November 28, 2009 – January 29, 2010: Empire State of Mind – Jay-Z and Alicia Keys January 30, 2010 – March 19: Tik Tok – Kesha March 20 – March 26: BedRock – Young Money featuring Lloyd March 27 -April 9: Need You Now – Lady Antebellum April 10 -May 21: Rude Boy – Rihanna May 22 -June 11: Nothin’ on You – B.o.B featuring Bruno Mars June 12 -July 30: OMG – Usher featuring will.i.am July 31 – August 20: California Gurls – Katy Perry featuring Snoop Dogg August 21 – October 15: Love the Way You Lie – Eminem featuring Rihanna October 16 – October22: Teenage Dream – Katy Perry October 23 – December 10: Just the Way You Are – Bruno Mars December 11, 2010 – December 31, 2010: Only Girl (In the World) – Rihanna
(Data is compiled from various charts including Billboard’s “Pop,” “Rock,” “Airplay,” “R&B/Dance” and “Singles” Charts. The “Hot 100” is the primary chart used for this list.)
World-Changing Event: The Instagram app became available, and the iPad tablet was released.
The Top Song was Tik Tok by Ke$ha
The Movies to Watch include Toy Story 3, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, Inception, and Megamind.
The Most Famous Person in America was probably (tie) David Letterman, Jay Leno, and Conan O’Brien.
Notable books include The Help by Kathryn Stockett and Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom.
Price of… Xbox 360 in 2010: $199.00 Fisher-Price Follow Me Thomas: $39.99 Whole Pineapple: $3.99
The Funny Guy was: Kevin Hart
The Late Night Feud: Jay Leno vs David Letterman vs Conan O’Brien
The Conversation: Who should get Jay Leno’s ‘Tonight Show’ host job? David Letterman or Conan O’Brien?
2010 History Roundup:
January 12 – Haiti Devastated by Earthquake: A catastrophic 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck near Port-au-Prince, Haiti, resulting in over 220,000 deaths and leaving approximately 1 million people homeless.
February 12–28 – Vancouver Hosted Winter Olympics: The 2010 Winter Olympics took place in Vancouver, Canada, featuring 2,566 athletes from 82 nations competing in 86 events.
April 10 – Polish President Killed in Plane Crash: Polish President Lech Kaczyński, along with 95 others, died in a plane crash near Smolensk, Russia, while en route to a memorial service.
April 20 – Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Began: An explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico led to a massive oil spill, becoming one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history.
May 2 – Eurozone Agreed to Greek Bailout: The eurozone and the International Monetary Fund agreed to a €110 billion bailout package for Greece to address its severe debt crisis.
May 6 – UK General Election Resulted in Hung Parliament: The United Kingdom’s general election resulted in a hung parliament, leading to a coalition government between the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats.
June 11 – July 11 – Spain Won FIFA World Cup: Spain secured its first FIFA World Cup title by defeating the Netherlands 1-0 in the final held in South Africa.
July 25 – WikiLeaks Released Afghan War Documents: WikiLeaks published over 75,000 classified documents related to the war in Afghanistan, sparking global controversy and debate over military transparency.
August 5 – Chilean Miners Trapped Underground: Thirty-three miners became trapped 700 meters underground in a mine in northern Chile, leading to a dramatic rescue operation.
August 10 – WHO Declared End of H1N1 Pandemic: The World Health Organization declared the end of the H1N1 influenza pandemic, stating that worldwide flu activity had returned to typical seasonal patterns.
August 19 – Operation Iraqi Freedom Ended: The United States declared an end to combat operations in Iraq, transitioning to Operation New Dawn to focus on stability operations.
September 28 – China Surpassed Japan as Second-Largest Economy: China officially surpassed Japan to become the world’s second-largest economy, reflecting its rapid economic growth.
October 3 – Germany Made Final WWI Reparation Payment: Germany made its final payment of reparations imposed by the Treaty of Versailles, concluding its obligations from World War I.
October 10 – Netherlands Antilles Dissolved: The Netherlands Antilles was officially dissolved, resulting in new constitutional statuses for its constituent islands.
October 12 – Chilean Miners Rescued: All 33 trapped Chilean miners were successfully rescued after 69 days underground, in a globally televised event.
October 22 – WikiLeaks Released Iraq War Logs: WikiLeaks published nearly 400,000 classified U.S. military documents detailing operations in Iraq, revealing previously unreported incidents.
November 2 – U.S. Midterm Elections Shifted Power: The Republican Party gained control of the House of Representatives in the U.S. midterm elections, leading to a divided Congress.
November 28 – WikiLeaks Released U.S. Diplomatic Cables: WikiLeaks began releasing a cache of U.S. diplomatic cables, exposing confidential communications and causing diplomatic tensions.
December 17 – Tunisian Protests Sparked Arab Spring: The self-immolation of Mohamed Bouazizi in Tunisia led to nationwide protests, eventually inspiring the broader Arab Spring movements across the Middle East and North Africa.
December 21 – Total Lunar Eclipse Coincided with Solstice: A total lunar eclipse occurred on the same day as the northern winter solstice, a rare astronomical event that last happened in 1638.
Top Ten Baby Names of 2010:
Isabella, Sophia, Emma, Olivia, Ava, Jacob, Ethan, Michael, Jayden, William
Fashion Icons and Sex Symbols:
Katy Perry, Olivia Munn, Eva Mendes, Kim Kardashian, Blake Lively, Audrina Patridge, Lady Gaga, Lauren Conrad, Beyonce, Amanda Bynes. Bar Refaeli, Olivia Wilde, Marisa Miller, Scarlett Johansson, Milla Jovovich, Christina Aguilera, Nicole Scherzinger, Danica Patrick
The Heartthrob(s):
Leonardo DiCaprio, Hugh Laurie, Taylor Lautner, Zac Efron, Adam Levine, Colin Firth, David Beckham, Justin Bieber, Joe Manganiello, Tim Tebow
“The Quote:”
“I am not part of the PlayStation generation.” Prince Charles admits he is baffled by modern technology.
Time Magazine’s Person of the Year:
Mark Zuckerberg
Miss America:
Caressa Cameron
Miss USA:
Rima Fakih
The Scandal:
Jesse James cheated on Sandra Bullock.
US News:
George Washington borrowed The Law of Nations from the New York Society Library and didn’t return it. Mount Vernon estate returned the book in 2010 (221 years overdue) after the Head librarian joked they were “not actively pursuing the overdue fines,” they would appreciate having it back.
During the last 90 years of American history, there have been only two decades with the GDP increasing every year – the 1960s and the 2010s.
World News:
The UK didn’t have televised election debates until 2010.
The largest air traffic shut down since World War II happened in 2010 due to the Eyjafjallajökull eruption. 95,000 flights were canceled in a 6-day period.
Since 2010, the International Space Station has a water purification system (from washing, sweat, even urine), allowing the ISS to reclaim 93% of all liquid on the station.
26.5 million Canadians tuned into the gold medal final against the United States in men’s hockey during the 2010 Winter Olympics. That’s 80% of the entire country’s population. #Canadawon
Germany finished paying WWI reparations from the Treaty of Versailles on October 3, 2010, with a final payment of 70 million euros to government and private banks in the US, France, and Britain.
There was a traffic jam in China that started on August 13th, 2010; it lasted two weeks, jammed traffic for over 100km (over 62 miles), and allowed drivers to move roughly 1km a day.
Israel’s weekly state lottery drew exactly the same 6 numbers (,000, with more than 100 people sharing smaller prizes.
The numbers that rolled out during a live television broadcast were (36, 33, 32, 26, 14, 13and the additional ‘strong’ number 2) as the draw 3 weeks earlier, and event statisticians said was a one in four trillion chance.
In 2010, Sweden removed the statute of limitations for prosecuting murder because the 1986 assassination of their prime minister, Olof Palme, had still not been solved. Though 10,000 people have been questioned, the killer remains unknown to this day.
The town of Sh*tterton, England, kept getting its town sign stolen. In 2010, they finally solved the problem by installing a 1.6-ton concrete slab with the town name inscribed on it.
Pop Culture Facts & History:
The KOR-fx, a device that sits around the shoulders and translates stereo sound into stereo vibrations for gaming consoles, mp3s, and more, was invented.
Barbra Streisand is the only artist to have Billboard 200 #1 albums in six decades, from the 1960s to the 2010s.
The best-selling book of the 2010s was Fifty Shades of Grey. The second best-selling was Fifty Shades Darker. The third best-selling was… Fifty Shades Freed.
MTV was not focusing on music anymore. As part of their re-branding, they dropped the long-running tagline “Music Television” from their logo, officially ending their music video era.
Gift cards worth $27 billion have gone unredeemed between 2010 and 2018.
Kansas State University professor Mark Haub went on a Twinkie diet, where he ate mainly Twinkies, Oreos, and Doritos to prove to his students that calorie counting is THE important part of losing weight, not nutritional content. He lost 27 pounds in 2 months.
93 percent of shark attacks worldwide between 1580 and 2010 were on males.
The USPS mistook a Las Vegas replica for the real Statue of Liberty when creating the Lady Liberty “forever” stamp in 2010, resulting in a $3.5m payout to the replica’s sculptor for violating his copyright.
Barbie’s toddler sister Kelly was discontinued in 2010 and replaced with a 6-year-old sister named Chelsea in 2011.
When South Park parodied Family Guy in the 2010 two-part episode ‘Cartoon Wars’, The Simpsons writing staff sent them flowers.
In 2010, the Forest Service made Betty White an honorary forest ranger. White said in previous interviews that she wanted to be a forest ranger as a little girl but that women were not allowed to do that then. When White received the honor, more than 1/3 of Forest Service employees were women.
The ManhattAnt is a unique species of ant found only in New York City. Biologists stumbled upon them in the Broadway medians at 63rd and 76th streets in 2010, and the biologists claim the ant species does not match any of the 13,000 known species. The ants subsist on a diet high in corn.
Bohemian Rhapsody is the only song in the top 100 most streamed songs on Spotify to be published before 2010 (as of 2020).
