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Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis

:Alternative meanings: Jackie O is also an Australian radio host, while Jacqueline Bouvier also refers to a character from "The Simpsons." The Simpsons Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis (July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was the wife of President John F. Kennedy, and First Lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963.

Early life, family and education

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier was born into New York society, the eldest daughter of John "Black Jack" Vernou Bouvier III (1891-1957), a playboy stockbroker of 1/4 French and mostly Irish descent, and his wife, Janet Norton Lee Bouvier Auchincloss Morris (1907-1989), a bank president's daughter. Janet's paternal great-grandfather, a potato-famine Irish immigrant, was a superintendent of New York City public schools, though she preferred to tell people that he was a Maryland-born veteran of the United States Civil War. Jackie's parents divorced when she was young and her mother remarried the wealthy Hugh D. Auchincloss, who had previously been married to the mother of novelist Gore Vidal. She had a younger sister, Caroline Lee Bouvier Canfield Radziwill Ross, who was married and divorced three times: to publishing executive Michael Canfield, to Polish prince Stanislas Radziwill, and movie director Herbert Ross. Lee had 2 children by her second husband. Through their father, the Bouvier sisters were descended from the Van Salees, a merchant family of Dutch/African ancestry that settled in New Amsterdam in the 17th century. As a child, Jackie Bouvier was a well-trained equestrian and loved riding horses (and always would, even as an adult). She won several trophies and medals for her riding and the ample land in Hammersmith Farm gave her something to appreciate at the home of her stepfather. She loved reading and writing poems and apparently adored her father. Her mother was said to be old-fashioned and strict, instilling in her children a strong sense of etiquette, manners, dress, and upper-class customs. While she and her father had a warm and affectionate relationship, her mother was apparently more controlling. She attended Miss Porter's School 1944-1947 and afterward she was named "Debutante of the Year" for the 1947-48 season. She was also educated at Vassar College 1947-1948 and George Washington University, where she earned a degree in art in 1951. In 1949, she spent some time studying at the Sorbonne in Paris, France. Her stay in France was, it seems, one of the most enjoyable of her life: she learned a great deal and developed a deep love for France and its culture, a love that would later be reflected in many aspects of her life, such as the menus she chose for White House state dinners and her taste in clothing. She spoke French and Spanish fluently, and her name was pronounced in French fashion as JACK-leen. She then moved on to her first real job as a photographer (nicknamed "the inquiring camera girl") for The Washington Times-Herald, which is how she came to meet many Washington politicians, including her first husband.

Kennedy marriage

After an engagement to stockbroker John Husted (they were to have married in June 1952), she married Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts, one of the Democratic Party's rising stars, on September 12, 1953, at Newport, Rhode Island. They had four children: Arabella (stillborn, 1956) Caroline Bouvier Kennedy (b. 1957), John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jr. (1960–1999), and Patrick Bouvier Kennedy (born and died in August 1963). Their marriage had its difficulties as her husband was a womanizer, and also had serious health problems, which were hidden from the public. However, she apparently overlooked many of his affairs and coped with his ailments. They spent their first years of marriage in a Georgetown townhouse. She was fond of her father-in-law, and the affection, it seems, was returned. He also saw the great PR potential of her as a politician's wife. She was also close to her brother-in-law, Robert (Bobby). Yet she was not fond of the competitive, sporty, and somewhat abrasive nature of the Kennedy clan. She was quieter and more reserved. The Kennedy sisters nicknamed her "the deb," and Jackie Kennedy was always reluctant to join in the traditional touch-football games of the Kennedy clan.

First Lady of the United States

Kennedy narrowly beat Richard Nixon in the 1960 presidential election, becoming the 35th President of the United States in 1961. Jackie Kennedy became one of the youngest First Ladies in history. As First Lady (a title she wasn't fond of, saying it sounded like the name of a horse), she was forced into the public spotlight with everything in her life under scrutiny. She had a strong preference for French haute couture clothes designers, but the clothes were expensive, and wearing them might be perceived as disloyalty to American designers. She often got around such restrictions by having American dressmakers like Chez Ninon in New York copy or adapt contemporary French designs for her. For her state wardrobe, she chose the Hollywood designer Oleg Cassini. During her days as First Lady, she would become a fashion icon domestically and internationally. On February 14, 1962, she took American television viewers on a tour of the White House. The redecoration of the White House was her first major project. What inspired her were her visits there before she was First Lady and being disappointed by what she saw as the lack of historical sense in the rooms. Being an avid lover of history, she felt that the mansion that represented her nation should represent it well. She hired a special commission and raised funds. They tried hard to find authentic furniture and art that would fit the original design of the White House and searched for original portraits of people such as Jefferson and Franklin. As First Lady, she knew her children would be in the public eye, yet she was determined to protect her children from the press and give them a normal childhood. She and her husband planned many social events that brought them to the forefront of the cultural spotlight. They were not like presidential couples before them; they had an appreciation for art, music, and culture. They invited artists and musicians for dinner parties, hosted a special celebration in honor of Nobel Laureates, invited celebrities over, and transformed White House state dinners.

Kennedy assassination

Nobel Laureates Jackie Kennedy was sitting next to the President when he was shot and killed on November 22, 1963 in Dallas, Texas. Mrs. Kennedy testified to the Warren Commission that she saw a piece of the President's skull detached, yet as documented in the Zapruder film, her head was not in a position to allow her to see the top of the president's head until almost a second after he was shot (the piece in question may have been hung from his head by a piece of skin for a few seconds). Within seconds she climbed onto the left-center rear of the limousine trunk, behind and left of the president, and quickly picked up a piece of her husband's head, which she gave to a Parkland Hospital doctor.

Funeral

Her courage in the aftermath of the assassination won her the admiration of the world. She led the mourning for the president, holding her two children's hands, kneeling at the bier along with her daughter in the United States Capitol, walking behind the caisson on foot from the White House to St. Matthew's Cathedral, where the funeral mass was held, and finally, lighting the eternal flame at her husband's grave at Arlington National Cemetery. The London Evening Standard reported: "Jacqueline Kennedy has given the American people ... one thing they have always lacked: majesty."

Life following the assassination

The London Evening Standard A week after the assassination, she was interviewed by Theodore H. White of Life magazine. In that interview, she called the Kennedy years the years of "Camelot." She made no public appearances for one year because she observed a year of mourning. Afterwards, she was forced to live her life in quiet isolation because of concerns about her privacy, lost as a result of the assassination and funeral. For many Americans, she is most remembered for her courage those four days in November.

Onassis marriage

On October 20, 1968, she married Aristotle Onassis, a Greek shipping tycoon, in Skorpios, Greece. When her former brother-in-law Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated three months earlier, Jacqueline decided the Kennedys were being "targeted," and that she and her children had to leave the U.S. Marriage to Onassis appeared to make sense: he had the money and power to give her the protection she wanted, while she had the social cachet he craved. He ended his affair with opera diva Maria Callas to marry her. Jackie lost her entitlement to Secret Service protection upon her marriage to Onassis. The couple rarely spent time together. Though Onassis got along with Caroline and John, Jr. (his son Alexander introduced John to flying; both would die in plane crashes), Jacqueline did not get along with step-daughter Christina Onassis. She spent most of her time traveling and shopping (a hobby that had exasperated President Kennedy, who once asked a friend: "Isn't there a Shoppers' Anonymous?"). Onassis was in the early stages of filing for divorce when he died on March 15, 1975; Jacqueline was with her children in New York. Her legacy was severely limited by a prenuptial agreement. Jacqueline eventually accepted Christina's offer of $27,000,000 in exchange for the former First Lady waiving all claims to the Onassis estate.

