Wednesday, December 21, 2022

Whoopi Goldberg, an American actress, comedian, author and television host. She has been nominated for 13 Emmy Awards for her work in television and is one of the few entertainers who has won an Emmy Award, a Grammy Award, an Oscar, and a Tony Award

Caryn Elaine Johnson (born November 13, 1955), known professionally as Whoopi Goldberg, is an American actress, comedian, author and television host. She has been nominated for 13 Emmy Awards for her work in television and is one of the few entertainers who has won an Emmy Award, a Grammy Award, an Oscar, and a Tony Award. She was the second black woman in the history of the Academy Awards to win an acting Oscar.
In the period drama film, The Color Purple (1985), her breakthrough role was playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South, for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress. In the romantic fantasy film Ghost (1990), Goldberg played Oda Mae Brown, an eccentric psychic who helped a slain man (Patrick Swayze) save his lover (Demi Moore), for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. In 1992, she starred as a pretend nun in the comedy Sister Act. From 1998 to 2002, she was co-producer of the television game show Hollywood Squares. Since 2007, she has been the moderator of the daytime television talk show, The View.

oldberg starred in Penny Marshall's directorial debut Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986) and began a relationship with David Claessen, a director of photography on the set; the couple married later that year. The film was a modest success, and during the next two years, three additional motion pictures featured Goldberg: Burglar (1987), Fatal Beauty (1987), and The Telephone (1988). Though these were not as successful as her prior motion pictures, Goldberg still garnered awards from the NAACP Image Awards. Goldberg and Claessen divorced after the poor box office performance of The Telephone, which Goldberg was under contract to star in. She tried unsuccessfully to sue the producers of the film. Clara's Heart did poorly at the box office, though her own performance was critically acclaimed. As the 1980s concluded, she participated in the numerous HBO specials of Comic Relief with fellow comedians Robin Williams and Billy Crystal.
In January 1990, Goldberg starred with Jean Stapleton in the situation comedy Bagdad Cafe. The show ran for two seasons on CBS. Simultaneously, Goldberg starred in The Long Walk Home, portraying a woman in the civil rights movement. She played a psychic in the 1990 film Ghost and became the first black woman to win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in nearly 50 years, and the second black woman to win an Academy Award for acting (the first being Hattie McDaniel, for 1939's Gone with the Wind). Premiere named her character Oda Mae Brown in its list of Top 100 best film characters.[20]
Goldberg starred in Soapdish (1991) and had a recurring role on Star Trek: The Next Generation as Guinan, which she would reprise in two Star Trek films. On May 29, 1992, Sister Act was released. The motion picture grossed well over US $200 million and Goldberg was nominated for a Golden Globe. Next, she starred in Sarafina!. During the next year, she hosted a late-night talk show titled The Whoopi Goldberg Show and starred in two more motion pictures: Made in America and Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit. From 1994 to 1995, Goldberg appeared in Corrina, Corrina, The Lion King (voice), The Pagemaster (voice), Boys on the Side, and Moonlight and Valentino. Goldberg guest starred on Muppets Tonight in 1996. She became the first African-American woman to host the Academy Awards show in 1994,[21] and the first woman to solo host. She hosted the awards show again in 1996, 1999, and 2002.

Tuesday, December 13, 2022

George R. R. Martin, an American novelist, screenwriter, television producer and short story writer. Author of novels A Song of Ice and Fire, which were adapted into HBO series Game of Thrones

George Raymond Richard Martin (born George Raymond Martin; September 20, 1948), also known as GRRM, is an American novelist, screenwriter, television producer and short story writer. He is the author of the series of epic fantasy novels A Song of Ice and Fire, which were adapted into the Emmy Award-winning HBO series Game of Thrones (2011–2019) and its prequel series House of the Dragon (2022–present). He also helped create the Wild Cards anthology series, and contributed worldbuilding for the 2022 video game Elden Ring.

