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The X Factor is an Australian television reality music competition, based on the original UK series, to find new singing talent. The first series of the show was broadcast from February to May, however, since the second series it has been broadcast from July/August until the grand final in November. The X Factor is produced by FremantleMedia Australia, and is currently broadcast on the Seven Network. The title "X Factor" refers to a singing talent which is "unique" and "something" that makes for star quality. Network Ten held rights for The X Factor in 2005, but dropped the show after the first series due to poor ratings. In 2010, the Seven Network went into a "bidding war" to gain rights for the show, and later won and a second series went into production. The X Factor was renewed after a highly successful Australian Idol was no longer broadcast through Network Ten. It is also broadcast in New Zealand on TV3. Two series of The Xtra Factor were broadcast through Network Ten in 2005 and 7Two in 2010. The show was not renewed for a third series in 2011. The original judging panel line-up in 2005 consisted of Kate Ceberano, Mark Holden, and John Reid. When the show was revived in 2010, the judging panel was replaced by Ronan Keating, Guy Sebastian, Natalie Imbruglia, and Kyle Sandilands. Imbruglia and Sandilands did not return for series three and were replaced by Melanie Brown and Natalie Bassingthwaighte. Dannii Minogue and Redfoo joined the panel in the fifth series as replacements for Brown and Sebastian. During the televised audition phases of The X Factor, originally the contestants sang in an "audition room" in front of just the judges, however, from series two onwards all auditionees sing on stage in an arena, in front of the judges and a live audience. The successful acts then progress to the next stage of the competition, "bootcamp" and later "home visits", where the judges narrow their category down to three acts who will continue to the live shows, where the public vote for their favourite act, following weekly performances by the contestants.

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The X Factor
2005

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Sean Connery

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Sir Thomas Sean Connery (August 25, 1930 – October 31, 2020) was a Scottish actor and producer who won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards (one being a BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award), and three Golden Globes, including the Cecil B. DeMille Award and a Henrietta Award. Connery was the first actor to portray the character James Bond in film, starring in seven Bond films (every film from Dr. No to You Only Live Twice, plus Diamonds Are Forever and Never Say Never Again), between 1962 and 1983. In 1988, Connery won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in The Untouchables. His films also include Marnie (1964), Murder on the Orient Express (1974), The Man Who Would Be King (1975), A Bridge Too Far (1977), Highlander (1986), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), The Hunt for Red October (1990), Dragonheart (1996), The Rock (1996), and Finding Forrester (2000). Connery was polled in a 2004 The Sunday Herald as "The Greatest Living Scot" and in a 2011 EuroMillions survey as "Scotland's Greatest Living National Treasure". He was voted by People magazine as both the “Sexiest Man Alive" in 1989 and the "Sexiest Man of the Century” in 1999. He received a lifetime achievement award in the United States with a Kennedy Center Honor in 1999. Connery was knighted in the 2000 New Year Honours for services to film drama. On 31 October 2020, it was announced that Connery had died at the age of 90. Description above from the Wikipedia article Sean Connery, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia
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Angelo Novi

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Angelo Novi (9 June 1930 – 6 May 1997) worked for thirty years as the exclusive photographer with some of the most known Italian film directors of his time, such as Bernardo Bertolucci, Sergio Leone, and Pier Paolo Pasolini. He studied at the Brera Academy in Milan, and from 1952 on, started to work as a photojournalist. The ability to capture the decisive moment, inspired by idols like Henri Cartier-Bresson and Robert Capa, is an important gist for his photographic style, which later honed in his work as a set photographer. Novi told his own story through the scenic action captured by his photographs. Emphasis on the decisive moment, the contrast of proximity and distance, and the black and whites, are all attributes of Novi's work. With his photographs, Novi has made a comprehensive contribution to the cultural memory of the golden era of the Italian cinema. As a silent observer, he captured the moments at the film sets both behind the scenes and in action, revealing intimate aspects that cannot be found on the screen.
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Krystal Jung

