{{infobox person | name

Paris Hilton | image Paris_Hilton_2009.jpg | caption Paris Hilton at the Fox Reality Awards on October 13, 2009, Hollywood, CA. | birth_name Paris Whitney Hilton | birth_date February 17, 1981 | birth_place New York City, New York, U.S. | occupation Businesswoman, socialite, model, fashion designer | years_active 1993, 2000–present | networth US$ 100 million (2012) | religion Roman Catholic | height | weight | parents Richard Howard HiltonKathy Hilton | website Official site }}

Paris Whitney Hilton (born February 17, 1981) is an American businessperson, potential future heiress, actress, producer, singer and socialite. She is a great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton (founder of Hilton Hotels).

Hilton became famous for her controversial participation in a sex tape, which was released in November 2003, shortly before the premiere of the television reality series ''The Simple Life'' alongside fellow socialite and childhood best friend Nicole Richie. The show was a massive hit for the FOX network, premiering with 13 million viewers, and brought Hilton and co-star Richie to an international recognition. She then released her 2004 tongue-in-cheek autobiography called ''Confessions of an Heiress: A Tongue-in-Chic Peek Behind the Pose'', she landed a supporting role in the 2005 horror film ''House of Wax'', and later recorded the 2006 music album ''Paris''.

She has appeared in various lists compiled by magazines such as ''Maxim'', ''FHM'' as well as ''Stuff''. She is also regularly placed on lists composed by ''Forbes'' magazine and was named one of the "100 Hottest Women of All-Time" by ''Men's Health''. Critics also suggest that Hilton epitomizes the title of famous for being famous; she is an example of the modern phenomenon of the "celebutante", the celebrity who rises to fame not because of their talent or work but because of their inherited wealth and controversial lifestyle. She has parlayed her media fame into a fashion line and various perfumes with her celebrity endorsement — her fragrances have reportedly earned $1.4 billion. As of 2012, her net worth is estimated to be $100 million.

Early life

Hilton was born in New York City, New York, to Kathy (née Avanzino), a socialite and actress, and Richard Hilton, a businessman. She is the oldest of four children: she has one sister, Nicholai Olivia "Nicky" Hilton (b. 1983), and two brothers, Barron Nicholas Hilton II (b. 1989) and Conrad Hughes Hilton III (b. 1994). Her paternal great-grandfather was Conrad Hilton, who founded the Hilton Hotels; he was of Norwegian and German ancestry. She is a half-niece of two child stars of the 1970s, Kim and Kyle Richards.

She was raised Roman Catholic and still attends Mass. Hilton moved between numerous exclusive homes in her youth, including a suite in the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in Manhattan, Beverly Hills, and the Hamptons. As a child she was good friends with other socialites, including Nicole Richie and Kim Kardashian.

Growing up in Los Angeles, Hilton attended the Buckley School and the exclusive St. Paul the Apostle Church and School, where she graduated in 1995. She then attended her freshman year of high school at the Marywood-Palm Valley School in Rancho Mirage, California from 1995–1996. Then in 1996, when Hilton was 14, her family moved to the East Coast. In New York, she briefly attended Convent of the Sacred Heart (while Lady Gaga was a student there) in 1996 before transferring again to the Dwight School. At 16, Hilton spent one year at the Provo Canyon School, a school for emotionally troubled teens. She then attended the Canterbury Boarding School, in New Milford, Connecticut from the fall of 1998 to February 1999 for her junior year, where she was a member of the ice hockey team. In February 1999, the month she turned 18, she was expelled from Canterbury for violating school rules. After being expelled from Canterbury, she returned to the Dwight School before dropping out a few months later as a high school junior. She later earned her GED.

Career breakthough (2000–2007)

Hilton began modeling as a child, initially at charity events. When she was 19, she signed with Donald Trump's modeling agency, T Management. Hilton stated that while she "wanted to model," Trumb was wishing for have her at his agency, and after she signed she was "loving" the work. Hilton has also worked with Ford Models in New York, Models 1 Agency in London, Nous Model Management in Los Angeles, and Premier Model Management in London. She has appeared in numerous advertising campaigns, including Iceberg Vodka, GUESS, Tommy Hilfiger, Christian Dior, and Marciano. In 2001, Hilton began to develop a reputation as a socialite, being identified as "New York's leading It Girl" whose fame was beginning to "extend beyond the New York tabloids". She has appeared in several magazines, including ''Elle'', the April 2004 issue of ''Maxim'' and the October 2005 cover of ''Stuff''.

Hilton started to act by doing cameo appeareances in films such as ''Zoolander'' (2001). However the next year, 2002, she was one of the leads in the straight-to-video horror movie ''Nine Lives''. The film did well in sales. ''Beyondhollywood.com'' felt that "Hilton’s presence in the cast is the film’s main marketing point, which is plainly obvious by the fact that she’s front and center on the box art and is the only recognizable name in the cast" and also noted that her character was basically herself: "Hilton plays — what else? — a spoiled American socialite who shops on three continents in one day. The script is even clever enough to take a few jabs at Hilton’s real-life social standing, even mentioning that she’s been on the cover of a few sleaze rags in her day".

Hilton's breakout role came in 2003, when she co-starred with socialite counterpart Nicole Richie in the Fox reality series ''The Simple Life'', which premiered on December 2, 2003, shortly after Hilton's sex tape was released. The show started airing to surprisingly well received ratings; the premiere episode drew 13,000,000 viewers, increasing Fox's Adults 18-49 rating a phenomenal 79%. The second episode drew 13,300,000 million viewers, an increase of 300,000 viewers over its premiere. In an interview, she talked about the show appeal and went on to say "everyone likes it because it's for all ages. People from the city will be like, 'Oh my God, I cannot believe you did that,' and people from the country think it's funny because they do it every day."

In the autumn of 2004, Hilton released an autobiographical book, ''Confessions of an Heiress: A Tongue-in-Chic Peek Behind the Pose'', co-written by Merle Ginsberg, which includes full color photographs of her and her advice on life as an heiress. She mentioned in the book she was looking for a simpler life: "I don't always want the glamorous, jet-set life," she wrote. "Someday soon, I want to have children and a big house with a lot of animals – like my parents had". Hilton reportedly received a $100,000 advance payment for this book. Some in the media panned the writing as amateurish, and the book was parodied by Robert Mundell on ''The Late Show with David Letterman''. The book was in the ''New York Times'' bestseller list, ranking at seven. The quote "Dress cute wherever you go; life is too short to blend in", which appeared in the book was added to The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations in September 2009. Hilton followed her book up with a designer diary, also with Ginsberg, called ''Your Heiress Diary: Confess It All to Me''.

After Hilton hosted ''Saturday Night Live'' with musical guest Keane in February 2005, she got her first major role in the horror thriller film ''House of Wax'', in which Elisha Cuthbert and Chad Michael Murray also starred. The movie, after being first screened at the Tribeca Film Festival, opened in May 2005, receiving mixed reviews. She stated on participating in the film: "I thought it would be a fun character to play and a cool movie to do," and described how her character was like, "I think Paige is like a small town girl. She's sort of like me, but not really. She was more shy, more insecure, and she, like, cared so much about this guy, and she thought like she was, like, scared he wasn't going to marry her and things like that." Critics, after the movie release, reacted with mixed reviews, mainly positive on Hilton portrayal; Matthew Turner for the ''View London'' said that Hilton "does better than you might expect". Also, ''MTV'' felt that she gave a good enough performance: "Paris Hilton is actually pretty good — she seems natural, at ease. She can be sweet and appealing, she can be sexy (no stretch), and she can be a good sport, too. Her role as Paige Edwards won the Teen Choice Award for "Best Scream" and earned her a nomination for "Choice Breakout Performance  – Female". (It also won her the 2005 Razzie for "Worst Supporting Actress" at the 2005 Golden Raspberry Awards.) She also earned a nomination for "Best Frightened Performance" at the 2006 MTV Movie Awards. ''Hose of Wax'' had a budget of $40,000,000 and grossed $75,000,000.

''The Simple Life'', which ran for three seasons on FOX, was cancelled after a dispute between Hilton and Richie in 2005. Hilton commented: "It's no big secret that Nicole and I are no longer friends. Nicole knows what she did, and that's all I'm ever going to say about it." Neither Richie nor Hilton spoke publicly about the cause of the split, though it was speculated that the pair fell out due to Nicole showing one of Paris' homemade sex tapes to a group of their friends. They relinked their friendship in October 2006.

After Hilton founded Heiress Records, a sub-label of Warner Bros. Records, in 2004, she released her self-titled debut album, ''Paris'', under the label on August 22, 2006. Although the album reached number six on the ''Billboard'' 200 for a week, its total sales volume has been low – but the first single "Stars Are Blind" was a top ten hit in 17 countries. "I have always had a voice and always known I could sing, but I was too shy to let it come out. I think that is the hardest thing you can do, to sing in front of people. When I finally let go and did it, I realized it is what I am most talented at and what I love to do the most," she said in an interview, expressing her passion for music. ''Allmusic'' commented that the album was "more fun than anything released by Britney Spears or Jessica Simpson, and a lot fresher, too." ''Billboard'' magazine described it as "an enjoyable pop romp". As a whole, critical reception was mixed.

The straight-to-DVD motion picture ''Bottoms Up'' was released in late 2006. The film came out with negative reviews; Australia's ''Urban Cinefile'' remarked that Hilton, as the lead role, "spends most of her screen time flicking her hair as she delivers lines like 'books are those things you read'".

In December 2006, ''Pledge This!'', film in which Hilton appeared and produced, premiered in a limited release before going directly to video. She missed the premiere of the movie at the Cannes Film Festival in protest to the addition of some nude scenes that were going to be included in the film. Hilton said, "I was so angry I snubbed my own premiere." In August 2008, Worldwide Entertainment Group Inc. sued Hilton in the Miami District Court, alleging she did not honor her contractual agreement to provide "reasonable promotion and publicity" for the film. It was reported she was paid $1,000,000 for her work.

Ater ''The Simple Life'' was cancelled by FOX in 2005, it was subsequently aired by E! Entertainment Television for the fourth and fifth seasons. There were some complications to shoot the fifth season because of the arrests of both Hilton and co-star Richie in 2006. Despite talks of a sixth season, the series finished its run at the end of the fifth season. The show brought high ratings for the network. In that year, Hilton modeled for 2 be free.

