Kirk Douglas Kirk Douglas ( born Issur Danielovitch , December 9 , 1916 ) is an American actor , producer , director , and author . He is one of the last living people of the film industry 's Golden Age . After an impoverished childhood with immigrant parents and six sisters , he had his film debut in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers ( 1946 ) with Barbara Stanwyck . Douglas soon developed into a leading box-office star throughout the 1950s and 1960s , known for serious dramas , including westerns and war movies . During his career he appeared in more than 90 movies .   Douglas became an international star through positive reception for his leading role as an unscrupulous boxing hero in Champion ( 1949 ) , which brought him his first nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor . Other early films include Young Man with a Horn ( 1950 ) , playing opposite Lauren Bacall and Doris Day ; Ace in the Hole opposite Jan Sterling ( 1951 ) ; and Detective Story ( 1951 ) . He received a second Oscar nomination for his dramatic role in The Bad and the Beautiful ( 1952 ) , opposite Lana Turner , and his third nomination for portraying Vincent van Gogh in Lust for Life ( 1956 ) .   In 1955 , he established Bryna Productions , which began producing films as varied as Paths of Glory ( 1957 ) and Spartacus ( 1960 ) . In those two films , he starred and collaborated with the then relatively unknown director , Stanley Kubrick . Douglas helped break the Hollywood blacklist by having Dalton Trumbo write Spartacus with an official on-screen credit , although Trumbo 's family claims he overstated his role . He produced and starred in Lonely Are the Brave ( 1962 ) , considered a cult classic , and Seven Days in May ( 1964 ) , opposite Burt Lancaster , with whom he made seven films . In 1963 , he starred in the Broadway play One Flew Over the Cuckoo 's Nest , a story he purchased , which he later gave to his son Michael Douglas , who turned it into an Oscar-winning film .   As an actor and philanthropist , Douglas has received three Academy Award nominations , an Oscar for Lifetime Achievement , and the Presidential Medal of Freedom . As an author , he has written ten novels and memoirs . Currently , he is No. 17 on the American Film Institute 's list of the greatest male screen legends of classic Hollywood cinema , and the highest-ranked living person on the list . After barely surviving a helicopter crash in 1991 and then suffering a stroke in 1996 , he has focused on renewing his spiritual and religious life . He lives with his second wife ( of 63 years ) , Anne , a producer . He turned 100 on December 9 , 2016 .


Jim Carrey James Eugene Carrey ( -LSB- ˈkæri -RSB- born January 17 , 1962 ) is a Canadian-American actor , comedian , impressionist , screenwriter , and producer . He is known for his highly energetic slapstick performances .   Carrey first gained recognition in 1990 after landing a recurring role in the sketch comedy television series In Living Color . His first leading roles in major productions came with Ace Ventura : Pet Detective ( 1994 ) , Dumb and Dumber ( 1994 ) , The Mask ( 1994 ) , and Ace Ventura : When Nature Calls ( 1995 ) , as well as a supporting role in Batman Forever ( 1995 ) and a lead role in Liar Liar ( 1997 ) . He then starred in The Truman Show ( 1998 ) and Man on the Moon ( 1999 ) , with each garnering him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor .   In the 2000s , he gained further recognition for his portrayal of the Grinch in How the Grinch Stole Christmas ( 2000 ) , as well as Bruce Almighty ( 2003 ) , Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind ( 2004 ) for which he was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role , Lemony Snicket 's A Series of Unfortunate Events ( 2004 ) , Fun with Dick and Jane ( 2005 ) , Yes Man ( 2008 ) , Horton Hears a Who ! ( 2008 ) and A Christmas Carol ( 2009 ) .   In the 2010s , he has starred in Mr. Popper 's Penguins ( 2011 ) and The Incredible Burt Wonderstone ( 2013 ) . In 2013 , he appeared in Kick-Ass 2 as Colonel Stars and Stripes . He retracted support for the film two months prior to its release . He issued a statement via his Twitter account that , in light of the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary , '' -LSB- N -RSB- ow in all good conscience I can not support that level of violence . '' Carrey reprised his role as Lloyd Christmas in Dumb and Dumber To ( 2014 ) .


Star Wars: The Force Awakens was the highest-grossing movie in North America.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Star Wars : The Force Awakens ( also known as Star Wars : Episode VII -- The Force Awakens ) is a 2015 American epic space opera film directed , co-produced , and co-written by J. J. Abrams . The direct sequel to 1983 's Return of the Jedi , The Force Awakens is the first installment of the Star Wars sequel trilogy , and stars Harrison Ford , Mark Hamill , Carrie Fisher , Adam Driver , Daisy Ridley , John Boyega , Oscar Isaac , Lupita Nyong ` o , Andy Serkis , Domhnall Gleeson , Anthony Daniels , Peter Mayhew , and Max von Sydow . Produced by Lucasfilm Ltd. and Abrams ' production company Bad Robot Productions and distributed worldwide by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures , The Force Awakens marks a break in creative control from the original series as the first Star Wars film not produced by franchise creator George Lucas . Set 30 years after Return of the Jedi , it follows Rey , Finn and Poe Dameron 's search for Luke Skywalker and their fight alongside the Resistance , led by veterans of the Rebel Alliance , against Kylo Ren and the First Order , a successor organization to the Galactic Empire .   The Force Awakens was announced after The Walt Disney Company 's acquisition of Lucasfilm in October 2012 . It was produced by Abrams , his longtime collaborator Bryan Burk , and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy . Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan , co-writer of the original trilogy films The Empire Strikes Back ( 1980 ) and Return of the Jedi ( 1983 ) , rewrote an initial script by Michael Arndt . John Williams , composer for the previous six films , returned to compose the film 's score . Lucas served as creative consultant during the film 's early production . Filming began in April 2014 in Abu Dhabi and Iceland , with principal photography also taking place in Ireland and Pinewood Studios in England , and concluded in November 2014 . It is the first live-action film in the franchise since Star Wars : Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith , released ten years prior in 2005 .   Star Wars : The Force Awakens was widely anticipated , and Disney backed the film with extensive marketing campaigns . It premiered in Los Angeles on December 14 , 2015 , four days before its wide release . The film received positive reviews , with its ensemble cast , direction , musical score , visual effects , and action sequences receiving particular praise , though it received some criticism for being derivative of the original trilogy . The film broke various box office records and became , unadjusted for inflation , the highest-grossing installment in the franchise , the highest-grossing film in North America , and the third-highest-grossing film of all time , with a worldwide gross of over $ 2 billion and a net profit of over $ 780 million . It received five Academy Award nominations and four British Academy Film Award nominations , where it won Best Special Visual Effects . Two sequels , The Last Jedi and Episode IX , are scheduled for release in 2017 and 2019 , respectively .


The Avengers (2012 film) was directed by an Australian.

Joss Whedon Joss Whedon ( -LSB- ˈwiːdən -RSB- ) ( born Joseph Hill Whedon on June 23 , 1964 ) is an American screenwriter , film and television director , film and television producer , comic book author , and composer . He is the founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-founder of Bellwether Pictures , and is best known as the creator of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer ( 1997 -- 2003 ) , Angel ( 1999 -- 2004 ) , Firefly ( 2002 ) , Dollhouse ( 2009 -- 10 ) and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ( from 2013 ) .   Whedon co-wrote the Pixar film Toy Story ( 1995 ) , wrote and directed the Firefly film continuation Serenity ( 2005 ) , co-wrote and directed the Internet mini-series Dr. Horrible 's Sing-Along Blog ( 2008 ) , co-wrote and produced the horror comedy The Cabin in the Woods ( 2012 ) , and wrote and directed the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero films The Avengers ( 2012 ) and its sequel Avengers : Age of Ultron ( 2015 ) .


The Avengers (2012 film) Marvel 's The Avengers ( classified under the name Marvel Avengers Assemble in the United Kingdom and Ireland ) , or simply The Avengers , is a 2012 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name , produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures . It is the sixth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe . The film was written and directed by Joss Whedon and features an ensemble cast that includes Robert Downey Jr. , Chris Evans , Mark Ruffalo , Chris Hemsworth , Scarlett Johansson , Jeremy Renner , Tom Hiddleston , Clark Gregg , Cobie Smulders , Stellan Skarsgård , and Samuel L. Jackson . In the film , Nick Fury , director of the peacekeeping organization S.H.I.E.L.D. , recruits Iron Man , Captain America , the Hulk , and Thor to form a team that must stop Thor 's brother Loki from subjugating Earth .   The film 's development began when Marvel Studios received a loan from Merrill Lynch in April 2005 . After the success of the film Iron Man in May 2008 , Marvel announced that The Avengers would be released in July 2011 . With the signing of Johansson in March 2009 , the film was pushed back for a 2012 release . Whedon was brought on board in April 2010 and rewrote the original screenplay by Zak Penn. . Production began in April 2011 in Albuquerque , New Mexico , before moving to Cleveland , Ohio , in August and New York City in September . The film was converted to 3D in post-production .   The Avengers premiered on April 11 , 2012 , at Hollywood 's El Capitan Theatre and was released theatrically in the United States on May 4 , 2012 . The film received positive reviews from critics , as well as numerous awards and nominations including Academy Award and BAFTA nominations for achievements in visual effects . It has set or tied numerous box office records , including the biggest opening weekend in North America . The Avengers grossed over $ 1.5 billion worldwide , and became the third-highest-grossing film during its theatrical run -- as well as the first Marvel production to generate $ 1 billion in ticket sales . The film was released on Blu-ray Disc and DVD on September 25 , 2012 . A sequel , titled Avengers : Age of Ultron , was released on May 1 , 2015 , while two additional sequels , Avengers : Infinity War and an untitled sequel , are currently in development , with Infinity War scheduled for a May 4 , 2018 release date , and its sequel scheduled to be released on May 3 , 2019 .


