title: Born This Way (song)

text: On February 20, 2011, the single debuted at number one in Australia on the official ARIA Singles Chart, becoming Gaga's third number-one single there, and the highest selling song to debut at the top. "Born This Way" was certified four-times platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipment of 280,000 copies of the single. The single debuted at number one on the New Zealand RIANZ charts, becoming Gaga's second number-one single there after "Poker Face" (2008). It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ) for shipment of 15,000 copies of the single. In the United Kingdom, "Born This Way" logged first week sales of 60,000 digital copies, landing it at number three on the UK Singles Chart, which became its peak position. It sold 625,000 copies in 2011 in the UK and 1.2 million copies by July 2022, with 52 million streams. Elsewhere, the song debuted atop the charts in Spain, Finland, Ireland, and the Netherlands. "Born This Way" debuted at number two in Italy, France, Sweden, Norway, Austria, Germany, and Belgium (Flanders). In addition, it debuted at number-four in Denmark and then moved to the second spot. "Born This Way" had sold 8.2 million digital copies by November 2011 and had become the fifth best-selling digital single of the year, worldwide.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: The music video was shot the weekend of January 22–24, 2011 in New York City, and was described by Gaga's team as a "profound, so inspiring and so incredibly beautiful" video. The video was directed by Nick Knight. Choreographer Laurieann Gibson told MTV News that the video would be "shocking" and one can expect the execution of the highest level of vocal music art and dance. Hollywoodlife.com reported that Gaga spent the first week of February editing the video at the Greenwich Hotel, New York, working during the night as she had to spend the morning rehearsing for her upcoming Grammy Awards performance. Media reports suggested that the singer might play the character of Jo Calderone, the male model she had portrayed in the September issue of Japanese "Vogue Hommes". Fernando Garibay explained that the video "is of cultural relevance, and hopefully helps people that are an outcast, bullied. Hopefully makes people aware that it's OK to be yourself." According to Gaga, she was inspired by the paintings of Salvador Dalí and Francis Bacon, and their surrealistic images. Gibson explained the inspiration behind the video to MTV News:


title: Born This Way (song)

text: When she played it for me, it took me a while to find out the visual interpretation that I could give back to her. And so I woke up one night and I got it, and I said, 'I got it: We have to birth a new race.' From the gate, Gaga was like, 'I want Nick Knight for this video. I want a visual.' She was always birthing something visual in her head, and Nick Knight is just, well, he's prolific but he's so genius. It was about pushing the bar of what a music video should be and can be. [...] It's a different time; it's a different era; there are no limits. It is a viral message. I think that there's something in there for everyone, and that's what's so amazing about the video and so specific about the message.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: Gibson recalled having to work with Gaga on her dancing in the video, and to make her a better dancer she wanted Gaga to be confident. Gaga chose New York to shoot the video because the city is her birthplace. Before shooting started, Gibson and Gaga decided there was only one place to work on the avant-garde, modern dance routine for the video, Alvin Alley, where Gibson had studied dance. "We rehearsed there because the choreography is really modern-based. It's, like, more technical than anything she's ever done," she recalled. Shooting also took place in Brooklyn for two days. Since Gaga did not want set pictures to be taken before the video was ready, her team had to hide the location and were successful, except at the last day when paparazzi started sneaking around.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: The video features full-bodied tattooed model Rick Genest (Rico), better known by his stage name Zombie Boy. Gaga painted her face in a similar way to Genest, in one of the main series of sequences. She said that the sequences displayed the fact that she would not allow society or critics to dictate her sense of beauty. "I tell you what I think is beauty, and hence the scene was of me and Rico defining ourselves in artistic way and not relying on society to dictate it," she added. The costumes for the video were designed by Formichetti, who blogged about the various designer pieces shown in it. In the opening sequence of the video, Gaga wore a head accessory by Alexis Bittar, a diamond neckpiece by Erickson Beamon with earrings by Pamela Love, and a stained-glass dress by Petra Storrs. Finger rings were provided by Erickson Beamon and chiffon clothes by Thierry Mugler. For the skeletons sequences, both she and Rico wore tuxedos by Mugler while the slime during the orgy scenes were courtesy of Bart Hess. For her Michael Jackson impression in the alley at the video's end, Gaga wore shirt and pants designed by her creative team, the Haus of Gaga, shoes by Natacha Marro, a Billykirk belt and LaCrasia gloves.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: Released on Monday, February 28, 2011, the video begins with a brief shot of a unicorn's silhouette in a steam-filled alley, inside a pink triangle frame. The triangle transitions to a shot of Gaga, with two opposite facing heads, inspired by Janus, the Roman god of transition and beginnings, sitting in an ornate glass throne amidst a star-filled space. As Bernard Herrmann's prelude to the movie "Vertigo" plays, Gaga tells the story of the creation of an extraterrestrial race that "bears no prejudice, no judgment, but boundless freedom." Gaga sits in the throne, giving birth to a "new race within the race of humanity." She explains that this was followed by the birth of evil, due to which Gaga splits into two opposing forces of good and evil. Her new half gives birth to a machine gun and fires it. The prologue concludes with Gaga questioning, "How can I protect something so perfect, without evil?"


title: Born This Way (song)

text: Gaga, with shoulder and facial protrusions (prosthetic makeup mimicking subdermal implants) walks in a seemingly endless black space, where people are on their hands and knees in an organized pattern. She raises her hand and crouches down to join them. When the first verse begins, everyone dances to choreography. The scenes alternate between the dance, and Gaga singing on her throne in space. In the second verse, Gaga and Rico are in tuxedos, with her face painted to mirror his. Alternating clips show Gaga caressing and attempting to dance with him while he stays expressionless and motionless for the most part. When the chorus plays for the second time, Gaga sings in a room of mirrors, with her head displayed in a glass box among oddly distorted mannequin heads. In the succeeding shots, she is once again shown on her throne giving birth to more members of the new race. After choreographed routines by Gaga and her dancers, they all gather in a circle and embrace in a hug.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: In the video's conclusion, Gaga's silhouette struts in an alley in a tribute to Michael Jackson's music video "The Way You Make Me Feel". Gaga has commented that she was teased as kids would call her "rabbit teeth". She sheds a single tear as the pink triangle frame appears again, and inside it, a silhouette of Gaga sitting atop the unicorn. A city and a rainbow appear in the background, and Gaga is seen in her zombie makeup, chewing bubble gum and blowing it, as the pink triangle zooms away.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: The music video for "Born This Way" was met with generally positive reception among music critics. James Montgomery of MTV praised the overall creationism concept of the music video, adding that it "sort of makes sense, it sort of doesn't, but that 100 percent doesn't really matter much. This is Gaga at her most fabulous, her most out-there, her most, well, Gaga." In conclusion of his review, he wrote that the fantasy aspects of the video is overshadowed by the overall spectacle, which he believed was analogous to Gaga, "after thoroughly dominating this world with 'Born This Way,' [she] seems content to create brand-new worlds to tower over." Myrddin Gwynedd of "The New Zealand Herald" felt that Gaga's penchant for eccentric and provocative imagery, was extreme in the video. Raphael Chestang from "Entertainment Tonight" praised the performance of Gaga and her dancers in the video, also complimenting the fashion. Monica Herrera from "Billboard" noticed that the video bore similarities to the music video of Madonna's "Vogue" and "Borderline" (1984), while believing it to be "more of a high-fashion short film than a conventional music video". Jim Farber from "New York Daily News" wanted Gaga to add more humor in her videos, adding that although the video had "joyous" shock value, it definitely lacked creativity.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: Oscar Moralde from "Slant Magazine" noted that in the video, "Gaga fully embraces the monstrous as a part of her." Moralde further explained that previously the singer had acknowledged her role as "Mother Monster", but never to the visceral, fully embodied extent that she does in the video. "The things that are monstrous, the things that are different—for Gaga, those are the things that are beautiful," he concluded. Gina Serpe from E! Online criticized it for being a "Madonna rip-off", while Matthew Perpetua of "Rolling Stone" noted similarities to some of Madonna's work and the imagery from in the 1927 German expressionist film, "Metropolis". Ann Powers from "Los Angeles Times" noted that the video paid tribute to the Goddess movement and feminism. According to her, with the video Gaga made goddess culture accessible to the mass, by portraying images borrowed from fine art, cinema and cool subcultures. Examples given by her included the portrayal of Rico as her partner, instead of a conventional-looking male or female consort. Powers further added that "Gaga has found a way to place female empowerment at the center of her vision without sacrificing the gains she makes by being a daddy's girl or a 'boy toy'." Megan Powers from "Time" criticized the video and Gaga's usage of shock-imagery, which she still found "strange". The video has been noted for its cultural references and artistic similarities, not only to other recording artists such as Jackson and Madonna, but to Greek and Roman mythology, surrealism and the work of Swiss painter H. R. Giger and late fashion designer Alexander McQueen.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: For the 2014 movie "Maleficent", the cheekbones makeup of Angelina Jolie was inspired by Gaga's forehead bones in the "Born This Way" music video. Makeup artist Rick Baker explained to "Allure" that: "I thought it didn't make sense for [Jolie] to have bones like [Gaga's], but she really liked the idea of something under her skin showing a ridge. So I moved them to her cheekbones."


