User:Alan Albright

King Kong's Nick name is " Megaprimatus Kong.
 * King Kong (1933). The original, classic film, is remembered for its pioneering special effects using stop-motion models, animatronics and evocative story.
 * Son of Kong (1933). A sequel released the same year, it concerns a return expedition to Skull Island that discovers Kong's son.
 * King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962). A film produced by Toho Studios in Japan. It brought the titular characters to life (the first time for both characters to be in a film in color) via the process of suitmation. The Toho Kong actually has no (or at least extremely little) relation to the original American monster. In the Toho version he is at least five times the size of the one in King Kong. This is more than likely because of a signicant difference in size between the original King Kong, and Godzilla, Kong was scaled to make the fight more fair.
 * King Kong Escapes (1967). Another Toho film in which Kong faces both a mechanical double, dubbed Mechani-Kong, and a giant theropod dinosaur known as Gorosaurus (who would appear in Toho's Destroy All Monsters the next year).
 * Kong Island (1968). This movie features Kong Island with a descendant of King Kong.
 * King Kong (1976). A remake by film producer Dino De Laurentiis, released by Paramount Pictures, and director John Guillermin. Jessica Lange, Jeff Bridges and Charles Grodin starred. The film was generally panned by critics, but it was a commercial success, and its reputation has improved over the last few years. Winner of an Oscar for special effects.
 * King Kong Lives (1986). Released by De Laurentiis Entertainment Group (DEG). Starring Linda Hamilton, a sequel by the same producer and director as the 1976 film which involves Kong surviving his fall from the sky and requiring a coronary operation. It includes a female member of Kong's species, who mates with Kong, then becomes pregnant with Kong's child. Trashed by critics, this was a box-office failure.
 * King Kong (2005). A Universal Pictures remake of the original by Academy award-winning New Zealand director Peter Jackson, best known for directing the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The most recent incarnation of Kong is also the longest, running three hours and eight minutes. Winner of three Academy Awards for visual effects, sound mixing, and sound editing.

Late in 2005, the BBC and Hollywood trade papers reported that a 3-D stereoscopic version of the 2005 film was being created from the animation files, and live actors digitally enhanced for 3D display. This may be just an elaborate 3D short for Universal Studios Theme Park, or a digital 3D version for general release in 2007. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search King Kong battles a pterosaur in the original 1933 version. Kong and Dwan from the 1976 version.King Kong is the name of the fictional giant ape, from the fictional Skull Island, who has appeared in several works, most of which bear his name, including the groundbreaking 1933 film, the film remakes of 1976 and 2005, and numerous sequels and paraphernalia.

In the original film, the character's name is Kong -- a name given to him by the inhabitants of "Skull Island" in the Indian Ocean, where Kong lived along with other over-sized animals such as snakes, pterosaurs and dinosaurs. 'King' is an appellation added by an American film crew led by Carl Denham who captures Kong and takes him to New York City to be exhibited. Kong escapes and climbs the Empire State Building (the World Trade Center in the 1976 remake) where he is shot and killed by aircraft. However, "it was beauty killed the beast," as he only climbed the building in the first place in an attempt to protect actress Ann Darrow (Dwan in the 1976 remake).

A mockumentary about Skull Island on the DVD for the 2005 remake gives Kong's scientific name as Megaprimatus kong, and states that his species may have evolved from Gigantopithecus.

Contents [show] 1 Filmography 2 Books 3 Television 4 Related Films 5 Attractions 6 Pop culture references 7 Video games 8 Other namesakes 9 See also 10 External links George Gershwin (September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer who wrote most of his vocal and theatrical works in collaboration with his elder brother lyricist Ira Gershwin. Although his younger sister Frances was the first in the family to make money from the familial musical talents, she married young, and became a fashionable housewife, at which time she gave up her own singing and dance career--settling into painting, a hobby of George's. George Gershwin composed both for Broadway and for the classical concert hall. He also wrote popular songs with success.

