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Adam Richard Sandler was born September 9, 1966 in Brooklyn, New York, to Judith (Levine), a teacher at a nursery school, and Stanley Alan Sandler, an electrical engineer. He is of Russian Jewish descent. At 17, he took his first step towards becoming a stand-up comedian when he spontaneously took the stage at a Boston comedy club. He found he was a natural comic. He nurtured his talent while at New York University (graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1991) by performing regularly in clubs and at universities. During his freshman year, he snagged a recurring role as the Huxtable family's friend Smitty on The Cosby Show (1984). While working at a comedy club in L.A., he was "discovered" by Dennis Miller, who recommended him to Saturday Night Live (1975) producer Lorne Michaels and told him that Sandler had a big talent. This led to his being cast in the show in 1990, which he also wrote for in addition to performing. After Saturday Night Live (1975), Sandler went on to the movies, starring in such hit comedies as Airheads (1994), Happy Gilmore (1996), Billy Madison (1995) and Big Daddy (1999). He has also starred in Mr. Deeds (2002) alongside Winona Ryder; Eight Crazy Nights (2002), an animated movie about the Jewish festival of Chanukah; and Punch-Drunk Love (2002). He also writes and produces many of his own films and has composed songs for several of them, including The Wedding Singer (1998). Sandler has had several of his songs placed on the "Billboard" charts, including the classic "The Chanukah Song".- Actor
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Adept at playing comic brat extraordinaires both on film and TV, David Spade was born on July 22, 1964, in Birmingham, Michigan, the youngest of three brothers. He is the son of Judith J. (Meek), a writer and editor, and Wayne M. Spade, a sales rep, and is of German, English, Irish, and Scottish descent. Raised in both Scottsdale (from age four) and Casa Grande, Arizona, he graduated with a degree in business from Arizona State University in 1986. A natural prankster most of his life, Spade was pushed immediately into stand-up comedy by friends and appeared in nightclubs and college campuses all over the country.
A casting agent saw his routine at "The Improv" in Los Angeles and offered him a mischievous role in the film Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol (1987). In 1990, the diminutive, flaxen-haired comedian finally hit the big time as a regular cast member and writer on Saturday Night Live (1975). Slow at first in gaining acceptance on the show, his razor-sharp sarcasm eventually caught on by his second season, when he played a number of smart-aleck characters in a variety of sketches, including a highly disinterested airline steward who bids each passenger adieu with a very sardonic "buh-bye" and an irritating receptionist for Dick Clark Productions who greets each huge celebrity with an unknowing "And you are . . . ?" A master of the putdown, Spade's "Hollywood Minute" reporter also took cynical advantage of tabloid-worthy stars. Spade impersonated such luminaries as Michael J. Fox, Kurt Cobain and Tom Petty during his tenure.
Following his SNL departure after six years, he spun off into a slapstick movie career, most noticeably as the scrawny, taciturn foil to SNL's wild and crazy big boy Chris Farley in Tommy Boy (1995) and Black Sheep (1996). The teaming of this unlikely but funny pair ended with Farley's death from a 1997 drug overdose. Since then, Spade has appeared in his own lukewarm vehicles, including Joe Dirt (2001) and Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003). More recently he teamed with former SNL member Rob Schneider on the film The Benchwarmers (2006). Television has been more accepting over the years, with Spade earning an Emmy nomination as the droll, skirt-chasing secretary Dennis Finch on Just Shoot Me! (1997) and filling in after the untimely death of John Ritter on ABC's 8 Simple Rules (2002) as Katey Sagal's unprincipled nephew.
Into the millennium, David was the star of the Comedy Central show The Showbiz Show with David Spade (2005) in 2005 wherein he more or less resurrected his obnoxious, razor-tongued gossipmonger from the old "Hollywood Minute" put-down segment on SNL, as well as co-starring in the adult-oriented ensemble sitcom Rules of Engagement (2007).
More recent comic film vehicles include The Benchwarmers (2006), The Do-Over (2016) alongside Adam Sandler; Father of the Year (2018); and The Wrong Missy (2020), along with cocky supporting roles in Entourage (2015) (as himself); the Adam Sandler vehicles Jack and Jill (2011), Grown Ups (2010), Grown Ups 2 (2013) and The Ridiculous 6 (2015); Sandy Wexler (2017); a voice in the animated feature Hotel Transylvania (2012) and its sequel Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018); Mad Families (2017) (also-co-wrote); and the rare dramatic thriller Warning Shot (2018). He also played recurring parts on the TV programs Carpet Bros (2008), Love (2016) and The Mayor (2017).- Producer
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Christopher Julius Rock was born in Andrews, South Carolina and raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York. He is the son of Rosalie (Tingman), a teacher and social worker for the mentally handicapped, and Julius Rock, a truck driver and newspaper deliveryman, whose own father was a preacher.
Rock has been in stand-up comedy for several decades. He made his big screen debut in Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) and spent three years on the cast of Saturday Night Live (1975). He does commercials for 1-800 Collect and Nike and covered the presidential campaign for the show Politically Incorrect (1993). He lives in Alpine, New Jersey.- Actress
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Salma Hayek was born on September 2, 1966 in Coatzacoalcos, Mexico. Her father is of Lebanese descent and her mother is of Mexican/Spanish ancestry. After having seen Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971) in a local movie theater, she decided she wanted to become an actress. At age 12, she was sent to the Academy of the Sacred Heart in New Orleans, Louisiana. After attending Mexico City's prestigious university Universidad Iberoamericana, she felt ready to pursue acting seriously.
She soon landed the title role in Teresa (1989), a hugely successful soap opera which earned her the star status in her native Mexico. However, anxious to make films and to explore her talent as well as passion, she left both Teresa (1989) and Mexico in 1991. Heartbroken fans spread rumors that she was having a secret affair with Mexico's president and left to escape his wife's wrath. She made her way to Los Angeles. She approached Hollywood with naive enthusiasm and quickly learned that Latina actresses were typecast as the mistress maid or local prostitute. By late 1992, she had landed only small roles. She appeared on Street Justice (1991), The Sinbad Show (1993), Nurses (1991), and as a sexy maid on Dream On (1990). She also had only one line in My Crazy Life (1993). Feeling under-appreciated by Anglo filmmakers, she vented her frustrations on Paul Rodriguez's late-night Spanish-language talk show.
Robert Rodriguez and his wife Elizabeth Avellan happened to be watching and were immediately smitten with her. He soon gave her big break -- to star opposite Antonio Banderas in the cult classic Desperado (1995), bringing her into Hollywood prominence. The moviegoers were as dazzled with her as he had been. Afterwards, she was cast again by Rodriguez to star in the cult classic From Dusk Till Dawn (1996). Her first star billing came later that year with Fools Rush In (1997) opposite Matthew Perry. It was a modest hit and her star continued to rise in both commercial and films such as Breaking Up (1997) with an unknown Russell Crowe, 54 (1998), Dogma (1999) and In the Time of the Butterflies (2001), the small artistic film which won her an ALMA award as best actress and the summer blockbuster Wild Wild West (1999). Her production company Ventanarosa produced the Mexican feature film El coronel no tiene quien le escriba (1999), which was shown at the Cannes Film Festival and selected as Mexico's official Oscar entry for best foreign film.
The new millennium started out quietly as she prepared to produce and star in her dream role of Frida Kahlo, the legendary Mexican painter whom she had been admiring her entire life and whose story she wanted to bring to the big screen ever since she arrived in Hollywood. Frida (2002) was full of passion and enthusiasm, with performances from her and Alfred Molina as Kahlo's cheating husband Diego Rivera. It also featured an entourage of stars such as Antonio Banderas, Ashley Judd, Geoffrey Rush, Edward Norton and Valeria Golino.
It was a box office hit and was nominated for six Academy Awards, including best actress for Hayek. It won awards for make-up and score by Elliot Goldenthal. Later that year, she expanded her horizons, directing The Maldonado Miracle (2003), which was shown at the Sundance Film Festival. In 2003, she starred in the finale of Rodriguez's Desperado trilogy Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003), again opposite Banderas. She also starred in After the Sunset (2004) opposite Pierce Brosnan, and Ask the Dust (2006) opposite Colin Farrell. She then starred in Bandidas (2006), which also featured Penélope Cruz, and Lonely Hearts (2006) opposite Jared Leto.- Actor
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Kevin James was born Kevin George Knipfing on April 26, 1965, in Mineola, Long Island, New York, to Janet (Klein), an office worker, and Joseph Valentine Knipfing, Jr., an insurance agency owner. He was raised in Stony Brook, and attended SUNY Cortland, where he played fullback on the football team while majoring in sports management. He realized after three years that this wasn't the path for him. After returning home, he decided to break up the monotony of the summer, and joined a community theater. During a play in which he had a comedic role, he so enjoyed the crowd reaction, that he joined his brother's (comedian Gary Valentine's) improv group. He began going to clubs with Gary and realized he, too, had the knack for comedy. He has performed stand-up up for about 11 years. It was on the comedy circuit that he met Ray Romano. While Ray was getting a big break with his own sitcom, Kevin was getting recognition on Star Search (1983). After appearing on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992), his big break came at the 1996 "Just for Laughs" Montreal Comedy Festival. Afterward, he landed a recurring role on Ray's sitcom, Everybody Loves Raymond (1996).
He starred in his own sitcom, The King of Queens (1998), as Doug Heffernan, from 1998 to 2007, and later began a career as a leading film actor, co-starring in Hitch (2005), I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry (2007), Grown Ups (2010), and Grown Ups 2 (2013), and headlining Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2009), Zookeeper (2011), Here Comes the Boom (2012), and Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 (2015).- Actor
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Peter Dante was born on 16 December 1968 in West Hartford, Connecticut, USA. He is an actor, known for Grandma's Boy (2006), Mr. Deeds (2002) and The Waterboy (1998).- Actor
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Allen Stephen Covert is an American comedian, actor, writer and producer who is well-known for the cult classic 2006 film Grandma's Boy. He is also known for his many collaborations alongside Adam Sandler and Happy Madison Productions in films such as Happy Gilmore, 50 First Dates, Little Nicky, Hotel Transylvania 2, Mr. Deeds and Eight Crazy Nights.- Actor
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Jonathan Loughran is an American actor and comedian who is known for playing a trucker in Kill Bill and his many collaborations with Adam Sandler. He also acted in Little Nicky, Big Daddy, The Waterboy, 50 First Dates, Eight Crazy Nights, Grown Ups, Hotel Transylvania 2, Anger Management, Punch-Drunk Love, Planet Terror and Grandma's Boy.- Actress
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Jacqueline Samantha Titone was born in 1974 in Coral Springs, Florida, to Lila Titone and Joseph Titone. She began modeling during high school and eventually became known nationally and internationally for modeling clothing for big name companies. Jackie was later introduced to the acting world, by Rob Schneider in the 1999 hit movie Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (1999), as "Sally".
With the success of this movie, Rob Schneider put in a good word for Jackie to his good-friend, Adam Sandler, who offered a part to Jackie in the movie Big Daddy (1999) in 1999. She played the waitress and was also a music assistant. In 2000, she played a part in the movie, Little Nicky (2000), alongside Adam Sandler, Reese Witherspoon, Patricia Arquette, and Quentin Tarantino. A year later, Adam Sandler and Jackie came together in a relationship.