Altoids once came in sour varieties but were discontinued in 2010.
Encyclopedia Britannica was the oldest continuously published reference source in the English language. The last printed edition was published in 2010. The publisher was at that time 244 years old.
In 2010, an unnamed, unlucky airline passenger was arrested in Ireland after Slovak security officials placed explosives in his luggage for training, then forgot to remove them before the plane took off.
In 2010, The U.S. Air Force made the fastest computer in the US Defense Department with 1,760 PlayStation 3s.
In 2010, Microsoft banned a user from Xbox Live for putting Fort Gay as his address. When he tried to tell them that Fort Gay exists in West Virginia, it took an appeal from the town’s mayor to correct it.
The 1980 Comedy film Airplane was judged “culturally, historically, or aesthetically” significant and added to the National Film Registry in 2010.
Jon McLoone ran 15 million computer simulations of the game Hangman and discovered that the most difficult word for that program to guess is “Jazz”.
Andre Geim won the (parody prize) Ig Nobel Prize in 2000 for his work on using magnetism to levitate a frog. 10 years later, his experiments regarding graphene won him the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics. This makes him the only recipient of the Ig Nobel and Nobel Prizes.
Doomsday Clock:
6 minutes to midnight, according to the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists. 2010: “We are poised to bend the arc of history toward a world free of nuclear weapons” is the Bulletin’s assessment. Talks between Washington and Moscow for a follow-on agreement to the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty are nearly complete, and more negotiations for further reductions in the U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenal are already planned. The dangers posed by climate change are growing, but there are pockets of progress. Most notably, at Copenhagen, the developing and industrialized countries agree to take responsibility for carbon emissions and to limit global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius.
The Habit:
The partially-shaved head trend was big with celebrities, including Willow Smith, Rihanna, and model Amber Rose.
2010 Toys inducted to the National Toy Hall of Fame:
The Game of Life, Playing cards
2010’s Most Popular Christmas Gifts, Toys and Presents:
Ipad, Zhu Zhu Pets, Nooks
Best Film Oscar Winner:
The Hurt Locker (presented in 2010)
2010 Entries to The National Film Registry:
Airplane! (released in 1980) All the President’s Men (released in 1976) The Bargain (released in 1914) Cry of Jazz (released in 1959) Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB (released in 1967) The Empire Strikes Back (released in 1980) The Exorcist (released in 1973) The Front Page (released in 1931) Grey Gardens (released in 1976) I Am Joaquin (released in 1969) It’s a Gift (released in 1934) Let There Be Light (released in 1946) Lonesome (released in 1928) Make Way for Tomorrow (released in 1937) Malcolm X (released in 1992) McCabe & Mrs. Miller (released in 1971) Newark Athlete (released in 1891) Our Lady of the Sphere (released in 1969) The Pink Panther (released in 1963) Preservation of the Sign Language (released in 1913) Saturday Night Fever (released in 1977) Study of a River (released in 1996/1997) Tarantella (released in 1940) A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (released in 1945) A Trip Down Market Street (released in 1906)
1. Toy Story 3 2. Alice in Wonderland 3. Iron Man 2 4. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse 5. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 6. Inception 7. Despicable Me 8. Shrek Forever After 9. How to Train Your Dragon 10. Tangled
2010/11 Most Popular TV Shows:
1. American Idol (Fox) 2. NBC Sunday Night Football (NBC) 3. The Voice (NBC) 4. Modern Family (ABC) 5. Dancing With The Stars (ABC) 6. Big Bang Theory (CBS) 7. Grey’s Anatomy (ABC) 8. Survivor: Nicaragua (CBS) 9. NCIS (CBS) 10. Glee (Fox)
2010 United States Census:
Total US Population: 308,745,538 1. New York, New York – 8,175,133 2. Los Angeles, California – 3,792,621 3. Chicago, Illinois – 2,695,598 4. Houston, Texas – 2,099,451 5. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – 1,526,006 6. Phoenix, Arizona – 1,445,632 7. San Antonio, Texas – 1,327,407 8. San Diego, California – 1,307,402 9. Dallas, Texas – 1,197,816 10. San Jose, California – 945,942
Sports:
World Series Champions: San Francisco Giants Super Bowl Champions: New Orleans Saints NBA Champions: Los Angeles Lakers Stanley Cup Champs: Chicago Blackhawks U.S. Open Golf Graeme McDowell U.S. Tennis: (Men/Ladies) Rafael Nadal/ Kim Clijsters Wimbledon (Men/Women): Rafael Nadal/Serena Williams NCAA Football Champions: Villanova Wildcats NCAA Basketball Champions: Duke Kentucky Derby: Super Saver World Cup (Soccer): Spain
The longest tennis match took place at Wimbledon 2010 when John Isner of the United States beat Nicolas Mahut of France 6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (7), 7-6 (3), 70-68 in a match that lasted 11 hours and five minutes, played over three days, June 22, 23 and 24.
Popular and Best-selling Books From 2010: A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan America Assassin by Vince Flynn The Ask by Sam Lipsyte The Big Short by Michael Lewis Bossypants by Tina Fey Caught by Harlan Coben Changes by Jim Butcher Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang by Chelsea Handler Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert The Confession by John Grisham Crimes Against Liberty by David Limbaugh Cross Fire by James Patterson Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris Dead or Alive by Tom Clancy and Grant Blackwood Decision Points by George W. Bush Deliver Us From Evil by David Baldacci Earth (The Book) by Jon Stewart and others Fall of Giants by Ken Follett Fantasy in Death by J.D. Robb Freedom by Jonathan Franzen Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King Game Change by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larsson Going Rogue by Sarah Palin The Grand Design by Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow Half Empty by David Rakoff Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom Hell’s Corner by David Baldacci The Help by Kathryn Stockett House Rules by Jodi Picoult How to Read the Air by Dinaw Mengest The Hunger Games: Mocking Jay by Suzanne Collins Life by Keith Richards with James Fox The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown The 9th Judgment by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro No Apology by Mitt Romney The Obama Diaries by Laura Ingraham Obama’s Wars by Bob Woodward Oprah: A Biography by Kitty Kelley The Overton Window by Glen Beck Point Omega by Don DeLillo Port Mortuary by Patricia Cornwell The Postcard Killers by James Patterson and Liza Marklund Private by James Patterson The Rembrandt Affair by Daniel Silva The Reversal by Michael Connelly Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks Search by Nora Roberts Shadow of Your Smile by Mary Higgins Clark Sh*t My Dad Says by Justin Halpern Silver Borne by Patricia Briggs 61 Hours by Lee Child Spoken from the Heart by Laura Bush Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell Towers of Midnight by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson Worth Dying For by Lee Child Worst Case by James Patterson
Winners Announced:March 7, 2010 Held at: Kodak Theatre, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California Hosts: Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin Eligibility Year: 2009
On the Red Carpet – Oscar Trivia
For the first time since 1943, the Academy expanded the Best Picture nominees from five to ten, creating a diverse set of films like Avatar and The Hurt Locker.
Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win the Best Director award for The Hurt Locker, which also won Best Picture.
The Hurt Locker was also notable for having one of the lowest box office earnings for a Best Picture winner.
Comedy legends Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin co-hosted, marking the first time in over two decades that the Oscars had dual hosts.
Sandra Bullock won Best Actress for The Blind Side and became the first actress to win both a Razzie and an Oscar in the same weekend. “Did I really earn this, or did I just wear you all down?” – Sandra Bullock, Best Actress, The Blind Side
Up became the second animated film in history to be nominated for Best Picture.
Christoph Waltz won his first Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds, marking the beginning of a fruitful collaboration between the actor and director.
Jeff Bridges finally took home an Oscar for Best Actor in Crazy Heart after five previous nominations.