title: Born This Way (song)

text: On the February 9, 2011, episode of "The Ellen DeGeneres Show", singers Justin Bieber and James Blunt performed their own rendition of the song along with DeGeneres, improvising the music, while singing the chorus. During the show, Gaga confirmed via telephone that she would perform "Born This Way" on February 13, 2011, at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards. Gaga arrived at the ceremony in a giant incubating vessel that was carried onto the red carpet by numerous fashion models. She later emerged from another bigger egg on stage, dressed in a high ponytail, gold bra top and long skirt, with black and gold makeup and pointed shoulders and horns protruding from her face. The "Born This Way" performance was introduced by Ricky Martin. In the first few seconds after performing the intro of the song, Gaga emerged from the egg, and after the first chorus, she whipped her hair in a manner similar to singer Willow Smith. Before the "No matter gay, straight or bi" line of the song, an organ emerged from the stage floor. Gaga played the music on the organ, which was surrounded by mannequin heads submerged in gel, before belting out the rest of the bridge as her dancers surrounded her. Before leaving the stage, Gaga put on her trench and hat as the song faded out and Gaga and her dancers ended the performance with their hands put up in paws.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: According to Gaga the Grammy performance was inspired by many things, including Gregorian music, Alvin Ailey dance moves and Martha Graham's dance energy. On "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," she explained that Smith inspired her to "whip my hair back and forth on stage," referring to Smith's similar named song. Gaga continued that the incubating vessel was meant to signify an artistic statement of birthing a new race with no prejudice. The idea occurred to her when she was in Amsterdam on her tour bus, and was thinking about birth and embryos. She had thought to herself, "Gosh, the thing I hate most about doing award shows is, it can be distracting... I want to exist only for my fans and for the stage. I don't want to exist in this machine or this circus that is the industry. I wish I could be encapsulated for three days and just think only about my performance, think only about the album, think only about the future of my fans. So that's what I did." Jocelyn Vena from MTV felt that the performance was "surprisingly" sparse compared to Gaga's previous "over-the-top" endeavors. Soraya Roberts from "New York Daily News" was disappointed with the "highly expected" performance, feeling that it had copied Madonna and her Blond Ambition World Tour choreography. Jason Lipscultz from "Billboard" described the performance as "spirited", and felt that Gaga's appearance inside the egg was one of the memorable moments of the Grammy Awards. Jennifer Armstrong from "Entertainment Weekly" praised the performance saying that although there were definite influences of Madonna in it, the performance was one of the highlights of the show. Matthew Perpetua from "Rolling Stone" concurred that "It should come as no surprise that Lady Gaga's performance of her new single 'Born This Way' was the evening's most visually stunning and bizarre spectacle."


title: Born This Way (song)

text: Starting from the February 19, 2011 date of the Monster Ball Tour, Gaga performed "Born This Way" as a second encore to the show, using the same general attire and choreography as the Grammy performance, however the incubation vessel was not present and slight alterations were made in the outfits of her dancers. Tris McCall from "The Star-Ledger" was most impressed with the performance, calling it one of the highlights of the concert. He added that "reinterpretation of the single, which was far more Laura Nyro than Madonna, was such an improvement over the mechanized, tricked-out hit version that it was hard not to wish she could get back to the studio and re-cut it before the album comes out."


title: Born This Way (song)

text: Gaga performed an acoustic version on "The Oprah Winfrey Show", in May 2011, along with another song from "Born This Way", "You and I". Sitting atop a high stool, Gaga—in a red leather blazer, a floppy mask-like hat and see-through leopard bodysuit—played a piano made out of a wire high-heel structure. At "The Graham Norton Show" in May 2011, Gaga performed "Born This Way" as the closing song of the show, while on Radio 1's Big Weekend in Carlisle, Cumbria it was the opening song of the set list. Another performance took place at the season finale of "Saturday Night Live", where the singer wore a metallic dress and a side ponytail. Midway through her performance, she displayed a pregnant belly as she emerged from within her dancers. A few days later, Gaga performed the song on "Good Morning America" as a part of their "Summer Concert Series". She wore gold horns and a gold sequined jacket, and near the end of the performance she joined her dancers in a tank filled with of dyed gel.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: During a promotional visit in Europe in June 2011, piano versions of the song was performed on the final show of the sixth season of "Germany's Next Topmodel", and at the EuroPride 2011 in Rome. A medley of "Judas" and "Born This Way" was the closing performance on the "Paul O'Grady Live" show in London. Gaga closed the 2011 MuchMusic Video Awards with "Born This Way", appearing on stage inside a hanging cocoon. While touring Japan, "Born This Way" was performed along with "The Edge of Glory" on the 2011 MTV Video Music Aid Japan. After finishing performing "The Edge of Glory", she sneaked around the stage, and climbed some stairs to reach her piano—which was decked up to look like a giant spider—before launching into an acoustic version of "Born This Way".


title: Born This Way (song)

text: The song was included on the Born This Way Ball tour (2012–2013), during which she came out screaming from a giant alien womb. Gaga was dressed in Medieval inspired cloths similar to her performance of the song at the Grammys. In 2014, Gaga performed an acoustic version of "Born This Way" during her residency show at Roseland Ballroom and at the tour. In July 2016, Gaga visited an orphanage in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, where she sang an acoustic version of the song described as "emotional" by Megan McCluskey from "Time". Later that year, she appeared in the Carpool Karaoke segment of "The Late Late Show with James Corden", where "Born This Way" was between the selected songs Gaga sang with Corden in the vehicle.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: On February 5, 2017, Gaga was the headliner of the Super Bowl LI halftime show and "Born This Way" was part of the performance. Nico Lang from "Salon" noted that compared to other songs performed during the event, which were mostly shortened into a medley, Gaga chose to perform the biggest part of "Born This Way", and "her singing its lyrics made Gaga the first person to ever say the words 'lesbian', 'gay', 'bi', or 'transgender' at the Super Bowl." Many other journalists highlighted the significance of singing the song at the Super Bowl, calling it a subtle political statement. In April 2017, Gaga performed "Born This Way" during both weeks of the Coachella Festival. The song was also part of the Joanne World Tour (2017–2018). After singing songs on the piano, Gaga strapped on a long white skirt for the performance of "Born This Way".


title: Born This Way (song)

text: Gaga performs the song during Lady Gaga Enigma + Jazz & Piano (2018–2021), her Las Vegas residency, which involves two different shows. During the Enigma shows, Gaga performs it as the penultimate song in a champagne-hued gold dress, while on the Jazz and Piano show, she performs the song while playing on the piano. Chris Willman, from "Variety" reacted positively to her latter performance, saying that "Born This Way" "should have been born this way, the way she sings it alone at the piano, as a sort of slow gospel number; it no longer sounds like a kicky 'Vogue' knockoff but something more primal and spiritual, and it's surprisingly moving in this more reverent frame." A stripped-down version of the song was also performed during Gaga's live-streamed concert on September 30, 2021, which was in celebration of her second collaborative album with Tony Bennett, called "Love for Sale". In 2022, Gaga performed "Born This Way" at The Chromatica Ball stadium tour, where she started with just a spotlight and a piano, before switching to the original version of the song a few verses later.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: On March 3, 2011, during her concert in Toronto, Canada, Gaga performed an acoustic version of the song with ten-year-old Maria Aragon. Gaga had been impressed by Aragon's singing abilities when the ten-year-old uploaded her own version of "Born This Way" to YouTube. Aragon was subsequently invited on stage to sing with Gaga. She appeared wearing a fedora hat and carrying a stuffed monkey. Gaga sat at the piano, pulled Aragon onto her lap, before proceeding to sing a soul-inspired rendition of "Born This Way", trading off verses. "Maria represents what this song is all about," Gaga told the Canadian crowd after the performance. "It's all about the next generation and the future." Later, Aragon was invited at Radio Hot 103, where she sang the chorus of "Born This Way" through the phone. She also performed the song on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" on February 23, 2011. Fellow American singer Katy Perry performed a stripped-down version of "Born This Way", on the March 7, 2011, date of her California Dreams Tour, in Paris. The performance was accompanied by two guitarists playing acoustic guitars.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: The "Glee" cast covered the song during a thematic episode of their second season. The episode was named "Born This Way", and aired in the United States in April 2011, on Fox. Their version of the song was released for digital download, and sold 73,000 copies to enter the "Billboard" Hot 100 at number 44, and on the Canadian Hot 100 at number 31. Later, the "Glee" cover version was performed at the 2011 leg of the Glee Live! In Concert! tour, the song also was included on the concert-film "" and the original .


title: Born This Way (song)

text: American singer-songwriter and parodist "Weird Al" Yankovic had sought permission from Gaga to parody "Born This Way", providing a brief description of the concept for his song. Her management responded that she must hear the song before providing approval. Yankovic obliged with the lyrics of "Perform This Way", which was released on April 25, 2011, as the first single from his thirteenth studio album, "Alpocalypse", on iTunes Store. After what Yankovic described as "considerable expense" in writing, recording, and mastering the song in the studio, he contacted Gaga's management again with a completed recording of the song. He was subsequently refused permission, without Gaga listening to the track and Yankovic getting the impression that the refusal came from the singer herself. Left with a completed song and abandoned plans for an outlandish music video to promote the song and album, Yankovic released it on YouTube. It was then that Gaga actually heard the song, and personally contacted Yankovic, giving him green light to include the song on "Alpocalypse", telling him that her manager had been the one to refuse permission, which was done without her knowledge or input.


title: Born This Way (song)

text: BBC Radio 1's Alex Full a.k.a. the Cornish Fairy and singer Kirsten Joy Gill recorded a cover of the song called "Cornish This Way" in August 2011 as a modern Cornish anthem. The song was recorded at the Maida Vale Studios in London, and the music video was shot in Newquay, Cornwall at the Boardmasters Festival. On May 20, 2012, a video leaked from rehearsals of Madonna's the MDNA Tour (2012) showed the singer incorporating "Born This Way" into "Express Yourself" followed by a performance of "She's Not Me" from her 2008 album "Hard Candy". It created a media frenzy with many speculating that she was "dissing" Gaga and the song. Madonna included the sequence in her tour during the second segment. Alice Cooper added a cover of the song to the 2012 leg of his No More Mr. Nice Guy Tour. It features altered lyrics, though it maintains the chorus and melody of Gaga's version. Later, Gaga showed appreciation for the cover on her Twitter account.


title: Matt Berninger

text: Matthew Donald Berninger (, born February 13, 1971) is an American singer-songwriter, primarily known as the frontman and lyricist of indie rock band The National. In 2014, he also formed the EL VY project with Brent Knopf of Ramona Falls and Menomena and released the album "Return to the Moon" in November 2015. In May 2020, Berninger shared the title track from his solo debut album, "Serpentine Prison", which was released in October 2020.