Two years later, Jackie was given a main part in the animated movie, Eight Crazy Nights (2002) as the voice of "Jennifer", making this her first major role in a movie alongside a big star. In 2003, Danny DeVito offered a part to Jackie as the bartender in the movie, Duplex (2003).
On June 22, 2003, Adam and Jackie were married.
In 50 First Dates (2004), a 2004 hit comedy/romance movie, Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore were offered parts in sharing the screen together. Drew and Adam had co-starred in major movies previously, but, this time, Adam demanded that his wife Jackie be given a part in this movie. The director, Peter Segal, didn't want to lose Adam as the main co-star and gave the part of the dentist to Jackie. Because Adam only starred in this movie, he wasn't able to offer a bigger part or a co-star part to his wife.
In the year of 2004, Jackie starred as herself on the TV episode Celebrity Weddings, just one day before her one-year wedding anniversary with Adam.
Raised a Christian, she converted to Judaism when marrying Adam.- Actor
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Jonathan Michael Lovitz is a American comedian and actor from Tarzana who is known for voicing Jay Sherman from The Critic and for being a Saturday Night Live cast member in the 1990s. He acted in a lot of Adam Sandler films such as The Wedding Singer, Little Nicky, Hotel Transylvania, Grown Ups 2 and Eight Crazy Nights.- Actor
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Nick Swardson was born on 9 October 1976 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Grandma's Boy (2006), The Benchwarmers (2006) and Just Go with It (2011).- Actor
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Dennis Barton Dugan is an American film director, actor, comedian and screenwriter from Wheaton, Illinois who directed several films featuring Adam Sandler including Happy Gilmore, Big Daddy, Jack & Jill, Grown Ups, I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry and You Don't Mess With the Zohan. He also directed Beverly Hills Ninja and The Benchwarmers.- Music Artist
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Reginald Noble better known by his stage name Redman, is an American rapper, DJ, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame in the early 1990s as an artist on the Def Jam label. He is well known for his collaborations with his close friend Method Man, as one-half of the rap duo Method Man & Redman, including their starring roles in films and sitcoms. He was also a member of the Def Squad in the late 1990s.- Actor
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Award-winning actor, producer, musician, and entrepreneur Cliff "Method Man" Smith, has been forging an extraordinary and unparalleled path across all mediums since he first entered the scene 30 years ago.
Smith currently stars as 'Attorney Davis MacLean' opposite Mary J. Blige in the worldwide hit STARZ series Power Book II: Ghost. The show, which completed production on its fourth season, follows the on-going journey of some of "Power's" most controversial characters, in addition to introducing new fan favorites.
He was last seen in Paramount+'s feature film On the Come Up, which is based on a novel written by New York Times bestselling author, Angie Thomas. The film premiered at Toronto International Film Festival and was released in Septemeber 2022. Method received a 2023 NAACP Image Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for this role. He recently wrapped production on Lionsgate's action thriller, Shadow Force, alongside Kerry Washington and Da'Vine Joy Randolph, and on Carnegie Hill Entertainment's feature Bad Shabbos. Smith made his film debut in One Eight Seven and Belly, and his additional film credits include Concrete Cowboy, Peppermint, Last Looks, Keanu, Trainwreck, Red Tails, The Wackness, The Sitter, The Cobbler, the award-winning drama Garden State amongst many others.- Actor
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One half of the legendary hip hop duo EPMD. In 1992 Erick went solo and has maintained a strong career as a producer and mc. He has guided the careers of Redman and Keith Murray and the the three form the Def Squad. Erick is considered a legend in the Hip Hop Community.- Actor
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Parrish Smith was born on 13 May 1968 in Smithtown, New York, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for Juice (1992), Whip It (2009) and Barbershop (2002).- Keith Murray was born on 13 September 1969 in Yonkers, New York, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996), Set It Off (1996) and How High (2001).
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K-Solo was born on 16 April 1968 in Queens, New York City, New York, USA.- Actor
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Antonio Hardy better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is an American rapper who began his career in 1986 as a member of the Juice Crew. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential and skilled MCs in hip hop. Rolling Stone ranked his song "Ain't No Half-Steppin'" number 25 on its list of The 50 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs of All Time, calling him "a master wordsmith of rap's late-golden age and a huge influence on a generation of MCs".- Actor
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Universally referenced as one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time, Rakim first exploded onto the New York scene in 1986 with the iconic "Eric B. is President" single and album "Paid In Full." With its unprecedented lyricism and complex rhyme patterns, the release, alongside a carefully curated mixture of conscious spirituality, street wise braggadocio, and trend setting fashion and visuals, marked a turning point in hip-hop culture--raising the bar for future emcees and revolutionizing the globally expanding art form. Over the course of four albums with long time collaborator Eric B, three solo albums and countless singles and features, Long Island's microphone fiend has continued to garner accolades from his peers and his public with his intellectual content, uncanny innovation, and the impenetrable aura of the God MC.- Actor
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Born to Jamaican parents in London, on January 14, 1965, Slick Rick, born Ricky Martin Lloyd Walters, is the most successful British-American rapper in music history. Brilliant word play, the effort-less ability to bring life to the stories he rhymed about, dead on pop-culture references and hilarious one-liners make him the wittiest rapper of all time.
He began his career in the late 80s, where he released a series of acclaimed recordings such as, "Children's Story", "La Di Da Di" and "Hey Young World." Slick Rick is best known for his British accent and his story telling innovations. His music has been frequently sampled and interpolated by other artists such as TLC, Talib Kweli, Eminem, Mos Def, Beyonce, Jay-Z, Missy Elliott, Snoop Dogg, Alicia Keys and many others; with many of these songs later becoming hit singles. Slick Rick is known as one of the architects of Hip-Hop.
These days, much of Slick Rick's story remains untold. The articles about his legal troubles may sell magazines, but they tend to overshadow the rapper's impressive and influential body of work. Rick has spent more than seven years in prison, three and a half paying his debt to society and over four years in a federal detention center while hassling with Immigrations Services over his residency in the US. Slick Rick has been in this country since his childhood and has become a productive member of our society.
Despite life's setbacks, Rick continues his commitment to his craft. Above all, Rick is very dedicated to his community. He regularly mentors the youth whenever he is given the opportunity to do so.- Actor
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New York-raised Doug E. Fresh, born Douglas Davis, got his initial notoriety for being the original human beat-box, inventing a method to imitate a drum machine using breath control through the teeth, lips, and gums. He had a string of hit singles with his then-partner Slick Rick in the early and mid-1980s, most notably on "The Show" and "La-Di-Da-Di" in 1985. A subsequent album, "Oh, My God," included guest stints from veteran jazz trumpeter Jimmy Owens and synthesizer player Bernard Wright. Fresh also released a 1988 follow-up album, "The World's Greatest Entertainer," and recorded an album in 1992 for M.C. Hammer's short-lived Capitol/EMI Records-distributed label, Bust It Records. After recording another album for Gee Street Records in the mid-1990s and appearing on many other artists' albums, Fresh disappeared for a few years. He has just resurfaced as a solo artist with a new release on a small independent label, but he remains an active force in hip-hop music, appearing as a guest artist on many records, to the present day.- Actor
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David Lowery was born on 10 September 1960 in San Antonio, Texas, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for The Cable Guy (1996), The Wolverine (2013) and The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012).- Actor
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Johnny Hickman is known for The Wolverine (2013), The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012) and The Cable Guy (1996).- Composer
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Erik Schrody was born on 18 August 1969 in Valley Stream, Long Island, New York, USA. He is a composer and actor, known for Den of Thieves (2018), End of Days (1999) and Heat (1995). He has been married to Lisa Schrody since May 2009. They have one child.- Actor
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Daniel O'Connor (born December 12, 1968), better known as Danny Boy or Danny Boy O'Connor, is an American rapper, and the executive director of The Outsiders House Museum. In the 1990s, O'Connor co-founded the rap group House of Pain, with fellow rapper Erik Schrody (Everlast) and DJ Leor Dimant (DJ Lethal). Based on their cultural heritage they fashioned themselves as rowdy Irish-American hooligans. O'Connor played the role of art director, designing logos, branding, hype man, and co-rapper. In 1992, with the singles "Jump Around" and "Shamrock and Shenanigans", their self-titled debut album, also known as Fine Malt Lyrics, went platinum.
They followed it up with Same as It Ever Was (1994), which went gold, and Truth Crushed to Earth Shall Rise Again (1996), before they all went their separate ways. O'Connor took part in several music projects and continued doing designs as freelance work. In 2006, O'Connor founded the rap group La Coka Nostra where he was joined by George Carroll (Slaine), William Braunstein (Ill Bill), as well as Diamant and Schrody (only for the first album). Together they have three releases: A Brand You Can Trust (2009), Masters of the Dark Arts (2012), and To Thine Own Self Be True (2016).
In 2016, O'Connor, who is a lifelong fan of Francis Ford Coppola's film The Outsiders (1983) and S.E. Hinton's novel it is based on, bought the house used in the film located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He turned it into a museum named The Outsiders House Museum, which contains much of the book and film memorabilia. For his effort preserving a cultural landmark, he received a key to the city.
Separately from his regular endeavors, O'Connor is an actor, director, and producer. In front of the camera, he appeared in Ted Demme's Who's the Man? (1993), Kyle Kauwika Harris's Out of Exile (2022), two Soleil Moon Frye films Wild Horses (1998), and Kid 90 (2021). He is a common collaborator of director John Swab acting in Let Me Make You a Martyr (2016), Ida Red (2021), Little Dixie (2023), and One Day as a Lion (2023). As a director, he directed four music videos La Coka Nostra: That's Coke (2009), La Coka Nostra feat. B-Real: I'm an American (2009), La Coka Nostra: Letter to Ouisch (2012), and Slaine: 99 Bottles (2010). As a producer, he made two award-winning projects Just for Kicks (2005) and Old House New Home (2022).- Actor
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Raekwon was born on 12 January 1970 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Man with the Iron Fists (2012), Blade: Trinity (2004) and Nerve (2016).- Actor
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Born and raised in the heart of Staten Island, New York, Ghostface Killah, born Dennis Coles, is a very well-known member of Wu-Tang Clan, the celebrated hip-hop group. Emerging from a childhood filled with poverty, he puts his all into his projects and everything he rhymes about basically stems from what he's seen and what he's been through in his life. He is the father of four children (one daughter and three sons), and one of his sons made his debut in the video for "All I Got Is You," where he played Ghostface as a child.- Actor
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Cappadonna was born on 18 September 1969 in Staten Island, New York, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Bulworth (1998), Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996) and High School High (1996).- Actor
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Gary Earl Grice (born August 22, 1966), better known by his stage names GZA and The Genius, is an American rapper and songwriter. A founding member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, GZA is the group's "spiritual head", being both the first member in the group to receive a record deal and being the oldest member. He has appeared on his fellow Wu-Tang members' solo projects, and has maintained a successful solo career starting with Liquid Swords (1995).- Actor
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U-God was born on 11 November 1970 in Brownsville, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Nerve (2016), Don't Look Up (2021) and National Security (2003).- Actor
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Inspectah Deck was born on 6 July 1970 in Bronx, New York, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Nerve (2016), Don't Look Up (2021) and Meet Dave (2008).- Actor
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B-Real was born on 2 June 1970 in Hollywood, California, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for Blast from the Past (1999), Training Day (2001) and Bulworth (1998).- Actor
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Sen D.O.G. was born on 20 November 1965 in Havana, Cuba. He is an actor and composer, known for The Fast and the Furious (2001), Juice (1992) and Last Action Hero (1993).- Actor
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Best known as the fire breathing, blood splitting and larger than life co-founder of the major hard rock group, KISS. Simmons was actually born Chaim Witz in August 1949 in Haifa, Israel, the son of Hungarian Jewish parents, Flóra "Florence" (Klein or Kovács) and Feri Yechiel Witz. He moved to New York as a young child. Like many American teenagers of the 1960s, he was influenced by a fascination with comic book super heroes, monster movies and rock and roll music, thus the teenage Simmons set about creating what he perceived as the ultimate music supergroup.