In 2005, Lev Grossman of Time called Martin "the American Tolkien", and in 2011, he was included on the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world. He is a longtime citizen of Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he helped fund Meow Wolf and owns the Jean Cocteau Cinema. The city commemorates March 29 as George R. R. Martin Day.

Wednesday, December 7, 2022

Abraham Klein, international football referee. Klein refeered the Brazil v Italy fixture in the 1982 World Cup



Abraham Klein is an Israeli former international football referee. He refereed international matches between 1965 and 1982, including the 1968 and 1976 Olympics and important matches at the Mexico 1970, Argentina 1978 and Spain 1982 World Cup Finals. He was also a linesman (now assistant referee) for the 1982 World Cup Final in Spain.

Klein was also given the Brazil v Italy fixture in the 1982 World Cup, the game in which Paolo Rossi scored a hat-trick. He ran the line in the final to the Brazilian referee Arnaldo Coelho and was, reputedly, offered the chance to officiate in the event of that final being replayed.

Wednesday, November 30, 2022

Mario Andretti, an Italian-born American former racing driver, one of the most successful Americans in the history of the sport

Mario Gabriele Andretti (born February 28, 1940) is an Italian-born American former racing driver, one of the most successful Americans in the history of the sport.[1] He is one of only two drivers to have won races in Formula One, IndyCar, World Sportscar Championship, and NASCAR (the other being Dan Gurney). He also won races in midget cars and sprint cars.
During his career, Andretti won the 1978 Formula One World Championship, four IndyCar titles (three under USAC-sanctioning, one under CART), and IROC VI. To date, he remains the only driver ever to win the Indianapolis 500 (1969), Daytona 500 (1967) and the Formula One World Championship, and, along with Juan Pablo Montoya, the only driver to have won a race in the NASCAR Cup Series, Formula One, and an Indianapolis 500. No American has won a Formula One race since Andretti's victory at the 1978 Dutch Grand Prix.[2] Andretti had 109 career wins on major circuits.[3]
Andretti had a long career in racing. He was the only person to be named United States Driver of the Year in three decades (1967, 1978, and 1984).[4] He was also one of only three drivers to have won major races on road courses, paved ovals, and dirt tracks in one season, a feat that he accomplished four times.[4] With his final IndyCar win in April 1993, Andretti became the first driver to have won IndyCar races in four different decades[5] and the first to win automobile races of any kind in five.[4]
In American popular culture, his name has become synonymous with speed, as with Barney Oldfield in the early twentieth century and Stirling Moss in the United Kingdom.
In 1986, he was inducted into the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame. In 2000, the Associated Press and RACER magazine named him Driver of the Century.[53] He was the Driver of the Year (in the United States) for three years (1967, 1978, and 1984),[54] and is the only driver to be Driver of the Year in three decades.[16] Andretti was named the U.S. Driver of the Quarter Century in 1992.[3] He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2001,[3] the United States National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1996,[7] the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America[55] in 1990, the Hoosier Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 1970,[7] the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2005 and the Diecast Hall of Fame in 2012.
On October 23, 2006, Andretti was awarded the highest civilian honor given by the Italian government, the Commendatore dell'Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana (known as the Commendatore), in honor of his racing career, public service, and enduring commitment to his Italian heritage.[53] Enzo Ferrari is the only other recipient of the Commendatore from the world of automobile racing.
In 2007, Andretti was honored with the "Lombardi Award of Excellence" from the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation. The award was created to honor Coach Lombardi's legacy, and is awarded annually to an individual who exemplifies the spirit of the Coach.
From 2007 Mario Andretti is the "Mayor" (Sindaco) of the "Free Commune of Motovun in Exile" (Libero Comune di Montona in esilio), an association of Italian exiles from Motovun.

