Pussycat Dolls

The Pussycat Dolls (abbreviated to PCD) are an American pop girl group and dance ensemble founded by choreographer Robin Antin in 1995 as a burlesque troupe based in Los Angeles. After attracting national attention, Antin eventually negotiated a record deal with Interscope Records in 2003 turning the group into a music franchise, comprising Nicole Scherzinger alongside Melody Thornton, Ashley Roberts, Jessica Sutta, Kimberly Wyatt and Carmit Bachar. Since then the group has developed a global image and commercial brand overseen by Antin, Interscope and various partners. They have diversified into reality television programs, a Las Vegas and product endorsements amongst other things.
Success as a music group came in 2005 with their first album PCD which debuted at number five in the US producing three successful singles "Don't Cha", "Buttons", and "Stickwitu"; the latter earned the group a Grammy Award nomination. Following the departure of Carmit Bachar in March 2008, the group continued as a quintet and in September of that year they released their second album, Doll Domination, spawning singles "When I Grow Up", "I Hate This Part" and "Jai Ho! (You Are My Destiny)".
Throughout their rise to fame, the group has been criticized for its overtly sexual image and explicit dance routines. The group has also been scrutinized for the over-emphasis on lead singer Nicole Scherzinger, who sings all lead vocals in the group. In late 2009 / early 2010 the group went on hiatus to record their third album and prepare their next world tour. It has since been confirmed that Jessica Sutta, Kimberly Wyatt, Ashley Roberts and Melody Thornton have all left the group to persue solo careers.
In May 2010 it was announced that Scherzinger will remain lead singer of the group along with the new recruits: Vanessa Curry, Kherington Payne, Rino Nakasone-Razalan and Jamie Lee Ruiz whom together will produce a new studio album for 2010 and accompanying world tour.



Career as dance troupe

Burlesque dancing: 1995–2003
Antin began exploring the idea of a modern burlesque troupe during 1990 with Christina Applegate and Carla Kama. The dance troupe's first performance was in 1995. During this period which have seen many members in its evolving lineup since debuting in 1995, they performed with numerous guest vocalists, with a repertoire of 1950s and 1960s popular music standards while dressed in lingerie or old-fashioned pin-up costumes. They secured a Thursday night residency at a Los Angeles nightclub, The Viper Room, where they stayed from 1995 to 2001.
The troupe received wider press coverage during June 1999, when Playboy featured a Pussycat Dolls pictorial, featuring at least seven contemporary members posing semi-nude (Kasey Campbell, Kiva Dawson, Antonietta Macri, Erica Breckels, Katie Bergold, Erica Gudis and Lindsley Allen). Three years later, the Dolls moved to The Roxy. The group became internationally popular and was featured in magazines, television specials for MTV and VH1, ad campaigns, and movies. Some of the Pussycat Dolls appeared in the 2003 film Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, dancing to "The Pink Panther Theme". They were also featured in Pink's "Trouble" music video. Along with Christina Applegate, Christina Aguilera and Carmen Electra (who was the group's lead performer for many of their shows) the troupe was featured in a Maxim magazine shoot in 2002, which increased public interest in them.
Following their growing popularity, music producers Jimmy Iovine and Ron Fair became involved with the group helping them to transform into a franchise. The former dance troupe evolved into a popular music recording group and became employees of Iovine's label Interscope Records. The only troupe members who remained after the re-casting process were Antin (taking on the creative, executive and managerial roles), Carmit Bachar, Cyia Batten, Kasey Campbell, Ashley Roberts, Jessica Sutta and Kimberly Wyatt. Later in 2003, Scherzinger, Kaya Jones and Melody Thornton were cast as vocalists through an audition to complete the transition into a music group.
Electra, when asked about her lack of involvement with the group's evolution into a popular music group, said:
“ I was part of [The Dolls] for over two years and did every show with them... but financially, I couldn't become part of their new music project... It was a sacrifice I couldn't make.”



Lounge act: 2005–present
In parallel with the Pussycat Dolls franchise as a recording act, during April 2005 a resident live show commenced at the "Pussycat Dolls Lounge" adjacent to Pure Nightclub in Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas Strip. This show contains "cast members" who continue the burlesque-style show which began in Los Angeles during 1995.
At least one early member of the L.A. dance troupe, Rachel Sterling, made the move to the Las Vegas show. The cast includes vocalist Jamie Preston, Hayley Zelniker. Amanda Nowak, Colby Amanda and Alicia. Former dolls include Meredith, Jessica Lea, Rachel Sterling, Laurel, Laura Diane, Cindy, Ashley Gates, Bridget Nicole, Jennifer Affronti, Sheila Joy and Jamie Ruiz from Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious.
During February 2007, Caesars Palace opened the Pussycat Dolls Casino just across the Pussycat Dolls Lounge. It features "Dolls-style" decor and attire for the gaming staff, waitresses and dancers. The Dolls returned to Los Angeles and the Viper Room from November 2008 for regular Friday and Saturday nights performances billed as the "Pussycat Dolls Lounge".
Recording career



2003–2005: Formation
During 2003, Scherzinger, a former member of Popstars winners Eden's Crush, became the recording group's lead singer. In the same year, vocalist Thornton and Jones were also recruited in order to add vocal strength to the group. The musical group's initial line-up consisted of Scherzinger, Thornton, Jones, Antin, Bachar, Batten, Campbell, Wyatt, Roberts, and Sutta. The group appeared in two soundtracks during 2004, for the films Shark Tale and Shall We Dance?. The newly formed recording group's first single was "Sway" from Shall We Dance?, with a music video inspired by the movie.
In 2004, just before the group's debut, Batten and Campbell left the group to pursue their solo dancing careers. Later in 2005, Jones left the group after recording their debut album, to pursue modeling and a solo musical career. Antin remained with the group as founder, manager and business associate to Interscope. By the time the recording group was launched the musical lineup was a sextet composed of Scherzinger, Thornton, Bachar, Sutta, Roberts and Wyatt.




2005–2008: First album PCD and commercial success

Main article: PCD (album)

On September 13, 2005, they released their debut album, PCD, which debuted at number five on the Billboard 200. Their first single, "Don't Cha" was a success, reaching number one in multiple countries including UK, Australia and Canada and scored a maximum of number two on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was originally sung by Tori Alamaze and featured rapper Busta Rhymes. The ballad "Stickwitu" was another top five in the US, and was their second number one in the UK. It was later nominated for a Grammy for Best Pop Performance By a Duo or Group. "Beep", featuring will.i.am, was less successful but did reach number one in some international markets.[citation needed] "Buttons" (with rapper Snoop Dogg) scored number three on the UK Singles Chart;[citation needed] the next single, "I Don't Need a Man" was not as successful, although it scored the top 10 in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and UK. The group's sixth single from the album was "Wait a Minute" featuring Timbaland released in the US in August 2006, becoming a top 40 success worldwide.The group was selected to perform for the introduction for ABC's coverage of the NBA. During 2007, a version of "Right Now" was used as a theme song for the NBA, though the lyrics had been altered.