Worldwide TV career (2008–2011)

Hilton played the character of Amber Sweet, the surgery- and painkiller-addicted daughter of a biotech magnate in the goth/rock musical with a cult film following, ''Repo! The Genetic Opera''. Hilton earned acclaim for her performance which was found as "subtle" by some critics. In an interview director Darren Lynn Bousman revealed that he had originally refused to audition Hilton for the role of Amber Sweet. "I broke down," says Bousman, "and I met with her, and immediately she charmed everyone in the room." In the same interview, Bousman also revealed that Hilton was so keen to get the part that she had the script smuggled in to her during her much publicized stint in a Los Angeles jail, and used her time inside to work on her role. Hilton also can be heard singing for the soundtrack for the film. Director Bousman praised her vocal skills. When talking about Hiltons' vocal audition process for the role, he said, "We gave her some music and said, 'You have one day to come back and perform this.' She came back the next day, memorized everything, was pitch-perfect, I mean she was awesome". She remarked that she had to work hard for the role, which was basically different from what she had done at the time: "Just getting a role like this offered to me was new to me because I always get offered a certain role just basically playing myself. So, being able to be completely different from that and just show everyone that I can do much more than people have given me to do. And, just a lot of training, from my album, it's completely different this music, so I had to get a whole new voice coach and train to do this. It was a long, hard process but I worked really hard and I was so proud when I got it, so excited." The film, first screened at the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con International, received a limited release in the United States and Canada on November 7, 2008.

In April 2008, she guest starred on the ''My Name is Earl'' episode "I Won't Die with a Little Help from My Friends". Hilton starred in an MTV reality series titled ''Paris Hilton's My New BFF'', about her search for a new best friend. The series premiered on September 30, 2008. That day, Hilton released her song "My BFF" on KIIS-FM with host Ryan Seacrest. It was the theme song for the ''BFF'' show . The series proved to be a hit, by being watched in its premiere episode by 1,200,000 viewers and averaged a 1.6 rating among spectators 12-34 in its Tuesday 10 p.m slot, topping all other cable shows in the hour.

Hilton had originally endorsed then-Senator Hillary Clinton for President during the Democratic primaries, but upon Clinton's loss of the nomination, Hilton decided that she was not going to vote at all in the 2008 United States Presidential election. However, on August 6, 2008, Hilton appeared in a one minute fifty second long video online, ''Paris Hilton Responds to McCain Ad'', directed by Adam McKay and posted on the Funny or Die website. The video featured Hilton in a parody advertisement, and was made in response to a television campaign advert ''Celeb'', by the 2008 John McCain presidential campaign. In ''Celeb'', McCain briefly compared his rival Barack Obama to that of celebrities such as Hilton and Britney Spears, going on to question his readiness to lead and criticize his energy policy. In what ''The Washington Post'' opined "might just be her best acting role yet," Hilton appears in the video wearing a leopard print swimsuit. The video received seven million views in two days garnering worldwide press coverage, and drew both written and verbal media response from both campaigns. Continuing the spoof campaign, in October Hilton featured in a second parody video posted on ''Funny or Die'', the two minute twenty second long ''Paris Hilton Gets Presidential with Martin Sheen'', alongside Hollywood actor Martin Sheen, with his son, actor Charlie Sheen, appearing in a cameo role. Hilton, heavily made up and in a green evening dress, interviews Martin Sheen in a kitchen, discussing various political issues, seeking his advice from his days playing a fictional President on ''The West Wing''.

Hilton stated that she finished working on the album. A second song "Paris For President" was released along with a music video late October 2008.

For her second studio album, she had confirmed six tracks: "Jailhouse Baby", "Platinum Blonde", "Crave" and "My BFF", "Paris For President", and "Girl Tax", "My BFF" and "Paris For President" were released in 2008 as the first two singles. In November 2008, Hilton talked with ''Entertainment Weekly'' backstage at the American Music Awards and she told them that she has finished her second album, and "wrote all the songs". The album is featuring production by Mike Green who worked with the bands Paramore and The Matches. In December 2008, she was looking for a label to release her album, she told ''Entertainment Weekly''. "I'm not sure which label I'm doing it with," she said. "I'm figuring it out right now." Later that month she stated her intention to release her album under her own record label Heiress Records.

As a result of the American version success, on January 29, 2009, ''Paris Hilton's British Best Friend'', a spin-off, began airing on ITV2 in England. She began to film the show in October 2008. She said that she would not leave London until she could "find that amazing girl or guy who can meet the challenges of being" her "British bestie". She also felt that her friend had to be "hot", "can keep up" with her – it had to be somebody who "is real and won't be a backstabber". The show did quite well; it was watched by 428,000 viewers in its first episode and brought 605,000 viewers for its finale. The second season of ''Paris Hilton's My New BFF'' premiered on June 2, 2009. In that same month, Hilton shot ''Paris Hilton's Dubai BFF''. Runner-up of the British series Kat McKenzie died on July 3, 2009, of a suspected overdose. Hilton guest-starred in the fifth episode of ''Supernatural'''s fifth season. "Paris Hilton is playing a demonic creature that takes the form of ... Paris Hilton," creator and executive producer Eric Kripke said in a statement. "It'll be a fun, irreverent episode and we here at ''Supernatural'' are thrilled that Paris agreed to do it."

Later, Hilton provided her voice for the character of Bella in the ABC family film ''The Dog Who Saved Christmas Vacation'' (it is her first voice-over role). She said of the film: "I just think it's a really cute film" and that "I love animal movies, I love Christmas movies, and also, my grandmother, who passed away a couple of years ago from breast cancer, actually had a standard poodle and her name was Paris. So when I'm watching this, it's kind of like watching grandma's dog. It's kind of like a sign to me." The film aired on November 28, 2010. attracted good ratings with 2.611 million viewers. On October 1, 2010, the Oxygen Channel gave the go-ahead to a new reality show called ''The World According to Paris''. The show followed Hilton in her daily life, and premiered in June 1, 2011 to 409,000 viewers. The fact of attracting low ratings for the first episode led the media to surmise Hilton had became irrelevant and even during an interview with ABC News' Dan Harris, she walked out after being asked if she was worried about her moment having past. She also modeled for Brazil fashion week in 2010 and 2011 In São Paulo, Brazil. She also modeled during Ukraine Fashion week 2011 for designer Andre Tan.

Upcoming projects (2012–present)

In September 2011, at the Sun City music festival, Afrojack previewed ''Good Time'', an unfinished demo with Hilton's vocals. In the same month, DJ Antoine revealed that he had met with Hilton twice to discuss collaborating on her upcoming album. In October, Manufactured Superstars revealed that their next single would be "Drunk Text", which stars Hilton in the music video. The video was leaked on February 23, 2012, and there were many speculations from media outlets, stating that the single was going to be part of Hilton's upcoming album. Later, her spokesperson said that "we can confirm that the video leaked today is not part of Paris Hilton’s new album. This video was recorded over a year ago. The first single will be out in a few months, we will let everyone know when it’s due for release."

In January 2012, at the 69th Golden Globe Awards After Party, she stated she was going to appear in Darren Lynn Bousman's horror film ''Devil's Carnival'', remarking that the film was a musical. In an interview with the director, he admitted that although considering Hilton for a role in the film, he felt that "there just wasn't anything in there that was perfect for her". He told, however, he will work with Hilton in the future. In March 2012, it was reported that she will appear as herself in Sofia Coppola's ''The Bling Ring'', a film about a group of teenagers who robbed the houses of celebrities such as Hilton, Lindsay Lohan and Orlando Bloom between 2008 and 2009 and is scheduled to be released in 2013.

In the January 2012 issue of ''FHM'' magazine, Hilton gave an update about her second studio album, stating: "I've been working on the album with lots of other top DJs for a while now and I think people will be really surprised. It's very modern and very catchy; perfect party music". "There are just so many great DJs right now, and I should know – I've been to over 100 raves in the past year, so I've heard every type of music," Hilton also told the magazine. She has since told MTV News "I was just in the studio with RedFoo the other night, so we're going to be doing my new single with LMFAO," and continued to say "I'm going with a whole new genre. I have Afrojack executive-producing the entire album. So we've just been coming up with the most incredible tracks." She also stated that she is working with Snoop Dogg and Flo Rida. Her single was debuted by Afrojack at the Ultra Music Festival on March 23, 2012, she wrote that she felt really "proud, excited and happy".

Celebrity status

She denied proclaiming herself as the "iconic blonde of the decade" such as Diana, Princess of Wales, and Marilyn Monroe in the May 2007 issue of ''Harper's Bazaar''. She appeared in the 2007 ''Guinness World Records'' as the world's "Most Overrated Celebrity". In a poll conducted by the Associated Press and AOL, Hilton was voted the second "Worst Celebrity Role Model of 2006", behind Britney Spears.

Critics suggest that Hilton epitomizes the title of famous for being famous; since her beginnings in the industry, she has attracted massive media attention for her controversial lifestyle, her arrests, her high profiled relationships and her party girl image. In the time her reality show ''The Simple Life'' was broadcasted, she became a daily fixture in tabloids and there was a point where ''New York Daily News'' gossip columnist Lloyd Grove banned her from his page and the Associated Press conducted what they called an experiment in February 2007, trying not to report on Hilton for a whole week. According to a 2011 poll conducted by Ipsos, Hilton is the most unpopular celebrity among Americans, with 60% of the responders having an unfavorable opinion on her. Hilton has often appeared in FHM's 100 Sexiest Women poll, ranking at number thirty four in 2006, twenty three in 2005 and fifity nine in 2004. She was named one of the "100 Hottest Women of All-Time" by ''Men's Health''.

Business ventures

Fashion lines

Hilton launched a lifestyle brand in 2004. She helped design a collection of purses for Japanese label Samantha Thavasa. The 10-piece line collection, a jewelry line designed by Hilton, started being on sale on Amazon.com. "I grew up surrounded by the finest fashion and jewelry designs, and I really wanted to create a line that was beautiful and very high quality, yet affordable and available to everyone," Hilton stated. "This jewelry is for the heiress in everyone." The line was described as "inspired by Hilton's personal style – feminine, flirtatious and glamorous – with heart, star and cross motifs." Her signature brand includes 17 different products lines such as t-shirts, shoes, fragrances, handbags and watches. Hilton's love for dogs led her to create an apparel line for dogs called Little Lily by Paris Hilton, with some of the proceeds going to benefit animal rescue. "I have 17 dogs and I like to dress them, so I started designing this clothing line and it's really cute, like dresses and jeans — everything you can imagine for humans, but for dogs," she said in an interview during Super Bowl XLII festivities.

In January 2007, Hilton released the DreamCatchers line of hair extensions in partnership with Hair Tech International. In early August 2007, Hilton signed a licensing agreement with Antebi for a signature footwear line, "Paris Hilton Footwear", featuring stilettos, platforms, flats, wedges, and a sports collection, expected to reach stores in 2008. In mid August 2007, Hilton launched a line of tops, dresses, coats, and jeans at the Kitson Boutique in Los Angeles. She felt the event was "a dream come true" and described the clothing line as " fun, bright and flashy".

Hilton has several stores which sell clothing and perfume from her various collections. Rhere are locations in Manchester, United Kindom, Seol, South Korea and Dubai. In early 2011, Hilton opened up her third store in the Philippines. Also in that year, a Paris Hilton brand store was opened in India with plans to open 8 more stores. In February 2012, she launched a new line of sunglesses in Shanghai. The launch was a "huge success", she said. As of March 2012, there are 55 Paris Hilton Stores worldwide.