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Jung Soo Jung (Hangul: 정수정; born October 24, 1994) but better known as Krystal, is an American-born South Korean idol singer and actress. Discovered by SM Entertainment in 2000, she began filming for commercials and music videos by 2002. She is currently a member of the Korean quintet girl group f(x), formed by SM Entertainment in 2009. Krystal was born in San Francisco, California, where her family from South Korea settled in the 1980s. During a family trip to South Korea in early 2000 when Krystal was five, she was spotted by talent agency SM Entertainment, which earned her a cameo appearance in Shinhwa's "Wedding March" music video. The agency saw potential in Krystal and offered her singing and dancing lessons, opting to professionally train her in a singing career. However, the offer was turned down by her parents, reasoning that Krystal was too young. Instead, her parents allowed her older sister Jessica Jung to join the agency, who debuted as a member of the girl group Girls' Generation in August 2007. In 2002, Krystal began appearing in television commercials. She first appeared in a Lotte commercial with Korean actress Han Ga In. In 2006, her parents allowed her to join SM Entertainment, and the agency enrolled her in dance classes, including hip hop and jazz. According to an exclusive media outlet report on August 18, Krystal has decided to part ways with her agency, SM Entertainment.
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Stanley Blystone

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Stanley Blystone (August 1, 1894 – July 16, 1956) was an American film actor who made more than 500 film appearances between 1924 and 1956. Blystone is best known for his appearance in Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times, playing Paulette Goddard's father, and several short films starring The Three Stooges. Some of his more memorable roles were in the films Half Shot Shooters, False Alarms, Goofs and Saddles, Three Little Twirps and Slaphappy Sleuths. His final appearance with the trio was Of Cash and Hash in 1955. He also appeared in several Laurel and Hardy films.
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Laura Prepon

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Laura Prepon (born March 7, 1980) is an American actress, known for her role as Donna Pinciotti in all eight seasons of the Fox sitcom That '70s Show. She is also known for the role of Hannah Daniels on the ABC drama October Road and her role as Alex Vause in the Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black. She has voiced characters in animated TV series such as American Dad! and King of the Hill, as well as a character in the video game Halo 2. Following That '70s Show, Prepon worked mainly in television, guest-starring in episodes of How I Met Your Mother, Medium, and Castle. In 2011, Prepon was cast in the lead role of Chelsea in the short-lived sitcom Are You There, Chelsea?, based on Chelsea Handler's 2008 book Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea.
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Amy Klobuchar

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Amy Jean Klobuchar (born May 25, 1960) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the senior United States senator from Minnesota, a seat she has held since 2007. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), Minnesota's affiliate of the Democratic Party, she previously served as the County Attorney of Hennepin County, Minnesota. Born in Plymouth, Minnesota, Klobuchar graduated from Yale University and the University of Chicago Law School. She was a partner at two Minneapolis law firms before being elected county attorney of Hennepin County in 1998, making her responsible for all criminal prosecution in Minnesota's most populous county. Klobuchar was first elected to the Senate in 2006, succeeding Mark Dayton to become Minnesota's first elected female United States senator. She was reelected by a landslide in 2012, winning almost all of the state's 87 counties. Klobuchar was reelected again in 2018. In 2009 and 2010, she was described as a "rising star" in the Democratic Party. Klobuchar's political positions align with modern liberalism. She has focused on healthcare reform, consumer protection, agriculture, and climate change. She is known for her folksy, Midwestern demeanor and ability to win in rural Minnesota. On February 10, 2019, Klobuchar announced her candidacy for the Democratic nomination for president of the United States in the 2020 election; on March 2, 2020, she suspended her campaign and endorsed Joe Biden. In 2021, she became the chair of the Senate Rules Committee.
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Stan Shaw

Biography

Stan Shaw (born July 14, 1952) is an American actor. Born in Chicago, Illinois, he is the son of Bertha Shaw and saxophonist Eddie Shaw, and cousin of the late soul singers Sam Cooke and Tyrone Davis. Shaw started his acting career in the Chicago production of the Broadway musical Hair as well as the Broadway production of The Me Nobody Knows. His last Broadway show, Via Galactica was directed by Sir Peter Hall. Before becoming an actor, Shaw was a karate, judo, and jujutsu instructor in Chicago. He holds first dan black belt in judo and jujutsu and a second dan in karate. Shaw appeared in Rocky (1976) as Dipper, another boxer. In a deleted scene, Dipper, infuriated by the attention Rocky has received, challenges him before a television reporter. He also played a professional fighter in Tough Enough (1983), Harlem Nights (1989), and Snake Eyes (1998). One of his most notable roles was his appearance as Alex Haley's maternal grandfather Will Palmer in the 1979 miniseries Roots: The Next Generations. Another highly notable role was Private Washington in The Boys in Company C (1978). Shaw also played in The Great Santini (1979) as Toomer Smalls with Robert Duvall and David Keith. After a part in the 1991 film Fried Green Tomatoes, he had a role in the 1995 comedy Houseguest alongside Sinbad and appeared as a pirate in Cutthroat Island with Geena Davis. His television credits include episodes of Matlock, Murder, She Wrote, The X-Files, and a 2009 episode of CSI. Description above from the Wikipedia article Stan Shaw, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.​
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Colin Clive