Line-up change
In 2007, Asia Nitollano nominally became the group's seventh member after winning in the reality show Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search For the Next Doll, giving her the opportunity to sing on the next album and on tour. It was rumored that the Dolls would record a version of "Lady Marmalade", which Nitollano sang during the show's finale. This was never confirmed by the management nor the group. Nitollano performed for the first time with the Dolls during the show's finale, singing their Number 1 Hit "Don't Cha". She later performed again with the Dolls during the The CW Upfronts Party. Her place in the group was questioned due to her only seen performing with the group twice, and was intensified by her non-appearance most notably during the group's Live Earth performances.
2008–09: The Doll Domination era
While the Pussycat Dolls were on break between the recording of the two albums Scherzinger worked on her own debut album titled Her Name is Nicole. She released four singles, none of which matched the commercial success of her work with the Dolls. The album was scheduled for a late 2007 release, then rescheduled for October 2008, and but the project was then shelved in late 2008 and some of the songs appeared on the group's second album titled Doll Domination. Just before the album's release longstanding member of the group Carmit Bachar announced she was departing the group for a solo career. The group performed for the first time after their break and as a quintet for US troops in Kuwait for Operation Myspace.



Main article: Doll Domination
The group returned to the Music scene on May 27, 2008 with the new single "When I Grow Up" which reached number nine on the U.S. Hot 100 and number one on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play. The song topped several European charts and became a worldwide top ten hit. The follow-up single "Whatcha Think About That" with Missy Elliott failed to enter the U.S. charts only managing number 8 on the Bubbling Under chart but managed to reach top 20 in several other countries including the UK with a limited release.
After a slight delay and with two singles released the album, Doll Domination was finally released as a standard and deluxe edition. The latter featured a disc with a solo song by each of the girls. The album debuted at number four on the Billboard 200, with 79,000 copies sold in its first week beating their debut album by one chart position but selling 20,000 less copies. It only spent seven weeks in the top 100, compared with their debut album which sat in the top 100 for nearly one year. In January 2009 it re-entered the top 100 following several more successful singles. The album in original form spawned two other singles, worldwide top 20 hit "I Hate This Part" and the number-one club song "Bottle Pop" which only received a limited release in the US and Oceania. A world tour titled The Doll Domination Tour accompanied the album and began in Aberdeen, Scotland on January 18, 2009.
In April 2009 Scherzinger confirmed to Billboard that the album would be re-released to give more people a chance to get their music. In Europe the album was re-released with three or four new songs. In Australia a compilation called Doll Domination 2.0 was released with six songs from the original version plus four new songs whereas the UK received a six-song EP called Doll Domination: The Mini Collection, released on April 27, 2009 and featuring four of the original songs plus a remix and a new song. In August 2009 the album was repackaged once more, this time as Doll Domination 3.0 to include all of the previously released bonus songs on one CD with the original album. Its release was limited to Europe and the UK where the group's singles had all reached top 20.
The repackaged versions spawned two more singles: the worldwide number one "Jai Ho! (You Are My Destiny)" (featured on the soundtrack for Slumdog Millionaire) and euro-pop remix of "Hush Hush" (retitled "Hush Hush; Hush Hush") which reached top 20 internationally. Following Scherzinger's over-emphasis in the release of these two singles there several emotional outbursts to the media including one by Thornton during one of the group's appearances on tour. This led to media speculation about the future of the group.
2009–10: Hiatus and line up change
Following repeated media speculation and growing tension within the group their founder and manager Robin Antin broke her silence on August 2, 2009 on her official Twitter page to say that the group was not splitting up. She explicitly said "The Pussycat Dolls r NOT breaking up.... & IF they ever were, u would hear it from ME 1st, NOT GOSSIP...Album #3 on the way!" Thorton further clarified the situation to MTV, "Right now the Pussycat Dolls are on a break. It's actually a much-needed break. It's like when you're with your sisters for 24 hours a day and you need to take your own shower." Thornton said that the Dolls will eventually find their way back to one another.
Since then Wyatt has been very vocal about the actual reality of the group and gave a long series of interviews about the status of the dolls. In October 2009 She told the Daily Star that her "role in group was a job at the end of the day and that they all had individual lives to live". She went on to explain that the group had been put together not bonded naturally therefore she saw Scherzinger as a business associate rather than a friend.The comments highlighted the group's position that the band would continue regardless of who returned to the band or who was part of it. It is also reaffirmed that the group all played a role in developing the franchise and music. On October 12 she told the Daily Record that Antin could bring in whoever she liked and the group would still continue just like a broadway show that she is still part of the group. In December Wyatt once again spoke about the group and what was currently happening to entertainment website Digital Spy. She confirmed earlier reports that she had been in the recording studios working on her own Electronica-influenced debut solo album. Crucially she revealed that she did not know what was currently happening with the group's third album as she was not the driving force behind it. It was also mentioned that "fans should expect new faces". She described her role in the group as irreplaceable saying that "she will always be involved with the [Pussycat Dolls] whether its helping with the choreography or the creative direction."This amongst many other interviews and appearances by the group separately led to rumors and media speculation that the group were about to split up over the group's strained relationship with lead singer Scherzinger. However Antin responded quickly with a statement to the press and media stating that
“ The Pussycat Dolls are very much alive and there is no truth to the silent treatment statements. Nicole and the Dolls have ALWAYS been close. Nicole is and always has been a strong creative force within this group and I cherish the way we collaborate. ”
In January 2010 the News of the World claimed that both Wyatt and Thorton were to be "sacked from the group for clashing with Scherzinger" with the possibility of more dolls following.[24] Wyatt stated that she was unhappy about Scherzinger's preferential treatment including arranging private transport instead of joining the girls on the tour bus and requesting her own dressing room whilst the rest of the girls shared one during their recent tours. The final straw came when it was announced that changes were being made to group, Wyatt revealed in response that she had spoken to Thornton, Roberts and Sutta about a rival project to the Pussycat Dolls. Although an official statement detailing the changes is not due until Scherzinger's solo project is due. Wyatt stated that "[Me and the other girls except Nicole] are looking at ways to keep working together. We all want to. But when we do that we're not allowed to call ourselves the Pussycat Dolls. Right now there is a lot of controversy. I haven't spoken to Nicole about it. She's full speed ahead with her career."
Finally from January 29, 2010 the true fate of the group came to light. It began with Jessica Sutta revealing to E!Online had been ousted from the group following the broken rib she sustained whilst on tour with the group. The news put her under financial strain and at one point she nearly ended up homeless. Similar to Wyatt's earlier interviews Sutta spoke at length about Scherzinger's preferential treatment. Whilst the group toured with Britney Spears the other dolls had to undergo regular drugs tests but Scherzinger was exempt. According to Sutta, Scherzinger has more involvement than just singing lead vocals, she apparently controls the amount of camera time each of the dolls receives in their music videos. Sutta told In Style magazine that although being a doll was a joyful experience even after seven years, she doesn't want to be just a glorified back-up dancer.
Less than a month later on February 26 Wyatt confirmed what was widely expected: she was also leaving the group and officially revealed the news in Loaded magazine. She left the group because she wasn't happy of her position in the group stating: "I wish that it was different because I love what we do on stage. I love being a Doll, but as far as variables off-stage are concerned - I just couldn't do it anymore ... when I came out on stage, I knew what my job was and I did it to the best of my ability. I feel like I can relate to anybody in a corporate job - because it's just a job, nothing more!" She stated that her happiness no longer rested with the group because she wanted more than money and fame. Just one day later Ashley Roberts also announced her departure from the group via her website. In a simple message she said "Yes, I have left the Pussycat Dolls..I love you all sooo much!!! I am so grateful to have the love and support of all of you. It was an amazing ride and I learned so much!" Meanwhile Wyatt would later go on to confirm that all of the Dolls had left the group including Thornton.
2010–present: New line-up and third studio album
Antin appeared on the The Wendy Williams show to promote her new fitness DVD. Williams took the opportunity to ask Antin about the rumours surrounding the group's alleged break up. Antin responded by saying that "The [Pussycat Dolls] have not broken up. In fact we're preparing to make new music. She confirmed that Scherzinger was here to stay. However Antin did state that she will be bringing in a few new faces and several of the exisitng members will be leaving to pursue solo projects. She said "the brand is about female empowerment. Inside every woman is a pussycat doll waiting to get out. There are millions of women out there who wants to know what it feels like. I want to bring in new faces."
Reaffirming the group's position, on March 4 Scherzinger told MTV that her position with the group is secure though it will consist of a new line-up with hopes of releasing a new album near the end of 2010. She also stated that she is in the studio recording music. But when asked about the nature of the recordings she wasn't sure if they would be for her own album or for the doll's third album but the latter will definitely be released for the fans. Speaking of the music she said "I don't know if I'm gonna put [the new music out] under my name yet or if it's going to be perfect for the Dolls, It doesn't matter. I just want to make great music for the fans". Thus, the new Dolls album will have popular music but with more rock, soul-inspired sound."
The new line-up was unveiled on May 22, 2010 consisting of Scherzinger as returning lead vocalist and four other girls: former Laker Girl, Vanessa Curry; So You Think You Can Dance finalist, Kherington Payne; former Harajuku Girls member, Rino Nakasone Razalan and former Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious contestant Jamie Lee Ruiz.