Products and endorsements

In 2004, Hilton was involved in the creation of a perfume line by Parlux Fragrances. Originally set to be a small release, high demand led to a wider release before December 2004. The launch was followed by a 47% increase in sales of Parlux products, predominantly due to sales of the Hilton-branded perfume. After the success of Hilton's perfume, Parlux Fragrances released several more perfumes with her name, including fragrances for men. Hilton launched a new fragrance in October 2007, called ''Can Can''. This is her fourth women's fragrance after ''Paris Hilton'', ''Just Me'', and ''Heiress''. During the month of November 2008, Hilton released her fifth fragrance for women called, ''Fairy Dust''. In July 2009, her sixth fragrance for women ''Siren'' was launched. Hilton launched her 10th fragrance, ''Tease'' inspired by Marilyn Monroe, in 2010. Hilton launched a new collection of fragrances called the Passport collection. The perfumes are inspired by popular cities such as Paris, France; South Beach, Florida; and Tokyo, Japan. Hilton's fragrances were made in collaboration with perfumers Jean-Claude Delville, Mane USA, Steve Demercado, Jean-Louis Grauby, James Krivda and Honorine Blanc. She said during an interview with British ''FHM'' that her fragrances have grossed over $ 1.4 billion in revenue since 2005.

In December 2007, Hilton posed nude, covered in gold paint, to promote "Rich Prosecco", a canned version of an Italian sparkling wine. She also traveled to Germany to promote the drink, appearing in various print ads for the product.

In February 2010, Hilton participated in an advertising campaign for the launch of the Brazilian beer Devassa Bem Loura, whose slogan in English roughly translates to "very blonde bitch". As part of the campaign, Hilton joined the brewery's float in the carnival of Rio de Janeiro. Despite the buzz caused by Hilton in Rio de Janeiro, Devassa beer had captured just 0.2% of the market at the end of 2010.

Different launches and designing

In 2005, Hilton lent her name to a chain of nightclubs owned by Fred Khalilian and known as ''Club Paris''. This association ended in January 2007 after she had failed to attend several scheduled promotional appearances.

In 2010 Hilton launched her own motorcycle team. "I can't believe I have my own racing team! So cool! :)" Hilton wrote on her Twitter while at the launch. The team, whose colors are pink, white and blue, will compete in the MotoGP 125cc category from 2011-2013. In 2011, Hilton was named "Billion Dollar Entrepreneur" by ''Variety'' magazine and was featured on the cover. Also In 2011, Hilton joined Century Properties to design part of its Azure Urban Resort Residences in the Philippines. She said she will be opening a beach club in 2012: "The first one is opening in the Philippines soon. It's going to have nightclubs, restaurants, bars, gyms. Everything really".

Charity

In addition to her work as an actress, singer and businesswoman, she has also helped with some humanitarian organizations. In June 2008, she donated money to the construction of a medical building at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. She stated that "The children I have met through my involvement with Children’s Hospital Los Angeles have truly touched my heart. I am proud to make a donation and lend my name to the fundraising effort to help children who are facing terribly serious illnesses. The fabulous new hospital facilities at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles will provide a caring, healing environment for children and their families for many years to come." In 2010, Hilton was named as ambassador for a new initiative from the USO that aims to give a MP3 player to all US active service troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

She received the Heart of Gold Award by the Starlight Children's Foundation for her philanthropy efforts on March 26, 2011. After the ceremony, she wrote through Twitter that "These families and their children go through so much and my heart and prayers are with them. It's such an amazing feeling to give back and make a difference in someone's life. I am so honoured to be a part of such an amazing cause." She participated, alongside Fergie and husband Josh Duhamel, in the run that raised money for the people affected by the Japan Earthquake. Recently, she got involved with My Hope for Children.

Personal life

Hilton loves small dogs, and lives with a Yorkshire Terrier and a female Chihuahua named Tinkerbell among many other pets. Hilton is frequently seen carrying Tinkerbell (dubbed an "accessory dog") at social events and functions, and in all five seasons of television reality show ''The Simple Life''. In 2004, Tinkerbell "authored" a memoir, ''The Tinkerbell Hilton Diaries''. On August 12, 2004, Tinkerbell went missing after Hilton's apartment was burgled, and a $5,000 reward was offered for her safe return. She was found six days later. By December 1, 2004, Tinkerbell was again spotted with Hilton at various events. Hilton has also purchased a male Chihuahua on July 25, 2007, from Pets of Bel Air in Los Angeles. Hilton's love for her dogs led to the rumor that she wanted to be frozen with them at the Cryonics Institute, but Hilton denied the rumor on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''.

On January 22, 2007, Hilton's private life was thrust into the media spotlight with the launch of ParisExposed.com, a website that features images of personal documents, video, and other material allegedly obtained when the contents of a storage locker rented by Hilton was auctioned off due to lack of a $208 payment. The website began charging online access to this material and received 1.2 million visitors in just over 40 hours. Among the contents were medications, diaries, photographs, contracts and love letters, as well as a video of her shot by Joe Francis of Girls Gone Wild. On February 3, 2007, Hilton obtained a temporary injunction against ParisExposed.com, closing down the website. On February 5, 2007, CNN's ''Anderson Cooper 360'' discussed footage obtained from the ParisExposed.com website which features Hilton using the ethnic slurs "niggers", "chink", "Jappy" and the derogatory term "faggot".

Relationships

Hilton was engaged to fashion model Jason Shaw from mid-2002 to early 2003. In 2003–2004 she had a relationship with singer Nick Carter. Later she was engaged to Greek shipping heir Paris Latsis, from May 29, 2005, to November 2005. Thereafter, she began dating another Greek shipping heir, Stavros Niarchos III, before breaking up in May 2006. In early 2008, she was spotted with Good Charlotte guitarist Benji Madden and in May, Hilton announced her intention to marry Madden during an interview with television talk-show host David Letterman. The two broke up in November 2008, and "remain very good friends". She began dating ''The Hills'' star Doug Reinhardt in February 2009; Hilton has also referred to her intention to marry Reinhardt, saying "He's gonna be my husband." The couple broke up in June 2009, only to get back together again in August of the same year. On April 13, 2010, Hilton reportedly split from Reinhardt because she was worried he was just using her to further his career. Shortly after splitting from Reinhardt, Hilton started dating Cy Waits, entrepreneur and co-owner of Tryst Nightclub and XS Nightclub in Las Vegas. Hilton expressed that she would like to marry Cy, stating: "“I can see myself marrying him. We are so happy!”. In late June 2011, Hilton revealed that the couple had split up and remained close friends.

As of March 2012, Paris Hilton is in a relationship with Dutch-Surinamese DJ Afrojack.

Legal troubles

Hilton was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol with a blood alcohol content of 0.08%, the level at which it is illegal to drive in California. The arrest complicated the shooting of the fifth season of series. Hilton's driving license was subsequently suspended in November 2006, and in January 2007 she pleaded no contest to a reckless driving charge. Her punishment was 36 months' probation and fines of about $1,500. On January 15, 2007, Hilton was pulled over for driving with a suspended license and signed a document acknowledging that she was not permitted to drive. The next month, Hilton was caught driving 70 mph in a 35 mph zone, again with a suspended license. She also did not have her headlights on even though it was after dark. Prosecutors in the office of the Los Angeles City Attorney charged that those actions, along with the failure to enroll in a court-ordered alcohol education program, constituted a violation of the terms of her probation.

On May 4, 2007, Hilton was sentenced by Judge Michael T. Sauer to 45 days in jail for violating her probation. Initially, Hilton planned to appeal the sentence, and supported an online petition asking California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for a pardon. The petition was created and organized on May 5, 2007, by Joshua Morales. In response, various opponents started a counter-petition to maintain the sentence. Both petitions attracted tens of thousands of signatures. Hilton later switched lawyers and dropped her plans to appeal.

Hilton was required to begin her jail term on June 5, 2007, and checked herself into the Century Regional Detention Facility, an all-female jail in Lynwood, California after attending the 2007 MTV Movie Awards on June 3, 2007. However Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca signed orders on June 7, reassigning Hilton to 40 days of home confinement with an electronic monitoring device due to an unspecified medical condition. Baca commented on the release saying, "My message to those who don't like celebrities is that punishing celebrities more than the average American is not justice," contesting that under normal circumstances, Hilton would not have served any time in jail, and he added that "The special treatment, in a sense, appears to be because of her celebrity status ... She got more time in jail". On the same day that Hilton was released from jail, Judge Michael Sauer summoned her to reappear in court the following morning (June 8) as the sentencing statement had explicitly said she would serve time in jail with "No work furlough. No work release. No electronic monitoring." At the hearing he declined to be briefed by Hilton's attorney in private chambers on the nature of her condition and sent her back to jail to serve out her original 45-day sentence. Upon hearing the sentence, Hilton shouted, "It's not right!" and started screaming, requesting to hug her mother who was present in the courtroom. Concern about Hilton's condition led to her being moved to the medical wing of the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in Los Angeles, and she was moved back to the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood on June 13.

While in jail, Hilton was influenced by the clergyman minister Marty Angelo: Hilton referred to starting a "new beginning" during her interview with talk show host Larry King on June 28, 2007, two days after being released from jail, and quoted from Angelo's autobiography, entitled ''Once Life Matters: A New Beginning''. On June 9, 2007, Marty Angelo petitioned Sauer, asking to serve out the remainder of Hilton's jail sentence if the judge would release her to an alternative treatment program, but the petition was turned down. On the same show, she revealed taking Adderall for ADHD since childhood.

On July 2, 2010, Hilton was accused of smoking marijuana at the 2010 FIFA World Cup game between Brazil and the Netherlands. She was escorted from the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium by local police, however the case was later dismissed for unknown reasons. Hilton's publicist, Dawn Miller, stated "I can confirm that the incident was a complete misunderstanding and it was actually another person in the group who did it". Two weeks later, Hilton was detained and released after being caught in possession of cannabis at Figari airport, Corsica.

On August 28, 2010, she was arrested on suspicion of cocaine possession in Las Vegas while her boyfriend, Cy Waits, was booked on charges of driving under the influence. Initially her defence claimed that the handbag containing 0.8g of cocaine was not hers as "This purse in question was a high street brand – and by no means up to her high fashion standards.". Later she claimed some of the personal items (like cash and credit cards) from the bag acknowledging it was hers.

In order to avoid being convicted on felony, Hilton pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors on September 17, 2010. Under the terms of the plea bargain, she was sentenced to one year probation, 200 hours community service, $2,000 fine and ordered to complete a drug abuse program. Clark County District Attorney David Roger said that: "If she is arrested for anything besides a minor traffic violation she will spend a year in jail. There will be no discussion. The court will have no discretion."