Simmons eventually crossed paths with like-minded musician / songwriter Paul Stanley (born Stanley Eisen) in the early 1970s, and after several failed attempts to create their dream band, they recruited fellow New Yorkers spaced out guitarist Ace Frehley (born Paul Daniel Frehley) and "do anything to make it" drummer Peter Criss (born Peter Crisscuola).
The four struggling young musicians practiced relentlessly in a rundown loft in New York City refining their music & stage show before eventually launching themselves on the New York live music scene in the early 1970s with their blitzkrieg style of hard rock, kabuki stage make up and unforgettable high energy performances. After bombarding media, TV & public relations identities with invites to their shows, Simmons and Stanley soon brokered a deal with Madison Ave executive Bill Aucoin for him to manage the band, and Aucoin soon scored KISS a record deal with the fledgling Casablanca Records & Filmworks.....and the rest as they say is KISStory!
Since their first album debuted in 1974, KISS have sold over 80 million albums and played over 2,000 shows to millions of loyal fans (known as the KISS Army) right around the globe. Never one to keep still for too long, the charismatic Simmons made his first feature film appearance as his alter ego (The Demon from KISS) in the 1978 telemovie Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park (1978), which received scathing reviews in the USA from TV critics. However KISS fans internationally loved the film and it played theatrically to strong box office business in dozens of countries, and has since become something of a cult film....despite its corny, cartoonish plot! Since KISS didn't drop wearing their distinctive make up until 1983, it was several years before Simmons appeared in front of the cameras again (this time without the Demon make up), as an evil techno-junkie killer battling Tom Selleck in the thriller Runaway (1984). Simmons has since continued to turn up in low-key roles in B-grade thrillers such as Wanted: Dead or Alive (1986) and Red Surf (1989) that utilize his ability to glower and look menacingly into the camera. In addition, Simmons has appeared in minor guest roles in several TV crime shows including Miami Vice (1984), Millennium (1996) and, most recently, in Third Watch (1999).- Actor
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Paul Stanley is the charismatic front man/lead vocalist/rhythm guitarist/songwriter for hard rock super group KISS, best known for his wailing vocals, high-energy on-stage antics and appeal to female fans. Born Stanley Eisen on January 20, 1952, in Queens, New York, Stanley took a keen interest in music from a young age, and in his early teens he was already playing guitar and writing his own songs.
A chance meeting with another aspiring young musician, Gene Simmons, led the two of them to form several musical groups including "Wicked Lester"; however, none of them took off commercially. Stanley and Simmons then decided on a revamped idea of how their "ultimate group" should look and sound, and they then recruited lead guitarist Ace Frehley and drummer Peter Criss. After mediocre success from their first three studio albums titled "Kiss", "Hotter Than Hell" and "Dressed To Kill", they released a double live album simply titled "Kiss: Alive", and it was a mega success. KISS was the hottest group in the US between 1975 and 1980, with every album going platinum and stadiums being sold out to frenzied fans.
However, all was not well within the KISS ranks, with Criss departing in 1980, followed by Frehley in 1983. Various guitarists and drummers moved in and out of the band over the next 12 years, but an Unplugged (1989) special brought all four original members back together in 1995 with considerable interest from promoters. Subsequently, the original four members embarked on "Kiss: Alive Worldwide", the biggest grossing tour of 1996/97, and they continued to tour relentlessly for the next four years.
Thirty years of wild leaps, swirls and prancing had taken their toll on his body, however, and in early 2005 he underwent hip replacement surgery, from which he is expected to make a full recovery. Whilst many may disagree, Simmons and Stanley can proudly stand alongside other key popular song writing duos such as Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, or John Lennon and Paul McCartney in terms of both longevity and artistic output.
His on-camera appearances have included playing his "Starchild" alter ego in the hokey Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park (1978) and as himself in The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years (1988)- Music Department
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Both as a solo artist and as the leader of the ground-breaking hip-hop group Public Enemy (which was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2013), Chuck D helped pave the way for political, social and culturally conscious hip-hop. Public Enemy's albums remain among the most critically acclaimed works in the genre, including 'It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back' and 'Fear of a Black Planet'. He is on the road three weeks out of each month touring with Public Enemy and his supergroup Prophets of Rage which includes members of Cypress Hill and Rage Against the Machine. Or you can find him speaking at tech and music conferences around the world. A visionary in digital entertainment, Chuck D helped lead the file-sharing movement, launched one of the first online entertainment websites, Rapstation, and digital-only record labels, the SpitSlam Record Label Group. Public Enemy was the second act to ever release an album in MP3 format. Chuck D splits his days off among Long Island, Atlanta and Southern California.
On March 1, 2020 Chuck D had a dispute with Flavor Flav over endorsing Bernie Sanders without his permission and as a result fired Flavor Flav from the Public Enemy Hip Hop group. Later on it turned out to be a hoax.- Actor
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A musical prodigy who is proficient in fifteen instruments, Flavor Flav first burst onto the scene in the late '80s, where he emerged as a rapper, hype man, and co-founder of the legendary hip-hop group Public Enemy. Possessing the most sampled voice in the history of hip-hop, Flavor Flav (along with his group) was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013 and received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 62nd Annual GRAMMY Awards in 2020.
In addition to his culture-shifting career in hip-hop, Flavor Flav furthered his mark on the world with his foray into reality television, where he displayed an unparalleled penchant for breaking records. His reality television series, Flavor of Love (2006), still stands as the most viewed and highly rated non-sports TV program of all time, having achieved a record-shattering 7.5 million viewers during its Season 2 Finale.
As he continues to perform with Public Enemy on the global stage, Flavor Flav has, in recent years, also expanded his talents to the mediums of narrative film and scripted television. A gifted and experienced actor in his own right, he has appeared in several feature films, including New Jack City (1991), Confessions of a Pit Fighter (2005), and Hold On (2019).- Music Department
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Rick Nielsen was born on 22 December 1948 in Rockford, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), Small Soldiers (1998) and 10 Things I Hate About You (1999).- Actor
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Robin Zander was born on 23 January 1953 in Beloit, Wisconsin, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for Over the Top (1987), Say Anything (1989) and Tequila Sunrise (1988). He has been married to Pamela Stein since 20 June 1993. They have two children.- Actor
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Tom Petersson is known for Say Anything (1989) and Sound City (2013).- Actor
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Bun E. Carlos is known for Rock & Rule (1983), Cheap Trick: From Tokyo to You (2004) and Cheap Trick: Tonight It's You (1985).- Actor
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Jonah Hill was born and raised in Los Angeles, the son of Sharon Feldstein (née Chalkin), a fashion designer and costume stylist, and Richard Feldstein, a tour accountant for Guns N' Roses. He is the brother of music manager Jordan Feldstein and actress Beanie Feldstein. He graduated from Crossroads School in Santa Monica and went on to The New School in New York to study drama.
He began writing and performing in plays while at college in New York, and managed to get himself introduced to Dustin Hoffman, through whom he got an audition for his first film role in I Heart Huckabees (2004). A succession of increasingly high-profile film and TV parts followed until he eventually landed one of the starring roles in the teen hit, Superbad (2007). Continuing to write and act, more roles followed as well as popular appearances on US TV talk shows.- Music Artist
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Janelle Monáe is an American musical recording artist, actress and model signed to their own imprint, Wondaland Arts Society, and Atlantic Records.
They were born in Kansas City, Kansas, to Janet, a janitor, and Michael Robinson Summers, a truck driver. In 2010, Monáe released her first full-length studio album, The ArchAndroid. In March 2012, "We Are Young" by Fun., on which Monáe appears as a guest vocalist, reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, their first appearance in the US Top 10. Monáe's music has garnered them six Grammy Award nominations.
Monáe has excelled at film acting and picking roles, having had major parts in Moonlight (2016), Hidden Figures (2016), Lady and the Tramp (2019) and Harriet (2019). In 2020, they played the lead in the horror film Antebellum (2020).- Writer
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Television would never be the same after David Letterman made his second attempt at a show in 1982. But his career before becoming host of the show was quite an interesting and long one.
Letterman was born in Broad Ripple, a neighborhood in Indianapolis, to Dorothy Marie (Hofert), a church secretary, and Harry Joseph Letterman, a florist. He is of German, English, and Scots-Irish descent. His childhood was relatively unremarkable, but he exhibited tendencies of the class clown and showed a very strong independent streak as a child. Letterman went on to graduate from Ball State University in the late 1960s and married Michelle Cook in 1969. From 1970 to 1974, he worked as a weatherman and TV announcer and from 1974 to 1975 as a radio talk show host.
As the late 1970s approached, Letterman was working as a struggling stand-up comic at The Comedy Store and started writing for television shows. He wrote for the summer series "The Peeping Times" and for such shows as Good Times (1974). Letterman had become something of a minor celebrity by 1978, by which time he had appeared on The Gong Show (1976), Mary Tyler Moore's variety series, Mary (1978), Liar's Club (1976), The $10,000 Pyramid (1973), Password Plus (1979) and the variety series, The Starland Vocal Band Show (1977). (It was also revealed on the Game Show Network that Letterman hosted a pilot of a game show in the seventies called The Riddlers (1977), but it was not made into a series.)
This exposure prompted many appearances on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962). He became so popular that he was permanent substitute host by the end of the 1970s. NBC saw great potential in the young irreverent comedian, so they gave Letterman his own daytime talk show, The David Letterman Show (1980), which was a disaster and aired for only a few months. At about this time, Tom Snyder was having problems with his late-night show, Tomorrow Coast to Coast (1973), which aired after the "Tonight Show." His problems were mostly with his co-host, Rona Barrett, and Snyder was forced off air in late 1981. Letterman, who was still permanent co-host of the "Tonight Show," took over the post-Carson slot with [error].
Letterman's show was extremely unconventional. For starters, Letterman was very political, whereas Johnny Carson had steered away from political jokes. Letterman's early antics changed talk shows. He would often stage elevator races in Radio City Music Hall. He made random calls to strangers and talked about the strangest subjects. At one point, Letterman got his associate Larry "Bud" Melman to stand outside the Russian Embassy and hand out pamphlets encouraging defection. He often made his guests feel uncomfortable with his intelligent and abrasive style, and guests often participated in funny and unusual skits with him. Letterman became almost an instant success, and some say he surpassed Carson in popularity.
