bass (1995–present)
Taylor Hawkins – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1997–present)
Rami Jaffee – keyboard, piano (2017–present; session/touring member 2005–2017)Former members Franz Stahl – guitar, backing vocals (1997–1999)
William Goldsmith – drums, percussion (1995–1997)
Timeline
DiscographyStudio albums'''
Foo Fighters (1995)
The Colour and the Shape (1997)
There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999)
One by One (2002)
In Your Honor (2005)
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace (2007)
Wasting Light (2011)
Sonic Highways (2014)
Concrete and Gold (2017)
Medicine at Midnight (2021)
Awards and nominations
Foo Fighters first received a Grammy Award for their music video for Learn to Fly in 2000, and they have won ten others. These include four Grammys in the Best Rock Album category for There Is Nothing Left to Lose, One by One, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace and Wasting Light, and three awards for Best Hard Rock Performance for the songs All My Life, The Pretender and White Limo. The band also received three Kerrang! Awards. At the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards, the band won Best Rock Video for Walk. They won the Radio Contraband Major Label Artist of the Year in 2011 and 2014. The band won Song of the Year for Something From Nothing and Album of the Year for Sonic Highways both in 2014.
On February 12, 2012, the band performed at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards playing Walk along with the remix version of Rope, featuring deadmau5. The band was nominated for six Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year, Best Rock Performance, Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance, Best Rock Song, Best Rock Album and Best Long Form Music Video (for Back and Forth''). They won five of the six, losing only to Adele in the Album of the Year category.
In 2021, Foo Fighters were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in their first year of eligibility.
In 2021, the band was announced as recipients of the first-ever global icon award at the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards.
References
External links
Alternative rock groups from Washington (state)
American post-grunge musical groups
Grunge musical groups
Brit Award winners
Grammy Award winners
Hard rock musical groups from Washington (state)
Kerrang! Awards winners
Musical groups established in 1994
Musical groups from Seattle
NME Awards winners
Nirvana (band)
RCA Records artists
Articles which contain graphical timelines
Late Show with David Letterman
1994 establishments in Washington (state) | false | [
"Damn Interesting is an independent website founded by Alan Bellows in 2005. The website presents true stories from science, history, and psychology, primarily as long-form articles, often illustrated with original artwork. Works are written by various authors, and published at irregular intervals. The website openly rejects advertising, relying on reader and listener donations to cover operating costs.\n\nAs of October 2012, each article is also published as a podcast under the same name. In November 2019, a second podcast was launched under the title Damn Interesting Week, featuring unscripted commentary on an assortment of news articles featured on the website's \"Curated Links\" section that week. In mid-2020, a third podcast called Damn Interesting Curio Cabinet began highlighting the website's periodic short-form articles in the same radioplay format as the original podcast.\n\nIn July 2009, Damn Interesting published the print book Alien Hand Syndrome through Workman Publishing. It contains some favorites from the site and some exclusive content.\n\nAwards and recognition \nIn August 2007, PC Magazine named Damn Interesting one of the \"Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites\".\nThe article \"The Zero-Armed Bandit\" by Alan Bellows won a 2015 Sidney Award from David Brooks in The New York Times.\nThe article \"Ghoulish Acts and Dastardly Deeds\" by Alan Bellows was cited as \"nonfiction journalism from 2017 that will stand the test of time\" by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.\nThe article \"Dupes and Duplicity\" by Jennifer Lee Noonan won a 2020 Sidney Award from David Brooks in the New York Times.\n\nAccusing The Dollop of plagiarism \n\nOn July 9, 2015, Bellows posted an open letter accusing The Dollop, a comedy podcast about history, of plagiarism due to their repeated use of verbatim text from Damn Interesting articles without permission or attribution. Dave Anthony, the writer of The Dollop, responded on reddit, admitting to using Damn Interesting content, but claiming that the use was protected by fair use, and that \"historical facts are not copyrightable.\" In an article about the controversy on Plagiarism Today, Jonathan Bailey concluded, \"Any way one looks at it, The Dollop failed its ethical obligations to all of the people, not just those writing for Damn Interesting, who put in the time, energy and expertise into writing the original content upon which their show is based.\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Official website\n\n2005 podcast debuts",
"The Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire, written by Matthew Bunson in 1994 and published by Facts on File, is a detailed depiction of the history of the Roman Empire. This work, of roughly 494 pages (a 2002 revised version contains 636 pages) stores more than 2,000 entries.\n\nVersions\n US Hardcover revised edition (July 2002), published by Facts on File: \n\nThe book gives the reader much information about the life and decay of Rome, bringing the reader through an interesting voyage in time.\n\nReferences\n\n \n\n1994 non-fiction books\nRoman Empire\nHistory books about ancient Rome"
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"Are there any hit tracks on this album?",
"\"Learn to Fly\", the band's first single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included \"Stacked Actors\", \"Generator\", \"Next Year\" and \"Breakout\".",
"Did they tour for this album?",
"Shiflett initially joined the band as touring guitarist,",
"did they win any awards?",
"I don't know.",
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"Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen, of whom the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans."
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| C_44cfa9f1a9614dc1970959a59917acbd_0 | Did they get any mtv video awards for any of the singles? | 5 | Did the Foo Fighters get any MTV video awards for the singles on their There Is Nothing Left to Lose album? | Foo Fighters | In 1998, Foo Fighters traveled to Grohl's home state of Virginia to write music for its third album. However, Grohl and Stahl were unable to co-operate as songwriters; Grohl told Kerrang! in 1999, "in those few weeks it just seemed like the three of us were moving in one direction and Franz wasn't". Grohl was distraught over the decision to fire Stahl, as the two had been friends since childhood. Shortly after that, Mendel called Grohl to say he was quitting the band to reunite with Sunny Day Real Estate, only to reverse his decision the next day. The remaining trio of Grohl, Mendel, and Hawkins spent the next several months recording the band's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, in Grohl's Virginia home studio that he bought and built. The album spawned several singles, including "Learn to Fly", the band's first single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors", "Generator", "Next Year" and "Breakout". Before the release of the album, Capitol president Gary Gersh was forced out of the label. Given Grohl's history with Gersh, Foo Fighters' contract had included a "key man clause" that allowed them to leave the label upon Gersh's departure. They subsequently left Capitol and signed with RCA, who later acquired the rights to the band's Capitol albums. After recording for There Is Nothing Left to Lose was completed, the band auditioned a number of potential guitarists, and eventually settled on Chris Shiflett, who performs with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, and previously performed with California punk band, No Use for a Name. Shiflett initially joined the band as touring guitarist, but achieved full-time status prior to the recording of the group's fourth album. In January 2000, Nate Mendel led a benefit concert in Hollywood for AIDS denialist group Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives with a speech by founder Christine Maggiore and free copies of her book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong? Additionally, the band's official website had linked to the group's website. The full band was shown in a documentary for Alive & Well declaring their support before a performance. Links and references to Alive & Well have since been removed and no further mentions or shows of support have been made. Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen, of whom the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. In March of that year, Grohl and Hawkins inducted the band into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and joined them on stage for a rendition of the Queen 1976 classic "Tie Your Mother Down", with Hawkins playing drums alongside Roger Taylor, while Grohl was playing rhythm guitar and handling vocal duties. Guitarist Brian May added a guitar track to Foo Fighters' second cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar", which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Mission: Impossible 2. In 2002, guitarist May contributed guitar work to "Tired of You" and an outtake called "Knucklehead". The bands have performed together on several occasions since, including VH1 Rock Honors and Foo Fighters' headlining concert in Hyde Park. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in 1994 in Seattle, Washington. The band was founded by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of Nirvana after the suicide of Kurt Cobain. The group took its name from foo fighter, a nickname coined by Allied aircraft pilots for UFOs and other aerial phenomena. Over the course of their career, Foo Fighters have won 12 Grammy Awards, including Best Rock Album four times. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021, their first year of eligibility.
Prior to the release of Foo Fighters' 1995 debut album Foo Fighters, which featured Grohl as the only official member, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both formerly of Sunny Day Real Estate, as well as Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear. The band began with performances in Portland, Oregon. Goldsmith quit during the recording of their second album The Colour and the Shape (1997); most of the drum parts were re-recorded by Grohl. Smear departed soon afterward but appeared as a guest with the band frequently from 2005; he rejoined in 2010.
Smear and Goldsmith were replaced by Franz Stahl and Taylor Hawkins; Stahl was fired before the recording of the group's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999). The band briefly continued as a trio until Chris Shiflett joined on guitar after the completion of There Is Nothing Left to Lose. Foo Fighters released their fourth album, One by One, in 2002. It was followed with the two-disc In Your Honor (2005), which was split between acoustic songs and heavier material. Foo Fighters released their sixth album, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, in 2007.
For Foo Fighters' seventh studio album, Wasting Light (2011), produced by Butch Vig, Smear returned as a full member. Sonic Highways (2014) was released as the soundtrack to the television miniseries directed by Grohl. Concrete and Gold (2017) was the second Foo Fighters album to reach number one in the United States and their first studio album to feature longtime session and touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee as a full member. In 2021, the band released their tenth album, Medicine at Midnight.
History
Background and first demos (1990–1994)
In 1990, Dave Grohl joined the grunge band Nirvana as drummer. During tours, he took a guitar with him and wrote songs, but was too intimidated to share them with the band; he was "in awe" of the songs written by frontman Kurt Cobain. Grohl occasionally booked studio time to record demos and covers, issuing an album of demos, Pocketwatch, under the pseudonym Late! in 1992.
Nirvana disbanded after the death of Cobain in 1994. Grohl received offers to work with various artists; press rumors indicated he might join Pearl Jam, and he almost accepted a position as drummer in Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Grohl later said: "I was supposed to just join another band and be a drummer the rest of my life. I thought that I would rather do what no one expected me to do." Grohl instead entered Robert Lang Studios in October 1994 to record 15 of his own songs. With the exception of a guitar part on "X-Static", played by Greg Dulli of the Afghan Whigs, Grohl played every instrument and sang every vocal. He completed an album's worth of material in five days and handed out cassette copies of the sessions to his friends for feedback.
Grohl hoped to stay anonymous and release the recordings in a limited run under the name Foo Fighters, taken from foo fighter, a World War II term for unidentified flying objects. He hoped the name would lead listeners to assume the music was made by several people. He said later: "Had I actually considered this to be a career, I probably would have called it something else, because it's the stupidest fucking band name in the world." The demo tape circulated in the industry, creating interest among record labels.
Formation and debut album (1994–1995)
Grohl formed a band to support the album. He spoke to Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic about joining the group, but they decided against it; Grohl said it would have felt "really natural" for them to work together, but would have been "weird" for the others and place more pressure on Grohl. Instead, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both of the recently disbanded Seattle group Sunny Day Real Estate. Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear joined as second guitarist. Grohl licensed the album to Capitol Records, releasing it on his new label, Roswell Records.
Foo Fighters made their live public debut on February 23, 1995, at the Jambalaya Club in Arcata, California, followed by performances at Satyricon in Portland on March 3 and the Velvet Elvis in Seattle on March 4. The show on March 3 had been part of a benefit gig for the investigation of the rape and murder of Gits singer Mia Zapata. Grohl refused to do interviews or tour large venues to promote the album. Foo Fighters undertook their first major tour in the spring of 1995, opening for Mike Watt. The band's first single, "This Is a Call", was released in June 1995, and its debut album Foo Fighters was released the next month. "I'll Stick Around," "For All the Cows," and "Big Me" were released as subsequent singles. The band spent the following months on tour, including their first appearance at the Reading Festival in England in August.
The Colour and the Shape (1996–1997)
After touring through the spring of 1996, Foo Fighters entered Bear Creek Studio in Woodinville, Washington, with producer Gil Norton to record its second album. While Grohl once again wrote all the songs, the rest of the band collaborated on the arrangements. With the sessions nearly complete, Grohl took the rough mixes to Los Angeles, intending to finish his vocal and guitar parts. While there, Grohl realized that he was not happy with the drumming and replaced most of Goldsmith's drum tracks with his own. Though Grohl hoped that Goldsmith would still play on the tour, Goldsmith felt betrayed and left the band.
In need of a replacement for Goldsmith, Grohl contacted Alanis Morissette's touring drummer Taylor Hawkins for a recommendation. Grohl was surprised when Hawkins volunteered himself. Hawkins made his debut with the group in time for the release of its second album, The Colour and the Shape, in May 1997. The album included the singles "Monkey Wrench", "Everlong", "My Hero", and "Walking After You".
Smear left Foo Fighters in 1997, citing exhaustion and burnout, and was replaced by Grohl's former Scream bandmate Franz Stahl. Stahl toured with Foo Fighters for the next few months and appeared on two tracks recorded for movie soundtracks, a re-recording of "Walking After You" for The X-Files and A320 for Godzilla. A B-side from the "My Hero" single, "Dear Lover," appeared in the horror film Scream 2. The tour for The Colour and the Shape album in 1998 included performances at Glastonbury Festival (on the main stage) and the Reading Festival.
There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1998–2001)
In 1998, Foo Fighters traveled to Grohl's home state of Virginia to write their third album. However, Grohl and Stahl were unable to co-operate as songwriters; Grohl told Kerrang! in 1999, "in those few weeks it just seemed like the three of us were moving in one direction and Franz wasn't." Grohl was distraught over the decision to fire Stahl as the two had been friends since childhood. Shortly after that, Mendel called Grohl to say he was quitting to reunite with Sunny Day Real Estate, only to reverse his decision the next day. The remaining trio of Grohl, Mendel, and Hawkins spent several months recording the band's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, in Grohl's home studio. The album spawned several singles, including "Learn to Fly", the band's first to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. Other singles included "Stacked Actors," "Generator," "Next Year," and "Breakout."
Before the release of the album, Capitol Records president Gary Gersh was forced out of the label. Given Grohl's history with Gersh, Foo Fighters' contract had included a "key man clause" that allowed them to leave the label upon Gersh's departure. They left Capitol and signed with RCA, who later acquired the rights to the band's Capitol albums.
After recording There Is Nothing Left to Lose was completed, the band auditioned a number of potential guitarists and settled on Chris Shiflett, who performed with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes and California punk band No Use for a Name. Shiflett initially joined as a touring guitarist but achieved full-time status prior to the recording of the group's fourth album.
In January 2000, Nate Mendel led a benefit concert in Hollywood for AIDS denialist group Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives with a speech by founder Christine Maggiore and free copies of her self-published book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong? Additionally, the band's official website featured a section devoted to Alive & Well. Sandra Thurman, then director of the Office of National AIDS Policy stated this was "extraordinarily irresponsible behavior" because "there is no doubt about the link between HIV and AIDS in the respected scientific community." Links and references to Alive & Well were removed from the band's website by March 2003.
Around 2001, Foo Fighters established a relationship with rock band Queen as the band (particularly Grohl and Hawkins) were fans. In March of that year, Grohl and Hawkins inducted them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and joined them to perform the 1976 classic, Tie Your Mother Down, with Hawkins playing drums alongside Roger Taylor. Guitarist Brian May added a guitar track to Foo Fighters' second cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar," which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Mission: Impossible 2. In 2002, guitarist May contributed guitar work to Tired of You and an outtake called Knucklehead. The bands have performed together on several occasions since, including VH1 Rock Honors and Foo Fighters' headlining concert in Hyde Park.
One by One (2001–2004)
Near the end of 2001, the band reconvened to record its fourth album. After spending four months in a Los Angeles studio, the album "just didn't sound right" and the band had no confidence it would sell very well. With the album not reaching their expectations amid much infighting, Grohl spent some time helping Queens of the Stone Age complete their 2002 album Songs for the Deaf. Once that album was finished and touring had started for both Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age, the band was on the verge of breaking up entirely. Grohl reunited with Hawkins, Shiflett, and Mendel to play the Coachella Festival, alternating days with Queens of the Stone Age. Hawkins and Grohl talked about resuming work on One by One and after a very satisfying performance the following day, they agreed to stay together. The group re-recorded nearly all of the album (save Tired of You) in a ten-day stretch at Grohl's home studio in Alexandria, Virginia, the following month. The original version of One by One, referred to by the band as Million Dollar Demos, has never been released in its entirety although seven tracks were leaked online in 2012 and 2015.
The album was released in October 2002 under the title One by One. Singles from the album included "All My Life," "Times Like These," "Low," and "Have It All." The tour for the album included a headline performance at the 2002 Reading and Leeds Festivals.
For most of its history, the band chose to stay away from the political realm. However, in 2004, upon learning that George W. Bush's presidential campaign was using "Times Like These" at rallies, Grohl decided to lend his public support to John Kerry's campaign, saying, "There's no way of stopping the president playing your songs, so I went out and played it for John Kerry's people instead, where I thought the message would kinda make more sense." Grohl attended several Kerry rallies and occasionally performed solo acoustic sets. The entire band joined Grohl for a performance in Arizona coinciding with one of the presidential debates.
In Your Honor (2005–2006)
Having spent a year and a half touring behind One by One, Grohl did not want to rush into recording another Foo Fighters record. Initially Grohl intended to write acoustic material by himself but eventually the project involved the entire band. To record its fifth album, the band shifted to Los Angeles and built a recording studio, dubbed Studio 606 West. Grohl insisted that the album be divided into two discs–one full of rock songs, the other featuring acoustic tracks. In Your Honor was released in June 2005. The album's singles included Best of You, DOA, Resolve, and No Way Back/Cold Day in the Sun.
During September and October 2005, the band toured with Weezer on what was billed as the Foozer Tour. Foo Fighters played a headline performance at the 2005 Reading and Leeds Festivals. On June 17, 2006, Foo Fighters performed their largest non-festival headlining concert to date at London's Hyde Park. Motörhead's Lemmy joined the band on stage to sing Shake Your Blood from Dave Grohl's Probot album. As a surprise performance, Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen appeared to play part of We Will Rock You as a lead in to Tie Your Mother Down.
In further support of In Your Honor, the band organized a short acoustic tour for the summer of 2006. Members who had performed with them in late 2005 appeared, such as Pat Smear, Petra Haden on violin and backing vocals, Drew Hester on percussion, and Rami Jaffee of The Wallflowers on keyboard and piano. While much of the setlist focused on In Your Honors acoustic half, the band also used the opportunity to play lesser-known songs, such as Ain't It The Life, Floaty, and See You. The band also performed Marigold, a Pocketwatch-era song that was best known as a Nirvana B side.
In November 2006, the band released their first ever live CD, Skin and Bones, featuring fifteen performances captured over a three-night stint in Los Angeles.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace and Greatest Hits (2007–2009)
For the follow-up to In Your Honor, the band recruited The Colour and the Shape producer Gil Norton. Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was released on September 25, 2007. The album's first single, The Pretender, was issued to radio in early August. In mid-to-late 2007 The Pretender topped Billboard's Modern Rock chart for a record 19 weeks. The second single, Long Road to Ruin, was released in December 2007, supported by a music video directed by longtime collaborator Jesse Peretz (formerly of the Lemonheads). Other singles included Let It Die and Cheer Up, Boys (Your Make Up Is Running).
In October 2007, Foo Fighters started their world tour in support of the album. The band performed shows throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Asia, including headlining the Virgin Mobile Festival in Baltimore on August 9. At the European MTV Music Awards in 2007, Pat Smear confirmed his return to the band.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was nominated for five Grammy Awards in 2008. Foo Fighters went home with Best Rock Album and Best Hard Rock Performance (for The Pretender). The album was also nominated for Album of the Year, while The Pretender was also nominated for Record of the Year and Best Rock Song.
On June 7, 2008, the band played Wembley Stadium, London, and was joined by Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin to play Rock and Roll (with Grohl on drums and Hawkins on vocals) and Ramble On (sung by Grohl, drums by Hawkins). As Page and Jones left the stage before a final encore of Best Of You, an ecstatic Grohl shouted "Welcome to the greatest fucking day of my whole entire life!". Throughout the tour for Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, Foo Fighters had been writing and practicing new songs at sound checks. After Foo Fighters had completed this tour in September 2008, they recorded 13 new songs in studio 606, shortly after announcing a hiatus from touring (which would last until January 2011). These sessions likely lasted from late 2008 – early 2009. While the members of Foo Fighters had initially planned for their new album (composed of songs from this recording session) to have come out in 2009 with almost no touring support, they ultimately decided to shelve most of the songs from these sessions. Three of these songs were later released — Wheels and Word Forward (on their 2009 compilation album, Greatest Hits); and a newly recorded version of Rope (which ended up making the final cut of Wasting Light).
In order to promote their greatest hits album, Foo Fighters performed an online show at studio 606 in October 2009 during which the band took fan requests.
Wasting Light (2010–2012)
In August 2010, the band began recording their seventh studio album with producer Butch Vig, who had previously produced the two new tracks for the band's Greatest Hits album. The album was recorded in Dave Grohl's garage using only analog equipment. The album won five Grammys and was nominated for six. The recording was analog to tape and used no computers, not even to mix or master. Vig said in an interview with MTV that the album was entirely analog until post-mastering. Pat Smear was present in many photos posted by Grohl on Twitter and a press release in December confirmed Smear played on every track on the album and was considered a core member of the band once again.
The first single from Wasting Light, Rope, was released to radio in February 2011. On April 16, 2011, Foo Fighters released an album of covers, Medium Rare, as a limited-edition vinyl for Record Store Day. The promotion for the album has been highly praised for its originality. Wasting Light debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, becoming the band's first album to do so. Other singles for the album included Walk, Arlandria, These Days, and Bridge Burning.
Alongside Wasting Lights release, Foo Fighters released a rockumentary, directed by Academy Award-winner James Moll. The film, titled Back and Forth, chronicles the band's career. Then current and past members, and producer Butch Vig, tell the story of the band through interviews. After debuting on March 15, 2011, at the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, it was released on DVD three months later.
On May 21, 2011, Foo Fighters headlined the middle day of the Hangout Music Festival in Gulf Shores, Alabama. On June 4, 2011, they played a surprise set at the 2011 KROQ Weenie Roast. They also headlined two sold-out shows at the Milton Keynes National Bowl on July 2 and 3, joined on stage by artists such as Alice Cooper, Seasick Steve, and John Paul Jones. They headlined the final night at the 20th anniversary of Lollapalooza in Chicago's Grant Park on August 7, 2011, performing part of their set in a driving rainstorm.
In September 2011 before a show in Kansas City, the band performed a parody song in front of a protest by the Westboro Baptist Church. It mocked the church's opposition to homosexuality and was performed in the same faux-trucker garb that was seen in the band's Hot Buns promotional video.
It was announced on September 28, 2011, that Foo Fighters would be performing during the closing ceremony of Blizzard Entertainment's annual video game convention, BlizzCon.
On August 27, 2012, Foo Fighters ended their European tour with a headline performance at Reading and Leeds Festival. On September 5, the band performed a show at the Fillmore in Charlotte, North Carolina, as a benefit for Rock the Vote. The show, which occurred at the same time as the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, was announced only two weeks prior. Tickets to the 2000-person capacity venue sold out in under 60 seconds, setting a record for the site. The band set another personal record during the show itself, being the longest that the band had played to date at just under 3.5 hours with a setlist of 36 songs. On September 21, the band headlined the Music Midtown Festival in Atlanta, Georgia. The following evening, they headlined the DeLuna Festival in Pensacola Beach, Florida. On September 29, the band performed at the Global Citizens' Festival before embarking on a break.
Sonic Highways (2013–2015)
Despite initially announcing a break after supporting Wasting Light, Grohl stated in January 2013 that the band had started writing material for an eighth studio album. On February 20, 2013, at the Brit Awards, Grohl said he was resuming work on the album the following day.
On September 6, 2013, Shiflett posted a photo to his Instagram account that indicated 13 songs were being recorded and later described it as "pretty fucking fun". Rami Jaffee has recorded parts for three songs, one of which was In the Way. Butch Vig, who worked with the band on Wasting Light, confirmed via Twitter in late August 2013 that he was producing the album. The band confirmed that it would end its hiatus by playing two shows in Mexico City on December 11 and 13. On October 31, a video appeared on the official Foo Fighters YouTube channel showing a motorcyclist, later revealed to be Erik Estrada, delivering each of the band members an invitation to play in Mexico.
On January 16, 2014, a picture was posted to Foo Fighters' Facebook page with several master tapes labeled LP 8. On May 15, it was announced that the album would be released in November and that the Foo Fighters would commemorate the album and their 20th anniversary with an HBO TV series directed by Grohl titled Sonic Highways. Eight songs were written and recorded in eight studios in eight different American cities with video capturing the history and feel of each town. On July 30, Butch Vig revealed that the Foo Fighters had finished recording and mixing the album and that it was slated to be released a month after the premiere of the TV show.
In June 2014, the band agreed to play a show in Richmond, Virginia, that was entirely crowd-funded by fans on the website Tilt.com. The show took place on September 17 before 1,500 fans. The band played 23 songs over the course of two and a half hours. Foo Fighters announced their tour would include performances in Cape Town on December 10 and Johannesburg on December 13. The band played three performances under the alias The Holy Shits in September 2014; the first at the Concorde 2 club in Brighton, England, where Grohl invited lead singer Jay Apperley of the tribute band UK Foo Fighters on stage to sing, followed by the House of Vans and the Islington Assembly Hall. On September 14, 2014, the band performed at the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games, their first official show in England since closing Reading Festival in 2012. They closed out the 2014 VooDoo Music and Arts Festival in New Orleans on November 2, 2014, in a two and a half hour performance that included an appearance from New Orleans native Trombone Shorty, who played This is a Call with the band.
On August 8, the band released a short clip of their latest work, titled 8. On August 11, the band announced that the new album would be titled Sonic Highways and released on November 10, 2014. An international tour, dubbed the Sonic Highways World Tour, followed with performances in South Africa in December and South America in January 2015. It continued to Australia and New Zealand in February and March.
On May 20, 2015, the Foo Fighters were the final musical act to perform on Late Show with David Letterman, continuing their long association with the host as he wrapped up his 33-year career in late night television. The show ended with a montage of Letterman highlights while the Foo Fighters played "Everlong", which Letterman said had significant meaning for him after his open-heart surgery in 2000. The band postponed their international tour to make the appearance; the tour resumed on May 24, with a performance at Radio 1's Big Weekend in Norwich, England.
On June 12, Grohl fell from the stage in Gothenburg, Sweden, during the group's second song, breaking his leg. The band continued playing while Grohl received medical attention, who then returned to the stage to finish the last two hours of the band's set from a chair while a medic tended to his leg. After the concert, Grohl was flown to London for surgery, requiring six metal pins to stabilize the fracture. As a result of the injury, the band canceled its remaining European tour dates.
In July, one thousand Italian fans held the Rockin' 1000 gathering in Cesena, Italy, performing Learn to Fly and asking Foo Fighters to come play in the town. The performance video went viral and impressed Grohl, resulting in the band appearing in Cesena on November 3.
Saint Cecilia EP and Concrete and Gold (2015–2019)
The Foo Fighters planned to follow their international tour with a North American tour to promote Sonic Highways, beginning with a special Fourth of July event in Washington, D.C., that would commemorate the band's 20th anniversary. The all-day event was to be held at Washington's RFK Stadium featuring performances by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Heart, LL Cool J, Gary Clark Jr., and Buddy Guy. Dave Grohl's injury initially led to speculation that the band would drop out of the event but they later confirmed they would perform; however, the injury did prevent them from headlining the 2015 Glastonbury Festival. The band performed for 48,000 people with Grohl in a custom-built moving throne which he claimed to have designed himself while on painkillers.
Beginning with the show on July 4, the Foo Fighters re-branded the North American tour as the Broken Leg Tour. The band continued to use the name at later North American performances. Prior to their August 21 concert at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri, the band rickrolled protesting members of the Westboro Baptist Church, as they had also done in 2011.
On November 23, 2015, a surprise release following a month-long countdown clock on the Foo Fighters' website revealed the free EP Saint Cecilia, including a single of the same name. Alongside its release, Grohl announced that the band would be going on an indefinite hiatus. In response to growing rumors of the band breaking up, the band released a mockumentary video in March 2016 portraying Grohl leaving the band to pursue an electronic music career and Nick Lachey (formerly of 98 Degrees) becoming the group's new singer, ending with: "For the millionth time, we're not breaking up. And nobody's going fucking solo!" In May 2016, Shiflett stated that the band still had no particular plans for reforming but assured that it would happen eventually.
Grohl announced that the band would spend much of 2017 recording their ninth studio album. On June 1, 2017, their new single "Run" was released. Run topped the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart the following month. The band confirmed touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee was officially the sixth member of the group. On June 20, 2017, the band announced that their new album, Concrete and Gold, would be released in September. On August 23, 2017, The Sky Is a Neighborhood was released as the second single and topped the Mainstream Rock chart. The Line was released in promotion of the album and later as the third single in 2018. Concrete and Gold was officially released on September 15, 2017, produced by Greg Kurstin. The album is noted as deriving influence from Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and The Beatles. Concrete and Gold also features Justin Timberlake on vocals for Make It Right, Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men on backing vocals for the song Concrete and Gold, and Paul McCartney on the drums for Sunday Rain. The band began touring in June 2017, including headlining the Glastonbury Festival 2017. The tour in support of Concrete and Gold was extended to October 2018.
Medicine at Midnight and induction into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2019–present)
In October 2019, the band announced that they were recording their tenth studio album based on demos by Grohl. In November 2019, the band began releasing a series of EPs under the umbrella name of the Foo Files, largely consisting of previously released B sides and live performances. By February 2020, Grohl announced that the new album was complete but by May, it was delayed indefinitely because of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying, "We've kind of shelved it for now to figure out exactly when it's going to happen."
Starting in November 2020, promotion for the album ramped up. Its title, Medicine at Midnight, and release date, February 5, 2021, were announced. The band released three singles ahead of the album: "Shame Shame", "No Son of Mine", and "Waiting on a War". In January, the band performed at the US Presidential Inauguration of Joe Biden.
On February 10, 2021, Foo Fighters were announced as one of the 2021 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees in their first year of eligibility as their debut album had been released 25 years prior. On May 12, 2021, Foo Fighters were announced as one of 6 performer inductees.
For Record Store Day on July 17, 2021, the Foo Fighters released an album of disco covers, Hail Satin, under the name Dee Gees. The album contains four Bee Gees covers, a cover of Andy Gibb's "Shadow Dancing", plus five live versions of Medicine at Midnight tracks.
On December 2, 2021, a video was uploaded to the band's YouTube, which announced Studio 666, a rock and roll comedy horror film starring the members of the band. The trailer was released on January 11, 2022, and has a release date of February 25.
Musical style and legacy
Foo Fighters have been described as grunge, alternative rock, post-grunge, and hard rock. They were initially compared to Grohl's previous group, Nirvana. Grohl acknowledged that Kurt Cobain was an influence on his songwriting: "Through Kurt, I saw the beauty of minimalism and the importance of music that's stripped down." Foo Fighters also used the technique of shifting between quiet verses and loud choruses, which Grohl said was influenced by the members of Nirvana "liking The Knack, Bay City Rollers, Beatles, and ABBA as much as we liked Flipper and Black Flag, I suppose."
Writing and recording songs for their first album by himself, Grohl intended for the guitar riffs to be as rhythmic as possible. He approached the guitar in a similar manner to his drumming, assigning various drum parts to strings on the instrument. This allowed him to piece together songs easily; he said, "I could hear the song in my head before it was finished." Once Grohl assembled a full band, the members assisted in song arrangements. Pitchfork described Grohl and the band as "his generation's answer to Tom Petty—a consistent hit machine pumping out working-class rock."
The band members meld melodic and heavy elements. Grohl noted in 1997, "We all love music, whether it's the Beatles or Queen or punk rock. I think the lure of punk rock was the energy and immediacy; the need to thrash stuff around. But at the same time, we're all suckers for a beautiful melody, you know? So it is just natural." Grohl said in 2005, "I love being in a rock band, but I don't know if I necessarily wanna be in an alternative rock band from the 1990s for the rest of my life." Grohl noted that the band's acoustic tour was an attempt to broaden the group's sound.
Band membersCurrent members Dave Grohl – lead vocals, guitar (1994–present)
Pat Smear – guitar (1995–1997, 2010–present; session/touring member 2005–2010), backing vocals (1995–1997)
Chris Shiflett – guitar, backing vocals (1999–present)
Nate Mendel – bass (1995–present)
Taylor Hawkins – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1997–present)
Rami Jaffee – keyboard, piano (2017–present; session/touring member 2005–2017)Former members Franz Stahl – guitar, backing vocals (1997–1999)
William Goldsmith – drums, percussion (1995–1997)
Timeline
DiscographyStudio albums'''
Foo Fighters (1995)
The Colour and the Shape (1997)
There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999)
One by One (2002)
In Your Honor (2005)
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace (2007)
Wasting Light (2011)
Sonic Highways (2014)
Concrete and Gold (2017)
Medicine at Midnight (2021)
Awards and nominations
Foo Fighters first received a Grammy Award for their music video for Learn to Fly in 2000, and they have won ten others. These include four Grammys in the Best Rock Album category for There Is Nothing Left to Lose, One by One, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace and Wasting Light, and three awards for Best Hard Rock Performance for the songs All My Life, The Pretender and White Limo. The band also received three Kerrang! Awards. At the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards, the band won Best Rock Video for Walk. They won the Radio Contraband Major Label Artist of the Year in 2011 and 2014. The band won Song of the Year for Something From Nothing and Album of the Year for Sonic Highways both in 2014.
On February 12, 2012, the band performed at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards playing Walk along with the remix version of Rope, featuring deadmau5. The band was nominated for six Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year, Best Rock Performance, Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance, Best Rock Song, Best Rock Album and Best Long Form Music Video (for Back and Forth''). They won five of the six, losing only to Adele in the Album of the Year category.
In 2021, Foo Fighters were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in their first year of eligibility.
In 2021, the band was announced as recipients of the first-ever global icon award at the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards.
