Comedian and actor Adam Sandler first won notice with his hilarious stand-up routines. He became one of the most popular cast members of the television show Saturday Night Live during the early 1990s. His success on the long-running comedy show launched him to superstardom. He was born Adam Richard Sandler in Brooklyn, New York. He was one of seven children. The family soon moved to Manchester , New Hampshire, where in school, Sandler became known as the class clown. But he never thought about being a professional comedian. Then one night, his brother pushed the 17-year-old Sandler onto the stage at a Boston comedy-club amateur night. The laughs got him hooked. But he still suffered terrible stage fright until—again at his brother's suggestion—Sandler started singing funny songs as part of his act. Playing music calmed his nerves; it even helped distinguish his act during the 1980s stand-up boom. Sandler continued to perform while attending New York Universit...
Orchids are arguably the largest family of plants. Examples of the family Orchidaceae appear in virtually every climate on six continents. Yet, for all their survival prowess, orchids have proven for centuries to be among the most challenging flowers for botanists to cultivate. Moreover, even in the wild, orchids rely on a dazzling array of unique and specialized pollination strategies by which to reproduce. These ploys place many types of orchids at the mercy of a single partner species of insect.
Jessica Simpson has grown as famous for her supposedly ditzy image as for her beauty and her singing voice. Yet appearances can be deceiving. The girl who once asked her husband if Chicken of the Sea was tuna or chicken is also an ambitious performer who has dedicated much of her life to becoming a star. Jessica Ann Simpson was born in Dallas , Texas. She began singing at a young age; she first sang in the choir of the local Baptist church. At age 12, she tried out for The Mickey Mouse Club . This popular television show was a well-known training ground for future talent like Simpson's eventual rivals Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. But Simpson faced an early disappointment when she was turned down for the club. Instead, with the help of her manager-father Joe (a minister) and stylist-mother Tina, Simpson signed with a small Christian-music label. Meanwhile, she attended J.J. Pearce High School, from which she graduated in 1998. Simpson finally got ...