2010 Oscar Nominees and Winners
Best Picture: The Hurt Locker – Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro, producers (WINNER) Avatar – James Cameron and Jon Landau, producers The Blind Side – Gil Netter, Andrew A. Kosove and Broderick Johnson, producers District 9 – Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, producers An Education – Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, producers Inglourious Basterds – Lawrence Bender, producer Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire – Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, producers A Serious Man – Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, producers Up – Jonas Rivera, producer Up in the Air – Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, producers
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker (WINNER) James Cameron – Avatar Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds Lee Daniels – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire Jason Reitman – Up in the Air
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart as Otis “Bad” Blake (WINNER) George Clooney – Up in the Air as Ryan Bingham Colin Firth – A Single Man as George Falconer Morgan Freeman – Invictus as Nelson Mandela Jeremy Renner – The Hurt Locker as Sergeant First Class William James
Best Actress: Sandra Bullock – The Blind Side as Leigh Anne Tuohy (WINNER) Helen Mirren – The Last Station as Sophia Tolstaya Carey Mulligan – An Education as Jenny Mellor Gabourey Sidibe – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire as Claireece “Precious” Jones Meryl Streep – Julie & Julia as Julia Child
Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz – Inglourious Basterds as Col. Hans Landa (WINNER) Matt Damon – Invictus as Francois Pienaar Woody Harrelson – The Messenger as Cpt. Tony Stone Christopher Plummer – The Last Station as Leo Tolstoy Stanley Tucci – The Lovely Bones as George Harvey
Best Supporting Actress: Mo’Nique – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire as Mary Lee Johnston (WINNER) Penélope Cruz – Nine as Carla Albanese Vera Farmiga – Up in the Air as Alex Goran Maggie Gyllenhaal – Crazy Heart as Jean Craddock Anna Kendrick – Up in the Air as Natalie Keener
Best Original Screenplay: The Hurt Locker – Mark Boal (WINNER) Inglourious Basterds – Quentin Tarantino The Messenger – Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman A Serious Man – Joel Coen and Ethan Coen Up – Screenplay by Bob Peterson and Pete Docter; Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson and Thomas McCarthy
Best Adapted Screenplay: Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire – Geoffrey Fletcher based on the novel Push by Sapphire (WINNER) District 9 – Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell based on the short film Alive in Joburg by Neill Blomkamp An Education – Nick Hornby based on the memoir by Lynn Barber In the Loop – Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci and Tony Roche based on the character Malcolm Tucker, who originally appeared in the BBC TV show The Thick of It Up in the Air – Sheldon Turner and Jason Reitman based on the novel by Walter Kirn
Best Animated Feature Film: Up – Directed by Pete Docter (WINNER) Coraline – Directed by Henry Selick Fantastic Mr. Fox – Directed by Wes Anderson The Princess and the Frog – Directed by Ron Clements and John Musker The Secret of Kells – Directed by Tomm Moore
Best Foreign Language Film: The Secret in Their Eyes (Argentina) in Spanish – Directed by Juan José Campanella (WINNER) Ajami (Israel) in Arabic and Hebrew – Directed by Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani The Milk of Sorrow (Peru) in Spanish and Quechua – Directed by Claudia Llosa A Prophet (France) in French, Corsican and Arabic – Directed by Jacques Audiard The White Ribbon (Germany) in German – Directed by Michael Haneke
Best Documentary Feature: The Cove – Louie Psihoyos and Fisher Stevens (WINNER) Burma VJ – Anders Østergaard and Lise Lense-Møller Food, Inc. – Robert Kenner and Elise Pearlstein The Most Dangerous Man in America – Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith Which Way Home – Rebecca Cammisa
Best Documentary Short Subject: Music by Prudence – Roger Ross Williams and Elinor Burkett (WINNER) China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province – Jon Alpert and Matthew O’Neill The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner – Daniel Junge and Henry Ansbacher The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant – Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert Rabbit à la Berlin – Bartosz Konopka and Anna Wydra
Best Live Action Short Film: The New Tenants – Joachim Back and Tivi Magnusson (WINNER) The Door – Juanita Wilson and James Flynn Instead of Abracadabra – Patrik Eklund and Mathias Fjellström Kavi – Gregg Helvey Miracle Fish – Luke Doolan and Drew Bailey
Best Animated Short Film: Logorama – Nicolas Schmerkin (WINNER) French Roast – Fabrice O. Joubert Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty – Nicky Phelan and Darragh O’Connell The Lady and the Reaper – Javier Recio Gracia A Matter of Loaf and Death – Nick Park
Best Original Score: Up – Michael Giacchino (WINNER) Avatar – James Horner Fantastic Mr. Fox – Alexandre Desplat The Hurt Locker – Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders Sherlock Holmes – Hans Zimmer
Best Original Song: “The Weary Kind” from Crazy Heart – Music and Lyrics by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett (WINNER) “Almost There” from The Princess and the Frog – Music and Lyrics by Randy Newman “Down in New Orleans” from The Princess and the Frog – Music and Lyrics by Randy Newman “Loin de Paname” from Paris 36 – Music by Reinhardt Wagner; Lyrics by Frank Thomas “Take it All” from Nine – Music and Lyrics by Maury Yeston
Best Sound Editing: The Hurt Locker – Paul N. J. Ottosson (WINNER) Avatar – Christopher Boyes and Gwendolyn Yates Whittle Inglourious Basterds – Wylie Stateman Star Trek – Mark Stoeckinger and Alan Rankin Up – Michael Silvers and Tom Myers
Best Sound Mixing: The Hurt Locker – Paul N. J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett (WINNER) Avatar – Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson and Tony Johnson Inglourious Basterds – Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti and Mark Ulano Star Trek – Anna Behlmer, Andy Nelson and Peter J. Devlin Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen – Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers and Geoffrey Patterson
Best Art Direction: Avatar – Art Direction: Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Kim Sinclair (WINNER) The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus – Art Direction: Dave Warren and Anastasia Masaro; Set Decoration: Caroline Smith Nine – Art Direction: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Gordon Sim Sherlock Holmes – Art Direction: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer The Young Victoria – Art Direction: Patrice Vermette; Set Decoration: Maggie Gray
Best Cinematography: Avatar – Mauro Fiore (WINNER) Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – Bruno Delbonnel The Hurt Locker – Barry Ackroyd Inglourious Basterds – Robert Richardson The White Ribbon – Christian Berger
Best Makeup: Star Trek – Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow (WINNER) Il Divo – Aldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano The Young Victoria – Jon Henry Gordon and Jenny Shircore
Best Costume Design: The Young Victoria – Sandy Powell (WINNER) Bright Star – Janet Patterson Coco Before Chanel – Catherine Leterrier The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus – Monique Prudhomme Nine – Colleen Atwood
Best Film Editing: The Hurt Locker – Bob Murawski and Chris Innis (WINNER) Avatar – Stephen E. Rivkin, John Refoua and James Cameron District 9 – Julian Clarke Inglourious Basterds – Sally Menke Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire – Joe Klotz
Best Visual Effects: Avatar – Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones (WINNER) District 9 – Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken Star Trek – Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton Honorary Academy Awards The Academy held its 1st Annual Governors Awards ceremony on November 14, 2009, during which the following awards were presented.
Academy Honorary Awards: Lauren Bacall Roger Corman Gordon Willis
“Promiscuous girl Wherever you are I’m all alone And it’s you that I want”
– Promiscuous, Nelly Furtado
This list contains the most popular “sexy” songs played on American Top 40 radio stations and mainstream video channels
*Due to the “graphic” nature of these popular songs heard by all ages on American radio and seen on television, the Google algorithm has decided that this page listing them is violating their terms for what we guess is their “community standards” for banner advertising. We periodically request the robots who rule our online lives to once again allow ads, but we’ve decided to just keep this notice up regardless of the outcome of our request(s). For the record, we do often request that the Big G stop running overly sexy dating ads to no avail, which are out of our control apparently, and we will continue to not allow language any coarser than “PG”.
The 2000s (2000-2009) Sexy Songs
1.
Ignition – R. Kelly
2.
Your Body Is A Wonderland – John Mayer
3.
Promiscuous – Nelly Furtado featuring Timbaland
4.
Buttons – Pussycat Dolls
5.
Me & U – Cassie
6.
SexyBack – Justin Timberlake
7.
Dip It Low – Christina Milian
8.
Sexy Love – Ne-Yo
9.
Let’s Make Love – Faith Hill and Tim McGraw
10.
Naughty Girl – Beyonce
11.
Untitled (How Does It Feel) – D’Angelo
12.
Get Mine, Get Yours– Christina Aguilera
13.
Birthday Sex – Jeremih
14.
Peaches ‘N Cream – 112
15.
Lollipop – Lil Wayne
16.
Slow – Kylie Minogue
17.
Don’t Cha – Pussycat Dolls
18.
Dirrty – Christina Aguilera
19.
Sexy Chick – David Guetta
20.
I’m a Slave for You – Britney Spears
21.
Insatiable – Darren Hayes
22.
Work It – Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott
23.
Lady Marmalade – Mya, Christina Aguilera, Pink, Lil Kim, Missy Elliot
24.
Sex On Fire – Kings of Leon
25.
What’s Your Fantasy – Ludacris featuring Shawnna
26.
Love In This Club – Usher feat. Young Jeezy
27.
My Love is Like Whoa – Mya
28.
Shut Up And Drive – Rihanna
29.
Take You Down – Chris Brown
30.
I Kissed A Girl – Katy Perry
31.
Give it Up to Me – Sean Paul feat. Keshia Cole
32.
Bliss – Mariah Carey
33.
Breathe – Faith Hill
34.
Touch My Body – Mariah Carey
35.
Come a Little Closer – Dierks Bentley
36.
Belly Dancer (Bananza) – Akon
37.
Ooh La La – Goldfrapp
38.
The Way You Move – Outkast
39.
Candy Shop – 50 Cent featuring Olivia
40.
Touch Of My Hand – Britney Spears
41.
Raining on Sunday – Keith Urban
42.
Electric Feel – MGMT
43.
Say It Right – Nelly Furtado
44.
I Wanna Be Bad – Willa Ford
45.
If U Seek Amy – Britney Spears
46.
Thong Song – Sisqo
47.
Milkshake – Kelis
48.
Turn Me On – Norah Jones
49.
Slow Motion – Juvenile feat. Soulja Slim
50.
Bed – J. Holiday
51.
My Neck, My Back(Lick It) – Khia
52.
My Love – Justin Timberlake
53.
Beautiful – Snoop Dogg, Pharrell and Uncle Charlie Wilson
Winners Announced: January 31, 2010 Held at: Staples Center, Los Angeles Host: John Goodman Eligibility Year: October 1, 2008 – August 31, 2009
Behind-the-Beats Trivia
Taylor Swift, at the age of 20, became the youngest artist to win Album of the Year for Fearless.
Beyoncé broke the record for most Grammy Awards won by a female artist in one night, taking home six awards.
Lady Gaga made a grand entrance by arriving in a giant egg; she later performed Born This Way.
John Goodman, known for his acting rather than hosting music events, was an unexpected choice that added a different flavor to the ceremony.
Jazz musician Chick Corea was the only artist nominated in two different genres: Jazz and Classical.
The eligibility year for this particular Grammy Awards was shortened by one month, to synchronize the Grammy Award cycle with that of its peer awards.
The award for Best New Artist went to the Zac Brown Band, marking a rare win for a country group in this category.
David Guetta won his first Grammy this year for the song When Love Takes Over, featuring Kelly Rowland, in the category Best Dance Recording.
2010 Grammy Winners
Album of the Year:
Fearless – Taylor Swift
Record of the Year:
Use Somebody – Kings of Leon
Song of the Year:
Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It) – Beyoncé
New Artist:
Zac Brown Band
Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals:
I Gotta Feeling – The Black Eyed Peas
Pop Vocal Album:
The Black Eyed PeasThe E.N.D.