References
External links
Alternative rock groups from Washington (state)
American post-grunge musical groups
Grunge musical groups
Brit Award winners
Grammy Award winners
Hard rock musical groups from Washington (state)
Kerrang! Awards winners
Musical groups established in 1994
Musical groups from Seattle
NME Awards winners
Nirvana (band)
RCA Records artists
Articles which contain graphical timelines
Late Show with David Letterman
1994 establishments in Washington (state) | false | [
"Demi Lovato has won 66 awards from 222 nominations for their work in music, film, and television. Lovato starred in the lead role on Camp Rock (2008), for which they were nominated for Best Performance in a TV Movie – Leading Young Actress at the 30th Young Artist Awards. They also played the titular role in the Disney Channel original series Sonny with a Chance (2009–2011), for which they won Choice TV – Breakout Star Female at the 2009 Teen Choice Awards and Favorite TV Actress – Leading Role in a Comedy at the 2011 ALMA Awards.\n\nIn 2009, Lovato released their second studio album Here We Go Again. The album reached No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 chart and was nominated for Choice Pop Album at the 2010 Teen Choice Awards. In 2011, their third studio album Unbroken followed, featuring two singles \"Skyscraper\" and \"Give Your Heart a Break\". At the 29th annual MTV Video Music Awards, \"Skyscraper\" won Best Video with a Message and Choice Music: Summer Song at the 2011 Teen Choice Awards. \"Give Your Heart a Break\" was nominated for two awards at the 2012 Teen Choice Awards: Choice Summer Song and Choice Love Song. In 2013, Lovato's fourth studio album Demi was released along with four singles: \"Heart Attack\", \"Made in the USA\", \"Neon Lights\" and \"Really Don't Care\". \"Heart Attack\" was nominated for Best Female Video at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards and won International Video of the Year - Artist at the 2013 MuchMusic Video Awards. \"Made in the USA\" won Favorite Roadtrip Song at the 2014 Radio Disney Music Awards and \"Really Don't Care\" was nominated for Best Lyric Video at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards.\n\nLovato's fifth studio album Confident followed in 2015. The lead single \"Cool for the Summer\" was nominated for Song of Summer at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards. The album was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards. In 2017, they released their sixth studio album Tell Me You Love Me, featuring lead single \"Sorry Not Sorry\". The single was nominated for two awards at the MTV Video Music Awards: once for Song of Summer at the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards and again for Best Pop at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards. It was also nominated for Best Pop at the 2017 MTV Europe Music Awards. Lovato was nominated for three awards at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards, including Top Female Artist, and received a nomination for Favorite Social Artist at the 2018 American Music Awards. Lovato was nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards for the song \"Fall in Line\" with Christina Aguilera. Among other awards, Lovato has received four ASCAP Awards and four BMI Awards for songwriting and composing the singles \"Heart Attack\", \"Neon Lights\", \"Cool for the Summer\", \"Sorry Not Sorry\" and \"Tell Me You Love Me\". Lovato has received numerous awards for their activism and philanthropic work, including the Acuvue Inspire Award at the 2011 Teen Choice Awards, the GLAAD Vanguard Award and the Young Luminary Award at the unite4:humanity gala. Lovato was nominated for two VMAs at the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards for \"I Love Me\".\n\nAwards and nominations\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nAwards\nLovato",
"\"No Matter What\" is a song by American recording artist T.I., from his sixth album Paper Trail. It was released as the album's first single on April 29, 2008, with its eventual release onto the iTunes Store on May 6. The song was nominated at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards for Best Male Video. The song ranked 10 in Rolling Stone's list of 2008's best songs.\n\nMusic video\nThe video was shot in Atlanta, Georgia. The music video was released on June 27 on MTV's FN Premieres and on July 2 on BET's 106 & Park.\nThe video was nominated for \"Best Male Video\" for the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards, but lost to Chris Brown's \"With You\" video. The video's theme revolved around the loss of loved ones and the feeling of being locked behind bars. Directed by Mazik Self who is based in Los Angeles.\n\nCharts\n\nRemixes\nNicki Minaj did a freestyle for DJ Drama & Lil Wayne's Dedication 3 and which is also on her third mixtape Beam Me Up Scotty (mixtape).\nThere is also a remix with a verse from Yung Joc.\n\nReferences\n\n2008 songs\n2008 singles\nT.I. songs\nSong recordings produced by Danja (record producer)\nSongs written by Danja (record producer)\nSongs written by T.I.\nGrand Hustle Records singles\nAtlantic Records singles\nDiss tracks"
]
|
[
"D.O.A. (band)",
"Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981-1989)"
]
| C_d7fc5b363aea4cef987d3bb337412a40_1 | What was Hardcore 81? | 1 | What was Hardcore 81? | D.O.A. (band) | On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk". Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the only remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982-1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear. 1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was very close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement. CANNOTANSWER | On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; | D.O.A. is a Canadian punk rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Angry Samoans, The Bags, Germs, Negative Trend, and Middle Class. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore.
Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, with original bassist Randy Rampage returning to the band twice after his original departure. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records, and they have released an album with Biafra on vocals titled Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors.
D.O.A. is known for its outspoken political opinions and has a history of performing for many causes and benefits. Its slogan is "Talk Minus Action Equals Zero." The band's lyrics and imagery frequently advocate anti-racism, anti-globalization, freedom of speech, and environmentalism.
Founder Joe Keithley is also the founder of Sudden Death Records which has released music by D.O.A. and several other bands including Pointed Sticks and Young Canadians.
History
Formation and early years (1977–1980)
D.O.A. has its origins in The Skulls, an early Vancouver-area punk rock band that included future D.O.A. members Joey "Shithead" Keithley, Brian "Wimpy Roy" Goble, and Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery.
When the Skulls broke up after an ill-fated move to Toronto, Keithley moved back to Vancouver and formed D.O.A. in early 1978 with himself on guitar, Dimwit's brother Chuck Biscuits on drums, Randy Rampage on bass, and a lead singer known only as "Harry Homo", who suggested the band's name. The band's first gig took place at the Japanese Hall in Vancouver on February 20 of that year, after which Harry Homo was sacked for an apparent lack of rhythm; Keithley then became the band's singer. A second guitarist named "Randy Romance" played briefly with the band in March 1978 before leaving.
The band began playing frequently around Vancouver and added guitarist Brad Kent the following June. That summer, they recorded and self-released their first single, the four-song EP Disco Sucks. The single soon topped the charts of the University of San Francisco radio station KUSF, which prompted the band to begin touring down to San Francisco. They played their first shows there in August 1978 at Mabuhay Gardens. It was during this trip that the band first met Dead Kennedys frontman and future collaborator Jello Biafra. Kent was fired from the band in September and later that fall the band recorded and released their second single "The Prisoner".
In May 1979, the band embarked on their first North American tour. Upon its completion they hired Vancouver journalist and activist Ken Lester as their manager. Lester booked another tour for them the following October, in the middle of which they flew back to Vancouver to open for The Clash at the Pacific Coliseum. They soon after released their third single, "World War 3" / "Whatcha Gonna Do?". In late 1979, they added second guitarist, Dave Gregg. Soon after, Biscuits and Rampage left the band after a disastrous gig at the University of British Columbia's Student Union Building and were replaced by Andy Graffiti and Simon "Stubby Pecker" Wilde on drums and bass, respectively. Keithley soon became dissatisfied with the band's performances with the new lineup, however, and Biscuits and Rampage both rejoined the band in March 1980.
D.O.A. released their full-length debut Something Better Change on Friends Records in 1980 and continued touring the United States and Canada extensively.
Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981–1989)
On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk".
Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy, another ex-Skulls member, was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the last remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982–1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear.
1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement.
First breakup and reunion (1990–2002)
1990's Murder featured rawer, almost thrash metal production, rather than their original basic punk sound. The same year also produced a collaboration with Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra with Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors. In August 1990, Joey decided he was breaking up D.O.A. but, at the suggestion of promoter Dirk Dirksen, they did a farewell tour of the West Coast, playing their "final" show on December 1, 1990 at the Commodore in Vancouver. In 1991, they released a posthumous live album entitled Talk Minus Action = 0 while Keithley pursued an acting career.
19 months after D.O.A. broke up, Joey Shithead and Wimpy Roy had reunited as D.O.A in the summer of 1992. Fellow Canadian punk rock veteran John Wright from NoMeansNo suggested they hire Ken Jensen from Red Tide as the new drummer, which they did. The new lineup released an EP and two albums in the early 1990s, 13 Flavours Of Doom and Loggerheads. These albums found the band replacing the more hard-rock oriented sound of the 1980s with a return to punk rock, although it was a heavier, tighter brand of punk than their earlier work. These albums were produced by Wright, who also played keyboards on the recordings. The band then added Ford Pier on guitar and vocals.
Tragedy struck in 1995 when drummer Ken Jensen died in a house fire. The "Ken Jensen Memorial Single" EP was released on Alternative Tentacles, including two tracks each from D.O.A. and Red Tide. With John Wright filling in on drums, ninth full-length The Black Spot was recorded. The album featured a more basic, sing-along type punk rock sound that was reminiscent of the band's late 1970s and early 1980s output.
The late 1990s found the band's lineup in turmoil, with Wimpy Roy leaving the band after a decade and a half of service and Kuba joining to play bass from 1997 until 2001. Keithley experimented with different bassists and drummers and released the album Festival Of Atheists in 1998. By the early 2000s, the band had found a permanent drummer in the form of The Great Baldini. In 2002, Keithley put out his first solo album, Beat Trash, and original bassist Randy Rampage returned to the band after nearly 20 years for the Win The Battle album. However, the reunion did not last, with Rampage leaving the band again after the recording of the album, to be replaced by Dan Yaremko.
The Lost Tapes was the first release on Keithley's revived Sudden Death label, followed by Festival Of Atheists. During this period, Keithley also oversaw the re-release of the band's classic early records on Sudden Death, several of which had been out of print for many years.
Later years and second hiatus (2003–2013)
In 2003, Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell declared December 21 to be "D.O.A. Day" in honour of the band's 25th anniversary. In the same year, the band released a career-spanning retrospective entitled War And Peace. 2004 found the band releasing the ska-flavoured Live Free or Die. In 2006, Randy Rampage rejoined D.O.A. for his 3rd stint in the band.
The lineup remained stable until 2008, when The Great Baldini left the band to be replaced by new drummer James Hayden. Also in 2008, it was announced that Bob Rock, of Metallica fame would be producing the band's next album in time for their 30th anniversary. James Hayden quit before D.O.A. started to record to be replaced by Floor Tom Jones In September 2008, D.O.A. released Northern Avenger and embarked on their 30th anniversary tour. On the eve of the tour, it was announced that Randy Rampage was being replaced by Dan Yaremko once again.
D.O.A. played several dates in the summer of 2009 as part of the Van's Warped Tour 2009.
On May 1, 2010, D.O.A. released their fourteenth full-length album Talk Minus Action = Zero (a similarly titled live album Talk Minus Action Equals Zero had previously been released in 1990). Drummer Jesse Pinner (of the band Raised by Apes) took the place of Floor Tom Jones beginning on D.O.A.'s subsequent August 2010 tour due to Floor Tom Jones' commitments to his job at Canada Post.
In 2012, Joe announced that he would be seeking nomination as an NDP candidate in the B.C. provincial election. As a result, D.O.A. announced an indefinite hiatus, and began their farewell tour on January 18, 2013 in celebration of the band's thirty-five year anniversary.
Second reunion and recent activity (2014–present)
On September 22, 2014, Keithley officially announced on the Sudden Death Records website that he had decided to reform the band with Paddy Duddy on drums and Mike "Maggot" Hodsall on bass, and would be embarking on a Canadian tour in October in support of the recently released live album, Welcome To Chinatown. This lineup recorded and released the studio album Hard Rain Falling in 2015. In April 2016, the band released a new version of "Fucked Up Ronnie" entitled "Fucked Up Donald" (referring to the 2016 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump) as a single.
Members
Current lineup
Joe Keithley – vocals, guitar (1978–present), bass (1996–1998)
Mike Hodsall – bass (2014–present)
Paddy Duddy – drums (2014–present)
Former members
Harry Homo - lead vocals (1978)
Brad Kent - guitar (1978)
Randy Romance - guitar (1978)
Zippy Pinhead - drums (1979; died 2019)
Simon Wilde - bass (1979-1980; died 1994)
Andy Graffiti - drums (1979-1980)
Randy Rampage – bass (1978–1982, 2000–2002, 2006–2009; died 2018)
Chuck Biscuits – drums (1978–1982)
Dave Gregg – guitar (1979–1988; died 2014)
Brian Roy Goble – bass (1982–1996; died 2014)
Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery – bass (1982), drums (1982–1983, 1984-1986; died 1994)
Gregg "Ned Peckerwood" James - drums (1983-1984)
Kerr Belliveau - drums (1986)
Jon Card – drums (1986–1990)
Chris Prohom – guitar (1988–1990)
Ken Jensen – drums (1992–1995; died 1995)
Jon Wright – keyboards (1992–1995), drums (1995–1996)
Ford Pier – guitar (1994–1996)
Wycliffe - bass (1997)
Kuba van der Pol - bass (1998-2000, 2002-2003)
Brien O’Brien – drums (1997–1999)
The Great Baldini – drums (2000–2008)
Dan Yaremko – bass (2003–2006, 2009–2013)
Floor Tom Jones – drums (2008–2010)
Jesse Pinner – drums (2010–2013)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Something Better Change (1980)
Hardcore '81 (1981)
Let's Wreck The Party (1985)
True (North) Strong And Free (1987)
Murder (1990)
13 Flavours of Doom (1992)
Loggerheads (1993)
The Black Spot (1995)
Festival Of Atheists (1998)
Win the Battle (2002)
Live Free Or Die (2004)
Northern Avenger (2008)
Kings of Punk, Hockey and Beer (2009)
Talk-Action=0 (2010)
We Come In Peace (2012)
Hard Rain Falling (2015)
Fight Back (2018)
Treason (2020)
Live albums
Talk Minus Action Equals Zero (1991)
Welcome to Chinatown (2013)
EPs
Positively (1981)
War on 45 (1982)
D.O.A. & Thor - Are U Ready (2003)
Collaborations
Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors (With Jello Biafra) (1990)
Solo albums
Beat Trash (2002) - Solo Project from Joey "Shithead" Keithley
References
External links
The official D.O.A. myspace
CanadianBands.com entry
Sudden Death records
Interview with Joey Shithead
Snot Rag interview with Dimwit (1979)
Robert Christgau's review of five D.O.A. albums
Scanner zine interview with Joey Shithead
Late Night Wallflower interview with Joey Shithead (2007)
Toronto Music Scene Interview with Joey Shithead
The Ruckus - Audio Interview with Joey Keithley from September 2008
Musical groups established in 1978
Musical groups disestablished in 2013
Musical groups reestablished in 2014
Canadian hardcore punk groups
Canadian activists
Musical groups from Vancouver
Alternative Tentacles artists
1978 establishments in British Columbia
Political music groups | true | [
"How We Rock was the third release from the Boston hardcore punk band SSD. It was rooted in the hardcore sound but exhibited overt heavy metal characteristics, such as a relatively high number of lengthy guitar solos.\n\nTrack listing\n\nSide A\n\"Intro\"\n\"How We Rock\"\n\"Words That Kill\"\n\"The Choice\"\n\nSide B\n\"On the Road\"\n\"What It Takes\"\n\"What If I\"\n\nPersonnel\nSpringa - vocals\nAl Barile - guitar\nFrancois Levesque - guitar\nJaime Sciarappa - bass\nChris Foley - drums\n\nReferences\n\n1984 albums\nSSD (band) albums",
"Fractures is the second studio album by the American hardcore punk band Killing the Dream. The album was released on June 10, 2008 through Deathwish Inc. Fractures was produced by J. Robbins of the 90s post-hardcore group Jawbox, and the artwork was designed by Jacob Bannon of the hardcore group Converge.\n\nTrack listing \n \"(Re)acquaintance\" – 0:39\n \"Part II (Motel Art)\" – 2:22\n \"Fractures\" – 2:45\n \"Thirty Four Seconds\" – 2:37\n \"Consequence (What Comes Next)\" – 2:47\n \"Everything But Everything\" – 1:58\n \"Hang the Jury\" – 1:34\n \"We Were\" – 1:18\n \"You're All Welcome\" – 1:09\n \"Thirteen Steps\" – 0:38\n \"Holding the Claws\" – 1:45\n \"Resolution\" – 4:23\n\nReferences \n\nKilling the Dream albums\n2008 albums\nDeathwish Inc. albums\nAlbums with cover art by Jacob Bannon\nAlbums produced by J. Robbins"
]
|
[
"D.O.A. (band)",
"Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981-1989)",
"What was Hardcore 81?",
"On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81;"
]
| C_d7fc5b363aea4cef987d3bb337412a40_1 | who was fired from the band? | 2 | Who was fired from the D.O.A band? | D.O.A. (band) | On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk". Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the only remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982-1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear. 1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was very close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement. CANNOTANSWER | Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 | D.O.A. is a Canadian punk rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Angry Samoans, The Bags, Germs, Negative Trend, and Middle Class. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore.
Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, with original bassist Randy Rampage returning to the band twice after his original departure. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records, and they have released an album with Biafra on vocals titled Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors.
D.O.A. is known for its outspoken political opinions and has a history of performing for many causes and benefits. Its slogan is "Talk Minus Action Equals Zero." The band's lyrics and imagery frequently advocate anti-racism, anti-globalization, freedom of speech, and environmentalism.
Founder Joe Keithley is also the founder of Sudden Death Records which has released music by D.O.A. and several other bands including Pointed Sticks and Young Canadians.
History
Formation and early years (1977–1980)
D.O.A. has its origins in The Skulls, an early Vancouver-area punk rock band that included future D.O.A. members Joey "Shithead" Keithley, Brian "Wimpy Roy" Goble, and Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery.
When the Skulls broke up after an ill-fated move to Toronto, Keithley moved back to Vancouver and formed D.O.A. in early 1978 with himself on guitar, Dimwit's brother Chuck Biscuits on drums, Randy Rampage on bass, and a lead singer known only as "Harry Homo", who suggested the band's name. The band's first gig took place at the Japanese Hall in Vancouver on February 20 of that year, after which Harry Homo was sacked for an apparent lack of rhythm; Keithley then became the band's singer. A second guitarist named "Randy Romance" played briefly with the band in March 1978 before leaving.
The band began playing frequently around Vancouver and added guitarist Brad Kent the following June. That summer, they recorded and self-released their first single, the four-song EP Disco Sucks. The single soon topped the charts of the University of San Francisco radio station KUSF, which prompted the band to begin touring down to San Francisco. They played their first shows there in August 1978 at Mabuhay Gardens. It was during this trip that the band first met Dead Kennedys frontman and future collaborator Jello Biafra. Kent was fired from the band in September and later that fall the band recorded and released their second single "The Prisoner".
In May 1979, the band embarked on their first North American tour. Upon its completion they hired Vancouver journalist and activist Ken Lester as their manager. Lester booked another tour for them the following October, in the middle of which they flew back to Vancouver to open for The Clash at the Pacific Coliseum. They soon after released their third single, "World War 3" / "Whatcha Gonna Do?". In late 1979, they added second guitarist, Dave Gregg. Soon after, Biscuits and Rampage left the band after a disastrous gig at the University of British Columbia's Student Union Building and were replaced by Andy Graffiti and Simon "Stubby Pecker" Wilde on drums and bass, respectively. Keithley soon became dissatisfied with the band's performances with the new lineup, however, and Biscuits and Rampage both rejoined the band in March 1980.
D.O.A. released their full-length debut Something Better Change on Friends Records in 1980 and continued touring the United States and Canada extensively.
Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981–1989)
On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk".
Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy, another ex-Skulls member, was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the last remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982–1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear.
1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement.
First breakup and reunion (1990–2002)
1990's Murder featured rawer, almost thrash metal production, rather than their original basic punk sound. The same year also produced a collaboration with Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra with Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors. In August 1990, Joey decided he was breaking up D.O.A. but, at the suggestion of promoter Dirk Dirksen, they did a farewell tour of the West Coast, playing their "final" show on December 1, 1990 at the Commodore in Vancouver. In 1991, they released a posthumous live album entitled Talk Minus Action = 0 while Keithley pursued an acting career.
19 months after D.O.A. broke up, Joey Shithead and Wimpy Roy had reunited as D.O.A in the summer of 1992. Fellow Canadian punk rock veteran John Wright from NoMeansNo suggested they hire Ken Jensen from Red Tide as the new drummer, which they did. The new lineup released an EP and two albums in the early 1990s, 13 Flavours Of Doom and Loggerheads. These albums found the band replacing the more hard-rock oriented sound of the 1980s with a return to punk rock, although it was a heavier, tighter brand of punk than their earlier work. These albums were produced by Wright, who also played keyboards on the recordings. The band then added Ford Pier on guitar and vocals.
Tragedy struck in 1995 when drummer Ken Jensen died in a house fire. The "Ken Jensen Memorial Single" EP was released on Alternative Tentacles, including two tracks each from D.O.A. and Red Tide. With John Wright filling in on drums, ninth full-length The Black Spot was recorded. The album featured a more basic, sing-along type punk rock sound that was reminiscent of the band's late 1970s and early 1980s output.
The late 1990s found the band's lineup in turmoil, with Wimpy Roy leaving the band after a decade and a half of service and Kuba joining to play bass from 1997 until 2001. Keithley experimented with different bassists and drummers and released the album Festival Of Atheists in 1998. By the early 2000s, the band had found a permanent drummer in the form of The Great Baldini. In 2002, Keithley put out his first solo album, Beat Trash, and original bassist Randy Rampage returned to the band after nearly 20 years for the Win The Battle album. However, the reunion did not last, with Rampage leaving the band again after the recording of the album, to be replaced by Dan Yaremko.
The Lost Tapes was the first release on Keithley's revived Sudden Death label, followed by Festival Of Atheists. During this period, Keithley also oversaw the re-release of the band's classic early records on Sudden Death, several of which had been out of print for many years.
Later years and second hiatus (2003–2013)
In 2003, Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell declared December 21 to be "D.O.A. Day" in honour of the band's 25th anniversary. In the same year, the band released a career-spanning retrospective entitled War And Peace. 2004 found the band releasing the ska-flavoured Live Free or Die. In 2006, Randy Rampage rejoined D.O.A. for his 3rd stint in the band.
The lineup remained stable until 2008, when The Great Baldini left the band to be replaced by new drummer James Hayden. Also in 2008, it was announced that Bob Rock, of Metallica fame would be producing the band's next album in time for their 30th anniversary. James Hayden quit before D.O.A. started to record to be replaced by Floor Tom Jones In September 2008, D.O.A. released Northern Avenger and embarked on their 30th anniversary tour. On the eve of the tour, it was announced that Randy Rampage was being replaced by Dan Yaremko once again.
D.O.A. played several dates in the summer of 2009 as part of the Van's Warped Tour 2009.
On May 1, 2010, D.O.A. released their fourteenth full-length album Talk Minus Action = Zero (a similarly titled live album Talk Minus Action Equals Zero had previously been released in 1990). Drummer Jesse Pinner (of the band Raised by Apes) took the place of Floor Tom Jones beginning on D.O.A.'s subsequent August 2010 tour due to Floor Tom Jones' commitments to his job at Canada Post.
In 2012, Joe announced that he would be seeking nomination as an NDP candidate in the B.C. provincial election. As a result, D.O.A. announced an indefinite hiatus, and began their farewell tour on January 18, 2013 in celebration of the band's thirty-five year anniversary.
Second reunion and recent activity (2014–present)
On September 22, 2014, Keithley officially announced on the Sudden Death Records website that he had decided to reform the band with Paddy Duddy on drums and Mike "Maggot" Hodsall on bass, and would be embarking on a Canadian tour in October in support of the recently released live album, Welcome To Chinatown. This lineup recorded and released the studio album Hard Rain Falling in 2015. In April 2016, the band released a new version of "Fucked Up Ronnie" entitled "Fucked Up Donald" (referring to the 2016 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump) as a single.
Members
Current lineup
Joe Keithley – vocals, guitar (1978–present), bass (1996–1998)
Mike Hodsall – bass (2014–present)
Paddy Duddy – drums (2014–present)
Former members
Harry Homo - lead vocals (1978)
Brad Kent - guitar (1978)
Randy Romance - guitar (1978)
Zippy Pinhead - drums (1979; died 2019)
Simon Wilde - bass (1979-1980; died 1994)
Andy Graffiti - drums (1979-1980)
Randy Rampage – bass (1978–1982, 2000–2002, 2006–2009; died 2018)
Chuck Biscuits – drums (1978–1982)
Dave Gregg – guitar (1979–1988; died 2014)
Brian Roy Goble – bass (1982–1996; died 2014)
Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery – bass (1982), drums (1982–1983, 1984-1986; died 1994)
Gregg "Ned Peckerwood" James - drums (1983-1984)
Kerr Belliveau - drums (1986)
Jon Card – drums (1986–1990)
Chris Prohom – guitar (1988–1990)
Ken Jensen – drums (1992–1995; died 1995)
Jon Wright – keyboards (1992–1995), drums (1995–1996)
Ford Pier – guitar (1994–1996)
Wycliffe - bass (1997)
Kuba van der Pol - bass (1998-2000, 2002-2003)
Brien O’Brien – drums (1997–1999)
The Great Baldini – drums (2000–2008)
Dan Yaremko – bass (2003–2006, 2009–2013)
Floor Tom Jones – drums (2008–2010)
Jesse Pinner – drums (2010–2013)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Something Better Change (1980)
Hardcore '81 (1981)
Let's Wreck The Party (1985)
True (North) Strong And Free (1987)
Murder (1990)
13 Flavours of Doom (1992)
Loggerheads (1993)
The Black Spot (1995)
Festival Of Atheists (1998)
Win the Battle (2002)
Live Free Or Die (2004)
Northern Avenger (2008)
Kings of Punk, Hockey and Beer (2009)
Talk-Action=0 (2010)
We Come In Peace (2012)
Hard Rain Falling (2015)
Fight Back (2018)
Treason (2020)
Live albums
Talk Minus Action Equals Zero (1991)
Welcome to Chinatown (2013)
EPs
Positively (1981)
War on 45 (1982)
D.O.A. & Thor - Are U Ready (2003)
Collaborations
Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors (With Jello Biafra) (1990)
Solo albums
Beat Trash (2002) - Solo Project from Joey "Shithead" Keithley
References
External links
The official D.O.A. myspace
CanadianBands.com entry
Sudden Death records
Interview with Joey Shithead
Snot Rag interview with Dimwit (1979)
Robert Christgau's review of five D.O.A. albums
Scanner zine interview with Joey Shithead
Late Night Wallflower interview with Joey Shithead (2007)
Toronto Music Scene Interview with Joey Shithead
The Ruckus - Audio Interview with Joey Keithley from September 2008
Musical groups established in 1978
Musical groups disestablished in 2013
Musical groups reestablished in 2014
Canadian hardcore punk groups
Canadian activists
Musical groups from Vancouver
Alternative Tentacles artists
1978 establishments in British Columbia
Political music groups | true | [
"While many notable bands go through several lineup changes throughout their careers, this list of artists who left right before their bands became famous only lists members who quit or were fired from a band shortly before the band achieved mainstream commercial success.\n\nArtists who were only meant to be temporary stand-ins in their bands should not be included in this list. The bands the listed artists left must be notable, can be from any genre of music, and include vocal groups whose members do not play instruments. Because these artists left before their former bands' mainstream breakthrough, they should not be considered part of their former bands' \"classic\" lineups.\n\nNotable examples\n \nOf these \"nearly-men\", drummer Pete Best, who was fired from the Beatles in 1962, just a year before \"Beatlemania\" started, has been cited as the best-known archetype. Best has since become \"famous for not being famous\".\n\nJason Everman left two bands that went on to become famous: he was fired from Nirvana in 1989 and Soundgarden in 1990. According to The New York Times, Everman \"wasn't just Pete Best ... He was Pete Best twice.\"\n\nSome of these artists eventually went on to find mainstream success in another band or as a soloist. For example, Metallica's original lead guitarist, Dave Mustaine, formed his own thrash metal band Megadeth in 1983 after he was fired from his former band. While Metallica went on to achieve massive commercial success, Mustaine's Megadeth also enjoyed commercial success, selling 50 million records worldwide.\n\nAlphabetic list\n\nArtists are listed alphabetically by their surname, followed by the band they left, their former role in the band, the year they left, and the year their former band achieved mainstream success. Additional comments on the way the artist left (fired or quit) and their replacement, if any, may be added at the end. All entries are referenced with reliable sources.\n\nReferences \n\nLists of musicians",
"\"All Fired Up\" is a song by British-Irish girl group the Saturdays, released as the second single from their third studio album, On Your Radar (2011). The single was released on 4 September 2011. The song was written by Tim Deal, Brian Higgins, Matt Gray, Annie Yuill, Miranda Cooper, MNEK, Xenomania and Space Cowboy. The song was also produced by Brian Higgins and Xenomania, and was recorded at Xenomania. Described by critics as an \"anthemic dance banger\", the electropop song was inspired by the music of Rihanna and Britney Spears, and was noted for its \"synth dance beat\". The track received its first airplay on BBC Radio 1 on 22 July 2011, when Scott Mills aired it on his Ready for the Weekend. The remix EP was released with five different remixes.\n\n\"All Fired Up\" received positive reviews from critics, with many commending the song's \"girlish vibe and unabashed pop sensibility\". The song was performed live on television for the first time on Tonight's the Night. Before the release of the single the music video for \"All Fired Up\" was released on 10 August 2011. The music video was originally due to be released on 9 August 2011 at 10:30 am on the band's official website; however due to technical issues it was uploaded a day late. According to the band, the music video is a lot more fashion-based and a lot more graphic-y as they said they wanted something different due to all their previous music videos having a storyline to them; this one is just a lot more fashion. Within the digital download EP the band released a cover of \"I Need a Dollar\" by Aloe Blacc.\n\n\"All Fired Up\" received commercial success after it charted at number-six on the Irish Singles Chart, becoming the band's fifth top ten single in Ireland. The single also found success in the United Kingdom after it charted at number-three on the UK Singles Chart behind Maroon 5 and Christina Aguilera's \"Moves Like Jagger\" and Pixie Lott's \"All About Tonight\". The single became the band's tenth top ten single in the UK of eleven singles released. The single also had identical chart success as the band's 2010 single \"Missing You\", charting at number three and six in the UK and Ireland simultaneously.\n\nBackground and composition\n\n\"All Fired Up\" was written by Brian Higgins, Tim Deal, Matt Gray, Annie Yuill, MNEK and Miranda Cooper and was produced by Brian Higgins and Xenomania. The song was recorded in 2011 after the band said they wanted to try some music which was a lot more \"sexier\" and \"definitely a different sound\". The song was recorded at Xenomania. The band revealed that a lot of the songs on the album (including \"All Fired Up\") are about love which the inspiration of the songs came from their celebrity boyfriends; David Gandy [Mollie King], Wayne Bridge [Frankie Sandford], Marvin Humes [Rochelle Wiseman], and Ben Foden [Una Healy]. However, Vanessa who is the only single one drew inspiration as she loved to party and the song is a very party song. However, the band did point that they were singing about how girls are better than boys, then calling themselves feisty on the album.\n\n\"All Fired Up\" is an electroclash and dance-pop track and the second single released from the band's upcoming third studio album. It was confirmed that Space Cowboy would be working on their newest album, however it was also confirmed that the band were working with Xenomania's Brian Higgins. The band confirmed that they wanted Space Cowboy to get involved in the album after he led Lady Gaga to huge success whom we worked with on tracks (\"Just Dance\" and \"Poker Face\"). The band wanted to work with MNEK after he produced a lot of Tinie Tempah's smash hits, and they are big fans of his music. When the band was asked to explain the single they said; \"All Fired Up\" was explained as think \"Ibiza closing party meets Miami poolside rave – the girls continue to blow us away as their signature pop vocals are played over a synth dance beat creating this anthemic dance banger.\" The band labelled the track as their \"floor filler\". The song was speculated as the second single from the band's album, due to the band announcing the All Fired Up Tour a few months before they revealed the \"All Fired Up\" as the second single. The band shared their confidence with releasing the track due to them saying \"Dance music is huge right now\" however, they said they could on judge the reaction from Twitter and when the band have performed the song and the song has been requested a lot on the radio. The band confirmed that \"All Fired Up\" would be a \"departure from dance music\" as they said \"It won't be any more dancey than \"All Fired Up\", that's as dancey as we'll get now. Our next single will be something along the lines of a ballad. There are a couple of ballads on the album.\" They went on to say if they made it any more dancey the song would be \"too hardcore\" The band revealed that Britney Spears and Rihanna's dance-pop style influenced the band to want to record a dance track. They said that the song is \"definitely more clubbier\" than their previous material. The band said releasing dance tracks is not means that they do not just have a \"typical girl band sound\", they also said \"the great thing about pop music you get to try lots of different music\". The track receive its first ever airplay on BBC Radio 1 on 22 July 2011, when Scott Mills airs it on his 'Ready for the Weekend' show between 6-7pm. In an interview, Una Healy said; \"This is [All Fired Up] definitely the danciest song we've ever made and it's the danciest track on the album too but there are lots of different styles on the album. We understand that dance music is very big at the moment and when you're a pop act you can venture into different genres.\"\n\nRelease\n\"All Fired Up\" was confirmed to be the second single from the Saturdays' then-upcoming third studio album, in which it would feature. The band confirmed that the release of the song would be a departure from dance music from their album. The track was first revealed almost two months before its release after Scott Mills premiered the song on his BBC Radio 1 show Ready For the Weekend on 22 July 2011. The song was accepted onto all A lists at Radio stations and became one of the most requested songs to play. The digital download release was on 4 September 2011; if customers you pre-ordered the single you would get an exclusive track of the band performing \"I Need a Dollar\" by Aloe Blacc from the album, Good Things. The single was released with b-side \"Ladykiller\" which was written by the band members themselves [Mollie, Frankie, Vanessa, Una and Rochelle] and was co-produced by the Saturdays and the Alias. The karaoke version of \"All Fired Up\" was released in the digital download package. Upon the release there was a digital remixes EP which featured remixes of \"All Fired Up\" by a number of DJs; two from The Alias, Space Cowboy and Tom Staar which was made available from 2 September 2011. The CD single was made available to be from stores from 5 September 2011. On the CD single featured \"All Fired Up\", the b-side \"Ladykiller\" and a behind the scene footage from the music video of the single.\n\nThe band decided to release \"All Fired Up\" with radio airplay and the music video weeks before release, after they released \"Notorious\" without any radio airplay or the music video being released until two days before the actual release of the single. The decision of giving \"All Fired Up\" more airplay and promotion before the release came about after \"Notorious\" only charted at number-eight on the UK Singles Chart and number nineteen on the Irish Singles Chart. \"All Fired Up\" was speculated the second single from the band's third studio album after they announced that the tour would be titled All Fired Up Tour the band later confirmed that the single would be in fact \"All Fired Up\". It was later announced that the band would become ambassadors for Nintendo 3DS game, Nintendogs + Cats; which the band recorded a number of TV adverts to promote; and \"All Fired Up\" is played in the background of the advert.\n\nCritical reception\nDigital Spy said: \"Blow my mind, DJ, blow my mind,\" The Saturdays member Vanessa [White] demands in a hazy and heavily synthesised fashion on the intro of the new The Saturdays single. Opening with what feels as if we've caught her in the middle of a boozy night out, it not only makes a change from her usual ad-libbing duties, but marks a sizeable shift for a group whose image relied on being squeaky clean... until now, that is. We make the party super naughty,\" Rochelle [Wiseman] teases before strutting her stuff on the bar, while serial good-girl Mollie [King] unleashes her inner animal as she chants \"getcha claws out\" over a thumping Xenomania-helmed beat. Meanwhile, Frankie [Sandford] finds herself on \"the edge of desire\" in a quiet corner with her fella and Una [Healy] urges hers not to forget her anytime soon. Given the result is handbag house-pop at its very best, we can't see that being much of a problem.\" Overall, Digital Spy decided upon the reward the band a four out of 5 stars. Gigulate said; \"Their fun, girlish vibe and unabashed pop sensibility has been traded for a cookie-cutter electro-pop sound.\"\n\nUK Stand Up praised the song after they said not only is the song different music from what the band are normally creating, and they like to see them taking risks. They went on to say that not only will current fans love \"All Fired Up\" but will \"open doors\" to new fans for the band and new paths will be available to walk down for \"new generation fans\". They also said they were happy to see the band are taking new steps and moving away from the pop music. They finally said \"This mature sound is very upbeat and guaranteed to have you on your feet within seconds\". Rapper, Example turned down an opportunity to collaborate with the band and later went on to \"slag\" their music off. He went on to label the band as just \"miming back-up dancers\" the band re-acted to the rapper's claims and said he should \"grow a pair\" and say it to their faces instead of saying it to the paparazzi. They also called him a \"silly, silly boy\" as the band have to play at a number of festivals with him, and are planning on confronting him. The members of the band wanted to meet with the rapper to have it out with him, however there was no said that this happened.\n\nNot all reviews were positive for \"All Fired Up\", Grant Howitt from FHM said; \"It's about having a good old dance. Fair enough. It's a fine topic for a pop song, being as it is number three on a list of three possible pop topics (\"I fancy you, which is a good thing\" and \"You don't fancy me, which is a bad thing\" are the other two), and we can imagine having a good old boogie to it ourselves. After a few, obviously, it's not something we'd go into sober.\" However, Cool FM said the girls continue to blow them away as their signature pop vocals are played over a synth dance beat creating this anthemic dance banger. OK! Magazine said they loved \"All Fired Up\" and that ever since they first heard the track, they could not get the song out of their heads.\n\nCommercial reception\n\nWhen asked about the single, the band said, \"Well \"Notorious\" did fantastically well and we'd be delighted to get into the top ten again. \"All Fired Up\" has had fantastic feedback from the fans on Facebook and Twitter so we're confident but at the same time we'd never say that if it doesn't get to number one then it's not a hit because we have lots of songs that's people love that didn't get to the top.\" According to the midweek charts at the time, Lott was due to debut at number one on Sunday with \"All About Tonight\", however; it was then said that the Saturdays could take over as they are only 1,000 copies behind Lott. It was later announced that Lott was up 1,200 more than the band. Upon its release, the single entered the Irish Singles Charts at number-six becoming the band's fifth top ten hit in Ireland. However, it was upon the announcement that Lott has topped the chart it was confirmed \"All Fired Up\" had debuted at number-three on the official charts; behind Maroon 5 and Christina Aguilera's \"Moves Like Jagger\" who remained at number-two and Pixie Lott at number one.\n\nMusic video\n\nBackground and release\n\nThe video for the single was shot on 28 July 2011. The video was set to premiere on 9 August 2011 at 10:30am. An official teaser clip was released prior to the premiere. On the band's official site, there was a countdown clock, counting down to the premiere. However, due to technical issues, the premiere was initially set postponed until 11:00am and later until 11:30am. Eventually it was confirmed on the group's official Facebook page that the video premiere would take place on 10 August 2011 instead. The band said; We wanted this one [music video] to be kinda graphic-y and more fashion-based, which I think it is. It's different for us, because it hasn't got a storyline, which a lot of our videos have done. Like, \"Ego\" we were super heroes, \"Notorious\" we were secretaries. It's more...perhaps cooler, this one. It's just different for us.\n\nSynopsis and plot\nDuring the opening scene of \"All Fired Up\" music video is puddles of water with a reflection of lights on them, as the clip changes it shows Vanessa White standing with one hand on her hip singing \"Blow my mind, DJ blow my mind, come on\" then Frankie Sandford and Mollie King appear from behind White, and later a view from above them you see Rochelle Wiseman and Una Healy. As the song begins to kick in, the band start to do a simple dance routine wearing black leather dresses and shoes, with a veil attached. As the chorus begins the band members are seen at different scenes, in a different room by themselves singing the chorus. There are also scenes where women in black body catsuits (with just their hair out of the suits) are dancing in the puddles of water. Throughout the video the band are seen wearing fashionable outfits, in the middle of the chorus; all the band members are seen standing in a circle wearing neutral colour dresses posing, not moving, where the platform they are standing on is turning. They are often seen whipping their hair at \"blow my mind\" as a symbol of them getting their minds/heads blow off. As the video is beginning to follow out the girls are seen crouching down with their fists up doing a simple dance. As Healy's last part of the video/song she is singing \"keep me on your radar\" and the girls have their hands to their head as if they are looking for someone. As its ending it shows all the images of the members posing at different points.\n\nReception\nOK! Magazine said: Well now the Saturdays' brand new video for \"All Fired Up\" has landed on our desks and we're finding it hard to continue the rest of our day after experiencing horrid flashbacks of the girls looking fitter than we'll ever be. The magazine went on to say that plus the band are looking ever so glamorous for what appears to be just flooding an empty (and very posh) parking lot. They went on to says that \"the girls wow in a series of ensembles and seem switch from black and white silver to gold outfits just by flipping their hair.\"\n\nLive performances and promotion\nThe Saturdays debuted the track first at the Audley End Picnic Concert and on Tonight's the Night for the song's first televised performance. They then performed the track at V Festival. They also performed the song at a number of other festivals which they appeared at around the country. To help promote the single, they appeared on This Morning where they sang the song live. They are set to perform the song on The Jonathan Ross Show. Due to the band's third headlining tour being titled All Fired Up Tour, \"All Fired Up\" will appear in the setlist for the tour. The Saturdays performed live on Something for the Weekend on BBC2. The band went into discuss the song live on air on The Vodafone Big Top 40. The band will appear and perform \"All Fired Up\" on The Alan Titchmarsh Show. The band will also be available to chat on Capital Breakfast 5 September 2011.\n\nFormats and track listings\nCD single\n \"All Fired Up\" – 3:15\n \"All Fired Up\" (Music Video) – 3:23\n \"All Fired Up\" (Behind The Scenes Video)\n\nMaxi-single\n \"All Fired Up\" (Extended Mix) – 6:05\n \"Ladykiller\" – 3:22\n \"All Fired Up\" (The Alias Club Mix) – 6:06\n \"All Fired Up\" (Tom Staar Club Mix) – 6:07\n\nVinyl\n \"All Fired Up\" (The Alias Radio Edit) – 2:54\n \"All Fired Up\" (Space Cowboy Remix) – 4:59\n\nDigital UK single\n \"All Fired Up\" – 3:14\n \"All Fired Up\" (Karaoke Version) – 3:12\n \"Ladykiller\" – 3:20\n \"I Need a Dollar / Buzzin'\"\n\nDigital remix EP\n \"All Fired Up\" (Extended Mix) – 6:05\n \"All Fired Up\" (Alias Radio Edit) – 2:53\n \"All Fired Up\" (Space Cowboy Remix) – 4:59\n \"All Fired Up\" (Tom Staar Club Mix) – 6:07\n \"All Fired Up\" (The Alias Club Mix) – 6:06\n\nRevamped version\n \"All Fired Up\" - 3:14\n \"Ladykiller\" – 3:20\n \"I Need A Dollar\" (Radio 1 Live Lounge) - 3:28\n \"All Fired Up\" (Extended Mix) – 6:05\n \"All Fired Up\" (The Alias Radio Edit) – 2:53\n \"All Fired Up\" (Space Cowboy Remix) – 4:59\n \"All Fired Up\" (Cutmore Killa Radio Edit) - 3:30\n \"All Fired Up\" (The Alias Club Mix) – 6:06\n \"All Fired Up\" (Tom Staar Club Mix) – 6:07\n \"All Fired Up\" (Karaoke Version) – 3:12\n\nCredits and personnel\n\"All Fired Up\" was recorded at Abbey Road Studios, London.\n\n Brian Higgins – vocals recorder, producer, writer\n Miranda Cooper – writer\n Space Cowboy – writer, producer\n The Saturdays – vocals\n Kevin Verchel – additional vocals\n\n Uzoechi \"MNEK\" Emenike – writer\n Annie Yuill – writer, programming\n Matt Gray – recorder, writer\n Tim Deal – programming, writer\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nRelease and radio history\n\nSee also\n\n List of top 10 singles in 2011 (UK)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n\n2011 singles\n2011 songs\nPolydor Records singles\nThe Saturdays songs\nSong recordings produced by Xenomania\nSongs written by Brian Higgins (producer)\nSongs written by Miranda Cooper\nSongs written by Space Cowboy (musician)"
]
|
[
"D.O.A. (band)",
"Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981-1989)",
"What was Hardcore 81?",
"On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81;",
"who was fired from the band?",
"Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982"
]
| C_d7fc5b363aea4cef987d3bb337412a40_1 | Who replaced him? | 3 | Who replaced Randy Rampage of the D.O.A band? | D.O.A. (band) | On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk". Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the only remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982-1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear. 1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was very close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement. CANNOTANSWER | replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. | D.O.A. is a Canadian punk rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Angry Samoans, The Bags, Germs, Negative Trend, and Middle Class. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore.
Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, with original bassist Randy Rampage returning to the band twice after his original departure. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records, and they have released an album with Biafra on vocals titled Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors.
D.O.A. is known for its outspoken political opinions and has a history of performing for many causes and benefits. Its slogan is "Talk Minus Action Equals Zero." The band's lyrics and imagery frequently advocate anti-racism, anti-globalization, freedom of speech, and environmentalism.
Founder Joe Keithley is also the founder of Sudden Death Records which has released music by D.O.A. and several other bands including Pointed Sticks and Young Canadians.
History
Formation and early years (1977–1980)
D.O.A. has its origins in The Skulls, an early Vancouver-area punk rock band that included future D.O.A. members Joey "Shithead" Keithley, Brian "Wimpy Roy" Goble, and Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery.
When the Skulls broke up after an ill-fated move to Toronto, Keithley moved back to Vancouver and formed D.O.A. in early 1978 with himself on guitar, Dimwit's brother Chuck Biscuits on drums, Randy Rampage on bass, and a lead singer known only as "Harry Homo", who suggested the band's name. The band's first gig took place at the Japanese Hall in Vancouver on February 20 of that year, after which Harry Homo was sacked for an apparent lack of rhythm; Keithley then became the band's singer. A second guitarist named "Randy Romance" played briefly with the band in March 1978 before leaving.
The band began playing frequently around Vancouver and added guitarist Brad Kent the following June. That summer, they recorded and self-released their first single, the four-song EP Disco Sucks. The single soon topped the charts of the University of San Francisco radio station KUSF, which prompted the band to begin touring down to San Francisco. They played their first shows there in August 1978 at Mabuhay Gardens. It was during this trip that the band first met Dead Kennedys frontman and future collaborator Jello Biafra. Kent was fired from the band in September and later that fall the band recorded and released their second single "The Prisoner".
In May 1979, the band embarked on their first North American tour. Upon its completion they hired Vancouver journalist and activist Ken Lester as their manager. Lester booked another tour for them the following October, in the middle of which they flew back to Vancouver to open for The Clash at the Pacific Coliseum. They soon after released their third single, "World War 3" / "Whatcha Gonna Do?". In late 1979, they added second guitarist, Dave Gregg. Soon after, Biscuits and Rampage left the band after a disastrous gig at the University of British Columbia's Student Union Building and were replaced by Andy Graffiti and Simon "Stubby Pecker" Wilde on drums and bass, respectively. Keithley soon became dissatisfied with the band's performances with the new lineup, however, and Biscuits and Rampage both rejoined the band in March 1980.
D.O.A. released their full-length debut Something Better Change on Friends Records in 1980 and continued touring the United States and Canada extensively.
Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981–1989)
On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk".
Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy, another ex-Skulls member, was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the last remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982–1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear.
1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement.
First breakup and reunion (1990–2002)
1990's Murder featured rawer, almost thrash metal production, rather than their original basic punk sound. The same year also produced a collaboration with Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra with Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors. In August 1990, Joey decided he was breaking up D.O.A. but, at the suggestion of promoter Dirk Dirksen, they did a farewell tour of the West Coast, playing their "final" show on December 1, 1990 at the Commodore in Vancouver. In 1991, they released a posthumous live album entitled Talk Minus Action = 0 while Keithley pursued an acting career.
19 months after D.O.A. broke up, Joey Shithead and Wimpy Roy had reunited as D.O.A in the summer of 1992. Fellow Canadian punk rock veteran John Wright from NoMeansNo suggested they hire Ken Jensen from Red Tide as the new drummer, which they did. The new lineup released an EP and two albums in the early 1990s, 13 Flavours Of Doom and Loggerheads. These albums found the band replacing the more hard-rock oriented sound of the 1980s with a return to punk rock, although it was a heavier, tighter brand of punk than their earlier work. These albums were produced by Wright, who also played keyboards on the recordings. The band then added Ford Pier on guitar and vocals.
Tragedy struck in 1995 when drummer Ken Jensen died in a house fire. The "Ken Jensen Memorial Single" EP was released on Alternative Tentacles, including two tracks each from D.O.A. and Red Tide. With John Wright filling in on drums, ninth full-length The Black Spot was recorded. The album featured a more basic, sing-along type punk rock sound that was reminiscent of the band's late 1970s and early 1980s output.
The late 1990s found the band's lineup in turmoil, with Wimpy Roy leaving the band after a decade and a half of service and Kuba joining to play bass from 1997 until 2001. Keithley experimented with different bassists and drummers and released the album Festival Of Atheists in 1998. By the early 2000s, the band had found a permanent drummer in the form of The Great Baldini. In 2002, Keithley put out his first solo album, Beat Trash, and original bassist Randy Rampage returned to the band after nearly 20 years for the Win The Battle album. However, the reunion did not last, with Rampage leaving the band again after the recording of the album, to be replaced by Dan Yaremko.
The Lost Tapes was the first release on Keithley's revived Sudden Death label, followed by Festival Of Atheists. During this period, Keithley also oversaw the re-release of the band's classic early records on Sudden Death, several of which had been out of print for many years.
Later years and second hiatus (2003–2013)
In 2003, Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell declared December 21 to be "D.O.A. Day" in honour of the band's 25th anniversary. In the same year, the band released a career-spanning retrospective entitled War And Peace. 2004 found the band releasing the ska-flavoured Live Free or Die. In 2006, Randy Rampage rejoined D.O.A. for his 3rd stint in the band.
The lineup remained stable until 2008, when The Great Baldini left the band to be replaced by new drummer James Hayden. Also in 2008, it was announced that Bob Rock, of Metallica fame would be producing the band's next album in time for their 30th anniversary. James Hayden quit before D.O.A. started to record to be replaced by Floor Tom Jones In September 2008, D.O.A. released Northern Avenger and embarked on their 30th anniversary tour. On the eve of the tour, it was announced that Randy Rampage was being replaced by Dan Yaremko once again.
D.O.A. played several dates in the summer of 2009 as part of the Van's Warped Tour 2009.
On May 1, 2010, D.O.A. released their fourteenth full-length album Talk Minus Action = Zero (a similarly titled live album Talk Minus Action Equals Zero had previously been released in 1990). Drummer Jesse Pinner (of the band Raised by Apes) took the place of Floor Tom Jones beginning on D.O.A.'s subsequent August 2010 tour due to Floor Tom Jones' commitments to his job at Canada Post.
In 2012, Joe announced that he would be seeking nomination as an NDP candidate in the B.C. provincial election. As a result, D.O.A. announced an indefinite hiatus, and began their farewell tour on January 18, 2013 in celebration of the band's thirty-five year anniversary.
Second reunion and recent activity (2014–present)
On September 22, 2014, Keithley officially announced on the Sudden Death Records website that he had decided to reform the band with Paddy Duddy on drums and Mike "Maggot" Hodsall on bass, and would be embarking on a Canadian tour in October in support of the recently released live album, Welcome To Chinatown. This lineup recorded and released the studio album Hard Rain Falling in 2015. In April 2016, the band released a new version of "Fucked Up Ronnie" entitled "Fucked Up Donald" (referring to the 2016 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump) as a single.
Members
Current lineup
Joe Keithley – vocals, guitar (1978–present), bass (1996–1998)
Mike Hodsall – bass (2014–present)
Paddy Duddy – drums (2014–present)
Former members
Harry Homo - lead vocals (1978)
Brad Kent - guitar (1978)
Randy Romance - guitar (1978)
Zippy Pinhead - drums (1979; died 2019)
Simon Wilde - bass (1979-1980; died 1994)
Andy Graffiti - drums (1979-1980)
Randy Rampage – bass (1978–1982, 2000–2002, 2006–2009; died 2018)
Chuck Biscuits – drums (1978–1982)
Dave Gregg – guitar (1979–1988; died 2014)
Brian Roy Goble – bass (1982–1996; died 2014)
Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery – bass (1982), drums (1982–1983, 1984-1986; died 1994)
Gregg "Ned Peckerwood" James - drums (1983-1984)
Kerr Belliveau - drums (1986)
Jon Card – drums (1986–1990)
Chris Prohom – guitar (1988–1990)
Ken Jensen – drums (1992–1995; died 1995)
Jon Wright – keyboards (1992–1995), drums (1995–1996)
Ford Pier – guitar (1994–1996)
Wycliffe - bass (1997)
Kuba van der Pol - bass (1998-2000, 2002-2003)
Brien O’Brien – drums (1997–1999)
The Great Baldini – drums (2000–2008)
Dan Yaremko – bass (2003–2006, 2009–2013)
Floor Tom Jones – drums (2008–2010)
Jesse Pinner – drums (2010–2013)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Something Better Change (1980)
Hardcore '81 (1981)
Let's Wreck The Party (1985)
True (North) Strong And Free (1987)
Murder (1990)
13 Flavours of Doom (1992)
Loggerheads (1993)
The Black Spot (1995)
Festival Of Atheists (1998)
Win the Battle (2002)
Live Free Or Die (2004)
Northern Avenger (2008)
Kings of Punk, Hockey and Beer (2009)
Talk-Action=0 (2010)
We Come In Peace (2012)
Hard Rain Falling (2015)
Fight Back (2018)
Treason (2020)
Live albums
Talk Minus Action Equals Zero (1991)
Welcome to Chinatown (2013)
EPs
Positively (1981)
War on 45 (1982)
D.O.A. & Thor - Are U Ready (2003)
Collaborations
Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors (With Jello Biafra) (1990)
Solo albums
Beat Trash (2002) - Solo Project from Joey "Shithead" Keithley
References
External links
The official D.O.A. myspace
CanadianBands.com entry
Sudden Death records
Interview with Joey Shithead
Snot Rag interview with Dimwit (1979)
Robert Christgau's review of five D.O.A. albums
Scanner zine interview with Joey Shithead
Late Night Wallflower interview with Joey Shithead (2007)
Toronto Music Scene Interview with Joey Shithead
The Ruckus - Audio Interview with Joey Keithley from September 2008
Musical groups established in 1978
Musical groups disestablished in 2013
Musical groups reestablished in 2014
Canadian hardcore punk groups
Canadian activists
Musical groups from Vancouver
Alternative Tentacles artists
1978 establishments in British Columbia
Political music groups | true | [
"The 7th General Junta was the meeting of the General Junta, the parliament of the Principality of Asturias, with the membership determined by the results of the regional election held on 27 May 2007. The congress met for the first time on 21 June 2007.\n\nElection \nThe 7th Asturian regional election was held on 27 May 2007. At the election the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) remained the largest party in the General Junta but fell short of a majority again.\n\nHistory \nThe new parliament met for the first time on 21 June 2007. María Jesús Álvarez (PSOE) was elected as the president of the General Junta, with the support of PSOE and IU-BA-LV.\n\nDeaths, resignations and suspensions \nThe 7th General Junta has seen the following deaths, resignations and suspensions:\n\n 26 November 2008 - Manuel Aurelio Martín (IU/IX) and Noemí Martín (IU/IX) resigned after being appointed Minister of Rural Affairs and Fisheries and Minister of Social Welfare and Housing in the Asturian Government. Diana Camafeita (IU/IX) and Emilia Vázquez (IU/IX) replaced them respectively on 11 December 2008.\n 22 December 2009 - Francisco Javier García (IU/IX) resigned due to political disagreements with his party. Roberto Colunga (BA) replaced him on 4 February 2010.\n 13 July 2010 - Roberto Colunga (BA) left the United Left-Bloc of Asturias-The Greens group due to political disagreements with United Left, the biggest member of the coalition. He officially joined the Mixed group on 1 August 2010.\n 3 January 2011 - Pelayo Roces (PP) resigned in order to support former deputy prime minister of Spain, Francisco Álvarez-Cascos, who left the party after he wasn't picked as nominee for President of Asturias ahead of the 2007 Asturian regional election. José Manuel Felgueres replaced him on 10 February 2011.\n 31 January 2011 - Emilio Rodríguez (PP) resigned in order to join Asturias Forum (FAC), a split from the People's Party led by former deputy prime minister of Spain, Francisco Álvarez-Cascos. Pablo Álvarez (PP) replaced him on 17 February 2011.\n 3 February 2011 - Cristina Coto (PP) resigned in order to join Asturias Forum (FAC). María Isabel Pérez (PP) replaced her on 24 February 2011.\n 8 February 2011 - Marcial González (PP) resigned in order to join Asturias Forum (FAC). Rebeca Heli Álvarez (PP) replaced him on 10 March 2011.\n 17 February 2011 - Luis Servando Peláez (PP) resigned in order to join Asturias Forum (FAC). Álvaro Álvarez (PP) replaced him on 10 March 2011.\n\nMembers\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n\n Official website of the General Junta\n All members of the General Junta\n\nGeneral Junta of the Principality of Asturias\n2007 establishments in Spain",
"Shemp may refer to:\n Fake Shemp, someone who appears in a film as a replacement for another actor or person\n Shemp Howard (1895-1955), American actor, source of the above term after actors replaced him in films after his death"
]
|
[
"D.O.A. (band)",
"Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981-1989)",
"What was Hardcore 81?",
"On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81;",
"who was fired from the band?",
"Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982",
"Who replaced him?",
"replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass."
]
| C_d7fc5b363aea4cef987d3bb337412a40_1 | who left the band to work for Black Flag? | 4 | Who left the D.O.A band to work for Black Flag? | D.O.A. (band) | On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk". Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the only remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982-1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear. 1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was very close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement. CANNOTANSWER | Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. | D.O.A. is a Canadian punk rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Angry Samoans, The Bags, Germs, Negative Trend, and Middle Class. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore.
Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, with original bassist Randy Rampage returning to the band twice after his original departure. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records, and they have released an album with Biafra on vocals titled Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors.
D.O.A. is known for its outspoken political opinions and has a history of performing for many causes and benefits. Its slogan is "Talk Minus Action Equals Zero." The band's lyrics and imagery frequently advocate anti-racism, anti-globalization, freedom of speech, and environmentalism.
Founder Joe Keithley is also the founder of Sudden Death Records which has released music by D.O.A. and several other bands including Pointed Sticks and Young Canadians.
History
Formation and early years (1977–1980)
D.O.A. has its origins in The Skulls, an early Vancouver-area punk rock band that included future D.O.A. members Joey "Shithead" Keithley, Brian "Wimpy Roy" Goble, and Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery.
When the Skulls broke up after an ill-fated move to Toronto, Keithley moved back to Vancouver and formed D.O.A. in early 1978 with himself on guitar, Dimwit's brother Chuck Biscuits on drums, Randy Rampage on bass, and a lead singer known only as "Harry Homo", who suggested the band's name. The band's first gig took place at the Japanese Hall in Vancouver on February 20 of that year, after which Harry Homo was sacked for an apparent lack of rhythm; Keithley then became the band's singer. A second guitarist named "Randy Romance" played briefly with the band in March 1978 before leaving.
The band began playing frequently around Vancouver and added guitarist Brad Kent the following June. That summer, they recorded and self-released their first single, the four-song EP Disco Sucks. The single soon topped the charts of the University of San Francisco radio station KUSF, which prompted the band to begin touring down to San Francisco. They played their first shows there in August 1978 at Mabuhay Gardens. It was during this trip that the band first met Dead Kennedys frontman and future collaborator Jello Biafra. Kent was fired from the band in September and later that fall the band recorded and released their second single "The Prisoner".
In May 1979, the band embarked on their first North American tour. Upon its completion they hired Vancouver journalist and activist Ken Lester as their manager. Lester booked another tour for them the following October, in the middle of which they flew back to Vancouver to open for The Clash at the Pacific Coliseum. They soon after released their third single, "World War 3" / "Whatcha Gonna Do?". In late 1979, they added second guitarist, Dave Gregg. Soon after, Biscuits and Rampage left the band after a disastrous gig at the University of British Columbia's Student Union Building and were replaced by Andy Graffiti and Simon "Stubby Pecker" Wilde on drums and bass, respectively. Keithley soon became dissatisfied with the band's performances with the new lineup, however, and Biscuits and Rampage both rejoined the band in March 1980.
D.O.A. released their full-length debut Something Better Change on Friends Records in 1980 and continued touring the United States and Canada extensively.
Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981–1989)
On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk".
Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy, another ex-Skulls member, was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the last remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982–1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear.
1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement.
First breakup and reunion (1990–2002)
1990's Murder featured rawer, almost thrash metal production, rather than their original basic punk sound. The same year also produced a collaboration with Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra with Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors. In August 1990, Joey decided he was breaking up D.O.A. but, at the suggestion of promoter Dirk Dirksen, they did a farewell tour of the West Coast, playing their "final" show on December 1, 1990 at the Commodore in Vancouver. In 1991, they released a posthumous live album entitled Talk Minus Action = 0 while Keithley pursued an acting career.
19 months after D.O.A. broke up, Joey Shithead and Wimpy Roy had reunited as D.O.A in the summer of 1992. Fellow Canadian punk rock veteran John Wright from NoMeansNo suggested they hire Ken Jensen from Red Tide as the new drummer, which they did. The new lineup released an EP and two albums in the early 1990s, 13 Flavours Of Doom and Loggerheads. These albums found the band replacing the more hard-rock oriented sound of the 1980s with a return to punk rock, although it was a heavier, tighter brand of punk than their earlier work. These albums were produced by Wright, who also played keyboards on the recordings. The band then added Ford Pier on guitar and vocals.
Tragedy struck in 1995 when drummer Ken Jensen died in a house fire. The "Ken Jensen Memorial Single" EP was released on Alternative Tentacles, including two tracks each from D.O.A. and Red Tide. With John Wright filling in on drums, ninth full-length The Black Spot was recorded. The album featured a more basic, sing-along type punk rock sound that was reminiscent of the band's late 1970s and early 1980s output.
The late 1990s found the band's lineup in turmoil, with Wimpy Roy leaving the band after a decade and a half of service and Kuba joining to play bass from 1997 until 2001. Keithley experimented with different bassists and drummers and released the album Festival Of Atheists in 1998. By the early 2000s, the band had found a permanent drummer in the form of The Great Baldini. In 2002, Keithley put out his first solo album, Beat Trash, and original bassist Randy Rampage returned to the band after nearly 20 years for the Win The Battle album. However, the reunion did not last, with Rampage leaving the band again after the recording of the album, to be replaced by Dan Yaremko.
The Lost Tapes was the first release on Keithley's revived Sudden Death label, followed by Festival Of Atheists. During this period, Keithley also oversaw the re-release of the band's classic early records on Sudden Death, several of which had been out of print for many years.
Later years and second hiatus (2003–2013)
In 2003, Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell declared December 21 to be "D.O.A. Day" in honour of the band's 25th anniversary. In the same year, the band released a career-spanning retrospective entitled War And Peace. 2004 found the band releasing the ska-flavoured Live Free or Die. In 2006, Randy Rampage rejoined D.O.A. for his 3rd stint in the band.
The lineup remained stable until 2008, when The Great Baldini left the band to be replaced by new drummer James Hayden. Also in 2008, it was announced that Bob Rock, of Metallica fame would be producing the band's next album in time for their 30th anniversary. James Hayden quit before D.O.A. started to record to be replaced by Floor Tom Jones In September 2008, D.O.A. released Northern Avenger and embarked on their 30th anniversary tour. On the eve of the tour, it was announced that Randy Rampage was being replaced by Dan Yaremko once again.
D.O.A. played several dates in the summer of 2009 as part of the Van's Warped Tour 2009.
On May 1, 2010, D.O.A. released their fourteenth full-length album Talk Minus Action = Zero (a similarly titled live album Talk Minus Action Equals Zero had previously been released in 1990). Drummer Jesse Pinner (of the band Raised by Apes) took the place of Floor Tom Jones beginning on D.O.A.'s subsequent August 2010 tour due to Floor Tom Jones' commitments to his job at Canada Post.
In 2012, Joe announced that he would be seeking nomination as an NDP candidate in the B.C. provincial election. As a result, D.O.A. announced an indefinite hiatus, and began their farewell tour on January 18, 2013 in celebration of the band's thirty-five year anniversary.
Second reunion and recent activity (2014–present)
On September 22, 2014, Keithley officially announced on the Sudden Death Records website that he had decided to reform the band with Paddy Duddy on drums and Mike "Maggot" Hodsall on bass, and would be embarking on a Canadian tour in October in support of the recently released live album, Welcome To Chinatown. This lineup recorded and released the studio album Hard Rain Falling in 2015. In April 2016, the band released a new version of "Fucked Up Ronnie" entitled "Fucked Up Donald" (referring to the 2016 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump) as a single.