Final years

prenuptial agreement She spent her latter years as an editor at Doubleday, living in New York City and Martha's Vineyard with Maurice Tempelsman, a Belgian-born married industrialist and diamond merchant. In the '60s she helped lead preservation campaigns to save New York's beloved Grand Central Terminal from demolition, and in the '80s she was a major figure in protests against a planned skyscraper at Columbus Circle which would have cast large shadows on Central Park. In 1994, she was diagnosed with lymphoma, a form of cancer, and died from it at her Fifth Avenue apartment in her sleep at 10:15 pm on May 19 of that year at the age of 64. Her funeral on May 23 was televised around the nation, even though it was private, the way she wanted it to be. She was buried beside her assassinated husband at Arlington, in a service which too, was private, although it included remarks from President Bill Clinton. During the service, the two Kennedy children laid flowers on her flower-covered mahogany casket, bidding goodbye to a remarkable era in American history.

In popular culture

In the Rage Against The Machine song "Tire me", Jackie O. is mentioned along with an allusion to the death of JFK: "I wanna be Jackie Onassis I wanna wear a pair of dark sunglasses I wanna be Jackie O Oh oh oh oh please don't die!" Jackie and her husband's assasination is the subject of the Tori Amos song, "Jackie's Strength." In The Simpsons, Jackie Bouvier, mother of Marge Simpson, is named after Jackie Kennedy. She is also mentioned in the Spice Girls song, "Lady is a Vamp". Carly Simon wrote the song, Touched by the Sun, for Jackie. Marilyn Manson's Mechanical Animals album is especially devoted both to Jackie O and JFK. Third Eye Blind in their song "Anything" mention her several times (The lyric being "Jackie O with the top down open". Parker Posey played a character who referred to herself as "Jackie O" due to a fascination with the former first couple in the movie The House of Yes

Books about


- Farewell, Jackie: A Portrait of Her Final Days, Edward Klein, Viking Books, 2004.
- All Too Human: The Love Story of Jack and Jackie Kennedy, St. Martin's Press, 2003.
- Just Jackie: Her Private Years, Ballatine Books, 1999.
- The Kennedy Curse: Why Tragedy Has Haunted America's First Family for 150 Years, Pocket Books, 1996.

External links


- [http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/firstladies/jk35.html White House biography]
- [http://www2.lucidcafe.com/lucidcafe/library/96jul/jackie.html Unofficial biography]
- [http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jbk.htm Arlington Cemetery biographical information]
- [http://www.mqpublications.com/details.phtml?id=273&cat=7 Jackie Handbook]
- [http://www.jfklancer.com/pdf/Camelot.pdf PDF file: Kennedy Assasination Chronicles (Fall 1995)] - contains much of "the Camelot interview". Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy Category:Onassis Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy ja:ジャクリーン・ケネディ・オナシス

Jackie O (radio host)

Jacqueline Ellen Last (better known as Jackie O; born January 31, 1975 in Adelaide, South Australia) is a highly successful Australian commercial radio host, known nationally for the Hot 30 Countdown with Kyle Sandilands, and previously with her ex-husband Ugly Phil. Jackie O's partnership with Sandilands continues on Sydney station 2Day FM. The pair moved from drive-time to breakfast at the beginning of 2005. They continue to host the countdown show The Hot Hits. Jackie O has also hosted a variety of television shows, most prominently the Popstars series, in which televised auditions were held to select members of a vocal group. In 2005, Jackie O also hosted the Network Ten reality show, Australian Princess, in which they transformed a group of women to sophisticated 'princesses'.

External links


- [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0642913/ Jackie O] at the Internet Movie Database

Radio host

Radio broadcasts have been a popular entertainment since the 1910s, though popularity has declined a little in some countries since television became widespread. In the early radio age, content typically included a balance of comedy, drama, news, music, news, and sports reporting. U.S. radio programmes included the most famous Hollywood talent of the day. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, television eroded the popularity of most of these type of radio shows, and by the late 1950s radio broadcasting took on much the form it has today — strongly focused on music, news and sports, though drama can still be heard, especially on the BBC. In Britain during the 1950s, radio broadcasting was dominated entirely by the BBC. Rock and pop music fans, dissatisfied with the BBC's output, often listened to Radio Luxembourg. During the post-1964 period, western Europe offshore radio (such as Radio Caroline broadcasting from ships at anchor or abandoned forts) helped to supply the demand for the pop and rock music. The BBC launched their own pop music station, BBC Radio 1 in 1967. There has been a recent resurgence of interest in what is now called old-time radio or the "Golden Age of Radio", with surviving shows being traded and collected in reel-to-reel, cassette, CD, and MP3 format.

See also


- Radio format
- List of radio programs
-

Jackie (The Simpsons)

Jacqueline "Jackie" Bouvier is a character on The Simpsons, specifically the mother of Marge Simpson, Patty Bouvier, and Selma Bouvier, and the wife of Clancy Bouvier. She also had a sister named Gladys Bouvier. Like her twin daughters, Patty and Selma, she is known to smoke a great deal and seems largely pessimistic and unsociable. Jacqueline appears infrequently in the series, but seems to disapprove of Marge's lifestyle and especially her marriage to Homer (this, again, is a similarity with Patty and Selma, who share a hatred for their brother-in-law). Ironically, Jacqueline enjoyed a brief romance with Abraham Simpson, Homer's father. However, she broke up with him when she was wooed by millionaire Montgomery Burns, whom she came close to marrying before Abraham's intervention made her decide she was better off alone. A continuity error very early in the series caused her to be known briefly as Ingrid Gurney or Ingrid Bouvier. Her favorite song is "Moonlight Serenade", by Glenn Miller. Her character is named after Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis.

See also


- Characters from The Simpsons Category:Simpsons characters

The Simpsons

The Simpsons is the longest-running animated television series in television history, and the longest-running sitcom in the history of American television, with 17 seasons and 363 episodes since it debuted on December 17, 1989 on FOX. The TV series, created by Matt Groening, is a spinoff of a skit originally aired on The Tracey Ullman Show; it is produced by Gracie Films for 20th Century Fox. It made the top 10 on the TV Guide's list of the greatest shows of all time in 2002. Highly satirical, the show lampoons many aspects of the human condition, but primarily parodies the "Middle American" lifestyle its titular family exhibits, and more generally American culture, society, and even television itself. The Simpsons is seen by many critics as the greatest animated series ever, including Time, which named it the best TV show of the 20th century in 1998. It has had a huge influence on post–Cold War popular culture. The Simpsons was also one of the key shows that changed the view of cartoons to a more adult standard. It is considered a sign of definite status as a celebrity or other important figure to be featured or asked to parody oneself in an episode of the show.