Many of his compositions have been used on television and in numerous films, and many became jazz standards; the jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald recorded many of the Gershwins' songs on her 1959 Gershwin Songbook (arranged by Nelson Riddle), and the very greatest singers and musicians have recorded Gershwin songs, most notably John Coltrane, Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Judy Garland, Nina Simone, John Fahey, and countless others.

Contents [hide] 1 Biography 2 Contributions to the 1920s 3 Musical style and influence 4 Recordings 5 Compositions 6 Media 7 See also 8 References 9 External links

[edit] Biography Gershwin was born Jacob Gershovitz in Brooklyn, New York to Russian Jewish immigrant parents. His father, Morris (Moishe) Gershovitz, changed their family name to Gershwin sometime after immigrating from St. Petersburg, Russia. Gershwin's mother, Rosa Bruskin, also immigrated from Russia. She married Gershovitz four years later. There was a variation of surnames between the Gershwin children and their parents and this overflowed into almost every aspect of the Gershvins family's lives. George Gershwin was the second of four children. In 1910, the Gershowitzes had acquired a piano for Ira's music lessons, but younger brother George took over, since he was learning silently at his aunt's house. He tried out various piano teachers for two years, then was introduced to Charles Hambitzer by Jack Miller, the pianist in the Beethoven Symphony Orchestra. Hambitzer acted as George's mentor until Hambitzer's death in 1918. Hambitzer taught George conventional piano technique, introduced him to music of the European classical tradition, and encouraged him to attend orchestral concerts. (At home following such concerts, young George would attempt to reproduce at the piano the music he had heard). He later studied with classical composer Rubin Goldmark and avant-garde composer-theorist Henry Cowell.

George Gershwin, 1937His first job as a performer was as a piano pounder for Remick's, a publishing company on Tin Pan Alley. His 1917 novelty rag "Rialto Ripples" was a commercial success, and in 1919 he scored his first big national hit with his song "Swanee". 1916 was the year he started working for Aeolian Company and Standard Music Rolls in New York, recording and arranging piano rolls. He produced dozens if not hundreds of rolls under his own and assumed names (pseudonyms attributed to Gershwin include Fred Murtha and Bert Wynn.) He also recorded rolls of his own compositions for the Welte-Mignon reproducing piano of M. Welte & Sons, Inc. of New York City, the inventor and first producer of reproducing pianos.

In 1924, George and Ira collaborated on a musical comedy, Lady Be Good which included such future standards as "Fascinating Rhythm" and "The Man I Love." This was followed by Oh, Kay! (1926); Funny Face in (1927); Strike Up the Band (1927 & 1930); Girl Crazy (1930), which introduced the standard "I Got Rhythm"; and Of Thee I Sing (1931), the first musical comedy to win a Pulitzer Prize. "I Got Rhythm", in particular, became a Jazz Standard, and its chord progression has incredible significance in Jazz. These chord changes known as "Rhythm changes" have been frequently adopted in Jazz literature.

In 1924, Gershwin composed his first classical work, Rhapsody in Blue for orchestra and piano, which was arranged by Ferde Grofé and premièred with Paul Whiteman's concert band in New York. It proved to be his most popular work.

Gershwin stayed in Paris for a short period of time where he wrote An American in Paris. This work received mixed reviews. Eventually he found the music scene in Paris supercilious, and returned to America. Though he hugely admired the French style of music - and did until the day he died - Gershwin remained thoroughly American.

His most ambitious composition was Porgy and Bess (1935). Called by Gershwin himself a "folk opera," the piece premiered in a Broadway theater and is now widely regarded as the most important American opera of the 20th century. Based on the novel Porgy by DuBose Heyward, the action takes place in a black neighborhood in Charleston, South Carolina, and with the exception of several minor speaking roles, all of the characters are black. The music combines elements of popular music of the day, which was strongly influenced by black music, with techniques found in Western opera, such as recitative and leit motifs.

