Liz Mitchell, former lead singer of the 1970s disco/pop band Boney M

Liz Mitchell is a singer, best known as the former lead singer of the 1970s disco/pop band, Boney M.
At the age of eleven, Mitchell and her family emigrated to London, England, in 1963. By the end of the decade, she auditioned for Hair and eventually moved to Berlin to join the German cast where she replaced Donna Summer. After Hair, Mitchell joined the Les Humphries Singers for a few years where she had a relationship with Malcolm Magaron. The two left the group to form Malcolm Locks who released the album Caribbean Rocks in 1974 to minimal success. Mitchell, finding her career coming to a standstill, returned to her parents in England.

A phone call from fellow Jamaican Marcia Barrett in 1975 persuaded Mitchell to return to Germany to join a new group being assembled by record producer, Frank Farian, which would become known as Boney M. Though the group's initial purpose was to simply lip-synch for TV and discothèque performances of Farian's song "Baby Do You Wanna Bump", Boney M. soon became a legitimate recording group with Mitchell, Barrett, and producer Farian as the vocal core. Mitchell became widely regarded as Boney M.'s lead vocalist. Farian later stated that "All members (of Boney M.) could be replaced, except Liz". The departure of Bobby Farrell in late 1981 proved this was not entirely true.

Although Boney M was largely a Farian vehicle for his own songwriting, Mitchell is credited as co-composer of the Boney M song, "African Moon", which appeared on their album, Boonoonoonoos (1981). Though she did not contribute significantly as a songwriter, Mitchell's vocals are widely regarded as the most distinctive part of the Boney M. sound.

Boney M. would disband in 1986, as Farian lost interest in the project.
In 1990, Mitchell re-formed her 1988 line-up with Patricia Foster replacing Celena Duncan and kept touring the cabaret circuit. In April 1991, she released the single "Mocking Bird", produced by long time Boney M. collaborator, Helmut Rulofs to minimal attention. After three dire years, the success of Boney M. Gold - 20 Super Hits boosted the career of her line-up, entitled 'Boney M. feat. Liz Mitchell', and they were officially approved by Farian to promote the album and the accompanying singles.



For the follow-up More Gold - 20 Super Hits Vol. II, Mitchell recorded four new songs. No One Will Force You with two previously unreleased tracks from 1984 was also re-released in Denmark, five years after it was recorded.

In 1996, Mitchell and her husband Thomas Pemberton built the Dove House Studios and formed Dove House Records. With a newly founded fan club, Mitchell recorded an EP with four Christmas songs as a special Christmas gift for her fans.

In November 1999, Mitchell finally released her album Share the World, which had taken three years to complete. In November 2000, she released the seasonal album Christmas Rose which consisted of partly new material, including the title track, "Lord's Prayer" and "I Want to Go to Heaven" co-written by herself, part re-recordings of Boney M.'s Christmas Album.

Mitchell, now a born-again Christian, continued the inspirational path on Let It Be,[2] her fourth solo album, released in November 2004. Just a few months later, the album Liz Mitchell Sings the Hits of Boney M., recorded in Prague, backed by a Czech symphony orchestra, was released. A song recorded in 2006, called "A Moment Of Love", can be found on the compilation album, The Magic of Boney M..

She is still touring, billed as Boney M. featuring Liz Mitchell.

"Big Ghitza" Mureşan, cel mai înalt jucător din istoria NBA

Gheorghe Dumitru Mureşan, also known as Ghiţă or George, is a retired Romanian professional basketball player. At 7 ft 7 in (2.31 m), he is tied with Sudanese player Manute Bol as the tallest man to ever play in the NBA. Both his parents are of average size, and, unlike Bol, Mureşan's height is the result of a pituitary disorder.

The NBA took interest in him and he was selected by the Washington Bullets in the 1993 NBA Draft. He played in the NBA from 1993 to 1994 showing signs of a promising career that was derailed by injuries.