Tours and concerts

Main articles: PCD World Tour and Doll Domination Tour

The Pussycat Dolls opening at The Circus
Starring Britney Spears

During 2006, the Pussycat Dolls performed live shows in North America supporting the Black Eyed Peas. As headliners they toured the UK, Europe, Philippines and Malaysia.The group has also performed in Singapore for the annual Singfest.
On August 8, 2006, after a Dolls concert in Kuala Lumpur, their concert promoter, Absolute Entertainment, was charged with flouting Malaysian decency laws. The Malay Mail quoted Culture Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Mohamad Arif Abdul Rahman as saying: "I believe the way the Pussycat Dolls behaved onstage amounted to gross indecency". The charge was settled by paying a fine of RM5,000 (US$1,358).
From November 2006 – January 2007, the Pussycat Dolls embarked on their PCD World Tour with Rihanna as the opening act. On February 4, 2007, the Pussycat Dolls performed at the Manchester Evening News Arena in a concert that was recorded and later streamed via MSN Music.
The Pussycat Dolls also toured North America as a support act for Christina Aguilera's Back to Basics Tour, along with Danity Kane and NLT. They also performed at the Cokelive Festival, In Bucharest, Romania and at the UK leg of Live Earth in Wembley Stadium, London.
The Pussycat Dolls announced that in January 2009 they will embark on a world tour in support of their Doll Domination album. In an interview with Capital Radio, Ne-Yo revealed he will be touring with the group. Lady GaGa and Queensberry also supported them on stage. The tour started January 18 at Aberdeen Exhibition Centre in Scotland. The group recently toured as the opening act for the North American leg of Britney Spears' tour The Circus Starring Britney Spears.




Television series

In April 2006, The New York Times reported that Interscope executives were working to produce their own reality TV series, overseen by the producers of America's Next Top Model and McG, the director of the Charlie's Angels films. The show, entitled Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search For the Next Doll would search for a new member for the recording group.[40] The new member would sing on the next album and tour with the group. The show premiered on The CW, on March 6, 2007. It premiered in Australia and the UK on April 1. The season finale announced the winner of the show to be Asia Nitollano. It was announced in July that Asia Nitollano had "decided to pursue a solo career" instead.
The second season of the show commenced broadcast on February 18, 2008, titled Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious. Unlike the previous series which tried to find a new member to join the Dolls, the second series auditioned women to become part of a new three member all-female group, Girlicious. However, on the show's finale, it was revealed that Girlicious would be a quartet. The lineup was composed of Nichole Cordova, Tiffanie Anderson, Chrystina Sayers, and Natalie Mejia. The group debuted just after the show's finale, releasing their debut album and gaining attention from mostly Canadian and Brazilian audiences with their hip-hop, urban sound. However on June 2009, after a change of direction from urban to pop, it was announced by Antin that Anderson left the group and that Girlicious will continue as a trio. Members of the Pussycat Dolls recording group appeared on both seasons of the Pussycat Dolls Present: either as guest judge, performing songs, or in a video message shown to the contestants each week.




Other ventures

In 2007, Interscope formed a London-based spin-off group called Paradiso Girls through an open audition. The group's original lineup was composed of lead singers Aria Cascaval and Lauren Bennett, rapper Shar Mae Amor and DJ Kelly Beckett. Antin and Ron Fair selected Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search For the Next Doll finalist Chelsea Korka to join as a third vocalist, making it into the group's final lineup. The group has yet to make an international debut whilst releasing their debut single and a yet to be released debut album.
As of February 2008, as part of the promotion for the TV series, The CW have sponsored Stardoll.com, a virtual paperdoll website, to include images of the members of the PCD recording group for interactive "Dress-Up" in PCD logo clothes. This site is aimed at girls aged seven to seventeen. The CW confirmed that the series would not return for a third season and has been canceled due to low ratings.
The Pussycat Dolls had re-recorded "Don't Cha" in Simlish for inclusion in the computer game The Sims 2: Pets.They also appeared in character form in the computer game Asphalt: Urban GT 2 in November 2006.



Merchandise

During 2006, Interscope engaged the California company BandMerch to distribute a range of merchandise, including clothing and other items, linked through the group's official website. In a merchandising agreement with Interscope in 2006, toy manufacturer Hasbro had plans for a line of dolls modelled after the Pussycat Dolls, and reportedly marketed at six to nine-year-olds. The groups Dads and Daughters and Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood successfully lobbied the company to scrap the plan because they felt that the Pussycat Dolls would have been inappropriate for children, due to the overtly sexual nature of the Pussycat Dolls' songs, videos and live shows.
They also negotiated a deal with Estée Lauder for a Pussycat Dolls line of cosmetics under the Stila brand. During 2008, It was reported that Antin and the La Senza Corporation of Canada were producing a line of Burlesque/Pussycat Dolls-styled lingerie called "Shhh...by Robin Antin".
In December 2009 PCD released Robin Antin's Pussycat Dolls Workout DVD featuring dancers from the PCD Lounge Review (inclding Chrystina Sayers) and featuring Nicole Sherzinger.