Female Pop Vocal Performance:
Halo – Beyoncé
Male Pop Vocal Performance:
Make It Mine – Jason Mraz
Traditional Pop Vocal Album:
Michael Bublé Meets Madison Square Garden – Michael Bublé
Pop Collaboration With Vocals:
Jason Mraz and Colbie Caillat – Lucky
Pop Instrumental Performance:
Throw Down Your Heart – Bela Fleck
Pop Instrumental Album:
Potato Hole, Booker T. Jones
Female R&B Vocal Performance:
Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It) – Beyoncé
Male R&B Vocal Performance:
Pretty Wings – Maxwell
R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals:
Blame It – Jamie Foxx and T-Pain
Traditional R&B Vocal Performance:
At Last, Beyoncé
R&B Song:
Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It) – Beyoncé
R&B Album:
Blacksummers’ Night – Maxwell
Contemporary R&B Album:
I Am…Sasha Fierce – Beyoncé
Rap/Sung Collaboration:
Run This Town – Jay-Z, Rihanna and Kanye West
Rap Performance by a Duo or Group:
Crack a Bottle – Eminem, Dr. Dre and 50 Cent
Rap Song:
Run This Town – Jay-Z, Rihanna and Kanye West
Rap Album:
Relapse – Eminem
Rap Solo Performance:
Jay-Z – D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)
Urban/Alternative Performance:
India.Arie and Dobet Gnahoré – Pearls
Country Album:
Fearless – Taylor Swift
Female Country Vocal Performance:
White Horse – Taylor Swift
Male Country Vocal Performance:
Sweet Thing – Keith Urban
Country Song:
White Horse – Taylor Swift
Country Collaboration With Vocals:
I Told You So – Carrie Underwood and Randy Travis
Country Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals:
I Run to You – Lady Antebellum
Country Instrumental Performance:
Producer’s Medley – Steve Wariner
Rock Album:
21st Century Breakdown – Green Day
Solo Rock Vocal Performance:
Working on a Dream – Bruce Springsteen
Rock Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals:
Use Somebody – Kings of Leon
Rock Song:
Use Somebody – Kings of Leon
Hard Rock Performance:
War Machine – AC/DC
Metal Performance:
Dissident Aggressor – Judas Priest
Rock Instrumental Performance:
A Day in the Life – Jeff Beck
Dance Recording:
Poker Face – Lady Gaga
Electronic/Dance Album:
The Fame – Lady Gaga
Alternative Music Album:
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix – Phoenix
Americana Album:
Electric Dirt – Levon Helm
Bluegrass Album:
The Crow/New Songs for the Five-String Banjo, Steve Martin
Traditional Blues Album:
A Stranger Here – Ramblin’ Jack Elliott
Contemporary Blues Album:
Already Free – The Derek Trucks Band
Traditional Folk Album:
High Wide & Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project, Loudon Wainwright III
Contemporary Folk Album:
Townes – Steve Earle
Hawaiian Music Album:
Masters of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar, Volume 2, Various Artists
Native American Music Album:
Spirit Wind North – Bill Miller
Zydeco or Cajun Music Album:
Lay Your Burden Down – Buckwheat Zydeco
Reggae Album:
Mind Control – Acoustic, Stephen Marley
Traditional World Music Album:
Douga Mansa – Mamadou Diabate
Contemporary World Music Album:
Throw Down Your Heart: Tales From the Acoustic Planet, Vol. 3 – Africa Sessions, Béla Fleck
New Age Album:
Prayer for Compassion – David Darling
Short Form Music Video:
Boom Boom Pow – The Black Eyed Peas
Long Form Music Video:
The Beatles Love – All Together Now – Various Artists
Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books and Storytelling):
Always Looking Up – Michael J. Fox
Musical Show Album:
West Side Story
Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media:
Slumdog Millionaire
Score Soundtrack Album tor Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media:
Up – Michael Giacchino
Song Written for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media:
Jai Ho – (from Slumdog Millionaire), A.R. Rahman, Sukhvinder Singh, Tanvi Shah, Mahalaxmi Iyer and Vijay Prakash
Instrumental Composition:
Married Life (from Up) – Michael Giacchino
Instrumental Arrangement:
West Side Story Medley – Bill Cunliffe
Gospel Performance:
Wait on the Lord – Donnie McClurkin featuring Karen Clark Sheard
Gospel Song:
God in Me – Mary Mary featuring Kierra “KiKi” Sheard
Rock or Rap Gospel Album:
Live Revelations – Third Day
Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album:
The Power of One – Israel Houghton
Southern, Country or Bluegrass Gospel Album:
Jason Crabb – Jason Crabb
Traditional Gospel Album:
Oh Happy Day – Various Artists
Contemporary R&B Gospel Album:
Audience of One – Heather Headley
Latin Pop Album:
Sin Frenos – La Quinta Estación
Latin Rock, Alternative or Urban Album:
Los De Atras Vienen Conmigo – Calle 13
Tropical Latin Album:
Ciclos – Luis Enrique
Regional Mexican Album:
Necesito De Ti – Vicente Fernández
Tejano Album:
Borders y Bailes – Los Texmaniacs
Norteño Album:
Tu Noche Con…Los Tigres Del Norte – Los Tigres Del Norte
Banda Album:
Tu Esclavo y Amo – Lupillo Rivera
Contemporary Jazz Album:
75 – Joe Zawinul & the Zawinul Syndicate
Jazz Vocal Album:
Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the Music of Coltrane and Hartman, Kurt Elling
Improvised Jazz Solo:
Dancin’ 4 Chicken – Terence Blanchard, soloist
Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group:
Five Piece Band Live, Chick Corea and John McLaughlin Five Peace Band
Large Jazz Ensemble Album:
Book One – New Orleans Jazz Orchestra
Latin Jazz Album:
Juntos Para Siempre, Bebo Valdés and Chucho Valdés
Engineered Album, Classical:
Mahler: Symphony No. 8; Adagio From Symphony No. 10, Michael Tilson Thomas and San Francisco Symphony
Orchestral Performance:
Boston Symphony Orchestra; Tanglewood Festival Chorus, Ravel: Daphnis et Chloé
Opera Recording:
Britten: Billy Budd, London Symphony Orchestra; Gentlemen of the London Symphony Chorus
Choral Performance:
Mahler: Symphony No. 8; Adagio From Symphony No. 10, Laura Claycomb, Anthony Dean Griffey, Elza van den Heever, Katarina Karnéus, Quinn Kelsey, James Morris, Yvonne Naef and Erin Wall; San Francisco Symphony; Pacific Boychoir – San Francisco Symphony Chorus and San Francisco Girls Chorus
Conan O’Brien’s press release regarding the Changes in The Tonight Show January 12, 2010
People of Earth:
In the last few days, I’ve been getting a lot of sympathy calls, and I want to start by making it clear that no one should waste a second feeling sorry for me. For 17 years, I’ve been getting paid to do what I love most and, in a world with real problems, I’ve been absurdly lucky. That said, I’ve been suddenly put in a very public predicament and my bosses are demanding an immediate decision.
Six years ago, I signed a contract with NBC to take over The Tonight Show in June of 2009. Like a lot of us, I grew up watching Johnny Carson every night and the chance to one day sit in that chair has meant everything to me. I worked long and hard to get that opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the franchise long into the future. It was my mistaken belief that, like my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and, just as important, some degree of ratings support from the prime-time schedule. Building a lasting audience at 11:30 is impossible without both.
But sadly, we were never given that chance. After only seven months, with my Tonight Show in its infancy, NBC has decided to react to their terrible difficulties in prime-time by making a change in their long-established late night schedule.
Last Thursday, NBC executives told me they intended to move The Tonight Show to 12:05 to accommodate The Jay Leno Show at 11:35. For 60 years The Tonight Show has aired immediately following the late local news. I sincerely believe that delaying The Tonight Show into the next day to accommodate another comedy program will seriously damage what I consider to be the greatest franchise in the history of broadcasting. The Tonight Show at 12:05 simply isn’t The Tonight Show. Also, if I accept this move I will be knocking the Late Night show, which I inherited from David Letterman and passed on to Jimmy Fallon, out of its long-held time slot. That would hurt the other NBC franchise that I love, and it would be unfair to Jimmy.
So it has come to this: I cannot express in words how much I enjoy hosting this program and what an enormous personal disappointment it is for me to consider losing it. My staff and I have worked unbelievably hard and we are very proud of our contribution to the legacy of The Tonight Show . But I cannot participate in what I honestly believe is its destruction. Some people will make the argument that with DVRs and the Internet a time slot doesn’t matter. But with The Tonight Show, I believe nothing could matter more.
There has been speculation about my going to another network but, to set the record straight, I currently have no other offer and honestly have no idea what happens next. My hope is that NBC and I can resolve this quickly so that my staff, crew, and I can do a show we can be proud of, for a company that values our work.
Have a great day and, for the record, I am truly sorry about my hair; it’s always been that way.
December 13, 2008 – February 27, 2009
Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) – Beyonce
February 28 – March 13:
Heartless – Kanye West
March 14 -May 1:
Dead and Gone – T.I. featuring Justin Timberlake
May 2 – May 29:
Blame It – Jamie Foxx featuring T-Pain
May 30 – July 10:
Boom Boom Pow – The Black Eyed Peas
July 11 – August 7:
Knock You Down – Keri Hilson featuring Kanye West and Ne-Yo
August 8 -August 21:
Best I Ever Had – Drake 2
August 22 -October 2:
I Gotta Feeling – The Black Eyed Peas
October 3 -October 16:
You Belong With Me – Taylor Swift
October 17 -November 20:
Down – Jay Sean featuring Lil’ Wayne
November 21 – November 27:
Paparazzi – Lady Gaga
November 28, 2009 – January 29, 2010:
Empire State of Mind – Jay-Z and Alicia Keys
(Data is compiled from various charts including Billboard’s “Pop,” “Rock,” “Airplay,” “R&B/Dance” and “Singles” Charts. The “Hot 100” is the primary chart used for this list.)
World Changing Event: The Bitcoin (BTC) was created. It had virtually zero value in 2009 but peaked at 39 cents in 2010.
10,000 BTC were used to buy 2 Papa John Pizzas.