title: Matt Berninger

text: Berninger is a 1989 graduate of St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati, Ohio. He went on to study graphic design at the University of Cincinnati, where he met fellow band member Scott Devendorf in 1991. The two quickly became friends. Berninger quit a career in advertising in his thirties to start The National. He told The Telegraph: "I was doing well [in advertising]. But, once I entertained the thought that maybe I wouldn't ever have to go and sit in conference rooms with MasterCard to discuss web ads again, I couldn't shake it."


title: Matt Berninger

text: Berninger is married to Carin Besser, a one-time fiction editor for "The New Yorker", who has often contributed to the band's songwriting ("Brainy" and "Ada" from the album "Boxer") and backup vocals. Together with Hope Hall and Andreas Burgess, Besser also helped direct the music video for "Bloodbuzz Ohio". They have a daughter named Isla. Berninger has stated the song "Afraid of Everyone" was influenced by his anxiety about being a new father.


title: Matt Berninger

text: Berninger has two siblings: Tom (who directed "Mistaken for Strangers", a film about The National) and Rachel.


title: Matt Berninger

text: In 2011, a portrait of Berninger was painted by British artist Joe Simpson; the painting was exhibited around the UK including a solo exhibition at The Royal Albert Hall.


title: Matt Berninger

text: In 2019, Berninger appeared in "". Along with Phoebe Bridgers, they contributed the song "Walking on a String" to its soundtrack.


title: Matt Berninger

text: In 2020, Berninger was the subject of an episode of the fictional erotic podcast, Dirty Diana, produced by Demi Moore.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: The Boeing 314 Clipper was an American long-range flying boat produced by Boeing from 1938 to 1941. One of the largest aircraft of its time, it had the range to cross the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. For its wing, Boeing re-used the design from the earlier XB-15 bomber prototype. Twelve Clippers were built, nine of which served with Pan Am.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: Pan American had requested a truly trans-Pacific flying boat with unprecedented range and double the passenger payload of the airline's Martin M-130. Boeing's bid was successful and on July 21, 1936, Pan American signed a contract for six. Boeing engineers adapted the cancelled XB-15's wing, and replaced the Pratt & Whitney Twin Wasp radial engines with the Wright Twin Cyclone. Pan Am ordered six more aircraft with increased engine power and capacity for 77 daytime passengers as the Boeing 314A.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: The huge flying boat was assembled at Boeing's Plant 1 on the Duwamish River in Seattle, and towed to Elliott Bay for taxi and flight tests. The first flight was on June 7, 1938, piloted by Edmund T. "Eddie" Allen. At first the aircraft had a single vertical tail, and Allen found he had inadequate directional control. The aircraft returned to the factory and was fitted with the endplates on the ends of the horizontal tail in place of the single vertical fin. This too was found to be insufficient and finally the centerline vertical fin was restored, after which the aircraft flew satisfactorily.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: The 314 used a series of heavy ribs and spars to create a robust fuselage and cantilevered wing, eliminating the need for external drag-inducing struts to brace the wings. Boeing also incorporated Dornier-style sponsons into the hull structure. The sponsons, broad lateral extensions at the waterline on both sides of the hull, served several purposes: They provided a wide platform to stabilize the craft while floating, they acted as a gangway for boarding and exiting, and they possessed intentional shaping to contribute additional aerodynamic lift in flight. Passengers and their baggage were weighed, with each passenger allowed up to free baggage allowance (in the later 314 series) but then charged () for exceeding the limit. To fly the long ranges needed for trans-Pacific service, the 314 carried of gasoline. The later 314A model carried a further . A capacity of of oil was required for operation of the radial engines.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: Pan Am's "Clippers" were built for "one-class" luxury air travel, a necessity given the long duration of transoceanic flights. The seats could be converted into 36 bunks for overnight accommodation; with a cruising speed of (typically flights at maximum gross weight were flown at ) in 1940, Pan Am's schedule San Francisco to Honolulu was 19 hours. Clipper service catered to elite businessmen and the wealthy traveler. The 314s had a lounge and dining area, and the galleys were crewed by chefs from four-star hotels. Men and women were provided with separate dressing rooms, and white-coated stewards served five and six-course meals with gleaming silver service. The standard of luxury on Pan American's Boeing 314s has rarely been matched on heavier-than-air transport since then. A round trip from New York to Southampton was $675 (), while a one-way ticket from San Francisco to Hong Kong via the "stepping-stone" islands posted at $760 (). The Pan Am Boeing 314 Clippers brought exotic destinations like the Far East within reach of air travelers and came to represent the romance of flight. Most of the flights were transpacific, while transatlantic flights to neutral Lisbon and Ireland continued after war broke out in Europe in September 1939 (and until 1945), but military passengers and cargoes necessarily got priority, and the service was more spartan.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: Equally critical to the 314's success was the proficiency of its Pan Am flight crews, who were extremely skilled at long-distance, over-water flight operations and navigation. For training, many of the transpacific flights carried a second crew. Only the very best and most experienced flight crews were assigned Boeing 314 flying boat duty. Before coming aboard, all Pan Am captains as well as first and second officers had thousands of hours of flight time in other seaplanes and flying boats. Rigorous training in dead reckoning, timed turns, judging drift from sea current, celestial navigation, and radio navigation were conducted. In conditions of poor or no visibility, pilots sometimes made successful landings at fogged-in harbors by landing out to sea, then taxiing the 314 into port.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: The first 314 flight on the San Francisco-Hong Kong route left Alameda on February 23, 1939 with regular passenger and Foreign Air Mail Route #14 service beginning on March 29. A one-way trip on this route took over six days to complete. Commercial passenger service lasted less than three years, ending when the United States entered World War II in December 1941.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: The "Yankee Clipper" flew across the Atlantic on a route from Southampton to Port Washington, New York with intermediate stops at Foynes in Ireland, Botwood in Newfoundland, and Shediac, New Brunswick. The inaugural trip occurred on June 24, 1939.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: The success of the six initial Clippers had led Pan Am to place an order for six improved 314A models to be delivered in 1941, with the goal of doubling the service on both Atlantic and Pacific routes. However, the fall of France in 1940 caused some doubt about whether the Atlantic service could continue; passenger numbers were already reduced by the war, and if Spain or Portugal were to join the Axis, then the flights to Lisbon would be forced to stop. Pan Am began to consider reducing its order and, in August 1940, reached an agreement to sell three of the six under construction to the United Kingdom. The aircraft were to be operated by the British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) and were primarily intended for the UK – West Africa route, as existing flying boats could not travel this route without stopping in Lisbon. The sale made a small net profit for Pan Am – priced at cost plus 5% – and provided a vital communications link for Britain, but was politically controversial. In order to arrange the sale, the junior minister Harold Balfour had to agree to the contract with no government approval, leading to stern disapproval from Winston Churchill and lengthy debate by the Cabinet over the propriety of the purchase. Churchill later flew on the "Bristol" and "Berwick", which he praised intensely, adding to the Clippers’ fame during the war.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: At the outbreak of the war in the Pacific in December 1941, the "Pacific Clipper" was en route to New Zealand from San Francisco. Rather than risk flying back to Honolulu and being shot down by Japanese fighters, it was directed to fly west to New York. Starting on December 8, 1941 at Auckland, New Zealand, the "Pacific Clipper" covered over via locations including Surabaya, Karachi, Bahrain, Khartoum and Leopoldville. The "Pacific Clipper" landed at Pan American's LaGuardia Field seaplane base at 7:12 on the morning of January 6, 1942.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: Pan Am's "Clipper" fleet was pressed into US military service during World War II, and the flying boats were used for ferrying personnel and equipment to the European and Pacific fronts. The aircraft were purchased by the War and Navy Departments and leased back to Pan Am for a dollar, with the understanding that all would be operated by the Navy once four-engined replacements for the Army's four Clippers were in service. Only the markings on the aircraft changed: The Clippers continued to be flown by their experienced Pan Am civilian crews. American military cargo was carried via Natal, Brazil to Liberia, to supply the British forces at Cairo and even the Russians, via the Persian Corridor. The Model 314 was then the only aircraft in the world that could make the crossing over water. The Army gave the aircraft the designation C-98, but the Navy—which used a different designation system at the time—disregarded this designation and operated the aircraft under the company designation B-314. In February 1942, forty women were hired by Pan Am to replace male mechanics in the hangars at LaGuardia to perform service, repair and overhaul of the Clippers for the European service. Maintenance demands were such that it took "141 mechanics, working three 8-hour shifts, to perform in two days the complete inspection of servicing routine which must be carried out before a Clipper just in from Europe can be sent on the return trip." Since the Pan Am pilots and crews had extensive expertise in using flying boats for extreme long-distance over-water flights, the company's pilots and navigators continued to serve as flight crew. In 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt traveled to the Casablanca Conference in a Pan-Am crewed Boeing 314 "Dixie Clipper".


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: After the war, several Clippers were returned to Pan American hands. However, even before hostilities had ended, the Clipper had become obsolete. The flying boat's advantage had been that it didn't require long concrete runways, but during the war a great many such runways had been built for heavy bombers. New long-range airliners such as the Lockheed Constellation and Douglas DC-4 were developed. The new landplanes were relatively easy to fly, and did not require the extensive pilot training programs mandated for seaplane operations. One of the 314's most experienced pilots said, "We were indeed glad to change to DC-4s, and I argued daily for eliminating all flying boats. The landplanes were much safer. No one in the operations department... had any idea of the hazards of flying boat operations. The main problem now was lack of the very high level of experience and competence required of seaplane pilots".