As the late 1980s approached, Letterman was becoming more and more of a household name, often at odds with the censors over his show, and never one to kowtow to guests' wishes. But that only made him more popular, and he garnered more and more status as a world class talk show host. Among the more classic moments in his early show was the time he covered his suit with Alka Seltzer and jumped in a vat of water. Letterman helped Andy Kaufman with his wrestling saga, as Kaufman and Jerry Lawler pretended to get in a fight on "Late Night." Letterman also became known for his on-screen reclusiveness with respect to other shows. While Carson at one point in his career would often make cameos and guest appearances, Letterman would shy away from cameos and stuck almost solely to doing his "Late Night" show.
In 1992 Johnny Carson made a landmark announcement: he was retiring. Many thought that Letterman would be the natural choice as Carson's replacement, but many at NBC were leaning toward current "Tonight Show" substitute host Jay Leno. The battle was very public and very vicious, but in the end Leno won out, and Letterman continued hosting the post-"Tonight Show" slot. But, in 1993, Letterman made his own big announcement: he was leaving NBC for a lucrative contract with CBS to star in the Late Show with David Letterman (1993). The battle intensified even more. NBC claimed that many of Letterman's gimmicks and jokes, including throwing the pencil at the camera, the Top Ten List, and Larry "Bud" Melman, among many others, were NBC's "intellectual property." NBC lost, but Larry "Bud" Melman would now be called by his real name, Calvert DeForest, on the CBS show. Competing in the late night wars with not only Leno but also Chevy Chase, Arsenio Hall and Ted Koppel, Letterman consistently won over all of his competition until the summer of 1995, when Leno had guest Hugh Grant on his show to discuss his highly publicized arrest for being caught with prostitute Divine Brown and Grant cried on screen. The ratings were tremendous, and Leno has consistently beaten Letterman ever since.
In recent years, Letterman has toned down his act. He dresses more conservatively and tends to go the more traditional route of talk shows. It can be said that every talk show since, including Craig Kilborn and especially 'Conan O'Brien', has been influenced a great deal by Letterman's unconventional, irreverent, off-the-wall style. It was thought that Letterman was going to retire in the mid-'90s, but an impressive 14 million-per-year deal has kept Letterman with CBS. Near-tragedy struck, however, in January of 2000 when Letterman was diagnosed with coronary arterial blockage and underwent quintuple bypass surgery. The operation was successful, however, and Letterman received countless get-well cards and a great deal of publicity. Among David's better-known incidents in recent years have been Drew Barrymore's infamous table dance, an interview with a bizarre and ditzy Farrah Fawcett, his appearance in the movie, Cabin Boy (1994) (written by and starring his former "Late Night" writer and performer Chris Elliott), his stint as host of The 67th Annual Academy Awards (1995), and his appearance in the Andy Kaufman biopic, Man on the Moon (1999). When Politically Incorrect (1993) was canceled in 2002, Letterman was sought after to leave CBS for ABC, but he declined to do so and stayed with CBS, where he remained until his retirement in May 2015.
Aside from being a talk show host, Letterman is an active producer. His production company is called Worldwide Pants. Over the years he has been executive producer of his original show, his new show, Everybody Loves Raymond (1996), The Building (1993), Bonnie (1995), The High Life (1996), The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn (1999), and Ed (2000).- Writer
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Jimmy Fallon was born in 1974 in Brooklyn, New York, to Gloria (Feeley) and Jimmy Fallon. He is of Irish, German, and Norwegian descent. He was raised in Saugerties, New York, which is in upstate New York. He has performed stand up, impressions and characters across the country, in some of the biggest comedy clubs, such as the Improv (in Los Angeles) and Caroline's Comedy Club (in New York City). He also took acting classes with The Groundlings, an LA-based breeding ground for great comedians. Jimmy joined the cast of Saturday Night Live (1975) as a featured player in September 1998. He has already been called the best SNL player since Phil Hartman, and is popular amongst SNL fans.- Producer
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Meredith Vieira was born on 30 December 1953 in Providence, Rhode Island, USA. She is a producer and actress, known for Get Him to the Greek (2010), The Stepford Wives (2004) and Shrek Forever After (2010). She has been married to Richard M. Cohen since 14 June 1986. They have three children.- Music Department
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The Roots is known for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (2014), Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (2009) and Detroit (2017).- Music Artist
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Snoop Dogg is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, producer, media personality, entrepreneur, and actor.
His music career began in 1992 when he was discovered by Dr. Dre and featured on Dre's solo debut, "Deep Cover", and then on Dre's solo debut album, The Chronic. He has since sold over 23 million albums in the United States and 35 million albums worldwide.
Snoop's debut album, Doggystyle, produced by Dr. Dre, was released in 1993 by Death Row Records. Bolstered by excitement driven by Snoop's featuring on The Chronic, the album debuted at number one on both the Billboard 200 and Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Selling almost a million copies in the first week of its release, Doggystyle became certified quadruple platinum in 1994 and spawned several hit singles, including "What's My Name?" and "Gin & Juice". In 1994 Snoop released a soundtrack on Death Row Records for the short film Murder Was the Case, starring himself. His second album, Tha Doggfather (1996), also debuted at number one on both charts, with "Snoop's Upside Ya Head" as the lead single. The album was certified double platinum in 1997.
After leaving Death Row Records, Snoop signed with No Limit Records, where he recorded his next three albums, Da Game Is to Be Sold, Not to Be Told (1998), No Limit Top Dogg (1999), and Tha Last Meal (2000). Snoop then signed with Priority/Capitol/EMI Records in 2002, where he released Paid tha Cost to Be da Boss. He then signed with Geffen Records in 2004 for his next three albums, R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece, Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, and Ego Trippin'. Malice 'n Wonderland (2009), and Doggumentary (2011) were released on Priority. Snoop Dogg has starred in motion pictures and hosted several television shows. He also coaches a youth football league and high school football team.
Snoop has 17 Grammy nominations without a win. In March 2016, the night before WrestleMania 32 in Arlington, Texas, he was inducted into the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame, having made several appearances for the company, including as Master of Ceremonies during a match at WrestleMania XXIV. On November 19, 2018, Snoop Dogg was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He released his seventeenth solo album, I Wanna Thank Me in 2019.- Music Artist
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Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi, known professionally as Kid Cudi, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, and actor. He has widely been recognized as an influence on several contemporary hip hop and alternative acts.His lyrics are often autobiographical and describe his childhood hardships of depression, loneliness and alienation, his struggle with alcohol and drugs into adulthood, as well as themes of spirituality, heartbreak, dissipation and celebration. Cudi began to gain major recognition following the release of his first official full-length project, a mix-tape titled A Kid Named Cudi (2008), which would go on to catch the attention of high-profile music producer Kanye West, who subsequently signed Cudi to his Good Music label imprint by late 2008.- Actor
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Kurupt was born Ricardo Brown in Philadelphia, Pa. He moved to Long Beach, California, where he met and befriended such rappers as Snoop Dogg and Daz Dillinger. He worked as a rapper on "Death Row Records" (Label run by Suge Knight), releasing one album with Daz Dillinger titled "Tha Dogg Pound" (selling 4 million copies to date) and appeared on such West Coast classics as "All Eyes On Me", "Doggystyle" and "The Chronic" (all released on "Death Row Records"). He later went to a new label, based out of his hometown of Philly, titled "Antra Entertainment". He released 3 albums on this label, all outselling each other as they were released. While running into financial difficulties, and trying to support his family, he went back to "Death Row Records" (now "Tha Row"), where he sits as the Executive Vice Pres. of the company and makes movies in his spare time. He was once engaged to Foxy Brown and Natina Reed, member of Blaque), before she gave birth to their son named Trey (b. 2002) and he lives with his fiancée, Gail Gotti, who is a female artist.- Writer
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Alan Zweibel was born on 20 May 1950 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for It's Garry Shandling's Show. (1986), Saturday Night Live (1975) and North (1994). He has been married to Robin Blankman since 24 November 1979. They have three children.- Actor
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Leslie William Nielsen was born in Regina, Saskatchewan, and raised in Tulita (formerly Fort Norman), Northwest Territories. His mother, Mabel Elizabeth (Davies), was Welsh. His father, Ingvard Eversen Nielsen, was a Danish-born Mountie and a strict disciplinarian. Leslie studied at the Academy of Radio Arts in Toronto before moving on to New York's Neighborhood Playhouse. His acting career started at a much earlier age when he was forced to lie to his father in order to avoid severe punishment. Leslie starred in over fifty films and many more television films. One of his two brothers became the Deputy Prime Minister of Canada. On October 10, 2002, he was appointed Officer of the Order of Canada (OC) in recognition of his contributions to the film and television industries. On November 28, 2010, Leslie Nielsen died at age 84 of pneumonia and was buried at Evergreen Cemetery in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.- Actress
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A brash, sharp-tongued, incorrigible actress/singer who led a six decade career that contained many highs and lows, veteran Elaine Stritch's raucous six-decade career certainly lived up well to the Stephen Sondheim song lyrics "I'm Still Here." A popular, magnetic performer, she stole so many moments on stage she could have been convicted of grand larceny This tough old bird approached her octogenarian years with still-shapely legs, a puffy blonde hairdo, a deep, whiskey voice and enough sardonic bluster and bravado to convince anyone that she would be around forever.
The Detroit-born (February 2, 1925) Elaine Stritch was the daughter of a B.F. Goodrich executive, of Irish/Welsh heritage, and the youngest of three sisters. Educated locally at Sacred Heart Convent and Duschesne Residence Finishing School, she prepared for the stage at the Dramatic Workshop of the New School where fellow "school mates" included Marlon Brando. She made her first appearance at the New School as a tiger and a cow in a 1944 children's production entitled "Babino," then followed it the following year with the part of a parlor maid in "The Private Life of the Master Race."
Elaine made it to Broadway in October 1946 as "Pamela Brewster" in "Loco" at the Biltmore Theatre. Taking over the part of "Miss Crowder" in "Made in Heaven" after that, she finished off the decade appearing in such theatre productions as "Three Indelicate Ladies," "The Little Foxes" (as Regina), the revue "Angel in the Wings" and "Yes M'Lord."
From the 1950's on, Elaine would become the toast of both Broadway and (later) London's West End, earning award-worthy acclaim on both continents over the years. Starting with a tour of "Pal Joey" (as Melba) in 1952, she followed this success with such shows as "Call Me Madam" (as Sally); "On Your Toes" (as Peggy); "Bus Stop" (Tony nom: as waitress Grace), "The Sin of Pat Muldoon" (as Gertrude); "Goldilocks" (as Maggie); "Sail Away!" (Tony nom, and also London debut as Mimi); "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (as Martha); "The King and I" (as Anna); "The Grass Harp" (as Babylove); "Wonderful Town" (as Ruth); "Private Lives" (as Amanda); "Mame" (as Vera, then Mame); "Company" (Tony-nom: as Joanne); "Small Craft Warnings" (as Leona); "The Gingerbread Lady" (as Evy); "Show Boat" (Drama Desk Award: as Parthy); and "A Delcate Balance" (Tony-nom, Drama Desk Award: as Claire). Through sheer personality alone, her cacophonous singing voice miraculously took classic songs from, among others, Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart to Noël Coward and Stephen Sondheim and put her own indelibly raucous stamp on them.