On September 21, 2010, while travelling to a press conference in Tokyo to promote fashion and fragrance lines, Hilton and her sister Nicky were stopped by immigration officers at Narita Airport, Japan because of Hilton's conviction for drug possession a day earlier. Under Japan's strict anti-drug laws, all people sentenced for any drug crime are in general denied entry. Narita officials questioned Hilton "for hours" and Hilton and her sister were forced to sleep over at the airport-hotel. On September 22, Japanese authorities decided not to grant Hilton entry into the country and she was put on a plane back to the U.S. the same day. Other stops on their Asian promotion tour were cancelled, as countries like Indonesia and Malaysia have even tougher anti-drug laws.

Heiress

In December 2007, Hilton's grandfather, Barron Hilton, pledged 97 percent of his estate (the Hilton family fortune) to a charitable organization founded by his father, Conrad N. Hilton, the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. As a result, the inheritance of his grandchildren is sharply diminished. An immediate pledge of $1.2 billion was made (the proceeds of the sale of Hilton Hotels Corporation), with a further $1.1 billion due after his death. He cited the actions of his father, Conrad N. Hilton, as the motivation for his pledge. Conrad, Barron's father, had left 97% of his estate to the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation and Barron subsequently contested his father's will to win back a sizeable amount of the Hilton family fortune in a settlement. By leaving his estate to the Foundation, Barron is donating not only the fortune he has amassed on his own, but he is also returning the Hilton family fortune amassed by his father, Conrad, to the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, where it would have gone over 30 years ago had Barron not contested his father's will. Barron said he is proud to follow his father's example.

Filmography

! Year	! Title	! Role	! Notes
1993	''Wishman''	Girl on Beach
2000	''Sweetie Pie''
2001	''Zoolander''	Herself	Cameo
2002		Jo
2002	''QIK2JDG''	Strung-out Supermodel
2003	''L.A. Knights''	Sadie
2003		Barbie	Cameo
2003	''''	Female Club-Goer	Cameo
2004	''Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!''	Heather
2004	''''	Heather Smith
2004	''Raising Helen''	Amber	Cameo role
2005		Paige Edwards	Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Scream SceneNominated—MTV Movie Award for Best Frightened PerformanceNominated—Choice Movie Breakout Performance – FemaleNominated—Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress
2006		Lisa Mancini
2006	''Pledge This!''	Victoria English
2008	''''	Cristabel Abbott	Golden Raspberry Award for Worst ActressGolden Raspberry Award for Worst Screen Couple
2008	''Repo! The Genetic Opera''	Amber Sweet	Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress
2008	''''	Herself
2013	''The Blind Ring''	Herself
2003–2007	''The Simple Life''	Herself
2004		Madison	TV series ("Things That Go Jump in the Night")
2004		Ashley	TV series ("Jason Tutors Max")
2004	''''	Kate	TV series ("The L.A.")
2004	''Veronica Mars''	Caitlin Ford	TV series ("Credit Where Credit's Due")
2005	''American Dreams''	Barbara Eden	TV series ("California Dreamin'")
2008	''My Name Is Earl''	Herself	TV series ("I Won't Die with a Little Help from My Friends")
2008–2009	''Paris Hilton's My New BFF''	Herself
2009	''Paris Hilton's British Best Friend''	Herself
2009	''Paris Hilton's Dubai BFF''	Herself
2009	''Rex''	Paris	TV film
2009			TV series ("Fallen Idols")
2010	''The Dog Who Saved Christmas Vacation''	Bella	TV film
2011	''The World According to Paris''	Herself	TV series

Bibliography

2004: ''Confessions of an Heiress: A Tongue-in-Chic Peek Behind the Pose'', ISBN 0-7432-6664-1

2005: ''Your Heiress Diary: Confess It All to Me'', ISBN 0-7432-8714-2

Discography

2006: ''Paris''

References

External links

Category:1981 births Category:Living people Category:21st-century actors Category:21st-century women writers Category:Actors from New York City Category:American dance musicians Category:American female models Category:American female singers Category:American film actors Category:American memoirists Category:American pop singers Category:American Roman Catholics Category:American socialites Category:American television actors Category:American women in business Category:American people of Norwegian descent Category:American musicians of German descent Category:Participants in American reality television series Category:People convicted of drug offenses Category:Warner Bros. Records artists

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name	Tommy Chong
birth name	Thomas B. Kin Chong
birth date	May 24, 1938
birth place	Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
years active	early 1960s–present
occupation	Actor, comedian, musician }}

Thomas B. Kin "Tommy" Chong (born May 24, 1938) is a Canadian-American comedian, actor, writer, director, activist, and musician who is well known for his stereotypical portrayals of hippie-era stoners. He is most widely known for his involvement in the marijuana-themed Cheech & Chong comedy movies with Cheech Marin, as well as playing the character Leo on Fox's ''That '70s Show''.

Early life

Chong was born as Thomas B. Kin Chong in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, the son of Lorna Jean (née Gilchrist), a waitress of Scots-Irish and French ancestry, and Stanley Chong, a Chinese truck driver who emigrated to Canada from Guangdong province, China in the 1920s, where he first lived with his aunt in Vancouver. While he was still young, Chong's family moved to Calgary, Alberta to a conservative neighbourhood Chong refers to as the ''Dog Patch''. He says that his father had "been wounded in World War II, and there was a veterans' hospital in Calgary. He bought a five-hundred dollar house in Dog Patch, and raised his family on fifty dollars a week." He later dropped out of Crescent Heights High School in Calgary, Alberta. “I dropped out of Crescent Heights High School when I was 16 but probably just before they were going to throw me out anyway,” Chong laughs as he reminisces about his early years. “I played guitar to make money. I was about 16 when I discovered that music could get you laid, even if you were a scrawny, long-haired, geeky-looking guy like me.”

Early career

Entertainment

By the early 1960s, Chong was playing guitar for a Calgary soul group called The Shades. The Shades moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, where the band's name changed to "Little Daddy & The Bachelors". They recorded a single, "Too Much Monkey Business" / "Junior's Jerk". Together with bandmember Bobby Taylor, Chong opened a Vancouver nightclub in 1963 called the Blue Balls, formerly the Alma Theatre. They brought in the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, which had never been to Vancouver before. Although Little Daddy & The Bachelors built up a small following, things soured when they went with Chong's suggestion and had themselves billed as "Four Niggers and a Chink". (or, bowing to pressure, "Four N's and a C") before taking on the moniker Bobby Taylor & the Vancouvers.

In 1965, the Vancouvers signed with Gordy Records (a subsidiary of Detroit, Michigan's Motown Records) and recorded its debut album, an eponymous release, and their debut single, the Tommy Chong co-composition "Does Your Mama Know About Me," peaked at number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100. While on tour in Chicago for a short time, the band followed opening act The Jackson 5. Chong later referred to the young Michael Jackson as a "cute little guy". After the band released two further singles, Tommy Chong and Wes Henderson were fired by Clark and Motown producer Johnny Bristol for missing a gig to apply for Green cards. The group broke up shortly afterwards, when Chong attempted to have the Vancouvers' contract halved, so that he, Taylor, and Henderson would constitute the group, while other members would simply be regarded as sidemen and session artists.

Cheech & Chong

Tommy Chong directed four of their films, while co-writing and starring in all seven with Cheech Marin.

Later career

Cheech & Chong, while a very successful comedy act, experienced creative differences and split in 1985. This was devastating to Chong. To him, Cheech Marin was "closer than a wife. The only thing we didn't do was have sex." Of their split, he says, "It was like a death in the family. I don't know if I'll ever get over it". Chong was a recurring character and later a regular character as the hippie "Leo" during the second, third, fourth, seventh, and eighth seasons of ''That '70s Show''. He also played a role as a hippie in ''Dharma and Greg''.

In a 2001 episode of ''That '70s Show'', "Canadian Road Trip", Chong gave tribute to his home country by joining in a spirited rendition of ''O Canada'' along with the teenage cast and two Canadian border patrol guards (Joe Flaherty and Dave Thomas).

Chong was originally going to voice the character of Shenzi the hyena in the Disney film The Lion King, which would have had him performing once more with Cheech Marin, who voiced Banzai. (The Shenzi character was later changed to be female, and voiced instead by Whoopi Goldberg.)

In September 2005 ''a/k/a Tommy Chong'' premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. The documentary, produced, written and directed by Josh Gilbert, chronicles Chong's comedic and personal history, and his prosecution by the Justice Department. The project features interviews with Cheech Marin, Bill Maher, George Thorogood, Peter Coyote, Lou Adler, Eric Schlosser and Jay Leno.

In 2011 he appeared in an ironic role as a Judge in an episode of ''Franklin & Bash'', who took an extremely strict position on a marijuana holder.

Personal life

Chong was married to his first wife, Maxine Sneed, from 1960 until their divorce in 1970, with whom he had two daughters, Robbi and Rae Dawn. He married his second wife Shelby Fiddis in 1975. He has three children with her, sons Paris and Gilbran, and a daughter, Precious Chong. He is also the adoptive father of actor Marcus Chong.

Robbi, Rae Dawn, Marcus and Precious have pursued careers in acting. In the late 1980s, Chong became a naturalized citizen of the United States.

Chong is a marijuana activist and is a supporter of marijuana legalization and medical use of marijuana. He is a regular contributor to Cannabis Culture Magazine and sits on the NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws) advisory board.

Legal troubles

''US vs. Chong''

In 2003, Chong was targeted by two American investigations code-named Operation Pipe Dreams and Operation Headhunter, which sought out businesses selling drug paraphernalia, mostly bongs. Operation Pipe Dream was run from Pittsburgh. US Attorney for Western Pennsylvania, Mary Beth Buchanan oversaw the case. The estimated cost of Operation Pipe Dream was over $12 million and included the resources of 2,000 law enforcement officers.

Chong was charged for his part in financing and promoting Chong Glass/Nice Dreams, a company started by his son Paris. Chong’s case never went to trial; instead Chong accepted a plea agreement with the United States Attorney for Western Pennsylvania's Office in which he admitted to distributing 7,500 bongs and water pipes on the Internet through Nice Dreams, a family company that was named for one of his movies. Chong agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute drug paraphernalia in exchange for non-prosecution of his wife, Shelby, and his son, Paris. Chong fully cooperated with the government and was the first of the Operation Pipe Dreams defendants to plead guilty.

At Chong’s sentencing, Assistant U.S. Attorney for Western Pennsylvania, Mary McKeen Houghton stated in her sentencing arguments that Tommy Chong "used his public image to promote this crime" and marketed his products to children. U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan also was present at the sentencing in Pittsburgh and released a statement to the press stating, "there are consequences for violating the law, even if the violator is a well-known entertainer like Thomas Chong."

While Chong argued for community service and home detention at his sentencing, the district judge, Arthur J. Schwab, denied his requests and sentenced him to 9 months in federal prison, a fine of $20,000, forfeiture of $103,514, and the loss of all merchandise seized during the raid of his business. Chong served his sentence at the Taft Correctional Institution from October 8, 2003 to July 7, 2004.