Setting, characters, and plot of The Simpsons

Characters

The main characters were originally created by Matt Groening as part of a series of original animated segments for The Tracey Ullman Show. Over the course of the series Groening has used many of the themes present in his long-running comic strip series, Life in Hell. (For instance, the idea of creative school children constantly being persecuted and suppressed by totalitarian grown-ups stems from the strip.) Many of the characters in The Simpsons take their names from important people and places in Groening's life — for example Lisa, Maggie, Marge and Homer share names with Groening's sisters, mother and father respectively. Bart, however, is an anagram for brat. The show's basic premise centers on the antics of the family: Homer and Marge, their children Bart, Lisa and Maggie, the colorful citizens of Springfield, and occasional guest stars. Maggie Homer, a safety inspector at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, is a generally well-meaning buffoon whose short attention span often draws him into outrageous schemes and adventures. Marge (of French origin) was once intelligent and sophisticated, but has come to conform with the stereotype of housewife/mother. Bart, the oldest sibling, is a troublemaker and classroom terror ("the devil's cabana boy" is how Lisa once described him) who thinks of himself as a rebel while Lisa is a brainy student, vegetarian, Buddhist and jazz music fan who dreams of a better future (she is referred to as "the future of the family"). Maggie is an eternal baby, and despite the fact that numerous years (and birthdays) clearly pass (for example, many Christmas episodes), the Simpsons do not appear to age. Some characters' ages have fluctuated throughout the years; this is most likely due to simple oversight on the part of the writers. Homer describes his family as "upper lower middle class", and this appears to be about right. The Simpson family (which sometimes includes Homer's father, Abraham "Abe" Simpson) lives in a relatively large four-bedroom house bordering a friendly neighbor on one side, Ned Flanders, and many varying things, including a cemetery, on the other. The Simpson lifestyle yo-yos depending on whether or not Homer is employed at the time; Marge is largely a stay-at-home mom. The Simpsons go several years into the internet age before acquiring a computer, reflecting the fact that the Simpson family is perpetually several years out of date. There are other clues as well, such as the avocado-green kitchen equipment (this color was popular in the 1960s) and the family's two cars, both of which appear to have been manufactured in the early 1970s. The show also has a vast array of quirky supporting characters, including co-workers, teachers, family friends, extended relatives, and local celebrities. Many of these characters have developed a vast cult following of their own. For a comprehensive list, see characters from The Simpsons. Some of these, like Itchy and Scratchy, ultraviolent versions of Tom and Jerry, are fictional even within the Simpsons universe.

Setting

The Simpsons is set in the fictional United States town of Springfield. Throughout the show's history fans have tried to determine where Springfield is by taking the town's characteristics, surrounding geography and nearby landmarks as clues (as Lisa once said of the state, "It's a bit of a mystery, yes, but if you look at the clues, you'll figure it out"). However, both the town itself and its location are fictional. Nearly every state and region in the U.S. has been both suggested and ruled out by conflicting "evidence" of a location for Springfield, so that the town could not really be anywhere. It seems it is kept indeterminate on purpose so that the location can suit any plot, as Springfield and its surrounding areas have been shown to contain coastlines, deserts, vast farmland, and tall mountains, or whatever the story requires. (See [http://www.snpp.com/guides/springfield.list.html Where Is The Simpsons' Springfield?] for more information on this issue.) According to the video game The Simpsons Hit & Run, the town of Springfield is in Florida, but this could be ruled out in the episode Special Edna, in which a sign in Springfield shows the distance to Orlando too far for Springfield to be in the same state. In an episode during season 13, Mr. Burns states they will smuggle sugar in from south of the border to which Homer replies, "Oh, you mean Tennessee?", implying they live in Kentucky. Also, in one of the behind-the-scene episodes, Behind the Laughter, the narrator says "...but that wasn't the end for this Northern Kentucky family." Looking closely at a map of Kentucky in the northern part of the state, the towns of Simpsonville and its neighbor city Shelbyville can be clearly seen. Creator Matt Groening has stated that Springfield has much in common with Portland, Oregon, the city he grew up in (see [http://www.portlandtribune.com/simpsons/ Matt Groening's Portland]), and the name "Springfield" was chosen because virtually every state has a town or city with that name. According to David Silverman, writer for the series, Springfield is in North Tacoma. This has not been confirmed officially. Animation scholars and fans have noted that the series uses the medium of animation to its advantage, allowing the show to take place in many settings and feature a far greater cast of characters than a live-action sitcom. The cost of having an episode of The Simpsons take place in the mountains, Europe, the city park, or a cruise ship on the ocean (all of which simply use drawn and painted backgrounds) is hardly more than placing the family in the more conventional sitcom settings of a living room, a kitchen, and perhaps one or two related settings. This allows for far more flexibility in plot development than in a typical live-action sitcom constrained by physical limitations and logistics.

Themes

Authority, especially in undeserving hands, is a constant target of the show's often sharp satire. This probably explains the often strong negative reaction to the show from social conservatives. This negative reaction was most pronounced during the early seasons of the show. Nearly every authority figure in the show is portrayed unflatteringly:
- Homer is thoughtless and irresponsible, the antithesis of the ideal 1950s TV father, though he always comes through for his family in the end.
- Marge Simpson is also of the 50's stereotype category, and attempts to exercise control to compensate for her husband's failings.
- Springfield police chief Clancy Wiggum (voiced by Hank Azaria in an Edward G. Robinson-influenced tone) is obese, stupid, lazy, corrupt and not overly concerned with constitutional rights (not to mention that he somewhat resembles a pig).
- Mayor Quimby — who sounds like John F. Kennedy — is a corrupt, spendthrift womanizer.
- Seymour Skinner (who sounds like Charles Kuralt), the principal of Springfield Elementary School, is an uptight, humorless bachelor who lives with his domineering mother. He has frequent flashbacks to his capture and imprisonment by the Viet Cong, and in early seasons, Skinner was repeatedly likened to Norman Bates in Psycho though this ultimately was dropped later on in the series.
- Ms. Edna Krabappel is Bart's depressed, sexually-promiscuous, chain-smoking elementary school teacher who is impatient and ignorant of her class, and demands darkness and silence when she is hung over.
- Reverend Lovejoy, the pastor of the local church, is judgmental and moralistic (but only regarding other people), with a monotonous voice that always puts Homer to sleep during Sunday sermons.
- While most of these characters are more incompetent than truly evil there is one true sadist: C. Montgomery Burns, owner of the Springfield Nuclear Plant and Homer Simpson's boss. Evil and cruel, Burns is aided in his campaign of terror against the residents of Springfield by his trusted assistant Waylon Smithers, who secretly harbors an unrequited love for Burns. Waylon Smithers During the more recent years of Simpsons production, some social conservatives have come to embrace the show. One of the main explanations of this shift is that the Simpsons portrays a traditional nuclear family among a lineup of television sitcoms that now portray less traditional families. The show has toyed with the possibility of extramarital affairs, such as when Homer falls for a female nuclear technician who shares his love of donuts, or when Marge's ex-boyfriend Artie Ziff tries to rekindle their old romance. Nevertheless, these affairs never occur, and by the end of every episode, Homer and Marge's marriage is strongly affirmed. Social conservatives and some evangelical Christians have also pointed to the positive role model of devout Christian Ned Flanders, whose fretfulness is occasionally ridiculed but whose decency never wavers despite constant provocation from Homer (except that time that he had extra-marital sex). In several episodes, God actually intervenes to protect the Flanders family, invoking such Protestant concepts as Predestination. As compared with the Simpsons family, the Flanders family is relatively well-off and less dysfunctional, reflecting certain theories expressed by sociologist Max Weber in his seminal work, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. Race relations are also the subject of satire in the show, as the handful of African American characters are almost always portrayed as being more intelligent and rational than their "Yellow" counterparts. Some people interpret this as a satire of Hollywood and liberal TV's portrayal of exaggerated 'reverse stereotypes' in which the computer genius is always a black actor. For instance, Dr. Hibbert, despite a tendency to laugh at the most inappropriate times, is arguably among the least dysfunctional characters in the series, and is certainly more professionally qualified for medical practice than Dr. Nick Riviera. Furthermore, Officer Lou is constantly lecturing Chief Wiggum on his inept law enforcement practices, and even Homer's co-worker Carl, in addition to possessing a Master's degree in Nuclear Engineering, occasionally lambasts Homer's stupidity. The show also routinely mocks and satirizes show business conventions and personalities. Krusty the Klown has an enthusiastic following among Springfield's kids, but offstage he is a jaded, cynical hack, in poor health from a long history of overindulgence and substance abuse. He will endorse any product for a price. Kent Brockman is a self-important, spoiled TV news anchorman with little regard for journalistic ethics. Many wealthy characters are members of the Republican Party, which meets in a dark castle. Even Rupert Murdoch—whose corporate empire includes The Simpsons' broadcast network, Fox—has been gently spoofed in a couple of episodes. In fact, Fox itself has been ridiculed many times, and Fox News has been portrayed as extremely biased towards conservatives.