After returning to France and playing for the start of the 1995–96 season with Pau-Orthez, he was named the NBA's Most Improved Player for the 1995–96 season after averaging 14.5 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.26 blocks per game while making a league-leading 58.4 percent of his field goals. He led in field goal percentage again the following season, with a 60.4% average. Overall, he holds career averages of 9.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 1.48 blocks per game and a .573 field goal percentage. He joined the New Jersey Nets for the final 31 games of his career. After retiring from the NBA, Mureşan returned to the French league for three more years before returning to the United States with his family. He normally wore number 77, in reference to his height.

On March 11, 2007, Mureşan played a game for the Maryland Nighthawks as part of the tallest lineup in the history of basketball. This is the only basketball game Mureşan has ever played where he was not the tallest person on the court, as Sun Mingming is 7' 9" (2.36 m).

Outside basketball, Mureşan has dabbled in acting, playing the title character in 1998 feature film My Giant starring comedian Billy Crystal. Mureşan plays a ventriloquist in rap artist Eminem's breakout video "My Name Is". He has appeared in commercials for Snickers candy bars, and sports television network ESPN.

Succes 2011: Mark Clattenburg, arbitru FIFA care oficiază în Premier League

Mark Clattenburg is an English football referee, who operates in the Football League and the Premier League, and for FIFA. He is based in Gosforth, Newcastle-upon-Tyne. He trained as an electrician and is of part-Canadian ancestry.
Clattenburg became a FIFA referee in 2006, at the age of 30 - reaching this distinction earlier than any English referee in living memory. He refereed Alan Shearer's testimonial match on 11 May 2006; he is a Newcastle United fan, and therefore does not referee competitive games involving Newcastle. On 9 September 2006, he took charge of a qualifying match for the 2007 UEFA Under-17s Championship at the Gradski Stadium in Skopje between Macedonia and Denmark; the away side winning 3–0.

In 2004, he became a Select Group referee in the Premier League, and his debut match at this level was the 3–1 away win by Everton against Crystal Palace on 21 August of the same year.

Clattenburg was appointed to control both legs of the 2006–07 FA Youth Cup final, contested by Liverpool and Manchester United, firstly at Anfield on 16 April 2007 which United won 2-1, and then at Old Trafford on 26 April 2007 which Liverpool won 1-0. With the aggregate scores tied, Liverpool won the subsequent penalty shoot-out 4-3 after a goalless 30 minutes of extra time.

In 2008, Clattenburg was appointed to referee the FA Community Shield, with Dave Richardson and Ian Gosling assisting and Andre Marriner acting as fourth official. However, Clattenburg was later suspended from refereeing, pending an investigation into alleged debts incurred by companies to which he is connected. The match between Portsmouth and Manchester United took place at Wembley Stadium with Peter Walton as the replacement referee.

Following the investigation into his personal life and business debts, the referees' governing body dismissed Clattenburg, citing a breach of contract. He denied all the allegations and appealed the decision. On 18 February 2009 the Professional Game Match Officials Board reinstated Clattenburg as a Select Group referee. However, he had to serve an eight-month suspension, starting from his original suspension date of 6 August 2008. Upon his return from suspension on the last day of the Premier League season, Clattenburg refereed the fixture between Manchester City and Bolton Wanderers.

Clattenburg's only involvement to date in a FIFA World Cup was as fourth official for the 2010 tournament qualifying match between Russia and Azerbaijan in Baku on 14 October 2009.

Succes 2011: Wynton Marsalis, Omul cu Statuie. Primul jazzman onorat cu Pulitzer Prize for Music

Wynton Learson Marsalis is a trumpeter, composer, bandleader, music educator, and Artistic Director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Marsalis has promoted the appreciation of Classical and Jazz music often to young audiences. Marsalis has been awarded nine Grammys in both genres, and was awarded the first Pulitzer Prize for Music for a jazz recording.

Marsalis is the son of jazz musician, Ellis Marsalis, Jr. (pianist), grandson to Ellis Marsalis, Sr. and brother to Branford (saxophonist), Delfeayo (trombonist), Mboya, and Jason (drummer).