Early in 1937, Gershwin began to complain of blinding headaches and a recurring impression that he was smelling burned rubber. Unbeknown to him, he had developed a brain tumor. It was in Hollywood, while working on the score of The Goldwyn Follies, that he collapsed and, on July 11, 1937, died following surgery for the tumor at the age of 38.

Gershwin had a 10-year affair with composer Kay Swift, and frequently consulted her about his music. Oh, Kay was named for her. Posthumously, Swift arranged some of his music, transcribed some of his recordings, and collaborated with Ira on several projects. Gershwin had also had an affair with Paulette Goddard.

George Gershwin's mausoleum in Westchester Hills CemeteryGershwin could be generous, warm, and a friend-in-need, but he could also be vain and more than a trifle egotistical. His friend and champion, the concert pianist Oscar Levant once asked him: "George, if you had it to do all over again, would you still fall in love with yourself?"

Gershwin died intestate, and all his property passed to his mother. He is interred at the Westchester Hills Cemetery in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. The Gershwin estate continues to bring in significant royalties from licensing the copyrights on Gershwin's work. The estate supported the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act because its 1923 cutoff date was shortly before Gershwin had begun to create his most popular works. The copyrights on those works expired in 2007 in the European Union and between 2019 and 2027 in the United States of America.

George Gershwin was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame in 2006. There is also a theatre named after him called the George Gershwin Theatre where the Hit Broadway Musical Wicked is now playing.

[edit] Contributions to the 1920s Fred Astaire, George Gershwin, and Ira Gershwin at the piano.George Gershwin was responsible for a number of significant developments in the 1920s. He made countless contributions to the music world as well as the culture of the 1920s. In 1919, he wrote the hit song “Swanee.” This song was his first hit and helped him tremendously on the path to opportunity. In 1924, he and his lyricist brother Ira had their first major Broadway hit in Lady, Be Good, for which they wrote such famous tunes as Fascinating Rhythm and Oh, Lady Be Good! Also in 1924, Gershwin introduced his now famous Rhapsody in Blue. This work was recognized as “An Experiment in Modern Music.” With the Rhapsody, Gershwin became known as the man who brought Jazz into the concert hall and, along with bandleader Paul Whiteman "made a lady out of Jazz". Many more Broadway shows followed, including Tip-Toes (1925), Oh, Kay (1926), Funny Face (1928) and Girl Crazy (1930). He also wrote a number of classical works such as An American in Paris, the Concerto in F, Three Preludes, the Second Rhapsody, Lullaby and finally in 1935, his masterpiece, the folk opera Porgy and Bess. Although not initially well-received by critics, Porgy and Bess is now considered by many to be one of the finest operas of the 20th century.

[edit] Musical style and influence Gershwin was influenced very much by French composers of the early twentieth century. Maurice Ravel was quite impressed with the Gershwin's abilities, commenting, "Personally I find jazz most interesting: the rhythms, the way the melodies are handled, the melodies themselves. I have heard of George Gershwin's works and I find them intriguing." [1] The orchestrations in Gershwin's symphonic works often seem similar to those of Ravel; likewise, Ravel's two piano concertos evince an influence of Gershwin. He also asked Ravel for lessons; when Ravel heard how much Gershwin earned, he replied "How about you give me some lessons?" (some versions of this story feature Igor Stravinsky rather than Ravel as the composer; however Stravinsky himself confirmed that he originally heard the story from Ravel) [2].

Gershwin's own Concerto in F was criticized as being strongly rooted in the work of Claude Debussy, more so than in the jazz style which was expected. The comparison didn't deter Gershwin from continuing to explore French styles. The title of An American in Paris reflects the very journey that he had consciously taken as a composer: "The opening part will be developed in typical French style, in the manner of Debussy and the Six, though the tunes are original." (Hyland 126)

Aside from the French influence, Gershwin was intrigued by the works of Alban Berg, Dmitri Shostakovich, Igor Stravinsky, Darius Milhaud and Arnold Schoenberg. He also asked Schoenberg for composition lessons. Schoenberg refused, saying "I would only make you a bad Schoenberg, and you're such a good Gershwin already" [3].

