1.
"Weird Al" Yankovic
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Alfred Matthew Weird Al Yankovic is an American singer, songwriter, parodist, record producer, satirist, actor, voice actor, music video director, film producer, and author. Since his first-aired comedy song in 1976, he has more than 12 million albums, recorded more than 150 parody and original songs. His works have earned him four Grammy Awards and a further 11 nominations, four gold records, Weird Als first top ten Billboard album and single were both released in 2006, nearly three decades into his career. His latest album, Mandatory Fun, became his first number-one album during its debut week and he directed later videos himself and went on to direct for other artists including Ben Folds, Hanson, The Black Crowes, and The Presidents of the United States of America. Weird Al has stated that he may forgo traditional albums in favor of timely releases of singles, in addition to recording his albums, Weird Al wrote and starred in the film UHF and The Weird Al Show. He has also made guest appearances and voice acting roles on television shows and video web content. He has also written two books, When I Grow Up and My New Teacher and Me. Yankovic was born in Downey, California and raised in Lynwood. He is the child of Mary Elizabeth and Nick Yankovic. Mary, who was of Italian and English descent, had come to California from Kentucky, Als first accordion lesson, which sparked his career in music, was on the day before his sixth birthday. A door-to-door salesman traveling through Lynwood offered the Yankovic parents a choice of accordion or guitar lessons at a music school. Yankovic said that parents chose the accordion because they were convinced it would revolutionize rock and he continued lessons at the school for three years before continuing to learn on his own. Yankovics early accordion role models included Frankie Yankovic and Myron Floren, in the 1970s, Yankovic was a big fan of Elton John and claims Johns Goodbye Yellow Brick Road album was partly how I learned to play rock n roll on the accordion. Other sources of inspiration for his comedy come from Mad magazine, Monty Python, Yankovic began kindergarten a year earlier than most children, and he skipped second grade. My classmates seemed to think I was some kind of rocket scientist so I was labeled an early on. As his unusual schooling left him two years younger than most of his classmates, Yankovic was not interested in sports or social events at school and we started the club just to get an extra picture of ourselves in the yearbook. Weird Al graduated in 1975 and was valedictorian of his senior class, Yankovic attended California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo where he earned a bachelors degree in architecture. Yankovic received his first exposure via southern California and syndicated radio personality Dr. Dementos radio show, saying If there hadnt been a Dr. Demento. The tapes first song, Belvedere Cruisin - about his familys Plymouth Belvedere - was played on Dementos comedy radio show, launching Yankovics career
2.
Television
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Television or TV is a telecommunication medium used for transmitting moving images in monochrome, or in color, and in two or three dimensions and sound. The term can refer to a set, a television program. Television is a medium for entertainment, education, news, politics, gossip. Television became available in experimental forms in the late 1920s. After World War II, a form of black-and-white TV broadcasting became popular in the United States and Britain, and television sets became commonplace in homes, businesses. During the 1950s, television was the medium for influencing public opinion. In the mid-1960s, color broadcasting was introduced in the US, for many reasons, the storage of television and video programming now occurs on the cloud. At the end of the first decade of the 2000s, digital television transmissions greatly increased in popularity, another development was the move from standard-definition television to high-definition television, which provides a resolution that is substantially higher. HDTV may be transmitted in various formats, 1080p, 1080i, in 2013, 79% of the worlds households owned a television set. Most TV sets sold in the 2000s were flat-panel, mainly LEDs, major manufacturers announced the discontinuation of CRT, DLP, plasma, and even fluorescent-backlit LCDs by the mid-2010s. In the near future, LEDs are gradually expected to be replaced by OLEDs, also, major manufacturers have announced that they will increasingly produce smart TVs in the mid-2010s. Smart TVs with integrated Internet and Web 2.0 functions became the dominant form of television by the late 2010s, Television signals were initially distributed only as terrestrial television using high-powered radio-frequency transmitters to broadcast the signal to individual television receivers. Alternatively television signals are distributed by cable or optical fiber, satellite systems and. Until the early 2000s, these were transmitted as analog signals, a standard television set is composed of multiple internal electronic circuits, including a tuner for receiving and decoding broadcast signals. A visual display device which lacks a tuner is correctly called a video monitor rather than a television, the word television comes from Ancient Greek τῆλε, meaning far, and Latin visio, meaning sight. The Anglicised version of the term is first attested in 1907 and it was. formed in English or borrowed from French télévision. In the 19th century and early 20th century, other. proposals for the name of a technology for sending pictures over distance were telephote. The abbreviation TV is from 1948, the use of the term to mean a television set dates from 1941
3.