Controversy

In 2006 the group ran into trouble in Kuala Lumpur with the authorities for sexually explicit dancing. The performance, part of their PCD World Tour, was not well-received in the Muslim state which frowned upon the group's "eye-popping attire" and "sexually suggestive stage routines". 'Absolute Entertainment', the company behind the group's appearance in Malaysia was fined $3000 for the incident.
Meanwhile Margeaux Watson of Entertainment Weekly took a major swipe at the group for their overemphasis of Scherzinger as the lead singer. Watson said "there are two types of girl groups: those anchored by a superstar (e.g. Destiny's Child, The Supremes) or those made of charismatic personalities the (Spice Girls). The [Pussycat Dolls] are neither." Other criticism pointed out that "Scherzinger is no Beyoncé Knowles" and that many people could not even name the other four dolls.
Awards

Main article: List of Pussycat Dolls awards and nominations Discography

Main article: Pussycat Dolls discography
2005: PCD
2008: Doll Domination
2010: TBA


Tours

2006–2007: PCD World Tour
2009: World Domination Tour
As an opening act
2006: Various Artists: Honda Civic Tour
2007: Christina Aguilera: Back To Basics Tour (North America Only)
2009: Britney Spears: The Circus Starring Britney Spears (North American Only)
Source:wikipedia
Sponsor:ez2.in

Axl Rose

W. Axl Rose (born William Bailey Rose, Jr. on February 6, 1962 in Lafayette, Indiana)[2] is an American musician, and the lead vocalist of hard rock band Guns N' Roses.
As the lead singer for Guns N' Roses, Rose enjoyed tremendous success, recognition, record and concert ticket sales in the late 1980s and early 1990s before dropping out of the public eye for several years. In 2001, he resurfaced with a new line-up of Guns N' Roses, and has since played periodic concert tours, finally releasing the long delayed album Chinese Democracy in 2008. This album was actually recorded over many years before finally being released.
The only original member still part of the band's line-up, Rose still places high in numerous polls as one of hard rock's all-time greatest frontmen, but is also infamous for his on stage antics and high-profile disputes with former band mates and others in the entertainment business.
He was ranked 11 in the Hit Parader's Top Metal Vocalist of All Time  and 64 in Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Singers of All Time.




Biography

Early years (1962-1982)
Born as William Bailey Rose, Jr. in Lafayette, Indiana, as the only child to Sharon E. Lintner, then 16 years old, and William Bruce Rose, then 20 years old. Rose is predominantly of Scottish and German ancestry. In addition, one of his grandmothers was Polish.When Rose was two years old, his father abandoned his family. In 1965, Rose's mother met Stephen L. Bailey at a singles night at her church, and married him shortly after. She changed her son's name to William Bruce Bailey, using the surname of her new husband. He has two younger half-siblings – sister Amy and brother Stuart. Rose has stated that he and his siblings were often physically abused by Bailey. As a child, Rose believed that Bailey was his biological father. Rose stated in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine in April 1992, that during his childhood, he was made to believe that women and sexuality were evil and that due to the violent treatment of his mother by his stepfather he witnessed as an impressionable child, he had been led to think that domestic violence was normal in families.
The Bailey household was deeply religious, and Rose and his family having attended a Pentecostal church, where he was required to attend services three to eight times per week. He sang in church from the age of five, and also performed at services with his brother and sister in the "Bailey Trio". Rose was so involved with the church that he even taught Sunday School. In addition to singing in church, he also participated in his high school chorus and studied piano.
Rose speaks in the baritone register. He originally sang in the low baritone range in his choir, however his normal singing voice is tenor range. He can sing parts ranging from bass, to baritone, and to a high falsetto/soprano, and has several different recognized "voices" used in his songs. He has stated that he originally started to develop his range to confuse his chorus teacher in school.
He attended Jefferson High School in Lafayette. He dropped out of high school. At age 17, while going through papers in his parents' home, Rose learned of his biological father's existence and his own origins, and readopted his birth name, William Rose (although he was still legally William Bailey). He referred to himself as W. Rose only, however, as he did not wish to share a name with his biological father.
After discovering the truth of his background, Rose began "acting out" in earnest. He was in trouble numerous times with the police, and was arrested over twenty times on charges such as public drunkenness and assault. At age 16, he was kicked out of his house for not cutting his hair. At this age, Rose also met future Guns guitarist Izzy Stradlin in a driver's education class. The two bonded over their love of rock music and eventually started playing in bands together. Stradlin eventually left Rose, and Indiana, to go to Los Angeles and focus on music.
Lafayette authorities threatened to charge Rose as a habitual criminal in his late teenage years. When he was 17, on the advice of his lawyer, he left Indiana and began hitchhiking and taking buses across the country.Although he returned to Indiana to visit family from time to time, he left for good in December 1982 and moved to Los Angeles, accompanied by a girlfriend.
Rose eventually adopted the name W. Axl Rose ("Axl" after a band in which he once played ), and set out to re-unite with Stradlin. Rose legally changed his name to "W. Axl Rose" in 1986, and had the moniker tattooed on his arm., on the eve of Guns N' Roses signing with Geffen Records. According to author Stephen Davis, Rose tried to sign the contract "W. Axl Rose", but was legally unable to do so, since his legal name was still William Bailey. Rose then changed his name legally.




Pre-Guns N' Roses years (1983–1984)
Once in Los Angeles, Rose began performing with various local bands, including Rapidfire, Rose, L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose. While struggling to make an impact on the Hollywood music scene, Rose held down a variety of jobs, including the position of night manager at the Tower Records location on Sunset Boulevard. In an attempt to earn money, Rose and Stradlin even smoked cigarettes for a scientific study at UCLA for the reported wages of $8/hour.






Success with Guns N' Roses (1985–1994)

Rose and his L.A. Guns bandmate Tracii Guns formed Guns N' Roses in March 1985. The band was a merger of L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose, and featured musicians who had played for one or both groups, including Ole Beich and Duff McKagan. The band debuted at the Troubadour in Hollywood and proceeded to play the L.A. circuit, eventually building a fan following and attracting the attention of several record companies. Following a dispute with Tracii Guns, and his departure from the band, Axl then called Slash (having met him from the time Slash spent in Hollywood Rose.) So with Rose on vocals, Slash on lead guitar, Izzy Stradlin on rhythm guitar. Guns N' Roses was signed to Geffen Records in 1986 and released a four-song EP, Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide, on their own label, UZI Suicide, in December of that year.
The band's major label debut album, entitled Appetite for Destruction, was released in the United States on July 21, 1987. The record had a slow start, selling only 500,000 copies in the first year of its release. However, fueled by relentless touring, constant MTV video rotation of "Sweet Child o' Mine" and "Welcome to the Jungle," and the mainstream success of "Sweet Child o' Mine", Appetite for Destruction rose to the #1 position on the Billboard 200 chart in the United States in the fall of 1988. To date, Appetite for Destruction ranks as the best-selling debut album in the United States, has been certified 18x platinum by the RIAA, and has sold over 28 million copies worldwide.
With the success of Appetite for Destruction and its follow-up EP, GN'R Lies, Rose found himself lauded as one of rock's most prominent frontmen. In a 1990 interview with MTV, journalist Kurt Loder referred to Rose as "maybe the finest hard rock singer currently on the scene, and certainly the most charismatic." He was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine in August 1989 and again in April 1992.