Bar 49 to 53 from Rhapsody in BlueRussian Joseph Schillinger's influence as his teacher of composition (1932-1936) was substantial in providing him with a method to his composition. There has been some disagreement about the nature of Schillinger's influence on Gershwin. After the posthumous success of Porgy and Bess, Schillinger claimed he had a large and direct influence in overseeing the creation of the opera; Ira completely denied that his brother had any such assistance for this work. A third account of Gershwin's musical relationship with his teacher was written by Gershwin's close friend and another Schillinger student, Vernon Duke, in an article for the Musical Quarterly in 1947. [4] "What was George's orchestration like in those pre-Schillinger days? Brilliant in spots, adequate in others, but on the whole top-heavy and with too much doubling and padding...George met Schillinger through Joseph Achron, the late composer and violinist, and apparently what he was then seeking was fresh vistas, which would enable him to write fresher songs. It was Schillinger's impression that Gershwin was at the end of his very short rope as a technician--not as a composer." Regarding Porgy, Duke wrote that "the tunes we all listened to around George's piano...were now clothed in appropriate orchestral garb and shone with a new and dazzling brilliance. The 'Schillinger slavery' brought an unexpected freedom to George's musical utterances." He mentions in the same article that "another Schillinger-inspired work...is the witty variations on I Got Rhythm for piano and orchestra, containing a number of devices recommended by Schillinger and deftly and ingeniously applied." Schillinger more or less influenced Gershwin's technique through over four years of study before he moved to California, starting with and including Cuban Overture.[5] [6]

What set Gershwin apart was his ability to manipulate forms of music into his own unique voice. He took the jazz he discovered on Tin Pan Alley into the mainstream by splicing its rhythms and tonality with that of the popular songs of his era.

George Gershwin's first published song was "When You Want 'Em You Can't Get 'Em, When You've Got 'Em, You Don't Want 'Em." It was published in 1916 when Gershwin was only 17 years old and earned him a sum total of $5.00.

[edit] Recordings Many fans of George Gershwin have complained that he made so few recordings. His very first recording was his own Swanee with the Fred Van Eps Trio in 1919. The record is very heavy on the banjo playing of Van Eps, and the piano is only mildly discernible. The recording took place before Swanee became famous as an Al Jolson specialty in early 1920.

Gershwin did record an abridged version of Rhapsody in Blue with Paul Whiteman and his orchestra for the Victor Talking Machine Company in 1924, soon after the world premiere. The same orchestra made an electrical recording of the same abridged version for Victor in 1927. However, a dispute in the studio over interpretation angered Paul Whiteman and he left the proceedings. The conductor's baton was taken over by Nathanial Shilkret who was already present. Gershwin made a number of solo piano recordings of tunes from some of his musicals, some including the vocals of Fred and Adele Astaire, as well as his Three Preludes for piano. In 1929, Gershwin "supervised" the world premiere recording of An American in Paris with Nathaniel Shilkret and the Victor Symphony Orchestra (usually drawn from the Philadelphia Orchestra); Gershwin's role in the recording was rather limited, particularly because Shilkret was conducting and had his own ideas about the music. Then someone realized they had not hired anyone to play the brief celesta solo, so they asked Gershwin if he would or could play the instrument and he agreed. So, Gershwin can actually be heard, rather briefly, on the recording during the slow section.