Hippocrates Hippocrates of Kos ( -LSB- hɪˈpɒkrəˌtiːz -RSB- Ἱπποκράτης Hippokrátēs ; 460 -- 370 BC ) , also known as Hippocrates II , was a Greek physician of the Age of Pericles ( Classical Greece ) , and is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of medicine . He is referred to as the `` Father of Modern Medicine '' in recognition of his lasting contributions to the field as the founder of the Hippocratic School of Medicine . This intellectual school revolutionized medicine in ancient Greece , establishing it as a discipline distinct from other fields with which it had traditionally been associated ( theurgy and philosophy ) , thus establishing medicine as a profession .   However , the achievements of the writers of the Corpus , the practitioners of Hippocratic medicine , and the actions of Hippocrates himself were often commingled ; thus very little is known about what Hippocrates actually thought , wrote , and did . Hippocrates is commonly portrayed as the paragon of the ancient physician , and credited with coining the Hippocratic Oath , still relevant and in use today . He is also credited with greatly advancing the systematic study of clinical medicine , summing up the medical knowledge of previous schools , and prescribing practices for physicians through the Hippocratic Corpus and other works .


Charles Woodruff Yost was born on November 6th.

Charles Woodruff Yost Charles Woodruff Yost ( November 6 , 1907 -- May 21 , 1981 ) was a career U.S. diplomat who was assigned as his country 's representative to the United Nations from 1969 to 1971 .


Richard Gere starred in an American thriller film.

Arbitrage (film) Arbitrage is a 2012 American thriller drama film directed by Nicholas Jarecki and starring Richard Gere , Susan Sarandon , Tim Roth and Brit Marling . Filming began in April 2011 in New York City . It opened in U.S. theaters in September 2012 .


Richard Gere Richard Tiffany Gere ( -LSB- ˈɡɪər -RSB- ; born August 31 , 1949 ) is an American actor and humanitarian activist . He began acting in the 1970s , playing a supporting role in Looking for Mr. Goodbar and a starring role in Days of Heaven . He came to prominence in 1980 for his role in the film American Gigolo , which established him as a leading man and a sex symbol . He went on to star in several hit films , including An Officer and a Gentleman , Pretty Woman , Primal Fear , Runaway Bride , Arbitrage and Chicago , for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor and a Screen Actors Guild Award for part of the Best Cast .


World War I World War I ( WWI or WW1 ) , also known as the First World War , the Great War , or the War to End All Wars , was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918 . More than 70 million military personnel , including 60 million Europeans , were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history . Over nine million combatants and seven million civilians died as a result of the war ( including the victims of a number of genocides ) , a casualty rate exacerbated by the belligerents ' technological and industrial sophistication , and the tactical stalemate caused by gruelling trench warfare . It was one of the deadliest conflicts in history , and paved the way for major political changes , including revolutions in many of the nations involved and to WWII twenty-one years later .   The war drew in all the world 's economic great powers , assembled in two opposing alliances : the Allies ( based on the Triple Entente of the Russian Empire , the French Third Republic , and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland ) versus the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary . Although Italy was a member of the Triple Alliance alongside Germany and Austria-Hungary , it did not join the Central Powers , as Austria-Hungary had taken the offensive against the terms of the alliance . These alliances were reorganised and expanded as more nations entered the war : Italy , Japan and the United States joined the Allies , while the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers .   The trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria , heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary , by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914 . This set off a diplomatic crisis when Austria-Hungary delivered an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia , and entangled international alliances formed over the previous decades were invoked . Within weeks , the major powers were at war and the conflict soon spread around the world .   On 25 July Russia began mobilisation and on 28 July , the Austro-Hungarians declared war on Serbia . Germany presented an ultimatum to Russia to demobilise , and when this was refused , declared war on Russia on 1 August . Being outnumbered on the eastern front , Russia urged its Triple Entente ally France to open up a second front in the west . Back in 1870 , the Franco-Prussian war had ended the Second French Empire and ceded the provinces of Alsace-Lorraine to a unified Germany . Bitterness over their defeat and the determinance to retake Alsace-Lorraine made the acceptance of Russia 's plea for help an easy choice so France began full mobilisation on 1 August and on 3 August , Germany declared war on France . The border between France and Germany was heavily fortified on both sides so according to the Schlieffen Plan , Germany then invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg before moving towards France from the north , leading the United Kingdom to declare war on Germany on 4 August due to their violation of Belgian neutrality . After the German march on Paris was halted in the Battle of the Marne , what became known as the Western Front settled into a battle of attrition , with a trench line that changed little until 1917 . On the Eastern Front , the Russian army led a successful campaign against the Austro-Hungarians , but the Germans stopped its invasion of East Prussia in the battles of Tannenberg and the Masurian Lakes . In November 1914 , the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers , opening fronts in the Caucasus , Mesopotamia and the Sinai . In 1915 , Italy joined the Allies and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers ; Romania joined the Allies in 1916 , as did the United States in 1917 .   The Russian government collapsed in March 1917 , and a revolution in November followed by a further military defeat brought the Russians to terms with the Central Powers via the Treaty of Brest Litovsk , which granted the Germans a significant victory . After a stunning German offensive along the Western Front in the spring of 1918 , the Allies rallied and drove back the Germans in a series of successful offensives . On 4 November 1918 , the Austro-Hungarian empire agreed to an armistice , and Germany , which had its own trouble with revolutionaries , agreed to an armistice on 11 November 1918 , ending the war in victory for the Allies .   By the end of the war or soon after , the German Empire , Russian Empire , Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire ceased to exist . National borders were redrawn , with several independent nations restored or created , and Germany 's colonies were parceled out among the victors . During the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 , the Big Four ( Britain , France , the United States and Italy ) imposed their terms in a series of treaties . The League of Nations was formed with the aim of preventing any repetition of such a conflict . This effort failed , and economic depression , renewed nationalism , weakened successor states , and feelings of humiliation ( particularly in Germany ) eventually contributed to the start of World War II .


50 First Dates was directed by Peter Segal.

50 First Dates 50 First Dates is a 2004 American romantic comedy film directed by Peter Segal and written by George Wing . The film stars Adam Sandler as a lothario veterinarian and Drew Barrymore as an amnesiac , along with Rob Schneider , Sean Astin , Lusia Strus , Blake Clark , and Dan Aykroyd . Most of the film was shot on location in Oahu , Hawaii on the Windward side and the North Shore . Sandler and Barrymore won an MTV award . The fictitious memory impairment suffered by Barrymore 's character , Goldfield 's Syndrome , is similar to short term memory loss and anterograde amnesia . The 2014 Malayalam film Ormayundo Ee Mukham is inspired by 50 First Dates .


Labor Pains was released on August 4 in the United Kingdom.

Labor Pains Labor Pains ( also known as Almost Pregnant in Mexico ) is a 2009 romantic comedy film written by Stacy Kramer . Originally the film was released in theatres on July 9 , 2009 , only in Europe , Latin America and United Arab Emirates . In United States , the film received a television premiere on ABC Family on July 19 , 2009 . The film drew 2.1 million viewers , a better-than-average prime-time audience for ABC Family , and per the network , was the week 's top cable film among coveted female demographic groups .   Labor Pains was directed by Lara Shapiro and was released on DVD and Blu-Ray on August 4 and 31 in the United States and United Kingdom , respectively . It was starring Lindsay Lohan , Bridgit Mendler , Luke Kirby , Chris Parnell , Cheryl Hines and Kevin Covais .


David Schwimmer did not appear in Duane Hopwood.

David Schwimmer David Lawrence Schwimmer ( born November 2 , 1966 ) is an American actor , director , and producer . He was born in Flushing , Queens , New York , and his family moved to Los Angeles when he was 2 . He began his acting career performing in school plays at Beverly Hills High School . In 1988 , he graduated from Northwestern University with a Bachelor of Arts in theater and speech . After graduation , Schwimmer co-founded the Lookingglass Theatre Company . For much of the late 1980s , he lived in Los Angeles as a struggling , unemployed actor .   He starred in the television movie A Deadly Silence in 1989 and appeared in a number of television roles , including on L.A. Law , The Wonder Years , NYPD Blue , and Monty , in the early 1990s . Schwimmer later gained worldwide recognition for playing Ross Geller in the sitcom Friends , for which he received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 1995 . His first leading film role was in The Pallbearer ( 1996 ) , followed by roles in Kissing a Fool ( 1998 ) , Six Days , Seven Nights ( 1998 ) , Apt Pupil , and Picking Up the Pieces ( 2000 ) . He was then cast in the miniseries Band of Brothers ( 2001 ) as Herbert Sobel .   After the series finale of Friends in 2004 , Schwimmer was cast as the title character in the 2005 drama Duane Hopwood . Other film roles include the voice of Melman the Giraffe in the computer-animated Madagascar film franchise , the dark comedy Big Nothing ( 2006 ) , and the thriller Nothing But the Truth ( 2008 ) . Schwimmer made his West End stage debut in the leading role in Some Girl ( s ) in 2005 . In 2006 , he made his Broadway debut in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial . Schwimmer made his feature film directorial debut with the 2007 comedy Run Fatboy Run . The following year he made his Off-Broadway directorial debut in the 2008 production , Fault Lines .   In 2016 , he starred as lawyer Robert Kardashian in American Crime Story , for which he received his second Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie .


D. B. Weiss Daniel Brett Weiss ( born April 23 , 1971 ) is an American author , screenwriter , producer , and director . Along with his collaborator David Benioff , he is best known as screenwriter , executive producer , and sometimes director of Game of Thrones , the HBO adaptation of George R. R. Martin 's series of books A Song of Ice and Fire .   His 2003 debut novel , Lucky Wander Boy , is themed around video games .


Seth MacFarlane did not contribute to "Everybody Needs a Best Friend."