Television program
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It may be a single production, or more commonly, a series of related productions. A limited number of episodes of a show may be called a miniseries or a serial or limited series. Television series are without a fixed length and are divided into seasons or series. While there is no defined length, U. S. industry practice has traditionally favored longer television seasons than those of other countries, a one-time broadcast may be called a special, or particularly in the UK a special episode. A television film is a film that is initially broadcast on television rather than released in theaters or direct-to-video, a program can be either recorded, as on video tape, other various electronic media forms, played with an on-demand player or viewed on live television. Television programs may be fictional, or non-fictional and it may be topical, or historical. They could be primarily instructional or educational, or entertaining as is the case in situation comedy, a drama program usually features a set of actors playing characters in a historical or contemporary setting. The program follows their lives and adventures, except for soap opera-type serials, many shows especially before the 1980s, remained static without story arcs, and the main characters and premise changed little. If some change happened to the characters lives during the episode, because of this, the episodes could be broadcast in any order. Since the 1980s, there are series that feature progressive change to the plot. For instance, Hill Street Blues and St. Elsewhere were two of the first American prime time television series to have this kind of dramatic structure. While the later series, Babylon 5 is an example of such production that had a predetermined story running over its intended five-season run. In 2012, it was reported that television was growing into a component of major media companies revenues than film. Some also noted the increase in quality of television programs. When a person or company decides to create a new series, they develop the elements, consisting of the concept, the characters, the crew. Then they offer it to the networks in an attempt to find one interested enough to order a prototype first episode of the series. They want very much to get the word out on what types of shows they’re looking for, to create the pilot, the structure and team of the whole series must be put together. If the network likes the pilot, they pick up the show to air it the next season, sometimes they save it for mid-season, or request rewrites and further review
4.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
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Red Hot Chili Peppers, also sometimes shortened to The Chili Peppers or abbreviated as RHCP, are an American funk rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The groups musical style consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk rock. When played live, their music elements of jam band due to the improvised nature of much of their performances. Currently, the band consists of founding members vocalist Anthony Kiedis and bassist Flea, longtime drummer Chad Smith, in 2012, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The bands original line-up, originally named Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem, featured guitarist Hillel Slovak and drummer Jack Irons, alongside Kiedis, because of commitments to other bands, Slovak and Irons did not play on the bands self-titled debut album. Slovak performed on the second and third albums, Freaky Styley and The Uplift Mofo Party Plan, as a result of his friends death, Irons chose to depart from the group. After short-lived replacements at guitar and drums, John Frusciante and Chad Smith joined in 1988, the line-up of Flea, Kiedis, Frusciante, and Smith was the longest-lasting and recorded five studio albums beginning with Mothers Milk. In 1990, the signed with Warner Bros. Records. This album became the bands first commercial success, but Frusciante grew uncomfortable with it, after two temporary guitarists, Dave Navarro joined the group in 1993 and played on their subsequent album, One Hot Minute. Although commercially successful, the failed to match the critical or popular acclaim of Blood Sugar Sex Magik. Navarro was fired from the band in 1998, Frusciante, fresh out of drug rehabilitation, rejoined the band that same year at Fleas request. The reunited quartet returned to the studio to record Californication, which became the bands biggest commercial success with 16 million copies worldwide. That album was followed three years later by By the Way, and then four years later by the double album Stadium Arcadium, after a world tour, the group went on an extended hiatus. Frusciante announced he was leaving the band in 2009 to focus on his solo career. Klinghoffer, who had worked both as a sideman for the band on their Stadium Arcadium tour and on Frusciantes solo projects, the bands tenth studio album, Im with You, was released in 2011 and topped the charts in 18 different countries. The band released their studio album, The Getaway, in 2016. The album was produced by Danger Mouse, marking the first time since 1989s Mothers Milk that the Red Hot Chili Peppers had not worked with Rubin, and topped the charts in ten different countries. Red Hot Chili Peppers were formed in Los Angeles by singer Anthony Kiedis, guitarist Hillel Slovak, bassist Flea, and drummer Jack Irons, all of whom were classmates from Fairfax High School
5.