Rose performing with Guns N' Roses on the Use Your Illusion Tour in Tel Aviv, Israel, 1993
In 1990, Guns N' Roses returned to the studio to begin recording the full-length follow-up to Appetite for Destruction. Recording sessions were temporarily scuttled when Steven Adler, battling drug and alcohol addiction, was fired in July 1990 and replaced by former Cult drummer Matt Sorum.[23] The band fired their manager, Alan Niven, in May 1991, replacing him with Doug Goldstein. According to a 1991 cover story by Rolling Stone magazine, Rose forced the dismissal of Niven, against the wishes of some of his bandmates, by refusing to complete the albums until he was replaced. It is said that the reason for it was an attempt by Niven to pick-up on his then-girlfirend, future wife, and eventual divorcee, Erin Everly, daughter of Don Everly, of the Everly Brothers.
With enough music for two albums, the band released Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II on September 17, 1991. The tactic paid off when the albums debuted at #2 and #1 respectively on the Billboard chart, setting a record as Guns N' Roses became the only group to date to achieve this feat. The albums spent 108 weeks on the chart.
In the late spring of 1991, before the Illusion albums were released, Guns N' Roses embarked on the 28-month-long Use Your Illusion World Tour. It became famous for both its financial success and the many controversial incidents that occurred at the shows.
During the tour it was alleged, and long accepted, that Rose demanded and received sole ownership of the Guns N' Roses name from bandmates Slash and McKagan. However, this story was recently disputed by Rose, who claimed it would have been legally impossible for him to do such a thing  His relationships with his bandmates became increasingly strained: Izzy Stradlin left the group voluntarily on November 7, 1991, and was replaced by former Kill For Thrills guitarist Gilby Clarke for the remainder of the two-year tour. Clarke himself left in 1994, and was replaced by Rose's childhood friend Paul Tobias. When Rose replaced Slash's guitar parts with those of Tobias on the band's cover version of the Rolling Stones' song "Sympathy for the Devil" for the soundtrack of the film Interview with the Vampire, tension increased further. Slash, McKagan and Sorum all left Guns N' Roses at various points between 1996 and 1997, leaving Rose and keyboardist Dizzy Reed as the only remaining Illusion-era members of the band.
While the Guns N' Roses name is owned solely by Rose, the band's back catalog is controlled jointly by Rose, Slash and McKagan. In 2004, the three presented a united front in a joint lawsuit against Universal and Geffen, in which they unsuccessfully attempted to block the release of the Greatest Hits compilation album.
Slash and McKagan have also filed several lawsuits against Rose for matters related to control and administration of the songs in the Guns N' Roses catalog. One of the cases, in which McKagan and Slash stated that they had been denied royalty checks for Guns N' Roses's sales in 2005, was determined to be the result of a clerical error by ASCAP and was resolved.




Hiatus, touring and Chinese Democracy (1995–present)
As the stability of Guns N' Roses collapsed, Rose withdrew from public view. The band never actually broke up, although it did not tour or perform for several years and no new material was released. Rose continued to recruit new musicians to replace the charter members as they gradually defected. The last charter member of the band to go (aside from Rose himself) was Duff McKagan.
By the late 1990s, he was considered to be a recluse, rarely making public appearances and spending most of his time holed up in his mansion in Malibu. In various reports in the press, he was referred to as the "Howard Hughes of rock" and "rock's greatest recluse".Rose was said to spend his nights rehearsing and writing with the various new lineups of Guns N' Roses, working on the band's next album, Chinese Democracy.
In a rare interview with Rolling Stone in 2006, Rose shed more light on his long awaited Chinese Democracy album. "We're working on 32 songs, and 26 are nearly done," he said in the interview. "People will hear music this year," he said. "It's a very complex record, I'm trying to do something different. Some of the arrangements are kind of like Queen. Some people are going to say, 'It doesn't sound like Axl Rose, it doesn't sound like Guns N' Roses.' But you'll like at least a few songs on there."


Rose (center) on the Chinese Democracy Tour in 2006
Guns N' Roses resurfaced with concert tours in 2002 and again in 2006. The band, now consisting of Rose, Dizzy Reed, Robin Finck, Tommy Stinson, Chris Pitman, Richard Fortus, Frank Ferrer and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal (replacing Buckethead), performed their first live concerts in the United States in over three years on May 12, May 14, May 15, and May 17, 2006 at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City. They also performed in Madrid on May 25 and in Lisbon (Rock in Rio) on May 27 to an audience of over 50,000.
On May 6, 2006, Rose appeared on the Eddie Trunk radio show and promised that the album would be released sometime in the fall or late fall 2006.[38]
On April 5, 2006, Rose presented The Killers at the MTV Video Music Awards by coming out onto the stage and screaming his trademark, "Do you know where the fuck you are?!" In an interview backstage, Rose revealed that the official Chinese Democracy tour would begin "around October 24th", and that the album would be out that year.
On December 15, 2006, Rose issued an open letter to Guns N' Roses fans, discussing, among other things, the reasons why Chinese Democracy had not been released yet. In it, Axl stated that he hoped the album would appear in 2007, and named March 6 as a tentative release date.However, the album's release date was pushed back once again.
In 2007, Rose collaborated with longtime friend Sebastian Bach on his solo album Angel Down, doing a duet with Bach on a cover of the Aerosmith song "Back in the Saddle". Rose also performed backing vocals on "(Love is) a Bitchslap" and "Stuck Inside", for which he was credited as a co-writer.
On October 22, 2008, a new release date was officially announced for Chinese Democracy: November 23, 2008 (the Sunday before Thanksgiving Day). The album was exclusively released via Best Buy.
On December 11, 2009, Guns N' Roses kicked off their 2009/2010 Chinese Democracy tour in Taipei, Taiwan.




Controversy

Drug use
After Guns N' Roses became successful, Rose noted that he had stopped using any sort of hard drugs. He did not disavow the use of illicit substances, stating in a 1989 interview "I have a different physical constitution and different mindset about drugs than anybody I've known in Hollywood, because I don't abstain from doing drugs, but I won't allow myself to have a fuckin' habit. I won't allow it".
Although Rose has not been known for alcohol abuse, on June 26, 2006, he was arrested in Stockholm, Sweden, after an early morning altercation in his hotel lobby with hotel security. Rose is alleged to have bitten a security guard's leg and shattered an antique lobby mirror while in a drunken rage. Rose later commented in a press release: "We had a great gig in Stockholm and I am not going to let this incident spoil that. My assistant Beta and I were talking in the lobby of the hotel when security started to give us a hard time. My only concern was to make sure she was okay". After spending the next several hours in a Stockholm drunk tank, Rose pled guilty to all charges and paid roughly $6,000 in fines and was released. The Summer European tour continued as scheduled.