Seth MacFarlane Seth Woodbury MacFarlane ( -LSB- ˈsɛθ_ˈwʊdbɛri_məkˈfɑrlɪn -RSB- born October 26 , 1973 ) is an American actor , filmmaker , and singer , working primarily in animation and comedy , as well as live-action and other genres . MacFarlane is the creator of the TV series Family Guy ( 1999 -- 2003 , 2005 -- present ) , co-creator of the TV series American Dad ! ( 2005 -- present ) and The Cleveland Show ( 2009 -- 13 ) . He also wrote , directed , and starred in the films Ted ( 2012 ) , its sequel Ted 2 ( 2015 ) , and A Million Ways to Die in the West ( 2014 ) .   MacFarlane is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design , where he studied animation . Recruited to Hollywood , he was an animator and writer for Hanna-Barbera for several television series , including Johnny Bravo , Cow and Chicken , Dexter 's Laboratory , I Am Weasel , and Larry & Steve . As an actor , he has made guest appearances on series , such as Gilmore Girls , The War at Home and FlashForward . In 2008 , he created his own YouTube series titled Seth MacFarlane 's Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy . He won several awards for his work on Family Guy , including two Primetime Emmy Awards and an Annie Award . In 2009 , he won the Webby Award for Film & Video Person of the Year . He occasionally speaks at universities and colleges throughout the United States , and he is a supporter of gay rights .   MacFarlane 's first feature-length comedy film , Ted , features his voice acting and performance-capture as the titular anthropomorphic teddy bear and became the highest-grossing original R-rated comedy . As a singer MacFarlane has performed at several venues , including Carnegie Hall and the Royal Albert Hall . MacFarlane has released three studio albums , in the same vein of his musical idol Frank Sinatra , beginning with Music Is Better Than Words in 2011 . He wrote the lyrics for the Academy Award-nominated song `` Everybody Needs a Best Friend '' for Ted .   MacFarlane served as executive producer of Cosmos : A Spacetime Odyssey , an update of the 1980s Carl Sagan -- hosted Cosmos series , hosted by Neil deGrasse Tyson . MacFarlane was instrumental in providing funding for the series , as well as securing studio support for it from other entertainment executives .


Mission: Impossible 6 Mission : Impossible 6 is an upcoming American action spy film written , co-produced and directed by Christopher McQuarrie , and produced by J. J. Abrams , Bryan Burk , Tom Cruise , David Ellison , Dana Goldberg , and Don Granger . It is the sixth installment in the Mission : Impossible film series . The film stars Cruise , Rebecca Ferguson , Ving Rhames , Simon Pegg , Alec Baldwin and Sean Harris all reprising their roles from previous films , with Henry Cavill , Vanessa Kirby and Sian Brooke joining the franchise . The film will be released on July 27 , 2018 by Paramount Pictures .


One bed-in was located at the Hilton Hotel in Amsterdam.

Bed-In As the Vietnam War raged in 1969 , Yoko Ono and her husband John Lennon held two week-long Bed-Ins for Peace , one at the Hilton Hotel in Amsterdam and one at Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth in Montreal , each of which were intended to be non-violent protests against wars , and experimental tests of new ways to promote peace . The idea is derived from a `` sit-in '' , in which a group of protesters remains seated in front of an establishment until they are evicted , arrested , or their demands are met .   The public proceedings were filmed , and later turned into a documentary movie . The film Bed Peace was made available for free on YouTube in August 2011 by Yoko Ono , as part of her website `` Imagine Peace '' .


Patton Oswalt Patton Peter Oswalt ( born January 27 , 1969 ) is an American stand-up comedian , writer , actor , and voice artist , known for roles such as Spencer Olchin in the sitcom The King of Queens ( 1998 -- 2007 ) , voicing Remy in the film Ratatouille ( 2007 ) , and playing multiple identical brothers , the Koenigs , on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ( 2014 -- 17 ) . Oswalt has won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special and a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for his Netflix stand-up special Patton Oswalt : Talking for Clapping ( 2016 ) .


Taraji P. Henson did not appear in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Taraji P. Henson Taraji Penda Henson ( -LSB- tə ` rɑːdʒi -RSB- ; born September 11 , 1970 ) is an American actress and author . She studied acting at Howard University and began her Hollywood career in guest-roles on several television shows before making her breakthrough in Baby Boy ( 2001 ) . She received praise for playing a prostitute in Hustle & Flow ( 2005 ) and a single mother in David Fincher 's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button ( 2008 ) ; for the latter , she received Academy Award , SAG Award and Critics Choice Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress ; for the former , she received a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture nomination . In 2010 , she appeared in the comedy Date Night and co-starred in the remake of The Karate Kid .   Henson has also had an extensive career in television in series such as The Division , Boston Legal and Eli Stone . In 2011 Henson starred in the Lifetime Television film Taken from Me : The Tiffany Rubin Story , which earned her a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie . From 2011 to 2013 , she co-starred as Detective Jocelyn Carter in the CBS drama Person of Interest , for which she won an NAACP Image Award . Henson went on to star in the ensemble film Think Like a Man ( 2012 ) and its 2014 sequel . In 2015 , she began starring as Cookie Lyon on the Fox drama series Empire , for which she became the first African-American woman to win a Critics ' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series . She also won a Golden Globe Award , and was nominated for two Emmy Awards , in 2015 and 2016 .   In 2016 , Time named Henson one of the 100 most influential people in the world on the annual Time 100 list . That year , Henson also released a New York Times best selling autobiography titled Around the Way Girl . Also that year , she received praise for her starring role as Katherine Johnson in the critically acclaimed drama film Hidden Figures , for which she won a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture .


Lisa Lopes was in an American girl group.

Lisa Lopes Lisa Nicole Lopes ( May 27 , 1971 -- April 25 , 2002 ) , better known by her stage name Left Eye , was an American hip hop singer , rapper , actress , songwriter and producer . She rose to fame in the early 1990s as one-third of the girl group TLC , alongside Tionne `` T-Boz '' Watkins and Rozonda `` Chilli '' Thomas . Besides rapping and singing background vocals on TLC recordings , Lopes was one of the creative forces behind the group . She received more cowriting credits than the other members . She also designed the outfits and stage for the group and brought concepts to the group image , album titles , artworks and music videos . Through her work with TLC , Lopes won four Grammy Awards .   During her short solo career , Lopes scored two US top-ten singles with `` Not Tonight '' and `` U Know What 's Up '' , as well as one UK number-one single with `` Never Be the Same Again '' . She also produced the girl group Blaque , who scored a platinum album and two US top-ten hits . Lopes remains the only member of TLC to have released a solo album .   On April 25 , 2002 , Lopes was killed in a car accident while on a retreat with her sister and others . She swerved off the road to avoid hitting another vehicle and was thrown from her vehicle and died instantly . The last days of her life were made into a documentary called The Last Days of Left Eye , which aired on VH1 in May 2007 .


Jessica Chastain Jessica Michelle Chastain ( born March 24 , 1977 ) is an American actress and film producer . Born in Carmichael , California , and raised in Sacramento , Chastain developed an interest in acting from a young age . In 1998 , she made her professional stage debut as Shakespeare 's Juliet . After studying acting at the Juilliard School , she was signed to a talent holding deal with the television producer John Wells . She was a recurring guest star in several television shows , including Law & Order : Trial by Jury . She also took on roles in the stage productions of Anton Chekhov 's play The Cherry Orchard in 2004 and Oscar Wilde 's tragedy Salome in 2006 .   Chastain made her film debut in the drama Jolene ( 2008 ) , and gained wide recognition in 2011 for starring roles in half a dozen films , including the dramas Take Shelter and The Tree of Life . Her performance as an aspiring socialite in The Help earned her an Academy Award nomination . In 2012 , she won a Golden Globe Award and received a second Oscar nomination for playing a CIA agent in the thriller Zero Dark Thirty . Chastain made her Broadway debut in a revival of The Heiress in the same year . Her highest-grossing releases came with the science fiction films Interstellar ( 2014 ) and The Martian ( 2015 ) , as she continued to draw praise for her performances in the dramas The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby ( 2013 ) , A Most Violent Year ( 2014 ) , and Miss Sloane ( 2016 ) .   Chastain 's accolades include two Academy Award and British Academy Film Award nominations . She is known to prepare extensively for her roles . Chastain is the founder of the production company Freckle Films , which was created to promote diversity in film . She is vocal about social issues such as gender and racial equality , and mental health . Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2012 .


Patch Adams (film) is incapable of being a comedy-drama film.

Patch Adams (film) Patch Adams is a 1998 semi-biographical comedy-drama film starring Robin Williams , Monica Potter , Philip Seymour Hoffman and Bob Gunton . Directed by Tom Shadyac , it is based on the life story of Dr. Hunter `` Patch '' Adams and the book , Gesundheit : Good Health is a Laughing Matter , by Adams and Maureen Mylander . Despite being poorly received by critics and Dr. Adams himself , the film was a box-office success , grossing over twice its budget in the United States alone .


Television has a connection to Davis Entertainment.

Davis Entertainment Davis Entertainment is an American independent film production company , founded by John Davis in 1984 .   Davis 's three divisions -- - feature film , independent film , and television - -- develop and produce film and television projects for the major studios , independent distributors , networks and cable broadcasters . The Company has enjoyed a long-standing first-look production deal at 20th Century Fox , though also produces projects for all studios and mini-majors .


Semitic languages are spoken in smaller communities.

Semitic languages The Semitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family originating in the Middle East . Semitic languages are spoken by more than 330 million people across much of Western Asia , North Africa and the Horn of Africa , as well as in often large expatriate communities in North America and Europe , with smaller communities in the Caucasus and Central Asia . The terminology was first used in the 1780s by members of the Göttingen School of History , who derived the name from Shem , one of the three sons of Noah in the Book of Genesis .   The most widely spoken Semitic languages today are ( numbers given are for native speakers only ) Arabic ( 300 million ) , Amharic ( 22 million ) , Tigrinya ( 7 million ) , Hebrew ( unknown ; 5 million native and non-native L1 speakers ) , Tigre ( 1.05 million in 2006 ) , Aramaic ( 575,000 to 1 million largely Assyrian fluent speakers ) and Maltese ( 520,000 speakers ) .   Semitic languages occur in written form from a very early historical date , with East Semitic Akkadian and Eblaite texts ( written in a script adapted from Sumerian cuneiform ) appearing from the 29th century BCE and the 25th century BCE in Mesopotamia and the northern Levant respectively . The only earlier attested written languages are Sumerian , Elamite ( both language isolates ) and Egyptian . However , most scripts used to write Semitic languages are abjadsa type of alphabetic script that omits some or all of the vowels , which is feasible for these languages because the consonants in the Semitic languages are the primary carriers of meaning .   Among them are the Ugaritic , Phoenician , Aramaic , Hebrew , Syriac , Arabic , and South Arabian alphabets . The Ge'ez script , used initially in Yemen , and later also for writing the Semitic languages of Ethiopia and Eritrea , is technically an abugida a modified abjad in which vowels are notated using diacritic marks added to the consonants at all times , in contrast with other Semitic languages which indicate diacritics based on need or for introductory purposes . Maltese is the only Semitic language written in the Latin script and the only Semitic language to be an official language of the European Union .   The Semitic languages are notable for their nonconcatenative morphology . That is , word roots are not themselves syllables or words , but instead are isolated sets of consonants ( usually three , making a so-called triliteral root ) . Words are composed out of roots not so much by adding prefixes or suffixes , but rather by filling in the vowels between the root consonants ( although prefixes and suffixes are often added as well ) . For example , in Arabic , the root meaning `` write '' has the form k-t-b . From this root , words are formed by filling in the vowels and sometimes adding additional consonants , e.g. كتاب kitāb `` book '' , كتب kutub `` books '' , كاتب kātib `` writer '' , كتّاب kuttāb `` writers '' , كتب kataba `` he wrote '' , يكتب yaktubu `` he writes '' , etc. .