Oddly, Elaine never made the same kind of impact on film. Nevertheless, she appeared in an armful of supports over the years, growing increasingly abrasive, in such movies as The Scarlet Hour (1956), Three Violent People (1956), A Farewell to Arms (1957), The Perfect Furlough (1958), Kiss Her Goodbye (1959), Who Killed Teddy Bear (1965), Too Many Thieves (1966), The Sidelong Glances of a Pigeon Kicker (1970), The Spiral Staircase (1975), Providence (1977), September (1987), Cocoon: The Return (1988), Cadillac Man (1990), Out to Sea (1997), Krippendorf's Tribe (1998), Screwed (2000), Small Time Crooks (2000); Autumn in New York (2000), Monster-in-Law (2005), ParaNorman (2012) and River of Fundament (2014)
The actress fared somewhat better on early TV. She appeared as one of the Paynes in the early Dumont family comedy series The Growing Paynes (1948), and made appearances on several anthology series ("Kraft Theatre," "Goodyear Playhouse," "The Alcoa Hour," "The Dupont Show of the Month"). A few guest spots also decorated her small screen resume, including "Mister Peepers," "Adventures in Paradise" and "Wagon Train". In the 60's, Elaine returned to the series format, but only enjoyed single season life on three: My Sister Eileen (1960), as Ruth Sherwood; the acclaimed The Trials of O'Brien (1965) as lawyer Peter Falk's secretary "Miss G."; and as Ellen Burstyn's derisive mother on The Ellen Burstyn Show (1986).
In 1973, Elaine married English actor John Bay and moved to London. While there she appeared in a number of plays/musicals and then played an American authoress in the British comedy series Two's Company (1975) co-starring Donald Sinden as the butler. When she returned to America in the early 80's, she returned alone.
At age 76, a razor-sharp Elaine captivated audiences in a candid one woman musical stage memoir that would win her the Tony, Drama Desk, Obie, Outer Circle Critics and New York Drama Critics awards. Elaine Stritch at Liberty (2002) show also chronicled her notorious private life, combative nature, which included a long bout with the bottle (to curb her stage fright), and a destructive relationship with fellow alcoholic Gig Young. Add to that a fair share of Hollywood gossip all cleverly packaged up with raw wit and show-stopping patter songs and you had quintessential Elaine Stritch. Truly one of a kind, she would eventually be inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1995.
Other memorable TV appearances included her Aunt Polly in the mini-series Pollyanna (1973); a 1984 continuing role on the daytime soaper The Edge of Night (1956); the role of Ouisar in the TV movie version of Steel Magnolias (1990); and three Emmy Award-winning portrayals -- as a guest on "Law & Order," for the 2004 TV documentary of her one-woman triumph, and for a recurring character on the hit sitcom 30 Rock (2006).
A diabetic, it took stomach cancer to finally slow this woman down at the end, dying at age 89 on July 17, 2014, at her Michigan home.- Composer
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Angus Young was born on March 31, 1955 in Glasgow, Scotland. At school, Angus was an unenthusiastic student. His only real academic interest was art which allowed him some freedom of expression. He gave up school at 15 and went to work for a soft porn magazine called Ribald as a printer. But his ambitions laid elsewhere anyway, and for a year prior to leaving school Angus had been practising guitar almost constantly, jamming around with friends and playing at school dances. In the beginning, Angus messed around with brother Malcolm Young's guitars for years before his mother finally bought him his own, a cheap little acoustic. By the time he was eleven Angus had flirted with a tutorial course, but he prefered to learn by himself and most of his musical education was pure trial and error. While his older brother Malcolm Young was hatching plans for his new band, Angus was well on his way toward establishing a distinctive stage persona. His seemingly out-of-control onstage body language has always come naturally. Such trademark Angus moves as his patented duckwalk could be handy attention-getting devices when playing for drunken, rowdy barroom crowds. Many of these gestures grew out of accidents.
One night Tantrum, the pre-AC/DC band Angus was playing with, was going down really badly. Angus walked across the stage and tripped over the guitar lead, so he kept running across the floor. He made it look like a death scene, screaming all hell from the guitar. It was the only clap they got that night. Angus told his brother about it. Malcolm Young asked him to join the band he was putting together.- Actor
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Brian Johnson was born on 5 October 1947 in Dunston, Gateshead, England, UK. He is an actor and composer, known for Iron Man (2008), Maximum Overdrive (1986) and The Avengers (2012). He is married to Brenda. He was previously married to Carol.- Music Artist
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Aaron Dontez Yates was born November 8th, 1971 in Kansas City, Missouri. At a young age Aaron would use raps to learn to spell his name and practice math. In 1988, Aaron adopted the name Tech N9ne. In 1996 he signed to Qwest Records and in 1999 he was released from the label. Two albums were released with Qwest. In 2001, Tech signed with JCOR and premiered his own label, Strange Music Inc. He released 1 album with JCOR before deeming that he and his label weren't being honest with themselves. In 2002 Tech and Strange Music teamed with MSC Entertainment. He released 1 album with them. Tech N9ne has 17 albums (so far) with the most recent having been released 9/9/2016- Actor
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Big Boi was born on 1 February 1975 in Savannah, Georgia, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for Idlewild (2006), ATL (2006) and xXx: State of the Union (2005). He was previously married to Sherlita Patton.- Actor
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First known as a rapper who became one of the more prominent voices in hip-hop's new millennium renaissance, Common later transitioned into acting. He was born in Chicago, and is the son of educator Dr. Mahalia Ann Hines and Lonnie Lynn, an ABA basketball player turned youth counselor.
On October 6, 1992, Common released his first LP, "Can I Borrow A Dollar?" under the Common Sense moniker. Tracks like "Charm's Alarm" and "Breaker 1-9" established him as a lyricist with wit, street-smarts, and love for extended similes, while tracks like "Heidi Hoe" would touch on the misogyny that would surface sparingly on future work.
In 1994 he released "Resurrection", notable for the smooth 'Large Professor' produced title cut as well as "I Used To Love H.E.R.", an ode to hip-hop. This album further increased his underground reputation while giving the hip-hop nation a new solid conscientious voice in a year that was excellent for underground artists (Nas, Jeru the Damaja, Digable Planet, et al.)
After a name change brought on by a lawsuit, Common reemerged in 1997 with "One Day It'll All Make Sense". With guests ranging from Erykah Badu to Canibus to De La Soul and production help from mainstays No I.D. and Dug Infinite, the album had a distinctly underground flair. His big mainstream breakthrough album was yet to come.
After an appearance on The Roots smash 1999 album, "Things Fall Apart," Common moved to MCA Records. He soon was in the studio collaborating with the Okayplayer collective and with help from the forward-thinking production troupe Questlove (aka Questlove), J Dilla, James Poyser, et al), he released his fourth album, "Like Water For Chocolate" in the spring of 2000. With its varied sonic plateau (Afrobeat, funk, and old-school soul) it was much different from previous outings. On the strength of tracks like the 'DJ Premier' produced banger "The 6th Sense", the album was a success, becoming a worthy addition to "The Next Movement".
In 2003 he released "Electric Circus". The album, a hip-hop/funk/soul/rock/psychedelia hybrid, polarized hip-hop fans like no other album has in recent memory. Common has also chosen to redefine himself, swearing off the alcohol, marijuana, and fornication that he had once indulged in.
Also in 2003 he appeared in a TV sitcom episode. With only a couple minor roles between 2003 and 2004, in January of 2007 he made his big screen debut.- Music Artist
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Nas, born Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones on September 14, 1973, is the son of Olu Dara, an unconventional jazz musician. At age nine he was a member of the Devastatin' Seven in the mid-1980s, the fruits of which can be heard on his 1994 debut, "Illmatic," which was released on Columbia/SME later that year. It attracted attention for its depiction of ghetto life and Nas' refusal to include the misogyny and violence evident in some hip-hop. Nas's first appearance on record was on Main Source's classic "Live at the Barbecue." However, his big break came when former 3rd Bass member 'MC Serch' included his verse in "Halftime" on the soundtrack of Zebrahead (1992), which led to a management deal with Serch's management company, Serchlight Productions. Nas's follow-up albums are "It Was Written," "I Am...," "Nastradamus," "Stillmatic," "From Illmatic to Stillmatic," "The Lost Tapes Vol. 1," and "God's Son."- Actor
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Damian Marley was born on 21 July 1978 in Kingston, Jamaica. He is an actor and composer, known for Knocked Up (2007), Honey (2003) and The Perfect Guy (2015).- Actor
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Lawrence "Kris" Parker better known by his stage names KRS-One (an abbreviation of "Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone") and Teacha, is an American rapper, lyricist and occasional producer from New York. He rose to prominence as part of the hip hop group Boogie Down Productions, which he formed with DJ Scott La Rock in the mid-1980s. KRS-One is best known for his top hits, "Sound of da Police", "Love's Gonna Get'cha (Material Love)", and "My Philosophy", among others. Boogie Down Productions received numerous awards and critical acclaim in their early years. Following the release of the group's debut album, Criminal Minded, fellow artist Scott La Rock was shot and killed, but KRS-One continued the group, effectively as a solo project. He began releasing records under his own name in 1993. He is politically active, having started the Stop the Violence Movement after Scott's death. He is also a vegan activist, expressed in songs such as "Beef". He is widely considered an influence on many hip-hop artists, including Tupac Shakur and Eminem- Actor
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K'Naan was born on 30 May 1978 in Mogadishu, Somalia. He is an actor and producer, known for The Roommate (2011), Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008) and The Karate Kid (2010).- Actor
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LeBron James is an American basketball player and film producer who played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers. He is one of the most accomplished basketball players of the 21st century. He played himself in Space Jam: A New Legacy and Trainwreck. He is the owner of a film production company called SpringHill Company.- Producer
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Dwyane Wade was born on 17 January 1982 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He is a producer and actor, known for What to Expect When You're Expecting (2012), Shot in the Dark (2017) and Relentless. He has been married to Gabrielle Union since 30 August 2014. They have one child. He was previously married to Siohvaughn Wade.- Writer
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Paul Pierce is an American former professional basketball player who played 19 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is an analyst on ESPN's NBA Countdown.
After being chosen by the Boston Celtics with the 10th overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft, Pierce spent the first 15 years of his career with Boston. He starred as captain of the Celtics, earning 10 All-Star selections and becoming a four-time All-NBA team member. Pierce combined with Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen in 2007 to form a "Big Three" that led Boston to two NBA Finals and an NBA championship in 2008. Pierce was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player in 2008. Along with Larry Bird and John Havlicek, Pierce is one of only three players to have scored more than 20,000 career points with the Celtics.
In July 2013, Pierce was traded to the Brooklyn Nets along with teammates Kevin Garnett and Jason Terry. He signed with the Washington Wizards as a free agent in 2014. After one season with the Wizards, Pierce signed with the Los Angeles Clippers, reuniting him with former Celtics head coach Doc Rivers. He spent two seasons with the Clippers before retiring in 2017. On July 17, 2017, the Celtics signed Pierce to a contract, enabling him to retire as a member of the organization with which he spent his first 15 NBA seasons.
Pierce was a member of the United States national team for the 2002 FIBA World Championship, starting all nine games and averaging 19.8 points per game.- Actor
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Kevin Garnett is an American former professional basketball player who played for 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Known for his intensity, defensive ability, and versatility, Garnett is considered one of the greatest power forwards of all time. He is one of four NBA players to win both the Most Valuable Player and the Defensive Player of the Year awards. He entered the 1995 NBA draft, where he was selected with the fifth overall pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves and became the first NBA player drafted directly out of high school in 20 years.