Plots

A standard "template" Springfield situation, in terms of characters and events, has emerged over the years. Each episode presents some sort of change in that situation, its consequences, and almost always how things get back to normal. Episode plots rarely follow any sort of linear course, often taking several digressions to move storylines in unexpected directions. For example, the description of the 2003 episode "Dude, Where's My Ranch?" offered to Shaw Cable subscribers reads: "After David Byrne turns Homer's anti-(Ned) Flanders song into a monster hit, the family vacations at a dude ranch, where Lisa falls in love." The plots of many episodes focus on the adventures of one particular family member, frequently Homer. However the plots have never been particularly predictable or constant and tend to be very character-driven. Recurring themes in episodes include:
- Homer gets a new job (Simpson writers had Homer count 30 of them in a recent episode but the actual list is far longer) or attempts to make money in a get-rich-quick scheme.
- Marge attempts to escape the monotony of keeping house by finding employment or taking up a hobby.
- Bart causes a large problem and attempts to fix it.
- Lisa embraces or advocates the merits of a particular political cause or group.
- The entire family goes on vacation. (Because of these vacations the entire family has been to every continent on Earth with the exception of Antarctica.)
- Grandpa Simpson or Abraham Simpson needs help sorting out issues from his past and calls upon the main Simpsons family.
- Sideshow Bob attempts to kill Bart. There are several types of scenes that recur often and have become conventions of the show's storytelling style. Examples of these stock scenes include:
- A scene at the very beginning of the show in which the family goes somewhere together, like a cartoon festival or a cider mill. After a few minutes there, the main plot begins.
- A scene, often near the middle of the show, in which Homer and Marge are in bed together discussing the events of the story so far.
- A scene in which the family is eating dinner together and talking about the events of the plot. Conceptually this is very similar to the "Homer and Marge in bed" scenes, but including Bart and Lisa.
- A scene in the morning in which Marge is preparing breakfast, and the kids and Homer are eating before going to work or school as they talk about what they are going to do. This is often near the start of the episode.
- A scene in which Homer is at Moe's Tavern escaping the hassles of work and family to be with his friends.
- A scene in which one or more Simpsons are watching a TV program, which the viewer watches along with them.
- A crowd scene, in which the entire town of Springfield convenes to witness some notable event, protest something, attend a civic meeting, or even start a riot. Many recurring minor characters appear and speak.
- TV anchorman Kent Brockman reporting on the events of the plot.
- Scenes that cut from the main action to show what a secondary character, like Krusty or Mr. Burns, is doing at the time.
- A fantasy in which one of the Simpsons imagines how something might turn out.

Hallmarks

Opening sequence

Kent Brockman Kent Brockman The Simpsons opening sequence is one of the show's most memorable hallmarks. Almost every episode opens with a title shot coming through the cumulus clouds and into the school where Bart is writing sentences on the class chalkboard, presumably set as a punishment by one of his teachers for some mischievous deed or wayward comment; Homer is shown leaving the power plant, with Mr. Burns (seen putting his watch to his ear, then shaking it to get it to work) and Smithers in the background (second season onwards); Marge and Maggie are shown checking out at the supermarket with Maggie traveling across the scanner, ringing up at $847.63, the then-annual cost of raising a baby (although a 'trivia question' shown as a wraparound for commercials during the episode "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular" claims that the register says "NRA4EVER" — National Rifle Association For Ever, ironically and comedically portraying the non-aligned writers of the show as gun-crazed right-wingers); The sequence then introduces Lisa (who leaves a band rehearsal, usually playing a different saxophone solo); the family is then shown on their way to their house at 742 Evergreen Terrace (the address varied in the beginning, but the writers now use 742 Evergreen Terrace exclusively). The members of the family weave dangerously through traffic and in between fellow (and, from the second season onward, familiar) Springfield denizens, all miraculously reaching home at the exact same time. Upon entering, they all speed towards the family room couch where, in comedic parallel with the audience, they settle to watch their "must-see" TV show. For each episode, the sequence includes four variations: Bart writes something different on the chalkboard, Lisa plays a different solo on her saxophone, Homer screams in a different way (only done in the first couple of seasons), and the family attempts to sit on the couch as something goes awry in an often surreal manner. In the syndicated version, part or all of the opening sequence is usually cut in order to include more commercials in the show's allotted timeslot. The "couch gag" sequence is frequently used to help show staff make the show longer or shorter, depending on the length of the episode itself. Most couch gags last only about five seconds, but the longest one on record lasted 46 seconds. The chalkboard gag lasted several seasons before it was cut to save time; however, it was reintroduced for the premier episode of the 17th season with a self-and education-jeering "Does any kid still do this anymore?" The first season opening sequence featured a number of differences from the later seasons, including a shot of Lisa riding her bike on the way home and Bart's way home consisting of snatching a bus stop sign, forcing several dazed Springfieldians to chase the bus, rather than just riding past a number of well-known characters. The series' distinctive theme tune was composed by musician Danny Elfman. The current arrangement, which dates back to the third season, is orchestrated by Alf Clausen.

Halloween episodes

Alf Clausen's Night Gallery.]] An annual tradition is a special Halloween episode consisting of three separate, self-contained pieces. These pieces usually involve the family in some horror, science fiction, or supernatural setting; they always take place outside the normal continuity of the show (and are therefore considered to be non-canon), and completely abandon any pretence of being realistic. Regular Simpsons characters play humorous special roles, occasionally being killed in gruesome ways by zombies, monsters, or even each other. These Halloween segments have parodied many classic horror and science fiction films; often one of the segments spoofs an episode of The Twilight Zone. Some include "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", "To Serve Man", "Living Doll", "It's a Good Life", The Shining and "Little Girl Lost" In later years the series dropped the framing device of characters telling stories, but kept the Treehouse title; for several years the characters broke the fourth wall and introduced their pieces directly to the audience. In Treehouse of Horror II the writers decided to give the cast and crew of the show scary names in the opening and closing credits (like "Mad Matt Groening" and "James Hell Brooks"). This also became a tradition, and has been done in every Halloween episode except I, XII, and XIII. The names have changed in subsequent seasons. Another mainstay of the Halloween shows is the appearance of the two space aliens Kang and Kodos, introduced in the second segment of the first "Treehouse of Horror." In a section of "Treehouse of Horror VI" called "Homer³", Homer and Bart go into a three-dimensional world, which Homer likens to Tron, created by Pacific Data Images (Now owned by Dreamworks SKG), a computer animation company. This segment from the Halloween show was also used as a segment of a film shown in the IMAX 3D film Cyberworld. This was one of the few times The Simpsons have strayed from their traditional 2D animation, along with a live action cameo by Regis and Kathie Lee in "Treehouse of Horror IX", a couple of claymation scenes in "'Tis The Fifteenth Season" featuring The California Prunes and Jimmy Stewart, and a live action couch gag consisting of a sketchbook being flipped by a hand to make the characters run towards the couch and sit down. Another recent episode featured a CGI trailer for a comedy about humanoid playing cards. Other Treehouse segment name parodies include "Citizen Kang", "The nightmare on Evergreen Terrace", "The Thing and I", "House of Whacks", and "Reaper Madness".