Brooks Wackerman was born in the seventies.

Brooks Wackerman Brooks Wackerman ( born February 15 , 1977 ) is an American musician , currently the drummer for the American heavy metal bands Avenged Sevenfold and Mass Mental , also known as the former drummer for Bad Religion , and is the younger brother of John Bob , and Chad Wackerman ( formerly a member of Frank Zappa 's band ) . He is the son of Chuck Wackerman , an educator in the Los Alamitos California Unified School District . Wackerman is also a former student of Murray Spivack and Chuck Flores . After his departure from Bad Religion , it was announced on November 4 , 2015 that he would replace Arin Ilejay as the drummer for Avenged Sevenfold .


Anschluss is used to describe something.

Anschluss Anschluss ( -LSB- ˈʔanʃlʊs -RSB- , `` connection '' or `` joining '' ) is the term used to describe the annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany on 12 March 1938 . German spelling , until the German orthography reform of 1996 , was Anschluß and it was also known as the Anschluss Österreichs ( , Austrian Annexation ) .   The idea of an Anschluss ( Austria and Germany united to form a `` Greater Germany '' ) began after the Unification of Germany excluded Austria and the Austrian Germans from the Prussian-dominated German nation-state in 1871 . Following the end of World War I with the fall of the Austria-Hungarian Empire , in 1918 , the newly formed Republic of German-Austria attempted union with Germany , but the Treaty of Saint Germain ( 10 September 1919 ) and the Treaty of Versailles ( 28 June 1919 ) forbade both the union and the continued use of the name `` German-Austria '' ( Deutschösterreich ) and cutting several territories like the Sudetenland off .


Limbu language Limbu is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken in Nepal , India Darjeeling , Kalimpong , Sikkim , Assam , and Nagaland ) , Bhutan , Burma , Thailand , the United Kingdom , Hong Kong , Canada , and the USA . It is falsely believed that the Limbu/Yakthung are multi-lingual , but there are hundred and/or thousand of Yakthung who speak only in Yakthungpan ( Limbu language ) . The Limbu refer to themselves as Yakthung and their language as Yakthungpan . Yakthungpan has four main dialects : Phedape , Chhathare , Tambarkhole , and Panthare dialects .   Among four dialects and/or many dialects , Phedape dialect is widely spoken and well understood by most Yakthungpan speakers . However , as there are some dominant Panthare scholars who have role to create knowledge and control knowledge in the Limbu communities , Panthare dialect is being popularized as a `` standard '' Limbu language . As Panthare Yakthungs are much more engaged in central political position and administrative positions , they are trying to introduce Panthare dialect as a Standard Yakthungpan .   Yakthungpan ( Limbu language ) is one of the major languages spoken and written in Nepal , Darjeeling , Kalimpong , Sikkim , Bhutan , Burma , and Thailand . Today , linguists have reached the conclusion that Yakthungpan resembles Tibetan and Lepcha .   Before the introduction of the Sirijanga script among Limbu Kirats , the Rong script was popular in East Nepal , especially in the early Maurong state . The Sirijanga script had almost disappeared for 800 years and it was brought back into use by Te-ongsi Sirijunga Xin Thebe of Tellok Sinam Limbuwan present day Nepal .


Legion (TV series) Legion is an American cable television series created for FX by Noah Hawley , based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller / Legion . It is connected to the X-Men film series , the first television series to be so , and is produced by FX Productions in association with Marvel Television . Hawley serves as showrunner on the series .   Dan Stevens stars as Haller , a mutant diagnosed with schizophrenia at a young age . Rachel Keller , Aubrey Plaza , Bill Irwin , Jeremie Harris , Amber Midthunder , Katie Aselton , and Jean Smart also star . FX and Marvel Television announced a new collaboration to create a television series based on the X-Men character Legion in October 2015 , with Hawley signed on to write , and direct the pilot . Casting began by January 2016 , and filming took place in Vancouver . Hawley wanted to show Haller as an `` unreliable narrator '' , including mixing 1960s design with modern-day elements , and filming the series through the title character 's distorted view of reality .   The eight-episode first season of Legion premiered at the Pacific Design Center on January 26 , 2017 , ahead of its FX debut on February 8 . The series received critical acclaim , particularly for its visuals and departure from superhero genre standards . A second season , of ten episodes , was ordered in March 2017 and is planned for a February 2018 release .


Gift of the Night Fury stars the voice of an actor whose birthday was on November 27, 1945.

Kristen Wiig Kristen Carroll Wiig ( -LSB- ˈwɪɡ -RSB- born August 22 , 1973 ) is an American actress , comedian , writer , and producer . She is known for her work on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live ( 2005 -- 12 ) , and such films as Bridesmaids , The Martian , and Ghostbusters .   Wiig was born in Canandaigua , New York , and raised in Lancaster , Pennsylvania , and Rochester , New York . Wiig attended the University of Arizona , where she majored in Fine Art . She later relocated to Los Angeles , where she broke into comedy as a member of the improvisational comedy troupe The Groundlings and made her television debut in 2003 . Wiig joined the cast of Saturday Night Live in 2005 and the following year she co-starred in the Christmas comedy film Unaccompanied Minors . After appearing in a series of supporting roles in comedy films such as Adventureland , Whip It , and Paul , she starred in and co-wrote the screenplay for Bridesmaids , which was both critically and commercially successful .   Wiig received seven consecutive Emmy Awards nominations and has been nominated for an Annie Award for Voice Acting in a Feature Production for her work on Despicable Me 2 . In 2012 , Bridesmaids earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress -- Musical or Comedy , as well as nominations for the Academy Award and BAFTA for Best Original Screenplay and a SAG Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Cast . She was also nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie for her role as Cynthia Morehouse in the miniseries The Spoils of Babylon .


Jonah Hill Jonah Hill Feldstein ( born December 20 , 1983 ) , better known as Jonah Hill , is an American actor , producer , screenwriter and comedian . Hill is known for his comedic roles in films such as Accepted ( 2006 ) , Grandma 's Boy ( 2006 ) , Superbad ( 2007 ) , Knocked Up ( 2007 ) , Forgetting Sarah Marshall ( 2008 ) , Get Him to the Greek ( 2010 ) , 21 Jump Street ( 2012 ) , This Is the End ( 2013 ) , 22 Jump Street ( 2014 ) and War Dogs ( 2016 ) , as well as his performances in Moneyball ( 2011 ) and The Wolf of Wall Street ( 2013 ) , for which he received Academy Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor .   Hill ranked 28th on Forbes magazine 's ranking of world 's highest paid actors from June 2014 to June 2015 , bringing in $ 16million . As a screenwriter , he contributed to the stories of 21 Jump Street , 22 Jump Street and Sausage Party ( 2016 ) , all of which he also starred in .


Craig Ferguson Craig Ferguson ( born 17 May 1962 ) is a Scottish-American television host , comedian , and actor . He is the host of both the syndicated game show Celebrity Name Game ( 2014 -- 2017 ) , for which he has won two Daytime Emmy Awards , and of Join or Die with Craig Ferguson ( 2016 -- ) on History . He was also the host of the CBS late-night talk show The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson ( 2005 -- 2014 ) .   After starting his career in Britain with music , comedy and theatre , Ferguson moved to the United States where he found success in the role of Nigel Wick on the ABC sitcom The Drew Carey Show ( 1996 -- 2004 ) . He has written and starred in three films , directing one of them , and has appeared in several others , including several voice-over roles for animations . Ferguson has also written two books : Between the Bridge and the River , a novel , and American on Purpose , a memoir . He was naturalised as a United States citizen in 2008 .


Gift of the Night Fury Gift of the Night Fury is a 2011 computer-animated short film by DreamWorks Animation and directed by Tom Owens . It was released on November 15 , 2011 , on DVD and Blu-ray , along with another original animated short film Book of Dragons .   Based on How to Train Your Dragon , the short takes place in the middle of preparing for the Viking winter holiday . After all dragons inexplicably fly away , the last one of them unwittingly kidnaps Hiccup . The film stars the voices of Jay Baruchel , Gerard Butler , Craig Ferguson , America Ferrera , Jonah Hill , T.J. Miller , Kristen Wiig , and Christopher Mintz-Plasse .


Christopher Mintz-Plasse Christopher Mintz-Plasse ( -LSB- mɪnts_ˈplæs -RSB- born June 20 , 1989 ) is an American actor , comedian and musician who has performed roles such as Fogell ( better known as `` McLovin '' ) in Superbad , Augie Farcques in Role Models , and as Chris D'Amico in Kick-Ass and its sequel Kick-Ass 2 .


Gerard Butler Gerard James Butler ( born 13 November 1969 ) is a Scottish actor who has appeared on film , stage , and television . After studying law , Butler turned to acting in the mid-1990s with small roles in productions such as Mrs Brown ( 1997 ) , the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies ( 1997 ) , and Tale of the Mummy ( 1998 ) . In 2000 , he starred as Dracula in the horror film Dracula 2000 with Christopher Plummer and Jonny Lee Miller .   The following year onward , he played Attila the Hun in the miniseries Attila ( 2001 ) and then appeared in the films Reign of Fire with Christian Bale ( 2002 ) , and Lara Croft Tomb Raider : The Cradle of Life with Angelina Jolie ( 2003 ) , before playing André Marek in the adaptation of Michael Crichton 's science fiction adventure Timeline ( 2003 ) . He then was cast as the role of Erik , The Phantom in Joel Schumacher 's 2004 film adaptation of the musical The Phantom of the Opera alongside Emmy Rossum . That role earned him a Satellite Award nomination for Best Actor .   Although Attila and The Phantom of the Opera were important breaks , it was only in 2007 that Butler gained worldwide recognition for his portrayal of King Leonidas in Zack Snyder 's fantasy war film 300 . That role earned him nominations for an Empire Award for Best Actor and a Saturn Award for Best Actor and a win for MTV Movie Award for Best Fight . In the 2010s , he voiced the role of Stoick the Vast in the animated action-fantasy film How to Train Your Dragon , a role he later reprised in Legend of the Boneknapper Dragon ( 2010 ) , Gift of the Night Fury ( 2011 ) and How to Train Your Dragon 2 ( 2014 ) . He played military leader Tullus Aufidius in the 2011 film Coriolanus , the modernized adaptation of Shakespeare 's tragedy of the same name . He also played Sam Childers in the 2011 action biopic Machine Gun Preacher .