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: The last Pan Am 314 to be retired, the "California Clipper" NC18602, in 1946, had accumulated more than a million flight miles. Of the 12 Boeing 314 Clippers built, three were lost to accidents, although only one of those resulted in fatalities: 24 passengers and crew aboard the "Yankee Clipper" NC18603 lost their lives in a landing accident at Cabo Ruivo Seaplane Base, in Lisbon, Portugal on February 22, 1943. Among that flight's passengers were prominent American author and war correspondent Benjamin Robertson, who was killed, and the American singer and actress Jane Froman, who was seriously injured.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: Pan-Am's 314 was removed from scheduled service in 1946 and the seven serviceable B-314s were purchased by the start-up airline New World Airways. These sat at San Diego's Lindbergh Field for a long time before all were eventually sold for scrap in 1950. The last of the fleet, the "Anzac Clipper" NC18611(A), was resold and scrapped at Baltimore, Maryland in late 1951.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: BOAC's 314As were withdrawn from the Baltimore-to-Bermuda route in January 1948, replaced by Lockheed Constellations flying from New York and Baltimore to Bermuda.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: None of the dozen 314s built between 1939 and 1941 survived beyond 1951, with all 12 being cannibalized for parts, scuttled, scrapped, or otherwise written off. Underwater Admiralty Sciences, a non-profit oceanographic exploration and science research organization based in Kirkland, Washington, announced in 2005, at the 70th Anniversary of the first "China Clipper" flight in San Francisco, its plans to survey, photograph, and possibly recover the remains of the hulls of two sunken 314s: NC18601 ("Honolulu Clipper"), scuttled in the Pacific Ocean in 1945; and NC18612 ("Bermuda Sky Queen", formerly "Cape Town Clipper"), sunk in the Atlantic by the Coast Guard in 1947. UAS has also spent significant time at Pan Am reunions and with individual crewmembers and employees of Pan Am conducting videotaped interviews for the mission's companion documentary. However, as of 2014, no search or recovery had been attempted, with the most recent news from 2011 suggesting that the company was still in need of at least US$8 million to get the plan under way.


title: Boeing 314 Clipper

text: There is a life-size 314 mockup at the Foynes Flying Boat Museum, Foynes, County Limerick, Ireland, located on the site of the original transatlantic flying-boat terminus.


title: Survivor: China

text: Survivor: China is the fifteenth season of the American CBS competitive reality television series "Survivor". The premiere aired September 20, 2007. Host Jeff Probst claimed the show was the first full American TV series to be filmed entirely within China. The specific location is in Mountain Lu West Sea, Jiujiang. It is also the northernmost Survivor season held to date, well outside of the tropical zone. Applications were due on January 30, 2007. Around March 2007, about 800 applicants were selected for an interview by CBS. Out of those 800, 48 semi-finalists were selected to go to Los Angeles in April–May 2007. From these semi-finalists, 16 were selected to participate in the show between June and August 2007. The final contestants and their original tribes, Fei Long () and Zhan Hu (), meaning Flying Dragon and Fighting Tiger respectively, were officially announced on August 20, 2007. The merged tribe was Hae Da Fung (), which means Black Fighting Wind, a name proposed by Peih-Gee Law.


title: Survivor: China

text: The "Outwit, Outplay, Outlast" slogan used in previous seasons' logos has been replaced by Chinese characters. The characters translate to "compete in intelligence" (, "bĭ zhìhuì"), "compete in skill" (, "bĭ jìqiǎo"), and "compete in endurance" (, "bĭ nàilì"). Among the many aspects of Chinese culture and history included this season were a Buddhist ceremony and a tall replica of a historic temple used for Tribal Council. Each tribe received a copy of "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu. As stated by Probst: ""Survivor" is a war. The book deals with leadership and how you defeat the other tribe. It's interesting how much it plays into the game all the way through." The show had "unprecedented access" to several historical Chinese monuments, including the Shaolin Temple and the Great Wall of China.


title: Survivor: China

text: Exile Island from the previous three seasons was not used for this season, but the Hidden Immunity Idol was still part of the game. In lieu of Exile Island, the tribes had the ability to kidnap a player from the opposing tribe as part of winning a Reward Challenge. The kidnapped player remained with that tribe until the next Immunity Challenge and received a clue to the location of an Immunity Idol at that camp. However, this clue had to be given, unread, to a member of the other tribe prior to the next Immunity Challenge. Ultimately, neither of the two Idols available to the castaways were used; James Clement was voted out with both in his possession. Three players went to the Final Tribal Council, continuing the pattern that began in "" and again in "". Probst explained that having a final three "prohibits one person winning through to the end and then taking an extremely unlikable person with them." In the end, Todd Herzog won, defeating Courtney Yates and Amanda Kimmel by a vote of 4–2–1. During the reunion, James Clement was awarded a $100,000 prize as the most popular player in "Survivor: China", beating fellow favorites Denise Martin and Peih-Gee Law.


title: Survivor: China

text: Season 15 features 16 new castaways, split into two tribes. The translation for Fei Long () and Zhan Hu () mean Flying Dragon and Fighting Tiger respectively. The name of the merge tribe created by Peih-Gee Law, Hae Da Fung (), translates to Black Fighting Wind. Among the 16 contestants who competed in this season were poker player Jean-Robert Bellande, the 2005 "WWE Raw Diva Search" winner Ashley Massaro.


title: Survivor: China

text: James Clement and Amanda Kimmel both returned to compete in the following season, "". The pair returned again in 2010 for "" along with Courtney Yates. Peih-Gee Law returned for "".


title: Survivor: China

text: The two tribes, Fei Long and Zhan Hu, were predetermined prior to the start of the game. As an added bonus for winning reward challenges, the winning tribe was given the opportunity to kidnap a member from the losing tribe, where they would live at the winning tribe's camp (in cases where the reward is a trip away from camp, participate in the reward trip with the winning tribe as well) until the next Immunity Challenge. This person would receive a container with a clue to the hidden immunity idol that they had to give to one of the winning tribe members.


title: Survivor: China

text: After the first 12 days, Fei Long held a slight edge thanks to the strength of James and leadership of Aaron. A strong alliance had been formed on Fei Long between Todd, Amanda, Aaron, and Courtney. On Day 14, each tribe, separately, selected two members of the other tribe to bring into theirs; Fei Long selected Sherea and Frosti, while Zhan Hu selected James and Aaron. Believing that James and Aaron would remain true to the other Fei Long members when the merge occurred, Jaime and Peih-Gee struck a plan to lose the next Immunity Challenge on purpose so that they would be able to remove the former Fei Longs from the game. Zhan Hu would end up losing the challenge, and subsequently voted Aaron out.


title: Survivor: China

text: On Fei Long, Todd had been working to find the Hidden Immunity Idol. At the next reward challenge on Day 16, Fei Long won and kidnapped James. With the clue from James, Todd was able to find the idol, which he gave to James to use and eliminate a Zhan Hu, and also told James that the same clues would apply at the Zhan Hu camp. While James found the second idol, Zhan Hu won the next immunity challenge thus rendering Todd's plan moot and leaving James with both idols.


title: Survivor: China

text: The tribes merged on Day 19, with the former Fei Longs holding a 6–4 advantage. After voting out Jaime, Jean-Robert and Frosti, Amanda became concerned that James would not give back one of the two idols, and worked with her other tribe members to blindside him, with James leaving the game with the two idols still in his possession. The remaining Fei Long held on to their lead, and Todd, Amanda, and Courtney's alliance held strong and the three went to the Final Tribal Council.


title: Survivor: China

text: At the Final Tribal Council, all three finalists were criticized by the jury: Amanda for being overly apologetic, Courtney for her sassy attitude, and Todd for his deception and manipulating the jury. Amanda couldn’t own her game and her moves and the jury believed that her game was attached to Todd’s. Courtney was criticized for not making strategic moves in the game and personally attacking some of the jury members. Unlike Amanda and Courtney, Todd owned his strategic game to earn the jury's respect, leading to his victory in a 4-2-1 decision over Courtney and Amanda, respectively.


title: Survivor: China

text: "Survivor: China" received positive reviews, and is a favorite among the fan-base due to the level of gameplay and entertaining cast of characters. The villanous gameplay of winner Todd Herzog, the snarky, sarcastic personality of runner-up Courtney Yates, and the entertainingly over the top personality of James Clement each received high praise from both fans and critics alike. Dalton Ross of "Entertainment Weekly" ranked this season 16th out of 40 saying it "featured a really good cast stuck in a really bad location." In 2014, Joe Reid of "The Wire" ranked this season 13th out of 27. In 2015, a poll by "Rob Has a Podcast" ranked this season 6th out of 30 with Rob Cesternino ranking this season 11th. This was updated in 2021 during Cesternino's podcast, "Survivor All-Time Top 40 Rankings", ranking 5th out of 40th. In 2020, "Survivor" fan site "Purple Rock Podcast" ranked this season 10th out of 40 citing its "truly fantastic cast". Later that same year, "Inside Survivor" ranked this season 6th out of 40 saying "what really makes this season so good is the way the cast interacts with each other."


title: Survivor: China

text: At the reunion show, Denise Martin claimed that she lost her job as a lunch lady after returning home from filming. As a result, producer Mark Burnett awarded her $50,000. However, the school district for which Denise worked later refuted her version of what happened after she returned from China. According to Douglas Public School District Superintendent Nancy T. Lane, Denise asked for and received a promotion to the higher-paying, full-time custodian position before filming began for "Survivor". When Denise returned to work, she returned to her new position. She requested to transfer back to her old position but it was no longer available. On the December 19, 2007, broadcast of "The Early Show", Denise apologized, stating that it was "not [her] intention to be misleading" and asked that the $50,000 be donated to the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.


title: Stage name

text: A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individual's birth name. Though uncommon, some performers choose to adopt their stage name as a legal name.


title: Stage name

text: A performer will often take a stage name because their real name is considered unattractive, dull, or unintentionally amusing; projects an undesired image; is difficult to pronounce or spell; or is already being used by another notable individual, including names that are not exactly the same but still too similar. An example of this is pop singer Katy Perry, whose real name is Katheryn "Katy" Hudson, which would have caused confusion with the actress Kate Hudson. Sometimes a performer adopts a name that is unusual or outlandish to attract attention. Other performers use a stage name in order to retain anonymity, as is often the case for porn stars, especially if they intend on switching careers. The equivalent concept among writers is called a "nom de plume" (pen name). In radio, the term "radio name" or "air name" is used.


title: Stage name

text: Some individuals who are related to a celebrity take a different last name so they are not perceived to have received undue advantage from their family connection. Actor Nicolas Cage, born Nicolas Coppola, chose a new last name to avoid comparisons with his uncle, director Francis Ford Coppola, who gave him his big break in the 1986 film "Peggy Sue Got Married".