The Top Song was I Gotta Feeling by The Black Eyed Peas
Influential Songs include: The Fear by Lily Allen, I Dreamed A Dream by Susan Boyle, The Climb by Miley Cyrus, and Chasing Pavements by Adele
The Movies to Watch include Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, The Hurt Locker, Avatar, Up, Watchmen, Sherlock Holmes, and District 9
The Most Famous Person in America was probably Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger
People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive: Johnny Depp
Notable books include: The Help by Kathryn Stockett and Freakonomics by Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt
Price of an Element MP3 player, 4GB: $39.99 Apple iPod Nano: $149.00 Minimum Wage in 2009: $7.25 per hour* *some states higher
The Funny Guy was: Larry the Cable Guy The Funny Late Night Host (1/2 year): Conan O’Brien
The Viral Video: JK Wedding Entrance Dance… The wedding procession for Jill Peterson and Kevin Heinz of St. Paul, Minnesota, was choreographed to the song Forever by Chris Brown.
After 74 years of production, Kodak stopped selling 35mm color film in 2009.
Rare Video Game: Mean Girls on DS, a game based on a movie starring Lindsay Lohan.
The Conversion Rate: Singer Lily Allen turned down 200,000 in Bitcoins for a gig in 2009, about $2,000 (1 cent each) in cash value then. As of November 2017, it was worth over $1.3 Billion. (current value)
The Year of the Ox The year of the ox is one of the 12 years in the Chinese zodiac cycle. The ox is the second animal in the cycle. The years of the ox include: 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021, 2033, 2045, 2057 The year of the ox is associated with hard work, determination, and honesty. People born in the year of the ox are said to be strong, reliable, and dependable. They are also said to be patient and persistent, able to overcome any obstacle. They are usually honest and straightforward, don’t like to deceive, and can’t stand lies. They are also very hard-working, so they often succeed in their careers.
Top Ten Baby Names of 2009: Isabella, Emma, Olivia, Sophia, Ava, Jacob, Ethan, Michael, Alexander, William
Fashion Icons and Sex Symbols: Bar Refaeli, Adriana Lima, Jordana Brewster, Megan Fox, Jessica Biel, Christina Aguilera, Mila Kunis, Olivia Wilde, Eliza Dushku, Malin Akerman, Rihanna, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Leighton Meester
The Leading Men & Hunks: Taylor Lautner, Channing Tatum, Hugh Laurie, David Beckham, Joe Manganiello, Ryan Reynolds, Robert Pattinson, Tim Tebow, Antonio Sabàto, Jr.
“The Quotes” “If you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor. Period. If you like your health care plan, you will be able to keep your health care plan. Period. No one will take it away. No matter what.” -Barack Obama
“You guys might not know this, but I consider myself a bit of a loner. I tend to think of myself as a one-man wolf pack. But when my sister brought Doug home, I knew he was one of my own. And my wolf pack… it grew by one. So there… there were two of us in the wolf pack… I was alone first in the pack, and then Doug joined in later. And six months ago, when Doug introduced me to you guys, I thought, “Wait a second, could it be?” And now I know for sure, I just added two more guys to my wolf pack. Four of us wolves, running around the desert together, in Las Vegas, looking for strippers and cocaine. So tonight, I make a toast!” – Alan, from The Hangover
Time Magazine’s Person of the Year: Ben Bernanke
Miss America: Katie Stam
Miss USA: Kristen Dalton
The Scandals: Miley Cyrus almost had to dish out $4,000 to every Asian and Pacific Islander living in Los Angeles County in 2009. A racial discrimination lawsuit was filed by Lucie J. Kim claiming a picture of the singer pulling back her eyelids had broken the law. It was dismissed by the judge.
Golfer Tiger Woods allegedly took part in extramarital affairs with up to ten women including Playboy model Loredana Jolie and porn star Holly Sampson.
Chris Brown’s battery charges against Rihanna and the shocking picture of her black eye that surfaced on the internet.
Richard and Mayumi Heene of Fort Collins, Colorado claimed their 6-year-old child was trapped inside a gas balloon that floated up to altitudes of 7,000 feet. The incident received mass media attention but turned out to be a hoax.
Kanye West did not let Taylor Swift finish at the MTV VMA awards and interrupted her during her acceptance speech.
Michael Jackson, The King of Pop, died while preparing for a series of concerts. Prosecutors continue to question Jackson’s doctor, Conrad Murry, about whether or not he prescribed Jackson a fatal dosage of Propofol.
Presidents Obama(USA) and Sarkozy (France) noticed a young woman. French presidents are known for ‘noticing’ pretty young women, but American presidents normally don’t get photographed in such positions.
US Politics: January 20, 2009 (Tuesday) First inauguration of Barack Obama
Pop Culture Facts & History: Inventions included Foldable Speakers and Bladeless Fans.
Melissa and her husband Jackson Brandts were exploring Lake Minnewanka in Banff National Park, Canada, when a ground squirrel photobombed their timed picture.
Cost of a Super Bowl ad in 2009: $3,000,000
The Habit: Watching Avatar in theaters
2009 Toys inducted to the National Toy Hall of Fame: The Ball, Game Boy, Big Wheel
1st Appearances & 2009’s Most Popular Christmas Gifts, Toys and Presents: Zhu Zhu Pet hamsters, Bakugan Battle Brawlers New Vestroia Maxus Helios 7-in-1
East End Show – Thriller – Live (revival) Opened on January 26, 2009
Broadway Show – Rock of Ages (Musical) Opened on April 7, 2009 and closed on January 18, 2015
Broadway Show – Memphis (Musical) Opened on October 19, 2009 and closed on August 5, 2012
Best Film Oscar Winner: The Hurt Locker (Presented in 2010)
2009 Entries to The National Film Registry: Dog Day Afternoon (released in 1975) The Exiles (released in 1961) Heroes All (released in 1920) Hot Dogs for Gauguin (released in 1972) The Incredible Shrinking Man (released in 1957) Jezebel (released in 1938) The Jungle (released in 1967) The Lead Shoes (released in 1949) Little Nemo (released in 1911) Mabel’s Blunder (released in 1914) The Mark of Zorro (released in 1940) Mrs. Miniver (released in 1942) The Muppet Movie (released in 1979) Once Upon a Time in the West (released in 1968) Pillow Talk (released in 1959) Precious Images (released in 1986) Quasi at the Quackadero (released in 1975) The Red Book (released in 1994) The Revenge of Pancho Villa (released in 1930/1936) Scratch and Crow (released in 1995) Stark Love (released in 1927) The Story of G.I. Joe (released in 1945) A Study in Reds (released in 1932) Michael Jackson’s Thriller (released in 1983) Under Western Stars (released in 1938)
The Big Movies: (according to boxofficemojo) 1. Avatar 2. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen 3. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 4. The Twilight Saga: New Moon 5. Up 6. The Hangover 7. Star Trek 8. The Blind Side 9. Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel 10. Sherlock Holmes
2009 Most Popular TV Shows: 1. NCIS (CBS) 2. Sunday Night Football (NBC) 3. Dancing With the Stars (ABC) 4. The Mentalist (CBS) 5. NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS) 6. CSI (CBS) 7. Desperate Housewives (ABC) 8. Grey’s Anatomy (ABC) 9. House (Fox) 10. CBS NFL Postgame
Sports: World Series Champions: New York Yankees Super Bowl Champions: Pittsburgh Steelers NBA Champions: Los Angeles Lakers Stanley Cup Champs: Pittsburgh Penguins U.S. Open Golf Lucas Glover U.S. Tennis: (Men/Ladies) Juan Martin del Potro/Kim Clijsters Wimbledon (Men/Women): Roger Federer/Serena Williams NCAA Football Champions: Alabama NCAA Basketball Champions: North Carolina Kentucky Derby: Mine That Bird
Popular and Best-selling Books From 2009: Alex Cross’s Trial by James Patterson and Richard DiLallo Arguing with Idiots by Glenn Beck, Kevin Balfe, and others The Associate by John Grisham Bad Moon Rising by Sherrilyn Kenyon Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner Black Hills by Nora Roberts Black Ops by W.E.B. Griffin The Book of Basketball by Bill Simmons Catastrophe by Dick Morris and Eileen McGann The Christmas Sweater by Glenn Beck Chronic City by Jonathan Lethem Culture of Corruption by Michelle Malkin Dark Slayer by Christine Feehan Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris The Defector by Daniel Silva 8th Confession by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned by Wells Tower Finger Lickin’ Fifteen by Janet Evanovich Ford County by John Grisham Freakonomics by Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt The Gathering Storm by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larrson Going Rogue by Sarah Palin Gone Tomorrow by Lee Child Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom The Help by Kathryn Stockett The Host by Stephenie Meyer The Hunger Games: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins I, Alex Cross by James Patterson Just Take My Heart by Mary Higgins Clark Knockout by Catherine Coulter The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks Liberty and Tyranny by Mark R. Levin Lit: A Memoir by Mary Karr Long Lost by Harlan Coban The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown Official Book Club Selection by Kathy Griffin Open by Andre Agassi Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton Plum Spooky – Janet Evanovich Promises in Death by J.D. Robb Relentless by Dean Koontz Resilience by Elizabeth Edwards The Scarecrow by Michael Connelly Scarpetta by Patricia Cornwell Skin Trade by Laurell K. Hamilton South of Broad by Pat Conroy Swimsuit by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro True Compass by Edward M. Kennedy True Detectives by Jonathan Kellerman Turn Coat by Jim Butcher “U” is for Undertow by Sue Grafton Under the Dome by Stephen King Unmasked by Ian Halperin Wicked Prey by John Sandford The Yankee Years by Joe Torre and Tom Verducci
Winners Announced:February 22, 2009 Held at: Kodak Theatre, Hollywood, California Host: Hugh Jackman Eligibility Year: 2008
Oscar 2009 Trivia
Slumdog Millionaire took home eight Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director for Danny Boyle.
The award for Best Actor went to Sean Penn for his role in Milk, while Kate Winslet won Best Actress for The Reader.
Hugh Jackman’s hosting was notable for its musical numbers, including a spectacular opening medley.
This was the first year since 1989 that the Oscars had a sole host, rather than a duo or a group.
The late Heath Ledger won a posthumous Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of the Joker in The Dark Knight, making him the second actor to win a posthumous acting Oscar.
Penélope Cruz won Best Supporting Actress for Vicky Cristina Barcelona, becoming the first Spanish actress to win an Academy Award.
Pixar’s WALL-E won the award for Best Animated Feature, and it was the first Pixar film to be nominated for six Academy Awards.