Jay Baruchel Jonathan Adam Saunders `` Jay '' Baruchel ( -LSB- ˈbæruːˌʃɛl -RSB- born April 9 , 1982 ) is a Canadian actor , comedian , screenwriter , director , and producer . He plays Josh Greenberg in the FXX comedy television series Man Seeking Woman and played the lead character in Judd Apatow 's comedy series , Undeclared . He is known for his voice role as Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III in the How to Train Your Dragon franchise , and for his roles in comedy movies such as Knocked Up , Tropic Thunder , Fanboys , She 's Out of My League , Goon , and This Is the End .


America Ferrera America Georgine Ferrera ( born April 18 , 1984 ) is an American actress . Born in Los Angeles , California , to Honduran parents , Ferrera developed an interest in acting at a young age performing in several stage productions at her school . She made her feature film debut in 2002 with the comedy drama Real Women Have Curves , winning praise for her performance . Ferrera is the recipient of numerous accolades including an Emmy Award , a Golden Globe Award , and a Screen Actors Guild Award among others .   Ferrera garnered modest success early in her career with roles in films like the Disney original Got ta Kick It Up ! ( 2002 ) and the drama The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants ( 2005 ) ; the latter earned her the Imagen Award Best Actress and her first nomination at the ALMA Awards . She ventured into television roles and landed the leading part on the ABC comedy drama Ugly Betty ( 2006 -- 2010 ) . Ferrera garnered critical acclaim for playing the protagonist of the series Betty Suarez , and won the Best Actress Awards at various award ceremonies in 2007 including the Golden Globe Awards , the Screen Actors Guild Awards , and the Primetime Emmy Award , the first for a Latin woman in the category .   Ferrera 's other notable film roles include the drama The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 ( 2008 ) , the drama The Dry Land ( 2010 ) , the romantic comedy Our Family Wedding ( 2010 ) , and the crime drama End of Watch ( 2012 ) . She provided the voice of Astrid Hofferson in the How to Train Your Dragon franchise She co-produces and stars in the comedy series Superstore ( 2015 -- present ) which premiered on NBC .   Ferrera garnered wide recognition for Ugly Betty and her subsequent roles and has been dubbed as a `` role model '' for the young Hispanic women owing to her achievements in the entertainment industry . Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2007 .


T. J. Miller Todd Joseph `` T. J. '' Miller ( born June 4 , 1981 ) is an American actor , stand-up comedian , producer , and writer . He currently stars as Erlich Bachman in the HBO sitcom Silicon Valley . Miller has also performed in such films as Cloverfield ( 2008 ) , She 's Out of My League ( 2010 ) , Yogi Bear 3D ( 2010 ) , How to Train Your Dragon ( 2010 ) , How to Train Your Dragon 2 ( 2014 ) , Transformers : Age of Extinction ( 2014 ) , Big Hero 6 ( 2014 ) , Deadpool ( 2016 ) , and Office Christmas Party ( 2016 ) . He hosts `` The Gorburger Show '' , which is currently broadcast on Comedy Central .


List of Governors of Texas The Governor of Texas is the chief executive of the U.S. State of Texas , the presiding officer over the executive branch of the Government of Texas , and the commander-in-chief of the Texas National Guard , the State 's militia . The governor has the power to consider bills passed by the Texas Legislature , by signing them into law , or vetoing them , and in bills relating to appropriations , the power of a line-item veto . He may convene the legislature , and grant pardons and reprieves , except in cases of impeachment , and upon the permission of the legislature , in cases of treason . The State provides an official residence , the Governor 's Mansion in Austin . The incumbent , Greg Abbott , is the forty-eighth governor , of whom two have been women , to serve in the office since Texas ' statehood in 1845 .   When compared to those of other states , the Governorship of Texas has been described as one of relative weakness . In some respects , it is the Lieutenant Governor of Texas , who presides over the Texas Senate , who possesses greater influence to exercise their prerogatives .   The governor is inaugurated on the third Tuesday of January every four years along with the Lieutenant Governor , and serves a term of four years . Prior to the present laws , in 1845 , the state 's first constitution established the office of governor , serving a term of two years , but no more than four years of every six . The 1861 constitution , following secession from the Union , established the first Monday of November following election as the term 's start . Following the end of the American Civil War , the 1866 constitution increased term length to four years , limiting overall service to no more than eight years of every twelve , moving the term 's start to the first Thursday following organization of the legislature , or `` as soon thereafter as practicable . '' The constitution of 1869 , enacted during Reconstruction , removed term limitations , to this day making Texas one of fourteen states with no limit on gubernatorial terms . The present constitution of 1876 returned terms to two years , but a 1972 amendment again returned them to four .   Since its establishment , only one man has served in excess of eight years as governor : Rick Perry . Perry , the longest-serving governor in state history , assumed the governorship in 2000 upon the exit of George W. Bush , who resigned to take office as the 43rd President of the United States . Perry was re-elected in 2002 , 2006 , and 2010 .   Allan Shivers assumed the governorship upon the death of Beauford Jester in July 1949 and was re-elected in 1950 , 1952 and 1954 , serving for 7 1/2 years , making him the second longest serving Texas governor . Price Daniel was elected to the governorship in 1956 and re-elected in 1958 and 1960 before losing his re-election for an unprecedented fourth term in the 1962 Democratic primary , missing the runoff . John Connally was elected in 1962 and re-elected in 1964 and 1966 before choosing to retire in 1968 .   In the case of a vacancy in the office , the lieutenant governor becomes governor . Prior to a 1999 amendment , the lieutenant governor only acted as governor until the expiration of the term to which he succeeded .


Prescott Bush Prescott Sheldon Bush , Sr. ( May 15 , 1895October 8 , 1972 ) was an American banker and senator . He was a Wall Street executive investment banker and a U.S. Senator , representing Connecticut from 1952 until January 1963 . He was the father of President George H. W. Bush and the grandfather of President George W. Bush , Florida Governor Jeb Bush , healthcare entrepreneur Jonathan S. Bush and television personality Billy Bush .


George W. Bush Presidential Center The George W. Bush Presidential Center , which opened on April 25 , 2013 , is a complex that includes former President George W. Bush 's presidential library and museum , the George W. Bush Policy Institute , and the offices of the George W. Bush Foundation . It is  located on the campus of Southern Methodist University ( SMU ) in University Park , Texas , near Dallas .


United States presidential election, 2004 The United States presidential election of 2004 '' ' , the 55th quadrennial presidential election , was held on Tuesday , November 2 , 2004 . Republican Party candidate and incumbent President George W. Bush won re-election , defeating Democratic Party candidate John Kerry , U.S. Senator from Massachusetts and eventual United States Secretary of State .  Bush and incumbent Vice President Dick Cheney were renominated by their party with no difficulty . Howard Dean , former Governor of Vermont , was initially the frontrunner for the Democratic Party 's nomination , but Kerry won nearly all of the primaries and caucuses . Kerry chose Senator John Edwards of North Carolina , who had himself sought that party 's 2004 presidential nomination , to be his running mate .   Foreign policy was the dominant theme throughout the election campaign , particularly Bush 's conduct of the War on Terrorism and the aftermath of the 2003 invasion of Iraq . Domestic issues were debated as well , including the economy and jobs , health care , and moral values .   Bush 's margin of victory in the popular vote was the smallest ever for an incumbent president , but marked the first time since his father 's victory 16 years prior that a candidate won an outright majority of the popular vote . As of 2017 , this was also the most recent election in which the Republican candidate won the popular vote . The electoral map closely resembled that of 2000 , with only three states changing sides : New Mexico and Iowa voted Republican in 2004 after having voted Democratic in 2000 , while New Hampshire voted Democratic in 2004 after previously voting Republican . In the Electoral College , Bush received 286 votes to Kerry 's 251 , while one faithless elector cast a ballot for John Edwards ( even though he was not a presidential candidate ) .


Laura Bush Laura Lane Welch Bush ( born November 4 , 1946 ) is the wife of the 43rd President of the United States , George W. Bush , and was the First Lady from 2001 to 2009 .   Bush graduated from Southern Methodist University in 1968 with a bachelor 's degree in education , and took a job as a second grade teacher . After attaining her master 's degree in library science at the University of Texas at Austin , she was employed as a librarian .   Bush met her future husband , George W. Bush , in 1977 , and they were married later that year . The couple had twin daughters in 1981 . Bush 's political involvement began during her marriage . She campaigned with her husband during his unsuccessful 1978 run for the United States Congress , and later for his successful Texas gubernatorial campaign .   As First Lady of Texas , Bush implemented many initiatives focused on health , education , and literacy . In 1999-2000 , she aided her husband in campaigning for the presidency in a number of ways , most notably delivering a keynote address at the 2000 Republican National Convention , which gained her national attention . She became First Lady after her husband was inaugurated as president on January 20 , 2001 .   Polled by The Gallup Organization as one of the most popular First Ladies , Bush was involved in national and global concerns during her tenure . She continued to advance her trademark interests of education and literacy by establishing the semi-annual National Book Festival in 2001 , and encouraged education on a worldwide scale . She also advanced women 's causes through The Heart Truth and Susan G. Komen for the Cure organizations . She represented the United States during her foreign trips , which tended to focus on HIV/AIDS and malaria awareness .


Decision Points Decision Points is a memoir by former U.S. President George W. Bush . It was released on November 9 , 2010 , and the release was accompanied by national television appearances and a national tour . The book surpassed sales of two million copies less than two months after its release , breaking the record previously held by former President Bill Clinton 's memoir My Life . Decision Points also opened at # 1 on the New York Times bestseller list .