Members
Current lineup
Joe Keithley – vocals, guitar (1978–present), bass (1996–1998)
Mike Hodsall – bass (2014–present)
Paddy Duddy – drums (2014–present)
Former members
Harry Homo - lead vocals (1978)
Brad Kent - guitar (1978)
Randy Romance - guitar (1978)
Zippy Pinhead - drums (1979; died 2019)
Simon Wilde - bass (1979-1980; died 1994)
Andy Graffiti - drums (1979-1980)
Randy Rampage – bass (1978–1982, 2000–2002, 2006–2009; died 2018)
Chuck Biscuits – drums (1978–1982)
Dave Gregg – guitar (1979–1988; died 2014)
Brian Roy Goble – bass (1982–1996; died 2014)
Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery – bass (1982), drums (1982–1983, 1984-1986; died 1994)
Gregg "Ned Peckerwood" James - drums (1983-1984)
Kerr Belliveau - drums (1986)
Jon Card – drums (1986–1990)
Chris Prohom – guitar (1988–1990)
Ken Jensen – drums (1992–1995; died 1995)
Jon Wright – keyboards (1992–1995), drums (1995–1996)
Ford Pier – guitar (1994–1996)
Wycliffe - bass (1997)
Kuba van der Pol - bass (1998-2000, 2002-2003)
Brien O’Brien – drums (1997–1999)
The Great Baldini – drums (2000–2008)
Dan Yaremko – bass (2003–2006, 2009–2013)
Floor Tom Jones – drums (2008–2010)
Jesse Pinner – drums (2010–2013)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Something Better Change (1980)
Hardcore '81 (1981)
Let's Wreck The Party (1985)
True (North) Strong And Free (1987)
Murder (1990)
13 Flavours of Doom (1992)
Loggerheads (1993)
The Black Spot (1995)
Festival Of Atheists (1998)
Win the Battle (2002)
Live Free Or Die (2004)
Northern Avenger (2008)
Kings of Punk, Hockey and Beer (2009)
Talk-Action=0 (2010)
We Come In Peace (2012)
Hard Rain Falling (2015)
Fight Back (2018)
Treason (2020)
Live albums
Talk Minus Action Equals Zero (1991)
Welcome to Chinatown (2013)
EPs
Positively (1981)
War on 45 (1982)
D.O.A. & Thor - Are U Ready (2003)
Collaborations
Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors (With Jello Biafra) (1990)
Solo albums
Beat Trash (2002) - Solo Project from Joey "Shithead" Keithley
References
External links
The official D.O.A. myspace
CanadianBands.com entry
Sudden Death records
Interview with Joey Shithead
Snot Rag interview with Dimwit (1979)
Robert Christgau's review of five D.O.A. albums
Scanner zine interview with Joey Shithead
Late Night Wallflower interview with Joey Shithead (2007)
Toronto Music Scene Interview with Joey Shithead
The Ruckus - Audio Interview with Joey Keithley from September 2008
Musical groups established in 1978
Musical groups disestablished in 2013
Musical groups reestablished in 2014
Canadian hardcore punk groups
Canadian activists
Musical groups from Vancouver
Alternative Tentacles artists
1978 establishments in British Columbia
Political music groups | true | [
"Ron Reyes (born July 24, 1960) is an American musician most noted as the second singer for the Los Angeles punk rock group Black Flag. \n\nReyes joined Black Flag after original vocalist Keith Morris had quit to form the Circle Jerks. Black Flag needed a singer to go on a tour to Vancouver, Canada, and asked Reyes to fill in. Reyes is the singer on the Jealous Again EP, and is the vocalist in the film The Decline of Western Civilization. He left the band due to the violence at Black Flag shows. 33 years after leaving the band, Reyes reunited with Black Flag in 2013 for an album, the band's first in 28 years, and tour followed that same year with Reyes being fired mid-show during a performance in Australia. \n\nReyes started his band Piggy in 2011. And also was the guest lead vocalist for Whidbey Island Washington's POTBELLY on a split 7\" with Montana's Bath Salts Brigade in 2018. He performed only once with Potbelly.\n\nEarly life \n\nRon Reyes was born in Puerto Rico and spent the first years of his life in The Bronx in New York City before moving to the Redondo Beach/Torrance area of southern California. His father owned a popular jazz shop in California and Ron grew up listening to his father's record collection. As a boy, Ron would hang out in the streets and listen to Black Sabbath and David Bowie while his friends sniffed glue and smoked cannabis . He remembers himself as an outcast in school, where the jocks would make fun of his KISS inspired glam rock fashion. Despite scorn for his young ideas, an undeterred Ron carried his dreams to reality becoming an early adopter, first to do – invent. And he shared his first experiences at legendary Hollywood punk venues like RAJI'S to his high school friends in Hermosa Beach, spreading the news and unfurling the flag for new local bands to come.\n\nBlack Flag \nAt the time of joining Black Flag, he was a street kid who had been following them since the beginning, and already knew all the songs. He also played drums in an early incarnation of Redd Kross, along with Greg Hetson, who went on to form the Circle Jerks with Keith Morris, and subsequently joined Bad Religion. After touring with the band for less than a year, he left Black Flag in the middle of a show at the Fleetwood in Redondo Beach, due to his dissatisfaction with the rising violence in the punk scene.\n\nReyes was coaxed back into Black Flag long enough to record the Jealous Again EP. He also appeared on some selections included on the 1983 compilation album Everything Went Black. He can be seen in Penelope Spheeris' 1980 documentary The Decline of Western Civilization, in which he dedicates the song \"Revenge\" to the LAPD, and jokingly shows off his apartment, which is a closet. After the recording sessions, Reyes went back to Vancouver and was replaced by singer Dez Cadena.\n\nThe Jealous Again EP was released after Reyes had left the band for a final time. On the sleeve, he was credited as \"Chavo Pederast\", nonstandard Spanish for \"Kid Pedophile\". After his departure from Black Flag, Reyes relocated to Vancouver and formed the band Crash Bang Crunch Pop!.\n\nReyes rejoined Black Flag as vocalist for a 2013 tour and appeared on their subsequent album What The.... In November 2013, Reyes took to Facebook to inform fans that he was fired mid-show during a performance in Australia. Reyes said that his mic was taken and he was told to get off the stage by professional skateboarder and band manager Mike Vallely who also briefly fronted Black Flag in 2003. \"You're done, party's over get off it's over...\" He said something else to me but it was a lie so I won't repeat it here.\" Reyes said differences with Greg Ginn made him relieved that he was no longer with the band saying \"So with a sense of great relief that it was finally over I left the stage and walked to the hotel room. They finished the set with Mike V on vocals. Yes it is my opinion that we fell very short indeed and the diminishing ticket sales and crowds are a testament to that. However It was made clear to me that raising these issues was tantamount to a blasphemous stab in the back to Greg\".\n\nIn 2014, Reyes backed claims made by Greg Ginn's ex-wife that Ginn was abusive towards his 7 and 10 year old daughters and appeared in court on her behalf with Reyes claiming Ginn was on drugs around his daughters and would not properly feed them, often neglected them and that he is not capable of caring for children.\n\nRecent activity \nReyes performed live in Vancouver in celebration of his 50th birthday in July 2010. Joining him on the bill were The Jolts, The Modernettes, Little Guitar Army, and The Braineaters featuring renowned artist Jim Cummins on lead vocals. Reyes' band consisted of guitarists Kevin Rose from Crash Bang Crunch Pop!, and Jon Doe from the Scramblers along with a rhythm section consisting of Real McKenzies founding member Anthony Walker on bass and Scott Beadle on drums. Greg Ginn performed three songs with the Ron Reyes Band at this event: \"Jealous Again\", \"Revenge\", and a new, original composition entitled \"Broken\".\n\nReyes appeared in the Vancouver-based documentary Bloodied but Unbowed about Vancouver's punk community in the late 1970s and The Other F Word about being a parent involved in the punk community. The film also says Reyes has worked at a Vancouver print shop for more than 20 years and has three teenagers. He is shown browsing records at a used record store in Vancouver with one of his daughters, and purchasing a copy of Jealous Again.\n\nReyes currently is performing as the guitarist for PIGGY. Other members of this new project include Izzy Gibson on lead vocals (currently drumming in The Hater Game, ex drummer of Living Deadbeats and AK-747s) Lisafurr Lloyd (ex Slickjacks; currently in the East Vamps) and on bass guitar; Craig McKimm (Little Guitar Army; The Fiends) on drums.\n\nIn 2016, Ron joined Dez Cadena to play shows in Brooklyn and scenic Seacaucus, NJ, under the name NORTH AMERICAN WASTE, playing a collection of material which included Black Flag songs, among other rock and roll classics.\n\nIn 2017, Reyes played bass with Vancouver rock n' roll icons Puzzlehead for one show only.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Black Flag early years\n Interview (1980) Skitzoid Magazine\n Red Cross 12\" EP (Posh Boy, USA)\n\nLiving people\nAmerican punk rock singers\nAmerican male singers\nAmerican musicians of Puerto Rican descent\nPuerto Rican rock musicians\nAmerican expatriates in Canada\nHardcore punk musicians\nBlack Flag (band) members\nRedd Kross members\n1960 births",
"Black Flag is an American punk rock band formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California. Initially called Panic, the band was established by Greg Ginn, the guitarist, primary songwriter, and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes in the band. They are widely considered to be one of the first hardcore punk bands, as well as one of the pioneers of After breaking up in 1986, Black Flag reunited in 2003 and again in 2013. The second reunion lasted well over a year, during which they released their first studio album in over two decades, What The... (2013). The band announced their third reunion in January 2019. Brandon Pertzborn was replaced by Isaias Gil on drums and Tyler Smith was replaced by Joseph Noval on bass.\n\nBlack Flag's sound mixed the raw simplicity of the Ramones with atonal guitar solos and, in later years, frequent tempo shifts. The lyrics were written mostly by Ginn, and like other punk bands of the late 1970s and early 1980s, Black Flag voiced an anti-authoritarian and nonconformist message, in songs punctuated with descriptions of social isolation, neurosis, poverty, and paranoia. These themes were explored further when Henry Rollins joined the band as lead singer in 1981. Most of the band's material was released on Ginn's independent record label SST Records.\n\nOver the course of the 1980s, Black Flag's sound, as well as their notoriety evolved. As well as being central to the creation of hardcore punk, they were innovators in the first wave of American West Coast punk rock and are considered a key influence on punk subculture in the United States and abroad. Along with being among the earliest punk rock groups to incorporate elements and the influence of heavy metal melodies and rhythm, there were often overt free jazz and contemporary classical elements in their sound, especially in Ginn's guitar playing, and the band interspersed records and performances with instrumentals throughout their career. They also played longer, slower, and more complex songs at a time when other bands in their milieu performed a raw, fast, three-chord format. As a result, their extensive discography is more stylistically varied than many of their punk rock contemporaries.\n\nBlack Flag has been well-respected within the punk subculture, primarily for their tireless promotion of an autonomous DIY punk ethic and aesthetic. They are often regarded as pioneers in the movement of underground do-it-yourself record labels that flourished among 1980s punk rock bands. Through constant touring throughout the United States and Canada, and occasionally Europe, Black Flag established a dedicated cult following.\n\nHistory\n\nFormation and early years (1976–1981)\nInitially called Panic, Black Flag was formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles. Ginn insisted that the band rehearse several hours a day. This work ethic proved too challenging for some early members; Ginn and singer Keith Morris had an especially difficult time finding a reliable bass guitarist, and often rehearsed without a bassist, a factor that contributed to the development of Ginn's distinctive guitar sound. Ginn's brother Raymond Pettibon and SST house record producer-to-be Spot filled in during rehearsals. In the beginning, Ginn and Morris were inspired by the raw, stripped-down attitude of bands such as the Ramones and the Stooges. Ginn has said \"We were influenced by the Stooges and then the Ramones; they inspired us. Keith and myself saw the Ramones when they first toured LA in 1976. After we saw them, I said if they could do it we could do it. I thought Keith would be a good singer and after seeing the Ramones, it made him think that he doesn't have to be some classical operatic singer.\"\n\nChuck Dukowski, bassist of Würm, liked Ginn's band, and eventually joined, forming a committed quartet with Ginn, Morris and drummer Brian Migdol. The band held their first performance in December 1977 in Redondo Beach, California. To avoid confusion with another band called Panic, they changed their name to Black Flag in late 1978. They played their first show under this name on January 27, 1979, at the Moose Lodge Hall in Redondo Beach, California. This was the first time Dez Cadena saw the band perform.\n\nThe name was suggested by Ginn's brother, artist Raymond Pettibon, who also designed the band's logo: a stylized black flag represented as four black bars. Pettibon stated \"If a white flag means surrender, a black flag represents anarchy.\" Their new name was reminiscent of the anarchist symbol, the insecticide of the same name, and of the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath, one of Ginn's favorite bands. Ginn suggested that he was \"comfortable with all the implications of the name.\" The band spray painted the simple, striking logo all over Los Angeles, attracting attention from both supporters and the Los Angeles Police Department. Pettibon also created much of their cover artwork.\n\nThere were few opportunities for punk rock bands to perform in Southern California. (Los Angeles club The Masque was the center of the L.A. punk scene, but was also rather parochial, and did not often admit bands from outside L.A. proper.) Black Flag organized their own gigs, performing at picnics, house parties, schools; any place that was available. They called club owners themselves to arrange appearances, and plastered hundreds of flyers—usually Pettibon's severe, haunting comic strip style panels—on any available surface to publicize performances. Dukowski reported that the \"minimum [number of flyers] that went out was 500 for a show.\"\n\nThough Ginn was the band's leader, special note should be made to Dukowski's contributions to Black Flag. Ginn was tireless and profoundly disciplined; however, he was also rather quiet. Dukowski's intelligent, fast-talking, high-energy persona attracted significant attention, and he was often Black Flag's spokesman to the press. Dukowski acted as the group's tour manager even after he no longer performed with them, and he was likely as important as Ginn in establishing the band's DIY punk ethic and demanding work ethic. Dukowski's bass guitar was a vital part of the early Black Flag sound; \"TV Party\" for instance, was one of many songs \"driven more by Chuck Dukowski's percolating bass line than Ginn's stun-gun guitar.\"\n\nMorris performed as vocalist on Black Flag's earliest recordings, and his energized, manic stage presence was pivotal in the band earning a reputation in Southern California. Migdol was replaced by the enigmatic Colombian drummer Robo, whose numerous clicking metallic bracelets became part of his drum sound. The band played with a speed and ferocity that was all but unprecedented in rock music; critic Ira Robbins declared that \"Black Flag was, for all intents and purposes, America's first hardcore band.\" Morris quit in 1979, citing, among other reasons, creative differences with Ginn, and his own \"freaking out on cocaine and speed.\" Morris would subsequently form the Circle Jerks.\n\nAfter Morris's departure, Black Flag recruited fan Ron Reyes as singer. With Reyes, Black Flag recorded the Jealous Again 12-inch EP and appeared in the film The Decline of Western Civilization. This was also the line-up that toured up and down the West Coast for the first time, the version most fans outside of L.A. first saw.\n\nIn 1980, Reyes quit Black Flag mid-performance at the Fleetwood in Redondo Beach because of escalating violence. For the remainder of that gig, the band played an extended version of \"Louie Louie\" and invited audience members to take turns singing.\n\nThe more reliable Dez Cadena – another fan – then joined as a vocalist. With Cadena on board, Black Flag began national touring in earnest, and arguably saw two peaks: first as a commercial draw (they sold out the 3,500-seat Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, a feat they were never able to manage again); and second, perhaps seeing the peak of attention from police in the Los Angeles area, due to the violence associated with Black Flag and punk rock in general. The band members have often insisted, however, that the police instigated far more problems than they solved.\n\nBy the summer of 1981, however, Cadena's voice was worn. He had no formal training or previous experience as a singer, and had severely strained his voice during Black Flag's nonstop touring, and he wanted to play guitar rather than perform vocals.\n\nRollins era (1981–1985)\n\nTwenty-year-old fan Henry Rollins (birth name Henry Garfield) was then living in Washington, D.C. and singing for hardcore band State of Alert (S.O.A.). S.O.A. drummer Ivor Hanson had a father who was a top admiral in the US Navy, and his family shared living quarters with the vice president of the United States in the United States Naval Observatory. The band held their practices there, and would have to be let in by United States Secret Service agents.\n\nS.O.A. had corresponded with Black Flag, and met them when they performed on the U.S. east coast. At an impromptu show at A7 in New York City, Rollins had asked the band to perform \"Clocked In\", and the band offered to let him sing. Since vocalist Dez Cadena was switching to guitar, the band then invited Rollins to audition. Impressed by his stage demeanor, they asked him to become their permanent vocalist. Despite some doubts, he accepted, due in part to Ian MacKaye's encouragement. Rollins acted as roadie for the remainder of the tour while learning Black Flag's songs during sound checks and encores, while Cadena crafted guitar parts that meshed with Ginn's. Rollins also impressed Black Flag with his broad musical interests during an era when punk rock music and fans were increasingly factionalized; he introduced Black Flag to Washington D.C.'s go-go, a distinctive take on funk music.\n\nRollins was Black Flag's longest-lasting vocalist. When he joined Black Flag, he brought a different attitude and perspective than previous singers. Some earlier songs, such as \"Six Pack\" (a song written about original singer Keith Morris) blended a sense of black humor with driving punk rock. Rollins was an intense performer, who usually appeared onstage wearing only shorts. Ginn once stated that after Rollins joined, \"We couldn't do songs with a sense of humor anymore; he got into the serious way-out poet thing.\" \n\nWith Rollins, Black Flag began work on their first full-length album. The sessions for the album (chronicled in Michael Azerrad's book Our Band Could Be Your Life) were a source of conflict between the band and engineer/producer Spot, who had worked with the band and the SST label since their early years. Spot had already recorded many of the Damaged tracks with Dez Cadena on vocals (as well as Keith Morris and Ron Reyes) and felt that the band's sound was ruined with the two guitar line-up (these versions can be heard on the albums Everything Went Black and The First Four Years). Whereas the earlier four-piece versions are more focused and much cleaner sounding, the Damaged recordings are more akin to a live recording, with little stereo separation of guitars, and somewhat muddy. When asked about the lo-fidelity production, Spot has said \"They wanted it to sound that way.\" However, the artistic content and expression on the album showed the band pushing punk or hardcore music to a new level, with deeply personal and intensely emotional lyrics. As such, Damaged is generally regarded as Black Flag's most focused recording. One critic has written that Damaged was \"perhaps the best album to emerge from the quagmire that was early-'80s California punk ... the visceral, intensely physical presence of Damaged has yet to be equaled, although many bands have tried.\" Damaged was released in 1981, and the group began an extensive tour in support of it, forging an independent network for touring independent music acts that would form a cornerstone of the independent music scene for the decade to come.\n\nThe previous year 1980 saw the U.S. punk rock movement hitting a peak in popularity. With Damaged and their growing reputation as an impressive live band, Black Flag seemed poised on the cusp of a commercial breakthrough. The record was to be distributed by now-defunct Unicorn Records, a subsidiary of MCA. Trouble began when MCA refused to handle Damaged after MCA executive Al Bergamo determined the album was an \"Anti-Parent\" record. However, according to longtime SST employee Joe Carducci the \"Anti-Parent\" statement was not the real reason for MCA's refusing to distribute Damaged; Carducci reported that Unicorn Records was so poorly managed and so deeply in debt that MCA stood to lose money by distributing the album, regardless of its content. This was the beginning of a legal dispute that would, for several years, disallow Black Flag from using their own name on any record after Damaged was released on SST Records and a copy of the \"Anti-Parent\" statement was placed on the album's cover.\n\nWith their new singer, Black Flag and the Minutemen made their first tour of the UK through late 1981 and early 1982. During that tour, the band met punk icon Richard Hell and opened a concert for him. Rollins later published his diaries from that tour in his book Get in the Van. As the front man, Rollins was a frequent target of violent audience members, and started getting involved in fist-fights. Rollins developed a distinct showmanship on stage, where he could entertain an audience just by talking to them. The rest of the band were targets too, with Greg Ginn getting hit by a bullet shell while playing in Colwyn Bay.\n\nAs Black Flag was about to return home, UK customs detained Colombian drummer Robo due to visa problems, and he was not able to return with the rest of the band. This would be the end of his tenure with the band (he was able to eventually re-enter the United States in mid-1982, at which point he would promptly join the Misfits as one of that band's last drummers before its 1983 breakup). The loss of Robo put an end to extensive touring for a while. Emil Johnson of Twisted Roots filled in for one tour, but it was clear he was only temporary.\n\nWhile on that tour in Vancouver, the band found out that drummer Chuck Biscuits was leaving D.O.A. He was quickly drafted on board, traveling with the band for the rest of the tour (cut short because of Henry Rollins' injured knee) to learn the songs. This lineup recorded the later-bootlegged cassette 1982 Demos, showing the direction the band would go in for the My War album.\n\nHowever, due to personality conflicts —in Get in the Van, Rollins described Biscuits as a \"fuck up\"— and the Unicorn court injunction-forced inactivity of Black Flag, Biscuits left to join their rivals the Circle Jerks. (Later, Biscuits joined ex-Misfits singer Glenn Danzig's solo project Danzig). Black Flag eventually got Bill Stevenson of Descendents to join permanently (he had filled in from time-to-time before). While the Unicorn Records court injunction prevented the group from releasing a new studio album, they nonetheless continued to work on new material, and embarked on a period which would mark a pronounced change in the group's direction (and that of underground music in general).\n\nIt is possible that the violence of the previous tour had an effect on the band's direction. The band had also become increasingly interested in music other than punk rock, such as the Jimi Hendrix Experience, and some of the members (particularly Ginn) used cannabis. (However, various members had been fans of such music long before Black Flag, with Ginn being an avid Grateful Dead fan, and Cadena a fan of Hawkwind.) Newer material (which can be heard on the 1982 Demos bootleg) was slower and less like typical punk music, with classic rock and blues influences seeping in. Cadena left in April of 1983 to form his own band DC3. He would take some of the new songs he had written for Black Flag with him and record them for DC3's debut album.\n\nAdditionally, by late 1983, Dukowski had retired from performing with Black Flag (some accounts report he was \"edged out\" by Ginn); Azerrad reports that Ginn was dissatisfied with Dukowski's failure to progress as an instrumentalist, and made things difficult for Dukowski in an attempt to make him quit, but in the end, Rollins took it on himself to fire Dukowski. However, a few of Dukowski's songs were featured on later albums, and he continued acting in his capacity as tour manager.\n\n1983 found Black Flag with fresh songs and a new direction, but without a bass player, and embroiled in a legal dispute over distribution due to SST's issuing Damaged (Ginn argued that since MCA was no longer involved, the Unicorn deal was not legally binding, while Unicorn disagreed and sued SST and Black Flag). Until the matter was sorted out, the band were prevented by a court injunction from using the name \"Black Flag\" on any recordings. They released a compilation record, Everything Went Black, which was credited to the individual musicians, not \"Black Flag\". In fact, wherever the original album artwork had the words \"Black Flag\", they had been covered up with small slips of paper, thus adhering to the letter of the law.\n\nAfter Unicorn Records declared bankruptcy, Black Flag were released from the injunction, and returned with a vengeance, starting with the release of My War. The album was both a continuation of Damaged, and a vast leap forward. While the general mood and lyrics continue in the confrontational and emotional tone of Damaged, the album would prove influential to grunge music as the decade progressed. Lacking a bass player, Ginn played bass guitar, using the pseudonym Dale Nixon. On the May 1, 2007 episode of his radio program Harmony in My Head, Rollins reported that one of Ginn's favorite albums during this era was Mahavishnu Orchestra's Birds of Fire (1973), and opined that John McLaughlin's guitar work influenced Ginn.\n\nFreed legally to release albums, Black Flag was re-energized and ready to continue full steam ahead. The band recruited bassist Kira Roessler (sister of punk keyboardist Paul Roessler, of 45 Grave) to replace Dukowski, and began its most prolific period. With Roessler, Black Flag had arguably found their best bassist. Dukowski was a powerful player, but Roessler brought a level of sophistication and finesse to match Ginn's increasingly ambitious music, without sacrificing any of the visceral impact required for punk rock.\n\n1984 saw Black Flag (and the SST label) at their most ambitious. This year they would release three full-length albums, and toured nearly constantly, with Rollins noting 178 performances for the year, and about that many for 1985. With Dukowski gone, Ginn ceded much of the spotlight to Rollins, who had expressed some discomfort over being the group's de facto spokesman, while Ginn was the recognized leader (Ginn wrote the majority of the group's songs and lyrics).\n\nWith Roessler on board, Black Flag began earnest experimentation, sometimes to critical and audience disdain: One critic writes that Slip It In \"blurs the line between moronic punk and moronic metal\"; another writes My War is \"a pretentious mess of a record with a totally worthless second side.\" Rollins reports that Black Flag's set-lists in this era rarely included older crowd favorites like \"Six Pack\" or \"Nervous Breakdown\", and that audiences were often irritated by the new, slower Black Flag. Violence against the band (and especially Rollins) was ever-present, although the vocalist was now an avid weight lifter, and more than able to defend himself. Furthermore, to Rollins' chagrin, Ginn's interest in marijuana steadily increased; as Rollins put it, \"By '86 it was 'Cannot separate the man from his Anvil case with a big-ass stash.'\" Despite the initial resistance to the new music and quasi-psychedelic direction, My War would later be cited as a formative influence on the grunge, stoner and sludge metal genres. The band would continue to evolve toward a more heavy metal sound, with 1985's Loose Nut featuring more polished production.\n\nLater period and break up (1985–1986)\nDespite 1984–85 being the most fruitful period for the band and their record label, Ginn and Rollins would ultimately decide to eject Roessler from Black Flag, citing erratic behavior. It has also been suggested that Ginn's accommodating Roessler's college schedule created tension in the band. Her absence, and the lack of a steady drummer (Stevenson quit and was replaced by Anthony Martinez), contributed to the comparatively weak reputation of the last few Black Flag tours.\n\nBy 1986, Black Flag's members had grown tired of the tensions of their relentless touring schedule, infighting, and of living in near-poverty. The band had been together almost a decade, and true commercial success and stability had eluded them. The band's erratic artistic changes were a barrier to their retaining an audience – Ginn was so creatively restless that Black Flag's albums were often very dissimilar. At one point, Rollins apparently said, \"Why don't we make a record that was like the last one so people won't always be trying to catch up with what we're doing?\" The next album, In My Head, with its powerful bluesy proto-grunge-metal, did seem to finally be a cohesive follow-up to their previous album Loose Nut, but it would be their last.\n\nBlack Flag played its final show on June 27, 1986, in Detroit, Michigan. In his book Get in the Van, Rollins wrote that Ginn telephoned him in August 1986: \"He told me he was quitting the band. I thought that was strange considering it was his band and all. So in one short phone call, it was all over.\"\n\nPost-Black Flag and reunions (1987–2012)\n\nSince Black Flag's break-up, Rollins has had the most visible public profile as a musician, writer, and actor. Most Black Flag members have also remained active in music, especially Ginn, who continued playing with bands such as Gone, October Faction, and Screw Radio, and Stevenson, who continued on with the Descendents, All, Only Crime, and the reformed Lemonheads. Kira Roessler continues to record and perform with the band dos, a duet with then-husband and Minutemen bassist Mike Watt.\n\nIn September 2003, Black Flag played three reunion shows, two at the Hollywood Palladium and one at Alex's Bar in Long Beach, California, to benefit cat rescue organizations (a current passion of Ginn's). The line-up for the shows was Dez Cadena on vocals and guitar, Greg Ginn on guitar, Robo on drums, and C'el Revuelta on bass. Professional skateboarder and singer Mike Vallely also sang all the songs from My War at these shows while Gregory Moore was on drums for the My War set.\n\nOn July 24, 2010, in celebration of Ron Reyes's 50th birthday, Greg Ginn and Reyes played a set of three Black Flag songs together in addition to his own set with the Ron Reyes Band.\n\nOn December 18, 2011, Keith Morris, Chuck Dukowski, Bill Stevenson, and the Descendents' Stephen Egerton played the Nervous Breakdown EP in its entirety for the Goldenvoice 30th anniversary show called GV 30. This surprise gig at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium took place between sets by the Vandals and the Descendents.\n\nOfficial reformation, Flag, What The..., and trademark infringement suit (2013–present)\nOn January 25, 2013, it was announced that guitarist Greg Ginn and vocalist Ron Reyes would reform Black Flag, joined by Gregory Moore on drums, and 'Dale Nixon' on bass (Dale Nixon is a pseudonym sometimes used by Ginn, most prominently as the bassist on My War). The band would tour as well as release a new album, their first since 1985's In My Head. In March, it was announced that Screeching Weasel bassist Dave Klein had joined the band. On May 2, 2013, the band released a new song entitled \"Down in the Dirt\" through their website. After releasing two more singles (\"The Chase\" and \"Wallow in Despair\"), What The... was released on December 3, and was poorly received by critics and fans.\n\nAround the same time, it was announced that the lineup that played at GV 30, Morris, Dukowski, Stevenson and Egerton, would tour performing Black Flag songs, under the name Flag. It was later announced that the lineup would be joined by Dez Cadena.\n\nOn August 2, 2013, SST Records and Greg Ginn brought a trademark infringement action in Los Angeles federal court against Morris, Dukowski, Stevenson, Cadena, and Egerton, with regard to their use of the name Black Flag and the Black Flag logo on the 2013 Flag tour. In the same action, SST and Ginn also sued Henry Rollins and Keith Morris to oppose and cancel the trademark applications filed in September 2012 by Rollins and Morris. SST and Ginn alleged that Rollins and Morris lied to the Patent and Trademark Office on their trademark applications regarding claimed use of the Black Flag name and logo by Rollins and Morris on records, T-shirts, and with regard to live performances.\n\nIn October 2013, a federal judge denied the motion for a preliminary injunction, brought by Ginn and SST against Morris, Dukowski, Stevenson, Cadena, and Egerton. The court ruled that it was possible that the logo had fallen into \"generic use\", but did not rule specifically that it had done so. The court also ruled that Ginn and SST could not prevent the use of the band name \"Flag\", as it was likely that fans would know the difference between the two acts, because of widespread publicity.\n\nDuring a show in November 2013 on Black Flag's Australian tour, pro skater and band manager Mike Vallely, who previously sang with the band in 2003, came on stage, took Reyes' microphone, ousted him from Black Flag and sang the band's last two songs. Reyes said he was relieved to be removed from the band, citing difficulties working with Ginn. In January 2014, Vallely was named the band's new lead singer. Vallely apologized for the band's antics in 2013 and revealed that the band had begun working on material for a new album with a tour to tentatively begin in May. Shortly after the announcement, Dave Klein announced he too was leaving the band. In 2014, Ginn filled out the line up with adding new members Tyler Smith on bass, and Brandon Pertzborn on drums. They embarked upon the Victimology Tour, bringing along Ginn's own HOR and Brooklyn band Cinema Cinema, as openers.\n\nOn January 28, 2019, it was announced that Black Flag would play their first show in five years at the Sabroso Craft Beer, Taco & Music Festival in Dana Point, California on April 7. The show would be the start of a U.S. tour. The band's first U.K. tour in 35 years was set to follow in October. The new lineup consisted of Greg Ginn on guitar, Mike Vallely on vocals, Tyler Smith on bass, and Isaias Gil on drums.\n\nStyle and legacy\nBlack Flag are primarily a hardcore punk band and are considered to be one of the first hardcore punk bands. According to Ryan Cooper of About.com and author Doyle Greene, Black Flag is one of the pioneers of the genre for the experimental style they later started playing. Black Flag experimented with a sludge metal sound on their album My War. Black Flag also have used elements of styles such as jazz, blues, spoken word, heavy metal, blues rock, free jazz, math rock and .\n\nThroughout their ten-year career as a band, Black Flag's experiences became legendary, especially in the Southern California area. Much of the band's history is chronicled in Henry Rollins' own published tour diary Get in the Van. Black Flag were reportedly blacklisted by the LAPD and Hollywood rock clubs because of the destructiveness of their fans, though Rollins has claimed that police caused far more problems than they solved.\n\nSST Records, an independent American record label that was initially founded to release Black Flag's debut single, released recordings by influential bands such as Bad Brains, Minutemen, Descendents, Meat Puppets, and Hüsker Dü. As well, SST released some albums by Negativland, Soundgarden, Sonic Youth, and Saint Vitus.\nSST was founded in 1966 by Greg as Solid State Transmitters – later rebranded to release Black Flag albums.\n\nBlack Flag's career is chronicled in Our Band Could Be Your Life, a study of several important American underground rock bands. Many members of the grunge scene cited Black Flag's My War album as being influential in their departure from the standard punk model. Steve Turner of Mudhoney stated in an interview, \"A lot of other people around the country hated the fact that Black Flag slowed down ... but up here it was really great – we were like 'Yay!' They were weird and fucked-up sounding.\"\nKurt Cobain listed both My War and Damaged in his top 50 albums in his journal in 1993. Jeff Hanneman and Dave Lombardo, both known for their work with Slayer, mentioned Black Flag among their influences. Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea has a Black Flag decal on one of his signature Modulus bass guitars, and guitarist John Frusciante has cited Greg Ginn as one of his early influences as a guitar player. British acoustic artist and punk rocker Frank Turner has a Black Flag icon tattoo on his wrist and cites the band as one of his primary inspirations, particularly in regards to their work ethic. With Million Dead, if anything went wrong with their tour, Turner said they would \"Think Black Flag\". Vocalist Maynard James Keenan of the bands Tool and A Perfect Circle, has described seeing Black Flag perform in 1986 as a young punk rocker in Grand Rapids, Michigan, as a \"revelatory and life-changing\" experience. A Perfect Circle also covered the Black Flag song \"Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie\" on their Emotive album. Punk band Rise Against portrayed Black Flag in the 2005 Lords of Dogtown film, and their cover of \"Nervous Breakdown\" is on the Lords of Dogtown soundtrack. Rise Against also does a cover of the Black Flag song \"Fix Me\" in the video game Tony Hawk's American Wasteland. Initial Records released a Black Flag cover album in 2002 (re-released with additional tracks in 2006 by ReIgnition Recordings), Black on Black: A Tribute to Black Flag. The compilation features 15 hardcore and metalcore bands – including Most Precious Blood, Converge, The Dillinger Escape Plan, American Nightmare, Drowningman, and Coalesce. Bring Me the Horizon frontman Oliver Sykes also mentioned Black Flag as one of his biggest influences. Sykes has also had the tattoo of Black Flag logo showing the love for the band. American alternative rock band My Chemical Romance has also stated that the band has been heavily influenced by Black Flag.\n\nIconography\nBlack Flag's visual imagery and artwork complemented the themes found in the band's music. Greg Ginn's brother Raymond Ginn, under the pseudonym Raymond Pettibon, created the artwork for all of the band's studio releases with the exceptions of Damaged and the \"TV Party\" single, as well as providing artwork for the band members to transform into merchandise and gig flyers. When the band found it necessary to change their name from Panic in 1978, it was Pettibon who suggested the new name Black Flag and designed their iconic logo: four vertical black rectangles comprising a stylized rippling black flag. The logo evoked a number of meanings: it was the polar opposite of a white flag of surrender, as well as a symbol for anarchism and a traditional emblem of pirates. As the band gained popularity the logo was graffitied on numerous highway overpasses and other public and private surfaces in and around Los Angeles, drawing the attention of the authorities and contributing to an increase in police presence at Black Flag shows.\n\nPettibon's artwork for the band's albums and flyers was equally stark and confrontational. He typically worked in one panel using only pen and ink, so the message conveyed had to be direct and powerful due to lack of space and color. According to Michael Azerrad in Our Band Could Be Your Life, the artwork \"was a perfect visual analogue to the music it promoted – gritty, stark, violent, smart, provocative, and utterly American.\" It also provided a cerebral aspect to the band's image: as the mainstream media caricatured Black Flag as a mindlessly aggressive act, the pairing of their music with high-concept artwork hinted at a greater intelligence at work that was unknown to outsiders.\n\nHenry Rollins, in his journal collection Get in the Van, notes that Pettibon's artwork became synonymous with Black Flag and that before Rollins joined the band he would collect photocopies of their flyers that had circulated from California to Washington, D.C. The album cover for Nervous Breakdown had a particularly strong impact on Rollins: \"The record's cover art said it all. A man with his back to the wall baring his fists. In front of him another man fending him off with a chair. I felt like the guy with his fists up every day of my life.\" Another image which drew considerable attention was the artwork created for the \"Police Story\" single, showing a police officer being held with a gun in his mouth with the speech blurb \"Make me come, faggot!\" The image was plastered on flyers all around Los Angeles and added to the police pressure on the band. Pettibon later remarked that \"my values are relativistic, and I'll give a cop the benefit of the doubt. If that's me with my gat – my gat's larger than the one depicted – we can have a discussion, and he can answer me just as well with my .357 barrel in his mouth, or on his cheek, or on his adenoids, or down his throat. I'll listen to his whimpering cries.\"\n\nAfter joining the band Rollins would sometimes watch Pettibon draw, admiring his work ethic and the fact that he did not make telephone calls or sit for interviews. The drawings themselves rarely bore a direct connection to the music or its lyrical themes. Pettibon himself recalls that:\n\nPettibon also sold pamphlet books of his work through SST, with titles such as Tripping Corpse, New Wave of Violence, and The Bible, the Bottle, and the Bomb, and did artwork for other SST acts such as Minutemen.\n\nIn order to adapt Pettibon's artwork to meet the layout requirements of their albums and flyers, the members of Black Flag would alter it by cutting and pasting and adding their name, logo, and gig details to it. They would then make photocopies and put up dozens of flyers to promote their shows. Rollins recalls going out on a flyering mission with roadie Mugger in 1981 in which the pair would put a layer of paste onto a telephone pole, stick up the flyer, and then cover it with an additional coat of paste so that it would last for up to a year. The band members and their crew would do this for miles around, using dozens of flyers to promote a single performance. Pettibon, however, did not always appreciate the band's treatment of his art, which he provided to them largely for free. \"To me my work was the equivalent of a band like Black Flag or any other band who was righteously self-protective of recordings. I would give them original art and it would come back to me scrawled upon and taped over or whited out, and I'd always ask nicely, 'Could you please make a copy of this first and then do that?' Their master tapes were deemed sacrosanct, while my work was seen as completely disposable, but I'm not venting or complaining, just stating fact.\" Pettibon also felt pigeonholed by his association with the band, and had a falling out with them in 1985 over artwork used on the cover of the Loose Nut album, which had been used for a flyer several years earlier. Ginn resurrected it without telling his brother and turned it over to drummer Bill Stevenson to do the layout, who cut it into pieces and used them as elements for the cover and lyric sheet. Pettibon became irate and he and Ginn stopped speaking for some time, though his artwork continued to be used for the remainder of the band's career.\n\nMembers\n\n Greg Ginn – guitar (1976–1986, 2003, 2013–2014, 2019-present)\n Mike Vallely – vocals (2003, 2013–2014, 2019-present)\n Joseph Noval – bass (2019–present)\n Isaias Gil – drums (2019–present)\n\nFormer members\n\n Keith Morris – vocals (1976–1979)\n Ron Reyes – vocals (1979–1980, 2013)\n Dez Cadena – vocals (1980–1981, 2003) rhythm guitar (1981–1983, 2003)\n Henry Rollins – vocals (1981–1986)\n Raymond Pettibon – bass (1976)\n Jim \"Kansas\" Dearman – bass (1977)\n Glen \"Spot\" Lockett – bass (1977)\n Chuck Dukowski – bass (1977–1983)\n Kira Roessler – bass (1983–1985)\n C'el Revuelta – bass (1985–1986, 2003; died in 2017)\n Dave Klein – bass (2013–2014)\n Tyler Smith – bass (2014)\n Bryan Migdol – drums (1977–1978)\n Roberto \"ROBO\" Valverde – drums (1978–1981, 2003)\n Emil Johnson – drums (1982)\n Chuck Biscuits – drums (1982)\n Bill Stevenson – drums (1982–1985)\n Anthony Martinez – drums (1985–1986)\n Gregory Moore – drums (2003, 2013–2014)\n Brandon Pertzborn – drums (2014)\n\nDiscography\n\nStudio albums\n Damaged (1981)\n My War (1984)\n Family Man (1984)\n Slip It In (1984)\n Loose Nut (1985)\n In My Head (1985)\n What The... (2013)\n\nReferences\n\nCitations\n\nBibliography\n\nExternal links\n\n \n \n Suburban Voice Interview – Black Flag interview from 1984\n Flipside Interview – Black Flag interview from 1980\n Gallery of Black Flag Posters by Raymond Pettibon\n 1984 Article and Photos, bLATCH zine\n\n \nHardcore punk groups from California\nAmerican post-hardcore musical groups\nMusical groups from Los Angeles\nMusical groups established in 1976\nMusical groups disestablished in 1986\nMusical groups reestablished in 2003\nMusical groups disestablished in 2003\nMusical groups reestablished in 2013\nMusical groups disestablished in 2014\nMusical groups reestablished in 2019\nSST Records artists\n1976 establishments in California\nAlternative Tentacles artists\nHermosa Beach, California"
]
|
[
"D.O.A. (band)",
"Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981-1989)",
"What was Hardcore 81?",
"On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81;",
"who was fired from the band?",
"Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982",
"Who replaced him?",
"replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass.",
"who left the band to work for Black Flag?",
"Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag."
]
| C_d7fc5b363aea4cef987d3bb337412a40_1 | what type of production did the band have? | 5 | What type of production did the D.O.A band have? | D.O.A. (band) | On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk". Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the only remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982-1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear. 1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was very close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement. CANNOTANSWER | hard-rock oriented production, | D.O.A. is a Canadian punk rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Angry Samoans, The Bags, Germs, Negative Trend, and Middle Class. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore.
Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, with original bassist Randy Rampage returning to the band twice after his original departure. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records, and they have released an album with Biafra on vocals titled Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors.
D.O.A. is known for its outspoken political opinions and has a history of performing for many causes and benefits. Its slogan is "Talk Minus Action Equals Zero." The band's lyrics and imagery frequently advocate anti-racism, anti-globalization, freedom of speech, and environmentalism.
Founder Joe Keithley is also the founder of Sudden Death Records which has released music by D.O.A. and several other bands including Pointed Sticks and Young Canadians.
History
Formation and early years (1977–1980)
D.O.A. has its origins in The Skulls, an early Vancouver-area punk rock band that included future D.O.A. members Joey "Shithead" Keithley, Brian "Wimpy Roy" Goble, and Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery.
When the Skulls broke up after an ill-fated move to Toronto, Keithley moved back to Vancouver and formed D.O.A. in early 1978 with himself on guitar, Dimwit's brother Chuck Biscuits on drums, Randy Rampage on bass, and a lead singer known only as "Harry Homo", who suggested the band's name. The band's first gig took place at the Japanese Hall in Vancouver on February 20 of that year, after which Harry Homo was sacked for an apparent lack of rhythm; Keithley then became the band's singer. A second guitarist named "Randy Romance" played briefly with the band in March 1978 before leaving.
The band began playing frequently around Vancouver and added guitarist Brad Kent the following June. That summer, they recorded and self-released their first single, the four-song EP Disco Sucks. The single soon topped the charts of the University of San Francisco radio station KUSF, which prompted the band to begin touring down to San Francisco. They played their first shows there in August 1978 at Mabuhay Gardens. It was during this trip that the band first met Dead Kennedys frontman and future collaborator Jello Biafra. Kent was fired from the band in September and later that fall the band recorded and released their second single "The Prisoner".
In May 1979, the band embarked on their first North American tour. Upon its completion they hired Vancouver journalist and activist Ken Lester as their manager. Lester booked another tour for them the following October, in the middle of which they flew back to Vancouver to open for The Clash at the Pacific Coliseum. They soon after released their third single, "World War 3" / "Whatcha Gonna Do?". In late 1979, they added second guitarist, Dave Gregg. Soon after, Biscuits and Rampage left the band after a disastrous gig at the University of British Columbia's Student Union Building and were replaced by Andy Graffiti and Simon "Stubby Pecker" Wilde on drums and bass, respectively. Keithley soon became dissatisfied with the band's performances with the new lineup, however, and Biscuits and Rampage both rejoined the band in March 1980.
D.O.A. released their full-length debut Something Better Change on Friends Records in 1980 and continued touring the United States and Canada extensively.
Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981–1989)
On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk".
Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy, another ex-Skulls member, was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the last remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982–1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear.
1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement.
First breakup and reunion (1990–2002)
1990's Murder featured rawer, almost thrash metal production, rather than their original basic punk sound. The same year also produced a collaboration with Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra with Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors. In August 1990, Joey decided he was breaking up D.O.A. but, at the suggestion of promoter Dirk Dirksen, they did a farewell tour of the West Coast, playing their "final" show on December 1, 1990 at the Commodore in Vancouver. In 1991, they released a posthumous live album entitled Talk Minus Action = 0 while Keithley pursued an acting career.