Tuesday, November 22, 2022

Stewart Copeland, an American musician and composer. He is best known for his work as the drummer of the English rock band the Police

Stewart Armstrong Copeland (born July 16, 1952) is an American musician and composer. He is best known for his work as the drummer of the English rock band the Police from 1977 to 1986, and again from 2007 to 2008. Before playing with the Police, he played drums with English rock band Curved Air from 1975 to 1976. As a composer, his work includes the films Wall Street (1987), Men At Work (1990), Good Burger (1997), and We Are Your Friends (2015); the television shows The Equalizer (1985–1989), The Amanda Show (1999–2002), and Dead Like Me (2003–2004); and video games such as the Spyro series (1998–present) and Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare (2001). He has also written various pieces of ballet, opera, and orchestral music
 

Tuesday, November 15, 2022

Will Smith, known as the Fresh Prince, is an American actor, rapper and film producer


 Willard Carroll Smith II (born September 25, 1968), briefly known as the Fresh Prince, is an American actor, rapper and film producer. He has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and four Grammy Awards. As of 2023, his films have grossed over $9.3 billion globally,  making him one of Hollywood's most bankable stars.

Monday, November 7, 2022

Steve Hackett, an English guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He was the lead guitarist of the progressive rock band Genesis


Stephen Richard Hackett (born 12 February 1950) is an English guitarist, songwriter and record producer who gained prominence as the lead guitarist of the progressive rock band Genesis from 1971 to 1977. Hackett contributed to six Genesis studio albums, three live albums, seven singles and one EP[2] before he left to pursue a solo career. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Genesis in 2010.

Hackett released his first solo album, Voyage of the Acolyte, while still a member of Genesis in 1975. After a series of further solo albums beginning in 1978, Hackett co-founded the supergroup GTR with Steve Howe in 1986. The group released the self-titled album GTR, which peaked at No. 11 on the Billboard 200 in the United States and spawned the Top 20 single "When the Heart Rules the Mind". When Hackett left GTR in 1987, the group disbanded. Hackett then resumed his solo career. He has released albums and toured worldwide on a regular basis since.

Tuesday, November 1, 2022

Marcel Răducanu, a former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder for Steaua and Borussia Dortmund

Marcel Răducanu (born 21 October 1954) is a Romanian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.

Marcel Răducanu was born in Bucharest on 21 October 1954. Răducanu made his Divizia A debut on 22 April 1973, playing for Steaua in a 2–0 loss against CSM ReÈ™iÈ›a.He won The Double in the 1975–76 season, contributing with 17 goals in 31 Divizia A matches. He won another title in the 1977–78 season for which he contributed with 18 goals in 31 matches and a cup in 1979 in which he scored two goals in the final which ended 3–0 against Sportul StudenÈ›esc BucureÈ™ti. Răducanu also played 11 matches in which he scored 5 goals in European competitions for Steaua and in the 6–0 victory against Young Boys from the 1979–80 European Cup Winners' Cup, Răducanu scored one of his most beautiful goals after showing his dribbling abilities in front of Young Boys's defense, the Swiss goalkeeper, Walter Eichenberger saying in an interview years later after that match:"He humiliated us and laughed at us". Răducanu has a total of 229 Divizia A appearances in which he scored 94 goals and in 1980 he was the Romanian Footballer of the Year, also in the same year he was nominated for the Ballon d'Or.

 

Tuesday, October 18, 2022

Ben Stiller, an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker


 Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is the son of the comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Stiller was a member of a group of comedic actors colloquially known as the Frat Pack. His films have grossed more than $2.6 billion in Canada and the United States, with an average of $79 million per film.[2] Throughout his career, he has received various awards and honors, including an Emmy Award, multiple MTV Movie Awards, a Britannia Award and a Teen Choice Award.

Monday, October 10, 2022

Jessica Ann Simpson, an American singer and actress


Jessica Ann Simpson (born July 10, 1980) is an American singer and actress. After performing in church choirs as a child, Simpson signed with Columbia Records in 1997, aged seventeen. Her debut studio album, Sweet Kisses (1999), sold two million copies in the United States and saw the commercial success of the single "I Wanna Love You Forever". Simpson adopted a more mature image for her second studio album, Irresistible (2001), and its title track became her second top 20 entry on the Billboard Hot 100, while the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In This Skin (2003), Simpson's third studio album, sold three million copies in the United States.