MC Hammer
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Stanley Kirk Burrell, better known by his stage name M. C. Hammer, is an American hip hop recording artist, dancer, record producer, entrepreneur and he had his greatest commercial success and popularity from the late 1980s, until the late 1990s. Remembered for his rise to fame, Hammer is known for hit records, flashy dance movements, choreography. Hammer is considered a forefather/pioneer and innovator of pop rap, and is the first hip hop artist to achieve diamond status for an album, regardless, BET ranked Hammer as the #7 Best Dancer Of All Time. Vibes The Best Rapper Ever Tournament declared him the 17th favorite of all-time during the first round, Burrell became a preacher during the late 1990s with a Christian ministry program on TBN called M. C. Prior to becoming ordained, Hammer signed with Suge Knights Death Row Records by 1995, throughout his career, Hammer has managed his own recording business. As a result, he has created and produced his own acts including Oaktowns 3.5.7, Special Generation, Analise, DRS, B Angie B, stanley Kirk Burrell was born on March 30,1962 in Oakland, California. His father was a poker player and gambling casino manager. He grew up poor with his mother and eight siblings in an apartment in East Oakland. He recalled that six children were crammed into a housing project apartment. The Burrells would also frequent thoroughbred horse races, eventually becoming owners and winners of several graded stakes, in the Oakland Coliseum parking lot the young Burrell would sell stray baseballs and dance accompanied by a beatboxer. Oakland As team owner Charles O. Finley saw the 11-year-old doing splits and hired him as an assistant and batboy as a result of his energy. Burrell served as a batboy with the team from 1973 to 1980, the colorful Finley, who lived in Chicago, used the child as his eyes and ears. I nicknamed him Hammer, because he looked like Hank Aaron, team players, including Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Pedro Garcia, also dubbed Burrell Little Hammer due to his resemblance to Aaron. Ron Bergman, at the time an Oakland Tribune writer who covered the As, recalled that, He was an informant in the clubhouse, an informant for Charlie, according to Hammer, Charlie said, Im getting you a new hat. I dont want you to have a hat that says As on it, Im getting you a hat that says Ex VP, that says Executive Vice President. Youre running the joint around here, every time I come down to the clubhouse, you know, Rollie would yell out Oh, everybody be quiet. He acquired the nickname M. C. for being a Master of Ceremonies which he used when he began performing at clubs while on the road with the As
6.
R.E.M.