The ceremony featured a new format for presenting the acting awards: previous winners came on stage to give personal tributes to the nominees.
Japanese drama Departures won Best Foreign Language Film, a surprising win that beat out the favorite, Waltz with Bashir.
2009 Oscar Nominees and Winners
Best Picture: Slumdog Millionaire – Christian Colson, producer (WINNER) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Ceán Chaffin, producers Frost/Nixon – Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner, producers Milk – Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen, producers The Reader – Anthony Minghella, Sydney Pollack, Donna Gigliotti and Redmond Morris, producers
Best Director: Danny Boyle – Slumdog Millionaire (WINNER) David Fincher – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Ron Howard – Frost/Nixon Gus Van Sant – Milk Stephen Daldry – The Reader
Best Actor: Sean Penn – Milk as Harvey Milk (WINNER) Richard Jenkins – The Visitor as Walter Vale Frank Langella – Frost/Nixon as Richard Nixon Brad Pitt – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button as Benjamin Button Mickey Rourke – The Wrestler as Randy “The Ram” Robinson
Best Actress: Kate Winslet – The Reader as Hanna Schmitz (WINNER) Anne Hathaway – Rachel Getting Married as Kym Buchman Angelina Jolie – Changeling as Christine Collins Melissa Leo – Frozen River as Ray Eddy Meryl Streep – Doubt as Sister Aloysius Beauvier
Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger – The Dark Knight as The Joker (WINNER) (posthumous award) Josh Brolin – Milk as Dan White Robert Downey Jr. – Tropic Thunder as Kirk Lazarus Philip Seymour Hoffman – Doubt as Father Brendan Flynn Michael Shannon – Revolutionary Road as John Givings Jr.
Best Supporting Actress: Penélope Cruz – Vicky Cristina Barcelona as María Elena (WINNER) Amy Adams – Doubt as Sister James Viola Davis – Doubt as Mrs. Miller Taraji P. Henson – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button as Queenie Marisa Tomei – The Wrestler as Cassidy/Pam
Best Original Screenplay: Milk – Dustin Lance Black (WINNER) Frozen River – Courtney Hunt Happy-Go-Lucky – Mike Leigh In Bruges – Martin McDonagh WALL-E – Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon and Pete Docter
Best Adapted Screenplay: Slumdog Millionaire – Simon Beaufoy based on the novel Q & A by Vikas Swarup (WINNER) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Eric Roth and Robin Swicord based on the short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald Doubt – John Patrick Shanley based on his play Frost/Nixon – Peter Morgan based on his stage play The Reader – David Hare based on the novel Der Vorleser by Bernhard Schlink
Best Animated Feature Film: WALL-E – Andrew Stanton (WINNER) Bolt – Chris Williams and Byron Howard Kung Fu Panda – Mark Osborne and John Stevenson
Best Foreign Language Film: Departures (Japan) in Japanese – Yojiro Takita (WINNER) The Baader Meinhof Complex (Germany) in German – Uli Edel The Class (France) in French – Laurent Cantet Revanche (Austria) in German – Götz Spielmann Waltz with Bashir (Israel) in Hebrew – Ari Folman
Best Documentary Feature: Man on Wire – James Marsh and Simon Chinn (WINNER) The Betrayal – Nerakhoon – Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath Encounters at the End of the World – Werner Herzog and Henry Kaiser The Garden – Scott Hamilton Kennedy Trouble the Water – Carl Deal and Tia Lessin
Best Documentary Short Subject: Smile Pinki – Megan Mylan (WINNER) The Conscience of Nhem En – Steven Okazaki The Final Inch – Irene Taylor Brodsky and Tom Grant The Witness: From the Balcony of Room 306 – Adam Pertovsky and Margaret Hyde
Best Live Action Short Film: Toyland (Spielzeugland) — Jochen Alexander Freydank (WINNER) Manon on the Asphalt — Elizabeth Marre and Olivier Pont New Boy (Ireland) — Steph Green and Tamara Anghie On the Line (Auf der Strecke) — Reto Caffi The Pig (Grisen) — Tivi Magnusson and Dorte Høgh
Best Animated Short Film: La Maison en Petits Cubes – Kunio Kato (WINNER) Lavatory – Lovestory – Konstantin Bronzit Oktapodi – Emud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand Presto – Doug Sweetland This Way Up – Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes
Best Original Score: Slumdog Millionaire – A. R. Rahman (WINNER) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Alexandre Desplat Defiance – James Newton Howard Milk – Danny Elfman WALL-E – Thomas Newman
Best Original Song: “Jai Ho” from Slumdog Millionaire – Music by A. R. Rahman; Lyrics by Gulzar (WINNER) “Down to Earth” from WALL-E – Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman; Lyrics by Peter Gabriel “O Saya” from Slumdog Millionaire – Music and Lyrics by A. R. Rahman and M.I.A.
Best Sound Editing: The Dark Knight – Richard King (WINNER) Iron Man – Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes Slumdog Millionaire – Glenn Freemantle and Tom Sayers WALL-E – Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood Wanted – Wylie Stateman
Best Sound Mixing: Slumdog Millionaire – Resul Pookutty, Richard Pryke and Ian Tapp (WINNER) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten The Dark Knight – Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick WALL-E – Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt Wanted – Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt
Best Art Direction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Art Direction: Donald Graham Burt; Set Decoration: Victor J. Zolfo (WINNER) Changeling – Art Direction: James J. Murakami; Set Decoration: Gary Fettis The Dark Knight – Art Direction: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Peter Lando The Duchess – Art Direction: Michael Carlin; Set Decoration: Rebecca Alleway Revolutionary Road – Art Direction: Kristi Zea; Set Decoration: Debra Schutt
Best Cinematography: Slumdog Millionaire – Anthony Dod Mantle (WINNER) Changeling – Tom Stern The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Claudio Miranda The Dark Knight – Wally Pfister The Reader – Chris Menges and Roger Deakins
Best Makeup: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Greg Cannom (WINNER) The Dark Knight – John Caglione Jr. and Conor O’Sullivan Hellboy II: The Golden Army – Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz
Best Costume Design: The Duchess – Michael O’Connor (WINNER) Australia – Catherine Martin The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Jacqueline West Milk – Danny Glicker Revolutionary Road – Albert Wolsky
Best Film Editing: Slumdog Millionaire – Chris Dickens (WINNER) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall The Dark Knight – Lee Smith Frost/Nixon – Mike Hill and Daniel P. Hanley Milk – Elliot Graham
Best Visual Effects: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron (WINNER) The Dark Knight – Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin Iron Man – John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan
Winners Announced:February 8, 2009 Held at: Staples Center, Los Angeles Host: No official host Eligibility Year: October 1, 2007 – September 30, 2008
Noteworthy Grammy 2009 Trivia
Raising Sand by Robert Plant & Alison Krauss was the evening’s big winner, snagging Album of the Year and Record of the Year for Please Read the Letter.
The night was a triumph for Lil Wayne, who walked away with four Grammys, including Best Rap Album for Tha Carter III.
Coldplay’s Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends snagged three awards, including Song of the Year for Viva La Vida.
This Grammy ceremony was unique in that it featured a 3-D tribute to Michael Jackson, who had passed away the previous year.
Adele won her first two Grammy Awards this year, including Best New Artist, kickstarting her meteoric rise in the music industry.
The night was also significant for Radiohead’s live performance of 15 Step with the USC Marching Band, a groundbreaking collaboration that garnered much attention.