 

Tuesday, September 27, 2022

Kim Novak, Hollywood 'sex goddess' in the 1950's

Marilyn Pauline "Kim" Novak (born February 13, 1933) is a retired American film and television actress.

She began her film career in 1954 after signing with Columbia Pictures. There she starred in a string of movies, among them the well received Picnic (1955). She later starred in such films as The Man with the Golden Arm (1955) and Pal Joey (1957). However, she is perhaps Alfred Hitchcock's thriller Vertigo (1958) with James Stewart. Novak enjoyed box-office success and starred opposite several prominent leading men of the era, including Fred MacMurray, William Holden, Frank Sinatra, Tyrone Power, Kirk Douglas, and Laurence Harvey.
best known today for her performance as Madeline Elster/Judy Barton in
Although still only in her mid-30s, Novak withdrew from acting in 1966, and has only sporadically worked in films since. She appeared in The Mirror Crack'd (1980), and had a regular role on the primetime series Falcon Crest (1986–87).[2] After a disappointing experience during the filming of Liebestraum (1991), she permanently retired from acting, stating she had no desire to return.[3] Her contributions to world cinema have been honored with two Golden Globe Awards, an Honorary Golden Bear Award, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame among others. She works as a visual artist.
Columbia intended for Novak to be their successor to Rita Hayworth, their biggest star of the 1940s, whose career had declined; also, the studio was hopeful that Novak would bring them the same box-office success Marilyn Monroe brought 20th Century-Fox. Novak's first role for the studio was in the film noir Pushover (1954), in which she received third billing below Fred MacMurray and Philip Carey. She then co-starred in the romantic comedy Phffft (1954) as Janis, a character who finds Robert Tracey (Jack Lemmon) "real cute". Both films were reasonably successful at the box office, and Novak received favorable reviews for her performances. In her third feature film, 5 Against the House (1955), a gritty crime drama, she received equal billing with Guy Madison. It was only a minor critical and box-office success.
She then played Madge Owens in the film version of Picnic (1955), from the William Inge play, co-starring William Holden and Rosalind Russell. Its director, Joshua Logan, felt that it would be more in character for Novak to have red hair; she agreed to wear a red wig during filming. Picnic was a resounding critical and box-office triumph, and Novak won a Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer. She was also nominated for BAFTA Film Award for Best Foreign Actress, but did not win. She appeared as a mystery guest on the game show What's My Line? on February 5, 1956, to promote the film's opening at the Radio City Music Hall. Director Otto Preminger then cast her in The Man with the Golden Arm (1955), in which she played Frank Sinatra's sultry ex-girlfriend. In a cast which included Eleanor Parker, Novak received praise for being one of the film's bright spots, and the film was a box-office hit.  Novak's next project, The Eddy Duchin Story (1956), cast her as Marjorie Oelrichs, the wife of pianist Eddy Duchin, played by Tyrone Power. Because the two leads did not get along during filming, Novak nearly considered backing out of the production, but decided against it. At the time of its release, the film was a critical and box-office hit, with many suggesting that Novak's advertisements for No-Cal diet soda contributed positively to the film's success. Offered a choice for her next project, she selected the biopic Jeanne Eagels (1957), in which she portrayed the stage and silent-screen actress who was addicted to heroin. Co-starring Jeff Chandler, the film was a largely fictional account of Eagels' life. Eagels' family sued Columbia over the way Eagels had been depicted in the movie.[17]
After appearing in a series of successful movies, Novak became one of the biggest box-office draws of 1957 and 1958. Columbia then placed her in a film adaptation of Pal Joey (also 1957), based on the 1940 novel and Broadway play, both written by John O'Hara. Playing Linda English, a naive showgirl, she again co-starred opposite Frank Sinatra and Rita Hayworth. Released in October, the film received favorable reviews; Variety called the film "strong, funny entertainment," although Novak's performance has generated a mixed reaction, partly because of noticeable lack of on-screen charisma. The movie was a box-office hit and has been considered one of Novak's better performances.