Guest celebrities

Many episodes feature celebrity guests contributing their voices to the show, as either themselves (especially during the middle of the Simpson's years, i.e. seasons 7 to 13) or as fictional characters (mainly during the early and later seasons). In fact, the highest rated episode featuring celebrity guest voices was shown during the 12th season in which pop stars N
- Sync supplied their voices to give helpful advice and dance moves to Barts boy band "The Party Posse".

Production and history of The Simpsons

celebrity.]] The Simpson family first appeared in animated form as shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, with the first short "Good Night" airing on April 19, 1987. Matt Groening admits the reason that they were so crudely drawn in the beginning was because he could not draw well and the animators did nothing more than just trace over his drawings. The shorts were aired by the BBC in the UK the first time the shows were broadcast, but not subsequently, though some of them, including "Good Night", were included in a Simpsons anniversary episode. The Simpsons was converted, by a team of production companies that included what is now the Klasky Csupo animation house, into a series for the FOX Network in 1989 and has run as a weekly show on that network ever since. The first full length episode shown was "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", however the intended first episode was "Some Enchanted Evening", but when "Some Enchanted Evening" was completed it was rejected due to poor animation, so Fox aired "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire" first. The Simpsons was the first true TV series hit for the FOX Network; it was the first Fox show to appear in the top twenty highest-rated shows of the time. It also sparked controversy, as Bart Simpson was portrayed as a rebellious troublemaker who caused trouble and got away with it. Parents' groups and conservative spokespersons felt that a cartoon character like Bart Simpson provided a poor role model for children. When a Simpsons T-shirt was marketed featuring Bart and the logo "Underachiever ('And proud of it, man!')", Simpsons T-shirts and other merchandise were banned from public schools in several areas of the United States. United States issue.]] The outcry against Bart was reflected in the second season opener, featuring an episode called Bart Gets an F where Bart's school wants to make him repeat the fourth grade. In this episode, the school counselor quotes the controversial T-shirt by stating, "He is an underachiever... and proud of it." In September 1990, Barbara Bush said in an interview for People magazine that The Simpsons was the dumbest thing she had ever seen (adding insult to injury, she went on to say that she was a fan of America's Funniest Home Videos). Six years later, an episode had George and Barbara Bush move to Springfield and leave after George gets involved in a feud with the Simpson family (in a style reminiscent of Dennis the Menace and Mr. Wilson). Mr. and Mrs. Bush were both portrayed by voice actors. One of the Simpsons DVD sets includes a special feature that presents an exchange of letters between the First Lady and show staff. In another address, Mr. Bush said that America needed to be closer to The Waltons than to The Simpsons, causing Bart to say they were a lot like the Waltons, since they were both praying for an end to the Depression. the Depression The writers have shown a love for cameo appearances by celebrities and extended pastiches of contemporary and classic movies, as well as subtle visual jokes. In 1995, Western Pacific Airlines repainted a Boeing 737 jet with Simpsons characters to promote the series. The creator Matt Groening and some of writers didn't go for the plane's first trip as they feared it would crash, and they would die with the The Simpsons (plane). On February 9, 1997 The Simpsons surpassed The Flintstones as the longest-running prime time animated series in America, however it has not yet beaten several Japanese anime series such as Sazae-san (which has been running since 1969) and Doraemon (running since 1979). In 2004 it surpassed Scooby Doo in number of episodes. In January 2003, it was announced that the show had been renewed by Fox through 2005 — meaning it has replaced The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1952 to 1966) as longest-running sitcom (animated or live action) ever in the United States. In 2004, the series was renewed through its 19th season. Some take the view that The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet should continue to be counted as the longest-running sitcom as The Simpsons is animated, not live-action, although this view is declining as more authorities unambiguously credit The Simpsons as television's longest-running sitcom. In its 1998 issue celebrating the greatest achievements in arts and entertainment of the 20th Century, TIME magazine named The Simpsons the century's best television series. In that same issue, Bart Simpson was named to the Time 100, the publication's list of the century's 100 most influential people. He was the only fictional character on the list. Since the series originated as part of The Tracey Ullman Show, it is also considered the longest running and most successful spinoff of all time. Over the years, virtually every Simpsons character has appeared on a magazine cover, ranging from TIME to Christianity Today and even Airliners. Airliners] The Simpsons has won dozens of awards since it debuted as a series, including 21 Emmy Awards, 22 Annie Awards, a Peabody and numerous others. On January 14, 2000 the Simpsons were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The voice actors have been involved in much-publicized pay disputes with Fox on more than one occasion. In 1998, the voice actors stopped working, forcing 20th Century Fox TV to increase their salary from $30,000 per episode to $125,000. The actors were supported in their action by series creator Matt Groening. [http://www.snpp.com/other/interviews/groening99e.html] As the revenue generated by the show continued to increase through syndication and DVD sales, six actors (playing over 50 characters) — Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer — stopped showing up for script readings in April 2004 after weeks of unsuccessful negotiations with Fox. They asked for $360,000 per episode, or $8 million for a 22-episode season. On May 2, 2004, the actors resolved their dispute with Fox after having their demands met. The universally reported claim that this dispute was in fact a full-blown strike is denied by Harry Shearer. [http://www.metronews.ca/column_tube_talk.asp?id=2347&cid=650] Since as early as Season 4, the show has drawn criticism from some fans for straying too far from its comedic structure, for becoming too "mainstream," and changing character personalities without explanation. Some consider its parody of the prequel Star Wars trilogy in the episode Co-Dependent's Day being very harsh considering the show's own "downfall." These attacks have been countered by less hardcore fans stating that the show was always more or less mainstream, and nonsensical personality changes and the structural changes were done in a spirit of creative experimentation, and has not damaged the show (see Criticism).

Producers

The series has gone through numerous executive producers, also known as show runners, throughout its run. The showrunner is in charge of every aspect of the show for a season.
- Season 1–2: Matt Groening, James L. Brooks, and Sam Simon
- Season 3–4: Al Jean and Mike Reiss
- Season 5–6: David Mirkin
- Season 7–8: Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein
- Season 9–12: Mike Scully
- Season 13–present: Al Jean

Voice actors and their characters

Al Jean and many other characters.]] All episodes (with the exception of one) list only the voice actors (not the characters they voice) in keeping with the mystique of having the audience not associate any one character with an actor — this is to discourage the audience from easily identifying exactly which voice actor did what. Yeardley Smith, voice actress of Lisa Simpson, and Marcia Wallace, voice actress of Edna Krabappel, are the only cast members who only do one voice, though both have on occasion voiced one-shot characters. Dan Castellaneta performs the voices of Homer Simpson and his dad, Abraham Simpson, while Julie Kavner performs the voices of Marge Simpson and her sisters, mother, and (in one episode) her aunt. Nancy Cartwright performs the voice of Bart Simpson and other children from the school that he attends. Guest stars had performed as well.

Writing

John Swartzwelder is the most prolific writer on the Simpsons' staff, personally writing over 50 episodes (more than any other Simpsons writer). According to the DVD commentaries, he used to write episodes while sitting at a booth in his favorite restaurant. When the restaurant closed down, he bought the booth and had it installed in his house. Current late-night talkshow host Conan O'Brien was a writer during the fourth and fifth season. He wrote "New Kid on the Block" (9F06), "Marge vs. the Monorail" (9F10), "Homer Goes to College" (1F02) and part of"Treehouse of Horror IV" (1F04). Ian Maxtone-Graham has been a prominent writer for The Simpsons since the eighth season. The character Professor John Frink was named for writer/producer John Frink.