2009 Grammy Winners
Album of the Year: Raising Sand – Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
Rap Album: Tha Carter III – Lil Wayne
Male Pop Vocal Performance: Say – John Mayer
Record of the Year: Please Read the Letter – Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
New Artist: Adele
Rock Album: Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends – Coldplay
Pop Collaboration With Vocals: Rich Woman – Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
Song of the Year: Viva La Vida – Coldplay
Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals: Stay – Sugarland
R&B Album: Jennifer Hudson – Jennifer Hudson
Producer of the Year, Non-Classical: Rick Rubin
Producer of the Year, Classical: David Frost
Female Pop Vocal Performance: Chasing Pavements – Adele
Pop Vocal Album: Rockferry – Duffy
Pop Instrumental Performance: I Dreamed There Was No War – Eagles
Pop Instrumental Album: Jingle All the Way – Béla Fleck & The Flecktones
Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals: Viva La Vida – Coldplay
Alternative Music Album: In Rainbows – Radiohead
Solo Rock Vocal Performance: Gravity – John Mayer
Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals: Sex on Fire – Kings of Leon
Hard Rock Performance: Wax Simulacra – The Mars Volta
Metal Performance: My Apocalypse – Metallica
Rock Instrumental Performance: Peaches En Regalia – Zappa Plays Zappa
Rock Song: Girls in Their Summer Clothes – Bruce Springsteen
Rap Solo Performance: A Milli – Lil Wayne
Rap Performance by a Duo or Group: Swagga Like Us – Jay-Z and T.I. featuring Kanye West and Lil Wayne
Rap/Sung Collaboration: American Boy – Estelle featuring Kanye West
Rap Song: Lollipop – Dwayne Carter, Darius Harrison, James Scheffer, Stephen Garrett and Rex Zamor
Country Song: Stay – Sugarland
Female Country Vocal Performance: Last Name – Carrie Underwood
Male Country Vocal Performance: Letter to Me – Brad Paisley
Country Collaboration with Vocals: Killing the Blues – Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
Country Instrumental Performance: Cluster Pluck – Brad Paisley, James Burton, Vince Gill, John Jorgenson, Albert Lee, Brent Mason, Redd Volkaert and Steve Wariner
R&B Song: Miss Independent – Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen and Shaffer Smith
Contemporary R&B Album: Growing Pains – Mary J. Blige
Female R&B Vocal Solo: Superwoman – Alicia Keys
Male R&B Vocal Solo: Miss Independent – Ne-Yo
R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals: Stay With Me (By the Sea) – Al Green featuring John Legend
Traditional R&B Vocal Performance: You’ve Got the Love I Need – Al Green featuring Anthony Hamilton
Urban/Alternative Performance: Be OK – Chrisette Michele featuring will.i.am
Dance Recording: Harder Better Faster Stronger – Daft Punk
Electronic Dance Album: Alive 2007 – Daft Punk
Bluegrass Album: Honoring the Fathers of Bluegrass: Tribute to 1946 and 1947 – Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder
Traditional Blues Album: One Kind Favor – B.B. King
Contemporary Blues Album: City That Care Forgot – Dr. John and The Lower 911
New Age Album: Peace Time – Jack DeJohnette
Contemporary Jazz Album: Randy in Brasil – Randy Brecker
Jazz Vocal Album: Loverly – Cassandra Wilson
Jazz Instrumental Solo: BE-BOP – Terence Blanchard
Jazz Instrumental Album Individual or Group: The New Crystal Silence – Chick Corea and Gary Burton
Large Jazz Ensemble Album: Monday Night Live at the Village Vanguard – The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra
Latin Jazz Album: Song for Chico – Arturo O’Farrill and The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra
Latin Pop Album: La Vida … Es Un Ratico – Juanes
Latin Rock or Alternative Album: 45 – Jaguares
Latin Urban Album: Los Extraterrestres – Wisin y Yandel
Tropical Latin Album: Senor Bachata – Jose Feliciano
Regional Mexican Album: Amor, Dolor y Légrimas: Musica Ranchera – Los Camperos Canciones De Amor – Mariachi Divas
Tejano Album: Viva La Revolucion – Ruben Ramos and The Mexican Revolution
Norteño Album: Raíces – Los Tigres Del Norte
Banda Album: No Es De Madera – Joan Sebástian
Traditional Folk Album: At 89 – Pete Seeger
Contemporary Folk/Americana Album: Raising Sand – Robert Plant and Alison Krauss (Rounder)
Native American Music Album: Come to Me Great Mystery: Native American Healing Songs – Various Artists
Hawaiian Music Album: Ikena – Tia Carrere and Daniel Ho
Zydeco or Cajun Music Album: Live at the 2008 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival – BeauSoleil and Michael Doucet
Engineering Album, Classical: Traditions and Transformations: Sounds of Silk Road Chicago – David Frost, Tom Lazarus and Christopher Willis
Reggae Album: Jah Is Real – Burning Spear
Traditional World Music Album: Ilembe: Honoring Shaka Zulu – Ladysmith Black Mambazo
Contemporary World Music Album: Global Drum Project – Mickey Hart, Zakir Hussain, Sikiru Adepoju and Giovanni Hidalgo
Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: Juno – Various Artists
Score Soundtrack Album for Motion Television or Other Visual Media: The Dark Knight
Polka Album: Let the Whole World Sing – Jimmy Sturr and His Orchestra
Gospel Performance: Get Up – Mary Mary
Gospel Song: Help Me Believe – Kirk Franklin
Rock or Rap Gospel Album: Alive and Transported – TobyMac
Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album: Thy Kingdom Come – CeCe Winans
Southern, Country, Bluegrass Gospel Album: Lovin’ Life – Gaither Vocal Band
Traditional Gospel Album: Down in New Orleans – The Blind Boys of Alabama
Contemporary R&B Gospel Album: The Fight of My Life – Kirk Franklin
Classical Album: Weill: Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny – James Conlon, conductor
Song Written for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: Down to Earth from WALL-E – Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman
Musical Show Album: In the Heights – Kurt Deutsch, Alex Lacamoire, Andres Levin, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Joel Moss and Bill Sherman, producers; Lin-Manuel Miranda, composer/lyricist
Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Story Telling): An Inconvenient Truth (Al Gore) – Beau Bridges, Cynthia Nixon and Blair Underwood
Musical Album for Children: Here Come the 123s – They Might Be Giants
Spoken Word Album Children: Yes to Running! Bill Harley Live – Bill Harley
Comedy Album: It’s Bad for Ya – George Carlin
Instrumental Composition: The Adventures of Mutt – Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull – John Williams
Instrumental Arrangement: Define Dancing from WALL-E, Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman
Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s): Here’s That Rainy Day – Nan Schwartz
Engineered Album, Non-Classical: Consolers of the Lonely – Joe Chiccarelli, Vance Powell and Jack White III, engineers
Remixed Recording: Electric Feel (Justice Remix) – Justice
Surround Sound Album: Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition; Night on Bald Mountain; Prelude to Khovanshchina – Michael Bishop
Opera Recording: Weill: Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny – James Conlon, conductor
Orchestral Performance: Shostakovich: Symphony No. 4 – Bernard Haitink, conductor Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Instrumental Soloist Performance (Without Orchestra): Piano Music of Salonen, Stucky, and Lutoslawski – Gloria Cheng
Chamber Music Performance: Carter, Elliott: String Quartets Nos. 1 and 5 – Pacifica Quartet
Small Ensemble Performance: Spotless Rose: Hymns to the Virgin Mary – Charles Bruffy, conductor; Phoenix Chorale
Classical Vocal Performance: Corigliano: Mr. Tambourine Man: Seven Poems of Bob Dylan – Hila Plitmann
Classical Contemporary Composition: Mr. Tambourine Man: Seven Poems of Bob Dylan – John Corigliano
Classical Crossover Album: Simple Gifts – The King’s Singers
Short Form Music Video: Pork and Beans – Weezer, Mathew Cullen
Long Form Music Video: Runnin’ Down a Dream – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Recording Package: Death Magnetic – Bruce Duckworth, Sarah Moffat and David Turner
Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package: In Rainbows – Stanley Donwood, Mel Maxwell and Christiaan Munro
Album Notes: Kind of Blue: 50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition – Francis Davis
Historical Album: Art of Field Recording Volume I: Fifty Years of Traditional American Music Documented by Art Rosenbaum – Steven Lance Ledbetter and Art Rosenbaum, compilation producers
George W. Bush’s Letter to Barack Obama
January 20, 2009
Dear Barack,
Congratulations on becoming our President. You have just begun a fantastic chapter in your life.
Very few have had the honor of knowing the responsibility you now feel. Very few know the excitement of the moment and the challenges you will face.
There will be trying moments. The critics will rage. Your “friends” will disappoint you. But, you will have an Almighty God to comfort you, a family who loves you, and a country that is pulling for you, including me. No matter what comes, you will be inspired by the character and compassion of the people you now lead.
Barack Obama’s 2009 Inauguration Speech
Given on January 20, 2009, in Washington DC
My fellow citizens: I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you’ve bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors.
I thank President Bush for his service to our nation — as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.
Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often, the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we, the people, have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears and true to our founding documents.
So it has been; so it must be with this generation of Americans.
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly, our schools fail too many — and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable, but no less profound, is a sapping of confidence across our land; a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, that the next generation must lower its sights.
Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this America: They will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord. On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas that for far too long have strangled our politics. We remain a young nation. But in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted, for those that prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated, but more often men and women obscure in their labor — who have carried us up the long rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.
For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life. For us, they toiled in sweatshops, and settled the West, endured the lash of the whip, and plowed the hard earth. For us, they fought and died in places like Concord and Gettysburg, Normandy and Khe Sahn.
Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as beggir than the sum of our individual ambitions, greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.
This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week, or last month, or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.
For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of our economy calls for action, bold and swift. And we will act, not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We’ll restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.
Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions, who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short, for they have forgotten what this country has already done, what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage. What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them, that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply.
The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public’s dollars will be held to account, to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day, because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.
Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched. But this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control. The nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity, on the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart — not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers- our Founding Fathers, faced with perils that we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man — a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience sake.
And so, to all the other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born, know that America is a friend of each nation, and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity. And we are ready to lead once more.
Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with the sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.
We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort, even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we’ll work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet.
We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense. And for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken — you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.
For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.
To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society’s ills on the West, know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy.
To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history, but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders, nor can we consume the world’s resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.
As we consider the role that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who at this very hour patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages.
We honor them not only because they are the guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service — a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves.
And yet at this moment, a moment that will define a generation, it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all. For as much as government can do, and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter’s courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent’s willingness to nurture a child that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history.
What is demanded, then, is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition on the part of every American that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world; duties that we do not grudgingly accept, but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character than giving our all to a difficult task.
This is the price and the promise of citizenship. This is the source of our confidence — the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny. This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed, why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall; and why a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served in a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.
So let us mark this day with remembrance of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America’s birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At the moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words to be read to the people:
“Let it be told to the future world…that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive… that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it].”
America: In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.
December 1, 2007 – January 4, 2008: No One – Alicia Keys January 5 – March 14: Low – Flo Rida featuring T-Pain March 15 – April 4: Love In This Club – Usher with Young Jeezy April 5 – April 11: Bleeding Love – Leona Lewis April 12 – May 2: Touch My Body – Mariah Carey May 3 – May 23: Lollipop – LilWayne with Static Major May 24 – June 27: Take A Bow – Rihanna June 28 – July 4: Viva La Vida – Coldplay July 5 – August 22: I Kissed a Girl – Katy Perry August 23 – September 5: Disturbia – Rihanna September 6 – September 26: Whatever You Like – T.I. September 27 – October 17: So What – Pink October 18 – October 24: Live Your Life – T.I. with Rihanna October 25 – December 12: Womanizer – Britney Spears December 13, 2008 – February 27, 2009 Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) – Beyonce
(Data is compiled from various charts including Billboard’s “Pop,” “Rock,” “Airplay,” “R&B/Dance” and “Singles” Charts. The “Hot 100” is the primary chart used for this list.)
Beer: During a worldwide hop shortage in 2008, The Sam Adams Brewing Company sold craft brewers their hops at cost to keep them in business and even gave cash loans to small breweries, helping the entire micro-brew industry.