19 months after D.O.A. broke up, Joey Shithead and Wimpy Roy had reunited as D.O.A in the summer of 1992. Fellow Canadian punk rock veteran John Wright from NoMeansNo suggested they hire Ken Jensen from Red Tide as the new drummer, which they did. The new lineup released an EP and two albums in the early 1990s, 13 Flavours Of Doom and Loggerheads. These albums found the band replacing the more hard-rock oriented sound of the 1980s with a return to punk rock, although it was a heavier, tighter brand of punk than their earlier work. These albums were produced by Wright, who also played keyboards on the recordings. The band then added Ford Pier on guitar and vocals.
Tragedy struck in 1995 when drummer Ken Jensen died in a house fire. The "Ken Jensen Memorial Single" EP was released on Alternative Tentacles, including two tracks each from D.O.A. and Red Tide. With John Wright filling in on drums, ninth full-length The Black Spot was recorded. The album featured a more basic, sing-along type punk rock sound that was reminiscent of the band's late 1970s and early 1980s output.
The late 1990s found the band's lineup in turmoil, with Wimpy Roy leaving the band after a decade and a half of service and Kuba joining to play bass from 1997 until 2001. Keithley experimented with different bassists and drummers and released the album Festival Of Atheists in 1998. By the early 2000s, the band had found a permanent drummer in the form of The Great Baldini. In 2002, Keithley put out his first solo album, Beat Trash, and original bassist Randy Rampage returned to the band after nearly 20 years for the Win The Battle album. However, the reunion did not last, with Rampage leaving the band again after the recording of the album, to be replaced by Dan Yaremko.
The Lost Tapes was the first release on Keithley's revived Sudden Death label, followed by Festival Of Atheists. During this period, Keithley also oversaw the re-release of the band's classic early records on Sudden Death, several of which had been out of print for many years.
Later years and second hiatus (2003–2013)
In 2003, Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell declared December 21 to be "D.O.A. Day" in honour of the band's 25th anniversary. In the same year, the band released a career-spanning retrospective entitled War And Peace. 2004 found the band releasing the ska-flavoured Live Free or Die. In 2006, Randy Rampage rejoined D.O.A. for his 3rd stint in the band.
The lineup remained stable until 2008, when The Great Baldini left the band to be replaced by new drummer James Hayden. Also in 2008, it was announced that Bob Rock, of Metallica fame would be producing the band's next album in time for their 30th anniversary. James Hayden quit before D.O.A. started to record to be replaced by Floor Tom Jones In September 2008, D.O.A. released Northern Avenger and embarked on their 30th anniversary tour. On the eve of the tour, it was announced that Randy Rampage was being replaced by Dan Yaremko once again.
D.O.A. played several dates in the summer of 2009 as part of the Van's Warped Tour 2009.
On May 1, 2010, D.O.A. released their fourteenth full-length album Talk Minus Action = Zero (a similarly titled live album Talk Minus Action Equals Zero had previously been released in 1990). Drummer Jesse Pinner (of the band Raised by Apes) took the place of Floor Tom Jones beginning on D.O.A.'s subsequent August 2010 tour due to Floor Tom Jones' commitments to his job at Canada Post.
In 2012, Joe announced that he would be seeking nomination as an NDP candidate in the B.C. provincial election. As a result, D.O.A. announced an indefinite hiatus, and began their farewell tour on January 18, 2013 in celebration of the band's thirty-five year anniversary.
Second reunion and recent activity (2014–present)
On September 22, 2014, Keithley officially announced on the Sudden Death Records website that he had decided to reform the band with Paddy Duddy on drums and Mike "Maggot" Hodsall on bass, and would be embarking on a Canadian tour in October in support of the recently released live album, Welcome To Chinatown. This lineup recorded and released the studio album Hard Rain Falling in 2015. In April 2016, the band released a new version of "Fucked Up Ronnie" entitled "Fucked Up Donald" (referring to the 2016 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump) as a single.
Members
Current lineup
Joe Keithley – vocals, guitar (1978–present), bass (1996–1998)
Mike Hodsall – bass (2014–present)
Paddy Duddy – drums (2014–present)
Former members
Harry Homo - lead vocals (1978)
Brad Kent - guitar (1978)
Randy Romance - guitar (1978)
Zippy Pinhead - drums (1979; died 2019)
Simon Wilde - bass (1979-1980; died 1994)
Andy Graffiti - drums (1979-1980)
Randy Rampage – bass (1978–1982, 2000–2002, 2006–2009; died 2018)
Chuck Biscuits – drums (1978–1982)
Dave Gregg – guitar (1979–1988; died 2014)
Brian Roy Goble – bass (1982–1996; died 2014)
Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery – bass (1982), drums (1982–1983, 1984-1986; died 1994)
Gregg "Ned Peckerwood" James - drums (1983-1984)
Kerr Belliveau - drums (1986)
Jon Card – drums (1986–1990)
Chris Prohom – guitar (1988–1990)
Ken Jensen – drums (1992–1995; died 1995)
Jon Wright – keyboards (1992–1995), drums (1995–1996)
Ford Pier – guitar (1994–1996)
Wycliffe - bass (1997)
Kuba van der Pol - bass (1998-2000, 2002-2003)
Brien O’Brien – drums (1997–1999)
The Great Baldini – drums (2000–2008)
Dan Yaremko – bass (2003–2006, 2009–2013)
Floor Tom Jones – drums (2008–2010)
Jesse Pinner – drums (2010–2013)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Something Better Change (1980)
Hardcore '81 (1981)
Let's Wreck The Party (1985)
True (North) Strong And Free (1987)
Murder (1990)
13 Flavours of Doom (1992)
Loggerheads (1993)
The Black Spot (1995)
Festival Of Atheists (1998)
Win the Battle (2002)
Live Free Or Die (2004)
Northern Avenger (2008)
Kings of Punk, Hockey and Beer (2009)
Talk-Action=0 (2010)
We Come In Peace (2012)
Hard Rain Falling (2015)
Fight Back (2018)
Treason (2020)
Live albums
Talk Minus Action Equals Zero (1991)
Welcome to Chinatown (2013)
EPs
Positively (1981)
War on 45 (1982)
D.O.A. & Thor - Are U Ready (2003)
Collaborations
Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors (With Jello Biafra) (1990)
Solo albums
Beat Trash (2002) - Solo Project from Joey "Shithead" Keithley
References
External links
The official D.O.A. myspace
CanadianBands.com entry
Sudden Death records
Interview with Joey Shithead
Snot Rag interview with Dimwit (1979)
Robert Christgau's review of five D.O.A. albums
Scanner zine interview with Joey Shithead
Late Night Wallflower interview with Joey Shithead (2007)
Toronto Music Scene Interview with Joey Shithead
The Ruckus - Audio Interview with Joey Keithley from September 2008
Musical groups established in 1978
Musical groups disestablished in 2013
Musical groups reestablished in 2014
Canadian hardcore punk groups
Canadian activists
Musical groups from Vancouver
Alternative Tentacles artists
1978 establishments in British Columbia
Political music groups | true | [
"This Type of Thinking (Could Do Us In) is the third studio album by American rock band Chevelle. Debuting at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 based on nearly 90,000 copies sold in its first week, it charted higher than its predecessor, Wonder What's Next but did not exceed its debut position. The album did not manage to match its predecessor's commercial success, but was certified platinum. This Type of Thinking follows generally the same heavy style as Wonder What's Next with popular singles like \"Vitamin R\" and \"The Clincher\". It would be the first of two records produced by Michael \"Elvis\" Baskette. This was also the final album featuring bassist Joe Loeffler, who departed from the band in 2005.\n\nBackground and recording\nComing off a highly successful major label debut, Chevelle finishing touring on December 17, 2003. They set out to write a follow-up album from scratch at the onset of the following year in what drummer Sam Loeffler described as a different approach to writing. He also noted how the band felt significant pressure from their label to not simply match but topple the platinum success of Wonder What's Next. In a 2004 interview, Loeffler described the process of approaching This Type of Thinking:\n\"We went home for Christmas and after New Year's we went into the studio and we said, 'All right, we have to write a whole record in basically four months.' We had no songs, so we had to write that whole record and we ended up taking five months. We wanted to go heavy, we wanted to do a lot of double-bass drum, kind of syncopated rhythms, and we wanted to basically write songs that we could bob our heads to. That was sort of where we started. We're a heavy melodic rock band, that's what we like to write, and that's what we like to play. And that's what we did.\"\n\nThis time around, Chevelle opted to produce their own album with the help of Michael \"Elvis\" Baskette. This Type of Thinking would continue the balance of melody and heaviness of its predecessor. And much like the final track on Wonder What's Next, \"Bend the Bracket\" would be recorded simply as an acoustic demo for its unpolished presentation.\n\nCritical reception\n\nAllMusic editor Johnny Loftus observes the album as \"...flatly mixed, lost in depression, and obsessed with rewriting \"Sober\" for a new generation of lank-haired misunderstoods.\"\n\nMelodic calls it \"...a real quality album that you will never get bored of.\", praising the songs \"The Clincher\", \"Vitamin R (Leading Us Along)\" and \"Another Know It All\".\n\nTrack listing\n\nPersonnel\nChevelle\n Pete Loeffler – guitar, vocals\n Joe Loeffler – bass, backing vocals\n Sam Loeffler – drums\n\nTechnical personnel\n Andy Wallace – mixing\n Ben Goldman – A&R\n Christian Lantry – photography\n Dave Holdredge – digital editing, drum programming, engineer\n Eddy Schreyer – mastering\n Farra Mathews – A&R\n Jef Moll – assistant\n Josh Wilbur – digital editing\n Katharina Fritsch – cover sculpture\n Kevin Dean – assistant\n Michael \"Elvis\" Baskette – engineer, producer\n Sean Evans – art direction\n Steve Sisco – assistant\n\nCharts\n\nCertifications\n\nReferences\n\n2004 albums\nAlbums produced by Michael Baskette\nChevelle (band) albums\nEpic Records albums",
"The Type 025 torpedo boat, also known as the Huchuan or Hu Chwan class, was once the backbone of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) in its confrontations with its much larger opponents in the Republic of China Navy. Although no longer serving in that capacity, this class is still active. While relatively unsophisticated, the class has enjoyed a longevity in active service thanks to a philosophy within PLAN which has continued to favor its use. Powered by Soviet-era engines, the hydrofoil-equipped boats are capable of and carry two torpedo tubes for torpedoes, with some known to be armed with naval mines.\n\nDescription\nThe Type 025 torpedo boats have a standard displacement of and are at full load. They are long with a beam and a hullborne draft of . The torpedo boats are powered by three Type M 50F diesel engines rated at driving three shafts. Equipped with hydrofoils, they are located forward while the stern planes are located on the surface. The maximum speed while on foils is and the vessels have a range of at . The torpedo boats are equipped with Soviet-made \"Skin Head\" radar operating on E band. The vessels are armed with two torpedo tubes and two twin heavy machine guns. In Romanian service, the Type 025 vessels had two rails for depth charges added and Chinese Type 753 radar operating on the I band.\n\nType 026 torpedo boat\nThe Type 026, a variant of the Type 025, are at full load, long with a beam of and a draft of . They have three Type L-12V-180 diesel engines rated at 3,600 horsepower driving three shafts. They also have hydrofoils and have similar speed and range to the Type 025. The Type 026 is also armed with two twin 14.5 mm machine guns and two 533 mm torpedo tubes. However, they have Chinese Type 753 surface search radar operating on the I band.\n\nOperational doctrine\nIn an era of increasingly effective countermeasures against anti-ship missiles, the countermeasures against torpedoes are relatively few and less effective in comparison, so although ineffective in open waters, torpedo boats can still play a role in coastal defense given sufficient protection. Their stealthiness and high speed are useful for surprise attacks on an enemy from coastal hideouts, such as caves, if the boats are integrated into an overall system that includes a supporting C4ISR structure, as well as shore defenses, aircraft, and larger ships. As a result of this philosophy, the production of Type 025 torpedo boats lasted well into the 1990s, despite the fact that the retirement of early units of this class had already begun in the mid 1980s.\n\nVariants\nThe Type 025 was originally designed to solve the problems presented by existing Soviet torpedo boats in the Chinese inventory. The (Type K-123) was lightly armed, and thus did not have sufficient self-defense firepower in a retreat after having launched its torpedoes. The P 6-class torpedo boat (Type K-183) had enough guns for self-defense, but its wooden hull was vulnerable to fire if hit. The Type 025 was subsequently developed to incorporate the advantages of both classes by adopting the metallic hull of the P 4 class and the heavier self-defense armament of the P 6 class. Several versions of the class exist, which differ mainly in their secondary armament. For example, some had extra guns in addition to the standard 14.5 mm heavy machine guns, while others had the capability to carry and lay two additional mines. Due to the different the weapons carried, the complement of each boat varies from 11 to 16. Structurally, some of the hulls have an additional pair of small hydrofoils near the bow, while others do not have hydrofoils at all. Guns are usually mounted aft, but some examples of the type possess one forward mounting and one aft. Although small batch orders continued into the 1990s, production had completely stopped by the early 2000s. At least half a dozen variants of Huchuan class have been confirmed in service with PLAN:\n Type 6625: The original aluminum-hulled version without hydrofoils, built by No. 425 Factory, subsequently transferred to Hudong Shipyard for series production and modification.\n Type 025: Aluminum-hulled version built by Hudong Shipyard, some units in later production batches had hydrofoil added.\n Type 026: Steel-hulled version without hydrofoil, built by Qiu-Xin (求新) shipyard.\n Type 026II: Type 026 with hydrofoil.\n Type 026H: Patrol boat version used by PLAN patrol squadron in Hong Kong.\nR704: Export version with a different hull shape (small-V hull), with one unit retained by PLAN as a trial boat to test torpedo weapon control system.\n\nCitations\n\nReferences\n \n \n\nTorpedo boat classes\nTorpedo boats of the People's Republic of China"
]
|
[
"D.O.A. (band)",
"Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981-1989)",
"What was Hardcore 81?",
"On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81;",
"who was fired from the band?",
"Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982",
"Who replaced him?",
"replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass.",
"who left the band to work for Black Flag?",
"Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag.",
"what type of production did the band have?",
"hard-rock oriented production,"
]
| C_d7fc5b363aea4cef987d3bb337412a40_1 | how did the band expound their sound? | 6 | How did the D.O.A band expound the hard Rock oriented sound? | D.O.A. (band) | On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk". Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the only remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982-1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear. 1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was very close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement. CANNOTANSWER | War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, | D.O.A. is a Canadian punk rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Angry Samoans, The Bags, Germs, Negative Trend, and Middle Class. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore.
Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, with original bassist Randy Rampage returning to the band twice after his original departure. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records, and they have released an album with Biafra on vocals titled Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors.
D.O.A. is known for its outspoken political opinions and has a history of performing for many causes and benefits. Its slogan is "Talk Minus Action Equals Zero." The band's lyrics and imagery frequently advocate anti-racism, anti-globalization, freedom of speech, and environmentalism.
Founder Joe Keithley is also the founder of Sudden Death Records which has released music by D.O.A. and several other bands including Pointed Sticks and Young Canadians.
History
Formation and early years (1977–1980)
D.O.A. has its origins in The Skulls, an early Vancouver-area punk rock band that included future D.O.A. members Joey "Shithead" Keithley, Brian "Wimpy Roy" Goble, and Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery.
When the Skulls broke up after an ill-fated move to Toronto, Keithley moved back to Vancouver and formed D.O.A. in early 1978 with himself on guitar, Dimwit's brother Chuck Biscuits on drums, Randy Rampage on bass, and a lead singer known only as "Harry Homo", who suggested the band's name. The band's first gig took place at the Japanese Hall in Vancouver on February 20 of that year, after which Harry Homo was sacked for an apparent lack of rhythm; Keithley then became the band's singer. A second guitarist named "Randy Romance" played briefly with the band in March 1978 before leaving.
The band began playing frequently around Vancouver and added guitarist Brad Kent the following June. That summer, they recorded and self-released their first single, the four-song EP Disco Sucks. The single soon topped the charts of the University of San Francisco radio station KUSF, which prompted the band to begin touring down to San Francisco. They played their first shows there in August 1978 at Mabuhay Gardens. It was during this trip that the band first met Dead Kennedys frontman and future collaborator Jello Biafra. Kent was fired from the band in September and later that fall the band recorded and released their second single "The Prisoner".
In May 1979, the band embarked on their first North American tour. Upon its completion they hired Vancouver journalist and activist Ken Lester as their manager. Lester booked another tour for them the following October, in the middle of which they flew back to Vancouver to open for The Clash at the Pacific Coliseum. They soon after released their third single, "World War 3" / "Whatcha Gonna Do?". In late 1979, they added second guitarist, Dave Gregg. Soon after, Biscuits and Rampage left the band after a disastrous gig at the University of British Columbia's Student Union Building and were replaced by Andy Graffiti and Simon "Stubby Pecker" Wilde on drums and bass, respectively. Keithley soon became dissatisfied with the band's performances with the new lineup, however, and Biscuits and Rampage both rejoined the band in March 1980.
D.O.A. released their full-length debut Something Better Change on Friends Records in 1980 and continued touring the United States and Canada extensively.
Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981–1989)
On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk".
Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy, another ex-Skulls member, was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the last remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982–1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear.
1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement.
First breakup and reunion (1990–2002)
1990's Murder featured rawer, almost thrash metal production, rather than their original basic punk sound. The same year also produced a collaboration with Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra with Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors. In August 1990, Joey decided he was breaking up D.O.A. but, at the suggestion of promoter Dirk Dirksen, they did a farewell tour of the West Coast, playing their "final" show on December 1, 1990 at the Commodore in Vancouver. In 1991, they released a posthumous live album entitled Talk Minus Action = 0 while Keithley pursued an acting career.
19 months after D.O.A. broke up, Joey Shithead and Wimpy Roy had reunited as D.O.A in the summer of 1992. Fellow Canadian punk rock veteran John Wright from NoMeansNo suggested they hire Ken Jensen from Red Tide as the new drummer, which they did. The new lineup released an EP and two albums in the early 1990s, 13 Flavours Of Doom and Loggerheads. These albums found the band replacing the more hard-rock oriented sound of the 1980s with a return to punk rock, although it was a heavier, tighter brand of punk than their earlier work. These albums were produced by Wright, who also played keyboards on the recordings. The band then added Ford Pier on guitar and vocals.
Tragedy struck in 1995 when drummer Ken Jensen died in a house fire. The "Ken Jensen Memorial Single" EP was released on Alternative Tentacles, including two tracks each from D.O.A. and Red Tide. With John Wright filling in on drums, ninth full-length The Black Spot was recorded. The album featured a more basic, sing-along type punk rock sound that was reminiscent of the band's late 1970s and early 1980s output.
The late 1990s found the band's lineup in turmoil, with Wimpy Roy leaving the band after a decade and a half of service and Kuba joining to play bass from 1997 until 2001. Keithley experimented with different bassists and drummers and released the album Festival Of Atheists in 1998. By the early 2000s, the band had found a permanent drummer in the form of The Great Baldini. In 2002, Keithley put out his first solo album, Beat Trash, and original bassist Randy Rampage returned to the band after nearly 20 years for the Win The Battle album. However, the reunion did not last, with Rampage leaving the band again after the recording of the album, to be replaced by Dan Yaremko.
The Lost Tapes was the first release on Keithley's revived Sudden Death label, followed by Festival Of Atheists. During this period, Keithley also oversaw the re-release of the band's classic early records on Sudden Death, several of which had been out of print for many years.
Later years and second hiatus (2003–2013)
In 2003, Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell declared December 21 to be "D.O.A. Day" in honour of the band's 25th anniversary. In the same year, the band released a career-spanning retrospective entitled War And Peace. 2004 found the band releasing the ska-flavoured Live Free or Die. In 2006, Randy Rampage rejoined D.O.A. for his 3rd stint in the band.
The lineup remained stable until 2008, when The Great Baldini left the band to be replaced by new drummer James Hayden. Also in 2008, it was announced that Bob Rock, of Metallica fame would be producing the band's next album in time for their 30th anniversary. James Hayden quit before D.O.A. started to record to be replaced by Floor Tom Jones In September 2008, D.O.A. released Northern Avenger and embarked on their 30th anniversary tour. On the eve of the tour, it was announced that Randy Rampage was being replaced by Dan Yaremko once again.
D.O.A. played several dates in the summer of 2009 as part of the Van's Warped Tour 2009.
On May 1, 2010, D.O.A. released their fourteenth full-length album Talk Minus Action = Zero (a similarly titled live album Talk Minus Action Equals Zero had previously been released in 1990). Drummer Jesse Pinner (of the band Raised by Apes) took the place of Floor Tom Jones beginning on D.O.A.'s subsequent August 2010 tour due to Floor Tom Jones' commitments to his job at Canada Post.
In 2012, Joe announced that he would be seeking nomination as an NDP candidate in the B.C. provincial election. As a result, D.O.A. announced an indefinite hiatus, and began their farewell tour on January 18, 2013 in celebration of the band's thirty-five year anniversary.
Second reunion and recent activity (2014–present)
On September 22, 2014, Keithley officially announced on the Sudden Death Records website that he had decided to reform the band with Paddy Duddy on drums and Mike "Maggot" Hodsall on bass, and would be embarking on a Canadian tour in October in support of the recently released live album, Welcome To Chinatown. This lineup recorded and released the studio album Hard Rain Falling in 2015. In April 2016, the band released a new version of "Fucked Up Ronnie" entitled "Fucked Up Donald" (referring to the 2016 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump) as a single.
Members
Current lineup
Joe Keithley – vocals, guitar (1978–present), bass (1996–1998)
Mike Hodsall – bass (2014–present)
Paddy Duddy – drums (2014–present)
Former members
Harry Homo - lead vocals (1978)
Brad Kent - guitar (1978)
Randy Romance - guitar (1978)
Zippy Pinhead - drums (1979; died 2019)
Simon Wilde - bass (1979-1980; died 1994)
Andy Graffiti - drums (1979-1980)
Randy Rampage – bass (1978–1982, 2000–2002, 2006–2009; died 2018)
Chuck Biscuits – drums (1978–1982)
Dave Gregg – guitar (1979–1988; died 2014)
Brian Roy Goble – bass (1982–1996; died 2014)
Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery – bass (1982), drums (1982–1983, 1984-1986; died 1994)
Gregg "Ned Peckerwood" James - drums (1983-1984)
Kerr Belliveau - drums (1986)
Jon Card – drums (1986–1990)
Chris Prohom – guitar (1988–1990)
Ken Jensen – drums (1992–1995; died 1995)
Jon Wright – keyboards (1992–1995), drums (1995–1996)
Ford Pier – guitar (1994–1996)
Wycliffe - bass (1997)
Kuba van der Pol - bass (1998-2000, 2002-2003)
Brien O’Brien – drums (1997–1999)
The Great Baldini – drums (2000–2008)
Dan Yaremko – bass (2003–2006, 2009–2013)
Floor Tom Jones – drums (2008–2010)
Jesse Pinner – drums (2010–2013)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Something Better Change (1980)
Hardcore '81 (1981)
Let's Wreck The Party (1985)
True (North) Strong And Free (1987)
Murder (1990)
13 Flavours of Doom (1992)
Loggerheads (1993)
The Black Spot (1995)
Festival Of Atheists (1998)
Win the Battle (2002)
Live Free Or Die (2004)
Northern Avenger (2008)
Kings of Punk, Hockey and Beer (2009)
Talk-Action=0 (2010)
We Come In Peace (2012)
Hard Rain Falling (2015)
Fight Back (2018)
Treason (2020)
Live albums
Talk Minus Action Equals Zero (1991)
Welcome to Chinatown (2013)
EPs
Positively (1981)
War on 45 (1982)
D.O.A. & Thor - Are U Ready (2003)
Collaborations
Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors (With Jello Biafra) (1990)
Solo albums
Beat Trash (2002) - Solo Project from Joey "Shithead" Keithley
References
External links
The official D.O.A. myspace
CanadianBands.com entry
Sudden Death records
Interview with Joey Shithead
Snot Rag interview with Dimwit (1979)
Robert Christgau's review of five D.O.A. albums
Scanner zine interview with Joey Shithead
Late Night Wallflower interview with Joey Shithead (2007)
Toronto Music Scene Interview with Joey Shithead
The Ruckus - Audio Interview with Joey Keithley from September 2008
Musical groups established in 1978
Musical groups disestablished in 2013
Musical groups reestablished in 2014
Canadian hardcore punk groups
Canadian activists
Musical groups from Vancouver
Alternative Tentacles artists
1978 establishments in British Columbia
Political music groups | true | [
"Live and Unplugged is the debut live album and second acoustic release by American rock band Sleeping with Sirens. It was released on April 8, 2016 worldwide by Epitaph. The lead single, a different version of \"Gold\", a track from the band's previous album, Madness (2015), was released on February 12, 2016.\n\nBackground and recording \nThe band's fourth studio album, Madness, was followed with a world tour with Pierce the Veil. After which, the band embarked on an acoustic tour, named We Like It Quiet (a reference to the song \"We Like It Loud\" from the group's previous album) with a sound similar to the band's first acoustic endeavour, If You Were a Movie, This Would Be Your Soundtrack. However, the two releases differed in that Live and Unplugged made use of more than just acoustic guitars, and has more of an alternative rock sound than the soft rock of the former.\n\nThe lead single was released via Twitter and gave fans a taste of how the album would sound. In an interview with Kerrang!, Kellin Quinn announced that it would be different due to the fact that the group's 'live dynamic is very different (in a good way) compared to [the band's] studio sound'.\n\nRelease and reception \nThe album was met with critical acclaim. Hit the Floor gave it an almost perfect 9/10 rating, stating 'Sleeping With Sirens did a phenomenal job at keeping their tracks fun and fresh in their acoustic, unplugged state'.\n\nIt charted at number four on the UK Rock Charts.\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences \n\n2016 live albums\nEpitaph Records live albums\nSleeping with Sirens albums",
"Sound of Water is an album by Saint Etienne, released in 2000. Sound of Water was developed as Saint Etienne's ambient and trip hop statement.\n\nThe album's lead single was \"How We Used to Live,\" which was not edited down from its 9-minute running length for single release.\n\nTheir previous US release Places to Visit was clearly the beginning of this new direction. Many of the artists with whom they collaborated on that EP are present on Sound of Water.\n\nDuring the group's tenure with Sub Pop (1998–2005), Saint Etienne released many albums. Places to Visit preceded Sound of Water. In turn, the label released Interlude a year afterwards. Interlude is an album of mostly b-sides from the Sound of Water singles, as well as a couple from the Good Humor era.\n\nThe album is one of the few releases on which the band did not collaborate with Ian Catt in some way. The album was co-produced by Gerard Johnson and had arrangements by To Rococo Rot and Sean O'Hagan. It was recorded at To Rococo Rot's studio, Amber Sound, in Berlin, Germany. The band have described the recording sessions as 'working in an airless, windowless oven'. \n\n\"The Place at Dawn\" contains a sample of Magna Carta's \"Medley\", from the 1970 album Seasons.\n\nReissue\nSound Of Water was remastered and reissued as part of Heavenly Recordings/Universal's deluxe editions of the band's recordings on . The same deluxe edition was released in the United States on 30 June 2017 by PIAS Recordings. The new release features b-sides, unreleased tracks and the entire Places to Visit EP, which was previously only released in the United States and Germany.\n\nArtwork\nThe album and singles artwork were all designed by Julian Opie.\n\nTrack listing\n\nNotes\n\nDue to a mastering error on the 2009 deluxe edition of the album, the song \"Blofeld Buildings\" is longer than the original version featured on the fan-club compilation Built On Sand. The same song starts playing again at the 1:32 mark, which makes the whole track end at 6:11. The 2017 reissue of the release corrected this flaw.\n\nCredits \nSaint Etienne is:\nSarah Cracknell\nBob Stanley\nPete Wiggs\n\nAugmented by:\nGerard Johnson\nRobert Lippok\nRonald Lippok\nSean O'Hagan\nStefan Schneider\n\nB-sides\nFrom \"How We Used to Live\"\n \"Roseneck\"\n \"Red Setter\" (An alternative version of the 12\" exists with a 4:25 instrumental version of \"Red Setter\").\n \"How We Used to Live\" (Although it is not described as such, the 8:56 version on this single appears to have been remixed slightly)\n \"How We Used to Live (Dot Allison Mix)\"\n \"How We Used to Live (Aim Mix)\"\n\nFrom \"Heart Failed (In the Back of a Taxi)\"\n \"Thank You\"\n \"Bar Conscience\"\n \"Heart Failed (In the Back of a Taxi) (Two Lone Swordsmen Mix)\"\n \"Heart Failed (In the Back of a Taxi) (Futureshock Vocal Mix)\"\n \"Heart Failed (In the Back of a Taxi) (Bridge & Tunnel Mix)\"\n\nFrom \"Boy Is Crying\"\n \"Boy Is Crying (Single Mix)\" (Remixed by Lee Mullin and Mike Truman)\n \"Northwestern\"\n \"Shoot Out the Lights\"\n \"Boy Is Crying (Hybrid Mix)\"\n \"Northwestern (SI-Cut, DB Mix)\"\n \"How We Used to Live (Paul van Dyk Mix)\"\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\n2000 albums\nSaint Etienne (band) albums\nSub Pop albums"
]
|
[
"D.O.A. (band)",
"Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981-1989)",
"What was Hardcore 81?",
"On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81;",
"who was fired from the band?",
"Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982",
"Who replaced him?",
"replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass.",
"who left the band to work for Black Flag?",
"Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag.",
"what type of production did the band have?",
"hard-rock oriented production,",
"how did the band expound their sound?",
"War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae,"
]
| C_d7fc5b363aea4cef987d3bb337412a40_1 | who was the band manager that was fired? | 7 | Who was the D.O.A band manager that was fired? | D.O.A. (band) | On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk". Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the only remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982-1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear. 1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was very close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement. CANNOTANSWER | D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, | D.O.A. is a Canadian punk rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Angry Samoans, The Bags, Germs, Negative Trend, and Middle Class. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore.
Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, with original bassist Randy Rampage returning to the band twice after his original departure. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records, and they have released an album with Biafra on vocals titled Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors.
D.O.A. is known for its outspoken political opinions and has a history of performing for many causes and benefits. Its slogan is "Talk Minus Action Equals Zero." The band's lyrics and imagery frequently advocate anti-racism, anti-globalization, freedom of speech, and environmentalism.
Founder Joe Keithley is also the founder of Sudden Death Records which has released music by D.O.A. and several other bands including Pointed Sticks and Young Canadians.
History
Formation and early years (1977–1980)
D.O.A. has its origins in The Skulls, an early Vancouver-area punk rock band that included future D.O.A. members Joey "Shithead" Keithley, Brian "Wimpy Roy" Goble, and Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery.
When the Skulls broke up after an ill-fated move to Toronto, Keithley moved back to Vancouver and formed D.O.A. in early 1978 with himself on guitar, Dimwit's brother Chuck Biscuits on drums, Randy Rampage on bass, and a lead singer known only as "Harry Homo", who suggested the band's name. The band's first gig took place at the Japanese Hall in Vancouver on February 20 of that year, after which Harry Homo was sacked for an apparent lack of rhythm; Keithley then became the band's singer. A second guitarist named "Randy Romance" played briefly with the band in March 1978 before leaving.
The band began playing frequently around Vancouver and added guitarist Brad Kent the following June. That summer, they recorded and self-released their first single, the four-song EP Disco Sucks. The single soon topped the charts of the University of San Francisco radio station KUSF, which prompted the band to begin touring down to San Francisco. They played their first shows there in August 1978 at Mabuhay Gardens. It was during this trip that the band first met Dead Kennedys frontman and future collaborator Jello Biafra. Kent was fired from the band in September and later that fall the band recorded and released their second single "The Prisoner".
In May 1979, the band embarked on their first North American tour. Upon its completion they hired Vancouver journalist and activist Ken Lester as their manager. Lester booked another tour for them the following October, in the middle of which they flew back to Vancouver to open for The Clash at the Pacific Coliseum. They soon after released their third single, "World War 3" / "Whatcha Gonna Do?". In late 1979, they added second guitarist, Dave Gregg. Soon after, Biscuits and Rampage left the band after a disastrous gig at the University of British Columbia's Student Union Building and were replaced by Andy Graffiti and Simon "Stubby Pecker" Wilde on drums and bass, respectively. Keithley soon became dissatisfied with the band's performances with the new lineup, however, and Biscuits and Rampage both rejoined the band in March 1980.
D.O.A. released their full-length debut Something Better Change on Friends Records in 1980 and continued touring the United States and Canada extensively.
Hardcore 81 and further lineup changes (1981–1989)
On April 22, 1981 the band released their second album Hardcore '81; the record's title and its extensive North American promotional tour is sometimes credited with popularizing the term "hardcore punk".
Randy Rampage was fired from the band on January 1, 1982 and was replaced by ex-Skulls drummer Dimwit on bass. After a short tour of California, Chuck Biscuits left the band and joined Black Flag. Dimwit switched back to drums and Subhumans singer Wimpy Roy, another ex-Skulls member, was hired as the new bass player and second singer, leaving Keithley as the last remaining original member. This lineup would last from 1982–1983 and later 1985-1986 and produced several notable releases, including the EP War on 45 (now expanded into a full-length album). War on 45 found the band expanding their sound with touches of funk and reggae, as well as making their anti-war and anti-imperialist political stance more clear.
1985's Let's Wreck The Party and 1987's True (North) Strong And Free saw the band taking on a more mainstream, hard-rock oriented production, but without watering down the band's political lyrical focus. Meanwhile, the band's lineup changes continued after Let's Wreck the Party, with Dimwit replaced by Kerr Belliveau. Belliveau stayed only three weeks with the band but recorded the Expo Hurts Everyone 7" as well as two songs for True (North) Strong and Free before being replaced by Jon Card from Personality Crisis. Dave Gregg quit in 1988 after D.O.A. fired their manager Ken Lester, to which he was close. The band hired Chris Prohom from the Dayglo Abortions as a replacement.
First breakup and reunion (1990–2002)
1990's Murder featured rawer, almost thrash metal production, rather than their original basic punk sound. The same year also produced a collaboration with Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra with Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors. In August 1990, Joey decided he was breaking up D.O.A. but, at the suggestion of promoter Dirk Dirksen, they did a farewell tour of the West Coast, playing their "final" show on December 1, 1990 at the Commodore in Vancouver. In 1991, they released a posthumous live album entitled Talk Minus Action = 0 while Keithley pursued an acting career.
19 months after D.O.A. broke up, Joey Shithead and Wimpy Roy had reunited as D.O.A in the summer of 1992. Fellow Canadian punk rock veteran John Wright from NoMeansNo suggested they hire Ken Jensen from Red Tide as the new drummer, which they did. The new lineup released an EP and two albums in the early 1990s, 13 Flavours Of Doom and Loggerheads. These albums found the band replacing the more hard-rock oriented sound of the 1980s with a return to punk rock, although it was a heavier, tighter brand of punk than their earlier work. These albums were produced by Wright, who also played keyboards on the recordings. The band then added Ford Pier on guitar and vocals.
Tragedy struck in 1995 when drummer Ken Jensen died in a house fire. The "Ken Jensen Memorial Single" EP was released on Alternative Tentacles, including two tracks each from D.O.A. and Red Tide. With John Wright filling in on drums, ninth full-length The Black Spot was recorded. The album featured a more basic, sing-along type punk rock sound that was reminiscent of the band's late 1970s and early 1980s output.
The late 1990s found the band's lineup in turmoil, with Wimpy Roy leaving the band after a decade and a half of service and Kuba joining to play bass from 1997 until 2001. Keithley experimented with different bassists and drummers and released the album Festival Of Atheists in 1998. By the early 2000s, the band had found a permanent drummer in the form of The Great Baldini. In 2002, Keithley put out his first solo album, Beat Trash, and original bassist Randy Rampage returned to the band after nearly 20 years for the Win The Battle album. However, the reunion did not last, with Rampage leaving the band again after the recording of the album, to be replaced by Dan Yaremko.