Bush tax cuts The phrase Bush tax cuts refers to changes to the United States tax code passed originally during the presidency of George W. Bush and extended during the presidency of Barack Obama , through :   Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 ( EGTRRA )  Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 ( JGTRRA )  Tax Relief , Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization , and Job Creation Act of 2010  American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 ( partial extension )   While each act has its own legislative history and effect on the tax code , the JGTRRA amplified and accelerated aspects of the EGTRRA . Since 2003 , the two acts have often been spoken of together , especially in terms of analyzing their effect on the U.S. economy and population and in discussing their political ramifications . Both laws were passed using controversial Congressional reconciliation procedures .   The Bush tax cuts had sunset provisions that made them expire at the end of 2010 , since otherwise they would fall under the Byrd Rule . Whether to renew the lowered rates , and how , became the subject of extended political debate , which was resolved during the presidency of Barack Obama by a two-year extension that was part of a larger tax and economic package , the Tax Relief , Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization , and Job Creation Act of 2010 . In 2012 , during the fiscal cliff , the tax cuts were made permanent for single people earning less than $ 400,000 per year and couples making less than $ 450,000 per year , and eliminated for everyone else , under the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 .   Before the tax cuts , the highest marginal income tax rate was 39.6 percent . After the cuts , the highest rate was 35 percent . Once the cuts were eliminated for high income levels ( single people making $ 400,000 + per year and couples making $ 450,000 + per year ) , the top income tax rate returned to 39.6 percent .


Public image of George W. Bush George W. Bush , the 43rd President of the United States , has elicited a variety of public perceptions regarding his policies , personality , and performance as a head of state . In the U.S. and elsewhere , journalists , polling organizations , and others have documented the expression of an evolving array of opinions of President Bush . Time magazine named George W. Bush as its Person of the Year for 2000 and 2004 , citing him as the most influential person during these two years .   The approval ratings of George W. Bush ranged from a record high to a record low . Bush began his presidency with ratings near 50 % . In the time of national crisis following the September 11 attacks , polls showed approval ratings of greater than 85 % , peaking in at 92 % , and a steady 80 -- 90 % approval for about four months after the attacks . Afterward , his ratings steadily declined as the economy suffered and the Iraq War initiated by his administration continued . By early 2006 , his average rating was near 40 % , and in July 2008 , a poll indicated a low of 22 % .   In an August 2008 Rasmussen poll , likely voters were asked the question `` Will history rate George W. Bush as the worst President ever ? '' -- 50 % responded `` no '' , 41 % said `` yes '' and 9 % were `` unsure '' .


George W. Bush George Walker Bush ( born July 6 , 1946 ) is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States from 2001 to 2009 . He was also the 46th Governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000 . After graduating from Yale University in 1968 and Harvard Business School in 1975 , he worked in the oil industry . Bush married Laura Welch in 1977 and ran unsuccessfully for the House of Representatives shortly thereafter . He later co-owned the Texas Rangers baseball team before defeating Ann Richards in the 1994 Texas gubernatorial election . Bush was elected president in 2000 after a close and controversial win over Democratic rival Al Gore , becoming the fourth president to be elected while receiving fewer popular votes than his opponent .   From a prominent political family , he is the eldest son of Barbara and George H. W. Bush , the 41st President of the United States , making him only the second president to assume the nation 's highest office after his father , following the lead of John Quincy Adams . His brother , Jeb Bush , a former Governor of Florida , was a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in the 2016 presidential election . His paternal grandfather , Prescott Bush , was a United States Senator from Connecticut .   The September 11 terrorist attacks occurred eight months into Bush 's first term as president . Bush responded with what became known as the Bush Doctrine : launching a `` War on Terror '' , an international military campaign that included the war in Afghanistan in 2001 and the Iraq War in 2003 . He also promoted policies on the economy , health care , education , Social Security reform , and amending the Constitution to prohibit same-sex marriage . He signed into law broad tax cuts , the Patriot Act , the No Child Left Behind Act , the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act , Medicare prescription drug benefits for seniors , and funding for the AIDS relief program known as PEPFAR . His tenure included national debates on immigration , Social Security , electronic surveillance , and torture .   In the 2004 Presidential race , Bush defeated Democratic Senator John Kerry in another relatively close election . After his re-election , Bush received increasingly heated criticism from across the political spectrum for his handling of the Iraq War , Hurricane Katrina , and other challenges . Amid this criticism , the Democratic Party regained control of Congress in the 2006 elections . In December 2007 , the United States entered its longest post-World War II recession , often referred to as the `` Great Recession '' , prompting the Bush administration to obtain congressional passage of multiple economic programs intended to preserve the country 's financial system . Nationally , Bush was both one of the most popular and unpopular presidents in history , having received the highest recorded presidential approval ratings in the wake of the September 11 attacks , as well as one of the lowest approval ratings during the 2008 financial crisis .   Bush left office in 2009 , returning to Texas where he purchased a home in Crawford . He wrote a memoir , Decision Points . His presidential library was opened in 2013 . His presidency has been ranked among the worst in historians ' polls published in the late 2000s and 2010s .


United States presidential election, 2000 The United States presidential election of 2000 was the 54th quadrennial presidential election . It was held on Tuesday , November 7 , 2000 . Republican candidate George W. Bush , then-incumbent governor of Texas and the eldest son of the 41st President George H. W. Bush , narrowly defeated the Democratic nominee Al Gore , then-incumbent vice president and former Senator for Tennessee , as well as various third-party candidates including Ralph Nader .   Incumbent Democratic President Bill Clinton was ineligible to serve a third term due to term limitations in the 22nd Amendment of the Constitution , and Vice President Gore was able to secure the Democratic nomination with relative ease . Bush was seen as the early favorite for the Republican nomination and , despite a contentious primary battle with Senator John McCain and other candidates , secured the nomination by Super Tuesday . Bush chose former Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney as his running mate , while Gore chose Senator Joe Lieberman as his . Both major party candidates focused primarily on domestic issues , such as the budget , tax relief , and reforms for federal social insurance programs , although foreign policy was not ignored . Clinton and Gore often did not campaign together , a deliberate decision resulting from the Lewinsky sex scandal two years prior .   This was the closest presidential election in the nation 's history , with a .009 % margin , 537 votes , separating the two candidates in the decisive state , Florida . The narrow margin there triggered a mandatory machine recount the next day , after which Gore requested recounts in four counties , including populous South Florida , as permitted by law . Litigation ensued in numerous counties in both state and federal courts , ultimately reaching the Florida Supreme Court and the United States Supreme Court . The high court 's contentious 5 -- 4 decision in Bush v. Gore , announced on December 12 , 2000 , ended a statewide recount ordered by the Florida Supreme Court on December 8 , effectively awarding Florida 's votes to Bush and granting him the victory . Nationwide , this was the fourth presidential election in which the winner received fewer votes than his opponent .   After the election , recounts conducted by various news media organizations continued a primary focus on ballots that machines read as not showing a vote . Based on the review of these ballots , their results indicated that Bush would have won if certain recounting methods had been used ( including the one favored by Gore at the time of the Supreme Court decision ) , but that Gore might have won under other standards and scenarios . In contrast , according to Lance deHaven-Smith of Florida State University , based on `` the definitive study of the uncounted ballots '' ( the Florida Ballot Project by NORC at the University of Chicago ) , if all the legally valid votes in Florida had been counted statewide , Al Gore would have been the winner , a conclusion deHaven-Smith calls `` unambiguous and unavoidable . ''   The Green Party gained widespread public attention during the 2000 presidential election when the ticket composed of Ralph Nader and Winona LaDuke won 2.7 % of the popular vote . Nader was vilified by some Democrats , who accused him of spoiling the election for Al Gore . Nader 's impact on the 2000 election has remained controversial .   Until 2016 , this was the last time a Republican candidate won an electoral vote in the region of New England , with Donald Trump winning the 2nd Congressional District of Maine . As of 2017 , this was the last election where a Republican candidate won New Hampshire .


Barbara Bush Barbara Bush ( née Pierce ; born June 8 , 1925 ) is the wife of George H. W. Bush , the 41st President of the United States , and served as First Lady of the United States from 1989 to 1993 . She is the mother of George W. Bush , the 43rd President , and Jeb Bush , the 43rd Governor of Florida . She served as the Second Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989 .   Barbara Pierce was born in Flushing , New York . She attended Milton Public School from 1931 to 1937 , and Rye Country Day School from 1937-1940 . She graduated from Ashley Hall School in Charleston , South Carolina . She met George Herbert Walker Bush at age 16 , and the two married in Rye , New York in 1945 , while he was on leave during his deployment as a Naval officer in World War II . While George was attending Yale University at age 22 , Barbara and George were living in New Haven , Connecticut and had their first son , George Walker Bush , on July 6 , 1946 . ( Thus , her first son , the eventual 43rd President of the United States , was the first Connecticut native to assume that office . George W. would eventually return to his hometown of New Haven in 1964 to attend Yale like his father did . ) They had six children together . The Bush family soon moved to Midland , Texas , where their second son , Jeb was born in , on February 11 , 1953 ; as George Bush entered political life , she raised their children .   While First Lady of the United States , Barbara Bush worked to advance the cause of universal literacy , and founded the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy .


Jeb Bush John Ellis `` Jeb '' Bush Sr. ( born February 11 , 1953 ) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 43rd Governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007 .   Bush , who grew up in Houston , is the second son of former President George H. W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush , and a younger brother of former President George W. Bush . He graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover , Massachusetts , and attended the University of Texas , where he earned a degree in Latin American affairs . In 1980 , he moved to Florida and pursued a career in real estate development , and in 1986 became Florida 's Secretary of Commerce until 1988 . At that time , he joined his father 's successful campaign for the Presidency .   In 1994 , Bush made his first run for office , losing the election for governor by less than two percentage points to the incumbent , Lawton Chiles . Bush ran again in 1998 and defeated Lieutenant Governor Buddy MacKay with 55 percent of the vote . He ran for reelection in 2002 , defeating Bill McBride and winning with 56 percent , to become Florida 's first two-term Republican governor . During his eight years as governor , Bush pushed an ambitious Everglades conservation plan , supported caps for medical malpractice litigation , launched a Medicaid privatization pilot program , and instituted reforms to the state education system , including the issuance of vouchers and promoting school choice .   Bush announced his presidential candidacy on June 15 , 2015 . He suspended his campaign on February 20 , 2016 , shortly after the South Carolina primary and endorsed Senator Ted Cruz on March 23 , 2016 . Bush later made headlines by joining a group of Republicans who opposed the GOP nominee for President , Donald Trump .