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R. E. M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, that was formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, lead guitarist Peter Buck, bassist/backing vocalist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe. Released its first single—Radio Free Europe—in 1981 on the independent record label Hib-Tone, the single was followed by the Chronic Town EP in 1982, the bands first release on I. R. S. Following years of success, R. E. M. Achieved a mainstream hit in 1987 with the single The One I Love, the group signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1988, and began to espouse political and environmental concerns while playing large arenas worldwide. By the early 1990s, when alternative rock began to experience mainstream success, R. E. M. was viewed by subsequent acts such as Nirvana. The band then released its two most commercially successful albums, Out of Time and Automatic for the People, which veered from the established sound. R. E. M. s 1994 release, Monster, was a return to a more rock-oriented sound, the band began its first tour in six years to support the album, the tour was marred by medical emergencies suffered by three of the band members. Re-signed with Warner Bros. for a reported US$80 million, at the time the most expensive recording contract in history and its 1996 release, New Adventures in Hi-Fi, though critically acclaimed, fared worse commercially than expected. The following year, Bill Berry left the band, while Stipe, Buck, in 2007, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in their first year of eligibility. Disbanded amicably in September 2011, announcing the split on its website, in January 1980, Michael Stipe met Peter Buck in Wuxtry Records, the Athens record store where Buck worked. The pair discovered that they shared similar tastes in music, particularly in rock and protopunk artists like Patti Smith, Television. Stipe said, It turns out that I was buying all the records that was saving for himself, Stipe and Buck soon met fellow University of Georgia students Mike Mills and Bill Berry, who had played music together since high school and lived together in Georgia. The quartet agreed to collaborate on songs, Stipe later commented that there was never any grand plan behind any of it. Their still-unnamed band spent a few months rehearsing and played its first show on April 5,1980, at a friends birthday party held in a converted Episcopal church in Athens. After considering names like Twisted Kites, Cans of Piss, and Negro Wives, the band members eventually dropped out of school to focus on their developing group. They found a manager in Jefferson Holt, a store clerk who was so impressed by an R. E. M. performance in his hometown of Chapel Hill, North Carolina. R. E. M. s success was almost immediate in Athens and surrounding areas, the band drew progressively larger crowds for shows, over the next year and a half, R. E. M. Toured throughout the Southern United States, touring was arduous because a touring circuit for alternative rock bands did not then exist
7.
Dire Straits
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Dire Straits were a British rock band that formed in Deptford, London, in 1977 by Mark Knopfler, his younger brother David Knopfler, John Illsley, and Pick Withers. Dire Straits sound drew from a variety of influences, including jazz, folk, and blues. Despite the prominence of rock during the bands early years, their stripped-down sound contrasted with punk. Many of Dire Straits compositions were melancholic, Dire Straits biggest selling album, 1985s Brothers in Arms has sold over 30 million copies, and was the first album to sell a million copies on the then new compact disc format. They also became one of the worlds most commercially successful bands, Dire Straits won four Grammy Awards, three Brit Awards—winning Best British Group twice, two MTV Video Music Awards, and various other music awards. The bands songs include Money for Nothing, Sultans of Swing, So Far Away, Walk of Life, Brothers in Arms, Private Investigations, Romeo and Juliet, Tunnel of Love, Telegraph Road, and Lady Writer. According to the Guinness Book of British Hit Albums, Dire Straits have spent over 1,100 weeks on the UK albums chart and their career spanned a combined total of 15 years. They originally split up in 1988, but reformed in 1991, there were several changes in personnel over both periods, leaving Mark Knopfler and John Illsley as the only two original bandmates who remained throughout the bands career. Brothers Mark and David Knopfler, and friends John Illsley, after a performance at The Rock Garden in 1977, they took a demo tape to MCA in Soho but were turned down. Then they went to DJ Charlie Gillett, who had a show called Honky Tonk on BBC Radio London. The band simply wanted advice, but Gillett liked the music so much that he played Sultans of Swing on his show, two months later, Dire Straits signed a recording contract with the Vertigo division of Phonogram Inc. The groups first album, Dire Straits, was recorded at Basing Street studios in West London in February 1978, produced by Muff Winwood, the album was first released in the United Kingdom on Vertigo Records, then a division of Phonogram Inc. The album came to the attention of A&R representative Karin Berg and she felt that it was the kind of music audiences were hungry for, but only one person in her department agreed at first. Many of the songs on the album reflected Mark Knopflers experiences in Newcastle, Leeds and that same year, Dire Straits began a tour as opening band for Talking Heads after the re-released Sultans of Swing finally started to climb the UK charts. This led to a United States recording contract with Warner Bros, Records, before the end of 1978, Dire Straits had released their self-titled debut worldwide. They received more attention in the United States, but also arrived at the top of the charts in Canada, Australia, Dire Straits eventually went top 10 in every European country. The following year, Dire Straits embarked on their first North American tour and they played 51 sold-out concerts over a 38-day period. Sultans of Swing scaled the charts to number four in the United States, the song was one of Dire Straits biggest hits and became a fixture in the bands live performances
8.