The Lost Tapes was the first release on Keithley's revived Sudden Death label, followed by Festival Of Atheists. During this period, Keithley also oversaw the re-release of the band's classic early records on Sudden Death, several of which had been out of print for many years.
Later years and second hiatus (2003–2013)
In 2003, Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell declared December 21 to be "D.O.A. Day" in honour of the band's 25th anniversary. In the same year, the band released a career-spanning retrospective entitled War And Peace. 2004 found the band releasing the ska-flavoured Live Free or Die. In 2006, Randy Rampage rejoined D.O.A. for his 3rd stint in the band.
The lineup remained stable until 2008, when The Great Baldini left the band to be replaced by new drummer James Hayden. Also in 2008, it was announced that Bob Rock, of Metallica fame would be producing the band's next album in time for their 30th anniversary. James Hayden quit before D.O.A. started to record to be replaced by Floor Tom Jones In September 2008, D.O.A. released Northern Avenger and embarked on their 30th anniversary tour. On the eve of the tour, it was announced that Randy Rampage was being replaced by Dan Yaremko once again.
D.O.A. played several dates in the summer of 2009 as part of the Van's Warped Tour 2009.
On May 1, 2010, D.O.A. released their fourteenth full-length album Talk Minus Action = Zero (a similarly titled live album Talk Minus Action Equals Zero had previously been released in 1990). Drummer Jesse Pinner (of the band Raised by Apes) took the place of Floor Tom Jones beginning on D.O.A.'s subsequent August 2010 tour due to Floor Tom Jones' commitments to his job at Canada Post.
In 2012, Joe announced that he would be seeking nomination as an NDP candidate in the B.C. provincial election. As a result, D.O.A. announced an indefinite hiatus, and began their farewell tour on January 18, 2013 in celebration of the band's thirty-five year anniversary.
Second reunion and recent activity (2014–present)
On September 22, 2014, Keithley officially announced on the Sudden Death Records website that he had decided to reform the band with Paddy Duddy on drums and Mike "Maggot" Hodsall on bass, and would be embarking on a Canadian tour in October in support of the recently released live album, Welcome To Chinatown. This lineup recorded and released the studio album Hard Rain Falling in 2015. In April 2016, the band released a new version of "Fucked Up Ronnie" entitled "Fucked Up Donald" (referring to the 2016 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump) as a single.
Members
Current lineup
Joe Keithley – vocals, guitar (1978–present), bass (1996–1998)
Mike Hodsall – bass (2014–present)
Paddy Duddy – drums (2014–present)
Former members
Harry Homo - lead vocals (1978)
Brad Kent - guitar (1978)
Randy Romance - guitar (1978)
Zippy Pinhead - drums (1979; died 2019)
Simon Wilde - bass (1979-1980; died 1994)
Andy Graffiti - drums (1979-1980)
Randy Rampage – bass (1978–1982, 2000–2002, 2006–2009; died 2018)
Chuck Biscuits – drums (1978–1982)
Dave Gregg – guitar (1979–1988; died 2014)
Brian Roy Goble – bass (1982–1996; died 2014)
Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery – bass (1982), drums (1982–1983, 1984-1986; died 1994)
Gregg "Ned Peckerwood" James - drums (1983-1984)
Kerr Belliveau - drums (1986)
Jon Card – drums (1986–1990)
Chris Prohom – guitar (1988–1990)
Ken Jensen – drums (1992–1995; died 1995)
Jon Wright – keyboards (1992–1995), drums (1995–1996)
Ford Pier – guitar (1994–1996)
Wycliffe - bass (1997)
Kuba van der Pol - bass (1998-2000, 2002-2003)
Brien O’Brien – drums (1997–1999)
The Great Baldini – drums (2000–2008)
Dan Yaremko – bass (2003–2006, 2009–2013)
Floor Tom Jones – drums (2008–2010)
Jesse Pinner – drums (2010–2013)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Something Better Change (1980)
Hardcore '81 (1981)
Let's Wreck The Party (1985)
True (North) Strong And Free (1987)
Murder (1990)
13 Flavours of Doom (1992)
Loggerheads (1993)
The Black Spot (1995)
Festival Of Atheists (1998)
Win the Battle (2002)
Live Free Or Die (2004)
Northern Avenger (2008)
Kings of Punk, Hockey and Beer (2009)
Talk-Action=0 (2010)
We Come In Peace (2012)
Hard Rain Falling (2015)
Fight Back (2018)
Treason (2020)
Live albums
Talk Minus Action Equals Zero (1991)
Welcome to Chinatown (2013)
EPs
Positively (1981)
War on 45 (1982)
D.O.A. & Thor - Are U Ready (2003)
Collaborations
Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors (With Jello Biafra) (1990)
Solo albums
Beat Trash (2002) - Solo Project from Joey "Shithead" Keithley
References
External links
The official D.O.A. myspace
CanadianBands.com entry
Sudden Death records
Interview with Joey Shithead
Snot Rag interview with Dimwit (1979)
Robert Christgau's review of five D.O.A. albums
Scanner zine interview with Joey Shithead
Late Night Wallflower interview with Joey Shithead (2007)
Toronto Music Scene Interview with Joey Shithead
The Ruckus - Audio Interview with Joey Keithley from September 2008
Musical groups established in 1978
Musical groups disestablished in 2013
Musical groups reestablished in 2014
Canadian hardcore punk groups
Canadian activists
Musical groups from Vancouver
Alternative Tentacles artists
1978 establishments in British Columbia
Political music groups | true | [
"The Apprentice is an Italian reality television series, in which a group of aspiring young businessmen and women compete for the chance to win a job as \"apprentice\" to Flavio Briatore, a business magnate.\n\nFirst edition\nWinner\nFrancesco Menegazzo, 29, Trader \nOther Contestants\nAlberto Belloni, 37, Businessman\nBeatrice Orlando, 33, College researcher\nChiara Gallana, 24, Public relations attendant\nDavide Gaiardelli, 34, Businessman\nDonatello Bellomo, 33, Marketing advisor\nEnrico Perone, 25, Advertiser\nEnrico Tarantino, 27, Software developer\nJessica Cibin, 26, Modeling agency manager\nMarcella Gamba, 39, Insurance agency manager\nMaria Elena Caruso, 29, Cosmetics agency CEO\nMartina Frappi, 25, Businessman and fashion designer\nMatteo Gatti, 38, Commercial consultant\nNorma Bossi, 27, Press office manager\nSilvia Fazzini, 24, Foreign languages student\nStefano Di Dio, 36, Business advisor\n\nDonatello and Norma haven't passed the last selection, so they are not part of the official cast.\n\n The candidate was on the winning team\n The candidate was on the losing team\n The candidate won as project manager\n The candidate lost as project manager\n The candidate was brought back to the boardroom\n The candidate was fired\n The candidate lost as project manager and was fired\n The candidate quit the competition\n The candidate won as project manager but was fired\n\nSecond edition\nWinner\nAlice Maffezzoli, 29 anni, Sales manager in the energy sector\nOther Contestants\nAnais Rean, 24, International sciences student\nAnna Zhitnikova, 28, Finance accounter in the lux sector\nEleonora Smith, 24, Business administration student\nFabio Cascione, 34, Commercial director in the wine sector\nFrancesco Del Pesce, 31, Corporate lawyer\nFulvio Cugno, 30, Web marketing businessman\nIngrid Altomare, 34, Advertising & digital account director\nMarco Martinelli, 22, Biotechnology student\nMario Crea, 34, Real estate manager\nMilena Pagani, 34, Sales manager in the amusement parks\nMuhannad Al Salhi, 25, Telecommunications sales manager\nSerena Marzucchi, 34, Public sector lawyer\nSimone Piadena, 42, Nightlife businessman\n\n The candidate was on the winning team\n The candidate was on the losing team\n The candidate won as project manager\n The candidate lost as project manager\n The candidate was brought back to the boardroom\n The candidate was fired\n The candidate lost as project manager and was fired\n The candidate was on the winning team, but was fired\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Official site\n\nItalian reality television series\nItaly\n2012 Italian television series debuts\n2012 Italian television series endings\n2010s Italian television series",
"The Texas Rangers are an American baseball franchise based in Arlington, Texas. They are members of the American League West division. The Rangers franchise was formed in 1961, then called the Washington Senators, as a member of the American League. In its 59-year history, the Texas Rangers baseball franchise of Major League Baseball's American League has employed 27 managers. The duties of the team manager include team strategy and leadership on and off the field.\n\nMickey Vernon became the first manager of the then Washington Senators in 1961, serving for just over two seasons. Ron Washington has managed more games and seasons than any other manager in Rangers history. Before 2010, the only Rangers manager to have led the team to the playoffs was Johnny Oates, who also won the 1996 Manager of the Year Award with the Rangers. Ted Williams is the only Rangers manager to have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame as a player; Whitey Herzog, who was inducted in the Hall in 2010, is only Rangers manager to earn induction as a manager.\n\nIn 1963, manager Mickey Vernon was fired and replaced by interim manager Eddie Yost. One game later, Yost was replaced by Gil Hodges. In 1973, Whitey Herzog was replaced by Del Wilber. One game later, Billy Martin took over the role of manager. In 1975, Frank Lucchesi took over for Martin in midseason, who in turn was replaced by Eddie Stanky. After six games, Connie Ryan could not finish the season, so Billy Hunter took over the role of manager, only to be fired with one game to go in the 1978 season and replaced by Pat Corrales. In 1982, Don Zimmer was fired as Rangers manager but continued to run the team for three more games before being replaced by Darrell Johnson. Rangers owner Eddie Chiles said the poor play of the Rangers had nothing to do with Zimmer's firing but was instead 'something personal'. In 1985, after Doug Rader led the Rangers to two losing seasons, he was replaced by Bobby Valentine, who in turn was replaced by Toby Harrah during midseason. In 2001, Johnny Oates' poor performance forced the Rangers to hire Jerry Narron as his midseason replacement. Buck Showalter was hired as manager of the Texas Rangers following a last-place 2002 season under Narron. Showalter managed the Rangers through the 2006 season. Ron Washington next managed the team from 2007 to 2014, longer than any other person in the franchise's history, when he announced his resignation on September 5, 2014. Tim Bogar managed the rest of the season on an interim basis. Jeff Banister was hired to lead the team from 2015 to September 21, 2018, when he was fired. Don Wakamatsu replaced him as interim manager. Chris Woodward was later hired as the new manager for 2019.\n\nKey\n\nManagers\n\nStatistics current through the end of the 2021 season\n\nReferences\nIn-text citations\n\nGeneral references\n\n \nTexas Rangers\nmanagers"
]
|
[
"Vedic period",
"Origins"
]
| C_d9b2242390054bffb7b6fc9f9c992b13_1 | when did the Vedic period start? | 1 | When did the Vedic period start? | Vedic period | The commonly accepted period of earlier Vedic age is dated back to the second millennium BCE. After the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilisation, which ended c. 1900 BCE, groups of Indo-Aryan peoples migrated into north-western India and started to inhabit the northern Indus Valley. The Indo-Aryans were a branch of the Indo-Iranians, which--according to the most widespread hypothesis--have originated in the Andronovo culture in the Bactria-Margiana era, in present northern Afghanistan. Some writers and archaeologists have opposed the notion of a migration of Indo-Aryans into India. Edwin Bryant and Laurie Patton used the term "Indo-Aryan Controversy" for an oversight of the Indo-Aryan Migration theory, and some of its opponents. These ideas are outside the academic mainstream. Mallory and Adams note that two types of models "enjoy significant international currency" as to the Indo-European homeland, namely the Anatolian hypothesis, and a migration out of the Eurasian steppes. According to Upinder Singh, "The original homeland of the Indo-Europeans and Indo-Aryans is the subject of continuing debate among philologists, linguists, historians, archaeologists and others. The dominant view is that the Indo-Aryans came to the subcontinent as immigrants. Another view, advocated mainly by some Indian scholars, is that they were indigenous to the subcontinent." The knowledge about the Aryans comes mostly from the Rigveda-samhita, i. e. the oldest layer of the Vedas, which was composed c. 1500-1200 BCE. They brought with them their distinctive religious traditions and practices. The Vedic beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era were closely related to the hypothesised Proto-Indo-European religion, and the Indo-Iranian religion. According to Anthony, the Old Indic religion probably emerged among Indo-European immigrants in the contact zone between the Zeravshan River (present-day Uzbekistan) and (present-day) Iran. It was "a syncretic mixture of old Central Asian and new Indo-European elements", which borrowed "distinctive religious beliefs and practices" from the Bactria-Margiana Culture. CANNOTANSWER | The commonly accepted period of earlier Vedic age is dated back to the second millennium BCE. | The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (ca. 1300–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, between the end of the Urban Indus Valley Civilisation and a second urbanisation which began in the central Indo-Gangetic Plain BCE. The Vedas are liturgical texts which formed the basis of modern day Hinduism, which also developed in the Kuru Kingdom. The Vedas contain details of life during this period that have been interpreted to be historical and constitute the primary sources for understanding the period. These documents, alongside the corresponding archaeological record, allow for the evolution of the Vedic culture to be traced and inferred.
The Vedas were composed and orally transmitted with precision in this period. The Vedic society was patriarchal and patrilineal. Early Indo-Aryans were a Late Bronze Age society centred in the Punjab, organised into tribes rather than kingdoms, and primarily sustained by a pastoral way of life.
Around –1000 BCE Vedic culture spread eastward to the fertile western Ganges Plain. Iron tools were adopted, which allowed for the clearing of forests and the adoption of a more settled, agricultural way of life. The second half of the Vedic period was characterised by the emergence of towns, kingdoms, and a complex social differentiation distinctive to India, and the Kuru Kingdom's codification of orthodox sacrificial ritual. During this time, the central Ganges Plain was dominated by a related but non-Vedic culture, of Greater Magadha. The end of the Vedic period witnessed the rise of true cities and large states (called mahajanapadas) as well as śramaṇa movements (including Jainism and Buddhism) which challenged the Vedic orthodoxy.
The Vedic period saw the emergence of a hierarchy of social classes that would remain influential. Vedic religion developed into Brahmanical orthodoxy, and around the beginning of the Common Era, the Vedic tradition formed one of the main constituents of "Hindu synthesis".
Archaeological cultures identified with phases of vedic culture include the Ochre Coloured Pottery culture, the Gandhara grave culture, the black and red ware culture and the Painted Grey Ware culture.
History
Origins
The early Vedic age is historically dated to the second half of the second millennium BCE. Historically, after the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilisation, which occurred around 1900 BCE, groups of Indo-Aryan peoples migrated into north-western India and started to inhabit the northern Indus Valley. The Indo-Aryans represented a sub-group that diverged from other Indo-Iranian tribes at the Andronovo horizon before the middle of the 2nd millennium BCE, The Indo-Iranians originated in the Sintashta culture, from which arose the subsequent Andronovo horizon. The Indo-Aryans migrated through the adjacent Bactria–Margiana area (present-day northern Afghanistan) to northwest India, followed by the rise of the Iranian Yaz culture at 1500 BCE, and the Iranian migrations into Iran at 800 BCE.
Some Indian writers and archaeologists have opposed the notion of a migration of Indo-Aryans into India, and argued for an indigenous origin of the Indo-Aryans. In this view, "the Indian civilization must be viewed as an unbroken tradition that goes back to the earliest period of the Sindhu-Sarasvati (or Indus) tradition (7000 or 8000 BCE)." Though popular in India, and reflecting Indian views on Indian history and religion, the idea of a purely indigenous origin of the Indo-Aryans is outside the academic mainstream.
The knowledge about the Aryans comes mostly from the Rigveda-samhita, i.e. the oldest layer of the Vedas, which was composed 1200–1000 BCE. They brought with them their distinctive religious traditions and practices. The Vedic beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era were closely related to the hypothesised Proto-Indo-European religion, and the Indo-Iranian religion. Funeral sacrifices from the Sintashta-culture show close parallels to the sacrificial funeral rites of the Rigveda, while, according to Anthony, the Old Indic religion probably emerged among Indo-European immigrants in the contact zone between the Zeravshan River (present-day Uzbekistan) and (present-day) Tajikistan. It was "a syncretic mixture of old Central Asian and new Indo-European elements", which borrowed "distinctive religious beliefs and practices" from the Bactria–Margiana culture, including the god Indra and the ritual drink Soma.
Early Vedic period (c. 1500 – c. 1000 BCE)
The Rigveda contains accounts of conflicts between the Aryas and the Dasas and Dasyus. It describes Dasas and Dasyus as people who do not perform sacrifices (akratu) or obey the commandments of gods (avrata). Their speech is described as mridhra which could variously mean soft, uncouth, hostile, scornful or abusive. Other adjectives which describe their physical appearance are subject to many interpretations. However, some modern scholars such as Asko Parpola connect the Dasas and Dasyus to Iranian tribes Dahae and Dahyu and believe that Dasas and Dasyus were early Indo-Aryan immigrants who arrived into the subcontinent before the Vedic Aryans. Likwise, Bronkhorst has argued that the central Ganges Plain was dominated by a related but non-Vedic Indo-Aryan culture, a difference also noted by Samuel.
Accounts of military conflicts inbetween the various tribes of Vedic Aryans are also described in the Rigveda. Most notable of such conflicts was the Battle of Ten Kings, which took place on the banks of the river Parushni (modern day Ravi). The battle was fought between the tribe Bharatas, led by their chief Sudas, against a confederation of ten tribes. The Bharatas lived around the upper regions of the river Saraswati, while the Purus, their western neighbours, lived along the lower regions of Saraswati. The other tribes dwelt north-west of the Bharatas in the region of Punjab. Division of the waters of Ravi could have been a reason for the war. The confederation of tribes tried to inundate the Bharatas by opening the embankments of Ravi, yet Sudas emerged victorious in the Battle of Ten Kings. The Bharatas and the Purus merged into a new tribe, the Kuru, after the war.
Later Vedic period (c. 1000 – c. 600 BCE)
After the 12th century BCE, as the Rigveda had taken its final form, the Vedic society, which is associated with the Kuru-Panchala region but were not the only Indo-Aryan people in northern India, transitioned from semi-nomadic life to settled agriculture in north-western India. Possession of horses remained an important priority of Vedic leaders and a remnant of the nomadic lifestyle, resulting in trade routes beyond the Hindu Kush to maintain this supply as horses needed for cavalry and sacrifice could not be bred in India. The Gangetic plains had remained out of bounds to the Vedic tribes because of thick forest cover. After 1000 BCE, the use of iron axes and ploughs became widespread and the jungles could be cleared with ease. This enabled the Vedic Aryans to extend their settlements into the western area of the Ganga-Yamuna Doab. Many of the old tribes coalesced to form larger political units.
The Vedic religion was further developed with the emergence of the Kuru kingdom, systematising its religious literature and developing the Śrauta ritual. It is associated with the Painted Grey Ware culture (c.1200–600 BCE), which did not expand east of the Ganga-Yamuya Doab. It differed from the related, yet markedly different, culture of the Central Ganges region, which was associated with the Northern Black Polished Ware and the Mahajanapadas of Kosala and Magadha.
In this period the varna system emerged, state Kulke and Rothermund, which in this stage of Indian history were a "hierarchical order of estates which reflected a division of labor among various social classes". The Vedic period estates were four: Brahmin priests and warrior nobility stood on top, free peasants and traders were the third, and slaves, labourers and artisans, many belonging to the indigenous people, were the fourth. This was a period where agriculture, metal, and commodity production, as well as trade, greatly expanded, and the Vedic era texts including the early Upanishads and many Sutras important to later Hindu culture were completed.
The Kuru Kingdom, the earliest Vedic "state", was formed by a "super-tribe" which joined several tribes in a new unit. To govern this state, Vedic hymns were collected and transcribed, and new rituals were developed, which formed the now orthodox Śrauta rituals. Two key figures in this process of the development of the Kuru state were the king Parikshit and his successor Janamejaya, transforming this realm into the dominant political and cultural power of northern Iron Age India.
The most well-known of the new religious sacrifices that arose in this period were the Ashvamedha (horse sacrifice). This sacrifice involved setting a consecrated horse free to roam the kingdoms for a year. The horse was followed by a chosen band of warriors. The kingdoms and chiefdoms in which the horse wandered had to pay homage or prepare to battle the king to whom the horse belonged. This sacrifice put considerable pressure on inter-state relations in this era. This period saw also the beginning of the social stratification by the use of varna, the division of Vedic society in Brahmins, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra.
The Kuru kingdom declined after its defeat by the non-Vedic Salva tribe, and the political center of Vedic culture shifted east, into the Panchala kingdom on the Ganges, under King Keśin Dālbhya (approximately between 900 and 750 BCE). Later, in the 8th or 7th century BCE, the kingdom of Videha emerged as a political center farther to the East, in what is today northern Bihar of India and southeastern Nepal, reaching its prominence under the king Janaka, whose court provided patronage for Brahmin sages and philosophers such as Yajnavalkya, Uddalaka Aruni, and Gargi Vachaknavi; Panchala also remained prominent during this period, under its king Pravahana Jaivali.
Towards urbanization
By the 6th century BCE, the political units consolidated into large kingdoms called Mahajanapadas. The process of urbanisation had begun in these kingdoms, commerce and travel flourished, even regions separated by large distances became easy to access. Anga, a small kingdom to the east of Magadha (on the door step of modern-day West Bengal), formed the eastern boundary of the Vedic culture. Yadavas expanded towards the south and settled in Mathura. To the south of their kingdom was Vatsa which was governed from its capital Kausambi. The Narmada River and parts of North Western Deccan formed the southern limits. The newly formed states struggled for supremacy and started displaying imperial ambitions.
The end of the Vedic period is marked by linguistic, cultural and political changes. The grammar of Pāṇini marks a final apex in the codification of Sutra texts, and at the same time the beginning of Classical Sanskrit. The invasion of Darius I of the Indus valley in the early 6th century BCE marks the beginning of outside influence, continued in the kingdoms of the Indo-Greeks. Meanwhile, in the Kosala-Magadha region, the shramana movements (including Jainism and Buddhism) objected the self-imposed authority and orthodoxy of the intruding Brahmins and their Vedic scriptures and ritual. According to Bronkhorst, the sramana culture arose in "Greater Magadha," which was Indo-European, but not Vedic. In this culture, kshatriyas were placed higher than Brahmins, and it rejected Vedic authority and rituals.
Culture
Society
While Vedic society was relatively egalitarian in the sense that a distinct hierarchy of socio-economic classes or castes was absent, the Vedic period saw the emergence of a hierarchy of social classes. Political hierarchy was determined by rank, where rājan (tribal king or chieftain) and rājanya (tribal nobility) stood at the top, the viś (the common people) in the middle, and the dāsa and dasyu (non-Indo-Aryan servants) at the bottom. The words Brahamana and Kshatriya occur in various family books of the Rigveda, but they are not associated with the term varna. The words Vaishya and Shudra are absent. Verses of the Rigveda, such as 3.44-45, indicate the absence of strict social hierarchy and the existence of social mobility:
The institution of marriage was important and different types of marriages— monogamy, polygyny and polyandry are mentioned in the Rigveda. Both women sages and female gods were known to Vedic Aryans. Women could choose their husbands and could remarry if their husbands died or disappeared. The wife enjoyed a respectable position. People consumed milk, milk products, grains, fruits and vegetables. Meat eating is mentioned; however, cows are labelled aghnya (not to be killed). Clothes of cotton, wool and animal skin were worn. Soma and sura were popular drinks in the Vedic society, of which soma was sanctified by religion. Flute (vana), lute (vina), harp, cymbals and drums were the musical instruments played and a heptatonic scale was used. Dancing, dramas, chariot racing and gambling were other popular pastimes.
The emergence of monarchical states in the later Vedic age led to a distancing of the rajan from the people and the emergence of a varna hierarchy. The society was divided into four social groups—Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. The later Vedic texts fixed social boundaries, roles, status and ritual purity for each of the groups. The Shatapatha Brahmana associates the Brahmana with purity of parentage, good conduct, glory, teaching or protecting people; Kshatriya with strength, fame, ruling, and warfare; Vaishya with material prosperity and production-related activities such as cattle rearing and agriculture; Shudras with the service of the higher varnas. The effects of Rajasuya sacrifice depended on the varna of the sacrificer. Rajasuya endowed Brahmana with lustre, Kshatriya with valour, Vaishya with procreative power and Shudra with stability. The hierarchy of the top three varnas is ambiguous in the later Vedic texts. Panchavamsha Brahmana and verse 13.8.3.11 of the Shatapatha Brahmana place Kshatriya over Brahmana and Vaishya, whereas, verse 1.1.4.12 places Brahmana and Vaishya over the Kshatriya and Shudra. The Purusha sukta visualised the four varnas as hierarchical, but inter-related parts of an organic whole. Despite the increasing social stratification in the later Vedic times, hymns like Rigveda IX.112 suggest some amount of social mobility: "I am a reciter of hymns, my father a physician, and my mother grinds (corn) with stones. We desire to obtain wealth in various actions."
Household became an important unit in the later Vedic age. The variety of households of the Vedic era gave way to an idealised household which was headed by a grihapati. The relations between husband and wife, father and son were hierarchically organised and the women were relegated to subordinate and docile roles. Polygyny was more common than polyandry and texts like Tattiriya Samhita indicate taboos around menstruating women. Various professions women took to are mentioned in the later Vedic texts. Women tended to cattle, milked cows, carded wool; were weavers, dyers, and corn grinders. Women warriors such as Vishphala, who lost a leg in battle, are mentioned. Two female philosophers are mentioned in the Upanishads. Patrick Olivelle, in his translation of the Upanishads, writes that "the fact that these women are introduced without any attempt to justify or to explain how women could be engaged in theological matters suggests the relatively high social and religious position of at least women of some social strata during this period."
Political organisation
Early Vedic Aryans were organised into tribes rather than kingdoms. The chief of a tribe was called a rajan. The autonomy of the rajan was restricted by the tribal councils called sabha and samiti. The two bodies were, in part, responsible for the governance of the tribe. The rajan could not accede to the throne without their approval. The distinction between the two bodies is not clear. Arthur Llewellyn Basham, a noted historian and indologist, theorises that sabha was a meeting of great men in the tribe, whereas, samiti was a meeting of all free tribesmen. Some tribes had no hereditary chiefs and were directly governed by the tribal councils. Rajan had a rudimentary court which was attended by courtiers (sabhasad) and chiefs of sects (gramani). The main responsibility of the rajan was to protect the tribe. He was aided by several functionaries, including the purohita (chaplain), the senani (army chief), dutas (envoys) and spash (spies). Purohita performed ceremonies and spells for success in war and prosperity in peace.
In the later Vedic period, the tribes had consolidated into small kingdoms, which had a capital and a rudimentary administrative system. To aid in governing these new states, the kings and their Brahmin priests arranged Vedic hymns into collections and developed a new set of rituals (the now orthodox Śrauta rituals) to strengthen the emerging social hierarchy. The rajan was seen as the custodian of social order and the protector of rashtra (polity). Hereditary kingship started emerging and competitions like chariot races, cattle raids, and games of dice, which previously decided who was worthy of becoming a king, became nominal. Rituals in this era exalted the status of the king over his people. He was occasionally referred to as samrat (supreme ruler). The rajan's increasing political power enabled him to gain greater control over the productive resources. The voluntary gift offering (bali) became compulsory tribute; however, there was no organised system of taxation. Sabha and samiti are still mentioned in later Vedic texts, though, with the increasing power of the king, their influence declined. By the end of the later Vedic age, different kinds of political systems such as monarchical states (rajya), oligarchical states (gana or sangha), and tribal principalities had emerged in India.
According to Michael Witzel's analysis of the Kuru Kingdom, it can be characterized as the earliest Vedic "state", during the Middle Vedic Period. However, Robert Bellah observes that it is difficult to "pin down" whether the Kurus were a true "state" or a complex chiefdom, as the Kuru kings notably never adopted royal titles higher than "rājan," which means "chief" rather than "king" in the Vedic context. The Middle Vedic Period is also characterized by a lack of cities; Bellah compares this to early state formation in ancient Hawaii and "very early Egypt," which were "territorial states" rather than "city-states," and thus "it was the court, not the city, that provided the center, and the court was often peripatetic." Romila Thapar characterizes Vedic-era state formation as being in a condition of "arrested development," because local chiefs were relatively autonomous, and because surplus wealth that could have been directed towards state-building was instead used for the increasingly grandiose rituals that also served to structure social relations. The period of the Upanishads, the final phase of the Vedic era, was approximately contemporaneous with a new wave of state formations, linked to the beginning of urbanization in the Ganges Valley: along with the growth of population and trade networks, these social and economic changes put pressure on older ways of life, setting the stage for the Upanishads and the subsequent śramaṇa movements, and the end of the Vedic Period, which was followed by the Mahajanapada period.
According to George Erdosy, archaeological data for the period of period from 1000 to 600 BCE shows a two-tiered settlement pattern in the Ganges Valley, with some "modest central places," suggestive of the existence of simple chiefdoms, with the Kurukshetra District itself displaying a more complex (albeit not yet urbanized) three-tiered hierarchy. Subsequently, (after 600 BCE) there are four tiers of site sizes, including large towns and fortified cities, consistent with an urbanized state-level society.
Economy
Economy in the Vedic period was sustained by a combination of pastoralism and agriculture. There are references, in the Rigveda, to the leveling of fields, seed processing, and storage of grains in large jars. War bounty was also a major source of wealth. Economic exchanges were conducted by gift giving, particularly to kings (bali) and priests (dana), and barter using cattle as a unit of currency. While gold is mentioned in some hymns, there is no indication of the use of coins. Metallurgy is not mentioned in the Rigveda, but the word ayas and instruments made from it such as razors, bangles, axes are mentioned. One verse mentions purification of ayas. Some scholars believe that ayas refers to iron and the words dham and karmara refer to iron-welders. However, philological evidence indicates that ayas in the Rigveda refers only to copper and bronze, while iron or śyāma ayas, literally "black metal", first is mentioned in the post-Rigvedic Atharvaveda, and therefore the Early Vedic Period was a Bronze Age culture whereas the Late Vedic Period was an Iron Age culture.
The transition of Vedic society from semi-nomadic life to settled agriculture in the later Vedic age led to an increase in trade and competition for resources. Agriculture dominated the economic activity along the Ganges valley during this period. Agricultural operations grew in complexity and usage of iron implements (krishna–ayas or shyama–ayas, literally black metal or dark metal) increased. Crops of wheat, rice, and barley were cultivated. Surplus production helped to support the centralised kingdoms that were emerging at this time. New crafts and occupations such as carpentry, leather work, tanning, pottery, astrology, jewellery, dying, and winemaking arose. Apart from copper, bronze, and gold, later Vedic texts also mention tin, lead, and silver.
Panis in some hymns refers to merchants, in others to stingy people who hid their wealth and did not perform Vedic sacrifices. Some scholars suggest that Panis were semitic traders, but the evidence for this is slim. Professions of warriors, priests, cattle-rearers, farmers, hunters, barbers, vintners and crafts of chariot-making, cart-making, carpentry, metal working, tanning, making of bows, sewing, weaving, making mats of grass and reed are mentioned in the hymns of the Rigveda. Some of these might have needed full-time specialists. There are references to boats and oceans. Book X of the Rigveda refers to both eastern and western oceans. Individual property ownership did not exist and clans as a whole enjoyed rights over lands and herds. Enslavement (dasa, dasi) in the course of war or as a result of non-payment of debt is mentioned. However, slaves worked in households rather than production-related activities.
Religion
Vedic religion
Texts considered to date to the Vedic period are mainly the four Vedas, but the Brahmanas, Aranyakas and the older Upanishads as well as the oldest Śrautasutras are also considered to be Vedic. The Vedas record the liturgy connected with the rituals and sacrifices performed by the 16 or 17 Śrauta priests and the purohitas.
The rishis, the composers of the hymns of the Rigveda, were considered inspired poets and seers (in post-Vedic times understood as "hearers" of an eternally existing Veda, Śruti means "what is heard").
The mode of worship was the performance of sacrifices (Yajna) which included the chanting of Rigvedic verses (see Vedic chant), singing of Samans and 'mumbling' of sacrificial mantras (Yajus). Yajna involved sacrifice and sublimation of the havana sámagri (herbal preparations) in the fire accompanied by the chanting of the Vedic mantras. The sublime meaning of the word yajna is derived from the Sanskrit verb yaj, which has a three-fold meaning of worship of deities (devapujana), unity (saògatikaraña) and charity (dána). An essential element was the sacrificial fire—the divine Agni—into which oblations were poured, as everything offered into the fire was believed to reach God. People prayed for abundance of rain, cattle, sons, long life and gaining 'heaven'.
Vedic people believed in the transmigration of the soul, and the peepul tree and cow were sanctified by the time of the Atharvaveda. Many of the concepts of Indian philosophy espoused later like Dharma, Karma etc. trace their root to the Vedas.
The main deities of the Vedic pantheon were Indra, Agni (the sacrificial fire), and Soma and some deities of social order such as Mitra–Varuna, Aryaman, Bhaga and Amsa, further nature deities such as Surya (the Sun), Vayu (the wind) and Prithivi (the earth). Goddesses included Ushas (the dawn), Prithvi and Aditi (the mother of the Aditya gods or sometimes the cow). Rivers, especially Saraswati, were also considered goddesses. Deities were not viewed as all-powerful. The relationship between humans and the deity was one of transaction, with Agni (the sacrificial fire) taking the role of messenger between the two. Strong traces of a common Indo-Iranian religion remain visible, especially in the Soma cult and the fire worship, both of which are preserved in Zoroastrianism.
Ethics in the Vedas are based on the concepts of Satya and Rta. Satya is the principle of integration rooted in the Absolute. Whereas, Ṛta is the expression of Satya, which regulates and coordinates the operation of the universe and everything within it. Conformity with Ṛta would enable progress whereas its violation would lead to punishment.
Influence on Hinduism
Around the beginning of the Common Era, the Vedic tradition formed one of the main constituents of the "Hindu synthesis". Vedic religion survived in the srayta ritual, whereas ascetic and devotional traditions like Yoga and Vedanta acknowledge the authority of the Vedas, but interpret the Vedic pantheon as a unitary view of the universe with 'God' (Brahman) seen as immanent and transcendent in the forms of Ishvara and Brahman. Later texts such as the Upanishads and epics, namely the Gita of Mahabharat, are essential parts of these later developments.
Literature
The reconstruction of the history of Vedic India is based on text-internal details, but can be correlated to relevant archaeological details. Linguistically, the Vedic texts could be classified in five chronological strata:
Rigvedic text: The Rigveda is by far the most archaic of the Vedic texts preserved, and it retains many common Indo-Iranian elements, both in language and in content, that are not present in any other Vedic text. Its time span likely corresponds to the Late Harappan culture, Gandhara grave culture and Ochre Coloured Pottery culture.
Mantra language texts: This period includes both the mantra and prose language of the Atharvaveda (Paippalada and Shaunmkiya), the Rigveda Khilani, the Samaveda Samhita (containing some 75 mantras not in the Rigveda), and the mantras of the Yajurveda. Many of these texts are largely derived from the Rigveda, but have undergone certain changes, both by linguistic change and by reinterpretation. Conspicuous changes include change of vishva "all" by sarva, and the spread of the kuru- verbal stem (for Rigvedic krno-). This is the time of the early Iron Age in north-western India, corresponding to the Black and Red Ware (BRW) and Painted Grey Ware (PGW) cultures, and the early Kuru Kingdom, dating from c. the 12th to 11th centuries BCE.
Samhita prose texts: This period marks the beginning of the collection and codification of a Vedic canon. An important linguistic change is the complete loss of the injunctive. The Brahmana part ('commentary' on mantras and ritual) of the Black Yajurveda (MS, KS, TS) belongs to this period. Archaeologically, the Painted Grey Ware (PGW) culture from c. 1000 or 900 BCE corresponds to the Kuru Kingdom and the subsequent eastward shift of the political centre from the Kurus to the Panchalas on the Ganges.
Brahmana prose texts: The Brahmanas proper of the four Vedas belong to this period, as well as the Aranyakas, the oldest of the Upanishads (BAU, ChU, JUB) and the oldest Śrautasutras (BSS, VadhSS). In the east, Videha (N. Bihar and Nepal) is established as the third main political centre of the Vedic period.