title: Stage name

text: Conversely, individuals who wish to receive benefits from their family connections may take that person's first or last name. Lon Chaney Sr.'s son Creighton spent a number of years appearing in minor roles before renaming himself Lon Chaney Jr. Likewise, Emilio Estevez and his sister Renee chose not to take their father Martin Sheen's professional name and use their birth names; however, their brother Carlos chose to use their father's professional name, and took the name Charlie Sheen. Some children born outside marriage to a (usually male) celebrity parent have done the same: Jett Williams (née Antha Bell Jett) and Scott Eastwood (né Scott Clinton Reeves) each use their fathers' last names.


title: Stage name

text: Women who achieve fame after marriage often use their married name as part of their professional name, while women who achieved fame before marriage may continue to use their maiden name or a hyphenated surname.


title: Stage name

text: In some cases, the individual may adopt a stage name to avoid confusion with other family members who have similar names. Actor Mark Harmon (Thomas Mark Harmon) uses his middle name professionally to avoid confusion with his father Heisman Trophy winner and former broadcaster Tom Harmon (Thomas Dudley Harmon).


title: Stage name

text: Stephen Nice, the birth name of the lead singer of Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel, took on the stage name "Steve Harley" after realising that his on stage persona differed greatly from his real-life persona, and as a result feeling that he was no longer "Ronald and Joyce's [Harley's Parents] little boy" when on stage.


title: Stage name

text: Guilds and associations that represent actors, such as the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) in the United States and Equity in the United Kingdom, stipulate that no two members may have identical working names. An actor whose name has already been taken must choose a new name. SAG allows you to keep your legal name as your stage name, even if another member has the same stage name already, as long as you sign a waiver.


title: Stage name

text: Notable examples include: Nathan Lane, whose birth name (Joseph Lane) was already in use; Stewart Granger, born James Stewart; and Michael Keaton, born Michael Douglas. Diane Keaton, whose birth name is Diane Hall, took her mother's maiden name as a stage name after learning that there was already a registered actress named Diane Hall in the Actors' Equity Association. "Ugly Betty" actress Vanessa Williams officially uses "Vanessa L. Williams" because of SAG guidelines, although the other actress with same first and last name (Vanessa E. Williams) is arguably less notable. Similarly, David Walliams changed one letter in his surname owing to there being another "David Williams". Terry O'Quinn of "Lost" fame changed his surname from Quinn to O'Quinn as another registered actor already had the name Terrance Quinn. Long-time "Simpsons" writer and "Futurama" executive producer David X. Cohen changed his middle initial from S to X because there was already a David S. Cohen registered with the Writers Guild of America. Julianne Moore was born Julie Anne Smith but found that all variations of that name were already used by other actors.


title: Stage name

text: The rumor that Michael Keaton changed his surname because of an attraction to actress Diane Keaton is incorrect; he chose Keaton because of an affinity for the physical comedy of Buster Keaton.


title: Stage name

text: A middle name may be adopted in preference to changing a name. American Author James Finn Garner, born James Edward Garner, adopted his mother's maiden name for a middle name after joining the SAG, to avoid confusion with James Garner, and retained the name for his writing career. In some cases, attaching a generational suffix is sufficient for guild rules; broadcaster David Lawrence is credited as David H. Lawrence XVII as a result of there being sixteen other David Lawrences in show business at the time he received his SAG card.


title: Stage name

text: A person hoping to become successful as an entertainer who has a name identical to a name already familiar to the public (in any field of endeavor) may change their name in order to avoid having their name evoke the other person with the same name. Singer Katy Perry, born Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson, released her self-titled album under the name Katy Hudson, but later used her mother's maiden name to avoid confusion with actress Kate Hudson.


title: Stage name

text: A performer may also have had their stage name chosen for them by their agent – such was the case with Barbara Eden, born Barbara Jean Huffman – or, in the heyday of the Hollywood studios, by a movie studio. Joan Rivers (born Joan Alexandra Molinsky) went one step further and named herself after a former agent, Tony Rivers, after he told her to change her name. In the non English-speaking world, an example is the Taiwanese Mandopop girl group S.H.E (composed of Selina Jen, Hebe Tian, and Ella Chen), whose members' English names were chosen by their manager after taking personality tests.


title: Stage name

text: Rockabilly musician Glen Glenn (real name Orin Glen Troutman) had an involuntary name change bestowed upon him in 1956, while he originally performed as Glen Trout, he became Glen Glenn


title: Stage name

text: Former child star Patty Duke (whose real name is Anna Marie Duke) had her stage name chosen for her by her first managers. Their choice of the name "Patty" was inspired by another child actress named Patty McCormack.


title: Stage name

text: Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach) had his name selected for him by Paramount Pictures. He had been using the name "Cary Lockwood", but the studio decided against it, deeming it too similar to another actor working at the time. Cary and the studio eventually settled on "Cary Grant" (Grant thought the letters "C" and "G" to be lucky: they had brought previous success for both Clark Gable and Gary Cooper). Joan Crawford, born Lucille Fay LeSueur, had her name changed as a result of a magazine poll organised by her studio, MGM.


title: Stage name

text: Gorden Kaye (born Gordon Kaye) had one letter in his first name changed owing to a spelling error by the British Actors' Equity Association; he preferred the mistake over his original name.


title: Stage name

text: In the past, a stage name was often used when a performer's real name was considered to denote a specific ethnicity that faced potential discrimination. In other cases, actors have reinvented themselves with a more ethnic identity, when that gave them an advantage in playing "ethnic" roles.


title: Stage name

text: Steven Tyler of Aerosmith changed his name from Stephen Victor Tallarico "for more promotional appeal".


title: Stage name

text: Historically, Jews in Hollywood were encouraged to anglicize their names to avoid possible discrimination. Examples of such name changes are Danny Kaye and Mel Brooks, both of whom were born with the surname Kaminsky, the original two lineups of The Three Stooges (born the Horwitz brothers and Louis Feinburg) and Woody Allen (born Allen Konigsberg). Jon Stewart claims that he did not anglicize his name for career reasons, but because of his estranged relationship with his father. Israeli-American Natalie Portman changed her name allegedly to protect her privacy.


title: Stage name

text: Ramón Estévez changed his name to Martin Sheen as he felt it affected his job prospects owing to racial discrimination and bias, although he maintains his birth name for legal documents such as his passport; his sons made divergent choices: Carlos Irwin Estévez is now Charlie Sheen, while Emilio Estevez left his name unchanged. German-born actor Hans Gudegast adopted the stage name of Eric Braeden.


title: Stage name

text: Actors Anthony Quinn and Anne Bancroft were advised to anglicize their names because 'Antonio Rodolfo Quinn Oaxaca' and 'Anna Maria Louisa Italiano', respectively, were considered too 'ethnic' for Hollywood and Broadway at the time. Eydie Gorme (born Edith Garmezano), Sophia Loren (born Sofia Villani Scicolone), Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky), and Rita Hayworth (born Margarita Carmen Cansino), are four more well-known examples of this trend.


title: Stage name

text: Broadcaster Dave Roberts was born David T. Boreanaz but was known professionally as Dave Thomas and later Dave Roberts as ethnic surnames were discouraged when he first began his career during the 1950s; his son, actor David Boreanaz, chose not to adopt a stage name.


title: Stage name

text: The use of stage names for ethnic purposes may vary widely depending on the media market the personality is representing. For example, in Buffalo, New York, a city with a large Polish-American population, Polish-American media personalities typically work freely using their birth names.


title: Stage name

text: Sicilian-American actor Espera Oscar de Corti, who built his film career portraying Native Americans, reinvented himself as Iron Eyes Cody. He not only took his stage name as his legal name but eventually began insisting that he actually was Native American.


title: Stage name

text: Actress Bernadette Peters (born Bernadette Lazzara) was encouraged as a child actress to use her father's first name, Peter as her last name by her mother to avoid being type-cast in Italian roles.


title: Stage name

text: Chloe Bennet had used her birth name, Chloe Wang, for her singing career in China. She started using the surname Bennet, after her father's first name, when she failed to be welcomed by Hollywood agents.


title: Stage name

text: Another consideration in choosing a stage name is the ease of use. The Actors' Equity Association (AEA) advises performers to select a name that is easy for others to pronounce, spell, and remember. Some performers, while paying great attention to their skills and abilities, give little thought to the difference that a well-thought-out name can make to their career. Often a person or group decides on a different name only after they realize that a poorly chosen name gives a bad impression.


title: Stage name

text: Actor Michael Caine was born Maurice Micklewhite and chose the name "Michael" because he preferred the sound of it to the less glamorous-sounding "Maurice". He reputedly chose the name "Caine" because at that precise instant he saw a cinema marquee for the then-current movie "The Caine Mutiny", and thought that it would make a good last name in conjunction with Michael. ("Had I looked the other direction," he later quipped, "I'd be known as Michael The One Hundred and One Dalmatians.") Similarly, actor Pete Postlethwaite was advised to adopt a different surname by peers who quipped that his "would never be put up in lights outside theaters because they couldn't afford the electricity" (Postlethwaite rejected the advice). Conversely, Doris Kappelhoff heeded the suggestion of a bandleader who said that her name would never fit on the marquee; since "Day By Day" had become a signature song for her, she became known to the public as Doris Day.


title: Stage name

text: Ching Lau Lauro (flourished 1827–1839) used a Chinese stage name to represent his stage image as a contortionist in Chinese costume. He was probably the first European magician to dress in Chinese costume on stage.


title: Stage name

text: Commonly in the music world, and especially those of heavy metal, punk rock, industrial, and hip hop, musicians will rename themselves with names more menacing or striking than their birth names. Every member of the punk band Ramones took the pseudonymous "Ramone" surname as part of their collective stage persona. Members of New Zealand art-rock band Split Enz all took their middle names as stage names, so as to keep their private image separate from their public personae.


title: Stage name

text: Other performers may assume stage names as a means of distancing themselves from publicly known childhood names that could be considered professionally embarrassing, outlandish, or otherwise inappropriate. Film director Duncan Jones (son of singer David Bowie) was known publicly as a child as Zowie Bowie.