Garnett made an immediate impact with the Minnesota Timberwolves, leading them to eight consecutive playoff appearances. In 2004, he led the Timberwolves to the Western Conference Finals and won the NBA MVP Award. Garnett has been named to 15 All-Star Games, winning the All-Star MVP award in 2003, and is tied for third-most All-Star selections with 15. He was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 2007-08, and has been selected nine times for All-NBA Teams and 12 times for All-Defensive Teams. Garnett holds several Timberwolves franchise records.
In 2007, after 12 seasons with the Timberwolves, Garnett joined the Boston Celtics in a blockbuster trade. In his first year with the Celtics, he helped lead them to the NBA championship, while finishing in third place for the MVP award. In 2013, Garnett was included in a second headline trade that sent him to the Brooklyn Nets with longtime Celtic Paul Pierce. In 2015, Garnett was traded back to Minnesota.
He announced his retirement from professional basketball in September 2016. Garnett made his feature film debut, playing a fictionalized version of himself, in the 2019 film Uncut Gems (2019).- Actor
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Ray Allen was born at Castle Air Force Base, near Merced, California, to Flora (Day) and Walter Allen, Sr. He graduated from Hillcrest High school in Dalzell, South Carolina in 1993 after taking the varsity basketball team (the Wildcats) to the State Championships. He was the 1996 Big East Player of the Year. As a junior, he was a consensus All-American First Team selection by numerous writers and organizations. Ray was a unanimous choice for the All Big East First Team. He finished 3rd on the Huskies all-time scoring list with 1,922 points. In 1995-96, he hit 115 three pointers to set a UConn single season record. He was drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves in 1996 with the 5th overall pick. He never played for Minnesota and was traded with Andrew Lang to the Milwaukee Bucks for Stephon Marbury. Ray was an immediate starter and played in all 82 games as a rookie. In his career he won Joe Dumars Sportsmanship Award in 2002-2003 season, played four times in All-Star game (2000-2005, won All-Star 3-point shootout) also won "Good Guy" award in 2000 and 2001.- Rajon Rondo was born on 22 February 1986 in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. He is an actor, known for Just Wright (2010), Black-ish (2014) and The NBA on TNT (1988).
- Delonte West was born on 26 July 1983 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
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One of the most controversial Basketball players of all time, Allen Iverson is one of the most loved and hated figures in Basketball. Born Allen Ezail Iverson in Hampton, Virginia, he grew up very poor to a struggling mother and a father who deserted him. Growing up, he was very athletic, playing football and basketball throughout most of his education prior to college. Iverson began focusing on basketball at his mother's insistence, despite wanting to be a football player. He proved to be a talented basketball player. At Bethel High School in Newport News, he began his high school basketball career. He developed a reputation of talking a lot and being uncoachable. To say he had a rough childhood is quite an understatement. On one of his places of residence, he walked through knee-deep sewage daily. During one summer, he witnessed the death of almost ten of his closest friends. Iverson first came to the national spotlight in 1993 in a controversial incident surrounding violent events at a bowling alley in Newport News. While the events that happened there will never be fully known, the generally accepted story is that some white students got into an argument with Iverson and his friends. The first question surrounding the event is whether he started it or if the white kids started it. Also, the question surrounded whether or not he assaulted a white woman by hitting her over the head with a chair. The prosecution insisted that surveillance tapes undoubtedly showed Iverson was the culprit, but in reality the tapes showed nothing conclusive. Two factors did him in at his hearing; first of all, two white people said they saw him assault the girl. Secondly, the judge was from the very conservative southeast Virginia establishment and did not have any sympathy for Iverson, his background or his talent. Seeing that Iverson requested a bench trial, this was crucial to his case. To add fuel to the fire, Allen Iverson flew in for the weekend from a tournament to be in Virginia for his trial. This played into the prosecution's hands and also upset the judge, both of whom saw this as evidence that Iverson did not respect the law. He was sentenced to a 5 -year jail term. This case sparked a tremendous amount of national attention. The case caught the interest of Bill Cosby and Spike Lee, who would be a fan and advocate of Iverson for many years. People all around the Newport News area started a movement to free Allen Iverson. He spent only four months in jail. Governor Douglas Wilder pardoned him. This move all but ended his political career and sparked another controversy. Wilder was also black, and white voters in Virginia viewed this move in a very racist light. Iverson was viewed now in much of white America as essentially a convicted felon who was out of prison only because a black man was governor of his state. Iverson got out conditionally, however. He had to adhere to a curfew and could not play basketball until he got his high school diploma. He could not accept a scholarship to the University of Kentucky but did get a scholarship once he completed his high school education in a learning center. During this time, he received his nickname, the answer. He was called such because his friends said he was the answer to basketball's conformity so to speak, people that conformed to this family friendly image, such as Charles Barkley, Isiah Thomas and most importantly, Michael Jordan, who was a childhood hero of his. He accepted a scholarship to Georgetown where John Thompson coached him. Thompson became somewhat of a father figure to him, but he was hard to manage, and the two had a workable but very turbulent relationship. Iverson completed only two years of his education where he became the top NBA draft pick in 1996. He was drafted by the ailing Philadelphia 76ers in 1996. Iverson is immersed in hip-hop culture. This made him an incredibly controversial figure in basketball. His clothing looked more like a gangster rappers than it did Michael Jordan's. On the court he seemed to embody the gangster rapper's image. He had an arm covering on one arm when he played, and also was one of the first players to have cornrows; a hairstyle up until that time was popular in prison. To make matters worse, he had an incredibly "in your face" style, which did not sit well with older players like Charles Barkley, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and others. Jordan said of him when Jordan's Bulls played Iverson's 76ers, that he had no respect for the game. Despite this, no one denied Iverson's talent. He could hustle the ball, could get around even the tallest players. He became known for his fast drives to the baskets and his ability to fake the ball in a move called the crossover. Spike Lee lost respect for him when he turned down his invitation to star in the film He Got Game (1998). As a very pointed move, Lee cast former collegiate rival Ray Allen in the part. The Sixers found themselves suddenly a respectable team. They acquired a new coach, the unusual Larry Brown. As a player in the ABA almost twenty years ago, Brown was also a young outsider fighting the system. Larry Brown now was a button-down-suit-and-tie coach. The two did not get along well at first; in fact, their relationship at best was serviceable. Brown was always unhappy with Iverson for not showing up to practice. Iverson insisted his game was pure inspiration, and he had little need for practice. The two rarely saw eye to eye. He received a tremendous number of awards in his short career. He was named rookie of the year in 1997, and on more than one occasion, he was an All NBA First Team, NBA All Star, was an All Star MVP, and received perhaps what was his crowning achievement to date when he was NBA MVP in 2001. That year, Iverson led his team to the NBA finals, but had a rough ride against Kobe Bryant and 'Shaquille O'Neal (I)''s Lakers. They lost the championship in game five of the series. It was still quite an achievement because the Sixers had not been to the finals since Dr. J (Julius Erving) and Moses Malone led them to victory over the Lakers in 1983 in a 4-0 sweep. Iverson has over 20 tattoos. Each tattoo is a symbol of his life. One denotes the name of his group of friends he has known since childhood, Cru Thik, another who says the answer, another who is dedicated to his mom who is a strong presence as Sixers games, and many others. He married his high school sweetheart Tawanna Turner and they have two children.- Actor
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Brett Michaels is known for Frogtown II (1992) and Fubar: Balls to the Wall (2010).- Composer
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One of the greatest punk vocalists in rock history, Bryan Keith Holland was born two days before the end of 1965 in Orange County, California to a father who was a hospital-administrator and a mother who was a school teacher. He is the third of four children of his family. Holland has cited bands/artists such as Aerosmith, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, KISS, Bob Marley, Queen, The Rolling Stones, UFO (with Michael Schenker) and Van Halen, among others, as his early influences.
By the time he was in high school, he got turned on to punk music by listening to the Adolescents, Agent Orange, Bad Brains, Bad Religion, Black Flag, Circle Jerks, The Clash, Descendents, Ramones, Sex Pistols, Social Distortion, T.S.O.L. and The Vandals. This was when he came up with an idea of starting a band and it wasn't until he formed "Manic Subsidal" in 1984 along with fellow band mate 'Greg K.' and later changed their name to "The Offspring" in 1985 after they found Noodles as their second guitarist.
After spending a few years on the local scene, his band released finally released its first album, simply titled "The Offspring", in 1989, which had been released in limited amounts only in a 12" Vinyl format and a CD release for the album wouldn't occur until 1995. Two years later, The Offspring were signed signed to Epitaph Records in 1991 and their second album "Ignition" came out in 1992. Their next album, "Smash" (1994), finally brought The Offspring into the mainstream success, containing hit singles as "Come Out and Play" and "Self-Esteem". The Offspring then released a number of more albums ("Ixnay on the Hombre" in 1997, "Americana" in 1998, "Conspiracy of One" in 2000 and "Splinter" in 2003) and his band has been very successful ever since.- Actor
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Bizzy D, grew up in a variety of different settings. Starting out in Scarborough, Canada his rep as a champion recess fighter in elementary school. That all ceased when he retired from the WRFA (world recess fighting ass) at the tender age of eleven. He then moved on to lead a simpler life in the small farming town of Keane, filled with fishing and Rod Stewart albums.
Realizing he needed more, Bizzy and his mom picked up and moved to Ajax. Soon after Deryck bought a guitar. Then it started. Bands and song ideas started to flow. Former bands include: Powerful Young Hustlers, Eternal Death, Chemical Head, Door's of Draven, Keane's unbeatable teens, Kaspir and Final Notice. Then of course in the summer of '96 Deryck and Steve Jocz formed SUM41.- Composer
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Aesop Rock was born on 5 June 1976 in Syosset, Long Island, New York, USA. He is a composer and actor, known for Bachelorette (2012), Becky (2020) and Bushwick (2017).- Actor
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David Lee Roth was born in Bloomington Indiana in 1954. A few years later, his father Nathan, a doctor, moved the family to sunny California. The move proved to be a good one because while attending Pasadena Community College, David teamed up with the Van Halen brothers and Michael Anthony to form the Mighty Van Halen hard rock band. Their debut album was in 1978, the self titled album "Van Halen". Their biggest success was the song "Jump" in 1984 - the song reached No. 1 on the Billboard charts. In 1985, Dave decided to branch out on his own and leave the popular Van Halen. Dave's EP "Crazy From The Heat" was a hit and his solo career was on its way. As years passed, Dave's solo career faded. In 1996, Van Halen and Dave reconvened (due to the departure of Dave's replacement, Sammy Hagar) for two new songs on the band's greatest hits CD. Their reunion was short lived as the Van Halen brothers chose a another singer (Gary Cherone formerly of Extreme) over Dave. In 1997, he wrote and released his autobiography book titled "Crazy From The Heat". These days, he still tours as a solo artist.- Actor
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Edward Van Halen was a musician who along with his brother Alex Van Halen, and Michael Anthony and David Lee Roth, formed the band Van Halen in the early '70s, with Eddie on guitar, Alex on drums, Michael on bass and David on vocals. The band had different members over the years, but the core (brothers Edward and Alex) stuck together.- Composer
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Ian Astbury was born on 14 May 1962 in Heswall, Cheshire, England, UK. He is a composer and actor, known for Layer Cake (2004), Repo Men (2010) and Small Soldiers (1998). He has been married to Aimee Nash since 26 March 2012. He was previously married to Heatherlyn Campbell.- Actor
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Mike D formed the Beastie Boys with Adam Yauch in 1981, soon adding Adam Horovitz to the group. They started out as a punk band, but they found their calling with hip-hop music. In 1985, they opened for Madonna on her famous "Like a Virgin" tour. The Beastie Boys gained huge success with numerous albums and tours, then later founded their own record label and magazine called Grand Royal in 1993. Mike has also worked on musical projects with Mike Watt and Kenny 'Tick' Salcido, as well as Miho Hatori and Yuka Honda of the band Cibo Matto.- Actor
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After leaving his band "The Young And The Useless", Adam Horovitz joined Mike D and Adam Yauch in the Beastie Boys, opening for Madonna on her famous "Like a Virgin" tour.