Gershwin also appeared on various radio broadcasts, some of which have been preserved on transcription discs. In 1934, in an effort to earn money to finance his planned folk opera, he hosted his own radio program titled "Music by Gershwin" in which he presented his own work as well as the work of other composers. Airchecks from this and other radio broadcasts include his Variations on I Got Rhythm, portions of the Concerto in F and numerous songs from his musical comedies. He also recorded a run-through of his Second Rhapsody, conducting the orchestra and playing the piano solos. A similar thing happened with Porgy and Bess, when Gershwin played and sang a bit during the opening piano solo, then conducted (and even introduced) some of the soloists. RCA Victor asked him to supervise recordings of highlights from Porgy and Bess in 1935, which were the last recordings in which he participated Randy Moss From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Randy Moss Date of birth February 13, 1977 (age 29) Place of birth Rand, West Virginia Height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) Weight 210 lb (95 kg) Position(s) Wide receiver College Marshall NFL Draft 1998 / Round 1 / Pick 21 Career Highlights Pro Bowls 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 Awards 1997 Fred Biletnikoff Award Stats Statistics Pro Football Reference NFL.com CBS.com DatabaseFootball ESPN Team(s) 1998-2004 2005-present Minnesota Vikings Oakland Raiders Randy Gene Moss (born February 13, 1977 in Rand, West Virginia) is an American football wide receiver for the Oakland Raiders NFL franchise. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in 1998, and played the first stage of his career in Minnesota before a trade in 2005 brought him to Oakland.

Contents [hide] 1 Family 2 High school career 3 College career 4 NFL career 4.1 Joining The Vikings 4.2 Controversy 4.3 Final Years as a Viking 4.4 Trade to the Raiders 4.5 NFL records 4.6 NFL year by year statistics 5 Career notables 6 Trivia 7 References 8 External links

[edit] Family His parents are Maxine Moss and Randy Pratt, although Moss does not have much contact with his father. He has a sister named Lutisia and a brother Eric, who had a short stint in the NFL as an offensive lineman with the Minnesota Vikings. Moss has four children with his girlfriend, Libby Offutt (two daughters-Sydney and Senali, and two sons-Thaddeus and Montigo).

[edit] High school career At Dupont High School, a now-defunct institution in Belle, West Virginia (near Charleston), he lead his school to the state AAA football title (West Virginia's highest class), starred in basketball alongside friend and current Miami Heat point guard Jason Williams, and also won the state title in the 100-meter and 200-meter dashes. He played center field in baseball, which some argued was his best sport. He played wide receiver, safety, punter, place kicker, kick returner, and punt returner in football. He finished his high school football career with 109 catches, 2,435 receiving yards, and 44 receiving touchdowns, along with rushing the ball 75 times for 843 yards and nine touchdowns. He ended his basketball career at DuPont with 1,713 points scored. He was named the state's Athlete of the Year once in football and twice in basketball.

Along with his State Athlete of the Year awards, Moss was named to USA Today's All-USA high school football team in 1994, and was named to USA Today's 20th anniversary All-USA high school football team. [1]

[edit] College career Moss' dream was to play for Notre Dame, but he also considered going to Ohio State, where his half-brother, Eric, had played offensive tackle.

According to former Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz, Moss was "the greatest high school athlete I had ever seen — a bigger Deion Sanders." [1]

After originally signing a letter of intent to play college football with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in 1995, Moss took part in a racially-charged fight at his high school that left one person hospitalized. He gave a plea of guilty to battery and received probation along with a 30-day suspended jail sentence. Notre Dame revoked his scholarship, but this setback did not stop another high profile college football program from giving him a chance. Notre Dame officials suggested Florida State due to the reputation of its coach, Bobby Bowden, for handling troubled players. However, because of his signed letter of intent at Notre Dame, the NCAA considered him a transfer student, which made him ineligible to play for the Seminoles in the 1995 football season. He was red-shirted in his freshman season. While at Florida State, it was claimed that Moss ran a 4.25 40-yard dash [2] while only Deion Sanders, with a 4.23 40-yard dash, has achieved higher.

In 1996, while serving his 30-day jail sentence in a work release program from 1995, Moss tested positive for smoking marijuana, violating his probation, and was let go by Florida State. He served 60 extra days in jail for the probation violation.

Ultimately, Moss transferred to Marshall University, about an hour's drive from his home. Because Marshall was then a Division I-AA school, NCAA rules allowed him to transfer there without losing any further eligibility. In 1996, he set the NCAA Division I-AA records for most games with a touchdown catch in a season (14), most consecutive games with a touchdown catch (13), most touchdown passes caught by a freshman in a season (29), and most receiving yards gained by a freshman in a season (1709 on 78 catches), record which still stands. Moss was also the leading kickoff returner in Division I-AA on the season, with 484 total yards and a 34.6 yard average. Marshall went undefeated and won the Division I-AA title in its last season before moving to Division I-A.