The entire episode was chronicled in ''a/k/a Tommy Chong'', the 2006, award-winning documentary by Josh Gilbert. The documentary premiered theatrically at the New York Film Forum in New York City, in 2006.

Controversy

While government officials denied that Chong was treated any differently from the other defendants, many felt that he was made an example of by the government. The San Francisco Chronicle reported Chong's publicist Brandie Knight as saying the Chong family was shocked by the raid. "We've done everything the right way, and the government is saying there is no right way," Knight said. Soon afterwards, civil rights advocates started the Free Tommy Chong! movement that called for his release. The controversy over Chong’s prosecution centered on the rationale behind focusing on Tommy as opposed to his son, Paris, the disparity in sentences that Tommy Chong received compared to other defendants, and the tactics that the DEA used in carrying out the investigation.

Paris, Tommy’s son, had started Nice Dreams in 1999. At the time of the allegations in the indictment, Paris was the CEO of the company that was the center of the investigation. Paris was never charged with a crime in relation to the investigation. When asked why the government had focused on Tommy as opposed to the company’s CEO, Paris, US Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan responded that ''“Tommy Chong was the more responsible corporate officer because he financed and marketed the product.”''

Of the 55 people targeted in the investigation, Chong was the only one without previous convictions who received jail time. When questioned on the disparity between sentences/fines that the other 54 individuals received compared to Chong, US Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan stated, ''"He (Tommy Chong) wasn't the biggest supplier. He was a relatively new player, but he had the ability to market products like no other."''

In investigating the operations of Nice Dreams, federal agents posed as head-shop owners from Pittsburgh’s suburban Beaver County and pled with Paris to sell them his pipes through the mail to a fictitious shop in suburban Beaver Falls. Paris had set in place a company prohibition against selling to Pittsburgh or anywhere in Western Pennsylvania. The prohibition was put in place in response to the successful federal prosecution of Akhil Kumar Mishra and his wife, Rajeshwari, whose two head shops sold drug paraphernalia in the city’s downtown. To date, it is unclear how the prohibition was broken and there exist differing accounts as to who broke the company policy which resulted in the action that brought about the ability of the US Attorney to argue that jurisdiction for the crime rests in Pittsburgh opposed to California, the base of operations for Nice Dreams. Tommy Chong has stated publicly that it was a Federal Agent posing as an employee of his son's company who accepted and processed the order that resulted in the prosecution.

Aftermath

Since his release, Chong has been an avid critic of the case that has been brought against him. In December 2004, Chong was to appear in an off-Broadway show entitled ''The Marijuana-Logues'', a parody of Eve Ensler's ''The Vagina Monologues''. His legal concerns, including members of the audiences smoking marijuana, ultimately caused him to cancel the show. In 2006, Chong wrote a book about his experiences in jail and his interest in meditation, called ''The I Chong: Meditations from the Joint'' (ISBN 1-4169-1554-0).

In 2010, Chong appeared at a Democratic Party fundraiser in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where the United States Attorney who prosecuted him, Mary Beth Buchanan, was running for the United States House of Representatives as a Republican.

Seizure of a/k/a Tommy Chong DVDs

On May 7, 2008, federal agents raided Spectrum Labs in an investigation related to Spectrum Labs’ "detoxification" products. The raid, one of nine during the day, was part of Operation True Test, an investigation being led by the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, Mary Beth Buchanan. The investigation targeted companies that sell so-called "masking products" that are supposed to help drug-users pass employer drug tests. There is, however, no federal law barring such products; they are regulated on a state-by-state basis. Of the nine search warrants issued, none were for businesses within Buchanan's district.

According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, in executing their search warrant, the federal agents seized 8,000-10,000 copies of the yet-to-be released documentary, ''a/k/a Tommy Chong''. It has yet to be determined why the DVDs were seized during the raid. Furthermore, Chong has stated he has not been charged with any crime. In a statement released to the press, Chong stated "[The seizure of the DVDs is] a way to punish the distributor financially. There's no way to get the DVDs back until the investigation is over." Chong also stated that he has no ownership of the film, ''a/k/a Tommy Chong''.

In retraction of its original story, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette stated, "8,000 to 10,000 copies of a Tommy Chong documentary were not seized in the raid. Instead, an "undisclosed number of DVD was taken". The government is not required to disclose why the DVDs were taken as the raid was part of "an ongoing investigation". This story as originally published May 11, 2008 was amended."

Reuniting with Cheech

Chong has appeared with his long-time comedy partner, Cheech Marin, in a South Park episode called ''Cherokee Hair Tampons'', where they played fictional versions of themselves pretending to be Cherokee herbalists. In mid-2008, Cheech & Chong reunited and started touring. The tour is called "Light Up America and Canada" and "The Felimony Tour," which references the expenses both have recently incurred – Chong's losses related to his conviction for his involvement in his son's water pipe business, and Cheech's recent divorce and subsequent alimony payments. In October 2008, they appeared on The ''Opie and Anthony'' Show, ''The Howard Stern Show'' and The ''Ron and Fez'' Show on SIRIUS/XM Satellite Radio. On March 1, 2010, they hosted WWE Raw in Oklahoma City.

Filmography

TV Series

''PLAYBOY Comedy Roast for Tommy Chong'' (1986)

''Miami Vice'' (1986) - T.R. 'Jumbo' Collins

'' The George Carlin Show'' (1994) - Unknown

''Nash Bridges'' (1997) - Barry Chen

''Sliders'' (1997) - Van Elsinger

''That 70s Show'' (1999–2002), (2005–2006) - Leo

''Dharma & Greg'' (1999) - Carl

''South Park'' (2000) - Chief Running Pinto

''George Lopez'' (2007) - Mr. Gutierez

''Code Monkeys'' (2008) - Laird Boone

''Red Eye with Greg Gutfeld'' (Fox News Channel) - Himself

''MADtv'' (2009) - Himself

''Tosh.0'' (2009) - Himself

''WWE Raw'' (2010) - Himself (Guest Host)

''The Simpsons'' (2011) - Himself

'' Franklin and Bash'' (2011) - Judge Tommy Harper

Voices

''FernGully: The Last Rainforest'' (1992) - Root

''Scarface: The World Is Yours'' (2006) - pedestrian

''Code Monkeys'' (2008) - Laird Boony

''Hoodwinked 2: Hood vs. Evil'' (2011) - Stone

''Cheech & Chong's Animated Movie'' (2012)

Movies

''Up in Smoke'' (1978)... Anthony 'Man' Stoner

''Cheech & Chong's Next Movie'' (1980)... Chong

''Nice Dreams'' (1981)... Chong

''It Came from Hollywood'' (1982)... Himself

''Things Are Tough All Over'' (1982)... Chong/Prince Habib

''Still Smokin''' (1983)... Chong

''Yellowbeard'' (1983)... El Nebuloso

''Cheech & Chong's The Corsican Brothers'' (1984)... Corsican Brother

''Get Out of My Room'' (1985)... The Man

''After Hours'' (1985)... Pepe (as Chong)

''Tripwire'' (1990)... Merle Shine

''Far Out Man'' (1990)... Far Out Man

''The Spirit of '76'' (1990)... Stoner

''Life After Sex'' (1992)... awkward naked guy

''FernGully: The Last Rainforest'' (1992)... Root

''National Lampoon's Senior Trip'' (1995)... Red

''McHale's Navy'' (1997)... Armando/Ernesto

''Half Baked'' (1998)... Squirrel Master

''The Wash'' (2001)... Dee's Connection

''Best Buds'' (2003)... Tommy Chong/Carlos

''Secret Agent 420'' (2005)... QP

''Evil Bong'' (2006)... Jimbo Leary

''American Drug War: The Last White Hope'' (2007)... Himself

''The Union: The Business Behind Getting High (2007)... Himself

''Chinaman's Chance'' (2008)... Deputy Tom

''a/k/a Tommy Chong'' (2008 DVD Release)... Himself

''Cheech & Chong's Hey Watch This'' (Documentary film about their 2008–09 reunion tour) (2010)... Himself

''Up in Smoke 2'' (TBA)... Anthony 'Man' Stoner

References

External links

Chong's Bongs Gone Wrong A Newsweek article by Brian Braiker about Tommy Chong's various legal problems

HoboTrashcan's One on One with Tommy Chong An in-depth interview about politics, Cheech and Chong and Tommy's wife and kids

An Interview With Tommy Chong A Stumped? magazine article by Zach Freeman

Video interview with Tommy Chong on 'Connected Life'

Donald E. Wilkes, Jr., "Pot Pope Imprisoned." Published in Flagpole Magazine, p. 31 (December 20, 2006).

Category:1938 births Category:Living people Category:Actors from Alberta Category:American film actors Category:American television actors Category:American cannabis activists Category:Canadian actors of Asian descent Category:Canadian comedians Category:Canadian film actors Category:Canadian emigrants to the United States Category:Canadian people of Ulster-Scottish descent Category:Canadian voice actors Category:Canadian people of Chinese descent Category:American people of Chinese descent Category:American actors of Asian descent Category:Naturalized citizens of the United States Category:People convicted of drug offenses Category:People from Calgary

de:Tommy Chong fr:Tommy Chong no:Tommy Chong pl:Tommy Chong ru:Чонг, Томми sh:Tommy Chong fi:Tommy Chong sv:Tommy Chong

{{infobox character | colour	#BBDCFF |name Alexis Meade |image |caption Rebecca Romijn as Alexis Meade |portrayer Rebecca Romijn Elizabeth Penn Payne (As "Mystery Woman") |creator Silvio Horta, Marco Penette & Myra Jo Martino |first "Pilot (aka I Am Not Going To Sell Herbalux)" (episode 1.01)
last	"Betty Suarez Land" ''(episode 3.04)'' |gender Female |occupation Former CEO Meade PublicationsFormer Editor-in-Chief ''Hudson''Former Editor-in-Chief ''Mode'' |title Chairwoman and CEO |family Claire Meade (mother)Bradford Meade (father; deceased)Daniel Meade (brother)Tyler Meade-Hartley (maternal half-brother) |spouse |children Daniel Meade, Jr. |relatives |footnotes }}

Alexis Meade (born Alexander Spencer Meade) is a fictional character from the ABC dramedy series ''Ugly Betty''. She was initially played by Elizabeth Penn Payne (when she was listed in the credits as "Masked Lady") for the first 12 episodes of her appearance and was played by Rebecca Romijn for the rest of the series.

Biography

Alex Meade was a background presence in the series since its debut. The former editor-in-chief of ''Hudson'' magazine, he was believed dead by the world at large. His example as an editor was held over Daniel Meade's head by his father Bradford and his "death" cast a pall over the entire Meade family, contributing to his mother Claire's alcoholism. Alexis Meade appeared repeatedly since the first episode, swaddled in bandages. She had been conspiring with Wilhelmina Slater to take over ''MODE'' magazine from Daniel. She had also been actively trying to implicate Bradford in the death of former ''MODE'' editor-in-chief Fey Sommers. Dialogue between Alexis and Wilhelmina fueled speculation the mysterious bandaged woman was actually Sommers.