Adam has also appeared in films such as Lost Angels (1989) with Donald Sutherland and Roadside Prophets (1992) with John Doe. He is the son of actor/director/producer/writer Israel Horovitz and Doris O'Keefe, an artist/painter. His brother is actor Matthew Horovitz and his sister is film producer Rachael Horovitz.
Adam was involved in releasing experimental music with Amery Smith as a member of the "BS2000" project.- Actor
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Adam Yauch, an only child, was born on August 5, 1964 in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Frances and Noel Yauch, who is a painter and architect. His father was Catholic (of Irish, German, and French descent) and his mother was Jewish. Adam attended Edward R. Murrow High School in the Midwood neighborhood of Brooklyn. In high school, he taught himself to play the bass guitar. He formed Beastie Boys with John Berry, Kate Schellenbach, and Mike D. On his seventeenth birthday, they played their first show, then still a hardcore punk band in the vein of Reagan Youth. Adam attended Bard College for two years before dropping out.
Beastie Boys added Adam Horovitz to the group, and released their first album, Licensed to Ill, on Def Jam Records, now performing as a hip hop trio. They went on to open for Madonna on her famous "Like a Virgin" tour. The group gained huge success with numerous genius albums and tours, and founded their own label "Grand Royal Records" in 1993.
Under the pseudonym "Nathanial Hörnblowér", Yauch directed many of the Beastie Boys' music videos. In 2002, Yauch built a recording studio in New York City called Oscilloscope Laboratories. He began an independent film distributing company called Oscilloscope Pictures. Yauch directed the 2006 Beastie Boys concert film, although in the DVD extras for the film, the title character in "A Day in the Life of Nathanial Hörnblowér" is played by David Cross. He also directed the 2008 film Gunnin' For That #1 Spot about eight high school basketball prospects at the Boost Mobile Elite 24 Hoops Classic at Rucker Park in Harlem, New York City. Yauch produced Build a Nation, the comeback album from hardcore/punk band Bad Brains. Oscilloscope Laboratories also distributed Adam Yauch's directorial film debut, basketball documentary Gunnin' For That #1 Spot (2008) as well as Kelly Reichardt's Wendy and Lucy (2008) and Oren Moverman's The Messenger (2009).
Yauch was a practicing Buddhist. Inspired by his own extensive travels as well as the The Dalai Lama, Yauch became publicly passionate about the destructive, violent situation in Tibet, and created "The Milarepa Fund" in 1994 to help promote awareness and generate support around the world. He organized the first "Tibetan Freedom Concert" in San Francisco in 1996, which he followed with years of a similar series in the United States and worldwide. His Milarepa Fund has raised large sums of money for the Tibetan cause and its nonviolent Buddhist struggle to maintain an actual state of existence on the planet. In May of 1998, Adam married Dechen Wangdu, and they have a daughter named Tenzin Losel Yauch. Yauch has influenced an entire generation of human souls to look deep within themselves in search of a greater truth and a peaceful, compassionate understanding of all that surrounds us.
In 2009, Yauch was diagnosed and treated for a cancerous parotid gland and a lymph node, and underwent surgery and radiation therapy, delaying the release of Hot Sauce Committee Part Two and the subsequent tour. He was unable to appear in music videos for the album. Yauch became a vegan under the recommendation of his Tibetan doctors.
Beastie Boys had sold 40 million records worldwide by 2010. In 2011, Yauch received the Charles Flint Kellogg Award in Arts and Letters from Bard College, the college he attended for two years. In April 2012, the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Yauch was inducted in absentia due to his illness. His bandmates paid tribute to Yauch, and a letter from him was read to the crowd.
Adam Yauch died from cancer on May 4, 2012, in New York City. He was survived by his wife and son.- Actor
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John Phillip Stamos was born in Cypress, California, to Loretta (Phillips), a model, and William Stamos, a restaurateur. His father was of Greek descent, with the family surname originally being "Stamotopoulos". John has two younger sisters, Janeen and Alaina, both school teachers. His first professional role was as Blackie Parrish on the daytime soap General Hospital (1963) from 1982-1984, for which he won two Soap Opera Digest Awards (1982 and 1983). In 1987 he began the role of Jesse on Full House (1987), which is his best-known role to date, spanning eight years. At his request, the writers of Full House (1987) gave his character the last name of Katsopolis, instead of the original character's name, Cochran, in order to highlight John's Greek heritage. He has played drums occasionally with The Beach Boys since 1985, and directed their "Hot Fun in the Summertime" video. He expanded his career to include the role of J. Pierrepont Finch in Broadway's production of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying!" in 1995, showcasing not only his musical talents, but his dancing ability, as well. On September 19, 1998, he married model Rebecca Romijn, of MTV's House of Style (1989), which was the first marriage for both. They were officially divorced on March 1, 2005.- Music Artist
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Michael Peter Balzary was born on the sixteenth of October 1962, in Melbourne, Australia. When he was four, his parents divorced and Michael, his sister Karen and his mother Patricia headed for New York; they didn't stay long and soon ended up in L.A. (in 1972), where his step-father, a jazz musician named Walter Urban Jr., intended to start a career. Flea would often sit in on weekly jam sessions with his stepfather and the constant flow of musicians who trucked through. High school was not always an easy road for young Michael. He was a misfit because of his unusual musical taste. While most of the kids were into disco and dance music, Flea preferred jazz artists like Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie. Flea's first musical instrument was the drums, but soon he also began playing the trumpet. After school he would race home to listen to his Gillespie records and play along with his idol. He counts as his greatest childhood memory the time his mother got him back-stage to meet Gillespie after one of his concerts. He also played with the Los Angeles Junior Philarmonic Orchestra. Influenced by some of his friends from school who shared the same passion for music - among them, Jack Irons and Hillel Slovak, who would later play in the Red Hot Chili Peppers with him - his musical interests then diversified: he discovered funk music, and Jimi Hendrix became his new idol. At the end of 1977, he met Anthony Kiedis. For some reason, Michael was holding a young schoolmate named Tony Sherr in a headlock, when Kiedis, who was Tony's best friend at the time, came to rescue him; they almost had a fight. After this meeting, they soon became aware they were made to be friends, and have been inseparable since. The two became known for their mischievous antics, which often got them into trouble. This is also when he gained the nickname Flea, while he was joking with some friends about calling each other a cartoon name. Around 1979, due to Flea's obvious musical talent, he was sought out as a recruit for a band formed by his school-mates, Anthym, with Jack Irons (drums), Hillel Slovak (guitar) and Alain Johannes (vocals and guitar) as members. Flea picked up the bass, which he had never played before, and became so good that within a few months he had forged his very own style, which later would make him one of the most famous and talented bass players in the world. After a shaky start the band got a few club gigs but no major breaks. Anthony Kiedis, who was always there to support them, became the presenter of their shows which he opened with a few jokes or improvised poems of his own. In 1982, Flea joined the L.A. punk band Fear. He also landed a small role in the Penelope Spheeris film Suburbia (1984). John Lydon of PIL asked Flea to join his band when he left Fear in 1984, but Flea instead decided to rejoin his friends. With Kiedis, Slovak and Irons, they started another band together, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, which soon earned a good reputation in the Los Angeles underground music scene. Flea was married in 1985 to Loesha Zeviar, whose first name he got tattooed above his left nipple - close to his heart. They have since divorced, but still share daughter Clara, born on September 16, 1988. Clara sometimes goes on the road with her dad, and has done artwork for the Chili Peppers' t-shirts and promotional material. In 2001, along with friends Pete Weiss and Keith Barry, Flea founded the Silverlake Conservatory Of Music, an organization whose aim is to provide affordable music lessons to everyone and to encourage children's musical education.- Actor
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Anthony Kiedis is a singer with the hugely successful alternative rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, the other members being Flea, John Frusciante, and Chad Smith. Red Hot Chili Peppers have scored five top-five albums in the UK and America, and have sold over sixty million records worldwide since their formation in 1983. Former band members have included Josh Klinghoffer, Jack Irons, Dave Navarro, and the late Hillel Slovak. His records with the Red Hot Chili Peppers have been certified both Gold and Platinum.
Kiedis is also an actor and has taken roles in a string of films.
He is the son of actor Blackie Dammett aka John Kiedis.- Actor
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Chad Gaylord Smith was born in St Paul, Minnesota on October 25th 1961. He later moved to Michigan, where, whilst he was still at school, ran away from home for a period of time. When he returned with a dog called Bong, his mother sent him to a boarding school, kept the dog and shortened his name to Bo. He worked at various jobs, including Gap, but having played the drums since a very young age, he played in various bands in Michigan, one being called Toby Redd. In his twenties, he moved to California, where his brother Brad lived, and ended up in Los Angeles, where he auditioned for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, following the departure of DH Peligro. He got the job, and is still there today. He married his first wife, Maria, an artist, in 1996, and they divorced the following year, after the birth of their daughter, Manon St John Smith. In 1998, his son Justin was born, and two years later, his daughter Ava was born. In May 2004, he married an architect, Nancy Mack, with whom he has a baby son, Cole. He has worked with numerous musicians away from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, including Dave Navarro, Glenn Hughes, Wu Tang Clan and John Frusciante. He has recorded five albums with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and is currently working on his sixth (the band's ninth) studio album with the band. He is currently on tour for Stadium Arcadium, and will be playing the Carling Festival with the Red Hot Chili Peppers this August.- Actor
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John Anthony Frusciante was born on March 5, 1970, in New York. He became interested in rock music at an early age. After his parents divorced, John and his mother moved to California when he was seven. When he was nine, his stepfather offered him his first acoustic guitar.
John taught himself how to play guitar, and for the next several years he would spent all his time practicing. In California his interest in music grew and grew as he discovered bands such as The Germs. While at school it was clear that John was an outsider, mainly because he would rather concentrate on music and that was his life.
In school he heard many artists who influenced what he played on his guitar, such as Jimi Hendrix and Frank Zappa, among others. John became a big fan of a local band called Red Hot Chili Peppers when he heard them at 15 years of age. At this time original guitarist Hillel Slovak was still in the band. At the age of 16 John left school and home to become a full-time musician. He had even auditioned to be a guitarist for Frank Zappa but "chickened out" at the last minute. At a Red Hot Chili Peppers concert, John met Hillel Slovak. Over the years John also met Anthony Kiedis and Flea, and began to come in contact with them regularly. When Hillel Slovak died of a heroin overdose on June 27, 1988, Jack Irons, the Chili Peppers' drummer at the time, also left, as he and Slovak were best friends and Slovak's death was a huge shock to Irons. Flea and Kiedis did not want to quit the band, however, because they knew that it hadn't reached its full capability.