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Colin Clive was born to a British colonel and his wife in St. Malo, France on 20 January 1900. His schooling was at the Convent of the Holy Cross, Boscombe, and Stonyhurst College, in preparation for entering Sandhurst, the British royal military academy. Unfortunately, a riding accident shattered the young man's knee and disqualified him for military service. Clive entered the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, making his debut in 1919 as 'Claude' in The Eclipse. After almost ten years of touring, he was chosen for the role of 'Stanhope' in the war play Journey's End, replacing Laurence Olivier who had another commitment. Journey's End was Clive's beginning and his end. Both the actor and the character were alcoholics - Clive to relieve monstrous stage fright, Stanhope to numb the agonies of war. When Journey's End was filmed in 1929, Clive started his film career. He made 18 films, each stylish, quirky, and highly individualistic. Colin Clive died in Los Angeles, California on 25 June 1937, of tuberculosis worsened by chronic alcoholism. He was 37 years old.
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Subhash Ghai

Biography

Subhash Ghai (born 24 January 1945) is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter, known for his works predominantly in Hindi cinema. His most notable works include Kalicharan (1976), Karz (1980), Hero (1983), Meri Jung (1985), Karma (1986), Ram Lakhan (1989), Saudagar (1991), Khalnayak (1993), Pardes (1997), Taal (1999), and Black & White (2008). In 1982, He started Mukta Arts Private Limited which, in 2000, became a public company, with Subhash Ghai as its executive chairman. In 2006, he received the National Film Award, for producing the social problem film Iqbal, in the same year he founded the Whistling Woods International film and media institution in Mumbai. In 2015, He received the IIFA Award for outstanding contribution to Indian Cinema. He is also a part of the Hon. Board of Advisors of IIMUN. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Ana Carolina

Biography

Ana Carolina (born 27 September 1945) is a Brazilian film director and screenwriter. She directed seven films between 1969 and 2003. In 1978, she was a member of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival. Her 1982 film Heart and Guts was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival. Ana Carolina Teixeira Soares attended school with the intention of becoming a doctor, but instead changed direction and became a filmmaker. She graduated in 1964 from University of São Paulo Med School. Several years later she went to a School of Physiotherapy, taking special interest in university politics. She also spent a few of her early years in a Renaissance band called "Musikantiga". She was highly focused in her early years as a filmmaker, as she made 11 documentaries in her first eight years in the business (her first being in 1967, last in 1974). Her first film released in 1977 was titled Mar de Rosas, translated into Everything is Fine. The film is shot from a feminist perspective with interpretations open to the viewer. Mar de Rosas tells the story of a woman that slits her husband’s throat and flees with her child. It provides commentary on patriarchy and feminist discontent. This discontent is not strictly limited to the characters within the fictional landscape and speaks much more broadly to the nation at whole. In an interview based on audacity in cinema, Carolina had much to say in regards to the censorship she faced in her time making films in Brazil. She uses words such as hysterical and neurotic to describe the impact it had on her production of films. She claims that the limitations placed on her work actually caused her to be more rebellious and this influenced her work to be even more provocative. She goes on to admit that her work in Mar de Rosas is meant to be interpreted as an allusion to the outside world. Carolina had a highly influential role as a filmmaker in one of the most restrictive times in Brazil, the Military Dictatorship (1964-1985). Her battle against censorship trail-blazed a better path to social and political commentary in film. She fought against the censorship of films, but also the censorship of ideas. Description above from the Wikipedia article Ana Carolina (director), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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