I Love Lucy
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I Love Lucy is a landmark American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15,1951, to May 6,1957, after the series ended in 1957, however, a modified version continued for three more seasons with 13 one-hour specials, it ran from 1957 to 1960. It was first known as The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show and later in reruns as The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour. The show, which was the first scripted television program to be shot on 35 mm film in front of an audience, won five Emmy Awards. I Love Lucy was the most watched show in the United States in four of its six seasons, the show is still syndicated in dozens of languages across the world and remains popular with an American audience of 40 million each year. A colorized version of its Christmas episode attracted more than 8 million viewers when CBS aired it in time in 2013 –62 years after the show premiered. A second colorized special, featuring the L. A, at Last. and Lucy and Superman episodes, aired on May 17,2015, attracting 6.4 million viewers. I Love Lucy is often regarded as one of the greatest and most influential sitcoms in history, in 2012, it was voted the Best TV Show of All Time in a survey conducted by ABC News and People Magazine. The Ricardos best friends, Fred and Ethel, are former vaudevillians, unfortunately, she has few marketable performance skills. She does not seem to be able to carry a tune or play anything other than off-key renditions of such as Glow Worm on the saxophone. However, to say she is completely without talent would be untrue, as on occasion, she is shown to be a good dancer, the show provided Ball ample opportunity to display her considerable skill at clowning and physical comedy. Character development was not a focus of early sitcoms, so little was offered about her life before the show. Her family was absent, other than occasional appearances by her bird-brained mother and she was also depicted as a devoted housewife and attentive mother. Lucys husband, Ricky Ricardo, is an up-and-coming Cuban American singer and bandleader with an excitable personality and his patience is frequently tested by his wifes antics. When exasperated, he reverts to speaking rapidly in Spanish. As with Lucy, not much is revealed about his past or family, Rickys mother appears in two episodes, in another Lucy mentions that he has five brothers. Ricky also mentions that he had practically raised by his uncle Alberto. The story, at least insofar as related to newspaper columnist Hedda Hopper, is that the met in Havana when Lucy
9.
"Weird Al" Yankovic (album)
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Weird Al Yankovic is the self-titled debut album by American parodist Alfred Weird Al Yankovic. The album was the first of many produced by former The McCoys guitarist Rick Derringer, mostly recorded in March 1982, the album was released by Rock n Roll Records as an LP and on Compact Cassette in 1983. Nearly half of the album is made up of parodies based on the works of Toni Basil, Joan Jett, Stevie Nicks, The Knack, Yankovics trademark instrument, the accordion, is used on all songs featured on the album. Fueled by the success of the singles My Bologna and Another One Rides the Bus. Critically, however, the received a lukewarm reception, with many reviewers feeling that Yankovic was a throw-away act. Agreeing, Derringer used his music industry prestige and convinced Cherokee Studios to record an albums worth of Yankovics songs gratis, then, in March 1982, Weird Al Yankovic stepped into a professional recording studio for the first time and recorded nine of the songs for Weird Al Yankovic. After encountering difficulty picking up a label for the first-time album. Impressing the program director of the Top 40 station, he played it immediately, at the same time, Tad Dowd—head of the new record label, Rock n Roll Records—had been trying to convince parent company Scotti Brothers Records to sign the 22-year-old Yankovic. The positive furor over the KIQQ playtest provided Dowd with the leverage needed to convince Scotti Bros. to offer a contract for Yankovics first album, Demento Show, and the last two songs would be recorded at Scotti Brothers own studios in Santa Monica, California. To promote the album, Levey coordinated a tour in late Summer 1983 across the United States East Coast and Midwest for both Yankovic and Dr. Demento. Promoted as An Evening of