Sketch of the Day

Rod Serling - Host of the Twilight Zone

2011-11-23T20:47:00.000-05:00

Helen Keller

2011-10-28T22:36:00.002-04:00

Helen Adams Keller (June 27, 1880 – June 1, 1968) was an American author, political activist, and lecturer. She was the first deafblind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree.^[1]^[2] The story of how Keller's teacher, Anne Sullivan, broke through the isolation imposed by a near complete lack of language, allowing the girl to blossom as she learned to communicate, has become widely known through the dramatic depictions of the play and film The Miracle Worker.

A prolific author, Keller was well-traveled, and was outspoken in her opposition to war. A member of the Socialist Party of America and the Wobblies, she campaigned for women's suffrage, workers' rights, and socialism, as well as many other leftist causes.

Source: Wikipedia

"Lt. Horatio Caine"

2011-10-08T22:05:00.002-04:00

"Lt. Horatio Caine" is a fictional character in the CBS crime drama CSI: Miami, portrayed by David Caruso. He is currently head of the crime lab, under the rank of Lieutenant of the MDPD.

Lucy and Desi

2011-09-28T13:05:00.002-04:00

Lucille Ball

2011-09-23T22:30:00.001-04:00

Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American comedienne, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy. One of the most popular and influential stars in the United States during her lifetime, with one of Hollywood's longest careers,^[3] especially on television, Ball began acting in the 1930s, becoming both a radio actress and B-movie star in the 1940s, and then a television star during the 1950s. She was still making films in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1962, Ball became the first woman to run a major television studio, Desilu; a studio that produced many successful and popular television series.^[4]

Ball was nominated for an Emmy Award thirteen times, and won four times.^[5] In 1977 Ball was among the first recipients of the Women in Film Crystal Award.^[6] She was the recipient of the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1979, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Kennedy Center Honors in 1986 and the Governors Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in 1989.^[7]

In 1929, Ball landed work as a model and later began her performing career on Broadway using the stage name Dianne Belmont. She appeared in many small movie roles in the 1930s as a contract player for RKO Radio Pictures. Ball was labeled as the "Queen of the Bs" (referring to her many roles in B-films). In 1951, Ball was pivotal in the creation of the television series I Love Lucy. The show co-starred her then-husband, Desi Arnaz as Ricky Ricardo, Vivian Vance as Ethel Mertz and William Frawley as Fred Mertz. The Mertzs were the Ricardos' landlords and friends. The show ended in 1957 after 180 episodes. Then, some minor adjustments were made to the program's format - the time of the show was lengthened from 30 minutes to 60 minutes (the first show lasted 75 mins), some new characters were added, the storyline was altered, and the show was renamed The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour, which ran for three seasons (1957–1960) and 13 episodes. Ball went on to star in two more successful television series: The Lucy Show, which ran on CBS from 1962 to 1968 (156 Episodes), and Here's Lucy from 1968 to 1974 (144 episodes). Her last attempt at a television series was a 1986 show called Life with Lucy - which failed after 8 episodes aired, although 13 were produced.

Ball met and eloped with Cuban bandleader Desi Arnaz in 1940. On July 17, 1951, at almost 40 years old, Ball gave birth to their first child, Lucie Désirée Arnaz.^[8] A year and a half later, Ball gave birth to their second child, Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV, known as Desi Arnaz, Jr.^[9] Ball and Arnaz divorced on May 4, 1960.

On April 26, 1989, Ball died of a dissecting aortic aneurysm at age 77.^[10] At the time of her death she was married to her second husband and business partner, standup comedian Gary Morton for more than twenty-seven years.^[11]

The Honeymooners

2011-09-19T22:53:00.002-04:00

The Honeymooners is an American situation comedy television show, based on a recurring 1951–'55 sketch of the same name. It originally aired on the DuMont network's Cavalcade of Stars and subsequently on the CBS network's The Jackie Gleason Show^[1] hosted by Jackie Gleason, and filmed before a live audience. It debuted as a half-hour series on October 1, 1955. Although initially a ratings success — becoming the #2 show in the United States its first season — it faced stiff competition from the Perry Como Show,^[2]^[3] and eventually dropped to #19,^[3]^[4] ending its production after only 39 episodes (now referred to as the "Classic 39"). The final episode of The Honeymooners aired on September 22, 1956. Gleason went on to revive The Honeymooners as sketches and hour-long specials off and on through 1978.