Flea had jammed with John many times after Hillel's death and told Anthony that John was right for the Chili Peppers. The instrumental "Pretty Little Ditty" (the riff of which was sampled for Crazy Town's smash hit "butterfly") that appeared on the album "Mother's Milk" was born through the numerous jams that Flea and John had. A little while later, John auditioned to be a guitarist for the band Thelonious Monster. The band was about to offer him the job, but Flea jumped in just in time and offered the guitarist position in the Chili Peppers to John, which he gladly accepted.
Flea and others close to the band recalled that John was very much like Hillel, not only in the way he played guitar but the way he stood and moved like him. In 1989, "Mother's Milk", John and new drummer Chad Smith's first album for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, peaked at #59 on the Billboard charts and with the hit "Higher Ground" originally written by Stevie Wonder.
The Chili Peppers were becoming more popular every day while their fan base grew. Years earlier, when John was at a Chili Peppers concert, Hillel asked John, "Would you still like the Chilis if they got so popular that they played the L.A. Forum?". John responded, "No, because it would ruin the whole thing."
With the success of the band's fifth album and John's second with them, "Blood Sugar Sex Magik" (1991), what Hillel said bothered John and he began loathing the popularity of the band. During the Blood Sugar Sex Magik world tour, John's relationship with Kiedis started falling apart, even though they were once the closest in the band. After a while they stopped talking. John would retaliate at shows by playing quiet parts loudly and loud parts quietly. Flea even recalled that John started playing angrily. He knew John wasn't happy.
At a hotel room in Japan in 1992, John did not want to play one night. He angrily slammed his arm on a table, trying to injure it in some way that would prevent him from playing, but it didn't do any damage. He rang the Chili Peppers' tour manager and said he wanted to quit the band. After a band meeting, the rest of the Chili Peppers' convinced John to play that night and he did so. After the show, he took a plane home to California with one more date in Japan still to go. On May 7 1992, John left the Peppers and went home and stayed on the couch for roughly a year.
As the Chili Peppers began the search for another guitarist, John became addicted to drugs such as heroin and cocaine. He discovered his love for painting. After his friends Perry Farrell, Steven T. Perkins, Gibby Haynes, Flea and River Phoenix convinced him to record a solo album because there was "no good music anymore," he completed "Niandra LaDes & Usually Just A T-shirt". Warners was to have the rights to the album, as there was a "leaving artist" clause in the Chili Peppers' contract, but since John did not want to do any promotion or interviews for the album, they gladly handed over the rights to Rick Rubin's (producer of Blood Sugar Sex Magik) American Recordings. The album didn't shift many units, as it was only restricted to the American market. It sold roughly 15,000 copies.
After his friend River Phoenix died in October 1993, John became more depressed. He stopped playing guitar, stopped painting and became a full-time drug addict. He went broke after spending all his money on drugs and was expelled from his house because he wasn't paying the rent for it anymore. During those years John moved to different places. If no one had heard from him for a while, some would assume that he was probably dead. He never ate regularly and liked his new stick-like body shape, because it looked like David Bowie's during the "Ziggy Stardust" days.
After a suggestion from a friend for another solo album, John agreed to do one to pay for his drug habit. In 1997 "Smile from the Streets you Hold" was released. It sold better then "Niandra LaDes & Usually Just a T-shirt".
In 1999 John took the album off the market because he was ashamed of his motives for doing it. He was urged by friends to give rehab another try. This time it was successful. He began playing again and played at the Viper Room on the 20th January 1997, where only a few years earlier his friend River Phoenix had died. Then in the beginning of 1998, rumors spread that Dave Navarro (John's replacement in the Chili Peppers) was leaving the band.
Flea, who had jammed with John numerous times during this period, proposed him to join the band again. It wasn't until April 1998 that his return within the Chili Peppers became official. It made the band and the fans alike happy. He and the rest of the Chili Peppers jammed numerous times and kept composing and practicing during the following months. Anthony Kiedis had recovered from his addictions as well and he and John were able to forgive and forget and form a bond once more.
He has since recorded two more albums with the Chili Peppers, "Californication" (1999) and "By The Way" (2002), both commercial successes. He also released two more solo albums, "To Record Only Water For Ten Days" (2001) and "Shadows Collide With People" (2004). He will be releasing a new album "Will To Death" on June 22 on the Record Collection label.- Actor
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Martin Hayter Short OC is a Canadian-American actor, comedian, singer, and writer. He has received various awards including two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. In 2019 Short became an Officer of the Order of Canada, and has received Medals from Queen Elizabeth II, including in 2002 the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal and in 2012 the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Tony Danza is an American actor, perhaps best known for starring on some of television's most beloved and long-running series, including "Taxi" (1978-1983) and "Who's the Boss?" (1984-1992).
Danza was born in Brooklyn, New York to Anne (Cammisa), a bookkeeper, and Matty Iadanza, a garbageman. His mother was an Italian immigrant, and his father was also of Italian descent. He grew up in Malverne, Long Island and received a wrestling scholarship to the University of Dubuque in Iowa, where he earned a bachelor's degree in history education. Before finding a teaching job, he earned his living as a professional boxer and envisioned himself as the next Rocky Graziano. Changing his name to "Dangerous" Tony Danza, he entered the New York Golden Gloves in 1975. Shortly afterward, on Aug. 13, 1976, he started his professional boxing career. Fighting as a middleweight, Danza became a crowd favorite for his walk-in slugging style. He compiled a record of 9-3 with nine knockout victories, seven in the first round.
During a gym workout, Tony was discovered for the part of Tony Banta on the ABC TV show Taxi (1978). Danza still hoped to be a world champion and scored knockouts in 1978 and 1979, but when he was unable to secure a title shot, he retired from boxing and totally dedicated himself to his acting career. "Taxi" was critically acclaimed, earning him a place in television history and making him a household name. He followed "Taxi" with a starring role in the classic ABC comedy series Who's the Boss? (1984), which ran for eight seasons and broke all syndication records. He became known for his lovable sitcom persona.
Danza received an Emmy nomination for a guest-starring role in The Practice (1997) and acclaim for his performance in the Broadway revival of "The Iceman Cometh" by Eugene O'Neill. He also starred in the comedy series Hudson Street (1995) and The Tony Danza Show (1997), for which he was executive producer. His additional television credits include an acclaimed performance opposite George C. Scott and Jack Lemmon in the remake of the film classic 12 Angry Men (1997), and the television movies The Garbage Picking Field Goal Kicking Philadelphia Phenomenon (1998), Noah (1998), The Girl Gets Moe (1997), North Shore Fish (1997), and Deadly Whispers (1995).
Among his motion-picture credits are Angels in the Outfield (1994), She's Out of Control (1989), A Brooklyn State of Mind (1998), Glam (1997), and Illtown (1996). He also wrote, directed, and starred in the short film Mamamia (1995).
Eventually Tony explored his love for the stage, and among his many stage credits is his exciting run on Broadway in Mel Brooks' hit musical "The Producers", playing Max Bialystock (2006-2007), and his reprise of the role in the Las Vegas production at Paris Las Vegas (2007).
For his theatrical debut in "Wrong Turn at Lungfish" (1993), he earned an Outer Critic's Circle Award nomination. Other stage credits include the critically acclaimed "The Iceman Cometh", opposite Kevin Spacey, Arthur Miller's Tony Award-winning play "A View from the Bridge", and "I Remember You". Most recently, Tony returned to the stage in the pre-Broadway run of the much-buzzed-about and highly-acclaimed smash hit musical "Honeymoon In Vegas", which he starred in at the Paper Mill Playhouse along with Tony Award nominee Rob McClure ("Chaplin"), and Brynn O'Malley ("Annie"). With music and lyrics by Tony Award winner, Jason Robert Brown ("Parade", "The Last Five Years"), the musical is written by Andrew Bergman ("Fletch", "The Freshman", "Blazing Saddles", "Soap Dish", "The In-Laws") and based on his hit Castle Rock/New Line comedy of the same title. Both the show and Tony's performance received amazing reviews, including a love letter from The New York Times that compares Tony's performance to "the cooler-than-cool spirit" of Frank Sinatra.
He garnered accolades performing in his song-and-dance stage show, which debuted in Atlantic City in 1995. He later took it on the road to major venues throughout the country, from Las Vegas to New York.
In 2013, Tony returned to the big screen and received great buzz and fantastic reviews for his performance as Joseph Gordon-Levitt's character's father in Gordon-Levitt's much-buzzed-about and acclaimed directorial debut, "Don Jon". The film, which stars Gordon-Levitt, Danza, Julianne Moore, Brie Larson, and Scarlett Johansson, was released in theaters in the fall of 2013.
In 2009-2010, Tony took on his most challenging role yet: teaching tenth-grade English at Philadelphia's Northeast High School. His experience working as a real teacher was taped and aired on A&E last year in the form of the critically-acclaimed seven-part documentary series, Teach.
In September 2012, Crown Publishers (a division of Random House) released Tony's book, "I'd Like to Apologize to Every Teacher I Ever Had: My Year as a Rookie Teacher at Northeast High", a much-buzzed-about and critically acclaimed reflection of his experience teaching for a year. The book premiered on the New York Times Best Sellers list at number 16 and stayed on the list for two months. The paperback edition hit bookstores in September of 2013. In 2010, AARP The Magazine, the definitive voice for 50+ Americans and the world's largest-circulation magazine with more than 35 million readers, presented Tony with their Inspire Award. The Inspire Awards pay tribute to extraordinary people who inspire others to action through their innovative thinking, passion and perseverance. In December of 2012, Tony was among the iconic celebrities who participated in the Weinstein Company's historic concert for Hurricane Sandy Relief at Madison Square Garden. He was featured in the documentary about the concert, released by the Weinstein Company in the fall of 2013, in which Tony reminds people of the forgotten motto of America, "E pluribus unum", or "out of many one", or as Tony's father would say "we're all in this together, pal".
With great belief in the spirit of that motto, Tony participates in many charity efforts. In April 2013, USAToday honored Tony at their annual National Make A Difference Day Awards for his commitment to helping others through his numerous charity efforts.
Danza is married to Tracy Robinson and has three children.- Actor
- Producer
Nomar Garciaparra was born on 23 July 1973 in Whittier, California, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Running the Sahara (2007), Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place (1998) and 2008 National League Championship Series (2008). He has been married to Mia Hamm since 22 November 2003. They have three children.- Pedro Martinez was born on 25 October 1971 in Manoguayabo, Dominican Republic. He is an actor, known for Ponchao (2013), Sunday Night Baseball (1990) and MLB on TBS (2007). He has been married to Carolina Cruz since 9 November 2005.
- Actor
- Producer
- Executive
Derek Jeter was born on 26 June 1974 in Pequannock, New Jersey, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Other Guys (2010), Anger Management (2003) and History's Greatest Warriors. He has been married to Hannah Jeter since 9 July 2016. They have four children.