Sutra language texts: This is the last stratum of Vedic Sanskrit leading up to c. 500 BCE, comprising the bulk of the Śrauta and Grhya Sutras, and some Upanishads (e.g. KathU, MaitrU).
Visual arts
In northern India, some very early depictions of deities appear in the art of the Indus Valley Civilisation, but the following millennium, coinciding with the Indo–Aryan migration during the Vedic period, is devoid of such remains. It has been suggested that the early Vedic religion focused exclusively on the worship of purely "elementary forces of nature by means of elaborate sacrifices", which did not lend themselves easily to anthropomorphological representations. Various artefacts may belong to the Copper Hoard Culture (2nd millennium CE), some of them suggesting anthropomorphological characteristics. Interpretations vary as to the exact signification of these artifacts, or even the culture and the periodization to which they belonged. Some examples of artistic expression also appear in abstract pottery designs during the Black and red ware culture (1450–1200 BCE) or the Painted Grey Ware culture (1200–600 BCE), with finds in a wide area, including the area of Mathura.
Archaeology
Archaeological cultures identified with phases of Vedic material culture include the Ochre Coloured Pottery culture, the Gandhara Grave culture, the Black and red ware culture and the Painted Grey Ware culture.
Ochre coloured pottery culture was first found approximately between 1950 and 1951, in western Uttar Pradesh, in the Badaun and Bisjuar district. It is thought that this culture was prominent during the latter half of the 2nd millennium, within the transition between the Indus Valley civilization and the end of Harrapan culture. This pottery is typically created with wheel ware, and is ill-fired, to a fine to medium fabric, decorated with a red slip, and occasional black bands1. When this pottery was worked with, it often left an ochre color on the hands, most likely because of water-logging, bad firing, wind action, or a mixture of these factors. This pottery was found all throughout the doab, most of it found in the Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, and Bulandshahr districts, but also existing outside these districts, extending north and south of Bahadrabad. This pottery does, however, seem to exist within different time frames of popularity, ochre colored pottery seeming to occur in areas such as Rajasthan earlier than we see it in the doab, despite the doab being heavily associated with the culture.
Gandhara grave culture refers to the protohistoric cemeteries found in the Gandhara region, stretching all the way from Bajuar to the Indus. These cemeteries seem to follow a set grave structure and “mortuary practice”, such as inflexed inhumation and cremation. This culture is thought to occur in 3 stages: the lower, in which burials take place in masonry lined pits, the upper, in which urn burials and cremations are added, and the “surface” level, in which graves are covered with huge stone slabs.
In the lower stage, excavators found that these graves are typically 2–3 feet deep, and covered with stones on top. After digging out the stones, skeletons were found facing southwest to northeast, with the head facing one direction, and the hands laying on top of one another. Female skeletons were often found wearing hair pins and jewelry. Pottery is greatly important to this culture, as pottery was often used as a “grave good”, being buried with the bodies of the dead. Buried alongside the skeletons, we typically see various pots on top of the body, averaging at about 5 or less pieces of pottery per grave. Within this culture we typically see two kinds of pottery: gray ware, or red ware.
Black and red ware culture was coined as a term in 1946 by Sir Mortimer Wheeler. The pottery, as the name suggests, typically has a black rim/inside surface, and a red lower half on the outside of the piece. Red-ware pottery tends to fall into two categories: offering stands, or cooking vessels. Most of these pieces of pottery were open-mouthed bowls that were burnished, painted, or slipped on one side; however, jars, pots and dishes-on-stands have also been found in small quantities.
Black and red ware, and the surrounding culture, began its spread during the neolithic period and continues until the early medieval period in India, as well as being found in parts of West Asia and Egypt. There are many theories about the process of its creation, the most popular being the use of an inverted firing technique, or a simultaneous oxidation and reduction firing.
Painted grey ware culture is a significant pottery style that has been linked to a group of people who settled in Sutlej, Ghagger, and the Upper Ganga/Yamuna Valleys, loosely classified with the early Aryans who migrated to India in the beginning of the Vedic period. It’s also thought that the groups that introduced the painted grey ware culture also brought iron technology to the Indo-gangetic plains, making this pottery a momentous mark of the Northern Indian Iron age. The style of grey-ware often includes clay wheel-thrown into a smooth texture, ash-grey in color, and often decorated with black ink, creating small circular patterns, sometimes spirals, swastikas, or sigmas.
Grey-ware pottery is almost exclusively drinking ware, and tends to have three different forms: narrow-waisted, tall drinking glasses, middle-sized drinking goblets, and drinking vases with outturned lips. There was a distinct grey ware culture surrounding the establishment of the pottery, but while the culture is significant, grey ware has only made up 10–15% of found Vedic pottery, a majority of the pottery red ware, as grey ware pottery was seen as a “highly valued luxury”.
Puranic chronology of the Vedic period
The Puranic chronology, the timeline of events in ancient Indian history and mythology as narrated in post-Vedic Hindu texts such as the Mahabharatha, the Ramayana and the Puranas, envisions a much older chronology for the Vedic culture. In this view, the Vedas were received by the seven rishis thousands of years ago. The start of the reign of Manu Vaivasvate, the Manu of the current kalpa (aeon) and the progenitor of humanity, is dated by some as far back 7350 BCE. The Kurukshetra War, the background-scene of the Bhagavad Gita, which may relate historical events taking place ca. 1000 BCE at the heartland of Aryavarta, is dated in this chronology at 3100 BCE.
See also
History of India
Historical Vedic religion
Indus Valley Civilisation
Vedanga
Indigenous Aryanism
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Ancient India
Ancient history of Pakistan
Iron Age Asia
Iron Age cultures of South Asia
History of Punjab
History of Sindh
Indo-Aryan archaeological cultures
Civilizations
Ancient Indian culture
Ancient culture of Pakistan | false | [
"Vedic may refer to:\n\n The Vedas, the oldest preserved Indic texts\n Vedic Sanskrit, the language of these texts\n Vedic period, during which these texts were produced\n Vedic pantheon of gods mentioned in Vedas\n The historical Vedic religion, of which the Vedas record the liturgy\n Vedic mythology, the mythological aspects of the historical Vedic religion and Vedas\n Vedanga, \"auxiliary disciplines\" explaining the Vedas\n Upaveda, traditional Hindu disciplines of scholarship\n Ayurveda (medicine)\n Gandharvaveda (music)\n Dhanurveda (martial arts)\n Sthaptyaveda (architecture)\n In modern usage, anything loosely related to Hindu tradition\n Hinduism in general\n Vedic science (disambiguation)\n Maharishi Vedic Approach to Health, based on Ayurveda\n Bharati Krishna Tirtha's Vedic mathematics, system of mental calculation\n Vedic University (disambiguation)\n Vedic square, multiplication table\n Vedic metal, music genre\n VE-DIC, video-enhanced differential interference contrast microscopy\n\nSee also\nVeda (disambiguation)\nFifth Veda\nVedic City, Iowa, now called Maharishi Vedic City, a small settlement in Iowa, USA",
"Vedic religion or Vedic Hinduism may refer to:\n\nHistorical Vedic religion, the religion of the Indo-Aryans of northern India during the Vedic period\nHinduism, which developed out of the merger of Vedic religion with numerous local religious traditions\nŚrauta, surviving conservative traditions within Hinduism\n\nSee also\n Vedas, a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India\n Vedanta, originally a word used in Hindu philosophy as a synonym for that part of the Veda texts also known as the Upanishads\n Vedic (disambiguation)\n History of Hinduism"
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"The commonly accepted period of earlier Vedic age is dated back to the second millennium BCE."
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| C_d9b2242390054bffb7b6fc9f9c992b13_1 | Are there specific dates provided for the beginning of the Vedic period? | 2 | Are there specific dates provided for the beginning of the Vedic period? | Vedic period | The commonly accepted period of earlier Vedic age is dated back to the second millennium BCE. After the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilisation, which ended c. 1900 BCE, groups of Indo-Aryan peoples migrated into north-western India and started to inhabit the northern Indus Valley. The Indo-Aryans were a branch of the Indo-Iranians, which--according to the most widespread hypothesis--have originated in the Andronovo culture in the Bactria-Margiana era, in present northern Afghanistan. Some writers and archaeologists have opposed the notion of a migration of Indo-Aryans into India. Edwin Bryant and Laurie Patton used the term "Indo-Aryan Controversy" for an oversight of the Indo-Aryan Migration theory, and some of its opponents. These ideas are outside the academic mainstream. Mallory and Adams note that two types of models "enjoy significant international currency" as to the Indo-European homeland, namely the Anatolian hypothesis, and a migration out of the Eurasian steppes. According to Upinder Singh, "The original homeland of the Indo-Europeans and Indo-Aryans is the subject of continuing debate among philologists, linguists, historians, archaeologists and others. The dominant view is that the Indo-Aryans came to the subcontinent as immigrants. Another view, advocated mainly by some Indian scholars, is that they were indigenous to the subcontinent." The knowledge about the Aryans comes mostly from the Rigveda-samhita, i. e. the oldest layer of the Vedas, which was composed c. 1500-1200 BCE. They brought with them their distinctive religious traditions and practices. The Vedic beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era were closely related to the hypothesised Proto-Indo-European religion, and the Indo-Iranian religion. According to Anthony, the Old Indic religion probably emerged among Indo-European immigrants in the contact zone between the Zeravshan River (present-day Uzbekistan) and (present-day) Iran. It was "a syncretic mixture of old Central Asian and new Indo-European elements", which borrowed "distinctive religious beliefs and practices" from the Bactria-Margiana Culture. CANNOTANSWER | The | The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (ca. 1300–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, between the end of the Urban Indus Valley Civilisation and a second urbanisation which began in the central Indo-Gangetic Plain BCE. The Vedas are liturgical texts which formed the basis of modern day Hinduism, which also developed in the Kuru Kingdom. The Vedas contain details of life during this period that have been interpreted to be historical and constitute the primary sources for understanding the period. These documents, alongside the corresponding archaeological record, allow for the evolution of the Vedic culture to be traced and inferred.
The Vedas were composed and orally transmitted with precision in this period. The Vedic society was patriarchal and patrilineal. Early Indo-Aryans were a Late Bronze Age society centred in the Punjab, organised into tribes rather than kingdoms, and primarily sustained by a pastoral way of life.
Around –1000 BCE Vedic culture spread eastward to the fertile western Ganges Plain. Iron tools were adopted, which allowed for the clearing of forests and the adoption of a more settled, agricultural way of life. The second half of the Vedic period was characterised by the emergence of towns, kingdoms, and a complex social differentiation distinctive to India, and the Kuru Kingdom's codification of orthodox sacrificial ritual. During this time, the central Ganges Plain was dominated by a related but non-Vedic culture, of Greater Magadha. The end of the Vedic period witnessed the rise of true cities and large states (called mahajanapadas) as well as śramaṇa movements (including Jainism and Buddhism) which challenged the Vedic orthodoxy.
The Vedic period saw the emergence of a hierarchy of social classes that would remain influential. Vedic religion developed into Brahmanical orthodoxy, and around the beginning of the Common Era, the Vedic tradition formed one of the main constituents of "Hindu synthesis".
Archaeological cultures identified with phases of vedic culture include the Ochre Coloured Pottery culture, the Gandhara grave culture, the black and red ware culture and the Painted Grey Ware culture.
History
Origins
The early Vedic age is historically dated to the second half of the second millennium BCE. Historically, after the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilisation, which occurred around 1900 BCE, groups of Indo-Aryan peoples migrated into north-western India and started to inhabit the northern Indus Valley. The Indo-Aryans represented a sub-group that diverged from other Indo-Iranian tribes at the Andronovo horizon before the middle of the 2nd millennium BCE, The Indo-Iranians originated in the Sintashta culture, from which arose the subsequent Andronovo horizon. The Indo-Aryans migrated through the adjacent Bactria–Margiana area (present-day northern Afghanistan) to northwest India, followed by the rise of the Iranian Yaz culture at 1500 BCE, and the Iranian migrations into Iran at 800 BCE.
Some Indian writers and archaeologists have opposed the notion of a migration of Indo-Aryans into India, and argued for an indigenous origin of the Indo-Aryans. In this view, "the Indian civilization must be viewed as an unbroken tradition that goes back to the earliest period of the Sindhu-Sarasvati (or Indus) tradition (7000 or 8000 BCE)." Though popular in India, and reflecting Indian views on Indian history and religion, the idea of a purely indigenous origin of the Indo-Aryans is outside the academic mainstream.
The knowledge about the Aryans comes mostly from the Rigveda-samhita, i.e. the oldest layer of the Vedas, which was composed 1200–1000 BCE. They brought with them their distinctive religious traditions and practices. The Vedic beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era were closely related to the hypothesised Proto-Indo-European religion, and the Indo-Iranian religion. Funeral sacrifices from the Sintashta-culture show close parallels to the sacrificial funeral rites of the Rigveda, while, according to Anthony, the Old Indic religion probably emerged among Indo-European immigrants in the contact zone between the Zeravshan River (present-day Uzbekistan) and (present-day) Tajikistan. It was "a syncretic mixture of old Central Asian and new Indo-European elements", which borrowed "distinctive religious beliefs and practices" from the Bactria–Margiana culture, including the god Indra and the ritual drink Soma.
Early Vedic period (c. 1500 – c. 1000 BCE)
The Rigveda contains accounts of conflicts between the Aryas and the Dasas and Dasyus. It describes Dasas and Dasyus as people who do not perform sacrifices (akratu) or obey the commandments of gods (avrata). Their speech is described as mridhra which could variously mean soft, uncouth, hostile, scornful or abusive. Other adjectives which describe their physical appearance are subject to many interpretations. However, some modern scholars such as Asko Parpola connect the Dasas and Dasyus to Iranian tribes Dahae and Dahyu and believe that Dasas and Dasyus were early Indo-Aryan immigrants who arrived into the subcontinent before the Vedic Aryans. Likwise, Bronkhorst has argued that the central Ganges Plain was dominated by a related but non-Vedic Indo-Aryan culture, a difference also noted by Samuel.
Accounts of military conflicts inbetween the various tribes of Vedic Aryans are also described in the Rigveda. Most notable of such conflicts was the Battle of Ten Kings, which took place on the banks of the river Parushni (modern day Ravi). The battle was fought between the tribe Bharatas, led by their chief Sudas, against a confederation of ten tribes. The Bharatas lived around the upper regions of the river Saraswati, while the Purus, their western neighbours, lived along the lower regions of Saraswati. The other tribes dwelt north-west of the Bharatas in the region of Punjab. Division of the waters of Ravi could have been a reason for the war. The confederation of tribes tried to inundate the Bharatas by opening the embankments of Ravi, yet Sudas emerged victorious in the Battle of Ten Kings. The Bharatas and the Purus merged into a new tribe, the Kuru, after the war.
Later Vedic period (c. 1000 – c. 600 BCE)
After the 12th century BCE, as the Rigveda had taken its final form, the Vedic society, which is associated with the Kuru-Panchala region but were not the only Indo-Aryan people in northern India, transitioned from semi-nomadic life to settled agriculture in north-western India. Possession of horses remained an important priority of Vedic leaders and a remnant of the nomadic lifestyle, resulting in trade routes beyond the Hindu Kush to maintain this supply as horses needed for cavalry and sacrifice could not be bred in India. The Gangetic plains had remained out of bounds to the Vedic tribes because of thick forest cover. After 1000 BCE, the use of iron axes and ploughs became widespread and the jungles could be cleared with ease. This enabled the Vedic Aryans to extend their settlements into the western area of the Ganga-Yamuna Doab. Many of the old tribes coalesced to form larger political units.
The Vedic religion was further developed with the emergence of the Kuru kingdom, systematising its religious literature and developing the Śrauta ritual. It is associated with the Painted Grey Ware culture (c.1200–600 BCE), which did not expand east of the Ganga-Yamuya Doab. It differed from the related, yet markedly different, culture of the Central Ganges region, which was associated with the Northern Black Polished Ware and the Mahajanapadas of Kosala and Magadha.
In this period the varna system emerged, state Kulke and Rothermund, which in this stage of Indian history were a "hierarchical order of estates which reflected a division of labor among various social classes". The Vedic period estates were four: Brahmin priests and warrior nobility stood on top, free peasants and traders were the third, and slaves, labourers and artisans, many belonging to the indigenous people, were the fourth. This was a period where agriculture, metal, and commodity production, as well as trade, greatly expanded, and the Vedic era texts including the early Upanishads and many Sutras important to later Hindu culture were completed.
The Kuru Kingdom, the earliest Vedic "state", was formed by a "super-tribe" which joined several tribes in a new unit. To govern this state, Vedic hymns were collected and transcribed, and new rituals were developed, which formed the now orthodox Śrauta rituals. Two key figures in this process of the development of the Kuru state were the king Parikshit and his successor Janamejaya, transforming this realm into the dominant political and cultural power of northern Iron Age India.
The most well-known of the new religious sacrifices that arose in this period were the Ashvamedha (horse sacrifice). This sacrifice involved setting a consecrated horse free to roam the kingdoms for a year. The horse was followed by a chosen band of warriors. The kingdoms and chiefdoms in which the horse wandered had to pay homage or prepare to battle the king to whom the horse belonged. This sacrifice put considerable pressure on inter-state relations in this era. This period saw also the beginning of the social stratification by the use of varna, the division of Vedic society in Brahmins, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra.
The Kuru kingdom declined after its defeat by the non-Vedic Salva tribe, and the political center of Vedic culture shifted east, into the Panchala kingdom on the Ganges, under King Keśin Dālbhya (approximately between 900 and 750 BCE). Later, in the 8th or 7th century BCE, the kingdom of Videha emerged as a political center farther to the East, in what is today northern Bihar of India and southeastern Nepal, reaching its prominence under the king Janaka, whose court provided patronage for Brahmin sages and philosophers such as Yajnavalkya, Uddalaka Aruni, and Gargi Vachaknavi; Panchala also remained prominent during this period, under its king Pravahana Jaivali.
Towards urbanization
By the 6th century BCE, the political units consolidated into large kingdoms called Mahajanapadas. The process of urbanisation had begun in these kingdoms, commerce and travel flourished, even regions separated by large distances became easy to access. Anga, a small kingdom to the east of Magadha (on the door step of modern-day West Bengal), formed the eastern boundary of the Vedic culture. Yadavas expanded towards the south and settled in Mathura. To the south of their kingdom was Vatsa which was governed from its capital Kausambi. The Narmada River and parts of North Western Deccan formed the southern limits. The newly formed states struggled for supremacy and started displaying imperial ambitions.
The end of the Vedic period is marked by linguistic, cultural and political changes. The grammar of Pāṇini marks a final apex in the codification of Sutra texts, and at the same time the beginning of Classical Sanskrit. The invasion of Darius I of the Indus valley in the early 6th century BCE marks the beginning of outside influence, continued in the kingdoms of the Indo-Greeks. Meanwhile, in the Kosala-Magadha region, the shramana movements (including Jainism and Buddhism) objected the self-imposed authority and orthodoxy of the intruding Brahmins and their Vedic scriptures and ritual. According to Bronkhorst, the sramana culture arose in "Greater Magadha," which was Indo-European, but not Vedic. In this culture, kshatriyas were placed higher than Brahmins, and it rejected Vedic authority and rituals.
Culture
Society
While Vedic society was relatively egalitarian in the sense that a distinct hierarchy of socio-economic classes or castes was absent, the Vedic period saw the emergence of a hierarchy of social classes. Political hierarchy was determined by rank, where rājan (tribal king or chieftain) and rājanya (tribal nobility) stood at the top, the viś (the common people) in the middle, and the dāsa and dasyu (non-Indo-Aryan servants) at the bottom. The words Brahamana and Kshatriya occur in various family books of the Rigveda, but they are not associated with the term varna. The words Vaishya and Shudra are absent. Verses of the Rigveda, such as 3.44-45, indicate the absence of strict social hierarchy and the existence of social mobility:
The institution of marriage was important and different types of marriages— monogamy, polygyny and polyandry are mentioned in the Rigveda. Both women sages and female gods were known to Vedic Aryans. Women could choose their husbands and could remarry if their husbands died or disappeared. The wife enjoyed a respectable position. People consumed milk, milk products, grains, fruits and vegetables. Meat eating is mentioned; however, cows are labelled aghnya (not to be killed). Clothes of cotton, wool and animal skin were worn. Soma and sura were popular drinks in the Vedic society, of which soma was sanctified by religion. Flute (vana), lute (vina), harp, cymbals and drums were the musical instruments played and a heptatonic scale was used. Dancing, dramas, chariot racing and gambling were other popular pastimes.
The emergence of monarchical states in the later Vedic age led to a distancing of the rajan from the people and the emergence of a varna hierarchy. The society was divided into four social groups—Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. The later Vedic texts fixed social boundaries, roles, status and ritual purity for each of the groups. The Shatapatha Brahmana associates the Brahmana with purity of parentage, good conduct, glory, teaching or protecting people; Kshatriya with strength, fame, ruling, and warfare; Vaishya with material prosperity and production-related activities such as cattle rearing and agriculture; Shudras with the service of the higher varnas. The effects of Rajasuya sacrifice depended on the varna of the sacrificer. Rajasuya endowed Brahmana with lustre, Kshatriya with valour, Vaishya with procreative power and Shudra with stability. The hierarchy of the top three varnas is ambiguous in the later Vedic texts. Panchavamsha Brahmana and verse 13.8.3.11 of the Shatapatha Brahmana place Kshatriya over Brahmana and Vaishya, whereas, verse 1.1.4.12 places Brahmana and Vaishya over the Kshatriya and Shudra. The Purusha sukta visualised the four varnas as hierarchical, but inter-related parts of an organic whole. Despite the increasing social stratification in the later Vedic times, hymns like Rigveda IX.112 suggest some amount of social mobility: "I am a reciter of hymns, my father a physician, and my mother grinds (corn) with stones. We desire to obtain wealth in various actions."
Household became an important unit in the later Vedic age. The variety of households of the Vedic era gave way to an idealised household which was headed by a grihapati. The relations between husband and wife, father and son were hierarchically organised and the women were relegated to subordinate and docile roles. Polygyny was more common than polyandry and texts like Tattiriya Samhita indicate taboos around menstruating women. Various professions women took to are mentioned in the later Vedic texts. Women tended to cattle, milked cows, carded wool; were weavers, dyers, and corn grinders. Women warriors such as Vishphala, who lost a leg in battle, are mentioned. Two female philosophers are mentioned in the Upanishads. Patrick Olivelle, in his translation of the Upanishads, writes that "the fact that these women are introduced without any attempt to justify or to explain how women could be engaged in theological matters suggests the relatively high social and religious position of at least women of some social strata during this period."
Political organisation
Early Vedic Aryans were organised into tribes rather than kingdoms. The chief of a tribe was called a rajan. The autonomy of the rajan was restricted by the tribal councils called sabha and samiti. The two bodies were, in part, responsible for the governance of the tribe. The rajan could not accede to the throne without their approval. The distinction between the two bodies is not clear. Arthur Llewellyn Basham, a noted historian and indologist, theorises that sabha was a meeting of great men in the tribe, whereas, samiti was a meeting of all free tribesmen. Some tribes had no hereditary chiefs and were directly governed by the tribal councils. Rajan had a rudimentary court which was attended by courtiers (sabhasad) and chiefs of sects (gramani). The main responsibility of the rajan was to protect the tribe. He was aided by several functionaries, including the purohita (chaplain), the senani (army chief), dutas (envoys) and spash (spies). Purohita performed ceremonies and spells for success in war and prosperity in peace.
In the later Vedic period, the tribes had consolidated into small kingdoms, which had a capital and a rudimentary administrative system. To aid in governing these new states, the kings and their Brahmin priests arranged Vedic hymns into collections and developed a new set of rituals (the now orthodox Śrauta rituals) to strengthen the emerging social hierarchy. The rajan was seen as the custodian of social order and the protector of rashtra (polity). Hereditary kingship started emerging and competitions like chariot races, cattle raids, and games of dice, which previously decided who was worthy of becoming a king, became nominal. Rituals in this era exalted the status of the king over his people. He was occasionally referred to as samrat (supreme ruler). The rajan's increasing political power enabled him to gain greater control over the productive resources. The voluntary gift offering (bali) became compulsory tribute; however, there was no organised system of taxation. Sabha and samiti are still mentioned in later Vedic texts, though, with the increasing power of the king, their influence declined. By the end of the later Vedic age, different kinds of political systems such as monarchical states (rajya), oligarchical states (gana or sangha), and tribal principalities had emerged in India.
According to Michael Witzel's analysis of the Kuru Kingdom, it can be characterized as the earliest Vedic "state", during the Middle Vedic Period. However, Robert Bellah observes that it is difficult to "pin down" whether the Kurus were a true "state" or a complex chiefdom, as the Kuru kings notably never adopted royal titles higher than "rājan," which means "chief" rather than "king" in the Vedic context. The Middle Vedic Period is also characterized by a lack of cities; Bellah compares this to early state formation in ancient Hawaii and "very early Egypt," which were "territorial states" rather than "city-states," and thus "it was the court, not the city, that provided the center, and the court was often peripatetic." Romila Thapar characterizes Vedic-era state formation as being in a condition of "arrested development," because local chiefs were relatively autonomous, and because surplus wealth that could have been directed towards state-building was instead used for the increasingly grandiose rituals that also served to structure social relations. The period of the Upanishads, the final phase of the Vedic era, was approximately contemporaneous with a new wave of state formations, linked to the beginning of urbanization in the Ganges Valley: along with the growth of population and trade networks, these social and economic changes put pressure on older ways of life, setting the stage for the Upanishads and the subsequent śramaṇa movements, and the end of the Vedic Period, which was followed by the Mahajanapada period.
According to George Erdosy, archaeological data for the period of period from 1000 to 600 BCE shows a two-tiered settlement pattern in the Ganges Valley, with some "modest central places," suggestive of the existence of simple chiefdoms, with the Kurukshetra District itself displaying a more complex (albeit not yet urbanized) three-tiered hierarchy. Subsequently, (after 600 BCE) there are four tiers of site sizes, including large towns and fortified cities, consistent with an urbanized state-level society.
Economy
Economy in the Vedic period was sustained by a combination of pastoralism and agriculture. There are references, in the Rigveda, to the leveling of fields, seed processing, and storage of grains in large jars. War bounty was also a major source of wealth. Economic exchanges were conducted by gift giving, particularly to kings (bali) and priests (dana), and barter using cattle as a unit of currency. While gold is mentioned in some hymns, there is no indication of the use of coins. Metallurgy is not mentioned in the Rigveda, but the word ayas and instruments made from it such as razors, bangles, axes are mentioned. One verse mentions purification of ayas. Some scholars believe that ayas refers to iron and the words dham and karmara refer to iron-welders. However, philological evidence indicates that ayas in the Rigveda refers only to copper and bronze, while iron or śyāma ayas, literally "black metal", first is mentioned in the post-Rigvedic Atharvaveda, and therefore the Early Vedic Period was a Bronze Age culture whereas the Late Vedic Period was an Iron Age culture.
The transition of Vedic society from semi-nomadic life to settled agriculture in the later Vedic age led to an increase in trade and competition for resources. Agriculture dominated the economic activity along the Ganges valley during this period. Agricultural operations grew in complexity and usage of iron implements (krishna–ayas or shyama–ayas, literally black metal or dark metal) increased. Crops of wheat, rice, and barley were cultivated. Surplus production helped to support the centralised kingdoms that were emerging at this time. New crafts and occupations such as carpentry, leather work, tanning, pottery, astrology, jewellery, dying, and winemaking arose. Apart from copper, bronze, and gold, later Vedic texts also mention tin, lead, and silver.
Panis in some hymns refers to merchants, in others to stingy people who hid their wealth and did not perform Vedic sacrifices. Some scholars suggest that Panis were semitic traders, but the evidence for this is slim. Professions of warriors, priests, cattle-rearers, farmers, hunters, barbers, vintners and crafts of chariot-making, cart-making, carpentry, metal working, tanning, making of bows, sewing, weaving, making mats of grass and reed are mentioned in the hymns of the Rigveda. Some of these might have needed full-time specialists. There are references to boats and oceans. Book X of the Rigveda refers to both eastern and western oceans. Individual property ownership did not exist and clans as a whole enjoyed rights over lands and herds. Enslavement (dasa, dasi) in the course of war or as a result of non-payment of debt is mentioned. However, slaves worked in households rather than production-related activities.
Religion
Vedic religion
Texts considered to date to the Vedic period are mainly the four Vedas, but the Brahmanas, Aranyakas and the older Upanishads as well as the oldest Śrautasutras are also considered to be Vedic. The Vedas record the liturgy connected with the rituals and sacrifices performed by the 16 or 17 Śrauta priests and the purohitas.
The rishis, the composers of the hymns of the Rigveda, were considered inspired poets and seers (in post-Vedic times understood as "hearers" of an eternally existing Veda, Śruti means "what is heard").
The mode of worship was the performance of sacrifices (Yajna) which included the chanting of Rigvedic verses (see Vedic chant), singing of Samans and 'mumbling' of sacrificial mantras (Yajus). Yajna involved sacrifice and sublimation of the havana sámagri (herbal preparations) in the fire accompanied by the chanting of the Vedic mantras. The sublime meaning of the word yajna is derived from the Sanskrit verb yaj, which has a three-fold meaning of worship of deities (devapujana), unity (saògatikaraña) and charity (dána). An essential element was the sacrificial fire—the divine Agni—into which oblations were poured, as everything offered into the fire was believed to reach God. People prayed for abundance of rain, cattle, sons, long life and gaining 'heaven'.
Vedic people believed in the transmigration of the soul, and the peepul tree and cow were sanctified by the time of the Atharvaveda. Many of the concepts of Indian philosophy espoused later like Dharma, Karma etc. trace their root to the Vedas.
The main deities of the Vedic pantheon were Indra, Agni (the sacrificial fire), and Soma and some deities of social order such as Mitra–Varuna, Aryaman, Bhaga and Amsa, further nature deities such as Surya (the Sun), Vayu (the wind) and Prithivi (the earth). Goddesses included Ushas (the dawn), Prithvi and Aditi (the mother of the Aditya gods or sometimes the cow). Rivers, especially Saraswati, were also considered goddesses. Deities were not viewed as all-powerful. The relationship between humans and the deity was one of transaction, with Agni (the sacrificial fire) taking the role of messenger between the two. Strong traces of a common Indo-Iranian religion remain visible, especially in the Soma cult and the fire worship, both of which are preserved in Zoroastrianism.
Ethics in the Vedas are based on the concepts of Satya and Rta. Satya is the principle of integration rooted in the Absolute. Whereas, Ṛta is the expression of Satya, which regulates and coordinates the operation of the universe and everything within it. Conformity with Ṛta would enable progress whereas its violation would lead to punishment.
Influence on Hinduism
Around the beginning of the Common Era, the Vedic tradition formed one of the main constituents of the "Hindu synthesis". Vedic religion survived in the srayta ritual, whereas ascetic and devotional traditions like Yoga and Vedanta acknowledge the authority of the Vedas, but interpret the Vedic pantheon as a unitary view of the universe with 'God' (Brahman) seen as immanent and transcendent in the forms of Ishvara and Brahman. Later texts such as the Upanishads and epics, namely the Gita of Mahabharat, are essential parts of these later developments.
Literature
The reconstruction of the history of Vedic India is based on text-internal details, but can be correlated to relevant archaeological details. Linguistically, the Vedic texts could be classified in five chronological strata:
Rigvedic text: The Rigveda is by far the most archaic of the Vedic texts preserved, and it retains many common Indo-Iranian elements, both in language and in content, that are not present in any other Vedic text. Its time span likely corresponds to the Late Harappan culture, Gandhara grave culture and Ochre Coloured Pottery culture.
Mantra language texts: This period includes both the mantra and prose language of the Atharvaveda (Paippalada and Shaunmkiya), the Rigveda Khilani, the Samaveda Samhita (containing some 75 mantras not in the Rigveda), and the mantras of the Yajurveda. Many of these texts are largely derived from the Rigveda, but have undergone certain changes, both by linguistic change and by reinterpretation. Conspicuous changes include change of vishva "all" by sarva, and the spread of the kuru- verbal stem (for Rigvedic krno-). This is the time of the early Iron Age in north-western India, corresponding to the Black and Red Ware (BRW) and Painted Grey Ware (PGW) cultures, and the early Kuru Kingdom, dating from c. the 12th to 11th centuries BCE.
Samhita prose texts: This period marks the beginning of the collection and codification of a Vedic canon. An important linguistic change is the complete loss of the injunctive. The Brahmana part ('commentary' on mantras and ritual) of the Black Yajurveda (MS, KS, TS) belongs to this period. Archaeologically, the Painted Grey Ware (PGW) culture from c. 1000 or 900 BCE corresponds to the Kuru Kingdom and the subsequent eastward shift of the political centre from the Kurus to the Panchalas on the Ganges.
Brahmana prose texts: The Brahmanas proper of the four Vedas belong to this period, as well as the Aranyakas, the oldest of the Upanishads (BAU, ChU, JUB) and the oldest Śrautasutras (BSS, VadhSS). In the east, Videha (N. Bihar and Nepal) is established as the third main political centre of the Vedic period.
Sutra language texts: This is the last stratum of Vedic Sanskrit leading up to c. 500 BCE, comprising the bulk of the Śrauta and Grhya Sutras, and some Upanishads (e.g. KathU, MaitrU).
Visual arts
In northern India, some very early depictions of deities appear in the art of the Indus Valley Civilisation, but the following millennium, coinciding with the Indo–Aryan migration during the Vedic period, is devoid of such remains. It has been suggested that the early Vedic religion focused exclusively on the worship of purely "elementary forces of nature by means of elaborate sacrifices", which did not lend themselves easily to anthropomorphological representations. Various artefacts may belong to the Copper Hoard Culture (2nd millennium CE), some of them suggesting anthropomorphological characteristics. Interpretations vary as to the exact signification of these artifacts, or even the culture and the periodization to which they belonged. Some examples of artistic expression also appear in abstract pottery designs during the Black and red ware culture (1450–1200 BCE) or the Painted Grey Ware culture (1200–600 BCE), with finds in a wide area, including the area of Mathura.
Archaeology
Archaeological cultures identified with phases of Vedic material culture include the Ochre Coloured Pottery culture, the Gandhara Grave culture, the Black and red ware culture and the Painted Grey Ware culture.
Ochre coloured pottery culture was first found approximately between 1950 and 1951, in western Uttar Pradesh, in the Badaun and Bisjuar district. It is thought that this culture was prominent during the latter half of the 2nd millennium, within the transition between the Indus Valley civilization and the end of Harrapan culture. This pottery is typically created with wheel ware, and is ill-fired, to a fine to medium fabric, decorated with a red slip, and occasional black bands1. When this pottery was worked with, it often left an ochre color on the hands, most likely because of water-logging, bad firing, wind action, or a mixture of these factors. This pottery was found all throughout the doab, most of it found in the Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, and Bulandshahr districts, but also existing outside these districts, extending north and south of Bahadrabad. This pottery does, however, seem to exist within different time frames of popularity, ochre colored pottery seeming to occur in areas such as Rajasthan earlier than we see it in the doab, despite the doab being heavily associated with the culture.
Gandhara grave culture refers to the protohistoric cemeteries found in the Gandhara region, stretching all the way from Bajuar to the Indus. These cemeteries seem to follow a set grave structure and “mortuary practice”, such as inflexed inhumation and cremation. This culture is thought to occur in 3 stages: the lower, in which burials take place in masonry lined pits, the upper, in which urn burials and cremations are added, and the “surface” level, in which graves are covered with huge stone slabs.
In the lower stage, excavators found that these graves are typically 2–3 feet deep, and covered with stones on top. After digging out the stones, skeletons were found facing southwest to northeast, with the head facing one direction, and the hands laying on top of one another. Female skeletons were often found wearing hair pins and jewelry. Pottery is greatly important to this culture, as pottery was often used as a “grave good”, being buried with the bodies of the dead. Buried alongside the skeletons, we typically see various pots on top of the body, averaging at about 5 or less pieces of pottery per grave. Within this culture we typically see two kinds of pottery: gray ware, or red ware.