One in a Million (Guns N' Roses song)

In 1988, Guns N' Roses released the EP G N' R Lies. Although the album had strong sales, there was outrage among some members of the public over the lyrics of the song "One in a Million", which included the words "niggers" and "faggots". As Rose was the lyricist of the piece and the song was composed about his personal experiences, he was labeled racist and homophobic, charges he strenuously denied.The lyrics led to Guns N' Roses being removed from the schedule at a 1989 concert benefiting the Gay Men's Health Crisis at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
Rose claimed that he'd had bad experiences with homosexuals and was "confused" by gay men's sexual preferences. He also pointed out that many of his musical idols, including Elton John and Freddie Mercury, as well as the head of his record company, were gay or bisexual. Following this, in a surprising move, Rose performed "November Rain" with Elton John at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards. John (along with Bernie Taupin) was a big influence on his musical and lyrical outlook. He also paid tribute to Freddie Mercury, another huge influence, at the 1992 Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, where he again performed with John, this time singing Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". Rose has maintained his friendship with John to the current day and inducted him into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
In addressing the accusations of racism, Rose gave several explanations. In one 1989 interview, he stated that he had used the word to signify "somebody that is basically a pain in your life, a problem. The word nigger doesn't necessarily mean black", and referenced the rap group Niggaz Wit Attitudes (NWA) as using the word in a positive context.[9] Rose was occasionally photographed wearing an NWA hat from then on. By 1992, however, Rose seemed to have gained new perspective on the song and its lyrics. In one interview, he conceded that the word had been used as an insult, but added: "I was pissed off about some black people that were trying to rob me. I wanted to insult those particular black people. I didn't want to support racism".
Rose was consistent in strongly denying accusations that he was racist. He also expressed concern and disapproval at those who used "One in a Million" to promote their own racist views, noting: "There's a lot of people who have chosen to use that song. However that song makes them feel, they think that must be what the song means. If they hate blacks, and they hear my lines and hate blacks even more, I'm sorry, but that's not how I meant it".
[edit]Riots, rants, and legal troubles
Throughout Guns N' Roses' career, Rose has been notorious for personally addressing disruptive fans and giving instructions to security guards from the stage, at times stopping concerts to deal with issues in the crowd. In his 1992 Rolling Stone interview Rose explained, "Most performers would go to a security person in their organization, and it would just be done very quietly. I'll confront the person, stop the song: "Guess what: You wasted your money, you get to leave."He has also been noted for his late appearances at concerts, sometimes taking the stage hours after the opening acts.
In many instances Rose's actions have seemed to be based in concern for the safety of the band and audience members. At the 1988 Monsters of Rock concert at Castle Donington, England during which two fans were crushed, Rose stopped the show several times when asked by security, as the audience rushed the stage. The fans had begun edging forward when the band appeared onstage. The final report into the Donington tragedy noted that Rose had immediately cooperated with venue security when advised of the dangerous crowd conditions, and had attempted to calm the crowd. In a more recent incident, during a concert in 2006 in Birmingham, Rose stopped the show and had a security guard ejected for assaulting a fan in the audience.
In July 1991, during the early stages of the 28-month-long Use Your Illusion Tour, Rose jumped off stage during a concert in St. Louis to take a video camera away from a fan. The concert was aborted as Rose threw his microphone down and stormed off stage saying "Thanks to the lame-ass security, I'm going home!" The other band members followed and the house lights came on, sparking an intense riot that caused significant damage to both the newly-constructed arena and Guns N' Roses' equipment and instruments. Rose was blamed for the melee, and was charged with four counts of misdemeanor assault and one charge of property damage, for which he was arrested in 1992. Guns N' Roses were also banned from St. Louis for life. The case eventually went to trial in late 1992, and resulted in a conviction, two years' probation and a US $50,000 fine for Rose.
Another riot occurred on August 8, 1992 at Montreal's Olympic Stadium, during Guns N' Roses' summer concert co-headlining tour with Metallica. During the performance, Metallica's set was cut short when the band's lead singer, James Hetfield, was burned in a pyrotechnics accident. Guns N' Roses was unable to take the stage early to make up for Metallica's abbreviated performance, as Rose was once again late arriving at the venue. Further compounding the situation, Rose walked off stage and left the stadium after playing nine songs (only about 50 minutes), claiming he had problems with his voice. Before "Double Talkin' Jive", Rose said this will be "our last show for a long time", and at the end of "Civil War", their last song, Rose said "Thank you, your money will be refunded" and walked offstage. A riot ensued, which spilled out into the streets. Authorities were barely able to bring the chaos under control.
On November 7, 2002 at Vancouver's General Motors Place, Rose did not show up for a scheduled show. The crowd became upset resulting in a riot causing thousands of dollars of damage to General Motors Place. Allegations of police brutality would follow the incident.
Problems have also occurred at several of Guns N' Roses's more recent concert events. On June 11, 2006, Guns N' Roses headlined the Download Festival in Donington Park, England. Within the first half hour of the show, Rose had become annoyed with the quality of the sound and had also lost his footing, nearly causing him to fall due to the "slippery stage". After briefly leaving and returning to the set mid song, throwing the microphone on the floor and exiting the stage citing technical difficulties while leaving Bumblefoot to play an instrumental of the song "Don't Cry", he returned to the stage with tennis shoes on (he was previously wearing boots), announced that he had some old friends to bring out, and was joined by Izzy Stradlin to play "Used to Love Her". Stradlin left and returned to the stage multiple times, for "Patience", and the final number "Paradise City". During the night, Rose was also joined by Sebastian Bach and together they sang "My Michelle".
On July 19, 2006, at a show in Newcastle, England, Rose walked off-stage during the performance of "Nightrain" after what was alleged to be a £1 coin was thrown on to the stage directly at him. Rose addressed the crowd off-stage and informed them that any person caught throwing objects at him or any other members of the band must be ejected from the auditorium. The band returned to the stage to finish the song after which Rose declared "The show is over", the band departed and the house lights were resumed. They did not play the usual "Paradise City" encore.
On December 11, 2009, at the Los Angeles International Airport, as he was leaving for Guns N' Roses' tour opener in Taipei, Rose got into a minor scuffle with a photographer. He ended up punching him in the face and then being carried off by his entourage. It started when the photographer got into a minor altercation with a member of Rose's entourage, which angered Rose, leading him to threaten him and attack him. The photographer has stated he will not press charges.



Events surrounding Chinese Democracy
Record executives at Geffen were reported to be furious with Rose for not doing any promotion or publicity for Chinese Democracy. AOL Canada Entertainment reported that, as of December 2, 2008, he had been missing for at least two months and had not returned any phone calls or other requests.
On December 11, 2008, Rose finally broke his silence, answering questions in person on three Guns N' Roses discussion boards and mentioning an upcoming music video for "Better". A far more comprehensive view of Axl Rose's interpretation of the controversy regarding the release of Chinese Democracy was published on February 6, 2009, Rose's 47th birthday, in both Billboard and on Reuters. In the interview, Rose speaks with disdain towards Interscope Records and in particular the chief of Interscope, Jimmy Iovine. He states that he never really received the support from them that he expected. The interview, technical in nature, reveals Rose's substantial knowledge of the inside workings of the music business, and how the rapid transformation of the music industry has worked against Guns N' Roses' release of Chinese Democracy. Axl was coy about the internet legend that two more albums of material are ready to be rolled out, only saying that he is focusing now on Chinese Democracy.
On December 16, 2008 Axl Rose made public an open letter posted on the official Guns N' Roses' website.