Animation

Overseas animation studios involved: AKOM—192 episodes
- Exclusively produced the first two seasons of the series.
- Produced various episodes throughout the run of the series. Anivision—55 episodes
- Produced animation for episodes from seasons 3–10. Rough Draft Studios—113 episodes
- Produced animation for episodes from season four onwards. U.S. Animation, Inc.—2 episodes
- Jointly produced "Radioactive Man" with Anivision.
- Produced "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular" Toonzone Entertainment—2 episodes
- Produced "The Fat and the Furriest" and "She Used to Be My Girl".
The Simpsons has been animated by many different studios over the past 18 years, both domestic and overseas. Throughout the run of the animated shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, the animation was solely produced domestically at Klasky Csupo. Klasky Csupo was also the animation studio during the first three seasons of the half-hour length series, however, due to the increased workload, production was now being subcontracted to overseas studios, usually in Korea, where labor is cheaper. While character and background layout is done by the domestic studio, inbetweening, coloring and filming is done by the overseas studios. Throughout the years, different overseas studios have animated different episodes, even episodes within the same season. During season four, Gracie Films made a decision to switch domestic production to DPS Film Roman, which continues to animate the show to this day. The last episode to be animated by Klasky Csupo was "A Streetcar Named Marge". After season 13, production was switched from traditional cel animation to digital ink and paint. Originally, the switch was intended to happen during season 12 with the episode "Tennis the Menace", but after seeing the results, Gracie Films decided to hold off for two more seasons. Tennis the Menace, however, being already completed, was broadcast this way. The Simpsons has been widely distributed internationally; for a list of distributors, see List of TV channels that air The Simpsons. "The Simpsons" is one of the longest running TV shows ever created. By the end of its 16th season, the show had accumulated 356 episodes (see list).

Cultural impact

A number of neologisms that started on The Simpsons have entered common usage. The most famous of which is Homer's saying: "D'oh!", which is referred to in scripts, as well as three episode names, as "annoyed grunt". D'oh is now listed in the Oxford English Dictionary, but without the apostrophe. "D'oh" is the accepted spelling, and is certainly the most common; the closed captions for the program (at least in the U.S.), however, spell it "D-OHH". Note: A much earlier use of the same expression, often similarly used to denote thwarted expectation, was established in the long-running BBC (UK) radio series 'The Archers', where it was used, almost as a catch-phrase, by the character 'Walter Gabriel' (voiced by actor Chris Gittings). Dan Castalanetta has explained that he borrowed the phrase from an actor in early Laurel and Hardy comedies, but that he originally pronounced it much more stretched-out and whiny. He was told by the show's director to shorten the noise, leading to the annoyed grunt we know today. Groundskeeper Willie's description of the French as "cheese-eating surrender monkeys" was used by conservative National Review columnist Jonah Goldberg, a fan of the show, in 2003, after France's opposition to the proposed invasion of Iraq, and quickly spread to other journalists. The expression "excellent" — drawn out as a sinister and breathy "eeeexcelllent…" in the style of Montgomery Burns — has also entered popular use, as have Homer's triumphant "Woohoo!" and Nelson Muntz's mocking "HA-ha!". "Woohoo" subsequently became the catch phrase of Melissa Joan Hart's portrayal of Sabrina in Sabrina The Teenage Witch. Homer's unsporting "IN YOUR FACE!" has become a standard vocalization of unsporting behaviour, particularly in children. The phrase was not invented by The Simpsons, but they made it popular. In various internet communities, the popular meme "I, for one, welcome our new overlords!" stems from a quote of Kent Brockman from the episode "Deep Space Homer". It can also be heard on VCPR radio in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. The character Waylon Smithers. Since the debut of the show, the term "Smithers" has become a common eponym for a spineless underling. The show's creators also take pride in having passed on schoolyard rhymes to a new generation of children who otherwise may not have heard them.

Fan controversy

In spite of the devotion the show has inspired among its fans (or perhaps because of it) there has been an extraordinary amount of analysis of the show's strongest and weakest periods, especially among its most ardent fans. This brand of criticism is distinct from the broader debate over the show's sociopolitical themes that have drawn fire from both ends of the political spectrum. Fans hold a wide range of views on which period in the show's history was the best. Some prefer the earliest seasons, particularly 2 and 3, when the show focused more on realistic, character-driven humor instead of what they perceive as cheap, throwaway gags. Others prefer seasons 4–7, when Al Jean/Mike Reiss, David Mirkin and Bill Oakley/Josh Weinstein were the showrunners. Under Mirkin, the show began to focus more and more on social satire, as well as shifting focus away from young Bart to Homer. In contrast, seasons 9–12 and the appointment of Mike Scully as showrunner are often considered to be the show's lowest point creatively. While many fans feel Scully's first two seasons, seasons 9-10 weren't terrible, it is believed that season 11 is where the show began to deteriorate significantly, with the show beginning to focus on more supporting characters for shifting attention away from the Simpsons, with the exception of Homer. The show also became heavily reliant on celebrity guest stars (who almost always were cast to play themselves) and often episodes bent the rules of realism in order to justify these types of episodes. Fans also criticize more recent episodes for being boring and having a lack of plot and innovation that the earlier episodes had. Others point out the fact that many of the recent episodes (particularly those in seasons 14, 15, and the current 16th season) focus more on Marge and Homer's strained relationship, noting that the plotline "Marge and Homer fight, Marge and Homer nearly get divorced, Marge and Homer barely reconcile" is being used far too often. Simpsons writer Mike Reiss had this to say: "much of the humanity has leached out of the show over the years....It hurts to watch it, even if I helped do it."[http://slate.msn.com/id/2078501/] The biggest controversy is on the change in Homer's personality. Some fans believe that under Scully, the character of Homer became unrealistically stupid and uncaring in most episodes, while inexplicably contradicting his own political and moral beliefs in others. This reinvention, referred to as "Jerkass Homer" by online fans, caused a large backlash from many longtime fans of the series, who felt the show had jumped the shark. The episode where Homer is raped by a panda is one low point they continually cite. Many such fans welcomed the return of Al Jean as showrunner, calling it a return to the show's roots. However, to some people the more stupid Homer became the funnier, which has caused them to say that the show is getting better every season. Some feel the complete opposite in it that the series has entered an irreversible decline, and should be cancelled (they feel that the show could tarnish its own legacy if it continues at this pace). Others feel that The Simpsons has become almost a part of their life and without it, TV will never be the same. Some other changes the created criticism were giving the character of Apu a wife and octuplets and having town drunk Barney Gumble, quit drinking, although he appears on again and off again as drunk currently. While some argue that The Simpsons is past its prime, the show remains an important aspect of pop culture, and is particularly influential among teenagers. Its popularity has earned it numerous awards and appearances on magazines such as TV Guide. And most fans argue that the constant changes in the American culture and psyche make it impossible for The Simpsons to pass its prime.