In the January 18, 2007 episode ''In or Out'' Daniel told Betty that Alex had been killed in a skiing accident. In the final moments of the episode, Wilhelmina told the mysterious bandaged woman, now out of her bandages, her "skiing accident" had done her a world of good, and called her "Alex Meade." The woman corrected Wilhelmina, advising her she was "Alexis" now.

Alexis attended Fashion Week in the episode ''I'm Coming Out''. After initially flirting with Daniel, she told him her true identity, explaining she had felt from a very young age that she was "in the wrong skin." This revelation put Daniel into a state of shock. Wilhelmina insinuated Alexis into the MODE "up and coming designers" fashion show. Following the show, Bradford began a speech but Alexis interrupted him, announcing her former identity as Alex moments before police arrested Bradford for the murder of Fey Sommers.

Following Bradford's arrest, Alexis moved to consolidate her control of Meade Publications and tried to install Wilhelmina as editor-in-chief of ''MODE'', but Daniel obtained an injunction to block her actions. At the instigation of Betty and their mother, Alexis and Daniel set aside their differences and formed a fragile ''détente''.

While Daniel always thought their father treated Alex like the golden child, Alexis informed him the real reason Bradford spent so much time taking part in characteristically masculine activities (the Boy Scouts and football games are mentioned) was to try to "cure" Alex's desire to be a woman. When Alex told his father he was going to undergo the sex change, his father said if he did, Alex would be cut off from the family forever and Bradford would rather have Alex dead. She also said the reason she didn't want to tell Daniel the truth was because she feared her brother "was just like Dad."

Alexis later had a change of heart about Daniel; when Wilhelmina reminded her he is the enemy and should be fired in favor of Wilhelmina as Editor-in-Chief, Alexis told her she wouldn't fire him because he was her brother. That statement resulted in Wilhelmina ending their partnership and endeavoring to drive a wedge into their sibling relationship.

Alexis was furious when she found out Daniel was having an affair with Grace Chin.

After Bradford was released from jail and had Alexis fired, Claire Meade, the actual legal owner of ''MODE'', appoints Daniel and Alexis as co-editors-in-chief in an effort to keep the Meade family from falling apart. But although Daniel makes some effort to share, it appears Alexis might still be trying to outdo Daniel even as they try to work together for the sake of the family. In the meantime, Wilhelmina bides her time and tries to sow chaos through fueling the siblings' enmity.

Alexis was also hampered by Bradford's scheme to get rid of her, who plotted with Wilhelmina to pay off Rodrigo Veloso, a creative director at sister publication "MODE Brasil", to get her out of the United States by having him romance Alexis after she falls for him. Alexis later found out about Rodrigo's deal after she picked up his phone and overheard the conversation, prompting Alexis to dump him. After this Alexis' hatred of her father grew, leading her to call a hired hitman to see about getting rid of someone "...in her life."

In the season one finale, an intoxicated Daniel stumbled into her office, his drug use out of control. As she was driving him to the hospital in their father's car, she realized the brakes had been cut and the car crashed. The season finale ended with them lying unconscious beside each other.

At the beginning of season two Alexis was in a coma, waking at the end of the season premiere with partial retrograde amnesia, not remembering the past two years or becoming a woman. A few episodes later, while attending a dinner hosted by Bradford and Wilhelmina, she started to remember after witnessing an angry exchange between Bradford and Daniel, mirroring Bradford's own treatment of Alexis prior to her transition.

In the weeks that followed, Bradford decided to bond with Alexis, which didn't sit well with Daniel, who he supected of taking advantage of her amnesia as a way to reestablish the father-son bond they had. This ended tragically with Bradford's fatal heart attack during his wedding to Wilhelmina. Before his death he asked the two to be civil and forgave them. But that union did not last long: after learning Bradford (in an unfinished taped will) left no clear successor for the CEO spot at Meade Publications, Alexis and Daniel resumed their competitive rivalry with a paintball contest. Unfortunately after Daniel tried to help a seemingly injured Alexis, she took his paintgun and shot him with it, making her the President/CEO of Meade Publications.

Alexis, Daniel and Claire were also responsible for terminating Wilhelmina's job at ''MODE'' after learning of her attempt to manipulate the Meade family, especially her attempt to marry Bradford. However in the season two finale, after Wilhelmina returned to Mode through her plan involving Bradford's baby, Alexis made her Editor-in-Chief after Wilhelmina pointed out to her how easy running the magazine was, and how much easier it would be if Daniel left.

But it turned out Wilhelmina may have used Alexis' friendship as a front in her quest to make ''MODE'' a priority over the other Meade publications. When Alexis announced she was going to help get Claire's ''Hot Flash'' off the ground, Wilhelmina tricked her into appearing on Alexis' favorite TV show "Live with Regis and Kelly", where she was sabotaged by the two hosts. After Claire scorned her for giving in to Wilhelmina by telling her that she was a puppet, Alexis finally came to her senses when Betty showed her a mock-up of ''MODE'' Daniel got by mistake. Alexis, more impressed with her brother's ideas than with Wilhelmina's (especially after seeing her version plummet in sales, along with fan letters from readers sent to Daniel) gave Daniel his former EiC job back, demoting Wilhelmina back to Creative Director.

In the episode "Crime of Fashion" it was revealed Alexis pushed Christina, pregnant with Wilhelmina's child, down a flight of stairs. She told Betty she didn't mean to and she was so upset at Wilhelmina that she kept seeing her when she looked at Christina. At the end of the episode, Alexis turned herself into the police, but not before revealing to her mother that she, not Daniel, was the biological father of Daniel Jr.

Following her arrest, in exchange for Wilhelmina's help in escaping prosecution for attempted murder, Alexis agreed to give 50% of her Meade Publications stock to Wilhelmina's unborn child and 50% to Daniel, causing ownership of the company to now be divided equally between the two. She then left New York City for an extended trip to France. Before departing, she promised Daniel she would try to connect with DJ and assured her mother she would always be in her life.

Critical response

''Slate'' named the character as one of the reasons they were looking forward to the return of the show in fall 2007.

Departure

It was announced that in Season 3, the role of Alexis will be demoted from a regular character to a recurring character. Romijn stated she is unhappy with the direction the writers have given her character. Her exact words to the New York Post's Popwrap were:

"They made a tremendous amount of changes, especially with the writing staff [during the writers' strike]. And while I know I'll be coming back next season, with all the changes, I'm not sure they can take care of my character the way they have been. So I'll be leaving, back in a recurring capacity, but time for me to leave and find something else."

E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos reported Alexis exited the show in Season 3 due to Romijn's pregnancy.

References

Category:Ugly Betty characters Category:Fictional transsexuals Category:Fictional American people of English descent Category:Fictional magazine editors Category:Fictional characters introduced in 2006

da:Alexis Meade fr:Alexis Meade it:Alexis Meade

name	Caesar Rodney
office	President of Delaware
term start	March 31, 1778
term end	November 6, 1781
predecessor	George Read
successor	John Dickinson
office2	Continental Congressmanfrom Delaware
term start2	August 2, 1774
term end2	November 7, 1776
birth date	October 07, 1728
birth place	Kent County, Delaware
death date	June 26, 1784
death place	Kent County, Delaware
residence	Kent County, Delaware
profession	Lawyer
religion	Episcopalian
signature	C Rodney Signature.svg
Branch	Militia
Battles	American Revolutionary War }}

Caesar Rodney (October 7, 1728 – June 26, 1784) was an American lawyer and politician from St. Jones Neck in Dover Hundred, Kent County, Delaware, east of Dover. He was an officer of the Delaware militia during the French and Indian War and the American Revolution, a Continental Congressman from Delaware, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and President of Delaware during most of the American Revolution.

Rodney family and early years

Caesar Rodney was born in 1728 on his family's farm, "Byfield", on St. Jones Neck in 800 acre (3.2 km²) prosperous farm, worked by a small number of slaves. With the addition of other adjacent properties, the Rodneys were, by the standards of the day, wealthy members of the local gentry. Sufficient income was earned from the sale of wheat and barley to the Philadelphia and West Indies market to provide enough cash and leisure to allow members of the family to participate in the social and political life of Kent County.

At the age of 16 and upon the death of his father in 1745, Caesar's guardianship was entrusted to Nicholas Ridgely by the Delaware Orphan's Court.

Professional and political career

Thomas Rodney described his brother at this time as having a "great fund of wit and humor of the pleasing kind, so that his conversation was always bright and strong and conducted by wisdom... He always lived a bachelor, was generally esteemed, and indeed very popular." Accordingly, he easily moved into the political world formerly occupied by his father and guardian. In 1755 he was elected Sheriff of Kent County and served the maximum three years allowed. This was a powerful and financially rewarding position in that it supervised elections and chose the grand jurors who set the county tax rate. After serving his three years he was appointed to a series of positions including Register of Wills, Recorder of Deeds, Clerk of the Orphan's Court, Justice of the Peace, and judge in the lower courts. During the [[French and Indian War">East Dover Hundred Kent County, Delaware. He was the son of Caesar and Mary Crawford Rodney and grandson of William Rodney, who came to America in the 1680s and had been Speaker of the Colonial Assembly of the Delaware Counties in 1704. His mother was the daughter of the Rev. Thomas Crawford, Anglican rector of Christ Church at Dover. Among the Rodney family ancestors were the prominent Adelmare family in Treviso, Italy.

''Byfield'' was a 800 acre (3.2 km²) prosperous farm, worked by a small number of slaves. With the addition of other adjacent properties, the Rodneys were, by the standards of the day, wealthy members of the local gentry. Sufficient income was earned from the sale of wheat and barley to the Philadelphia and West Indies market to provide enough cash and leisure to allow members of the family to participate in the social and political life of Kent County.

At the age of 16 and upon the death of his father in 1745, Caesar's guardianship was entrusted to Nicholas Ridgely by the Delaware Orphan's Court.

Professional and political career

Thomas Rodney described his brother at this time as having a "great fund of wit and humor of the pleasing kind, so that his conversation was always bright and strong and conducted by wisdom... He always lived a bachelor, was generally esteemed, and indeed very popular." Accordingly, he easily moved into the political world formerly occupied by his father and guardian. In 1755 he was elected Sheriff of Kent County and served the maximum three years allowed. This was a powerful and financially rewarding position in that it supervised elections and chose the grand jurors who set the county tax rate. After serving his three years he was appointed to a series of positions including Register of Wills, Recorder of Deeds, Clerk of the Orphan's Court, Justice of the Peace, and judge in the lower courts. During the Supreme Court of the Lower Counties.