Work outside of music

Axl provided the voice of Tommy "The Nightmare" Smith, former lead singer of the fictional 1970s rock band Crystal Ship (a reference to the song by The Doors) and radio DJ of Classic rock radio K-DST, in the game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
In addition, Rose appeared as an uncredited background performer in a funeral scene in Clint Eastwood's 1988 film The Dead Pool, along with the rest of the then-current lineup of Guns N' Roses.
In 2009, it was confirmed that Rose will be producing the film adaptation of the novel Almost Home.
Discography

With Hollywood Rose
Title Release Date Label
The Roots of Guns N' Roses 2004 (Recorded in 1983) Cleopatra
[edit]With Guns N' Roses
Main article: Guns N' Roses discography
Title Release Date Label
Appetite for Destruction 1987 Geffen
G N' R Lies 1988 Geffen
Use Your Illusion I 1991 Geffen
Use Your Illusion II 1991 Geffen
"The Spaghetti Incident?" 1993 Geffen
Live Era: '87–'93 1999 Geffen
Greatest Hits 2004 Geffen
Chinese Democracy 2008 Geffen



Guest appearances
Title Artist Release Date Label
The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years (Soundtrack) Various 1988 Capitol/I.R.S Records
The End of the Innocence Don Henley 1989 Geffen
Fire and Gasoline Steve Jones 1989 Gold Mountain
Not Fakin' It Michael Monroe 1989 Mercury
Pawnshop Guitars Gilby Clarke 1994 Virgin
Actual Miles: Henley's Greatest Hits Don Henley 1995 Geffen
Anxious Disease The Outpatience 1996 Musikitchen
The Life and Crimes of Alice Cooper Alice Cooper 1999 Rhino
Angel Down Sebastian Bach 2007 EMI




Personal life

]Feuds
Relationships
Throughout the mid eighties and into the early nineties, Rose was involved in a turbulent relationship with Erin Everly, the daughter of singer Don Everly. Rose wrote the lyrics of "Sweet Child o' Mine" about her, and she appeared in the video for the song. Rose and Everly were wed on April 28, 1990 in Las Vegas,[63] albeit under duress: according to Everly, Rose showed up at her home, told her he had a gun in his car, and that he would kill himself if she did not marry him. Rose wanted one of his heroes, Dan McCafferty frontman of Nazareth, to perform at his wedding. McCafferty commenting in 2004 said "I laughed when Axl asked me to sing "Love Hurts" at his wedding, because the song seemed to last for longer than the marriage! Around 18 people from their management kept phoning me to ask – 18 people! – but I eventually told them I was busy, which I probably was."
The couple separated after less than a month of marriage, but later reconciled for several months, during which time Everly became pregnant. She suffered a miscarriage in October 1990. This deeply affected Rose, who had wanted to have children of his own. The day after Everly's miscarriage, Rose was arrested after allegedly assaulting a neighbor with a wine bottle after the neighbor threatened to call the police because of Rose's loud music. The marriage between Everly and Rose was annulled in January 1991. Rose has never re-married and has no children.
After the breakup, Rose allegedly continued to try to contact Everly for more than a year, sending her flowers, letters, and even caged birds. In 1994, Everly filed a civil lawsuit against Rose, alleging various incidents of physical and emotional domestic violence had occurred before and during the marriage; the suit was eventually settled out of court.
By mid 1991, Rose had become involved with model Stephanie Seymour. While they were together, Seymour appeared in two Guns N' Roses videos, "November Rain" and "Don't Cry". Rose became deeply attached to Seymour's son, Dylan, and tried to be a good father figure for the child, as there had been none in his own life. Seymour and Rose parted ways in early 1993, Rose and Seymour then filed lawsuits against each other, each claiming that the other was physically abusive. In support of her case, Seymour subpoenaed Erin Everly, Rose's ex-wife, so Everly would testify that she was also abused by Rose. The lawsuits were settled out of court.
Source:wikipedia

Steve Carell

Steven John "Steve" Carell (pronounced /kəˈrɛl/; born August 16, 1963)is an American actor, comedian, producer, director and writer. Carell became famous for his roles in the television series The Daily Show with Jon Stewart from 1999 to 2004, and The Office from 2005 to 2011. He has also starred in several Hollywood films including Anchorman, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Little Miss Sunshine, Evan Almighty, Dan in Real Life, Get Smart, and Date Night; and provided voice talents in the animated films Over the Hedge, Horton Hears a Who!, and Despicable Me.

Carell was nominated as "America's funniest man" in Life magazine. He received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in the Television Comedy Series for his lead role of Michael Scott for the American television series The Office during 2006.

Early life

Carell, the youngest of four sons, was born at Emerson Hospital in Concord, Massachusetts, and was raised in nearby Acton by his parents, Harriet T. (née Koch), a psychiatric nurse, and Edwin A. Carell, an electrical engineer. His maternal uncle was Stanley Koch, a glassblower who worked with Allen B. DuMont to create cathode ray tubes. Carell's paternal grandfather was Italian; his father was born with the surname "Caroselli", later shortening it to "Carell". Carell was educated at The Fenn School and Middlesex School, and attended Denison University in Granville, Ohio. He originally aspired to become a radio broadcaster, deejaying at WDUB in Granville.

Early career

Before opting for a career as a performer, Carell claims that he worked as a mail carrier in Littleton, Massachusetts. He later recounted that he quit after a few months because his boss told him he was not very good as a mail carrier; he needed to be more efficient. He planned on attending law school, but was unable to write an explanation on his application form as to why he wanted to be a lawyer. Early in his performing career, Carell acted on the stage in a touring children's theater company and later in the comedy musical, Knat Scatt Private Eye. He also acted in a television commercial for Brown's Chicken during 1989.[citation needed] After that, Carell performed with Chicago troupe The Second City during 1991, where Stephen Colbert was his understudy for a time. That same year, he obtained his first film work in a minor role as Tesio in Curly Sue.

During the spring of 1996, he was a cast member of The Dana Carvey Show, a primetime sketch comedy program on ABC. Along with fellow cast member Stephen Colbert, Carell provided the voice of Gary, half of The Ambiguously Gay Duo, the Robert Smigel-produced animated short which continued on Saturday Night Live later that year. While the program lasted only seven episodes, The Dana Carvey Show has since been credited with forging Carell's career.During this time, he also played a supporting character for several series including Come to Papa and the short-lived 1997 Tim Curry situation comedy Over the Top. He has made numerous guest appearances, including on an episode of Just Shoot Me titled "Funny Girl."

Other early screen credits include a role in Julia Louis-Dreyfus's short-lived situation comedy Watching Ellie (2002–2003) and Woody Allen's Melinda and Melinda. Carell has also made fun of himself for auditioning for Saturday Night Live but losing the job to Will Ferrell.

Carell was a correspondent for The Daily Show from 1999 until 2005, with a number of regular segments including "Even Stephven" with Stephen Colbert and "Produce Pete." Carell performed as a guest on The Daily Show on August 15, 2005 to promote The 40-Year-Old Virgin, June 18, 2007 to promote Evan Almighty , a year later on June 18, 2008, to promote his movie, Get Smart, and on April 7, 2010 to promote Date Night with Tina Fey.