title: Stage name

text: Hip-hop artists are known to use stage names, such as Jay-Z (born Shawn Carter), 50 Cent (born Curtis Jackson), Diddy (born Sean Combs), Ludacris (born Chris Bridges), Lil Wayne (born Dwayne Carter Jr.), and Soulja Boy (born DeAndre Way). At times, these artists will use their real names to make promoted material seem more authentic or personal. Eminem has used his real name, Marshall Mathers, in various public events and as an alter ego as his real name gained recognition following the release of his multi-platinum album, "The Marshall Mathers LP". Similarly, LL Cool J released the albums "Mr. Smith" and "Todd Smith" in 1995 and 2006, respectively, under his real name, James Todd Smith. Rapper-singer-actress Queen Latifah released "The Dana Owens Album" under her own given name, Dana Owens, after changing her musical focus from hip-hop to vocal jazz. Rapper and sometimes actor Xzibit has been credited by his real name Alvin Joiner in several television shows.


title: Stage name

text: Some performers and artists may choose to simplify their name to make it easier to spell and pronounce, and easier for others to remember. For instance, Fall Out Boy vocalist and guitarist Patrick Stump removed the "h" from his original name, Stumph. It was still pronounced "stump", but the change ensured his audience wouldn't think to pronounce it "stumf". Singer Jason Derulo uses the phonetic spelling of his given name, Jason Desrouleaux. Australian actress Yvonne Strahovski adopted a phonetic spelling of her surname Strzechowski as her stage name upon working in the United States.


title: Stage name

text: Andy Warhol dropped an "a" from his original name, Warhola, while couturier Yves Mathieu-Saint-Laurent dropped the first of his two surnames. Rodolfo Alfonso Raffaello Piero Filiberto Guglielmi adopted the stage name Rudolph Valentino in part because American casting directors found his original surname difficult to pronounce. Singer George Michael (the son of a Greek Cypriot restaurateur in North London) was born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou.


title: Stage name

text: Some surnames may carry unfortunate connotations. Hal Linden, born Harold Lipshitz, adopted his stage name for fear that the embedded obscenity in his original surname could cost him work. Ralph Lauren's brother (who was his guardian) changed their family name from Lifshitz for a similar reason: fear of mockery. Duran Duran's Nick Rhodes, born Nicholas James Bates, changed his name to escape childhood ridicule (as a child, children would often tease him by calling him "Master Bates"; he adopted the surname "Rhodes" after a brand of keyboard). Diana Dors was born Diana Fluck (one letter away from a profanity); this prompted her to change her name to a more benign one in order to avoid an accidental obscenity (which could have been exacerbated by her status as a sex symbol).


title: Stage name

text: Some types of music are more associated with stage names than others. For example, hip hop and EDM artists almost always use stage names, whereas "classical" composers and performers virtually never do. Classical violinist Amadéus Leopold (born in South Korea as Yoo Hanbin) and opera singers Beverly Sills (born Belle Miriam Silverman) and Nellie Melba (born Helen Porter Mitchell) are rare exceptions.


title: Stage name

text: Some Algerian raï musicians use the prefix Cheb (for men) or Chaba (Chebba) for women. Both Arabic words mean "young" (e.g. as in Cheb Khaled, or "Young Khaled").


title: Stage name

text: Some performers take a series of different stage names. The British pop singer who was successful in the 1970s as Alvin Stardust previously went by the stage name of "Shane Fenton" in the 1960s. He had been born "Bernard William Jewry". Some performers will use different names in different settings. Charles Thompson, singer-songwriter for the alternative band the Pixies, was known in that band as "Black Francis". He was called "Frank Black" as a solo performer and again called "Black Francis" in a reunited Pixies.


title: Stage name

text: Unlike Hollywood stage names, many musical artists' stage names are obviously not personal names, but they may still end up universally used to refer to the performer, such as Lady Gaga. At times the line may be blurred between the name of an act and the stage name of the lead.


title: Stage name

text: Many performers refer to their stage name as their "professional name". In some cases, performers subsequently adopt their stage name as their legal name. For instance, the former Robert Allen Zimmerman's legal name has been Robert Dylan (Bob Dylan) since he changed it in New York City Supreme Court in August 1962. Elton John was born Reginald Kenneth Dwight but changed his name by deed poll, making Elton Hercules John his real name. When he was knighted, he became Sir Elton Hercules John rather than Sir Reginald Kenneth Dwight. Elvis Costello (born Declan MacManus), who had adopted his professional name as a legal name, changed it back to his birth name in 1986. Another example is Marvin Lee Aday, known by his stage name Meat Loaf. In a similar way, actress and singer Miley Cyrus was born Destiny Hope Cyrus but found "Miley" more comfortable, making it her legal name.


title: Stage name

text: Entire musical groups have been known to adopt a common stage surname, the most notable arguably being the Ramones. Recent examples include The Donnas, Those Darlins, Los Campesinos! and Ween.


title: Greg Proops

text: Gregory Everett "Greg" Proops (born October 3, 1959) is an American actor, stand-up comedian and television host. He is widely known for his guest appearances on the U.K. and U.S. versions of "Whose Line Is It Anyway?". He has also voiced the titular character on the U.S. version of "Bob the Builder".


title: Greg Proops

text: Proops was born in Phoenix, Arizona, and raised in San Carlos, California, a suburb south of San Francisco, attending San Carlos High School. He attended the College of San Mateo and spearheaded the comedy duo "Proops & Brakeman". Later, he took courses in improvisation and acting at San Francisco State University, though he never finished college.


title: Greg Proops

text: After college, he joined an improv group with Mike McShane. Both Proops and McShane impressed producers Dan Patterson and Mark Leveson, who put them on their show, "Whose Line Is It Anyway?". He frequently instigated jokes concerning various idiosyncrasies and differences between British English and American English, and would frequently banter with Clive Anderson on these matters (among others). He lived in London for four years when he was doing the show and lists McShane, Richard Vranch and Colin Mochrie among his best friends. After the show ended, he was recalled for the American version and has been a frequent "fourth contestant". Through 2020, he has appeared in 74 U.S. "Whose Line" episodes, more than any other non-regular cast member.


title: Greg Proops

text: Proops also appeared in every episode of the short-lived "Drew Carey's Green Screen Show", where the performers would play improv games (some of which were taken from the show's main influence "Whose Line Is It Anyway?") in front of a massive green screen. Later, animators would draw on the background and other props. In April 2011, "Drew Carey's Improv-A-Ganza" premiered on GSN featuring Proops along with other frequent guests from "Whose Line is it Anyway?" In July 2012, Proops appeared in ABC's improvisation show, "Trust Us with Your Life".


title: Greg Proops

text: In November 2011, Proops did a week on Royal Caribbean's "Freedom of the Seas" with the Lewis Black Comedy Cruise Tour. He performed the entire week of stand-up with other artists, which included a live, one-hour podcast in front of his entire audience.


title: Greg Proops

text: Proops has performed his stand-up act across Britain, mainland Europe, Australia and New Zealand. His other credits include hosting "Space Cadets", a mid-1990s science-fiction comedy game show on Channel 4 in the UK, which also featured Craig Charles (Dave Lister from "Red Dwarf") and Bill Bailey, and appearances on BBC2's "Mock the Week". He appeared as a panelist on the 2000 revival of "To Tell the Truth". Proops has also hosted game shows, including "VS." in 1999, "Rendez-View" in 2001, and "Head Games", a Science Channel game show which ran for one season in 2009.


title: Greg Proops

text: In addition to his stand-up and improv acts, Proops has done voice work in various films and TV shows, including Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas", and the miniseries "Stripperella" with Pamela Anderson. Proops provided the voice of Bob in the US version of the TV series "Bob the Builder" for the five seasons of "Project Build It". He has also featured in 2003 film "Brother Bear" as the voice of one of the Love Bears and provided the voice as Cryptograf in 2006 film "Asterix and the Vikings".


title: Greg Proops

text: Proops has been involved with Turner Classic Movies since 2013, appearing on several of the network's podcasts and in person at public events. In 2016, he appeared as a television presenter for TCM, introducing comedy films by the Marx Brothers and Wheeler & Woolsey.


title: Greg Proops

text: Proops has been involved with the "Star Wars" franchise as well. He played the role of Fode in "". He would later work with the Expanded Universe, reprising his role as Fode in the video game "" and the video game adaptation of "", and he guest-starred on two episodes of the animated series "" ("The Mandalore Plot" and "Voyage of Temptation") as Tal Merrick. In 2018, Proops voiced Jak Sivrak in "Star Wars Resistance".


title: Greg Proops

text: Proops appeared as a guest on "The George Lucas Talk Show" during their "May the AR Be LI$$ You" Arli$$ marathon fundraiser.


title: Greg Proops

text: Since 2010, Proops has hosted a podcast called "The Smartest Man In The World", often together with his wife Jennifer Canaga, in which he talks about current events, celebrity culture, and his personal life, usually in front of a live audience. Before "Smartest Man", Proops hosted a podcast called "The Greg Proops Experiment".


title: Greg Proops

text: From 1995–1996, Proops presented "Bits from Last Week's Radio" on BBC Radio 1. He did voice work for the BBC Radio 2 series "Flight of the Conchords", first broadcast in September 2005. Proops also played the title role in BBC Radio 4's sci-fi comedy series "Seymour the Fractal Cat".


title: Greg Proops

text: Proops provided the voices for the Harlequin Demon, the Devil, and the Sax Player in "Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas" soundtrack and movie.


title: Greg Proops

text: Proops provides voice-over work as Howard "Buckshot" Holmes, a game show announcer along with John DiMaggio for the Nintendo Wii game "MadWorld". DiMaggio and Proops play as comical announcers on a brutal game show set in the future.


title: Greg Proops

text: Proops provided the voice of Matthew Black, a reporter in the forgotten Psygnosis game, "ZombieVille (1997)".


title: Greg Proops

text: Proops also provided the voice of Fargus, a pyromantic court jester for the PlayStation "Pandemonium" game series.