Dementia with Dr. Demento in Person Plus Weird Al Yankovic, Demento opened with recorded hits and short films from his show before introducing Yankovic. During their three weeks, the played in several famous clubs, including The Bottom Line in New York City. The album cover for Weird Al Yankovic was designed by Brazilian artist Rogerio, the band chose Rogerio because of his MAD Magazine-like drawing style. The cover art specifically features individual elements that correspond with each of the twelve songs. Ricky is a parody of Mickey by Toni Basil, an ode to I Love Lucy with Yankovic performing as Ricky, gotta Boogie is a play on words discussing a man with a boogie on his finger and his quandary therein. I Love Rocky Road is a parody of Arrows I Love Rock n Roll made famous by Joan Jett, buckingham Blues is a blues song satirizing the socialite lifestyle of the Prince and Princess of Wales. Originally, the song was going to be a parody of Jack & Diane by John Mellencamp, worried about spoiling a Jack and Diane movie deal, Mellencamp shot down the parody. Yankovic considered tweaking the Jack & Diane melody to avoid the song being a true parody, answering a fan in 1998, Yankovic replied that he would not rewrite and rerecord the song in light of the death of Diana
10.
Peter Gabriel
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After leaving Genesis in 1975, Gabriel launched a solo career with Solsbury Hill as his first single. His 1986 album, So, is his release and is certified triple platinum in the UK. The albums most successful single, Sledgehammer, won a record nine MTV Awards at the 1987 MTV Video Music Awards, Gabriel has been a champion of world music for much of his career. He co-founded the WOMAD festival in 1982 and he has continued to focus on producing and promoting world music through his Real World Records label. He has also pioneered digital distribution methods for music, co-founding OD2, Gabriel has also been involved in numerous humanitarian efforts. In 1980, he released the anti-apartheid single Biko and he has participated in several human rights benefit concerts, including Amnesty Internationals Human Rights Now. Tour in 1988, and co-founded the Witness human rights organisation in 1992, Gabriel developed The Elders with Richard Branson, which was launched by Nelson Mandela in 2007. He was made a BMI Icon at the 57th annual BMI London Awards for his influence on generations of music makers, AllMusic has described Gabriel as one of rocks most ambitious, innovative musicians, as well as one of its most political. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Genesis in 2010, in March 2015 he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of South Australia in recognition of his achievements in music. Peter Brian Gabriel was born in Chobham, Surrey and his father, Ralph Parton Gabriel, was an electrical engineer, and his mother, Edith Irene, who was from a musical family, taught him to play the piano at an early age. His great-great-great-uncle, Sir Thomas Gabriel, 1st Baronet, served as Lord Mayor of London from 1866 to 1877, Gabriel attended Cable House, a private primary school in Woking, St. Andrews Prep School in Horsell, and Charterhouse School in Godalming from 1963. He played drums in his first rock bands, and Mike Rutherford commented in 1985 that Pete was—and still is, Gabriel founded Genesis in 1967 with fellow Charterhouse School pupils Tony Banks, Anthony Phillips, Mike Rutherford, and drummer Chris Stewart. The name of the band was suggested by fellow Charterhouse alumnus, the pop music impresario Jonathan King, Gabriel has said to be influenced by many different sources in his way of singing, such as Family lead singer Roger Chapman. In 1970, he played the flute on Cat Stevenss album, the concerts made extensive use of black light with the normal stage lighting subdued or off. Early Genesis concerts were hampered by a bad public address system made it difficult for audiences to understand what Gabriel was singing. According to Mike Rutherford, this drove Gabriel to find ways to impress his personality on the audience. In an episode of the 2007 British documentary series Seven Ages of Rock and it was the dress-wearing, fox-headed entity immortalised on the cover of Foxtrot. Hackett and the rest of the band had no inkling that Gabriel was going to do this and it was a success, encouraging Gabriel to continue wearing stage clothes while singing
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