Time Person Of The Year

Obama is the person of year 2008

Time magazine on Wednesday named US president-elect Barack Obama its 2008 "Person of the Year."

"For having the confidence to sketch an ambitious future in a gloomy hour, and for showing the competence that makes Americans hopeful he might pull it off, the president-elect is TIME's Person of the Year," the newsweekly said.

It said US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson was first runner-up followed by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and China's Zhang Yimou, who directed the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Time said its "Person of the Year" selection was the "person or persons who most affected the news and our lives, for good or ill, and embodied what was important about the year."

The magazine last year selected Russian leader Vladimir Putin as its 2007 "Person of the Year."

In an interview with Time, Obama said that while he may have won a "decisive victory" over Republican John McCain in the November presidential election, "I don't think that Americans want hubris from their next president.

"I do think we received a strong mandate for change," he added in the December 5 interview.

Asked about the state of the economy, Obama said "I think we should anticipate that 2009 is going to be a tough year.

"And if we make some good choices, I'm confident that we can limit some of the damage in 2009 and that in 2010 we can start seeing an upward trajectory on the economy. "But this is a difficult hole that we've dug ourselves into."

On his foreign policy priorities, Obama said "there's no doubt that managing the transition in Iraq is going to be a top priority. Managing a more effective strategy in Afghanistan will be a top priority.

"Recognizing that it is not simply an Afghanistan problem but it's an Afghanistan-Pakistan-India-Kashmir-Iran problem is going to be a priority.

"Sorting through our policy with respect to Iran effectively -- that will be a priority," he said.

Obama told Time that "dealing with our transatlantic alliance in a more constructive way and trying to build a more effective relationship with the newly assertive and, I believe, inappropriately aggressive Russia, when it comes to the invasion of Georgia -- that is going to be a priority.

"And seeing if we can build on some of the progress, at least in conversation, that's been made around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will be a priority," he said.

"Paying more attention to Latin America ... that, I think, would be very important," he continued. "And finally, managing our relationship with China and the entire Pacific Rim, I think, is something that will keep not just me busy but my successor busy."

Obama, who is to be sworn in on January 20 as the 44th president of the United States and the first African-American chief executive, said long-term priorities include nuclear proliferation and climate change.

"I think dealing with development and poverty around the world is going to be a critical component of our foreign policy," he added. "It's good for our security and not just charity."

History

The tradition of selecting a Man of the Year began in 1927, with Time editors contemplating newsworthy stories possible during a slow news week. The idea was also an attempt to remedy the editorial embarrassment earlier that year for not having aviator Charles Lindbergh on its cover following his historic trans-Atlantic flight. By the end of the year, it was decided that a cover story featuring Lindbergh as the Man of the Year would serve both purposes.^[2]

Since then, a person, group of people, and in two special cases, an invention and the planet Earth, has been selected for the special year end issue. In 1999, the title was changed to Person of the Year in an effort to be more inclusive, and avoid purportedly sexist phraseology. However, the only women to win the renamed recognition so far were those recognized as The Whistleblowers (2002) and Melinda Gates (jointly with Bill Gates and Bono in 2005). Four women were granted the title when it was still Man of the Year: Wallis Simpson in 1936, Soong May-ling (Madame Chiang Kai-shek) in 1937, Queen Elizabeth II in 1952, and Corazon Aquino in 1986. Nevertheless, women would also be included in several groups, namely Hungarian Freedom Fighter in 1956, U.S. scientists in 1960, Twenty-Five and Under in 1966, The Middle Americans in 1969, American Women in 1975, The American Soldier in 2003, and You in 2006.

Since the list began, every serving President of the United States has been a Person of the Year at least once with the exceptions of Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover (the presidents who were in office at the time of the first issue and the term immediately following it, respectively) and Gerald Ford.

The December 31, 1999, issue of Time named Albert Einstein the Person of the Century. Franklin D. Roosevelt and Mahatma Gandhi were chosen as runners-up.^[3]

Franklin D. Roosevelt is the only person to have received the title 3 times - in 1932, 1934 and 1941.

Dave Attell

Stand-up beginning

Born in Queens, New York, he grew up in Rockville Centre, New York and now lives in New York City. Attell's initial dive into stand-up comedy is attributed to his indecisiveness as to what he should do after college. In 1987 he graduated from New York University with a degree in communications. Like many other fledgling comedians, he worked normal jobs during the day and put in his time at comedy clubs at night. He worked his first gig at Governor's in Levittown and, according to Attell, "totally bombed".^{[citation needed]} After years of honing his act, he found himself being described as "the comedian's comedian". When working a club, the other comedians, such as Michael Royce (a producer/writer on Everybody Loves Raymond), David Juskow (a performer on TV Funhouse), Kevin Brennan (from Saturday Night Live and HBO's One Night Stand) and Jon Stewart, would come in to watch his act. While the audience didn't always follow his up-front delivery, fellow comedians were refreshed by his originality.