Bush Doctrine The Bush Doctrine refers to various related foreign policy principles of the 43rd President of the United States , George W. Bush .   Charles Krauthammer first used the phrase in June 2001 to describe the Bush Administration 's '' ... unilaterally withdrawing from the ABM treaty and rejecting the Kyoto protocol . '' After the 9/11 attack , the phrase described the policy that the United States had the right to secure itself against countries that harbor or give aid to terrorist groups , which was used to justify the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan .   Different pundits have attributed different meanings to the Bush Doctrine . It was used to describe specific policy elements , including a strategy of `` preemptive strikes '' as a defense against an immediate threat to the security of the United States . This policy principle was applied particularly in the Middle East to counter international terrorist organizations .   Generally , the Bush Doctrine was used to indicate a willingness to unilaterally pursue U.S. military interests . Some of these policies were codified in a National Security Council text entitled the National Security Strategy of the United States published on September 20 , 2002 .   The phrase `` Bush Doctrine '' was rarely used by members of the Bush administration . The expression was used at least once , though , by Vice President Dick Cheney , in a June 2003 speech in which he said , `` If there is anyone in the world today who doubts the seriousness of the Bush Doctrine , I would urge that person to consider the fate of the Taliban in Afghanistan , and of Saddam Hussein 's regime in Iraq . ''


Patriot Act The USA PATRIOT Act is an Act of Congress that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26 , 2001 . With its ten-letter abbreviation ( USA PATRIOT ) expanded , the full title is `` Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 '' .   On May 26 , 2011 , President Barack Obama signed the PATRIOT Sunsets Extension Act of 2011 , a four-year extension of three key provisions in the Act : roving wiretaps , searches of business records , and conducting surveillance of `` lone wolves '' -- individuals suspected of terrorist-related activities not linked to terrorist groups .   Following a lack of Congressional approval , parts of the Patriot Act expired on June 1 , 2015 . With the passage of the USA Freedom Act on June 2 , 2015 , the expired parts were restored and renewed through 2019 . However , Section 215 of the law was amended to stop the National Security Agency ( NSA ) from continuing its mass phone data collection program . Instead , phone companies will retain the data and the NSA can obtain information about targeted individuals with permission from a federal court .   From broad concern felt among Americans from both the September 11 attacks and the 2001 anthrax attacks , Congress rushed to pass legislation to strengthen security controls . On October 23 , 2001 , Republican Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner introduced H.R. 3162 incorporating provisions from a previously sponsored House bill and a Senate bill also introduced earlier in the month . The next day , the Act passed the House 357 to 66 , with Democrats comprising the overwhelming portion of dissent . The three Republicans voting ` no ' were Robert Ney of Ohio , Butch Otter of Idaho and Ron Paul of Texas . On October 25 , the Act passed the Senate by 98 to 1 , the only dissident being Russ Feingold of Wisconsin .   Opponents of the law have criticized its authorization of indefinite detentions of immigrants ; the permission given law enforcement officers to search a home or business without the owner 's or the occupant 's consent or knowledge ; the expanded use of National Security Letters , which allows the Federal Bureau of Investigation ( FBI ) to search telephone , e-mail , and financial records without a court order ; and the expanded access of law enforcement agencies to business records , including library and financial records . Since its passage , several legal challenges have been brought against the act , and federal courts have ruled that a number of provisions are unconstitutional .   Many provisions of the act were to sunset beginning December 31 , 2005 , approximately four years after its passage . In the months preceding the sunset date , supporters of the act pushed to make its sun-setting provisions permanent , while critics sought to revise various sections to enhance civil liberty protections . In July 2005 , the U.S. Senate passed a reauthorization bill with substantial changes to several sections of the act , while the House reauthorization bill kept most of the act 's original language . The two bills were then reconciled in a conference committee that was criticized by Senators from both the Republican and Democratic parties for ignoring civil liberty concerns .   The bill , which removed most of the changes from the Senate version , passed Congress on March 2 , 2006 , and was signed into law by President George W. Bush on March 9 and 10 , 2006 .


Emily Blunt Emily Olivia Leah Blunt ( born 23 February 1983 ) is a British film and stage actress . Blunt made her professional debut in a 2001 London production of the play The Royal Family . Two years later , she appeared on screen for the first time in the 2003 television film Boudica ( Warrior Queen ) . Her performance in the 2004 drama film My Summer of Love garnered her the Evening Standard British Film Award for Most Promising Newcomer .   For her performance in the TV film Gideon 's Daughter ( 2006 ) she received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress . The same year , she received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress -- Motion Picture and a nomination for a BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for The Devil Wears Prada .   In 2009 , Blunt received the BAFTA Britannia Award for British Artist of the Year . She received more acclaim for portraying Queen Victoria in The Young Victoria ( 2009 ) , receiving a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture -- Drama . 2009 also saw Blunt appear in the crime caper comedy Wild Target with Bill Nighy and Rupert Grint . She found commercial success for roles in the romantic science-fiction thriller The Adjustment Bureau ( 2011 ) , the science-fiction action thriller Looper ( 2012 ) , and the science-fiction military film Edge of Tomorrow ( 2014 ) .   Blunt received her fourth and fifth Golden Globe Award nominations for her roles in the romantic comedy-drama Salmon Fishing in the Yemen ( 2012 ) and the musical fantasy Into the Woods ( 2014 ) in the Best Actress -- Motion Picture Comedy or Musical category . In 2016 , Blunt starred in the fantasy-action film The Huntsman : Winter 's War and The Girl on the Train , the latter based on the international best-selling novel of the same name , and a performance that earned her nominations for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role .


Clark Gable William Clark Gable ( February 1 , 1901 -- November 16 , 1960 ) was an American film actor , often referred to as `` The King of Hollywood '' or just simply as `` The King '' . Gable began his career as a stage actor and appeared as an extra in silent films between 1924 and 1926 , and progressed to supporting roles with a few films for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1931 . The next year , he landed his first leading Hollywood role and over the next three decades he became a leading man in more than 60 motion pictures .   Gable won an Academy Award for Best Actor for It Happened One Night ( 1934 ) , and was nominated for leading roles in Mutiny on the Bounty ( 1935 ) and for his arguably best-known role as Rhett Butler in the epic Civil War drama Gone with the Wind ( 1939 ) .   Gable also found success commercially and critically with films such as Red Dust ( 1932 ) , Manhattan Melodrama ( 1934 ) , San Francisco ( 1936 ) , Saratoga ( 1937 ) Boom Town ( 1940 ) , The Hucksters ( 1947 ) , Homecoming ( 1948 ) , and The Misfits ( 1961 ) , which was his final screen appearance .   Gable appeared opposite some of the most popular actresses of the time . Joan Crawford was his favorite actress to work with , and she was partnered with Gable in eight films . Myrna Loy worked with him seven times , and he was paired with Jean Harlow in six productions . He also starred with Lana Turner in four features , and with Norma Shearer and Ava Gardner in three each . Gable 's final film , The Misfits ( 1961 ) , united him with Marilyn Monroe ( also in her last screen appearance ) . Gable is considered one of the most consistent box-office performers in history , appearing on Quigley Publishing 's annual Top Ten Money Making Stars Poll 16 times . He was named the seventh-greatest male star of classic American cinema by the American Film Institute .


Rumi Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī , also known as Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Balkhī , Mevlânâ / Mawlānā ( مولانا , `` our master '' ) , Mevlevî / Mawlawī ( مولوی , `` my master '' ) , and more popularly simply as Rumi ( 30 September 1207 -- 17 December 1273 ) , was a 13th-century Persian Sunni Muslim poet , jurist , Islamic scholar , theologian , and Sufi mystic . Rumi 's influence transcends national borders and ethnic divisions : Iranians , Tajiks , Turks , Greeks , Pashtuns , other Central Asian Muslims , and the Muslims of South Asia have greatly appreciated his spiritual legacy for the past seven centuries . His poems have been widely translated into many of the world 's languages and transposed into various formats . Rumi has been described as the `` most popular poet '' and the `` best selling poet '' in the United States .   Rumi 's works are written mostly in Persian , but occasionally he also used Turkish , Arabic , and Greek , in his verse . His Masnavi ( Mathnawi ) , composed in Konya , is considered one of the greatest poems of the Persian language . His works are widely read today in their original language across Greater Iran and the Persian-speaking world . Translations of his works are very popular , most notably in Turkey , Azerbaijan , the United States , and South Asia . His poetry has influenced Persian literature , but also Turkish , Ottoman Turkish , Azerbaijani , as well as the literature of some other Turkic , Iranian , and Indo-Aryan languages including Chagatai , Urdu , Pashto , and Bengali .


Steve Buscemi took a hiatus from films throughout all of the 1990's.

Steve Buscemi Steven Vincent Buscemi ( -LSB- buːˈsɛmi -RSB- born December 13 , 1957 ) is an American actor and film director . Buscemi has starred and supported in successful Hollywood and indie films , including Parting Glances , New York Stories , Mystery Train , Reservoir Dogs , Desperado , Con Air , Armageddon , The Grey Zone , Ghost World , Big Fish , and The Sopranos . He is also known for his appearances in many films by the Coen brothers : Miller 's Crossing , Barton Fink , The Hudsucker Proxy , Fargo , and The Big Lebowski . Buscemi provides the voice of Randall Boggs in the Monsters , Inc. franchise .   From 2010 to 2014 , he portrayed Enoch `` Nucky '' Thompson in the critically acclaimed series Boardwalk Empire , which earned him two Screen Actors Guild Awards , a Golden Globe , and two nominations for an Emmy Award . He made his directorial debut in 1996 , with Trees Lounge , in which he also starred . Other works include Animal Factory ( 2000 ) , Lonesome Jim ( 2005 ) and Interview ( 2007 ) . He has also directed numerous episodes of TV shows , including Homicide : Life on the Street , The Sopranos , Oz , 30 Rock , and Nurse Jackie . He currently hosts the Emmy Award-winning AOL On comedy talk-show Park Bench .