title: Greg Proops

text: He later worked as a voice actor in "", where he voiced a Brain that was freed by Kaos in order to help perfect his Doomlanders project.


title: Greg Proops

text: On May 5, 2015, Proops released nonfiction book "The Smartest Book in the World" through publisher Touchstone. The book is based in part on Proops's weekly podcast "The Smartest Man in the World", detailing the author's movie and poetry recommendations, baseball facts, powerful women, and misconstrued history. The paperback version of the book was released from Touchstone on February 21, 2017.


title: Denel NTW-20

text: The NTW-20 is a South African anti-materiel rifle, developed by Denel Mechem in the 1990s. It is intended for deployment against targets including parked aircraft, telecommunication masts, power lines, missile sites, radar installations, refineries, satellite dishes, gun emplacements, bunkers, and personnel, using a range of specialised projectiles. As with other weapons of this type, it can also be used for counter sniping and ordnance disposal (shooting explosive ordnance from a safe distance).


title: Denel NTW-20

text: The weapon was designed by Tony Neophytou (co-designer of the Neostead combat shotgun). Development of the system began in August 1995 under the "Aerotek" name and a working prototype was ready for testing four and a half months later. This rapid progress was made possible by Neophytou's expertise in the field of recoil reduction systems, having worked on helicopter turrets in the past. To further reduce the amount of research and development, the project recycled the barrel, bolt and barrel extension of the existing Vektor GA1 automatic cannon. It was put into production by Denel Land Systems in two versions; 20 x 110 and 20 x 82. The latter model is also available in 14.5 x 114 and conversion between the calibres can be done in the field by swapping the barrel and bolt assembly. The significantly larger 20 x 110 model cannot be converted to another calibre. The rifle was accepted into service with the South African National Defence Force in 1998..


title: Denel NTW-20

text: Switching between the two calibres of the NTW (20×82mm and 14.5×114mm) requires changing the bolt, barrel, sighting gear and magazine. (A third variant, the NTW 20×110mm has been developed, but is not designed for barrel calibre switching.) Caliber switching the NTW 20/14.5 can be accomplished in the field without specialised tools. The magazine protrudes from the left side of the receiver. The NTW can be disassembled and packed into two backpacks for carriage. A muzzle brake is fitted on the end of the barrel which absorbs an estimated 50%–60% of recoil. This is further supplemented by a buffered slide in the receiver.


title: Denel NTW-20

text: Denel Land Systems was contracted to supply weapon systems for the Indian Armed Forces, including anti-materiel rifles and self-propelled howitzers. However, following allegations that it had paid kickbacks to secure a deal for anti-materiel rifles, Denel was blacklisted by the Indian government. Subsequently, the Ordnance Factory Tiruchirappalli (OFT), in association with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), began developing an indigenous anti-material rifle called Vidhwansak, which borrowed heavily from the Denel NTW-20. The development of Vidhwansak was completed in November 2005. The embargo against Denel was lifted in 2018 after investigations found the allegations to have been false.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: Same-sex marriage is legal in all parts of the United Kingdom. As marriage is a devolved legislative matter, different parts of the UK legalised at different times; it has been recognised and performed in England and Wales since March 2014, in Scotland since December 2014, and in Northern Ireland since January 2020. Civil partnerships, which offer most, but not all, of the rights and benefits of marriage, have been recognised since 2005.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: Same-sex marriage is legal in eight of the fourteen British Overseas Territories. It has been recognised in South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands since 2014, Akrotiri and Dhekelia and the British Indian Ocean Territory (for UK military personnel only) since 3 June 2014, the Pitcairn Islands since 14 May 2015, the British Antarctic Territory since 13 October 2016, Gibraltar since 15 December 2016, the Falkland Islands since 29 April 2017 and Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha since 20 December 2017. Same-sex marriage was formerly legal in Bermuda from 2017 to 2022, where domestic partnerships have been available to same-sex couples since 1 June 2018. Civil partnerships were legalised in the Cayman Islands on 4 September 2020.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: Same-sex marriage is legal in the Crown dependencies. It has been recognised and performed in the Isle of Man since 22 July 2016, in Jersey since 1 July 2018, and in the Bailiwick of Guernsey at different times: in Guernsey since 2 May 2017, in Alderney since 14 June 2018, and in Sark since 23 April 2020.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: In common law, a marriage between persons of the same sex was void "ab initio". In 1680, Arabella Hunt married "James Howard"; in 1682 the marriage was annulled on the ground that Howard was in fact Amy Poulter, a 'perfect woman in all her parts', and two women could not validly marry. In 1866, in "Hyde v Hyde and Woodmansee" (a case of polygamy), Lord Penzance's judgment began: "Marriage as understood in Christendom is the voluntary union for life of one man and one woman, to the exclusion of all others."


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: In "Talbot (otherwise Poyntz) v Talbot" in 1967, the prohibition was held to extend where one spouse was a post-operative transsexual, with Justice Roger Ormrod stating: "Marriage is a relationship which depends on sex, not on gender". In 1971, the "Nullity of Marriage Act" was passed, explicitly banning marriages between same-sex couples in England and Wales. The parliamentary debates on the 1971 act included discussion on the issue of transsexualism but not homosexuality.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: The 1971 act was later replaced by the "Matrimonial Causes Act 1973", which also declared that a marriage was void if the parties were not respectively male and female. Prohibition of same-sex marriages was also included in the marriage legislation of Scotland and Northern Ireland. The "Marriage Order (Northern Ireland) 2003" stated there was a legal impediment to marriage if the parties were of the same sex, but the "Marriage (Same-sex Couples) and Civil Partnership (Opposite-sex Couples) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2019" removed this provision. The "Marriage Act (Scotland) 1977" had a similar legal impediment, but following the passage of the "Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act 2014", the act no longer prohibits marriages if both parties are of the same sex.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: On 17 July 2013, royal assent was granted to the "Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013". On 10 December 2013, Her Majesty's Government announced that the first same-sex marriages would take place from 29 March 2014.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: The "Civil Partnership Act 2004" came into effect in December 2005. It created civil partnerships, which gave same-sex couples who entered into them most of the rights and responsibilities of marriage. These partnerships were called 'gay marriages' by some of the British media; however, the government made clear that they were not marriages.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: Since Section 9 of the "Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013" took effect, any couple registered in a civil partnership is granted the ability to convert that partnership into a marriage.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: On 26 August 2003, Celia Kitzinger and Sue Wilkinson, both British university professors, legally married in British Columbia, Canada. However, on their return their marriage was not recognised under British law. Under the subsequent "Civil Partnership Act", it was converted into a civil partnership. The couple sued for recognition of their marriage, arguing that it was legal in the country in which it was executed and met the requirements for recognition of overseas marriages and should thus be treated in the same way as one between opposite-sex couples. They rejected the conversion of their marriage into a civil partnership believing it to be both practically and symbolically a lesser substitute. They were represented by civil rights group Liberty. The group's legal director James Welch said it was a matter of fairness and equality for the couple's marriage to be recognised and that they "shouldn't have to settle for the second-best option of a civil partnership".


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: The High Court announced its judgement on 31 July 2006, ruling that their union would not be granted marriage status and would continue to be recognised in England and Wales as a civil partnership. The president of the Family Division, Sir Mark Potter, gave as his reason that "abiding single sex relationships are in no way inferior, nor does English Law suggest that they are by according them recognition under the name of civil partnership", and that marriage was an "age-old institution" which, he suggested, was by "longstanding definition and acceptance" a relationship between a man and a woman. He agreed with the couple's claim that they were being discriminated against by the "Civil Partnership Act 2004", but considered that "To the extent that by reason of that distinction it discriminates against same-sex partners, such discrimination has a legitimate aim, is reasonable and proportionate, and falls within the margin of appreciation accorded to Convention States." Attorney General Peter Goldsmith, as second respondent, sought £25,000 in legal costs from the couple, which the High Court ordered them to pay.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: Wilkinson and Kitzinger said they were "deeply disappointed" with the judgement, not just for themselves, but for "lesbian and gay families across the nation". They said that "denying our marriage does nothing to protect heterosexual marriage, it simply upholds discrimination and inequality" and also said that the ruling insulted LGBT people and treats their relationships as inferior to heterosexual ones; not worthy of marriage but only of an "expressly different, and entirely separate institution". They said, however, that they believed the judgement "won't stand the test of time" and that they looked forward to the day when "there is full equality in marriage". They had originally announced their intention to appeal the decision but later abandoned it due to lack of funds.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: Gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said that the establishment's aggressive opposition to same-sex marriage and the successful demand of £25,000 from the couple damaged the government's "gay-friendly credentials". He also claimed that the demand in legal costs was designed to damage the couple financially so they would not be able to appeal. He said he was "angry but not downcast" about the ruling and that this was only a temporary setback in the "long struggle for marriage equality".