Academia

Serious academic work has been done on the show. Simpsons-related publications include:
- Planet Simpson: How a Cartoon Masterpiece Documented an Era and Defined a Generation by Chris Turner ISBN 0679313184
- Leaving Springfield: The Simpsons and the Possibility of Oppositional Culture (Contemporary Film and Television Series) by John Alberti ISBN 0814328490
- The Simpsons And Society: An Analysis Of Our Favorite Family And Its Influence In Contemporary Society by Steven Keslowitz ISBN 1587362538
- The Gospel According to the Simpsons: Leaders Guide for Group Study by Mark I. Pinsky, Samuel F. Parvin ISBN 066422590X
- The Simpsons and Philosophy: The D'oh! of Homer by William Irwin (Editor), Mark T. Conard (Editor), Aeon Skoble (Editor) ISBN 0812694333
- The Gospel According to The Simpsons: The Spiritual Life of the World's Most Animated Family by Mark I. Pinsky ISBN 0664224199
- The Gospel According to Bart: Examining the Religious Elements of The Simpsons by Beth L. Keller

Simpsons publications

TV Guide Numerous different Simpsons-related comic book series have been published by Bongo Comics since 1993. The Simpsons, Futurama, and Bart Simpson comics are also reprinted in the UK, under the same titles, with various stories from the other Bongo series reprinted in the main Simpsons comic. The comics have also been collected in book form; many other Simpsons books such as episode guides have also been published. Music is prominently featured in The Simpsons, with virtually all members of the cast breaking into song at least once during the course of the series. Perhaps the best known song is "Do The Bartman", which was released as a single and became an international success. The Simpsons Sing the Blues and The Yellow Album contained cover versions of songs, as well as some originals (including "Do The Bartman"). Songs in the Key of Springfield and Go Simpsonic with The Simpsons are CD collections of original music featured in the TV series. With the incredible popularity of The Simpsons, especially amongst children, it was only natural for the video game industry to turn to the characters and world of Springfield. While there have always been flops, the majority of Simpsons games did very well commercially and some (such as The Simpsons: The Arcade Game and Bart vs. the Space Mutants) are considered minor video game classics in their own right.

DVDs

Many episodes of the show have been released on DVD and VHS over the years. When the first season DVD was released in 2001, it quickly became the best-selling television DVD in history (although it would later be overtaken by the first season of Chappelle's Show) [http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/newsitem.cfm?NewsID=2338]. The seven DVD volumes rank as the best-selling television DVD series of all time. In particular, these DVDs have been released in North America (Region 1), Europe (Region 2) and Australia/New Zealand/Latin America (Region 4).

Video games

Video games have been made since 1990. The first game was The Simpsons (arcade game), published by Konami. It was, at the time, one of the most successful arcade games ever. Various games have been made, including The Simpsons: Hit and Run, The Simpsons Road Rage, and Krusty's Super Fun House.

Movie

Talk about a possible feature-length Simpsons movie has been going on since the early days of the series. The episode "Kamp Krusty" was originally going to be a movie, but became a regular episode after difficulties were encountered in trying to expand the script to feature-length. Rumors were circulated on the Internet about a movie already being in development, but it was not until 2004 that any were confirmed. In that year, producers announced a theatrical movie is in the very early stages of development, and that it will not be released until after the series ends. With the series being renewed for a twentieth season, an estimated premiere date for The Simpsons Movie was set for the summer of 2008. This was confirmed by 20th Century Fox June 6, 2005. Just like the series, the movie will be animated (Matt Groening recently turned down a proposal to make a live action film based on the characters, as this would likely ruin the franchise and anger fans) and will star the six main voice actors: Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer, and most likely Marcia Wallace, Maggie Roswell, Pamela Hayden, and Tress MacNeille. It is speculated that there will also be guest stars appearing in large roles or cameos. IMDb has also created a page for [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0462538/combined The Simpsons movie], and claims a release date of November 2008. News website [http://corona.bc.ca Corona] posted a popular April Fool's Day hoax describing [http://web.archive.org/web/20000511131708/www.corona.bc.ca/films/details/simpsonsmovie.html fictional plans] for a live action movie.

Debut in Arab/Muslim Countries

The program finally made an official debut in Arabic-speaking markets in September of 2005, under a title that transliterates as "El Shempshoon" or "Al-Shamshoon." In addition to being dubbed in Arabic (with subtitles provided

July 28

July 28 is the 209th day (210th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 156 days remaining.

Events


- 1493 - Great fire in Moscow
- 1540 - Thomas Cromwell, is executed on order from Henry VIII of England on charges of treason. Henry marries his fifth wife, Catherine Howard, on the same day.
- 1794 - Maximilien Robespierre is guillotined in front of a cheering crowd, for sending thousands of others to a similar fate during the French Revolution.
- 1821 - Peru declares independence from Spain.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of Ezra Church begins - Confederate troops make a third unsuccessful attempt to drive Union forces from Atlanta, Georgia.
- 1866 - The Metric Act of 1866 becomes law and legalizes the standardization of weights and measures in the United States.
- 1868 - The 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution is adopted guaranteeing African Americans full citizenship and all persons in the United States due process of law.
- 1873 - The Japanese government implements land and tax reform as part of the Meiji Restoration reforms.
- 1878 - Great Britain's William Gowland becomes the first non-Japanese to reach Yarigatake peak (3,180 meters), and he names the mountain the Japanese Alps, a name that is eventually used to refer to the entire mountain range.
- 1914 - World War I begins: Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia after it failed to meet the conditions of an ultimatum it set on July 23 following the killing of Archduke Francis Ferdinand by a Serbian assassin. This event leads to the outbreak of war.
- 1932 - US President Herbert Hoover orders the United States Army to forcibly evict the "Bonus Army" of World War I veterans gathered in Washington, DC.
- 1942 - World War II: USSR leader Joseph Stalin issues Order No. 227 in response to alarming German advances into Russia. Under the order all those who retreat or otherwise leave their positions without orders to do so will be immediately killed.
- 1943 - World War II: Operation Gomorrah - The British bomb Hamburg causing a firestorm that kills 42,000 German civilians.
- 1945 - A US Army bomber accidentally crashes into the 79th floor of the Empire State Building killing 14 injuring 26.
- 1965 - Vietnam War: US President Lyndon B. Johnson announces his order to increase the number of United States troops in South Vietnam from 75,000 to 125,000.
- 1973 - Watkins Glen, New York concert attended by 600,000 to see The Band, The Allman Brothers Band, and the Grateful Dead.
- 1976 - The Tangshan earthquake measuring between 7.8 and 8.2 magnitude flattens Tangshan, China, killing 242,769 and injuring 164,851.
- 1990 - Alberto Fujimori becomes president of Peru
- 1992 - Mary J. Blige releases her album What's the 411?. It is considered the album that started the new subgenre, hip-hop soul (also see 1992 in music).
- 1995 - Network Solutions announces a new policy to help companies protect their trademarks on the Internet.
- 1996 - Kennewick Man, the remains of a prehistoric man, was discovered near Kennewick, Washington.
- 1997 - Guatemala becomes a member of the Berne Convention copyright treaty.
- 1998 - Monica Lewinsky scandal: Ex-White House intern, Monica Lewinsky receives transactional immunity in exchange for her grand jury testimony concerning her relationship with US President Bill Clinton.
- 2002 - Nine coal miners trapped in the flooded Quecreek Mine in Somerset, Pennsylvania, were rescued after 77 hours underground.
- 2003 - NPR broadcasts the first episode of Day to Day, a one-hour radio newsmagazine
- 2005 - Larry Brown is introduced as the head coach of the New York Knicks NBA franchise, at a press conference in Madison Square Garden.