Attell's material is considered "blue".^{[citation needed]} His point-of-view is that of the everyman, yet slightly imbalanced. He has an affinity for the bizarre, such as midgets and odd sexual encounters.

Attell often begins a joke in a relatively tame way, but then gets progressively stranger and ends in an obscene non sequitur. For example: "Sex is not important. What's important is that afterward part. When you're both naked and it's warm and you're watching the sun come up in the windshield. You look in her eyes, you look in her one good eye and help her strap on her leg and you know: you just fucked a pirate."^{[citation needed]}

Attell is also notorious for comedically striking down hecklers to the point of embarrassment. Attell dated comedienne Sarah Silverman for a time prior to both of their respective professional primes and major fame. When asked about the relationship on The Howard Stern Show, she remarked that he was her first real boyfriend, saying among other things that he hadn't even smoked cigarettes before they started their relationship. Several weeks later Attell confirmed that she introduced him to "his two favorite things, alcohol and smoking", adding his belief that "Sarah was out of his league and ended up leaving him."^[4][5]

[edit] Television

Attell's first appearance on television was in 1988 on VH1's Stand-Up Spotlight, which also featured early appearances by Lewis Black, Margaret Cho, Jeff Garlin, Jay Mohr and Wanda Sykes. The show was hosted by Rosie O'Donnell.

But perhaps his biggest break to date was achieved on November 23, 1993 when he made his debut on The Late Show with David Letterman. The appearance was seen by Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels, who then recruited Attell to be a writer, and occasional performer, on SNL (you can see Attell behind Chris Farley during the famous "Rudy Giuliani Inauguration" sketch). Attell worked on the show for the '93-'94 season.

In 1995 Attell was featured on two HBO specials: alongside up-and-comers Louis C.K., Anthony Clark, Eric Tunney and Dave Chappelle, he was a featured performer on the 1995 Young Comedians Special, hosted by Garry Shandling. He was also given his own 60-minute special on the channel's "HBO Comedy Showcase". Subsequently, Attell was also given an episode of HBO Comedy Half-Hour in 1997.

Also in 1995, Attell appeared as Squiggly Dave on Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, kicking-off a long-standing relationship between Attell and Comedy Central. In 1999 the network issued Attell an installment in their ever-popular Comedy Central Presents series.

The same year the network signed him on as a regular commentator on their satirical news show The Daily Show. When he arrived in 1999, the show was just finding its audience after the departure of host Craig Kilborn and the arrival of Jon Stewart, an old friend of Attell's from the New York comedy circuit. The three-year stint gave Attell access to a mass audience on a regular basis (The Daily Show has done much the same for comedians Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, Lewis Black and others). Attell's series of commentary on the show was called "The Ugly American".

In 2003 Attell began appearing semi-regularly on Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn. The show featured many of the performers he works with every day at the (literally) underground comedy club the Comedy Cellar and is based on the conversations they would have off-stage at the Olive Tree Cafe, the restaurant above the club. The unscripted show was canceled in November 2004 due to poor ratings and controversial subject matter.

In 2007 Attell appeared in the Michael Addis film, Heckler. Heckler is a comedic feature documentary exploring the increasingly critical world we live in. Attell appeared on Comedy Central's Last Laugh in 2007.

In July 2008 Attell begins hosting The Gong Show with Dave Attell for Comedy Central. Like the 1970's version, the show will have a rotating panel of celebrity judges grade unusual acts.^{[6][7][8][9][10]}

Other notable television roles for Attell:

• "Dave" in a couple of the early episodes of Everybody Loves Raymond
• The voice of "Frank Demore" on Crank Yankers
• "Brad Campbell" on Ed
• Himself on Arrested Development

Attell has also been on numerous talk shows, including The Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O'Brien and Last Call with Carson Daly.

Attell is a frequent guest on The Howard Stern Show.

[edit] Film

Attell played the roles of "Don" in Los Enchiladas!. The film was written, produced and directed by his friend, comedian Mitch Hedberg, and co-starred with Hedberg as well as fellow comedians Todd Barry and Marc Maron.

In the short film The Office Party, Attell once again played the role of "Don". The film co-starred ex-Karate Kid/Outsider Ralph Macchio, Jon Stewart, Carol Kane and Tate Donovan. The film was written and directed by Daily Show producer Chiara Edmands.

Pootie Tang saw Attell as the bumbling corporate lackey, "Frank". The film was written and directed by fellow comedian Louis C.K.. It co-starred Lance Crouther, Wanda Sykes and Chris Rock among others.

Attell also played "Efram the Driver" in the Independent feature My Suicidal Sweetheart, written and directed by filmmaking newcomer Michael Parness. The film co-starred Natasha Lyonne, David Krumholtz, Tim Blake Nelson, Lorraine Bracco, David Paymer and Rosanna Arquette.

Also Dave Attell had a cameo appearance in the film Abby Singer

Though not a film, the video game Outlaw Golf 2 featured the voice of Attell as the Color Commentator.

He plays the character Barker in the 2008 comedy film Harold.