In 1987, Wynton Marsalis co-founded a jazz program at Lincoln Center. In July 1996, Jazz at Lincoln Center was installed as new constituent of Lincoln Center. In October 2004, Marsalis opened Frederick P. Rose Hall, the world's first institution for jazz containing three performance spaces (including the first concert hall designed specifically for jazz) along with recording, broadcast, rehearsal and educational facilities. Wynton presently serves as Artistic Director for Jazz at Lincoln Center and Music Director for the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.

Marsalis has won nine Grammy Awards. In 1983 and 1984, he became the only artist ever to win Grammy Awards for both jazz and classical records, and he is the only artist to win Grammy Awards for five consecutive years (1983–1987).

Among honorary degrees Marsalis has received have included those conferred by Columbia, Harvard, Howard, the State University of New York, Princeton and Yale. Marsalis was honored with the Louis Armstrong Memorial Medal and the Algur H. Meadows Award for Excellence in the Arts. He was inducted into the American Academy of Achievement and was dubbed an Honorary Dreamer by the I Have a Dream Foundation. The New York Urban League awarded Maraslis with the Frederick Douglass Medallion for distinguished leadership and the American Arts Council presented him with the Arts Education Award.

Time magazine list of promising Americans under the age 40 selected Maralis in 1995, and in 1996, Time celebrated Marsalis as one of America's 25 most influential people. In November 2005, Marsalis received the National Medal of Arts. United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan proclaimed Marsalis an international ambassador of goodwill for the United States by appointing him a UN Messenger of Peace (2001).

In 1997, Marsalis became the first jazz musician ever to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music for his epic oratorio, Blood On The Fields. In a personal note to Marsalis, Zarin Mehta wrote, "I was not surprised at your winning the Pulitzer Prize for Blood On The Fields. It is a broad, beautifully painted canvas that impresses and inspires. It speaks to us all ... I’m sure that, somewhere in the firmament, Buddy Bolden, Louis Armstrong and legions of others are smiling down on you".

Marsalis, with his father and brothers, are group recipients of the 2011 NEA Jazz Masters Award.

Marsalis has toured 30 countries on every continent except Antarctica, and nearly five million copies of his recordings have been sold worldwide.

Music awards

Pulitzer Prize for Music

* 1997 Blood on the Fields, oratorio

Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group

* 1986 Black Codes (From the Underground)
* 1987 J Mood
* 1988 Marsalis Standard Time - Volume I

Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra)

* 1983 Raymond Leppard (conductor), Wynton Marsalis & the National Philharmonic Orchestra for Haydn: Trumpet Concerto in E Flat/L. Mozart: Trumpet Concerto In D/Hummel: Trumpet Concerto in E Flat
* 1984 Raymond Leppard (conductor), Wynton Marsalis & the English Chamber Orchestra for Wynton Marsalis, Edita Gruberova: Handel, Purcell, Torelli, Fasch, Molter

Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Solo

* 1983 Think of One
* 1984 Hot House Flowers
* 1985 Black Codes From the Underground

Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for Children

* 2000 Listen to the Storyteller

Fabio Capello. Un italian, dirijor în Perfidul Albion

Fabio Capello is a retired Italian footballer and current manager of the England national football team, having started the role in January 2008.

Capello has the distinction of winning the domestic league title with every club he has coached throughout his career. In his first five seasons as a manager he won four Serie A titles with Milan, where he also won the 1993–94 UEFA Champions League, defeating Barcelona 4–0 in a memorable final. He then spent a year at Real Madrid, where he won the La Liga title at his first attempt, and in 2001 led Roma to their first league title in 18 years. Capello also won two titles at Juventus (which were later stripped after the Calciopoli scandal), and in 2006 returned to Real Madrid, where he won another La Liga title. Overall he has won a major league championship in seven (or nine, counting the two revoked titles with Juventus) of his 16 seasons as a coach, and is one of the few managers to claim championship victories in four major European cities: Milan, Madrid, Rome, and Turin.

After being appointed England manager in December 2007, Capello announced that the role would be the last of his career. Capello's contract with the Football Association came into effect on 7 January 2008, and was initially planned to run for two-and-a-half years; on 24 January 2008, Capello was named president of the League Managers Association, a customary role given to the English national coach. In May 2010 it was announced that Capello's contract had been extended in to 2012.