Eighteenth century Delaware was politically divided into loose factions known as the "Court Party" and the "Country Party." The majority Court Party was generally Anglican, strongest in Kent and Sussex County, worked well with the colonial Proprietary government, and were in favor of reconciliation with the British government. The minority Country Party was largely Ulster-Scot, centered in New Castle County, and quickly advocated independence from the British. In spite of being members of the Anglican, Kent County gentry, Rodney and his brother, Thomas Rodney, increasingly aligned themselves with the Country Party, a distinct minority in Kent County. As such he generally worked in partnership with Thomas McKean from New Castle County and in opposition to George Read.

American Revolution

Rodney joined Thomas McKean as a delegate to the Stamp Act Congress in 1765 and was a leader of the Delaware Committee of Correspondence. He began his service in the Assembly of Delaware in the 1761/62 session and continued in office through the 1775/76 session. Several times he served as Speaker, including the momentous day of June 15, 1775 when "with Rodney in the chair and Thomas McKean leading the debate on the floor," the Assembly of Delaware voted to separate all ties with the British Parliament and King.

Because of his military experience, Rodney was named Brigadier General of Delaware's militia. As Delaware and the other colonies moved from protest to self-government and then to independence, the situation in strongly loyalist Kent and Sussex County rapidly deteriorated. Numerous local leaders spoke strongly in favor of maintaining the ties with Great Britain. Rodney and his militia were repeatedly required to suppress the resultant insurrections. Some of the Loyalists were arrested and jailed, some escaped to the swamps or British ships, and some just remained quietly resistant to the new government.

Meanwhile, Rodney served in the Continental Congress along with Thomas McKean and George Read from 1774 through 1776. Rodney was in Dover attending to Loyalist activity in Sussex County when he received word from Thomas McKean that he and George Read were deadlocked on the vote for independence. To break that deadlock, Rodney rode eighty miles through a thunderstorm on the night of July 1, 1776, dramatically arriving in Philadelphia "in his boots and spurs" on July 2, just as the voting was beginning. At least part of Rodney's famous ride was probably made in a carriage. He voted with McKean and thereby allowed Delaware to join eleven other states in voting in favor of the resolution of independence. The wording of the Declaration of Independence was approved two days later, and Rodney signed the famous parchment copy on August 2. A conservative backlash in Delaware led to Rodney's electoral defeat in Kent County for a seat in the upcoming Delaware Constitutional Convention and the new Delaware General Assembly.

Learning of the death of his friend John Haslet at the Battle of Princeton, Rodney went to join General George Washington briefly in early 1777. Washington soon returned him to Delaware, where as Major-General of the Delaware militia, his leadership was badly needed to protect the state from British military intrusions and to control continued loyalist activity, particularly in Sussex County.

Amidst the catastrophic events following the Battle of Brandywine, and the British occupation of Wilmington and Philadelphia, a new General Assembly was elected in October 1777. First, it promptly put Rodney and Thomas McKean back into the Continental Congress. Then, with State President John McKinly in captivity, and President George Read completely exhausted, they elected Rodney as President of Delaware on March 31, 1778. Delaware now had a dedicated, energetic and competent leader, but the office of State President in 1778 did not have the authority of a modern Governor in the United States. Rodney's effectiveness came from his popularity with the General Assembly where the real authority lay, and from the loyalty he had from the Delaware militia, which was the only available means of enforcing that authority.

Meanwhile Rodney scoured the state for money, supplies and soldiers to support the national war effort. Delaware Continentals had fought famously well in many battles from the Battle of Long Island to the Battle of Monmouth, but in 1780 the whole army suffered its worst defeat at the Battle of Camden in South Carolina. The small Delaware regiment was nearly destroyed and the remnant was so reduced it could only fight with a Maryland regiment for the remainder of the war. And still the Loyalists and privateers along the coast kept Sussex County seething. Rodney had done much to stabilize the situation, but his health was worsening and he resigned his office November 6, 1781, just after the conclusive Battle of Yorktown.

Rodney was elected by the Delaware General Assembly to the United States Congress under the Articles of Confederation in 1782 and 1783, but was unable to attend because of ill health. However, two years after leaving the State Presidency he was elected to the 1783/84 session of the Legislative Council and, as a final gesture of respect, the Council selected him to be their Speaker. Regrettably, his health was now in rapid decline and even though the Legislative Council met at his home for a short time, he died before the session ended.

{|class=wikitable style="width: 94%" style="text-align: center;" align="center" |-bgcolor=#cccccc !colspan=12 style="background: #ccccff;" |Delaware General Assembly ''(sessions while President)'' |- !Year !Assembly ! !Senate Majority !Speaker ! !House Majority !Speaker |- |1777/78 |2nd | | |''non-partisan'' | |George Read | | |''non-partisan'' | |Samuel West |- |1778/79 |3rd | | |''non-partisan'' | |Thomas Collins | | |''non-partisan'' | |Simon Kollock |- |1779/80 |4th | | |''non-partisan'' | |John Clowes | | |''non-partisan'' | |Simon Kollock |- |1780/81 |5th | | |''non-partisan'' | | John Clowes | | |''non-partisan'' | |Simon Kollock

Almanac

Elections were held October 1 and members of the General Assembly took office on October 20 or the following weekday. The State Legislative Council was created in 1776 and its Legislative Councilmen had a three year term. State Assemblymen had a one year term. The whole General Assembly chose the Continental Congressmen for a one year term and the State President for a three year term. The county sheriff also had a three year term. Associate Justices of the state Supreme Court were also selected by the General Assembly for the life of the person appointed.

{|class=wikitable style="width: 94%" style="text-align: center;" align="center" |-bgcolor=#cccccc !colspan=8 style="background: #ccccff;" | Public Offices |- ! Office ! Type ! Location ! Began office ! Ended office ! notes |- |Sheriff |Executive |Dover |October 1, 1755 |October 1, 1756 |Kent County |- |Sheriff |Executive |Dover |October 1, 1756 |October 1, 1757 |Kent County |- |Sheriff |Executive |Dover |October 1, 1757 |October 2, 1758 |Kent County |- |Justice of the Peace |Judiciary |New Castle |1759 |1769 |Court of Common Pleas |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1761 |October 20, 1762 | |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1762 |October 20, 1763 | |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1763 |October 20, 1764 | |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1764 |October 20, 1765 | |- |Delegate |Legislature |New York |October 7, 1765 |October 19, 1765 |Stamp Act Congress |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1765 |October 20, 1766 | |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1766 |October 20, 1767 | |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1767 |October 20, 1768 | |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1768 |October 20, 1769 | |- |Associate Justice |Judiciary |New Castle |1769 |1777 |Supreme Court |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1769 |October 20, 1770 |Speaker |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1770 |October 20, 1771 |Speaker |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1771 |October 20, 1772 | |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1772 |October 20, 1773 | |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1773 |October 20, 1774 | |- |Delegate |Legislature |Philadelphia |August 2, 1774 |March 16, 1775 |Continental Congress |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1774 |October 20, 1775 | |- |Delegate |Legislature |Philadelphia |March 16, 1775 |October 21, 1775 |Continental Congress |- |Assemblyman |Legislature |New Castle |October 20, 1775 |June 15, 1776 |Speaker |- |Delegate |Legislature |Philadelphia |October 21, 1775 |November 7, 1776 |Continental Congress |- |Delegate |Legislature |York |December 17, 1777 |June 27, 1778 |Continental Congress (did not serve) |- |Delegate |Legislature |Philadelphia |July 2, 1778 |January 18, 1779 |Continental Congress (did not serve) |- |State President |Executive |Dover |March 31, 1778 |November 6, 1781 | |- |Delegate |Legislature |Philadelphia |February 2, 1782 |February 1, 1783 |Continental Congress (did not serve) |- |Delegate |Legislature |Philadelphia |February 1, 1783 |June 21, 1783 |Continental Congress (did not serve) |- |Delegate |Legislature |Princeton |June 30, 1783 |November 4, 1783 |Continental Congress (did not serve) |- |Delegate |Legislature |Annapolis |November 26, 1783 |April 8, 1784 |Continental Congress (did not serve) |- |Councilman |Legislature |Dover |October 20, 1783 |June 26, 1784 |

{|class=wikitable style="width: 94%" style="text-align: center;" align="center" |-bgcolor=#cccccc !colspan=7 style="background: #ccccff;" |Delaware General Assembly service |- ! Dates ! Assembly ! Chamber ! Majority ! Governor ! Committees ! District |- |1783/84 |8th |State Council |''non-partisan'' |Nicholas Van Dyke |Speaker |''Kent at-large''

Notes

Further reading

Images

Architect of the Capitol: Capitol Complex

U.S. Mint

External links

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress

Biography by Russell Pickett

Delaware’s Governors

The Political Graveyard

Historical Society of Delaware

National Park Service

Places with more information

Delaware Historical Society; website; 505 North Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19801; (302) 655-7161

University of Delaware; Library website; 181 South College Avenue, Newark, Delaware 19717; (302) 831-2965

Christ Episcopal Church; South State & Water Street, Dover, Delaware (302) 734-5731.

Rodney Square; Equestrian statue; Rodney Square, Wilmington, Delaware.

Category:1728 births Category:1784 deaths Category:American people of English descent Category:18th-century American Episcopalians Category:People from Kent County, Delaware Category:People of Delaware in the American Revolution Category:Delaware militiamen in the American Revolution Category:Militia generals in the American Revolution Category:Delaware lawyers Category:Delaware Federalists Category:Delaware State Senators Category:Governors of Delaware Category:Continental Congressmen from Delaware Category:Signers of the United States Declaration of Independence Category:Burials in Dover, Delaware

de:Caesar Rodney es:Caesar Rodney fr:Caesar Rodney la:Caesar Rodney ja:シーザー・ロドニー (独立宣言署名者) tr:Caesar Rodney

Width	250px
Title	Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell:Pandora Tomorrow
Developer	Ubisoft Shanghai (Xbox, Microsoft Windows & PlayStation 2)Ubisoft (Game Boy Advance & Nintendo GameCube)Gameloft (Mobile)
Composer	Jack Wall, Lalo Schifrin, Guy Dubuc, and Marc Lessard
Publisher	Ubisoft (Xbox, Microsoft Windows, Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 2 & Nintendo GameCube)Gameloft (Mobile)
Series	''Splinter Cell''
Engine	Unreal Engine 2.0 with Renderware Physics
Version	1.31
Released	Microsoft WindowsGame Boy AdvanceMobile phonePlayStation 2Nintendo GameCubePlayStation 3}}

|genre= Action-adventure, Stealth |modes= Single-player, multiplayer |ratings= |platforms= Xbox, Microsoft Windows, Game Boy Advance, Mobile phone, PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation 3 |requirements= Windows 98 or better: AMD Athlon processor or Intel Pentium III processor; 256 RAM; 3 GB Hard Disk Space; 64 MB DirectX 8.1-compliant Video Card; DirectX 8.1-compliant Sound Card; 8x-speed CD-ROM drive. }}

''Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow'' is an action-adventure stealth game, developed and published by Ubisoft Shanghai, while Ubisoft Montreal, creator of the original ''Splinter Cell'', was working on ''Chaos Theory''. ''Pandora Tomorrow'' is the second game in the ''Splinter Cell'' series endorsed by writer Tom Clancy. The game follows the covert activities of Sam Fisher, an agent working for a black-ops branch of the National Security Agency (NSA) called "Third Echelon". The character, Sam Fisher, is voiced by Michael Ironside. Dennis Haysbert, at that time best known for his role as David Palmer on the television show ''24'' is the voice for the character Irving Lambert, Fisher's boss, making this the only time he is not voiced by Don Jordan. Lalo Schifrin provides the theme music for the game. The game has been translated to several languages for international distribution. ''Pandora Tomorrow'' was entitled ''Shadow Strike'' during its development. A remastered, High-Definition, version of ''Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow'' was announced for the PlayStation Network for the PlayStation 3 on December 20, 2010.