TV show Psych

2011-09-19T06:37:00.002-04:00

Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. It stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills"[1] and impressive detective instincts allow him to convince people that he solves cases with psychic abilities. The program also stars Dulé Hill as Shawn's best friend and reluctant partner Burton "Gus" Guster, as well as Corbin Bernsen as Shawn's captious father, Henry.

The series airs new episodes in the US on Wednesdays at 10PM ET/PT on USA Network. During the second season, an animated segment was added to the series titled "The Big Adventures of Little Shawn and Gus". Psych debuted on Friday, July 7, 2006, immediately following the fifth season premiere of Monk, and continued to be paired with the series until Monk's conclusion on December 4, 2009. It was the highest-rated US basic cable television premiere of 2006.[2] The series has been picked up for a sixth season.[3]

Buster Keaton

2011-09-17T22:33:00.002-04:00

Jude Law

2011-09-12T08:12:00.001-04:00

Jimmy Durante - Ink-a-dink-a-do

2011-09-11T07:17:00.003-04:00

Charles Laughton

2011-09-08T06:03:00.003-04:00

Uma Thurman

2011-09-05T21:57:00.002-04:00

Nikola Tesla

2011-09-05T21:56:00.003-04:00

Nikola Tesla (Serbian Cyrillic: Никола Тесла; 10 July 1856 – 7 January 1943) was an inventor, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer. He was an important contributor to the birth of commercial electricity, and is best known for his many revolutionary developments in the field of electromagnetism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Tesla's patents and theoretical work formed the basis of modern alternating current (AC) electric power systems, including the polyphase system of electrical distribution and the AC motor. This work helped usher in the Second Industrial Revolution.

Born an ethnic Serb in the village of Smiljan (now part of Gospić), in the Croatian Military Frontier^[1] of the Austrian Empire (modern-day Croatia), Tesla was a subject of the Austrian Empire by birth and later became an American citizen.^[2] Because of his 1894 demonstration of wireless communication through radio^{[citation needed]} and as the eventual victor in the "War of Currents", he was widely respected as one of the greatest electrical engineers who worked in America.^[3] He pioneered modern electrical engineering and many of his discoveries were of groundbreaking importance. In the United States during this time, Tesla's fame rivaled that of any other inventor or scientist in history or popular culture.^[4] Tesla demonstrated wireless energy transfer to power electronic devices as early as 1893^{[citation needed]}, and aspired to intercontinental wireless transmission of industrial power in his unfinished Wardenclyffe Tower project.

Because of his eccentric personality and his seemingly unbelievable and sometimes bizarre claims about possible scientific and technological developments, Tesla was ultimately ostracized and regarded as a mad scientist by many late in his life.^[5] Tesla died with little money at the age of 86 in a hotel suite in New York City.^[6]

The SI unit measuring magnetic field B (also referred to as the magnetic flux density and magnetic induction), the tesla, was named in his honor (at the CGPM, Paris, 1960).

Uma Thurman

2011-09-03T05:34:00.001-04:00

Uma Karuna Thurman (born April 29, 1970) is an American actress and model. She has performed in leading roles in a variety of films, ranging from romantic comedies and dramas to science fiction and action movies. Among her best-known roles are those in the Quentin Tarantino films Pulp Fiction (for which she received an Oscar nomination) and Kill Bill. In 2002 she won a Golden Globe Award for her performance in Hysterical Blindness.