The Top Song was Low by Flo Rida with T-Pain
Influential Songs include: Foundations by Kate Nash, Fifteen by Taylor Swift, The Prayer by Celine Dion and Josh Groban, Leavin’ by Jesse McCartney, and Forever by Chris Brown
The Movies to Watch include WALL-E, Tropic Thunder, Iron Man, Slumdog Millionaire, and The Dark Knight
The Most Famous Person in America was probably Usain Bolt
People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive: Hugh Jackman
Notable books include: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Price of a postage stamp in 2008: 42 cents Zune 120 released: $249.95 Xbox 360 game system: $279.99
The Funny Guy was: Louis C.K. The Funny Late Night Host: Jay Leno
Olympic Gold Medalist and World Record Holder Usain Bolt ate 100 chicken nuggets a day (1,000 total) and still managed to win three gold medals while competing and staying in Beijing, China.
Michael Jackson tried to hang out casually at a club and people watch and was surprised when he heard the DJ play remixes of his songs and said “Wow, I didn’t know that they still played my music [in 2008]”.
The Movie Question: How did they get so many talented actors to join the cast of Mamma Mia?
Year of the Rat The year of the rat is one of the 12 years in the Chinese zodiac cycle. The rat is the first animal in the cycle. The years of the rat include: 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020, 2032, 2044, 2056 The year of the rat is associated with intelligence, charm, and a quick wit. People born in the year of the rat are said to be hardworking, ambitious, and good at saving money. They are also said to be adaptable and resourceful, able to make the best of any situation.
Top Ten Baby Names of 2008: Emma, Isabella, Emily, Olivia, Ava, Jacob, Michael, Ethan, Joshua, Daniel
Fashion Icons and Sex Symbols: Scarlett Johansson, Sarah Michelle Geller, Christina Aguilera, Charlize Theron, Megan Fox, Jessica Biel, Beyonce, Marissa Miller, Eva Longoria, Vanessa Hudgens, Rihanna, Hayden Panettiere, Elisha Cuthbert, Eva Mendes, Lindsay Lohan, Ashley Tisdale
Leading Men and Hollywood Hunks: David Beckham, Robert Pattinson, Antonio Sabàto, Jr., Hugh Laurie, Christian Bale, George Clooney, Brad Pitt
“The Quotes” “I can see Russia from my house!” -Comedian Tina Fey, while impersonating Alaska Governor Sarah Palin
“You know, they say the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull? Lipstick” -Sarah Palin
“You know, you can put lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig.” -Barack Obama
Time Magazine’s Person of the Year: Barack Obama
Miss America: Kirsten Haglund
Miss USA: Crystle Stewart
The Scandals: John Edwards (D) admitted having an affair with campaign videographer Rielle Hunter
The 2008 Chinese milk scandal was a food safety incident in the People’s Republic of China, involving milk and infant formula, and other food materials and components, contaminated with melamine. China reported an estimated 300,000 victims.
Democrat New York governor Eliot Spitzer (aka Client #9) had a scandalous, ongoing tryst with escort Ashley Alexandra Dupre.
Pop Culture Facts & History: A 2008 study of the British authorities’ Convict Transportation Registers from 1788 to 1868 estimated that 22 percent of living Australians had a convict ancestor.
DNA tests were made available to the public.
The Large Hadron Collider went online September 10, 2008.
Cost of a Super Bowl ad in 2008: $2,700,000
The Habit: Showing off your Apple iPod nano 8 GB, Arguing over Team Jacob or Team Edward
2008 Toys inducted to the National Toy Hall of Fame: The Stick, The Baby Doll, The Skateboard
1st Appearances & 2008’s Most Popular Christmas Gifts, Toys and Presents: Lego Star Wars rebel scout speeder, Hannah Montana Holiday Singing Doll
East End Show – Jersey Boys (Musical) Opened on March 18, 2008 and closed on March 26, 2017
Broadway Show – In the Heights (Musical) Opened on March 30, 2008 and closed on January 9, 2011
Broadway Show – Billy Elliot the Musical (Musical) Opened on November 13, 2008 and closed on January 8, 2012
Best Film Oscar Winner: No Country For Old Men (Presented in 2008)
2008 Entries to The National Film Registry: The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (released in 1958) The Asphalt Jungle (released in 1950) Deliverance (released in 1972) Disneyland Dream (released in 1956) A Face in the Crowd (released in 1957) Flower Drum Song (released in 1961) Foolish Wives (released in 1922) Free Radicals (released in 1979) George Stevens’ World War II Footage (released in 1943/1946) Hallelujah! (released in 1929) In Cold Blood (released in 1967) The Invisible Man (released in 1933) Johnny Guitar (released in 1954) The Killers (released in 1946) The March (released in 1964) No Lies (released in 1973) On the Bowery (released in 1957) One Week (released in 1920) The Pawnbroker (released in 1965) The Perils of Pauline (released in 1914) Sergeant York (released in 1941) So’s Your Old Man (released in 1926) The Terminator (released in 1984) Water and Power (released in 1989) White Fawn’s Devotion (released in 1910)
1. The Dark Knight 2. Iron Man 3. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull 4. Hancock 5. WALL-E 6. Kung Fu Panda 7. Twilight 8. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa 9. Quantum of Solace 10. Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who!
2008 Most Popular TV Shows: 1. American Idol Results (Fox) 2. Dancing With the Stars (ABC) 3. CSI (CBS) 4. NCIS (CBS) 5. The Mentalist (CBS) 6. Sunday Night Football (NBC) 7. Desperate Housewives (ABC) 8. Two and a Half Men (CBS) 9. Criminal Minds (CBS) 10. Grey’s Anatomy (ABC)
Notable Books: A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle Against Medical Advice by James Patterson and Hal Friedman Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea by Chelsea Handler Audition by Barbara Walters The Battle of the Labyrinth (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #4) by Rick Riordan Beautiful Boy by David Sheff Breaking Dawn (The Twilight Saga, Book 4) by Stephenie Meyer Brisingr (Inheritance Cycle #3) by Christopher Paolini City of Ashes (The Mortal Instruments, #2) by Cassandra Clare Chosen (House of Night #) by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast Dewey by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules by Jeff Kinney Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, Book 3) by Stephenie Meyer Fablehaven: Grip of the Shadow Plague, Shadow Mountain (Fablehaven #3) by Brandon Mull Frostbite (Vampire Academy #2) by Richelle Mead Ink Exchange (Wicked Lovely #2) by Melissa Marr Graceling (Graceling Realm, #1) by Kristin Cashore The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman Home by Julie Andrews Hot, Flat, and Crowded by Thomas L. Friedman The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games, #1) by Suzanne Collins In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg Losing It by Valerie Bertinelli Mistaken Identity by Don and Susie Van Ryn and Newell, Colleen and Whitney Cerak, with Mark Tabb New Moon (The Twilight Saga Book 2) by Stephenie Meyer The Obama Nation by Jerome R. Corsi Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell Paper Towns by John Green The Revolution by Ron Paul The Shack by William P. Young Shadow Kiss (Vampire Academy #3) by Richelle Mead The Snowball by Alice Schroeder Stori Telling by Tori Spelling StrengthFinder 2.0 by Tom Rath The Summoning (Darkest Powers #1) by Kelley Armstrong The Tales of Beedle the Bard (supplement to the Harry Potter series) by J.K. Rowling Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace – One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson The Time Paradox (Artemis Fowl #6) by Eoin Colfer Tom Cruise by Andrew Morton Too Fat to Fish by Artie Lange with Anthony Bozza Twilight (The Twilight Saga, Book 1) by Stephenie Meyer Untamed (House of Night #) by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast Volume IX: Princess Mia / The Princess Diaries: To The Nines by Meg Cabot What Happened by Scott McClellan When You Are Engulfed In Flames by David Sedaris
Sports: World Series Champions: Philadelphia Phillies Super Bowl Champions: New York Giants NBA Champions: Boston Celtics Stanley Cup Champs: Detroit Red Wings U.S. Open Golf Tiger Woods U.S. Tennis: (Men/Ladies) Roger Federer/Serena Williams Wimbledon (Men/Women): Rafael Nadal/Venus Williams NCAA Football Champions: Florida NCAA Basketball Champions: Kansas Kentucky Derby: Big Brown World Cup (Soccer): N/A
Popular and Best-selling Books From 2008: A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini Against Medical Advice: A True Story by James Patterson, Hal Friedman Anathem by Neal Stephenson The Appeal by John Grisham Archeron by Sherrilyn Kenyon Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea by Chelsea Handler Audition: A Memoir by Barbara Walters Beautiful Boy by David Sheff Blood Noir by Laurell K. Hamilton The Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult The Christmas Sweater by Glenn Beck Compulsion by Jonathan Kellerman Cross Country by James Patterson Dangerous Laughter by Steven Millhauser Dark Curse by Christine Feehan Devil Bones by Kathy Reichs Divine Justice by David Baldacci Double Cross by James Patterson Duma Key by Steophen King Extreme Measures by Vince Flynn Fearless Fourteen by Janet Evanovich The Force Unleashed by Sean Williams The Gate House by Nelson DeMille Hold Tight by Harlan Coben Home by Julie Andrews The Host by Stephenie Meyer Hot, Flat, and Crowded by Thomas L. Friedman The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins I Am America (And So Can You!) by Stephen Colbert In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan The Last Patriot by Brad Thor Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg Losing It by Valerie Bertinelli The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks Mistaken Identity by Don and Susie Van Ryn and Newell, Colleen and Whitney Cerak, with Mark Tabb Moscow Rules by Daniel Silva Netherland by Joseph O’Neill Nothing To Lose by Lee Child The Obama Nation: Leftist Politics and the Cult of Personality by Jerome R. Corsi Odd Hours by Dean Koontz Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan Plum Lucky by Janet Evanovich The Revolution: A Manifesto by Ron Paul Sail by James Patterson and Howard Roughan Scarpetta by Patricia Cornwell Smoke Screen by Sandra Brown The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski sTORI Telling by Tori Spelling with Hilary Liftin The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski Sundays at Tiffany’s by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet Things That Matter by Charles Krauthammer Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography by Andrew Morton Too Fat to Fish by Artie Lange with Anthony Bozza Tribute by Nora Roberts Twilight: Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri What Happened by Scott McClellan When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris Where Are You Now? by Mary Higgins Clark The Whole Truth by David Baldacci Your Heart Belongs to Me by Dean Koontz