In the 1997 season, Marshall's first in Division I-A, Moss and current New York Jets quarterback Chad Pennington were the centerpiece of an explosive offense that led the Thundering Herd to the Mid-American Conference title. Moss caught 26 touchdown passes that season, at the time a Division I-A record, and was a first-team All-American. For the season, he had 96 receptions for 1820 yards, and 26 touchdowns. He won the Fred Biletnikoff Award as the nation's leading wide receiver, and was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy (finishing fourth in the balloting, behind Ryan Leaf, Peyton Manning, and Charles Woodson, who won the award).

Moss left Marshall with 168 receptions for 3,467 yards and a school record 53 touchdowns.

[edit] NFL career

[edit] Joining The Vikings During the 1998 NFL Draft, Moss, who was projected as a high first-round pick, was taken by the Minnesota Vikings with the 21st overall pick after a number of NFL clubs-- even those in need of a WR-- were concerned with Moss' well-documented legal problems.

In 1998, Moss helped the Vikings to become the number one ranked offense that season while they set a record for total points by a team. They finished with a 15-1 winning record and were poised to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. However, the Atlanta Falcons stunned the Vikings by winning the NFC Championship Game 30-27 in overtime. At the end of the 1998 regular season, Moss was named a Pro Bowl starter and NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year for his rookie record 17 touchdown receptions and the third highest receiving yardage (1,313) total of 1998.

In 1999, Moss had another impressive season, catching 80 passes for 1,413 yards and 11 touchdowns. He went on to record 5 receptions for 127 yards and a touchdown in the Vikings 27-10 NFC wildcard playoff win over the Dallas Cowboys. Minnesota lost in the divisional round to the St. Louis Rams 49-37, despite Moss catching 9 passes for 188 yards and 2 touchdowns. Moss was fined $40,000 during that game due to squirting an NFL referee with a water bottle.

[edit] Controversy On September 24, 2002 in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, Moss was driving and was preparing to do an illegal turn. A traffic control officer, noticing what he was about to do, stood in front of his car, ordering him to stop. Eyewitness accounts of the event differ at this point, but Moss didn't comply with the officer's order, and she was bumped by his vehicle and fell to the ground. Moss was arrested, and a search of his vehicle revealed a small amount of marijuana. Initially charged with Suspicion of Assault with a Deadly Weapon which is a felony and a misdemeanor marijuana possession, Moss pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor traffic violation, and was ordered to pay a $1,200 fine and perform 40-hours of community service.

Randy Moss was quoted in a Sports Illustrated article as saying the 1970 Marshall plane crash "was a tragedy, but it really wasn't nothing big." [3]

[edit] Final Years as a Viking Moss's fortunes took a better turn on the football field during the 2003 regular season, where he became the first wide receiver in history to play more than 12 games (he played 16) while averaging over 100 yards and one touchdown per contest. He finished with 111 receptions for 1,632 yards and 17 touchdowns. All three of the numbers either tied or became a new personal best.

The Vikings finished the 2004 season with an 8-8 record, barely making the playoffs. During the last game of the regular season against the Washington Redskins, Moss was caught walking off the field and into the locker room with 2 seconds left on the clock. Critics criticized Moss for quitting on his team. [4]

On January 9, 2005, the Minnesota Vikings traveled to Green Bay to take on the heavily favored division rival Green Bay Packers, in an NFC wildcard playoff game. Moss was effective, finished the game with 4 catches for 70 yards and 2 touchdowns in the 31-17 win. After second score, Moss trotted to the end zone goalpost. Facing away from the crowd, he feigned pulling down his pants, and pretended to moon the Green Bay fans. Days later, the NFL fined him $10,000, finding it unsportsmanlike and offensive during the playoffs. However, Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy, the former Vikings defensive coordinator, explained (if not completely defended) Moss' action by pointing out that Green Bay Packers fans are infamous for mooning the buses of departing opponents.[5]

According to ESPN, Moss was later caught on video being asked by a reporter if he had written the check to pay the fine, to which he responded, "When you're rich, you don't write checks!" The reporter followed up by asking Moss how he paid the fine. Moss responded, saying, "Straight cash, homey." [6]

Randy Moss made the Pro Bowl 5 times in his 7-year career with the Minnesota Vikings (1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, and 2003).