Honours:
As a player

Roma

* Coppa Italia (1): 1968–69

Juventus

* Serie A (3): 1971–72, 1972–73, 1974–75

Milan

* Serie A (1): 1978–79
* Coppa Italia (1): 1976–77

[edit] As a coach

Milan

* Serie A (4): 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96
* Supercoppa Italiana (3): 1992, 1993, 1994
* UEFA Champions League (1): 1993–94
* European Super Cup (1): 1994
* Coppa Italia Primavera (1): 1984–85

Roma

* Serie A (1): 2000–01
* Supercoppa Italiana (1): 2001

Juventus

* Serie A (1): 2004–05, 2005–06 (both revoked)

Real Madrid

* La Liga (2): 1996–97, 2006–07

[edit] Individual

* Serie A Coach of the Year: 2005
* BBC Sports Personality of the Year Coach Award: 2009

Succes 2011: Martin Atkinson, arbitru FIFA care oficiază în Premier League

Martin Atkinson (born 31 March 1971) is an English football referee who officiates in the Premier League and for FIFA.
Atkinson started his refereeing career at the relatively early age of 16 years old, as the local team did not have a referee to oversee matches. By 1998, he had been promoted to the Football League's list of assistant referees.

This was followed in 2000 by promotion to the Select Group of assistant referees. By December 2002 he was refereeing Football Conference matches, and also refereed the 2003 FA County Youth Cup final.

At the start of the 2003–04 season, Atkinson joined the national list of referees. He had the distinction of not sending off any player from the field of play between August 2004 and October 2005.

Only two years after his Conference debut, Atkinson was appointed to referee his first Premier League game, taking charge of the Manchester City-Birmingham City fixture on 20 April 2005, cautioning one player and awarding the home side a penalty kick in a 3–0 result.

During the three seasons between 2003 and 2006, Atkinson issued only eight red cards in 102 matches, an average of less than 0.08 per game.

In 2006 Atkinson was appointed to the list of FIFA referees.

The 2006-07 season saw Atkinson referee 42 matches in English football, his highest tally of appointments to date.
[edit] 2006 FA Community Shield

Atkinson refereed the 2006 FA Community Shield match at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, arguably his highest domestic appointment. Liverpool defeated Chelsea 2–1, with Atkinson issuing four yellow cards.
Atkinson was appointed to referee the 2008 FA Trophy Final at Wembley Stadium, which was contested between Ebbsfleet United and Torquay United.

Atkinson's only international appointment to date was the 2010 FIFA World Cup UEFA group 4 qualifying game between Germany and Finland in Hamburg on 14 October 2009 which ended 1-1.
Atkinson issues a yellow card during a fixture between Birmingham City and Arsenal in 2010

During the 2008-09 season he refereed four UEFA Champions League games, including FC Zürich against Real Madrid and Inter Milan versus Dynamo Kiev.

In 2010 Atkinson was fourth official to Howard Webb for the Champions League final in Madrid.

Succes 2011: David Saint-Jacques, astronaut

David Saint-Jacques (born January 6, 1970 in Quebec City, Quebec) is a Canadian astronaut with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). He was selected to join the CSA in the 2009 CSA selection along with Jeremy Hansen.

SPECIAL HONORS: Canada Millennium Scholarship (2001-2005). Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Post-Doctoral Fellowship (1999-2001). Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada “1967” Science and Engineering Scholarship (1994-1998). Canadian Space Agency Supplement Scholarship (1994-1998). Cambridge Commonwealth Trust Honorary Scholar (1994-1998). United Kingdom Overseas Research Student Award (1994-1998). Canada Scholarship (1989-1993).
NASA EXPERIENCE: Saint-Jacques was selected in May 2009 by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and has moved to Houston to be one of 14 members of the 20th NASA astronaut class. He is currently in Astronaut Candidate Training that includes scientific and technical briefings, intensive instruction in International Space Station systems, Extravehicular Activity (EVA), robotics, physiological training, T-38 flight training, Russian language and water and wilderness survival training.