Gameplay

The gameplay of ''Pandora Tomorrow'' is largely unchanged from the original ''Splinter Cell''. The game features some moderate graphical improvements, as well as minor gameplay changes such as the fact that health kits are no longer an inventory item, and the addition of a laser sight to Sam's pistol that allows the player to know exactly where the rounds will strike, even when moving around. Also, Sam can now open doors while carrying a body, shoot while hanging upside down, SWAT turn past doorways unnoticed, and perform a half split jump. The pistol laser was replaced with an OCP and the SWAT turn was removed in ''Chaos Theory'', the next entry in the series. The PlayStation 2 and Gamecube versions also feature an additional single player mission to compensate for the abridged gameplay compared to the PC and Xbox versions.

Multiplayer

The most significant gameplay change in ''Pandora Tomorrow'' is the addition of a multiplayer component to the series in an attempt to take advantage of the features and popularity of Xbox Live. Both the PlayStation 2 and PC versions of the game also come with multiplayer; however, the GameCube version does not. The game pits heavily armed Argus mercenaries against stealthy Shadownet spies. The spies are played from a third-person viewpoint and control similarly to the main game's singleplayer mode, although they have their own unique moves and equipment. The mercenaries are played from a first-person viewpoint, and control more similarly to traditional first-person shooter characters. Although mercenaries have superior firepower, spies have the ability to hide in darkness and ambush or sneak past mercenaries in a number of ways. The total number of players in each multiplayer game is limited to 4. After the release of ''Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory'' which included a very similar multiplayer mode, Ubisoft took down their multiplayer server for this game due to low numbers of players, leaving many angry with Ubisoft.

Story

The main plot of ''Pandora Tomorrow'' takes place in Indonesia during the spring of 2006, in which the United States has established a military presence in the newly independent country of East Timor to train that country's military forces in their fight against anti-separatist Indonesian guerrilla militias. Foremost among these Indonesian militias is the Darah Dan Doa (Blood and Prayer), led by Suhadi Sadono.

Charismatic militia leader Sadono, once trained by the CIA to help fight Communist influences in the region, has grown resentful of the United States' support of East Timor and its supposed interference with his country's sovereignty. Sadono initiates a suicide bombing and follow up attack on the U.S. Embassy in Dili, capturing a number of U.S. military and diplomatic personnel including Douglas Shetland, an old friend and comrade of Sam Fisher.

Fisher is sent to infiltrate the embassy and gather intelligence on the Darah Dan Doa. Fisher succeeds in his mission, and the U.S. Embassy is retaken by the U.S. Army's Delta Force. Sadono escapes, and the U.S. launches a military campaign on Indonesian soil in an attempt to hunt him down, much to the protests of the Indonesian government.

Fisher learns that Sadono has masterminded a scheme known as "Pandora Tomorrow", by placing a series of biological bombs (ND133's) equipped with the smallpox virus on American soil. Every 24 hours, Sadono makes encrypted phone calls to each of the bomb carriers to delay the release of the virus. If he is killed or detained, the virus is released and millions of Americans will die. Because Sadono is fighting on the front lines in the conflict, the U.S. cannot risk killing him, and is forced to withdraw its forces.

Fisher is sent to infiltrate Darah Dan Doa strongholds in order to learn the location of the smallpox bombs. He is assisted in this endeavor by Shetland and his private military company, Displace International. Fisher ultimately learns the location of the bombs, and Shadownet spies are sent in to neutralize them, bringing an end to Sadono's threat against the United States.

Third Echelon decides to capture Sadono alive instead of merely assassinating him, due to the problems created when Sam Fisher assassinated former Georgian president Kombayn Nikoladze in the fall of 2004.

Although Fisher manages to capture Sadono, Third Echelon learns that a rogue CIA operative, Norman Soth has acquired the last smallpox-armed ND133, and intends to detonate it inside Los Angeles International Airport. Soth cares nothing for Indonesia, but intends to get revenge on the United States for a perceived betrayal which cost him a leg years earlier. Fisher infiltrates LAX, kills Soth and his group of terrorists (disguised as airport workers and security guards), and prevents the detonation of the last smallpox-armed ND133 by disguising himself as a maintenance worker and setting the ND133 down behind two police officers, who notice the device almost immediately, and have the airport evacuated. The Los Angeles Police Department's Bomb Squad is then called in to perform a controlled explosion of the device, which is done by an unmanned vehicle using reinforced steel.

Development

Windows version

As with the original Splinter Cell, the Windows version is a port of the Xbox version, and duplicated that version's user interface and gameplay. However, the Windows version can run at higher resolutions than the console versions. The "checkpoint" save system from the Xbox version was replaced with the ability to save a game at any time, and the controls were reworked to allow simultaneous use of a keyboard and mouse, with movement speed being controlled by the mouse wheel. None of the bonus content from the other versions are present on this version.

PlayStation 2 version

As with the original Splinter Cell, the PS2 version runs at a lower resolution than the Xbox and GCN versions, and sacrifices had to be made to the graphics including more jagged edges, duller colors and fewer lighting effects, due to the more limited hardware. Also, despite these sacrifices, the framerate tends to stutter slightly more than the Xbox version. Loading times are also longer. Missions are also structured in a different/shorter fashion and the multiplayer component is not as extensive as its Xbox counterpart. The PS2 version boasts extra content, however, including a new Indonesian Jungle mission (which also appears in Essentials).

GameCube version

The GCN version runs at a lower resolution to that of the Xbox/PC version and graphically it does not quite look as realistic. Like the PS2 version, sacrifices were made here and there with the lighting effects. Missions are also structured like the PS2 version, in a different/shorter fashion than that of the Xbox/PC counterpart.

PlayStation 3

A PlayStation 3 version was announced to be part of the Splinter Cell Trilogy which was released in September 2011 as part of Sony's Classics HD series. It was revealed on the PlayStation Blog, that the game will be a port of the PC version, which had more details and content than on PS2. It has also been revealed however, that the online multiplayer will not be included in the collection Despite being a port of the PC Splinter Cell's this trilogy does not include online multiplayer or the downloadable bonus missions. It also does not include the PS2 exclusive bonus missions for Splinter Cell 1&2.

Reception

On the review-aggregate site Metacritic, the Xbox version received a score of 93% based on 74 reviews. On Game Rankings, it had a score of 92.3% based on 82 reviews. Greg Kasavin of GameSpot gave the Xbox version a score of 9.1 and said that the single-player and multiplayer portions of the game will appeal to anyone interested in high-tech stealth and subterfuge. He also said that players familiar with Splinter Cell should expect 10 hours or more of gameplay. Kasavin said the storyline in Pandora Tomorrow was more cohesive than the original Splinter Cell, but the gameplay often becomes pure trial and error, noting that the missions "could have benefited from feeling less rigid and scripted" but were "incredibly slick." Kasavin also praised the multiplayer mode for its innovation, complexity, and creativity. On Rotten Tomatoes, the Xbox version received an average score of 9.4 out of 10 based on 33 reviews, additionally receiving a 100% "Fresh Rating" due to gaining highly positive reviews from all 33 reviewers. Mongoose of Game Chronicles Magazine also gave the Xbox a 9.4 out of 10 and gave special praise to the multiplayer portion of the game. He called the game "the single best reason to get online" on Xbox Live. However, he felt that gameplay in the single player campaign at times got increasingly linear and leaned toward scripted challenges, with "only one solution to any given problem", requiring "the use of a particular gadget or one of Sam’s nimble moves."

The Microsoft Windows version received a score of 87% at Metacritic based on 28 reviews. On Game Rankings, it received an average score of 85.4% based on 28 reviews. Rotten Tomatoes gave the PC version an average rating of 9 out of 10 based on 10 reviews, receiving a 90% "Fresh Rating" due to a majority of positive reviews.

The PlayStation 2 version had a score of 87% at Metacritic based on 45 reviews. The game received a score of 86.4% based on 56 reviews at Game Rankings. Rotten Tomatoes gave the PS2 version an average rating of 8.4 out of 10 based on 19 reviews, additionally receiving a 95% "Fresh Rating" due to highly positive reviews.

The Nintendo GameCube version of the game lacks the multiplayer component found in the Xbox, PC, and PS2 versions. The game received a score of 78% on Metacritic based on 25 reviews. On Game Rankings, the game received a composite score of 80.6% based on 37 reviews. The average score on Rotten Tomatoes landed at 7.7 out of 10 based on 11 reviews, receiving a 55% "Rotten Rating" due to a high number of displeased reviewers.

The Game Boy Advance version received a score of 68% on Metacritic based on 19 reviews. The game also received a score of 68% on Game Rankings based on 45 reviews. Rotten Tomatoes gave the Game Boy Advance version an average rating of 6.9 out of 10 based on 11 reviews, receiving a 27% "Rotten Rating" due to a majority of negative reviews.

See also

''Project Stealth''

References

External links

''Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow'', Official site

Category:2004 video games Category:Game Boy Advance games Category:Nintendo GameCube games Category:Interactive Achievement Award winners Category:Mobile games Category:Multiplayer online games Category:PlayStation 2 games Category:PlayStation 3 games * 02 Category:Stealth video games Category:Terrorism in fiction Category:Video games developed in France Category:Video games developed in the People's Republic of China Category:Video games set in 2006 Category:Video games set in Indonesia Category:Video games set in Los Angeles, California Category:Video games set in East Timor Category:Windows games Category:Xbox games

ar:توم كلانسي سبلينتر سيل: باندورا تومورو da:Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow es:Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow fa:اسپلینتر سل تام کلنسی: فردای پاندورا fr:Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow ko:톰 클랜시의 스프린터 셀: 판도라 투머로 it:Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow lt:Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow nl:Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow pl:Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow pt:Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow ru:Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow sv:Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow tr:Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow uk:Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow zh:縱橫諜海：潘朵拉計劃