The Office

Michael Scott (The Office)

During 2005, Carell signed a deal with NBC to star in an American version of the BBC British TV show The Office, a so-called "mockumentary" about life at a mid-sized paper supply company. He plays Michael Scott, the idiosyncratic regional manager of Dunder Mifflin Inc, in Scranton, Pennsylvania. The show, now playing its sixth season, has become very popular with Carell receiving praise for his comedic performance as well as a Golden Globe award and multiple nominations. He has also been nominated for four Emmy Awards and has won two Writers' Guild of America Awards. On April 29th, 2010, Carell stated he probably would not continue his role as Michael Scott after the 2010-2011 season of The Office after which his contract expires.

Mainstream success

Carell at the Academy Awards in 2007

Two important roles helped Carell get the attention of audiences: Bruce Almighty, in which Carell plays Evan Baxter (an arrogant rival to Jim Carrey's character), and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, in which Carell plays another news personality, as slow-witted weatherman Brick Tamland. Years later he would reprise the role of Evan Baxter in Evan Almighty, a film in which his character from Bruce Almighty has an experience similar to the biblical story of Noah's Ark. During spring of 2005, Carell began playing the lead role of Michael Scott on NBC's adaptation of a British program The Office. Although the first season of the adaptation was notable for its mediocre ratings, NBC renewed it for another season due to the anticipated success of Carell's movie The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and the series subsequently became a ratings success. Carell won a Golden Globe and Television Critics Association award during 2006 for his Office role. He also received Emmy nominations during 2006 and 2007 for his work in the series.

Carell earned approximately $175,000 per episode of the third season of The Office, twice his salary for the previous two seasons. Carell was allowed "flex time" during filming to work on theatrical films. Carell worked on Evan Almighty during a production hiatus during the second season of the The Office.

He played the lead role for the 2005 film The 40-Year-Old Virgin, which he developed and co-wrote. Although the film was a surprise success, Carell revealed in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that he does not have any plans to stop performing for The Office.

Carell acted as "Uncle Arthur" with Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell for the 2005 remake of Bewitched. He also voiced a starring role for the 2006 computer-animated film Over the Hedge as Hammy the Squirrel. He also voiced for the 2008 animated film Horton Hears a Who! as the mayor of Whoville, Ned McDodd. He starred in Little Miss Sunshine during 2006, as Uncle Frank. His work in the films Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and Bewitched established Carell as a member of Hollywood's so-called "Frat Pack" group. (This set of actors includes Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Jack Black, Will Ferrell, Vince Vaughn and Luke Wilson). Carell acknowledged his membership with the group in his monologue when hosting the first episode of Saturday Night Live's 31st season on October 1, 2005. Carell also mentioned that he auditioned to be a castmember on Saturday Night Live for the 1995-1996 season (season 21), but lost to Will Ferrell.

Carell acted as the title character of Evan Almighty, a sequel to Bruce Almighty, reprising his role as Evan Baxter, now a U.S. Congressman. Although, ostensibly, God tasks Baxter with building an ark, Baxter also learns that life can generate positive returns with people offering Acts of Random Kindness. During October 2006, Carell began acting for the film Dan in Real Life, co-starring Dane Cook and Juliette Binoche. Filming ended December 22, 2006, and the film was released on October 26, 2007.

Carell played Maxwell Smart for a movie remake of Get Smart, which began filming February 3, 2007 and was filmed in Los Angeles, Washington DC, and Moscow, Russia. The movie was very successful, grossing over $200 million worldwide. During 2007, Carell was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Production ended during the middle of the fourth season of The Office because of Carell's and others' refusal to cross the picket line of the 2007 Writers Guild of America strike.

Carell filmed a movie during late 2008 opposite Tina Fey, entitled Date Night. It was released on April 9, 2010 in the US. He has several other projects in the works, including a remake of the 1967 Peter Sellers film The Bobo. He is currently doing voiceover work in commercials for Wrigley's Extra gum.

Carell has launched a television division of his Carousel Prods., which has contracted a three-year overall deal with Universal Media Studios, the studio behind his NBC comedy series. Thom Hinkle and Campbell Smith of North South Prods., former producers on Carell's alma mater, Comedy Central's The Daily Show, have been hired to manage Carousel's TV operations.

Personal life

Carell is Catholic. He is married to Saturday Night Live actress Nancy Carell, whom he met when she was a student in an improvisation class he was teaching at Second City.They have two children, Elisabeth Anne "Annie" (born May 25, 2001) and John "Johnny" (born June 2004). She acted with him on The Office as his realtor and short-lived girlfriend Carol Stills, and also cameoed as a sex therapist in The 40 Year Old Virgin.

The Carells have a home in Marshfield, Massachusetts. He recently helped to preserve some of the town's history by purchasing the 155-year-old Marshfield Hills General Store, an antique country store well-known for its candy counter.

Filmography

Film

Year Film Role Notes

1991 Curly Sue Tesio as Steven Carell

2003 Bruce Almighty Evan Baxter

2004 Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy Brick Tamland Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Team shared with Will Ferrell, David Koechner and Paul Rudd

Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Musical Performance shared with Will Ferrell, Paul Rudd and Fred Armisen

Sleepover Officer Sherman

Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie Brick Tamland

2005 Melinda and Melinda Walt Wagner

Bewitched Uncle Arthur

The 40-Year-Old Virgin Andy Stitzer MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance

Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Performance

Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Team shared with Romany Malco, Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd

Nominated — Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay shared with Judd Apatow

2006 Over the Hedge Hammy Voice

Little Miss Sunshine Frank Ginsburg Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Cast

Chlotrudis Award for Best Cast

Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast

Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble

Nominated — Gotham Award for Best Ensemble Cast

Nominated - Vancouver Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor

2007 Evan Almighty Evan Baxter Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie: Scream

Nominated — Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actor: Comedy

Nominated — Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie: Hissy Fit

Knocked Up Himself

Dan in Real Life Dan Burns

2008 Horton Hears a Who! Ned McDodd: Mayor of WhoVille Voice

Get Smart Maxwell Smart Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance

2010 Date Night Phil Foster

Despicable Me Gru Voice

Dinner for Schmucks Barry Filming

2011 Get Smart 2 Maxwell Smart

Television

Year Film Role Notes

1996 The Dana Carvey Show Various characters Sketch comedy

1997 Over the Top Yorgo Galfanikos 12 episodes; only 3 aired.

1998 Just Shoot Me Insurance Agent

1999-2004 The Daily Show Correspondent

2005-present The Office Michael Scott Writer, episodes "Casino Night" and "Survivor Man"; Director, episode "Broke" and "Secretary's Day (The Office)"

Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy (2006)

Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (2007, 2008)

Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Actor: Comedy (2007, 2008)

TV Land Future Classic Award

Television Critics Association Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy (2006)

Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy Series shared with ensemble writers (2007)

Writers Guild of America Award for Episodic Comedy for episode "Casino Night"

Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010)

Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor – Comedy Series (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009)

Nominated — Prism Award for Best Performance in a Comedy Series (2007)

Nominated — Satellite Award for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy (2006, 2007)

Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series (2007, 2008, 2009)

Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (2009)

Nominated — Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Actor: Comedy (2006)

Nominated — Television Critics Association Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy (2009)

Nominated — Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy Series shared with ensemble writers (2008, 2009)

2010 2010 Kids' Choice Awards Himself Covered by slime

(source:wikipedia)