Black and red ware culture was coined as a term in 1946 by Sir Mortimer Wheeler. The pottery, as the name suggests, typically has a black rim/inside surface, and a red lower half on the outside of the piece. Red-ware pottery tends to fall into two categories: offering stands, or cooking vessels. Most of these pieces of pottery were open-mouthed bowls that were burnished, painted, or slipped on one side; however, jars, pots and dishes-on-stands have also been found in small quantities.
Black and red ware, and the surrounding culture, began its spread during the neolithic period and continues until the early medieval period in India, as well as being found in parts of West Asia and Egypt. There are many theories about the process of its creation, the most popular being the use of an inverted firing technique, or a simultaneous oxidation and reduction firing.
Painted grey ware culture is a significant pottery style that has been linked to a group of people who settled in Sutlej, Ghagger, and the Upper Ganga/Yamuna Valleys, loosely classified with the early Aryans who migrated to India in the beginning of the Vedic period. It’s also thought that the groups that introduced the painted grey ware culture also brought iron technology to the Indo-gangetic plains, making this pottery a momentous mark of the Northern Indian Iron age. The style of grey-ware often includes clay wheel-thrown into a smooth texture, ash-grey in color, and often decorated with black ink, creating small circular patterns, sometimes spirals, swastikas, or sigmas.
Grey-ware pottery is almost exclusively drinking ware, and tends to have three different forms: narrow-waisted, tall drinking glasses, middle-sized drinking goblets, and drinking vases with outturned lips. There was a distinct grey ware culture surrounding the establishment of the pottery, but while the culture is significant, grey ware has only made up 10–15% of found Vedic pottery, a majority of the pottery red ware, as grey ware pottery was seen as a “highly valued luxury”.
Puranic chronology of the Vedic period
The Puranic chronology, the timeline of events in ancient Indian history and mythology as narrated in post-Vedic Hindu texts such as the Mahabharatha, the Ramayana and the Puranas, envisions a much older chronology for the Vedic culture. In this view, the Vedas were received by the seven rishis thousands of years ago. The start of the reign of Manu Vaivasvate, the Manu of the current kalpa (aeon) and the progenitor of humanity, is dated by some as far back 7350 BCE. The Kurukshetra War, the background-scene of the Bhagavad Gita, which may relate historical events taking place ca. 1000 BCE at the heartland of Aryavarta, is dated in this chronology at 3100 BCE.
See also
History of India
Historical Vedic religion
Indus Valley Civilisation
Vedanga
Indigenous Aryanism
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Ancient India
Ancient history of Pakistan
Iron Age Asia
Iron Age cultures of South Asia
History of Punjab
History of Sindh
Indo-Aryan archaeological cultures
Civilizations
Ancient Indian culture
Ancient culture of Pakistan | true | [
"Vedic religion or Vedic Hinduism may refer to:\n\nHistorical Vedic religion, the religion of the Indo-Aryans of northern India during the Vedic period\nHinduism, which developed out of the merger of Vedic religion with numerous local religious traditions\nŚrauta, surviving conservative traditions within Hinduism\n\nSee also\n Vedas, a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India\n Vedanta, originally a word used in Hindu philosophy as a synonym for that part of the Veda texts also known as the Upanishads\n Vedic (disambiguation)\n History of Hinduism",
"Dalit is an ancient designation for a group of indigenous Indian people. Several influential Hindu saints, though, were members of this group. Though there has also many historical Vedic period saints, whose descendents are now considered as Dalits. Many of the saints have been classified as Shudra or Avarna, because there was no concept of Dalits or Harijan.\n\nList\n\nVedic period \n Matanga, teacher of Shabari.\n Valmiki, author of Ramayana and teacher of Lava and Kusha.\n\nAncient period \n Avvaiyar, royal saint of Chera dynasty.\n Nandanar (Nalai Povar), one of the Nayanars.\n\nMedieval period \n Chokhamela, one of the first Dalit poets in India and wrote many Abhangas.\n Ghasidas, notable saint of Satnami sect.\n Namdev, saint from Varkari tradition.\n Ravidas, founder of Ravidassia religion.\n\nModern period \n Bhagu, notable Hindu saint and wrote many Abhangas devoted to Viṭhal.\n Parsuram, founder of Ramnami Samaj.\n Vitthal Ramji Shinde\n\nSee also \n\n List of Dalits\n\nReferences\n\nSources \n \n \n \n \n\n \nLists of Hindu religious leaders\n\nDalit Hindus"
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"Vedic period",
"Origins",
"when did the Vedic period start?",
"The commonly accepted period of earlier Vedic age is dated back to the second millennium BCE.",
"Are there specific dates provided for the beginning of the Vedic period?",
"The"
]
| C_d9b2242390054bffb7b6fc9f9c992b13_1 | What were the people like in the beginning? | 3 | What were the people like in the beginning of the Vedic period? | Vedic period | The commonly accepted period of earlier Vedic age is dated back to the second millennium BCE. After the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilisation, which ended c. 1900 BCE, groups of Indo-Aryan peoples migrated into north-western India and started to inhabit the northern Indus Valley. The Indo-Aryans were a branch of the Indo-Iranians, which--according to the most widespread hypothesis--have originated in the Andronovo culture in the Bactria-Margiana era, in present northern Afghanistan. Some writers and archaeologists have opposed the notion of a migration of Indo-Aryans into India. Edwin Bryant and Laurie Patton used the term "Indo-Aryan Controversy" for an oversight of the Indo-Aryan Migration theory, and some of its opponents. These ideas are outside the academic mainstream. Mallory and Adams note that two types of models "enjoy significant international currency" as to the Indo-European homeland, namely the Anatolian hypothesis, and a migration out of the Eurasian steppes. According to Upinder Singh, "The original homeland of the Indo-Europeans and Indo-Aryans is the subject of continuing debate among philologists, linguists, historians, archaeologists and others. The dominant view is that the Indo-Aryans came to the subcontinent as immigrants. Another view, advocated mainly by some Indian scholars, is that they were indigenous to the subcontinent." The knowledge about the Aryans comes mostly from the Rigveda-samhita, i. e. the oldest layer of the Vedas, which was composed c. 1500-1200 BCE. They brought with them their distinctive religious traditions and practices. The Vedic beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era were closely related to the hypothesised Proto-Indo-European religion, and the Indo-Iranian religion. According to Anthony, the Old Indic religion probably emerged among Indo-European immigrants in the contact zone between the Zeravshan River (present-day Uzbekistan) and (present-day) Iran. It was "a syncretic mixture of old Central Asian and new Indo-European elements", which borrowed "distinctive religious beliefs and practices" from the Bactria-Margiana Culture. CANNOTANSWER | The Vedic beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era were closely related to the hypothesised Proto-Indo-European religion, and the Indo-Iranian religion. | The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (ca. 1300–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, between the end of the Urban Indus Valley Civilisation and a second urbanisation which began in the central Indo-Gangetic Plain BCE. The Vedas are liturgical texts which formed the basis of modern day Hinduism, which also developed in the Kuru Kingdom. The Vedas contain details of life during this period that have been interpreted to be historical and constitute the primary sources for understanding the period. These documents, alongside the corresponding archaeological record, allow for the evolution of the Vedic culture to be traced and inferred.
The Vedas were composed and orally transmitted with precision in this period. The Vedic society was patriarchal and patrilineal. Early Indo-Aryans were a Late Bronze Age society centred in the Punjab, organised into tribes rather than kingdoms, and primarily sustained by a pastoral way of life.
Around –1000 BCE Vedic culture spread eastward to the fertile western Ganges Plain. Iron tools were adopted, which allowed for the clearing of forests and the adoption of a more settled, agricultural way of life. The second half of the Vedic period was characterised by the emergence of towns, kingdoms, and a complex social differentiation distinctive to India, and the Kuru Kingdom's codification of orthodox sacrificial ritual. During this time, the central Ganges Plain was dominated by a related but non-Vedic culture, of Greater Magadha. The end of the Vedic period witnessed the rise of true cities and large states (called mahajanapadas) as well as śramaṇa movements (including Jainism and Buddhism) which challenged the Vedic orthodoxy.
The Vedic period saw the emergence of a hierarchy of social classes that would remain influential. Vedic religion developed into Brahmanical orthodoxy, and around the beginning of the Common Era, the Vedic tradition formed one of the main constituents of "Hindu synthesis".
Archaeological cultures identified with phases of vedic culture include the Ochre Coloured Pottery culture, the Gandhara grave culture, the black and red ware culture and the Painted Grey Ware culture.
History
Origins
The early Vedic age is historically dated to the second half of the second millennium BCE. Historically, after the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilisation, which occurred around 1900 BCE, groups of Indo-Aryan peoples migrated into north-western India and started to inhabit the northern Indus Valley. The Indo-Aryans represented a sub-group that diverged from other Indo-Iranian tribes at the Andronovo horizon before the middle of the 2nd millennium BCE, The Indo-Iranians originated in the Sintashta culture, from which arose the subsequent Andronovo horizon. The Indo-Aryans migrated through the adjacent Bactria–Margiana area (present-day northern Afghanistan) to northwest India, followed by the rise of the Iranian Yaz culture at 1500 BCE, and the Iranian migrations into Iran at 800 BCE.
Some Indian writers and archaeologists have opposed the notion of a migration of Indo-Aryans into India, and argued for an indigenous origin of the Indo-Aryans. In this view, "the Indian civilization must be viewed as an unbroken tradition that goes back to the earliest period of the Sindhu-Sarasvati (or Indus) tradition (7000 or 8000 BCE)." Though popular in India, and reflecting Indian views on Indian history and religion, the idea of a purely indigenous origin of the Indo-Aryans is outside the academic mainstream.
The knowledge about the Aryans comes mostly from the Rigveda-samhita, i.e. the oldest layer of the Vedas, which was composed 1200–1000 BCE. They brought with them their distinctive religious traditions and practices. The Vedic beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era were closely related to the hypothesised Proto-Indo-European religion, and the Indo-Iranian religion. Funeral sacrifices from the Sintashta-culture show close parallels to the sacrificial funeral rites of the Rigveda, while, according to Anthony, the Old Indic religion probably emerged among Indo-European immigrants in the contact zone between the Zeravshan River (present-day Uzbekistan) and (present-day) Tajikistan. It was "a syncretic mixture of old Central Asian and new Indo-European elements", which borrowed "distinctive religious beliefs and practices" from the Bactria–Margiana culture, including the god Indra and the ritual drink Soma.
Early Vedic period (c. 1500 – c. 1000 BCE)
The Rigveda contains accounts of conflicts between the Aryas and the Dasas and Dasyus. It describes Dasas and Dasyus as people who do not perform sacrifices (akratu) or obey the commandments of gods (avrata). Their speech is described as mridhra which could variously mean soft, uncouth, hostile, scornful or abusive. Other adjectives which describe their physical appearance are subject to many interpretations. However, some modern scholars such as Asko Parpola connect the Dasas and Dasyus to Iranian tribes Dahae and Dahyu and believe that Dasas and Dasyus were early Indo-Aryan immigrants who arrived into the subcontinent before the Vedic Aryans. Likwise, Bronkhorst has argued that the central Ganges Plain was dominated by a related but non-Vedic Indo-Aryan culture, a difference also noted by Samuel.
Accounts of military conflicts inbetween the various tribes of Vedic Aryans are also described in the Rigveda. Most notable of such conflicts was the Battle of Ten Kings, which took place on the banks of the river Parushni (modern day Ravi). The battle was fought between the tribe Bharatas, led by their chief Sudas, against a confederation of ten tribes. The Bharatas lived around the upper regions of the river Saraswati, while the Purus, their western neighbours, lived along the lower regions of Saraswati. The other tribes dwelt north-west of the Bharatas in the region of Punjab. Division of the waters of Ravi could have been a reason for the war. The confederation of tribes tried to inundate the Bharatas by opening the embankments of Ravi, yet Sudas emerged victorious in the Battle of Ten Kings. The Bharatas and the Purus merged into a new tribe, the Kuru, after the war.
Later Vedic period (c. 1000 – c. 600 BCE)
After the 12th century BCE, as the Rigveda had taken its final form, the Vedic society, which is associated with the Kuru-Panchala region but were not the only Indo-Aryan people in northern India, transitioned from semi-nomadic life to settled agriculture in north-western India. Possession of horses remained an important priority of Vedic leaders and a remnant of the nomadic lifestyle, resulting in trade routes beyond the Hindu Kush to maintain this supply as horses needed for cavalry and sacrifice could not be bred in India. The Gangetic plains had remained out of bounds to the Vedic tribes because of thick forest cover. After 1000 BCE, the use of iron axes and ploughs became widespread and the jungles could be cleared with ease. This enabled the Vedic Aryans to extend their settlements into the western area of the Ganga-Yamuna Doab. Many of the old tribes coalesced to form larger political units.
The Vedic religion was further developed with the emergence of the Kuru kingdom, systematising its religious literature and developing the Śrauta ritual. It is associated with the Painted Grey Ware culture (c.1200–600 BCE), which did not expand east of the Ganga-Yamuya Doab. It differed from the related, yet markedly different, culture of the Central Ganges region, which was associated with the Northern Black Polished Ware and the Mahajanapadas of Kosala and Magadha.
In this period the varna system emerged, state Kulke and Rothermund, which in this stage of Indian history were a "hierarchical order of estates which reflected a division of labor among various social classes". The Vedic period estates were four: Brahmin priests and warrior nobility stood on top, free peasants and traders were the third, and slaves, labourers and artisans, many belonging to the indigenous people, were the fourth. This was a period where agriculture, metal, and commodity production, as well as trade, greatly expanded, and the Vedic era texts including the early Upanishads and many Sutras important to later Hindu culture were completed.
The Kuru Kingdom, the earliest Vedic "state", was formed by a "super-tribe" which joined several tribes in a new unit. To govern this state, Vedic hymns were collected and transcribed, and new rituals were developed, which formed the now orthodox Śrauta rituals. Two key figures in this process of the development of the Kuru state were the king Parikshit and his successor Janamejaya, transforming this realm into the dominant political and cultural power of northern Iron Age India.
The most well-known of the new religious sacrifices that arose in this period were the Ashvamedha (horse sacrifice). This sacrifice involved setting a consecrated horse free to roam the kingdoms for a year. The horse was followed by a chosen band of warriors. The kingdoms and chiefdoms in which the horse wandered had to pay homage or prepare to battle the king to whom the horse belonged. This sacrifice put considerable pressure on inter-state relations in this era. This period saw also the beginning of the social stratification by the use of varna, the division of Vedic society in Brahmins, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra.
The Kuru kingdom declined after its defeat by the non-Vedic Salva tribe, and the political center of Vedic culture shifted east, into the Panchala kingdom on the Ganges, under King Keśin Dālbhya (approximately between 900 and 750 BCE). Later, in the 8th or 7th century BCE, the kingdom of Videha emerged as a political center farther to the East, in what is today northern Bihar of India and southeastern Nepal, reaching its prominence under the king Janaka, whose court provided patronage for Brahmin sages and philosophers such as Yajnavalkya, Uddalaka Aruni, and Gargi Vachaknavi; Panchala also remained prominent during this period, under its king Pravahana Jaivali.
Towards urbanization
By the 6th century BCE, the political units consolidated into large kingdoms called Mahajanapadas. The process of urbanisation had begun in these kingdoms, commerce and travel flourished, even regions separated by large distances became easy to access. Anga, a small kingdom to the east of Magadha (on the door step of modern-day West Bengal), formed the eastern boundary of the Vedic culture. Yadavas expanded towards the south and settled in Mathura. To the south of their kingdom was Vatsa which was governed from its capital Kausambi. The Narmada River and parts of North Western Deccan formed the southern limits. The newly formed states struggled for supremacy and started displaying imperial ambitions.
The end of the Vedic period is marked by linguistic, cultural and political changes. The grammar of Pāṇini marks a final apex in the codification of Sutra texts, and at the same time the beginning of Classical Sanskrit. The invasion of Darius I of the Indus valley in the early 6th century BCE marks the beginning of outside influence, continued in the kingdoms of the Indo-Greeks. Meanwhile, in the Kosala-Magadha region, the shramana movements (including Jainism and Buddhism) objected the self-imposed authority and orthodoxy of the intruding Brahmins and their Vedic scriptures and ritual. According to Bronkhorst, the sramana culture arose in "Greater Magadha," which was Indo-European, but not Vedic. In this culture, kshatriyas were placed higher than Brahmins, and it rejected Vedic authority and rituals.
Culture
Society
While Vedic society was relatively egalitarian in the sense that a distinct hierarchy of socio-economic classes or castes was absent, the Vedic period saw the emergence of a hierarchy of social classes. Political hierarchy was determined by rank, where rājan (tribal king or chieftain) and rājanya (tribal nobility) stood at the top, the viś (the common people) in the middle, and the dāsa and dasyu (non-Indo-Aryan servants) at the bottom. The words Brahamana and Kshatriya occur in various family books of the Rigveda, but they are not associated with the term varna. The words Vaishya and Shudra are absent. Verses of the Rigveda, such as 3.44-45, indicate the absence of strict social hierarchy and the existence of social mobility:
The institution of marriage was important and different types of marriages— monogamy, polygyny and polyandry are mentioned in the Rigveda. Both women sages and female gods were known to Vedic Aryans. Women could choose their husbands and could remarry if their husbands died or disappeared. The wife enjoyed a respectable position. People consumed milk, milk products, grains, fruits and vegetables. Meat eating is mentioned; however, cows are labelled aghnya (not to be killed). Clothes of cotton, wool and animal skin were worn. Soma and sura were popular drinks in the Vedic society, of which soma was sanctified by religion. Flute (vana), lute (vina), harp, cymbals and drums were the musical instruments played and a heptatonic scale was used. Dancing, dramas, chariot racing and gambling were other popular pastimes.
The emergence of monarchical states in the later Vedic age led to a distancing of the rajan from the people and the emergence of a varna hierarchy. The society was divided into four social groups—Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. The later Vedic texts fixed social boundaries, roles, status and ritual purity for each of the groups. The Shatapatha Brahmana associates the Brahmana with purity of parentage, good conduct, glory, teaching or protecting people; Kshatriya with strength, fame, ruling, and warfare; Vaishya with material prosperity and production-related activities such as cattle rearing and agriculture; Shudras with the service of the higher varnas. The effects of Rajasuya sacrifice depended on the varna of the sacrificer. Rajasuya endowed Brahmana with lustre, Kshatriya with valour, Vaishya with procreative power and Shudra with stability. The hierarchy of the top three varnas is ambiguous in the later Vedic texts. Panchavamsha Brahmana and verse 13.8.3.11 of the Shatapatha Brahmana place Kshatriya over Brahmana and Vaishya, whereas, verse 1.1.4.12 places Brahmana and Vaishya over the Kshatriya and Shudra. The Purusha sukta visualised the four varnas as hierarchical, but inter-related parts of an organic whole. Despite the increasing social stratification in the later Vedic times, hymns like Rigveda IX.112 suggest some amount of social mobility: "I am a reciter of hymns, my father a physician, and my mother grinds (corn) with stones. We desire to obtain wealth in various actions."
Household became an important unit in the later Vedic age. The variety of households of the Vedic era gave way to an idealised household which was headed by a grihapati. The relations between husband and wife, father and son were hierarchically organised and the women were relegated to subordinate and docile roles. Polygyny was more common than polyandry and texts like Tattiriya Samhita indicate taboos around menstruating women. Various professions women took to are mentioned in the later Vedic texts. Women tended to cattle, milked cows, carded wool; were weavers, dyers, and corn grinders. Women warriors such as Vishphala, who lost a leg in battle, are mentioned. Two female philosophers are mentioned in the Upanishads. Patrick Olivelle, in his translation of the Upanishads, writes that "the fact that these women are introduced without any attempt to justify or to explain how women could be engaged in theological matters suggests the relatively high social and religious position of at least women of some social strata during this period."
Political organisation
Early Vedic Aryans were organised into tribes rather than kingdoms. The chief of a tribe was called a rajan. The autonomy of the rajan was restricted by the tribal councils called sabha and samiti. The two bodies were, in part, responsible for the governance of the tribe. The rajan could not accede to the throne without their approval. The distinction between the two bodies is not clear. Arthur Llewellyn Basham, a noted historian and indologist, theorises that sabha was a meeting of great men in the tribe, whereas, samiti was a meeting of all free tribesmen. Some tribes had no hereditary chiefs and were directly governed by the tribal councils. Rajan had a rudimentary court which was attended by courtiers (sabhasad) and chiefs of sects (gramani). The main responsibility of the rajan was to protect the tribe. He was aided by several functionaries, including the purohita (chaplain), the senani (army chief), dutas (envoys) and spash (spies). Purohita performed ceremonies and spells for success in war and prosperity in peace.
In the later Vedic period, the tribes had consolidated into small kingdoms, which had a capital and a rudimentary administrative system. To aid in governing these new states, the kings and their Brahmin priests arranged Vedic hymns into collections and developed a new set of rituals (the now orthodox Śrauta rituals) to strengthen the emerging social hierarchy. The rajan was seen as the custodian of social order and the protector of rashtra (polity). Hereditary kingship started emerging and competitions like chariot races, cattle raids, and games of dice, which previously decided who was worthy of becoming a king, became nominal. Rituals in this era exalted the status of the king over his people. He was occasionally referred to as samrat (supreme ruler). The rajan's increasing political power enabled him to gain greater control over the productive resources. The voluntary gift offering (bali) became compulsory tribute; however, there was no organised system of taxation. Sabha and samiti are still mentioned in later Vedic texts, though, with the increasing power of the king, their influence declined. By the end of the later Vedic age, different kinds of political systems such as monarchical states (rajya), oligarchical states (gana or sangha), and tribal principalities had emerged in India.
According to Michael Witzel's analysis of the Kuru Kingdom, it can be characterized as the earliest Vedic "state", during the Middle Vedic Period. However, Robert Bellah observes that it is difficult to "pin down" whether the Kurus were a true "state" or a complex chiefdom, as the Kuru kings notably never adopted royal titles higher than "rājan," which means "chief" rather than "king" in the Vedic context. The Middle Vedic Period is also characterized by a lack of cities; Bellah compares this to early state formation in ancient Hawaii and "very early Egypt," which were "territorial states" rather than "city-states," and thus "it was the court, not the city, that provided the center, and the court was often peripatetic." Romila Thapar characterizes Vedic-era state formation as being in a condition of "arrested development," because local chiefs were relatively autonomous, and because surplus wealth that could have been directed towards state-building was instead used for the increasingly grandiose rituals that also served to structure social relations. The period of the Upanishads, the final phase of the Vedic era, was approximately contemporaneous with a new wave of state formations, linked to the beginning of urbanization in the Ganges Valley: along with the growth of population and trade networks, these social and economic changes put pressure on older ways of life, setting the stage for the Upanishads and the subsequent śramaṇa movements, and the end of the Vedic Period, which was followed by the Mahajanapada period.
According to George Erdosy, archaeological data for the period of period from 1000 to 600 BCE shows a two-tiered settlement pattern in the Ganges Valley, with some "modest central places," suggestive of the existence of simple chiefdoms, with the Kurukshetra District itself displaying a more complex (albeit not yet urbanized) three-tiered hierarchy. Subsequently, (after 600 BCE) there are four tiers of site sizes, including large towns and fortified cities, consistent with an urbanized state-level society.
Economy
Economy in the Vedic period was sustained by a combination of pastoralism and agriculture. There are references, in the Rigveda, to the leveling of fields, seed processing, and storage of grains in large jars. War bounty was also a major source of wealth. Economic exchanges were conducted by gift giving, particularly to kings (bali) and priests (dana), and barter using cattle as a unit of currency. While gold is mentioned in some hymns, there is no indication of the use of coins. Metallurgy is not mentioned in the Rigveda, but the word ayas and instruments made from it such as razors, bangles, axes are mentioned. One verse mentions purification of ayas. Some scholars believe that ayas refers to iron and the words dham and karmara refer to iron-welders. However, philological evidence indicates that ayas in the Rigveda refers only to copper and bronze, while iron or śyāma ayas, literally "black metal", first is mentioned in the post-Rigvedic Atharvaveda, and therefore the Early Vedic Period was a Bronze Age culture whereas the Late Vedic Period was an Iron Age culture.
The transition of Vedic society from semi-nomadic life to settled agriculture in the later Vedic age led to an increase in trade and competition for resources. Agriculture dominated the economic activity along the Ganges valley during this period. Agricultural operations grew in complexity and usage of iron implements (krishna–ayas or shyama–ayas, literally black metal or dark metal) increased. Crops of wheat, rice, and barley were cultivated. Surplus production helped to support the centralised kingdoms that were emerging at this time. New crafts and occupations such as carpentry, leather work, tanning, pottery, astrology, jewellery, dying, and winemaking arose. Apart from copper, bronze, and gold, later Vedic texts also mention tin, lead, and silver.
Panis in some hymns refers to merchants, in others to stingy people who hid their wealth and did not perform Vedic sacrifices. Some scholars suggest that Panis were semitic traders, but the evidence for this is slim. Professions of warriors, priests, cattle-rearers, farmers, hunters, barbers, vintners and crafts of chariot-making, cart-making, carpentry, metal working, tanning, making of bows, sewing, weaving, making mats of grass and reed are mentioned in the hymns of the Rigveda. Some of these might have needed full-time specialists. There are references to boats and oceans. Book X of the Rigveda refers to both eastern and western oceans. Individual property ownership did not exist and clans as a whole enjoyed rights over lands and herds. Enslavement (dasa, dasi) in the course of war or as a result of non-payment of debt is mentioned. However, slaves worked in households rather than production-related activities.
Religion
Vedic religion
Texts considered to date to the Vedic period are mainly the four Vedas, but the Brahmanas, Aranyakas and the older Upanishads as well as the oldest Śrautasutras are also considered to be Vedic. The Vedas record the liturgy connected with the rituals and sacrifices performed by the 16 or 17 Śrauta priests and the purohitas.
The rishis, the composers of the hymns of the Rigveda, were considered inspired poets and seers (in post-Vedic times understood as "hearers" of an eternally existing Veda, Śruti means "what is heard").
The mode of worship was the performance of sacrifices (Yajna) which included the chanting of Rigvedic verses (see Vedic chant), singing of Samans and 'mumbling' of sacrificial mantras (Yajus). Yajna involved sacrifice and sublimation of the havana sámagri (herbal preparations) in the fire accompanied by the chanting of the Vedic mantras. The sublime meaning of the word yajna is derived from the Sanskrit verb yaj, which has a three-fold meaning of worship of deities (devapujana), unity (saògatikaraña) and charity (dána). An essential element was the sacrificial fire—the divine Agni—into which oblations were poured, as everything offered into the fire was believed to reach God. People prayed for abundance of rain, cattle, sons, long life and gaining 'heaven'.
Vedic people believed in the transmigration of the soul, and the peepul tree and cow were sanctified by the time of the Atharvaveda. Many of the concepts of Indian philosophy espoused later like Dharma, Karma etc. trace their root to the Vedas.
The main deities of the Vedic pantheon were Indra, Agni (the sacrificial fire), and Soma and some deities of social order such as Mitra–Varuna, Aryaman, Bhaga and Amsa, further nature deities such as Surya (the Sun), Vayu (the wind) and Prithivi (the earth). Goddesses included Ushas (the dawn), Prithvi and Aditi (the mother of the Aditya gods or sometimes the cow). Rivers, especially Saraswati, were also considered goddesses. Deities were not viewed as all-powerful. The relationship between humans and the deity was one of transaction, with Agni (the sacrificial fire) taking the role of messenger between the two. Strong traces of a common Indo-Iranian religion remain visible, especially in the Soma cult and the fire worship, both of which are preserved in Zoroastrianism.
Ethics in the Vedas are based on the concepts of Satya and Rta. Satya is the principle of integration rooted in the Absolute. Whereas, Ṛta is the expression of Satya, which regulates and coordinates the operation of the universe and everything within it. Conformity with Ṛta would enable progress whereas its violation would lead to punishment.
Influence on Hinduism
Around the beginning of the Common Era, the Vedic tradition formed one of the main constituents of the "Hindu synthesis". Vedic religion survived in the srayta ritual, whereas ascetic and devotional traditions like Yoga and Vedanta acknowledge the authority of the Vedas, but interpret the Vedic pantheon as a unitary view of the universe with 'God' (Brahman) seen as immanent and transcendent in the forms of Ishvara and Brahman. Later texts such as the Upanishads and epics, namely the Gita of Mahabharat, are essential parts of these later developments.
Literature
The reconstruction of the history of Vedic India is based on text-internal details, but can be correlated to relevant archaeological details. Linguistically, the Vedic texts could be classified in five chronological strata:
Rigvedic text: The Rigveda is by far the most archaic of the Vedic texts preserved, and it retains many common Indo-Iranian elements, both in language and in content, that are not present in any other Vedic text. Its time span likely corresponds to the Late Harappan culture, Gandhara grave culture and Ochre Coloured Pottery culture.
Mantra language texts: This period includes both the mantra and prose language of the Atharvaveda (Paippalada and Shaunmkiya), the Rigveda Khilani, the Samaveda Samhita (containing some 75 mantras not in the Rigveda), and the mantras of the Yajurveda. Many of these texts are largely derived from the Rigveda, but have undergone certain changes, both by linguistic change and by reinterpretation. Conspicuous changes include change of vishva "all" by sarva, and the spread of the kuru- verbal stem (for Rigvedic krno-). This is the time of the early Iron Age in north-western India, corresponding to the Black and Red Ware (BRW) and Painted Grey Ware (PGW) cultures, and the early Kuru Kingdom, dating from c. the 12th to 11th centuries BCE.
Samhita prose texts: This period marks the beginning of the collection and codification of a Vedic canon. An important linguistic change is the complete loss of the injunctive. The Brahmana part ('commentary' on mantras and ritual) of the Black Yajurveda (MS, KS, TS) belongs to this period. Archaeologically, the Painted Grey Ware (PGW) culture from c. 1000 or 900 BCE corresponds to the Kuru Kingdom and the subsequent eastward shift of the political centre from the Kurus to the Panchalas on the Ganges.
Brahmana prose texts: The Brahmanas proper of the four Vedas belong to this period, as well as the Aranyakas, the oldest of the Upanishads (BAU, ChU, JUB) and the oldest Śrautasutras (BSS, VadhSS). In the east, Videha (N. Bihar and Nepal) is established as the third main political centre of the Vedic period.
Sutra language texts: This is the last stratum of Vedic Sanskrit leading up to c. 500 BCE, comprising the bulk of the Śrauta and Grhya Sutras, and some Upanishads (e.g. KathU, MaitrU).
Visual arts
In northern India, some very early depictions of deities appear in the art of the Indus Valley Civilisation, but the following millennium, coinciding with the Indo–Aryan migration during the Vedic period, is devoid of such remains. It has been suggested that the early Vedic religion focused exclusively on the worship of purely "elementary forces of nature by means of elaborate sacrifices", which did not lend themselves easily to anthropomorphological representations. Various artefacts may belong to the Copper Hoard Culture (2nd millennium CE), some of them suggesting anthropomorphological characteristics. Interpretations vary as to the exact signification of these artifacts, or even the culture and the periodization to which they belonged. Some examples of artistic expression also appear in abstract pottery designs during the Black and red ware culture (1450–1200 BCE) or the Painted Grey Ware culture (1200–600 BCE), with finds in a wide area, including the area of Mathura.
Archaeology
Archaeological cultures identified with phases of Vedic material culture include the Ochre Coloured Pottery culture, the Gandhara Grave culture, the Black and red ware culture and the Painted Grey Ware culture.
Ochre coloured pottery culture was first found approximately between 1950 and 1951, in western Uttar Pradesh, in the Badaun and Bisjuar district. It is thought that this culture was prominent during the latter half of the 2nd millennium, within the transition between the Indus Valley civilization and the end of Harrapan culture. This pottery is typically created with wheel ware, and is ill-fired, to a fine to medium fabric, decorated with a red slip, and occasional black bands1. When this pottery was worked with, it often left an ochre color on the hands, most likely because of water-logging, bad firing, wind action, or a mixture of these factors. This pottery was found all throughout the doab, most of it found in the Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, and Bulandshahr districts, but also existing outside these districts, extending north and south of Bahadrabad. This pottery does, however, seem to exist within different time frames of popularity, ochre colored pottery seeming to occur in areas such as Rajasthan earlier than we see it in the doab, despite the doab being heavily associated with the culture.
Gandhara grave culture refers to the protohistoric cemeteries found in the Gandhara region, stretching all the way from Bajuar to the Indus. These cemeteries seem to follow a set grave structure and “mortuary practice”, such as inflexed inhumation and cremation. This culture is thought to occur in 3 stages: the lower, in which burials take place in masonry lined pits, the upper, in which urn burials and cremations are added, and the “surface” level, in which graves are covered with huge stone slabs.
In the lower stage, excavators found that these graves are typically 2–3 feet deep, and covered with stones on top. After digging out the stones, skeletons were found facing southwest to northeast, with the head facing one direction, and the hands laying on top of one another. Female skeletons were often found wearing hair pins and jewelry. Pottery is greatly important to this culture, as pottery was often used as a “grave good”, being buried with the bodies of the dead. Buried alongside the skeletons, we typically see various pots on top of the body, averaging at about 5 or less pieces of pottery per grave. Within this culture we typically see two kinds of pottery: gray ware, or red ware.
Black and red ware culture was coined as a term in 1946 by Sir Mortimer Wheeler. The pottery, as the name suggests, typically has a black rim/inside surface, and a red lower half on the outside of the piece. Red-ware pottery tends to fall into two categories: offering stands, or cooking vessels. Most of these pieces of pottery were open-mouthed bowls that were burnished, painted, or slipped on one side; however, jars, pots and dishes-on-stands have also been found in small quantities.
Black and red ware, and the surrounding culture, began its spread during the neolithic period and continues until the early medieval period in India, as well as being found in parts of West Asia and Egypt. There are many theories about the process of its creation, the most popular being the use of an inverted firing technique, or a simultaneous oxidation and reduction firing.
Painted grey ware culture is a significant pottery style that has been linked to a group of people who settled in Sutlej, Ghagger, and the Upper Ganga/Yamuna Valleys, loosely classified with the early Aryans who migrated to India in the beginning of the Vedic period. It’s also thought that the groups that introduced the painted grey ware culture also brought iron technology to the Indo-gangetic plains, making this pottery a momentous mark of the Northern Indian Iron age. The style of grey-ware often includes clay wheel-thrown into a smooth texture, ash-grey in color, and often decorated with black ink, creating small circular patterns, sometimes spirals, swastikas, or sigmas.
Grey-ware pottery is almost exclusively drinking ware, and tends to have three different forms: narrow-waisted, tall drinking glasses, middle-sized drinking goblets, and drinking vases with outturned lips. There was a distinct grey ware culture surrounding the establishment of the pottery, but while the culture is significant, grey ware has only made up 10–15% of found Vedic pottery, a majority of the pottery red ware, as grey ware pottery was seen as a “highly valued luxury”.
Puranic chronology of the Vedic period
The Puranic chronology, the timeline of events in ancient Indian history and mythology as narrated in post-Vedic Hindu texts such as the Mahabharatha, the Ramayana and the Puranas, envisions a much older chronology for the Vedic culture. In this view, the Vedas were received by the seven rishis thousands of years ago. The start of the reign of Manu Vaivasvate, the Manu of the current kalpa (aeon) and the progenitor of humanity, is dated by some as far back 7350 BCE. The Kurukshetra War, the background-scene of the Bhagavad Gita, which may relate historical events taking place ca. 1000 BCE at the heartland of Aryavarta, is dated in this chronology at 3100 BCE.
See also
History of India
Historical Vedic religion
Indus Valley Civilisation
Vedanga
Indigenous Aryanism
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Ancient India
Ancient history of Pakistan
Iron Age Asia
Iron Age cultures of South Asia
History of Punjab
History of Sindh
Indo-Aryan archaeological cultures
Civilizations
Ancient Indian culture
Ancient culture of Pakistan | true | [
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