[edit] Trade to the Raiders On March 2, 2005, Moss was traded to the Oakland Raiders for linebacker Napoleon Harris and the Raiders' 1st round (7th overall, which Minnesota parlayed into WR Troy Williamson) and 7th round picks in the NFL draft. Adding a player of Moss's caliber generated a lot of optimism [7], but the Raiders poor play has continued since acquiring him. Nagging injuries have limited his production, and Moss's own controversial remarks to the media have drawn more negative attention to himself.

In August 2005, during an interview with Bryant Gumbel, Moss admitted that he has smoked marijuana during his NFL career "every once in a blue moon." [8]

On November 14, 2006, Moss was honored for his success in college as a kick returner by having an award named after him, becoming only one of two black athletes (John Mackey) so honored. During the press conference, Moss responded to questions about his dropped passes and lackluster effort in several games, saying "Maybe because I'm unhappy and I'm not too much excited about what's going on, so, my concentration and focus level tend to go down sometimes when I'm in a bad mood." [9] Moss made similar comments during his tenure with the Vikings, when he infamously proclaimed, "I play when I want to play". [10]

Days later, he reiterated his unhappiness with losing games and being a member of the Raiders on his weekly segment with Fox Sports Radio, saying "I might want to look forward to moving somewhere else next year to have another start and really feel good about going out here and playing football." [11]

[edit] NFL records Rookie record 17 TD catches He is third only to Anquan Boldin and Bill Groman for most rookie receiving yards with 1,313. Moss has caught 101 TD passes through 9 seasons, 5th most in NFL history. He trails Jerry Rice, Cris Carter, Marvin Harrison, Terrell Owens, all of whom have played more seasons than Moss. Has caught 13 or more TDs in a season 4 times. He trails only Terrell Owens and Jerry Rice in such seasons. Is the only player next to Jerry Rice to catch 17 or more TDs in a season twice (Moss accomplished the feat in 1998 and 2003). Moss has had 3 seasons where he averaged at least one receiving TD a game. 1998 (17 TDs in 16 games), 2003 (17 TDs in 16 games), and 2004 (13 TDs in 13 games). By doing so, he is the only wide receiver in NFL history to accomplish this task. He had back to back 100 catch seasons, first in 2002 and then in 2003. He joined Sterling Sharpe, Jerry Rice, Herman Moore, Cris Carter, Marvin Harrison, and Rod Smith as the only receivers to do so. At the end of the 2006 season, Moss is averaging approximately 11.2 receiving TDs per season, which is an NFL record. Holds the record for most 1,000 yard seasons in his first seasons of the league. In his first 6 seasons in the NFL, he had 1,000+ yards in each seasons, setting an NFL record. Moss is the only player in NFL history to average 100 yards and 1 TD per game through a 16 NFL game season.

[edit] NFL year by year statistics Year Team G GS Rec Yards AVG TD Lg 1998 Min 16 11 69 1313 19.0 17 61 1999 Min 16 16 80 1413 17.7 11 67 2000 Min 16 16 77 1437 18.7 15 78 2001 Min 16 16 82 1233 15.0 10 73 2002 Min 16 16 106 1347 12.7 7 60 2003 Min 16 16 111 1632 14.7 17 72 2004 Min 13 13 49 767 15.7 13 82 2005 Oak 16 15 60 1005 16.8 8 79 2006 Oak 13 13 42 553 13.2 3 51 Total 138 132 676 10700 15.8 101 82