Armageddon (1998 film) Armageddon is a 1998 American science fiction disaster film directed by Michael Bay , produced by Jerry Bruckheimer , and released by Touchstone Pictures . The film follows a group of blue-collar deep-core drillers sent by NASA to stop a gigantic asteroid on a collision course with Earth . It features an ensemble cast including Bruce Willis , Ben Affleck , Billy Bob Thornton , Liv Tyler , Owen Wilson , Will Patton , Peter Stormare , William Fichtner , Michael Clarke Duncan , Keith David , and Steve Buscemi .   Armageddon opened in theaters only two and a half months after the similar asteroid impact-based film Deep Impact , which starred Robert Duvall and Morgan Freeman . Armageddon fared better at the box office , while astronomers described Deep Impact as being more scientifically accurate . Armageddon was an international box-office success despite generally negative reviews from critics , becoming the highest-grossing film of 1998 worldwide .


Barton Fink Barton Fink is a 1991 American period film written , produced , directed and edited by the Coen brothers . Set in 1941 , it stars John Turturro in the title role as a young New York City playwright who is hired to write scripts for a film studio in Hollywood , and John Goodman as Charlie , the insurance salesman who lives next door at the run-down Hotel Earle .   The Coens wrote the screenplay for Barton Fink in three weeks while experiencing difficulty during the writing of Miller 's Crossing . They began filming the former soon after Miller 's Crossing was finished . The film is influenced by works of several earlier directors , particularly Roman Polanski 's Repulsion ( 1965 ) and The Tenant ( 1976 ) .   Barton Fink had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May 1991 . In a rare sweep , it won the Palme d'Or , as well as awards for Best Director and Best Actor ( Turturro ) . Although the film was a box office bomb , only grossing $ 6 million against its $ 9 million budget , it received positive reviews and was nominated for three Academy Awards . Prominent themes of Barton Fink include the writing process ; slavery and conditions of labor in creative industries ; superficial distinctions between high culture and low culture ; and the relationship of intellectuals with `` the common man '' .   The diverse elements of the film have led it to defy efforts at genre classification , with the work being variously referred to as a film noir , a horror film , a Künstlerroman , and a buddy film . It contains various literary allusions and religious overtones , as well as references to many real-life people and events -- most notably the writers Clifford Odets and William Faulkner , of whom the characters of Barton Fink and W. P. Mayhew are often seen as fictional representations . Several features of the film 's narrative , particularly an image of a woman at the beach which recurs throughout , have sparked much commentary , with the Coens acknowledging some intentional symbolic elements while denying an attempt to communicate any single message in the film . Despite disagreement around certain details of the work , Barton Fink continues to be positively received , with screenwriter Charlie Kaufman among its admirers .


Nazi Germany conducted an operation in 1941.

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany is the common English name for the period in German history from 1933 to 1945 , when Germany was governed by a dictatorship under the control of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party ( NSDAP ) . Under Hitler 's rule , Germany was transformed into a fascist state in which the Nazi Party took totalitarian control over nearly all aspects of life . The official name of the state was Deutsches Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Großdeutsches Reich ( `` Greater German Reich '' ) from 1943 to 1945 . The period is also known under the names the Third Reich ( Drittes Reich ) and the National Socialist Period ( Zeit des Nationalsozialismus , abbreviated as NS-Zeit ) . The Nazi regime came to an end after the Allied Powers defeated Germany in May 1945 , ending World War II in Europe .   Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany by the President of the Weimar Republic Paul von Hindenburg on 30 January 1933 . The Nazi Party then began to eliminate all political opposition and consolidate its power . Hindenburg died on 2 August 1934 , and Hitler became dictator of Germany by merging the powers and offices of the Chancellery and Presidency . A national referendum held 19 August 1934 confirmed Hitler as sole Führer ( leader ) of Germany . All power was centralised in Hitler 's person , and his word became above all laws . The government was not a coordinated , co-operating body , but a collection of factions struggling for power and Hitler 's favour . In the midst of the Great Depression , the Nazis restored economic stability and ended mass unemployment using heavy military spending and a mixed economy . Extensive public works were undertaken , including the construction of Autobahnen ( motorways ) . The return to economic stability boosted the regime 's popularity .   Racism , especially antisemitism , was a central feature of the regime . The Germanic peoples ( the Nordic race ) were considered by the Nazis to be the purest branch of the Aryan race , and were therefore viewed as the master race . Millions of Jews and other peoples deemed undesirable by the state were murdered in the Holocaust . Opposition to Hitler 's rule was ruthlessly suppressed . Members of the liberal , socialist , and communist opposition were killed , imprisoned , or exiled . Christian churches were also oppressed , with many leaders imprisoned . Education focused on racial biology , population policy , and fitness for military service . Career and educational opportunities for women were curtailed . Recreation and tourism were organised via the Strength Through Joy program , and the 1936 Summer Olympics showcased the Third Reich on the international stage . Propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels made effective use of film , mass rallies , and Hitler 's hypnotic oratory to control public opinion . The government controlled artistic expression , promoting specific art forms and banning or discouraging others .   Beginning in the late 1930s , Nazi Germany made increasingly aggressive territorial demands , threatening war if they were not met . It seized Austria and Czechoslovakia in 1938 and 1939 . Hitler made a non-aggression pact with Joseph Stalin and invaded Poland in September 1939 , launching World War II in Europe . In alliance with Italy and smaller Axis powers , Germany conquered most of Europe by 1940 and threatened Great Britain . Reichskommissariats took control of conquered areas , and a German administration was established in what was left of Poland . Jews and others deemed undesirable were imprisoned , murdered in Nazi concentration camps and extermination camps , or shot .   Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 , the tide gradually turned against the Nazis , who suffered major military defeats in 1943 . Large-scale aerial bombing of Germany escalated in 1944 , and the Axis powers were pushed back in Eastern and Southern Europe . Following the Allied invasion of France , Germany was conquered by the Soviet Union from the east and the other Allied powers from the west and capitulated within a year . Hitler 's refusal to admit defeat led to massive destruction of German infrastructure and additional war-related deaths in the closing months of the war . The victorious Allies initiated a policy of denazification and put many of the surviving Nazi leadership on trial for war crimes at the Nuremberg trials .


Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa ( German : Unternehmen Barbarossa ) was the code name for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II , which was launched on Sunday 22 June 1941 . The operation was driven by an ideological desire to conquer the Western Soviet Union so that it could be repopulated by Germans , to use Slavs as a slave labour force for the Axis war-effort , and to seize the oil reserves in the Caucasus and the agricultural resources throughout the Soviet territories .   In the two years leading up to the invasion , the two countries signed political and economic pacts for strategic purposes . Nevertheless , the German High Command began planning an invasion of the Soviet Union in July 1940 ( under the codename Operation Otto ) , which Adolf Hitler authorized on 18 December 1940 . Over the course of the operation , about four million Axis personnel invaded the western Soviet Union along a 2900 km front , the largest invasion force in the history of warfare . In addition to troops , the Wehrmacht employed some 600,000 motor vehicles , and between 600,000 and 700,000 horses for non-combat operations . The offensive marked an escalation of the war , both geographically and in the formation of the Allied coalition .   Operationally , the German forces achieved major victories and occupied some of the most important economic areas of the Soviet Union , mainly in Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic , and inflicted , as well as sustained , heavy casualties . Despite their successes , the German offensive stalled in the Battle of Moscow and was subsequently pushed back by the Soviet winter counteroffensive . The Red Army repelled the Wehrmacht 's strongest blows and forced the unprepared Germans into a war of attrition . The Wehrmacht would never again mount a simultaneous offensive along the entire strategic Soviet -- Axis front . The failure of the operation drove Hitler to demand further operations of increasingly limited scope inside the Soviet Union , such as Case Blue and Operation Citadel -- all of which eventually failed .   The failure of Operation Barbarossa proved a turning point in the fortunes of the Third Reich . Most importantly , the operation opened up the Eastern Front , in which more forces were committed than in any other theater of war in world history . The Eastern Front became the site of some of the largest battles , most horrific atrocities , and highest casualties for Soviet and Axis units alike , all of which influenced the course of both World War II and the subsequent history of the 20th century . The German armies captured 5,000,000 members of the Red Army who were not granted the protection stipulated by the Geneva Conventions . A majority of them never returned alive . The Nazis deliberately starved to death , or otherwise killed , 3.3 million prisoners , as well as a huge number of civilians through the `` Hunger Plan '' that aimed at a vast substitution of the Slav population with German settlers . Over a million Soviet Jews were murdered by Nazi death squads ( Einsatzgruppen ) and gassing as part of the Holocaust .


Cannibalism persisted into the 19th century.

Cannibalism Cannibalism is the act or practice of humans eating the flesh or internal organs of other human beings . A person who practices cannibalism is called a cannibal . The expression cannibalism has been extended into zoology to mean one individual of a species consuming all or part of another individual of the same species as food , including sexual cannibalism .   The Island Carib people of the Lesser Antilles , from whom the word cannibalism derives , acquired a long-standing reputation as cannibals following the recording of their legends in the 17th century . Some controversy exists over the accuracy of these legends and the prevalence of actual cannibalism in the culture . Cannibalism was widespread in the past among humans in many parts of the world , continuing into the 19th century in some isolated South Pacific cultures , and to the present day in parts of tropical Africa . Cannibalism was practiced in New Guinea and in parts of the Solomon Islands , and flesh markets existed in some parts of Melanesia . Fiji was once known as the `` Cannibal Isles '' . Cannibalism has been well documented around the world , from Fiji to the Amazon Basin to the Congo to Māori New Zealand . Neanderthals are believed to have practiced cannibalism , and Neanderthals may have been eaten by anatomically modern humans .   Cannibalism has recently been both practiced and fiercely condemned in several wars , especially in Liberia and Congo . It is still practiced in Papua New Guinea as of 2012 for cultic reasons and in ritual and in war in various Melanesian tribes . Cannibalism has been said to test the bounds of cultural relativism as it challenges anthropologists `` to define what is or is not beyond the pale of acceptable human behavior . ''   Cannibalism has been occasionally practiced as a last resort by people suffering from famine , including in modern times . Famous examples include the ill-fated Westward expedition of the Donner Party ( 1846-7 ) and , more recently , the crash of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 ( 1972 ) , after which some survivors ate the bodies of dead passengers . Also , some mentally ill people obsess about eating others and actually do so , such as Jeffrey Dahmer and Albert Fish . There is resistance to formally labeling cannibalism as a mental disorder .