Births


- 1659 - Charles Ancillon, French Huguenot pastor (d. 1715)
- 1804 - Ludwig Feuerbach, German philosopher (d. 1872)
- 1844 - Gerard Manley Hopkins, English poet (d. 1889)
- 1866 - Beatrix Potter, English author (d. 1943)
- 1867 - Charles Dillon Perrine, American-born astronomer (d. 1951)
- 1872 - Albert Sarraut, French politician (d. 1962)
- 1874 - Ernst Cassirer, German philosopher (d. 1945)
- 1887 - Marcel Duchamp, French painter (d. 1968)
- 1896 - Barbara La Marr, American actress (d. 1926)
- 1901 - Rudy Vallee, American singer, actor, bandleader, and entertainer (d. 1986)
- 1902 - Karl Popper, Austrian-born philosopher of science (d. 1994)
- 1904 - Pavel Alekseyevich Cherenkov, Russian physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1990)
- 1907 - Earl Tupper, American inventor (d. 1983)
- 1909 - Malcolm Lowry, English novelist (d. 1957)
- 1914 - Carmen Dragon, composer (d. 1984)
- 1915 - Charles Townes, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1915 - Frankie Yankovic, American musician (d. 1998)
- 1916 - David Brown, American film producer
- 1922 - Jacques Piccard, Belgian-born undersea explorer
- 1925 - Baruch S. Blumberg, American scientist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- 1927 - John Ashbery, American poet
- 1929 - Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, First Lady of the United States (d. 1994)
- 1934 - Jacques d'Amboise, American dancer and choreographer
- 1935 - Simon Dee, British television broadcaster
- 1936 - Garfield Sobers, West Indian cricketer
- 1938 - Alberto Fujimori, President of Peru
- 1940 - Philip Proctor, American comedian
- 1941 - Riccardo Muti, Italian conductor
- 1943 - Bill Bradley, basketball player and U.S. Senator
- 1945 - Jim Davis, American cartoonist
- 1945 - Richard Wright English keyboard player (Pink Floyd)
- 1948 - Sally Struthers, American actress
- 1949 - Steve Peregrin Took, English singer and songwriter (d. 1980)
- 1951 - Santiago Calatrava, Spanish architect
- 1952 - Yoshitaka Amano, Japanese artist
- 1952 - Vajiralongkorn, Crown Prince of Thailand
- 1954 - Steve Morse, American guitarist
- 1954 - Hugo Chavez, President of Venezuela
- 1958 - Terry Fox, Canadian athlete and cancer activist (d. 1981)
- 1962 - Rachel Sweet, American singer
- 1965 - Lori Loughlin, American actress
- 1972 - Elizabeth Berkley, American actress
- 1976 - Jacoby Shaddix, American singer (Papa Roach)
- 1977 - Tiago Andres Vaz, Brazilian composer
- 1977 - Emanuel Ginóbili, Argentine basketball player
- 1979 - Birgitta Haukdal, Icelandic singer

Deaths


- 450 - Theodosius II, Roman Emperor (b. 401)
- 1057 - Pope Victor II
- 1128 - William Clito, Count of Flanders (b. 1102)
- 1230 - Duke Leopold VI of Austria (b. 1176)
- 1527 - Rodrigo de Bastidas, Spanish conquistador
- 1540 - Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex, English statesman
- 1631 - Guillén de Castro y Bellvis, Spanish dramatist (b. 1569)
- 1655 - Cyrano de Bergerac, French poet (b. 1619)
- 1667 - Abraham Cowley, English poet (b. 1618)
- 1675 - Bulstrode Whitelocke, English lawyer (b. 1605)
- 1685 - Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington, English statesman (b. 1618)
- 1718 - Etienne Baluze, French scholar (b. 1630)
- 1741 - Antonio Vivaldi, Italian composer (b. 1678)
- 1750 - Johann Sebastian Bach, German composer (b. 1685)
- 1762 - George Dodington, 1st Baron Melcombe, English politician (b. 1691)
- 1794 - Maximilien Robespierre, French Revolutionary leader (b. 1758)
- 1794 - Louis de Saint-Just, French Revolutionary leader (b. 1767)
- 1835 - Édouard Adolphe Casimir Joseph Mortier, French marshal (b. 1768)
- 1842 - Clemens Brentano, German poet (b. 1778)
- 1844 - Joseph Bonaparte, older brother of Napoleon I and King of Naples and Spain (b. 1768)
- 1849 - King Charles Albert of Sardinia (b. 1798)
- 1869 - Jan Evangelista Purkyně, Czech anatomist (b. 1787)
- 1930 - Allvar Gullstrand, Swedish ophthalmologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1862)
- 1934 - Marie Dressler, Canadian actress (b. 1868)
- 1942 - William Matthew Flinders Petrie, English Egyptologist (b. 1853)
- 1957 - Edith Abbott, American social worker, educator, and author (b. 1876)
- 1965 - Edogawa Ranpo, Japanese author (b. 1894)
- 1968 - Otto Hahn, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1879)
- 1971 - Myril Hoag, baseball player (b. 1908)
- 1972 - Helen Traubel, American soprano (b. 1903)
- 1982 - Keith Green, American gospel singer, songwriter, and pianist (b. 1953)
- 1996 - Marguerite "Marge" Ganser, American singer (Shangri-Las) (b. 1948)
- 1999 - Trygve Haavelmo, Norwegian economist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)
- 2002 - Archer John Porter Martin, English chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1910)
- 2003 - Lady Valerie Goulding, Irish Senator and campaigner for the disabled (b. 1918)
- 2004 - Francis Crick, English molecular biologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1916)
- 2004 - Sam Edwards, American actor (b. 1915)
- 2004 - Tiziano Terzani, Italian journalist (b. 1938)

Holidays and observances


- Canada - Commemoration of the deportation of the Acadians
- Faroe Islands - Ólavsøka Eve
- Peru - Independence Day
- San Marino - Fall of the Fascist Government

External links


- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/28 BBC: On This Day] ---- July 27 - July 29 - June 28 - August 28 -- listing of all days ko:7월 28일 ms:28 Julai ja:7月28日 simple:July 28 th:28 กรกฎาคม

May 19

May 19 is the 139th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (140th in leap years). There are 226 days remaining.

Events


- 1535 - French explorer Jacques Cartier sets sail on his second voyage to North America with three ships, 110 men, and Chief Donnacona's two sons (whom Cartier kidnapped during his first voyage).
- 1536 - Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII of England, is beheaded for adultery.
- 1568 - Queen Elizabeth I of England has Mary Queen of Scots arrested.
- 1604 - The town of Montreal is founded.
- 1643 - Thirty Years' War: French forces under the duc d'Enghien decisively defeat Spanish forces at the Battle of Rocroi, marking the symbolic end of Spain as a dominant land power.
- 1649 - An Act declaring England a Commonwealth is passed by the Long Parliament. England would be a republic for the next eleven years.
- 1749 - King George II of Great Britain grants the Ohio Company a charter of land around the forks of the Ohio River.
- 1780 - Never-explained complete darkness falls on Eastern Canada and the New England area of the United States at 2 pm.
- 1802 - The Légion d'Honneur is founded by Napoleon Bonaparte.
- 1828 - U.S. President John Quincy Adams signs the Tariff of 1828 into law, protecting wool manufacturers in the United States.
- 1848 - Mexican-American War: Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo – Mexico ratifies the treaty thus ending the war and ceding California, Nevada, Utah and parts of five other modern-day U.S. states to the USA for USD $15 million.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of Spotsylvania Court House ends.
- 1897 - Oscar Wilde is released from Reading Gaol.
- 1919 - In Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk moves to Samsun from Istanbul with a few followers, to oppose the Ottoman government, which eventually leads to the Turkish War of Independence.
- 1921 - The Emergency Quota Act passes the U.S. Congress establishing national quotas on immigration.
- 1922 - Young Pioneer organization of the Soviet Union is established.
- 1932 - The gangster film Scarface: The Shame of a Nation opens at the Rialto Theater in Los Angeles, California.
- 1943 - World War II: British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt set Monday, May 1, 1944 as the date for the cross-English Channel landing (D-Day would later be delayed over a month due to bad weather).
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