[edit] Career notables Is second on the Minnesota Vikings all time receiving TD list with 90. Cris Carter holds the record with 110 receiving scores. Randy Moss caught his 100th touchdown in 2006 against San Francisco, and he is the 7th receiver to have 100 touchdowns or more. Holds the record for most touchdowns in Minnesota Vikings playoff history(8) 46 career 100 yard games - 5th all-time Has a 16.0 YPC for his career Has completed 4 of 8 passes for 106 yards and 2 touchdowns, with 1 interception, giving him a 95.8 passer rating. Played on the 1998 Vikings team, which set an NFL record in total points scored with 556 Had a career-high 12 receptions for 204 yards against the Chicago Bears, at Soldier Field, on November 14, 1999 in a 27-24 overtime win. Holds the Viking record for most 100 yard receiving games with 42 Had a Pro Bowl record nine receptions for 212 yards in the 1999 season's Pro Bowl played on February 6, 2000. NFC won in a shootout, 51-31, marking the highest scoring output in Pro Bowl History. Caught three touchdowns in five different games: at Dallas (Nov. 26, 1998), a 46-36 victory; vs. Chicago (Dec. 6, 1998), a 48-22 victory; at Detroit (Oct. 1, 2000), a 31-24 victory; vs New York (November 19, 2001 ) a 28-16 victory. vs. San Francisco (Sep. 28, 2003), a 35-7 victory.

[edit] Trivia Moss is a big fan of the Miami Heat, and is often present at the team's big playoff games. His favorite player is Shaquille O'Neal. He also went to the same high school (DuPont) as Heat point guard Jason Williams, where the two were teammates in football and basketball. Sega Sports's NFL 2K, 2K1, and 2K2 all featured Moss on their cover. Moss is the Vice President of Marketing for Inta Juice, a fruit smoothie chain of which he owns a franchise in Charleston, West Virginia. Moss had his picture on the side of the #66 Best Buy/Inta Juice Chevrolet in a special paint scheme during the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard for the juice company. Randy wore number 18 with the Minnesota Vikings in his rookie season's training camp. Dennis Green, then the head coach of the Vikings, told Moss to switch to number 84. He is currently wearing number 18 with the Oakland Raiders because he says he had always wanted to wear it ever since he came into the league. Also, Jerry Porter had number 84. Of the twenty players drafted ahead of Moss, eight are currently out of the league (as of 2006), including three of the top five picks. Ryan Leaf (2nd overall pick), Andre Wadsworth (3rd overall pick), Curtis Enis (5th overall pick), Kevin Dyson, Terry Fair, Robert Edwards, Jason Peter (injury) and Anthony Simmons were all picked ahead of Moss and are no longer employed in the NFL.

[edit] References ^ USA TODAY's 20th anniversary All-USA team ^ Moves, emotions have Moss causin' a commotion ^ Nate Ruffin became victims' voice ^ With Fanfare and Motorcycle Escort, Raiders Welcome Moss to Oakland ^ A mooning Moss is gathering some stones ^ Star implies he won't stop at pretend moon ^ Marriage between Moss and Raiders just won't work ^ Moss admits smoking marijuana since entering NFL ^ Unhappy returns: Moss in 'bad mood' ^ Moss just needs cheering up ^ Moss looking for a trade

[edit] External links The official website of Randy Moss Randy Moss at ESPN.com Mosszone.com - fan site since August 24, 1997 Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randy_Moss" Categories: 1977 births | People from West Virginia | Living people | American football wide receivers | Marshall Thundering Herd football players | Minnesota Vikings players | National Conference Pro Bowl players | NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award winners | Oakland Raiders players ViewsArticle Discussion Edit this page History Watch Personal toolsAlan Albright My talk My preferences My watchlist My contributions Log out Navigation Main page Community portal Featured content Current events Recent changes Random article About Wikipedia Contact us Make a donation Help Search Toolbox What links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Printable version Permanent link Cite this article In other languages Deutsch Français Italiano

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