Actor Kunal Nayyar aka Rajesh Ramayan "Raj" Koothrappali of "The Big Bang Theory"

2011-08-31T06:38:00.003-04:00

Simon Maxwell Helberg aka Howard Wolowitz

2011-08-29T23:41:00.001-04:00

Simon Maxwell Helberg aka Howard Wolowitz on the TV sitcom "The Big Bang Theory"

Kaley Cuoco aka Penny, The Big Bang Theory

2011-08-28T22:11:00.002-04:00

Johnny Galecki as Leonard Hofstadter

2011-08-27T22:29:00.002-04:00

Johnny Galecki as Leonard Hofstadter on the TV show "Big Bang Theory"

Sheldon Cooper - Big Bang Theory

2011-08-26T23:01:00.002-04:00

Jerry Lewis

2011-08-25T17:52:00.001-04:00

Artist Note:
God bless Jerry Lewis (now 85 years old) who served as the national chairman for the Muscular Dystrophy Association since its inception in 1950. Jerry's kids were all the MDA kids who counted on the nation to give each year on the Labor Day weekend in a marathon fundraiser. This will be the first year MDA will ask for help without Jerry.

RIP, Bodee

2011-08-23T09:49:00.001-04:00

Jackie Robinson

2011-08-22T07:15:00.001-04:00

Source: Wikipedia

Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was the first black Major League Baseball (MLB) player of the modern era.[1] Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. As the first black man to play in the major leagues since the 1880s, he was instrumental in bringing an end to racial segregation in professional baseball, which had relegated black players to the Negro leagues for six decades.[2] The example of his character and unquestionable talent challenged the traditional basis of segregation, which then marked many other aspects of American life, and contributed significantly to the Civil Rights Movement.[3][4] In addition to his cultural impact, Robinson had an exceptional baseball career. Over ten seasons, he played in six World Series and contributed to the Dodgers' 1955 World Championship. He was selected for six consecutive All-Star Games from 1949 to 1954,[5] was the recipient of the inaugural MLB Rookie of the Year Award in 1947, and won the National League Most Valuable Player Award in 1949—the first black player so honored.[6] Robinson was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962. In 1997, Major League Baseball retired his uniform number, 42, across all major league teams. Robinson was also known for his pursuits outside the baseball diamond. He was the first black television analyst in Major League Baseball, and the first black vice-president of a major American corporation. In the 1960s, he helped establish the Freedom National Bank, an African-American-owned financial institution based in Harlem, New York. In recognition of his achievements on and off the field, Robinson was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal.

Ed Norton

2011-08-21T16:55:00.000-04:00

Edward Harrison Norton^[1] (born August 18, 1969) is an American actor, screenwriter, film director and producer. In 1996, his supporting role in the courtroom drama Primal Fear garnered him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Two years later, his lead role as a reformed white power skinhead in American History X earned a nomination for Academy Award for Best Actor. His other films include period dramas such as Kingdom of Heaven (2005), The Illusionist (2006), and The Painted Veil (2006); and other notable films such as Rounders (1998), Fight Club (1999), 25th Hour (2002), Red Dragon (2002), and The Incredible Hulk (2008).

In addition to acting, Norton is also a writer and director. He made his directorial debut with the film Keeping the Faith (2000) and is slated to direct the film adaptation of the novel Motherless Brooklyn. Norton did uncredited work on the scripts for The Score, Frida, and The Incredible Hulk.

In his private life, Norton is an environmental and social activist. He is a member of the board of trustees of Enterprise Community Partners, a non-profit organization for developing affordable housing, founded by his grandfather, James Rouse. Norton is president of the American branch of the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust.^[2] He ran in the 2009 New York City Marathon to raise money for the Trust.^[3] He also raises money for charity through Crowdrise, a social networking community for volunteers and a micro-donations fundraising platform.^[4] In July 2010, Norton was designated as the United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for Biodiversity by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.^{[5] Source: Wikipedia}

Morgan Freeman

2011-08-20T01:37:00.001-04:00

Rick and Dawn

2011-08-16T23:25:00.002-04:00