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: Equal Marriage, a campaign for same-sex marriage in Scotland, was established by the Equality Network in 2008, with a focus on securing same-sex marriage and different-sex civil partnerships in Scotland. In England and Wales, the first major campaign for same-sex marriage was Equal Love established by Peter Tatchell in 2010. The first major campaign against same-sex marriage in Britain was Scotland for Marriage established in 2011, followed by the Coalition for Marriage in England and Wales in 2012. Subsequent campaigns for and against same-sex marriage have been established by a wide variety of organisations, including the Coalition for Equal Marriage and Out4Marriage, both established in England in 2012. In Northern Ireland, a campaign for full same-sex marriage was established by LGBT rights activist and political campaigner Gary Spedding in June 2012 with the specific goal of challenging social attitudes whilst lobbying the Northern Ireland Assembly to enact legislation to permit same-sex marriages.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: "Conservative Party": During the run-up to the 2010 general election, the then Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, said that a Conservative government would be happy to "consider the case" for ending the ban on same-sex marriage, although he was criticised for not making any specific promises. On 4 May 2010, the party published a "Contract for Equalities" which said it would 'consider' recognising civil partnerships as marriages if elected.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: "Labour Party": In April 2010, Labour Minister for Equality Harriet Harman when asked about same-sex marriage said the issue was a "developing area" and that the government still had a "long way to go" with gay rights. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the government did not allow same-sex marriage because it was "intimately bound up with questions of religious freedom". During the 2010 Labour leadership election campaign, each of the Labour candidates expressed their support for reform to lead to the recognition of same-sex marriage. Following Ed Miliband's victory, it became Labour party policy, with the party welcoming Her Majesty's Government's consultation and calling for legislation to be brought forth as soon as possible.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: "Liberal Democrats": Leader Nick Clegg stated in 2009 that his party backed legalisation. On 4 July 2009, in an article for LabourList, Clegg wrote that "although civil partnerships have been a step forward, until same-sex marriage is permitted it is impossible to claim gay and straight couples are treated equally." Following this, the party's LGBT rights group LGBT+ Liberal Democrats launched the petition "Marriage Without Borders" calling for all gender restrictions on marriage and civil partnerships to be lifted, and for same-sex relationships to be recognised across Europe and internationally. The petition was run at Manchester Pride and Reading Pride in 2009, and launched online in January 2010, following an interview with Clegg in "Attitude" magazine in which he reaffirmed his commitment to same-sex marriage. However, this did not make it into the party's manifesto. In an interview in July 2010, Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Simon Hughes confirmed that the Coalition Government was planning to open marriage to same-sex couples, saying, "It would be appropriate in Britain in 2010, 2011, for there to be the ability for civil marriage for straight people and gay people equally... The state ought to give equality. We're halfway there. I think we ought to be able to get there in this parliament". In September 2010, the Liberal Democrats voted at their Autumn Federal Conference to make same-sex marriage a party policy at the Westminster level. The Scottish Liberal Democrats had already approved a motion at their 2010 spring conference calling on the Scottish Government to allow same-sex couples to marry, describing the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage as a "discrimination that needs to end".


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: "Green Party of England and Wales": On 22 May 2009, the Green Party called for an end to the ban on civil marriages between same-sex couples in Britain and in other EU member states. Party leader Caroline Lucas said the party wants marriage for same-sex couples and that married same-sex couples who travel throughout Europe should be able to have their relationship recognised on the same basis as married heterosexual couples. Peter Tatchell, who was the party's candidate for Oxford East at the time, said there is a "confusing patchwork" of different partnership laws throughout Europe and that "for a majority of lesbian and gay couples their legal rights stop at their own borders". He said, the "best and most universally recognised system of partnership" is civil marriage and, "anything less is second class and discrimination".


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: At their Yearly Meeting in 2009, the Quakers decided to recognise opposite-sex and same-sex marriages equally and perform marriage ceremonies for same-sex couples, making them the first mainstream religious body in the United Kingdom to do so. Under the law at that time, registrars were not allowed to legally officiate at a marriage between same-sex couples but the Quakers stated that the law did not preclude them from "playing a central role in the celebration and recording of same-sex marriages" and asked the government to change the law so that these marriages would be recognised. In a joint press release in 2012, the Quakers, Liberal Jews, and Unitarians gave their endorsement to the same-sex marriage consultation.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: The largest Christian denominations have been wholly opposed to the legislation to recognise and perform same-sex marriages. The leaders of the Catholic Church in England and Wales have been vocal in opposition, urging both parishioners and schools within its care to sign a petition against the government plans, as did the Catholic Church in Scotland. The leaders of the Church of England were concerned that the legalisation regarding same-sex marriage would undermine the Church's position as the state religion of England. The Methodist Church of Great Britain, in responding to the government consultation on same-sex marriage, acknowledged in 2012 that many Methodist churches had, over the previous 20 years, affirmed and celebrated the participation of gay men and lesbians in a union, but noted that the Methodist Church would not use the word "marriage" with reference to same-sex unions. However, in June 2021 the Methodist Church voted to allow same-sex marriages to be solemnised in their places of worship.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: In 2012, the Muslim Council of Britain launched a campaign against same-sex marriage. The Chief Rabbi, Baron Sacks, and the Rabbinical Council of the United Synagogue also came out in opposition to the plans, stating that same-sex marriage is "against Jewish law".


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: Opinion polls have shown general support for same-sex marriage among Britons. Attitudes towards homosexuality amongst the British public have become more tolerant over time; according to the British Social Attitudes Survey, in 1983 approximately 50% to 70% of respondents of the three major political parties (Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat) regarded homosexuality as "always wrong" or "mostly wrong" and in 1993 opposition to homosexuality was reported to have slightly increased amongst all parties. However, by 2003 attitudes had become more tolerant, with 25% to 50% of respondents regarding homosexuality as always or mostly wrong and by 2013, only around 20% to 35% of respondents in each party felt the same way. Liberal Democrat respondents tended to be less likely to regard homosexuality as wrong than Labour or Conservative respondents across each survey.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: A 2004 poll by Gallup reported that 52% of respondents agreed that 'marriages between homosexuals' should be recognised, while 45% said they should not. The poll also found that 65% supported allowing same-sex couples to form civil unions. A 2006 Eurobarometer survey reported that 46% of British people agreed that same-sex marriages should be allowed throughout Europe, slightly higher than the European Union average of 44%. A poll conducted in September 2008 by ICM Research for "The Observer" found that 55% of Britons believed that same-sex couples should be allowed to get married, with 45% against.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: An opinion poll conducted in June 2009 by Populus for "The Times" reported that 61% of the British public agreed with the statement "Gay couples should have an equal right to get married, not just to have civil partnerships", while 33% disagreed. Support was highest among those aged between 25 and 34, where 78% agreed and 19% disagreed. It was lowest amongst those over 65 where 37% agreed and 52% disagreed. A majority of both men and women agreed, but support was higher among women (67%) than men (55%). In terms of voting intention, 73% of Liberal Democrats, 64% of Labour voters and 53% of Conservatives agreed that same-sex couples should have the right to marry.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: A poll conducted by Angus Reid Public Opinion in July 2010 showed that 78% of British people supported either same-sex marriage or civil partnerships for same-sex couples, with 41% opting for same-sex marriage and 37% opting for civil partnerships. Support for no legal unions for same-sex couples decreased by 3% from August 2009.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: According to the 2010 Scottish Social Attitudes Survey, 61% of Scottish people supported same-sex marriage, while 19% did not, and 18% neither agreed nor disagreed. In a similar poll in 2002, 42% of Scotland's population supported same-sex marriage. In 2006, 53% of Scots backed same-sex marriage.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: In July 2011, a representative survey conducted by Angus Reid Public Opinion showed that 43% of Britons believed same-sex couples should be legally allowed to marry, 34% thought same-sex couples should only be allowed to form civil partnerships, and 15% would grant no legal recognition to same-sex couples.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: A poll published by YouGov in March 2012 showed that 43% of British people supported same-sex marriage, while 32% supported civil partnerships, and 16% were opposed to any legal recognition of same-sex relationships. Support was particularly high amongst women, young people, people in Scotland and Liberal Democrat voters. Support was lower among the working class, older people, Conservative voters, and men in general. In the same poll, 62% expressed a belief that homosexual relationships had the same value as heterosexual ones, but 47% of people supported the right of the Church of England to defend different-sex marriage and 37% disagreed. A June 2012 YouGov survey indicated increasing support for LGBT rights among the British people. The report found that 71% were in favour of same-sex marriage. Two YouGov polls in December 2012 found that 55% of the population were in favour of introducing same-sex marriage.<ref name="YouGov / Sunday Times Survey Results 2012"></ref>


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: Another poll in May 2013 confirmed public support for the same-sex marriage bill, with 53% in favour.<ref name="YouGov / Sunday Times Survey Results 2013"></ref> A second poll in May showed a similar level of support (54%), and also found that 58% of those who considered same-sex marriage an important election issue would be more likely to vote for a party that supported it.<ref name="YouGov / Sunday Times Survey Results 2013 2"></ref> A May 2013 Ipsos poll found that 55% of respondents were in favour of same-sex marriage.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: A poll by BBC Radio in March 2014 found that 68% of respondents supported same-sex marriage and 26% opposed it. The research also found that young people were more likely to support same-sex marriage, with 80% support from 18–34-year-olds, compared with 44% of over-65s. 75% of women were in favour, compared to 61% of men.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: The 2015 Eurobarometer found that 71% of Britons thought same-sex marriage should be allowed throughout Europe, while 24% were opposed.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: According to an Ipsos poll published in April 2018, 73% of the British public supported same-sex marriage, while 8% believed it should be banned. A further 13% personally disapproved of it, but did not wish to have it banned again. Additionally, the same poll found that 66% would approve of a royal same-sex wedding. A Pew Research Center poll, conducted between April and August 2017 and published in May 2018, showed that 77% of Britons supported same-sex marriage, 20% were opposed and 3% did not know or refused to answer. When divided by religion, 83% of non-practising Christians, 82% of religiously unaffiliated people and 63% of church-attending Christians supported same-sex marriage. Opposition was 13% among 18–34-year-olds.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: A June 2018 YouGov opinion poll found that 80% of British people supported the introduction of same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland, with 66% of Northern Irish respondents in favour. 70% of Conservative voters, 89% of Labour voters and 90% of Liberal Democrat voters were in favour of its introduction. Among "Remain" voters, 90% supported same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland, whereas "Leave" voters supported it at 68% (this was at a time when in the aftermath of the 2016 EU referendum the issue of Brexit dominated British politics).


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: The 2019 Eurobarometer found that 85% of Britons thought same-sex marriage should be allowed throughout Europe, while 12% were opposed.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: On 17 September 2011, at the Liberal Democrat Federal Conference, Lynne Featherstone announced that Her Majesty's Government would launch a consultation in March 2012 on how to implement equal civil marriage for same-sex couples with the intention of any legislative changes being made by the next general election. The Prime Minister's Office let it be known that David Cameron had personally intervened in favour of legalising same-sex unions, and on 5 October 2011 the Conservative Party Conference applauded Cameron's support for same-sex marriage in his Leader's Speech.


title: Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom

text: On 12 March 2012, the Government of the United Kingdom launched the public consultation on equal civil marriage in England and Wales. The government proposals were: