query: Dirty Diana is a song by Michael Joseph Jackson.

pos: Dirty Diana `` Dirty Diana '' is a song by American artist Michael Jackson . It is the ninth track on Jackson 's seventh studio album , Bad . The song was released by Epic Records on April 18 , 1988 as the fifth single from the album . It presents a harder rock sound similar to `` Beat It '' from Thriller and a guitar solo played by Steve Stevens . `` Dirty Diana '' was written and co-produced by Jackson , and produced by Quincy Jones . The songs lyrics pertain to groupies . `` Dirty Diana '' has a moderate tempo and is played in the key of G minor .   `` Dirty Diana '' received mixed reviews from contemporary music critics , but was a commercial success worldwide in 1988 , charting at No. 1 on the United States Billboard Hot 100 . The song also charted within the top ten in multiple countries , including the United Kingdom , France , Italy , and New Zealand . `` Dirty Diana '' was the fifth and final Hot 100 number one single from Bad . In 2009 , after Jackson 's death in June , the song re-entered charts , mainly due to digital download sales . A music video for `` Dirty Diana '' was filmed in front of a live audience and released in 1988 .

pos: Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson ( August 29 , 1958 -- June 25 , 2009 ) was an American singer , songwriter , record producer , dancer , actor , and philanthropist . Called the `` King of Pop '' , his contributions to music , dance , and fashion along with his publicized personal life made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades .   The eighth child of the Jackson family , Michael made his professional debut in 1964 with his elder brothers Jackie , Tito , Jermaine , and Marlon as a member of the Jackson 5 . He began his solo career in 1971 . In the early 1980s , Jackson became a dominant figure in popular music . His music videos , including those of `` Beat It '' , `` Billie Jean '' , and `` Thriller '' from his 1982 album Thriller , are credited with breaking racial barriers and transforming the medium into an art form and promotional tool . The popularity of these videos helped bring the television channel MTV to fame . Jackson 's 1987 album Bad spawned the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles `` I Just Ca n't Stop Loving You '' , `` Bad '' , `` The Way You Make Me Feel '' , `` Man in the Mirror '' , and `` Dirty Diana '' , becoming the first album to have five number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 . He continued to innovate with videos such as `` Black or White '' and `` Scream '' throughout the 1990s , and forged a reputation as a touring solo artist . Through stage and video performances , Jackson popularized a number of complicated dance techniques , such as the robot and the moonwalk , to which he gave the name . His distinctive sound and style has influenced numerous artists of various music genres .   Thriller is the best-selling album of all time , with estimated sales of 65 million copies worldwide . Jackson 's other albums , including Off the Wall ( 1979 ) , Bad ( 1987 ) , Dangerous ( 1991 ) , and HIStory ( 1995 ) , also rank among the world 's best-selling albums . He is recognized as the Most Successful Entertainer of All Time by Guinness World Records . Jackson is one of the few artists to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice , and was also inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Dance Hall of Fame as the only dancer from pop and rock music . His other achievements include multiple Guinness World Records , 13 Grammy Awards , the Grammy Legend Award , the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award , 26 American Music Awards -- more than any other artist -- including the `` Artist of the Century '' and `` Artist of the 1980s '' , 13 number-one singles in the United States during his solo career -- more than any other male artist in the Hot 100 era -- and estimated sales of over 350 million records worldwide . Jackson won hundreds of awards , making him the most awarded recording artist in the history of popular music . He became the first artist in history to have a top ten single in the Billboard Hot 100 in five different decades when `` Love Never Felt So Good '' reached number nine on May 21 , 2014 . Jackson traveled the world attending events honoring his humanitarianism , and , in 2000 , the Guinness World Records recognized him for supporting 39 charities , more than any other entertainer .   Aspects of Jackson 's personal life , including his changing appearance , personal relationships , and behavior , generated controversy . In 1993 , he was accused of child sexual abuse , but the civil case was settled out of court for an undisclosed amount and no formal charges were brought . In 2005 , he was tried and acquitted of further child sexual abuse allegations and several other charges after the jury found him not guilty on all counts . While preparing for his comeback concert series , This Is It , Jackson died of acute propofol and benzodiazepine intoxication on June 25 , 2009 , after suffering from cardiac arrest . The Los Angeles County Coroner ruled his death a homicide , and his personal physician , Conrad Murray , was convicted of involuntary manslaughter . Jackson 's death triggered a global outpouring of grief , and a live broadcast of his public memorial service was viewed around the world . Forbes ranks Jackson the top-earning dead celebrity , with earnings of $ 825 million in 2016 , the highest yearly amount ever recorded by the publication .

neg: Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour Live in Bucharest : The Dangerous Tour is a live concert DVD by American recording artist Michael Jackson released on July 25 , 2005 . The DVD was previously included with The Ultimate Collection box set in 2004 . The concert took place during Jackson 's first leg on his Dangerous World Tour on October 1 , 1992 at the Bucharest National Stadium , with a sold-out attendance of 90,000 . This concert is the first concert by Jackson that has been officially released on DVD in the United States , also released in Asia market on double Video CD . The other official releases by Michael Jackson is a VHS of his HIStory World Tour concert in Seoul , South Korea , and it was released only in South Korea in 1996 , and Live at Wembley July 16 , 1988 , which is the second leg of his Bad World Tour .   There are various versions of the footage of the same concert that exist . The first version was broadcast the next day by BBC ; following Jackson 's death , this version was rebroadcast on BNN/Ned3 . All the footage in this version is from the Bucharest concert . The version that appears on the DVD was broadcast on HBO in 1992 , which became the highest audience in the channel 's history for a single broadcast . This version , while mostly having footage of Jackson performing at the Bucharest Concert ( some in alternate camera angles in comparison to the BBC version ) , also consisted of footage from concerts in other locations such as Madrid and London . Also missing were the `` Brace Yourself '' video introduction and the `` We Are the World Interlude , '' which were included in the original BBC Telecast . The crowd screaming and intro before `` Wan na Be Startin ' Somethin' '' is featured in Michael 's 2010 song `` Behind the Mask '' .

neg: Hotel Cabana Hotel Cabana is the debut studio album by British record producer Shahid `` Naughty Boy '' Khan , released from 23 August 2013 through Naughty Boy Recordings and Virgin EMI . Khan set up his Naughty Boy Productions record and production company . He would find his break by producing Chipmunk 's 2009 top-ten single `` Diamond Rings '' , featuring a then unknown Emeli Sandé . Naughty Boy released his own debut single as a signed artist in 2010 . `` Never Be Your Woman '' samples White Town 's 1997 number-one single `` Your Woman '' and featured British grime artist Wiley and Sandé on the chorus ; it reached the top ten in the UK and is included as a bonus track on Hotel Cabana .   The collaboration marked the start of a partnership between Naughty Boy and Sandé which is seen throughout Hotel Cabana and Sandé 's debut set , Our Version of Events ( 2012 ) . Hotel Cabana is R&B , soul , garage , pop and hip hop music productions record , with influences from orchestral and Bollywood music . Naughty Boy describes it as an `` audio-visual experience '' and a concept album based on a luxury hotel where musicians come to perform . Hotel Cabana reunites Naughty Boy with Sandé on eight collaborations , as well as features from other British artists such George the Poet , Sam Smith , Bastille , Tinie Tempah , Ella Eyre , Gabrielle , Wretch 32 , Mic Righteous , Maiday , Chasing Grace , Ed Sheeran , and American rapper Wiz Khalifa , who appears on the album 's fourth single overall , `` Think About It '' , with Eyre . Ava Stokes , Tanika , Thabo and RØMANS make additional appearances on the US version of the album which was released by Virgin Records on 6 May 2014 .   Prior to release , Hotel Cabana was promoted with several video trailers which included the collaborating artists arriving at the fictional hotel . It was also preceded by the release of three singles , including the two top-ten Sandé collaborations : `` Wonder '' and `` Lifted '' , as well as the UK Singles Chart-topper `` La La La '' ( featuring Sam Smith ) . Upon release , the album received generally favourable reviews from music critics , who praised the production , but with some criticism towards the concept , execution and some collaborations . Hotel Cabana made its chart debuts at number two in the UK , number five in Scotland and twenty-five in Ireland .

neg: Torture (The Jacksons song) `` Torture '' is the second single released off the album Victory by the band , The Jacksons . Written by Jackie Jackson and fellow Motown veteran Kathy Wakefield , the song is about someone ending a relationship and the torture that a person can receive while trying to end it . Jackie was originally going to sing the song with his brother , Michael , but Jackie 's role instead went to Jermaine Jackson , whose availability for the album was in question until the last minute . The rest of the Jacksons sang the chorus along with Michael and Jermaine .   The song received mixed reactions from critics . The video was probably best known for Michael not being available , and the use of a wax dummy in his place throughout the video . Paula Abdul replaced Perri Lister as the video 's choreographer , in which various scenes of torture are displayed with the Jacksons being on the receiving end of most of it . The shoot was an expensive and arduous affair that neither Michael nor Jermaine took part in , and it ultimately bankrupted the production company . The song peaked at # 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart , making it the second best selling single on the album , behind `` State of Shock '' . It also peaked at # 26 on the UK charts . This was their last single to reach the US Top 40 .

neg: Just a Little While `` Just a Little While '' is a song by American recording artist Janet Jackson , released as the lead single from her eighth studio album , Damita Jo ( 2004 ) . Written by Jackson and Dallas Austin , the song fuses pop with elements of rock , dance , and funk , and is a reflection of Jackson 's new-found happiness . The song leaked ahead of its scheduled release , causing Jackson 's record company to rush with a music video and promotion . It was released following Jackson 's controversial Super Bowl Halftime Show performance incident on February 2 , 2004 , as the lead single from Damita Jo .   `` Just a Little While '' received favorable reception from critics , who felt its elements of rock and dance-pop would ensure success . However , following the Super Bowl incident , Jackson 's singles and music videos were blacklisted on many radio formats and music channels worldwide , affecting the song 's performance . Although its success in the US was limited , peaking at number 45 on the Billboard Hot 100 , it peaked atop the Hot Dance Club Songs chart . Internationally , it was more successful , reaching the top ten in Belgium , Canada , and Spain and the top twenty in Australia and The United Kingdom . It peaked at number one in Japan for five weeks , and was the year 's second-biggest hit on Japan 's international airplay chart .   The song 's music video , directed by Dave Meyers , was released exclusively in international territories due to the controversy surrounding Jackson at the time . It portrays Jackson filming a DVD for her boyfriend in a futuristic apartment setting , displaying her multiple personae . An alternate live video , filmed in London , was included on Jackson 's From janet . to Damita Jo compilation . Jackson performed the song on television shows including Top of the Pops , Hey ! Hey ! Hey ! , and Festivalbar .

neg: List of Billboard 200 number-one albums of 1983 The Billboard 200 , published in Billboard magazine , is a weekly chart that ranks the highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States . In 1983 , the name of the chart was Top LPs & Tape . Before Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales in 1991 , Billboard estimated sales from a representative sampling of record stores nationwide , using telephone , fax or messenger service . Data were based on rankings made by the record stores of the best-selling records , not on actual sales figures .   There were six number-one albums on this chart in 1983 , including the debut album of the Australian band Men at Work , Business as Usual , which spent the last seven weeks of 1982 and the first eight weeks of 1983 at number one , and was certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America ( RIAA ) in 1984 . Thriller , the sixth studio album by recording artist Michael Jackson , was released on November 1982 . It peaked at number one for twenty-two non-consecutive weeks in 1983 with another fifteen consecutive weeks at the top into the following year , and seven songs from the album became top ten singles between late 1982 and early 1984 . Two of them : `` Billie Jean '' and `` Beat It '' , reached the top position of the Billboard Hot 100 . Thriller won eight Grammy Awards , including Album of the Year at the 26th Grammy Awards , and was the best-selling album of 1983 with more than fifteen million copies sold . In 2008 , twenty-five years after its release , the record was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame , and a few weeks later , it was among twenty-five recordings preserved by the Library of Congress to the National Recording Registry as `` culturally significant '' .   Flashdance , the soundtrack to the 1983 musical and romance film of the same name , peaked at number one for two weeks and won the Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture . The two singles released from the album , `` Flashdance ... What a Feeling '' by Irene Cara , and `` Maniac '' by Michael Sembello , reached the top of the singles chart in 1983 . The New York Times considered the British band The Police to be the year 's most influential rock band . Australian , British , and American bands copied the white-reggae formula of their ( The Police 's ) earlier successes . The group released their fifth and final studio album , Synchronicity , in 1983 . The album , a varied accomplished blend of rock , funk , and third-world rhythms , stayed at number one for seventeen weeks and was certified four times platinum by the RIAA in 1984 . Metal Health , the third album by heavy metal band Quiet Riot , peaked at number one for one week , becoming the first heavy metal record to reach the top of the Billboard 200 . Singer-songwriter Lionel Richie released his second album Ca n't Slow Down in 1983 , which spent three weeks at the top and won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year at the 27th Grammy Awards .

neg: The Remix Suite The Remix Suite ( digital title : Michael Jackson : The Remix Suite ) is a compilation of remixed hits by Michael Jackson . Although labeled as a Michael Jackson release , the majority of remixes are of hits during his tenure with The Jackson 5 . Starting from August 25 , five remixes each were released digitally as `` suites '' via iTunes , AmazonMP3 and Rhapsody every two weeks . It is the fifth album to be released since Jackson 's death . The first suite leaked online two weeks before its intended digital release .

neg: Free the World `` Free the World '' is a single by American singer La Toya Jackson . Jackson spent six years in seclusion after divorcing her abusive late ex-husband and manager , Jack Gordon , in 1997 . After her years in exile , the September 11th attacks inspired Jackson to write `` Free the World '' . She recorded and performed it for friends , who immediately fell in love with it . This led to the revival of Jackson 's 25-year-old music career .   This song led Jackson to begin work on her Startin ' Over album , which included the 2004 Billboard chart hit `` Just Wan na Dance '' as the lead single . `` Free the World '' was released as a follow-up and charted in March 2005 . The single peaked at # 24 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play charts .   The song is an appeal to free the world from segregation , discrimination and years of war . VH1 described the ballad as the `` most appropriate song for the world . '' About.com dubbed Jason Randolph 's remix a `` trippily hypnotic treat '' with a `` churning rhythm track and mesmerizing synth . ''

neg: Night and Day (Joe Jackson album) Night and Day is Joe Jackson 's fifth album , released in June 1982 . It reached the Top 5 in both the UK and US , Jackson 's only studio album to do so . It sold over one million copies , earning platinum disc status .   The album pays tribute to the wit and style of Cole Porter ( and indirectly to New York ) . The track `` Real Men '' pointed obliquely to the city 's early 1980s gay culture .   `` Steppin ' Out '' earned Grammy nominations for Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance , Male . It reached # 6 on both the UK and the US charts . `` Breaking Us in Two '' reached # 18 in the US and # 59 in the UK .

neg: Come Back to Me (Janet Jackson song) `` Come Back to Me '' is a song by American singer Janet Jackson from her fourth studio album Janet Jackson 's Rhythm Nation 1814 ( 1989 ) . It was written by Jackson , while James Harris III , and Terry Lewis co-wrote and produced the song . The R&B ballad talks about a lover trying to rekindle a romance that faded away a long time ago . It was released as the fifth single from the album in June 18 , 1990 . Jackson also recorded a Spanish version of the song titled `` Vuelve a Mí '' .   The song received positive reviews from most music critics , who praised Jackson 's sweet delivery and the song 's instrumentation ; it was also called a sexy and silky ballad . It became a commercial success on the charts , reaching the top three in Canada and the United States , while also reaching the top twenty in the United Kingdom . The music video for the song was directed by Dominic Sena and it was set in Paris . The romantic video features Jackson 's former husband René Elizondo , Jr. . Jackson has performed the track in all of her tours , with the exception of The Velvet Rope Tour ( 1998 ) .

neg: Michael Jackson's Vision Michael Jackson 's Vision is a deluxe DVD box set by American recording artist Michael Jackson . It was released on November 22 , 2010 by Epic Records , Legacy Recordings , and Jackson 's own label , MJJ Productions . It includes three DVDs , featuring 4.5 hours of content of 42 music videos with newly restored color and remastered audio . Jackson referred to each of these productions as a `` short film '' and not a music video . This is the first time that all of Jackson 's videos have been released on DVD . According to a statement by the producers , the video recognizes Jackson 's `` pioneering short films that transformed the entertainment industry with timeless , pop culture classics '' .   Disc one features videos from the albums Off the Wall , Thriller and Bad and disc two features videos from the albums Dangerous , HIStory : Past , Present and Future , Book I , Blood on the Dance Floor : HIStory in the Mix and Invincible . The third disc , which is a bonus disc , features seven videos . Michael Jackson 's Vision includes the full-length versions of the John Landis-directed `` Thriller '' and `` Black or White '' as well as the classic `` Bad '' directed by Academy Award winning filmmaker Martin Scorsese . Also included in the boxed set are Jackson 's collaborations with other noted film directors such as John Singleton , Spike Lee and David Fincher as well as `` Ghosts , '' his rarely seen collaboration with special effects legend Stan Winston . Michael Jackson 's Vision is available in a limited edition boxed set featuring a 60-page glossy hard-bound book that includes behind-the-scenes photos from Jackson 's videos , which includes information for each video including : songwriter , album , director , production date , location and photography .   Ten music videos previously unavailable on DVD including `` One More Chance '' are included . It was also released on the iTunes Store and has iTunes LP features . The videos `` Smooth Criminal '' , `` Speed Demon '' , `` Come Together '' , and `` Leave Me Alone '' come from Jackson 's 1988 film Moonwalker . The `` Smooth Criminal '' segment is actually over 40 minutes long but only the 10-minute song and dance scene is featured . The video `` Another Part of Me '' is from Jackson 's Bad World Tour and `` Will You Be There '' is from the Dangerous World Tour .   The `` HIStory '' video is the only short film that is not included in this box set . The original music video of `` Blood on the Dance Floor '' is replaced with the Refugee Camp Mix for unknown reasons . The videos for The Jacksons ' songs `` Torture '' and `` Body '' are also not included , because Michael did not appear in either of them , despite having a verse in each of them . Also not included is the music video for The Jacksons ' `` 2300 Jackson Street '' .   On February 15 , 2011 , Michael Jackson 's Vision was certified 5 × Platinum by RIAA for the sales of over 0.5 million units in the United States . On December 31 , 2010 , it was also certified Diamond in France ( for the sales of over 60 000 units ) and 2 × Platinum in Australia . On May 29 , 2011 , it was also certified Gold in New Zealand . It has been also certified Gold in Austria and Platinum in Poland .   Reception over the video and audio quality of the box set has been mixed . As the videos are played in 16:9 , videos with a 4:3 aspect ratio are pillarboxed and as a result the resolution is lower than some previous DVDs . Also , the audio is mixed in PCM stereo instead of 5.1 Surround as in many previous DVDs .

neg: Blue Gangsta `` Blue Gangsta '' is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson . The song is the 7th track of Jackson 's second posthumous album Xscape . the song was originally written , composed and produced by Jackson and Dr. Freeze during the `` Invincible '' album recording session in 1998 . The song was re-tooled by Timbaland and Jerome `` J-Roc '' Harmon during the recording session in 2013-2014 of the Xscape album .

neg: Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree is the debut studio album by English singer and songwriter Diana Vickers . Originally set for a November 2009 release , the album was postponed due to Vickers ' leading role in the West End play The Rise and Fall of Little Voice , and it was finally released on 3 May 2010 in the United Kingdom .   Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree debuted atop the UK Albums Chart , selling 35,951 copies in its first week of release . In August 2010 , the album was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry ( BPI ) . `` Once '' was released on 19 April 2010 as the lead single from the album , peaking at number one on the UK Singles Chart .

neg: Bad (album) Bad is the seventh studio album by American singer and songwriter Michael Jackson , released on August 31 , 1987 in the United States by Epic Records and internationally by CBS Records . It was released nearly five years after Jackson 's previous solo studio album , Thriller ( 1982 ) . Bad was recorded during the first half of 1987 . The lyrical themes include media bias , paranoia , racial profiling , romance , self-improvement and world peace . The album cemented Jackson 's status as one of the most successful artists of the 1980s .   Bad saw Jackson exercise even more artistic freedom than he did with his two previous Epic releases ( Off the Wall and Thriller ) ; Jackson composed nine of the album 's eleven tracks , and received co-producer credit for the entire album . Nine of the eleven songs on Bad were released as singles ; one was a promotional single , and another was released outside of the United States and Canada . Five of the singles hit No. 1 in the United States , while a sixth charted within the top ten , and a seventh charted within the top twenty on the Hot 100 . Bad peaked at No. 1 in thirteen countries and charted within the top twenty in other territories . The only songs on the album which were not released as a single were `` Speed Demon '' and `` Just Good Friends '' , the latter being the only song on the album to also not have a music video accompanying it .   The album continued Jackson 's commercial success in the late 1980s , and garnered six Grammy Award nominations , winning two . Aside from commercial success , the album was well received by contemporary critics . The album produced a record five Billboard Hot 100 number one singles , the first of two albums to do so , the second being Katy Perry 's 2010 album Teenage Dream . Bad was ranked No. 43 in the 100 Greatest Albums of All Time of the MTV Generation in 2009 by VH1 and number 202 in Rolling Stone magazine 's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time . As of 2012 , Bad had reportedly sold between 30 and 45 million copies worldwide and has been cited as one of the 30 best-selling albums of all time . In 2017 , the album was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America , denoting sales of over ten million copies in the United States . The album marked the final collaboration between Jackson and producer Quincy Jones .

neg: Ross (1983 album) Ross is a 1983 album by the American entertainer Diana Ross , her third released on the RCA label . It was released shortly before Ross gave a pair of free concerts in New York 's Central Park . The album reached # 32 on the US charts , # 14 on the US R&B charts and # 44 in the UK . It has never been reissued as a digital download . The album 's highest international chart position was in Sweden , where it reached # 7 .   Five of the eight tracks were produced by Gary Katz , two by Ray Parker Jr and one by Ross . The album 's first single , `` Pieces of Ice '' , peaked at # 31 on the US charts . Subsequent singles `` Up Front '' ( US R&B # 60 , UK # 79 ) and `` Let 's Go Up '' ( US # 77 ) were also minor hits . `` Up Front '' was remixed by Jolley & Swain for its European release . The album 's final US sales were slightly higher than 250,000 copies .   The album was remastered and re-released in September 2014 by Funky Town Grooves , as an `` Expanded Edition '' with bonus material .

neg: A Collection of Michael Jackson's Oldies A Collection of Michael Jackson 's Oldies is a compilation of the Motown Records released on December 8 , 1972 , with songs by Michael Jackson and The Jackson 5 that were made between 1969 and 1972 . It was only published in the United States .

neg: Smooth Criminal `` Smooth Criminal '' is the seventh single from American recording artist Michael Jackson 's 1987 Bad album . The song contains a fast-paced beat intertwined with Jackson 's lyrics about a woman named Annie , who has been violently attacked in her apartment by a `` smooth '' assailant . First broadcast on television as a video in early October , it was released as a single on October 21 , 1988 , and peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 . It was re-released on April 10 , 2006 , as a part of the Visionary : The Video Singles box set . The re-released Visionary single charted at number 19 in the UK . The song is one of Jackson 's signature songs , and has appeared on numerous greatest hits albums , including Number Ones , The Essential Michael Jackson , Michael Jackson : The Ultimate Collection , King of Pop , This Is It , and Immortal .   The song serves as the theme song to Jackson 's 1988 film Moonwalker , and plays as the background soundtrack in a section of the video game Michael Jackson 's Moonwalker .

neg: La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family La Toya : Growing up in the Jackson Family is an autobiography written by American singer La Toya Jackson , and co-authored by celebrity biography author Patricia Romanowski . The book was originally released on February 7 , 1991 , around the same time as Jackson 's seventh studio album No Relations .   In this autobiography , Jackson accuses her father , Joseph , of child abuse , and goes into detail on the personal lives of her superstar siblings Michael and Janet as well as Jermaine , Randy , Tito , and Rebbie Jackson 's struggle under the spotlight . The Jackson family denied all of her allegations .   At the time the book was written , Jackson was married to her reportedly abusive manager Jack Gordon , who she now accuses of inserting his own stories into her autobiography to embarrass her family and make her appear to be a `` drama queen '' .   Jackson reunited with her family in the late 1990s after leaving Gordon . On her interview with Larry King in 2003 she said that she respectfully accepted her father 's apologies for the way he treated her and her siblings as children . The autobiography was re-issued under various titles throughout the 1990s . The original hardcover edition spent several weeks atop the New York Times Bestseller List .   In the weeks leading up to the release of the book , Gordon ordered that the transcript be kept in a high-security vault out of fear that the Jackson family would attempt to sabotage the project .

neg: Diana Vickers discography The discography of Diana Vickers , a British singer-songwriter , consists of two studio albums , one extended play , and seven singles . Vickers debuted in 2008 as a contestant on the The X Factor , a British television music competition . Her fourth-place finish brought Vickers to the attention of RCA Records , which signed her in 2009 .   Vickers released her debut studio album Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree in May 2010 . The album reached number one on the United Kingdom albums chart and the top ten of the Irish and Scottish album charts . In August 2010 , it was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry ( BPI ) . Two singles were released from the album : `` Once '' and `` The Boy Who Murdered Love '' , with `` Once '' peaking at number one in the UK . `` My Wicked Heart '' , a non-album song , followed in late 2010 .   In July 2011 , Vickers parted ways with RCA Records citing `` musical differences '' in the direction for the second album as the reason behind the mutual split . In February 2013 , it was revealed that Vickers had signed a worldwide record deal with So Recordings . On 9 April 2013 , it was confirmed that the lead single to Vickers ' second album is titled `` Cinderella '' , with a preview snippet being made available on iTunes . `` Cinderella '' was released to digital retailers on 21 July 2013 in the UK .   Vickers ' second album titled , Music to Make Boys Cry followed on 15 September 2013 in the UK and Ireland along with the title track serving as the album 's second single . The album charted at number thirty-seven on the UK Albums Chart and number nine on the UK Indie Chart on 22 September 2013 . It also broke into the Top 20 of the Irish Independent Albums Chart peaking at number nineteen .

neg: Millie Jackson (album) Millie Jackson is the self-titled debut album by singer-songwriter , Millie Jackson . This album is different from all her other album to follow in that this album features some Motown style songs . It includes the R&B hits `` A Child of God ( It 's Hard to Believe ) '' , `` My Man , A Sweet Man '' and `` Ask Me What You Want . '' The album was arranged by Tony Camillo and Bert de Coteaux .   In 2006 , Ace Records in the UK digitally remastered this album ( along with four other best-selling Millie Jackson albums ) and released it on CD with bonus tracks and extensive liner notes .

neg: Butterflies (Michael Jackson song) `` Butterflies '' is a song by Michael Jackson . It was written and composed by Andre Harris and Marsha Ambrosius , and produced by Jackson and Harris . The track appears on Jackson 's tenth studio album , Invincible ( 2001 ) , and is Jackson 's final single from a studio album . `` Butterflies '' is a midtempo ballad song with R&B musical styles . The single received generally positive reviews from music critics ; some music reviewers described the song as being one of the best songs on Invincible while others felt that it was a `` decent track '' .   The song was only released in the United States to radio airplay . It peaked at number fourteen on the Billboard Hot 100 , and also charting at number two and thirty-six , respectively , on alternative Billboard charts in 2001 and 2002 . There was no music video released for the song .


query: Iraq can be found in West Asia.

pos: Iraq Iraq ( -LSB- ɪˈræk -RSB- , -LSB- ɪˈrɑːk -RSB- , or -LSB- aɪˈræk -RSB- العراق ; عێراق ) , officially known as the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia , bordered by Turkey to the north , Iran to the east , Kuwait to the southeast , Saudi Arabia to the south , Jordan to the southwest , and Syria to the west . The capital , and largest city , is Baghdad . The main ethnic groups are Arabs and Kurds ; others include Assyrians , Turkmen , Shabakis , Yazidis , Armenians , Mandeans , Circassians , and Kawliya . Around 95 % of the country 's 36 million citizens are Muslims , with Christianity , Yarsan , Yezidism , and Mandeanism also present . The official languages of Iraq are Arabic and Kurdish .   Iraq has a coastline measuring 58 km on the northern Persian Gulf and encompasses the Mesopotamian Alluvial Plain , the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range , and the eastern part of the Syrian Desert . Two major rivers , the Tigris and Euphrates , run south through Iraq and into the Shatt al-Arab near the Persian Gulf . These rivers provide Iraq with significant amounts of fertile land .   The region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers , historically known as Mesopotamia , is often referred to as the cradle of civilisation . It was here that mankind first began to read , write , create laws , and live in cities under an organised government -- notably Uruk , from which `` Iraq '' is derived . The area has been home to successive civilisations since the 6th millennium BC . Iraq was the centre of the Akkadian , Sumerian , Assyrian , and Babylonian empires . It was also part of the Median , Achaemenid , Hellenistic , Parthian , Sassanid , Roman , Rashidun , Umayyad , Abbasid , Ayyubid , Mongol , Safavid , Afsharid , and Ottoman empires .   Iraq 's modern borders were mostly demarcated in 1920 by the League of Nations when the Ottoman Empire was divided by the Treaty of Sèvres . Iraq was placed under the authority of the United Kingdom as the British Mandate of Mesopotamia . A monarchy was established in 1921 and the Kingdom of Iraq gained independence from Britain in 1932 . In 1958 , the monarchy was overthrown and the Iraqi Republic created . Iraq was controlled by the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party from 1968 until 2003 . After an invasion by the United States and its allies in 2003 , Saddam Hussein 's Ba'ath Party was removed from power and multi-party parliamentary elections were held in 2005 . The American presence in Iraq ended in 2011 , but the Iraqi insurgency continued and intensified as fighters from the Syrian Civil War spilled into the country .

neg: Palestinian territories `` Palestinian territories '' and `` occupied Palestinian territories '' ( OPT or oPt ) are descriptions often used to describe the West Bank ( including East Jerusalem ) and the Gaza Strip , which are occupied or otherwise under the control of Israel . Israeli governments have maintained that the area involved is within territorial dispute . The extent of the territories , while subject to future negotiations , have frequently been defined by the Green Line .   The term `` Palestinian Territory , Occupied '' was used by the United Nations ( UN ) and other international organizations between 1998 to 2013 in order to refer to areas controlled by the Palestinian National Authority . In December 2012 , UN Secretariat communications replaced this by the term State of Palestine . The ISO adopted the name change in 2013 . But , as of August 2015 , the UN Security Council continues to treat Palestine as a non-sovereign entity ; This prevents its admission to UN General Assembly membership .   Israel occupied the territories of the West Bank and Gaza Strip in the Six-Day War of 1967 and has since maintained control . Previously , these territories had been occupied by Jordan and Egypt , respectively , since the 1948 founding of Israel . In 1980 , Israel officially absorbed East Jerusalem and has proclaimed the whole of Jerusalem to be its capital . The inclusion , though never formally amounting to legal annexation , was condemned internationally and declared `` null and void '' by the United Nations Security Council . The Palestinian National Authority , the United Nations , the international legal and humanitarian bodies and the international community regard East Jerusalem as part of the West Bank , and consequently a part of the Palestinian territories . The Palestinian National Authority never exercised sovereignty over the area , although it housed its offices in Orient House and several other buildings as an assertion of its sovereign interests .   Israel shut them down in response to the Sbarro restaurant suicide bombing . Israeli sovereignty , however , has not been recognized by any country , since the unilateral annexation of territory occupied during war contravenes the Fourth Geneva Convention . The cost of the occupation for Israel over four decades ( 1967 -- 2007 ) is estimated to amount to $ 50 billion . The World Bank estimates the annual cost in 2013 to the Palestinian economy of Israeli occupation at $ 3.4 billion .   In 1988 , with the Palestine Liberation Organization ( PLO ) intention to declare a Palestinian State , Jordan renounced all territorial claims to the West Bank , including East Jerusalem . Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988 , 135 UN Member Nations have recognized the State of Palestine , comprising the Palestinian territories . It has not been recognized by Israel and some Western nations , including the United States .   In 1993 , following the Oslo Accords , parts of the territories politically came under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian National Authority ( Areas A and B ) . Israel still exercises full military control and , civil control over 61 % of the West Bank ( Area C ) . The Oslo Accords established access to the sea for Gaza within 20 nautical miles from the shore . The Berlin Commitment of 2002 reduced this to 12 mi . In October 2006 Israel imposed a 6-mile limit , and at the conclusion of the Gaza War restricted access to a 3-nautical-mile limit , beyond which a no-go zone exists . As a result , more than 3,000 Palestinian fishermen are denied access to 85 % of the maritime areas agreed to in 1995 . The majority of the Dead Sea area is off-limits to Palestinian use , and Palestinians are denied access to its coast line .   Israel disengaged from the Gaza Strip in 2005 , however the international community considers the West Bank and the Gaza Strip still to be occupied by Israel . The Hamas takeover of Gaza in 2007 divided the Palestinian territories politically . Abbas 's Fatah largely ruled the West Bank and was recognized internationally as the official Palestinian Authority ( see : Fatah-Hamas conflict ) . In 2014 , the two political groups agreed to hold elections and form a compromise unity government . The 2014 Israel-Gaza conflict intervened ; however , the unity government survived .

neg: Basra Governorate Basra Governorate ( or Basra Province ) is a governorate in southern Iraq , bordering Kuwait to the south and Iran to the east . The capital is the city of Basra . Other districts of Basra include Al-Qurnah , Az Zubayr , Al Midaina , Shatt Al Arab , Abu Al Khaseeb and Al Faw located on the Persian Gulf .

neg: Geography of Iran Geographically , Iran is located in West Asia and borders the Caspian Sea , Persian Gulf , and Gulf of Oman . Its mountains have helped to shape both the political and the economic history of the country for several centuries . The mountains enclose several broad basins , on which major agricultural and urban settlements are located . Until the 20th century , when major highways and railroads were constructed through the mountains to connect the population centers , these basins tended to be relatively isolated from one another .   Typically , one major town dominated each basin , and there were complex economic relationships between the town and the hundreds of villages that surrounded it . In the higher elevations of the mountains rimming the basins , tribally organized groups practiced transhumance , moving with their herds of sheep and goats between traditionally established summer and winter pastures . There are no major river systems in the country , and historically transportation was by means of caravans that followed routes traversing gaps and passes in the mountains . The mountains also impeded easy access to the Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea .   With an area of 1648000 km2 , Iran ranks eighteenth in size among the countries of the world . Iran shares its northern borders with three post-Soviet states : Armenia , Azerbaijan , and Turkmenistan . These borders extend for more than 2000 km , including nearly 650 km of water along the southern shore of the Caspian Sea . Iran 's western borders are with Turkey in the north and Iraq in the south , terminating at the Arvand Rud .   The Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman littorals form the entire 1770 km southern border . To the east lie Afghanistan on the north and Pakistan on the far south . Iran 's diagonal distance from Azerbaijan in the northwest to Sistan and Baluchestan Province in the southeast is approximately 2333 km .

neg: Amiriyah Fallujah Al-Amiriyah ( العامرية al-ʻāmiriyyah ) or Amiriyah Fallujah , also Ameriyah , Amiriyyah , Ameriya , Amiriyat , Ameriyat and the like , is a city in the Fallujah District of Al Anbar province , about 30 km south of the city of Fallujah , in Iraq . Ameriyah residents belong mostly to the Albu Issa subtribe , part of the Dulaim tribe .   The city was named Amiriyah Fallujah after the occupation of Iraq because of huge number of displaced persons from the city of Fallujah , with a total population of 17 thousand people .   During the lead up to the Gulf War in 1990 , several Western hostages were held as a human shield at a suspected ammunition factory in the area from September 1990 until their release 6 December 1990 . These included a crew member from British Airways Flight 149 . Nationals of Britain , Japan and France were held on the site . Only the British were detained until December , the French and Japanese being released in October and November 1990 respectively .  The nature of their internment makes it difficult to pinpoint the exact location , but they were told by their Iraqi minders that they were at `` a factory in Amiriyah ''   During the American war on Iraq the city witnessed violent clashes such as those seen in the cities of Fallujah and Ramadi as well as explosions and car bombs with chlorine , but in the end in 2007 the Anbar police took over on the city .   In 2016 , during the Siege of Fallujah , there was intense fighting in the area between the Iraqi army and ISIL militants . Also several suicide attacks by ISIL were reported .

neg: Sawad Sawad was the name used in early Islamic times ( 7th -- 12th centuries ) for southern Iraq . It means `` black land '' and refers to the stark contrast between the alluvial plain of Mesopotamia and the Arabian desert . Under the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates , it was an official political term for a province encompassing most of modern Iraq ( except for the western desert and al-Jazira in the north ) .   As a generic term , it was used to denote the irrigated and cultivated areas in any district .

neg: Anbar Awakening In September 2006 , 30 tribes in the Anbar Province formed the Anbar Awakening , an alliance to fight Al Qaeda ( AQI ) militants .   After initially accepting al Qaeda in Iraq due to a shared anti-occupation and anti-Shiite agenda , Sunni Arabs chafed under AQI 's violently fanatic religious program .   AQI terrorized those who opposed it , eventually prompting Sunnis to partner with U.S. forces to rid their communities of AQI . The collaboration successfully tested in al-Anbar province -- once Iraq 's most violent -- was adopted in other AQI-plagued regions , contributing to a dramatic neutralization of the insurgency .   Not a uniform organization , the Awakening was composed of numerous local elements roused to action by a wide array of cultural , political , and economic considerations , while their Coalition counterparts similarly adopted a variety of methods to support them .   From August to December 2006 , the Anbar Province of Iraq was occupied by Al Qaeda ( AQI ) . Much of the stronghold of AQI was in Ramadi , the capital of the Anbar province . The sheikhs and officials were Sunni by sect , so they initially cooperated with AQI to counterbalance the Shiite government and the Shiite insurgents . But later , the terrorism which AQI promoted was not in line with the Sheik 's interests . They then joined forces with the US troops in the area , the Iraqi Police and the Provisional Army . They strengthened the city council and dubbed their movement the `` awakening '' . The US and the Iraqi people later gained control of Fallujah and Ramadi . This movement was one of the shining symbols of counterinsurgency policy - rhetoric of the New Way forward was met here . The six points which Bush outlined were met ; the people were united to save their city and the US forces gained support of both the officials and citizens .   The Awakening coincided with the United States led coalition 's surge of troops that instituted a counter insurgency strategy and largely ended the ongoing insurgency .

neg: Al-Suwaira Al-Suwaira is city in Al-Suwaira District , Wasit Governorate , Iraq . It is located on the west bank of the Tigris , 35 km south of Baghdad . It is surrounded by fruit groves and palm orchards . It has a population of 344,000 , predominantly Shia Arabs .

neg: Iraqis The Iraqis leads here . For The Iraqis political party , refer to The Iraqis ( party )   The Iraqi people ( Arabic : العراقيون ʿIrāqīyūn , Kurdish : گه لی عیراق Îraqîyan , ܥܡܐ ܥܝܪܩܝܐ ʿIrāqāyā , Iraklılar ) are the citizens of the modern country of Iraq .   Arabs have had a large presence in Mesopotamia since the Sasanian Empire ( 224-637 ) . Arabic was spoken by the majority in the Kingdom of Araba in the first and second centuries , and by Arabs in al-Hirah from the third century . Arabs were common in Mesopotamia at the time of the Seleucid Empire ( 3rd century BC ) . The first Arab kingdom outside of Arabia was established in Iraq 's Al-Hirah in the third century . Arabic was a minority language in northern Iraq in the eighth century BC , from the eighth century following the Muslim conquest of Persia it became the dominant language of Iraqi Muslims because Arabic was the language of the Quran and of the Abbasid Caliphate .   Kurds who are Iraqi citizens live in the Zagros Mountains of northeast Iraq to the east of the upper Tigris . Arabic and Kurdish are Iraq 's national languages .

neg: Hatra Hatra was an ancient city in the Ninawa Governorate and al-Jazira region of Iraq . It was known as Hatra in Persian and al-Hadr in Arabic , a name which appears once in ancient inscriptions , and it was in the ancient Persian province of Khvarvaran . The city lies 290 km northwest of Baghdad and 110 km southwest of Mosul .   On 7 March 2015 , various sources including Iraqi officials reported that the militant group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ( ISIL ) had begun demolishing the ruins of Hatra . A video released by ISIL during the next month showed the destruction of the monuments.Hatra was liberated in March 2017 .

neg: Foreign relations of Iraq Since 1980 , the foreign relations of Iraq were influenced by a number of controversial decisions by the Saddam Hussein administration . Hussein had good relations with the Soviet Union and a number of western countries such as France and Germany , who provided him with advanced weapons systems . He also developed a tenuous relation with the United States , who supported him during the Iran -- Iraq war . However , the Invasion of Kuwait that triggered the Gulf War brutally changed Iraq 's relations with the Arab World and the West . Egypt , Saudi Arabia , Syria and others were among the countries that supported Kuwait in the UN coalition . After the Hussein administration was toppled by the 2003 invasion of Iraq , the governments that succeeded it have now tried to establish relations with various nations .

neg: Achaemenid Assyria Athura ( ð ð ° ð cents ð 1/4 ð Aθurā ) , also called Assyria Babylonia , was a geographical area within the Persian Achaemenid Empire held by the last nobility of Aššur ( Akkadian ) , known as Athura ( Neo-Aramaic ) or Atouria ( Greek ) , during the period of 539 BC to 330 BC as a military protectorate state of Persia under the rule of Cyrus the Great . Although sometimes regarded as a satrapy , Achaemenid royal inscriptions list it as a dahyu , a concept generally interpreted as meaning either a group of people or both a country and its people , without any administrati   It mostly incorporated the original Assyrian kingdom , corresponding with modern northern Iraq in the upper Tigris , the middle and upper Euphrates , modern-day north eastern Syria ( Eber-Nari ) and part of south-east Anatolia ( modern Turkey ) . The Neo-Assyrian Empire collapsed after a period of violent civil wars , followed by an invasion by a coalition of some of its former subject peoples , the Iranian peoples ( Medes , Persians and Scythians ) , Babylonians and Cimmerians in the late 7th century BC , culminating in the Battle of Nineveh , and Assyria had fallen completely by 605 BC . Between 605 and 559 BC , Assyria was divided between the Median Empire to the east and the Neo-Babylonian Empire to the west . Both parts were subsumed into the Achaemenid Empire in 539 BC , and it has been argued that they constituted the satrapies of Media and Athura , respectively . In Herodotus ' account the Ninth Tributary District comprised `` Babylonia and the rest of Assyria '' , and excluded Eber-Nari .   Despite a few rebellions , Assyria functioned as an important part of the Achaemenid Empire . The Assyrian people were given the right to govern themselves throughout Achaemenid rule , and the Assyrian ( Aramaic ) language was used diplomatically by the Persians . Known for their combat skills , Assyrian soldiers ( along with the Lydians ) constituted the main heavy infantry of the Achaemenid empire 's military . Due to the major destruction of Assyria during the fall of its empire , some early scholars described the area as an `` uninhabited wasteland . '' Other Assyriologists , however , such as John Curtis and Simo Parpola , have strongly disputed this claim , citing how Assyria would eventually become one of the wealthiest regions among the Achaemenid Empire . This wealth was due to the land 's great prosperity for agriculture that the Persians used effectively for almost 200 years . In contrast to the policy of the Assyrian Empire , the Achaemenid Persians did not intervene in the internal affairs of their ruling satrapies as long as they continued the flow of tribute and taxes back to Persia .

neg: Iraqi Armed Forces The Iraqi Armed Forces are the military forces of the Iraqi government . They consist of the Iraqi Army , the Iraqi Air Force , and the Iraqi Navy .   They were initially formed in the early 1920s . Six military Coup d'états were mounted by the Army between 1936 and 1941 . The armed forces first saw combat in the Anglo-Iraqi War of 1941 . They fought against Israel in the 1948 Arab -- Israeli War , in the 1967 Six Day War , and in the 1973 Yom Kippur War . Two wars with the Kurds were fought in 1961 -- 70 and 1974 -- 75 . A much larger conflict was the Iran -- Iraq War , initiated by the Iraqis in 1980 , which continued until 1988 . Thereafter Iraq began the Invasion of Kuwait , which led to the Persian Gulf War of 1991 , which led in turn to confrontations over the Iraqi no-fly zones during the 1990s , and finally the Iraq War of 2003 . The Iraqi armed forces have had mixed success at the strategic level but consistently poor tactical performance during most of their history . Iraq had one of the largest and strongest militaries in the world in 1990 , before the Persian Gulf War of 1991 .   The armed forces are administered by the Ministry of Defence ( MOD ) . Since the 2003 invasion of Iraq , which toppled the Saddam Hussein regime , the Iraqi Armed Forces have been rebuilt with substantial assistance from the United States Armed Forces . Since the implementation of the U.S.-Iraq Status of Forces Agreement on January 1 , 2009 , the Iraqi Armed Forces and the forces of the Interior Ministry are responsible for providing security and upholding law and order throughout Iraq .   The Iraqi Army , in particular , is one of the most trusted national institutions of Iraq . Iraqi Armed Forces deficiencies have been identified in enabling functions , such as , e.g. , logistics and military intelligence . In high-end conventional operations , Iraqi capabilities are currently limited by lack of artillery and air power . There are also concerns regarding corruption and sectarian agendas within the force .

neg: Umm al-Qura Mosque The Umm al-Qura ( `` Mother of All Cities '' ) mosque in Baghdad is the city 's largest place of worship for Sunni Muslims . Originally called the Umm al-Ma ` arik ( `` Mother of All Battles '' ) mosque , it was designed to commemorate Saddam Hussein 's victory in the 1991 Gulf War and was intended to serve as a personal tribute to Saddam himself . It is located in the Sunni-populated al-Adel area of western Baghdad . Costing $ 7.5 million to build , the mosque 's cornerstone was laid on Saddam 's 61st birthday on 28 April 1998 . It was formally completed on 28 April 2001 in time for the ten-year anniversary of the Gulf War .   Although never confirmed by his regime or himself during his lifetime , there has been speculation that it was intended to have been Saddam 's final resting place .   Many architectural features of the mosque and the surrounding complex allude to either Saddam or the war ( or both ) . It has four minarets on its perimeter , each resembling a Kalashnikov rifle barrel and standing 43 m high , marking the 43 days of the Gulf War . Around the dome are another four minarets , each in the shape of a Scud missile on its launchpad standing 37 m high . The dome is set in the middle of a lake in the shape of the Arab world , in which was set a 7.5 m wide mosaic representation of Saddam 's thumbprint with an inset magnified version of his initials , made from gold . The mosque was formerly used to display a Qur ` an written in Saddam 's blood . The 28 fountains of the lake , the four inner minarets and the 37 m height of each minaret together represent the date of Saddam 's birth - 28 April 1937 . The building is constructed from white limestone with blue mosaic decorations , and red , white and black Iraqi flags are painted on the peaks of the inner minarets .   Following the fall of Saddam Hussein in the aftermath of the 2003 invasion of Iraq , the mosque was taken over by a Sunni group called the Association of Muslim Scholars . It became a recruiting site and propaganda centre for the early Iraqi insurgency . The association became a de facto Al Qaeda ally ; its leader Harith Suleiman al-Dhari , who operated out of the mosque , is said to have played a key role in mobilizing insurgents during the 2004 fighting in Fallujah , west of Baghdad . In 2007 , the association was expelled by the Sunni Endowment , a quasi-governmental agency responsible for Sunni mosques in Iraq , which took control of Umm al-Qura .   On 28 August 2011 , the mosque was attacked by a suicide bomber during prayers , killing at least 28 people and injuring 30 more . An Iraqi member of parliament was among the dead .

neg: History of Afghanistan The written history of Afghanistan , ( تاریخ افغانستان د افغانستان تاريخ can be traced back to around 500 BCE when the area was under the Achaemenid Empire , although evidence indicates that an advanced degree of urbanized culture has existed in the land since between 3000 and 2000 BCE . The Indus Valley Civilisation stretched up to large parts of Afghanistan in the north , with several sites being known . Alexander the Great and his Macedonian army arrived at what is now Afghanistan in 330 BCE after conquering Persia during the Battle of Gaugamela . Since then , many empires have established capitals inside Afghanistan , including the Greco-Bactrians , Mauryas , Kushans , Hindu Shahi , Saffarids , Samanids , Ghaznavids , Ghurids , Timurids , Mughals , Hotakis and Durranis .   Afghanistan ( meaning `` land of the Afghans '' ) has been a strategically important location throughout history . The land served as `` a gateway to India , impinging on the ancient Silk Road , which carried trade from the Mediterranean to China '' . Sitting on many trade and migration routes , Afghanistan may be called the ` Central Asian roundabout ' since routes converge from the Middle East , from the Indus Valley through the passes over the Hindu Kush , from the Far East via the Tarim Basin , and from the adjacent Eurasian Steppe .   The archaeological manifestation of the Indo-Iranians ( Aryans ) before their split into separate language groups is generally seen as the Andronovo culture to the north of present-day Afghanistan . The Iranian languages were developed by one branch of these people ; the Pashto language spoken today in Afghanistan is one of the Eastern Iranian languages . Elena E. Kuz ` mina argues that the tents of Iranian-speaking nomads of Afghanistan developed from the light surface houses of the Eurasian steppe belt in the Bronze Age .   The Arab invasions influenced the culture of Afghanistan , and its pre-Islamic period of Zoroastrian , Macedonian , Buddhist and Hindu past has long vanished . Turkic empire-builders such as the Ghaznavids and Timurids made the region now called Afghanistan of major importance .   Mirwais Hotak followed by Ahmad Shah Durrani unified Afghan tribes and founded the last Afghan Empire in the early 18th century CE . Afghanistan 's sovereignty has been held during the Anglo-Afghan Wars , the 1980s Soviet war , and the 2001-present war by the country 's many and diverse people : the Pashtuns , Tajiks , Hazaras , Uzbeks , Turkmen , Aimak , Baloch and others . The Pashtuns form the largest group , claiming to be descendants of ancient Israelites or Qais Abdur Rashid but scholars believe that they are a confederation of various peoples from the past who united under Pashtunwali .

neg: Islam in Asia Islam began in Asia in the 7th century during the lifetime of Muhammad . A number of adherents of Islam have lived in Asia & specially West Asia and South Asia since the beginning of Islamic history . Islam is said to have arrived in Manipur ( Northeast India ) in 615 AD via Chittagong which is part of present-day Bangladesh 's coast in the age of silk route ( both onland and by sea ) trades when Sa ` d ibn Abi Waqqas ( b.594-d .674 AD ) and others namely Uwais al-Qarni ( 594-657 ) , Khunais ibn Hudhaifa , Saeed ibn Zaid , Wahb Abu Kabcha , Jahsh and Jafar ibn Abu Talib preached there .  The Barmakid family was an early supporter of the Abbasid Revolution against the Umayyads and of As-Saffah . This gave Khalid ibn Barmak considerable influence , and his son Yaḥyā ibn Khālid ( d. 806 ) was the vizier of the caliph al-Mahdi ( ruled 775 -- 785 ) and tutor of Hārūn ar-Rashīd ( ruled 786-809 ) . Yaḥyā 's sons al-Faḍl and Ja ` far ( 767-803 ) both occupied high offices under Harun .   Many Barmakids were patrons of the sciences , which greatly helped the propagation of Indian science and scholarship from the neighbouring Academy of Gundishapur into the Arabic world . They patronized scholars such as Gebir and Jabril ibn Bukhtishu . They are also credited with the establishment of the first paper mill in Baghdad . The power of the Barmakids in those times is reflected in The Book of One Thousand and One Nights ; the vizier Ja ` far appears in several stories , as well as a tale that gave rise to the expression `` Barmecide feast '' .   Many of the early governors of the Caliphate were Barmakids . Khalid ibn Barmak built Mansura , Sindh and later Baghdad . His son was the governor of what is now Azerbaijan .

neg: Iraqi Australians Iraqi Australians are Australian citizens who identify themselves to be Iraqi descent .  Since the 1991 Gulf War , thousands of Iraqis have found refuge in Australia . The total of population is estimated to be as high as 80,000 . Australia 's Iraqi-born population includes Arabs , Kurds , Assyrians , Armenians , Mandeans , Turkmens and Jews .   The first year in which the Australian Census of Population and Housing recorded the Iraq-born separately was 1976 , when the population was 2,273 . By 1986 , the population had risen to 4,516 . By the end of the Gulf War in 1991 , it numbered 5,186 , mainly in New South Wales and Victoria .   Many recent arrivals have entered Australia under the Humanitarian programme . The Gulf War and the quelling of uprisings of the Shi'a and the Kurds in Iraq resulted in a large increase in the number of Iraqis coming to Australia after 1991 . There were 24,760 Iraq-born people in Australia at the 2001 Census , making up 0.6 per cent of the overseas-born population .

neg: Iraq–Syria relations Iraq -- Syria relations are marked by long-shared cultural and political links , as well as regional rivalry . The two countries took their present form after the Sykes -- Picot Agreement to dismember the Ottoman Empire into British and French spheres of influence after World War I.   Both countries are largely Arab and Muslim , with Kurdish and Christian minorities . Political relations between them have often been hostile . Ever since King Faisal took the Iraqi throne in the early 1920s , Iraqi leaders have dreamed of unifying the two countries . Even during the thaw in Iraqi-Syrian relations during the last years of Saddam Hussein , relations between the two countries were not good . New diplomatic relations established in November 2006 , were heralded as the beginning of an era of close cooperation between Iraq and Syria . Both countries are at war with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant .

neg: Green Zone The Green Zone ( Arabic : المنطقة الخضراء , al-minṭaqah al-ḫaḍrā ' ) is the most common name for the International Zone of Baghdad . It is a 10 km2 area in the Karkh district of central Baghdad , Iraq , that was the governmental center of the Coalition Provisional Authority during the occupation of Iraq after the American-led 2003 invasion and remains the center of the international presence in the city . Its official name beginning under the Iraqi Interim Government is the International Zone , though Green Zone remains the most commonly used term . The contrasting Red Zone refers to parts of Baghdad immediately outside the perimeter , but was also loosely applied to all unsecured areas outside the off-site military posts . Both terms originated as military designations .

neg: Kirkuk Kirkuk ( كركوك , Kerkük ܟܪܟ ܣܠܘܟ , ܟܪܟܘܟ ) is an Iraqi city in northern Iraq , 236 km north of Baghdad and 83 km south of Erbil . It is the capital of Kirkuk Governorate .   Kirkuk lies in a wide zone with an enormously diverse population and has been multilingual for centuries . There were dramatic demographic changes during Kirkuk 's urbanization in the twentieth century , which saw the development of distinct ethnic groups . Kurds , Turkmen , Arabs and Assyrians lay conflicting claims to this zone , and all have their historical accounts and memories to buttress their claims .   The city sits on the ruins of the original Kirkuk Citadel , site of the ancient mid 3rd millennium BC , Assyrian city of Arrapha , and which sits near the Khasa River . The city is mentioned during the Sumero-Akkadian period of Assyria in cuneiform script from about 2400 BC . The region became a part of the Akkadian empire ( 2335-2154 BC ) which united all of the Akkadian and Sumerian speaking Mesopotamians under one rule . After its collapse , the language isolate speaking Gutians , a pre-Iranic race from Ancient Iran , overran the region for a few decades , making Arrapha their capital , before being ejected from Mesopotamia by the Sumerians during the Neo-Sumerian Empire ( 2112-2004 BC ) . The city later came to be dominated by the language isolate speaking Hurrians from eastern Anatolia before being incorporated into the Old Assyrian Empire ( 2025-1750 BC ) , after which Arrapha and indeed the whole of northern Mesopotamia , together with parts of north east Syria and south east Turkey , became a part of Assyria proper . During the late 15th century BC Assyria and Arrapha was under the domination of the short lived Mittani-Hurrian empire , but after the Assyrians overthrew and destroyed the Hurri-Mitanni in the early 14th century BC the city was once more under Assyrian rule . Arrapha remained an important Assyrian city until the fall of the Assyrian empire between 615-599 BC . After this it remained a part of the geo-political province of Assyria ( Achaemenid Assyria , Athura , Seleucid Syria , Assyria ( Roman province ) and Assuristan ) under various foreign empires , and between the 2nd century BC and 3rd century AD became the capital of the Neo-Assyrian state of Beth Garmai before this was conquered into the Sassanid empire and became a part of Assuristan . The Arab Islamic conquest of the 7th century AD saw the dissolution of Assyria as a geo-political entity .   Kurds and Turkmens have claimed the city as a cultural capital . It was named the `` capital of Iraqi culture '' by the Iraqi ministry of culture in 2010 . The city currently consists mainly of people who self-identify as Kurds , Arabs , Iraqi Turkmens and Assyrians , with changes in population after the fall of Saddam Hussein , the US invasion , and the war against the Islamic State .

neg: List of World Heritage Sites in Northern and Central Asia The UNESCO ( United Nations Educational , Scientific and Cultural Organization ) has designated 19 World Heritage Sites in six countries ( also called `` state parties '' ) of Central and North Asia : Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzstan , Tajikistan , Turkmenistan , Uzbekistan and the Asian part of Russia . The European part of Russia is included in Eastern Europe .   Russia is home to the most inscribed sites with 7 sites , one of which is a transborder property shared with Mongolia in Eastern Asia . The first site from the region was the Itchan Kala in Uzbekistan inscribed in 1990 . Each year , UNESCO 's World Heritage Committee may inscribe new sites on the list , or delist sites that no longer meet the criteria . Selection is based on ten criteria : six for cultural heritage ( i -- vi ) and four for natural heritage ( vii -- x ) . Some sites , designated `` mixed sites , '' represent both cultural and natural heritage . In Northern and Central Asia , there are 11 cultural , 8 natural , and no mixed sites . All of the Russian sites ( 7 ) are natural and with the exception of Sayarka , all of the sites in Central Asia are cultural .   The World Heritage Committee may also specify that a site is endangered , citing `` conditions which threaten the very characteristics for which a property was inscribed on the World Heritage List . '' None of the sites in this region has ever been listed as endangered , but possible danger listing has been considered by UNESCO in a number of cases .


query: Patton Oswalt is a comedian.

pos: Patton Oswalt Patton Peter Oswalt ( born January 27 , 1969 ) is an American stand-up comedian , writer , actor , and voice artist , known for roles such as Spencer Olchin in the sitcom The King of Queens ( 1998 -- 2007 ) , voicing Remy in the film Ratatouille ( 2007 ) , and playing multiple identical brothers , the Koenigs , on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ( 2014 -- 17 ) . Oswalt has won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special and a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for his Netflix stand-up special Patton Oswalt : Talking for Clapping ( 2016 ) .

neg: Joel Moss Levinson Joel Moss Levinson is a writer , comedian from Yellow Springs , Ohio . He often collaborates with his older brother , Stephen Levinson , as the Levinson Brothers .   The pair were a part of TedX Dayton 2014 , speaking about successful collaboration .   Along with their third partner , CONAN and former Daily Show writer Rob Kutner , the Levinson Brothers released `` 2776 '' a comedy/musical album benefitting the charity OneKid OneWorld . Featuring Aimee Mann , Patton Oswalt , Ed Helms , Ashanti , Reggie Watts , Ira Glass , Nina Totenberg , Will Forte , Rebirth Brass Band , Yo La Tengo , Margaret Cho , Neko Case , Kelly Hogan , Dick Cavett , Dick Gregory , k.d. lang , Will Arnett , Alex Trebek and more , the album appeared briefly on the Billboard Comedy charts . The album 's liner notes were written by George Saunders and appeared in the New Yorker Joel composed the music for all but two of the 28 tracks .   n 2012 , the Levinson Brothers and Rob Kutner released an EP called `` It 's OK To Do Stuff '' in celebration of the 40th anniversary of `` Free To Be You And Me . '' Made up of songs satirizing the original with songs about gender , childhood , equality and relationships . `` It 's Okay to Do Stuff is first and foremost meant to be funny -- and it is , most of the time . Here , the earnestness of Free to Be is replaced with satire , but irony is the ethos of our age , remember ? '' The album features Lizzy Caplan , Fred Willard , Jane Weidlin , Steven Page , Colin Hanks , Fred Stoller , Eddie Pepitone , Eugene Mirman and others .   Joel gained national attention in 2008 as an Internet personality who professionally wins consumer generated marketing contests , and earned more than money and prizes , by creating corporate jingles and short commercials .   Levinson grew up in Dayton , Ohio . His father Jim was a prosecutor and his mother was a writer . He attended George Washington University for a few semesters . He worked for the KIO ( Kentucky , Indiana , Ohio ) region for BBYO and traveled the country as a song leader for the organization .   In November 2008 , he appeared on The Tonight Show to talk about his contest winnings . Joel was named an Access Hollywood Rising Star on December 1 , 2008 . In 2009 he appeared on CBS News with Katie Couric .

neg: 222 (Live & Uncut) 222 ( Live & Uncut ) is the unedited version of comedian Patton Oswalt 's first comedy album Feelin ' Kinda Patton . It was recorded at the 40 Watt Club in Athens , Georgia on September 27 , 2003 . The album has only one track on each of the two CDs . As of 2011 , 222 is out of print but available digitally .

neg: Fart lighting Fart lighting , also known as pyroflatulence or flatus ignition , is the practice of igniting the gases produced by human flatulence , often producing a flame of a blue hue , hence the act being known colloquially as a `` blue angel '' , `` blue dart '' , or in Australia , a `` blue flame '' . The fact that flatus is flammable , and the actual combustion of it through this practice , gives rise to much humorous derivation . Other colors of flame such as orange and yellow are possible with the color dependent on the mixture of gases formed in the colon . In order to `` fire fart '' , one must have a fart prepared in the anal cavity , and a lighter at the ready . Then they fart onto the lighter .   In 1999 author Jim Dawson observed that fart lighting has been a novelty practice primarily among young men or college students for decades , but is discouraged for its potential for causing injury . Such experiments typically occur on camping trips and in single-sex group residences , such as tree-houses , dormitories , or fraternity houses . With the advent of video sharing features online , hundreds of self-produced videos , both documentary as well as spoof , have been posted to sites such as YouTube . The people appearing in the videos are predominantly young males . In his book The Curse of the Self : Self-Awareness , Egotism , and the Quality of Human Life author Mark Richard Leary explains how a great deal of unhappiness is due to people 's inability to exert control over their thoughts and behavior and that `` stupid stunts '' , including lighting flatulence , were a way to make an impression and be included in group bonding or hazing .   Although there is little scientific discourse on the combustive properties of flatus , there are many anecdotal accounts of flatus ignition and the activity has increasingly found its way into popular culture with references in comic routines , movies , and television ; including cartoons . In Electric Don Quixote : The Definitive Story of Frank Zappa author Neil Slaven quotes Frank Zappa for calling fart lighting `` The manly art of fart-burning '' , and another book quotes the musician Kenny Williams for saying that it demonstrates `` compression , ignition , combustion and exhaust . ''   There have been documented cases of flatulence during surgery being inadvertently ignited causing patient injury and the risk of death .

neg: In-joke An in-joke , also known as an inside joke or a private joke , is a joke whose humour is understandable only to members of an ingroup , that is , people who are in a particular social group , occupation , or other community of shared interest . It is an esoteric joke that is humorous only to those who are aware of the circumstances behind it .   In-jokes may exist within a small social clique , such as a group of friends , or extend to an entire profession such as the film or professional wrestling industries , or a particular sporting field or chess team . Ethnic or religious groups usually have their own in-jokes .

neg: Don "Creesh" Hornsby Don Hornsby ( December 6 , 1923 - May 22 , 1950 ) , aka Creesh Hornsby , was a comedian and novelty pianist who was slated to be the original host of Broadway Open House , American network television 's first late night program .   Born in Cooper , Texas , Hornsby attended Harding Junior College in Wichita Falls for a short time before joining the Marines . Originally a straightforward pianist , eventually Hornsby 's nightclub act , which Life described as `` a five-hour marathon of surrealist madness '' , incorporated rubber alligators , magic tricks , acrobatics , dry ice and a live donkey . Hornsby 's performance , a continuous set during which he was served meals onstage , also featured custom-made props , including a `` tickle-tickle '' machine , which a United Press article called `` a Buck Rogers contraption with red lights , blue dials and green knobs '' that fired `` a bombardment of tiny rubber cones '' , which Hornsby would then scoop up with a butterfly net . One of his specialties was playing the Warsaw Concerto while suspended by his heels above the piano .   His catchphrase `` creesh '' , which he shouted at frequent intervals onstage , is a portmanteau word meaning `` constructive escapism '' . As Hornsby explained it , `` creeshism '' in action meant that `` anything can be funny in the proper situation . '' Among his fanbase were veteran comedians Fred Allen , Phil Silvers and Groucho Marx .   On the strength of his act -- and an endorsement from Bob Hope -- Hornsby was signed to a five-year contract with NBC and was set to host the program that would become Broadway Open House , but he was diagnosed with polio the week before the series was originally scheduled to debut . The disease led to his death less than a week later at age 26 in Eastview , New York .

neg: Vincent Oshana Vincent Oshana ( born 1979 ) is an American actor and comedian best known for his HBO Stand-Up Comedy Set on Russell Simmons 's Def Comedy Jam and various roles on Showtime channel 's television series The Underground .

neg: Prop comedy Prop comedy is a comedy genre in which performers use humorous objects , or conventional objects in humorous ways . The stages and films term `` prop '' , an abbreviation of `` property '' , refers to any object an actor handles in the course of a performance . Though some form of prop comedy has likely existed as long as there have been comedians , the genre reached its zenith in the vaudeville era . The vaudeville team Olsen and Johnson used prop comedy extensively in their long running Broadway revue Hellzapoppin .   A prop comic is a comedian who uses prop comedy . Prop comics are sometimes looked down upon by other comedians , and the term is sometimes used derisively . However , some , such as Tommy Cooper , rose to critical acclaim as their props revolved around a gimmick ( such as Cooper 's magic ) and the comedian 's character around that gimmick .

neg: Tone Bell Michael Anthony `` Tone '' Bell , II . ( born August 10 , 1983 ) is an American stand-up comedian and actor .

neg: Inherently funny word Certain nonsense words may be inherently funny , according to a 2015 study published in the Journal of Memory and Language . The study 's lead author , Chris Westbury from the University of Alberta , suggests that the inherent humor of certain non-words can be explained by the property of entropy . Entropy , in this case , expresses how usual the letters in the word appear to be : the less commonly they are used , the lower the total entropy and the more funny they are likely to be found . According to Westbury , `` Some non-words are funny , and they 're weird when they are -LSB- ... -RSB- But there 's actually a consistent relationship between how funny they are and how weird they are '' .   The idea that humor can be predicted by a word 's entropy corresponds to the incongruity theory of 19th-century German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer , who posited that humor is a product of one 's expectations being violated . According to Westbury , `` One reason puns are funny is that they violate our expectation that a word has one meaning '' .   The vaudeville lore that words with the letter k are funny is recorded by the playwright Neil Simon in his work The Sunshine Boys . In the play , which is about a pair of aging vaudeville comedians , the character Willie lectures his nephew about funny words :

neg: Wilt Wilt may refer to :   Wilting , the loss of rigidity of non-woody parts of plants  WILT , An acronym commonly used in instant messaging for ` What I 'm Listening To '  Wilt disease , which can refer to a number of different diseases in plants .   In literature and film :  Wilt ( novel ) , a novel by Tom Sharpe  Wilt ( film ) , a 1989 adaptation of Sharpe 's novel  Wilt : Larger than Life , a biography of Wilt Chamberlain by Robert Cherry  Wilt : Just Like Any Other 7-Foot Black Millionaire Who Lives Next Door , an autobiography by Wilt Chamberlain   In other media :  Wilt ( band ) , an Irish indie rock band formed by ex-members of Kerbdog  WILT ( FM ) , a radio station ( 103.7 FM ) licensed to serve Wrightsville Beach , North Carolina , United States  WYHW , a radio station ( 104.5 FM ) licensed to serve Wilmington , North Carolina , which held the call sign WILT from 2008 to 2015  WRMR ( FM ) , a radio station ( 98.7 FM ) licensed to serve Jacksonville , North Carolina , which held the call sign WILT from 2005 to 2008  `` Wilt '' , a song by Blind Melon from Soup  Wilt , a fictional character from the animated TV series Foster 's Home for Imaginary Friends   People with the given name :  Wilt Chamberlain , a former American NBA player for the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors , the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers   People with the surname :  Clara Antoinette McCarty Wilt ( 1858 -- 1929 ) , the first woman superintendent of the Pierce County School District  Marie Wilt ( 1833 -- 1891 ) , an Austrian dramatic coloratura soprano  Peter Wilt , a soccer executive  Raymond Wilt , a former Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives  Rod Wilt , a former Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives  Roy Wilt , a former Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives  W. William Wilt , a former Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives

neg: List of comedians A comedian is one who entertains through comedy , such as jokes and other forms of humour . Following is a list of comedians , comedy groups , and comedy writers .

neg: Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America Volume One: The Early Years Stan Freberg Presents The United States of America Volume One : The Early Years is an American comedy album with music and dialogue written by Stan Freberg , released as Capitol W/SW -1573 in 1961 . Freberg satirizes episodes of the history of the United States from 1492 until the end of the Revolutionary War in 1783 . The album combined dialogue and song in a musical theater format . Billy May orchestrated the music . In addition to Freberg , the cast included the following performers :   Jesse White  Peter Leeds  Byron Kane  Colleen Collins  Helen Kleeb  Shep Menken  Walter Tetley  Marvin Miller  June Foray  Barney Phillips  Maurice Dallimore  Peter Forster  John Frank  Paul Frees ( narrator )   Freberg used anachronistic and self-referential humour in these sketches , such as referring to the Fourth of July weekend in the `` Declaration of Independence '' sketch , Thanksgiving Day in the skit on `` Take an Indian to Lunch '' as well as the `` Thanksgiving Turkey '' portion , and Columbus Day in `` Columbus Discovers America '' . Freberg also referred to McCarthyism in the `` Declaration of Independence '' sketch , where Benjamin Franklin says , `` You ... sign a harmless petition , and forget all about it ; ten years later , you get hauled up before a committee . ''   Admirers of this album have included Steven Spielberg , Richard Dreyfuss and Paul McCartney . Dr. Demento 's listeners have repeatedly voted The United States of America as the greatest comedy album of all time .   Stan Freberg Presents The United States of America , Volume Two was planned for a release during America 's Bicentennial in 1976 , but did not emerge until 1996 . In his autobiography , Freberg detailed his efforts to have the songs and skits produced on Broadway ; when this failed , he used material omitted from the original album in the sequel .   A third volume was planned . Due to the death of Freberg 's wife , Donna , and Freberg 's personal health problems , the project was shelved .

neg: It Hits the Fan `` It Hits the Fan '' is the first episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series South Park , and the 66th episode of the series overall . It first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on June 20 , 2001 . In the episode , the word `` shit '' is said uncensored on television on the crime show Cop Drama . After this , everyone starts saying `` shit '' over and over , which eventually brings over a mysterious plague that unleashes the ancient Knights of Standards and Practices , and only Chef and the boys can save the world .   The episode was written by series co-creator Trey Parker and is rated TV-MA-LV in the United States . Throughout the episode , the profanity `` shit '' or `` shitty '' are exclaimed uncensored a total of 162 separate times ; in syndicated or re-aired versions of this episode , a counter in the bottom left corner of the screen counts the number of times the word has been uttered . The written occurrences are not counted , but `` shit '' is written 38 times , which puts the `` shit `` s up to an even 200 . `` Shit '' is uttered roughly once every eight seconds ; one such count includes the episode 's theme song in the calculation .

neg: Broad Humor Film Festival The Broad Humor Film Festival is a film festival that takes place every year in Los Angeles , California . It focuses exclusively on comedic films written and directed by women . Begun in 2005 , it is held yearly in the summer months and brings together female writers and directors for a weekend of screenings , readings and events with the aim of fostering greater opportunity for women as the creators of film content . The festival has film and screenplay competitions for both feature-length and short films . Projects can be narrative or documentary . In addition , the festival offers continuing support to festival filmmakers and writers through its Legacy Program , a series of initiatives encouraging alumnae to create and screen new work .

neg: Monty (TV series) Monty is an American sitcom that aired on Fox from January 11 to February 15 , 1994 . The series starred Henry Winkler as Monty Richardson , a loud , obnoxious conservative TV commentator . Richardson had also written a best-selling book titled I 'm Right . I 'm Right . I 'm Right . Shut Up . The series also starred Tom McGowan as his executive producer and David Schwimmer as his left-leaning son . Monty hoped to capitalize on the same family dynamic that made the television show All in the Family a success in the 1970s . However , the show was canceled after six episodes .

neg: Funny or Die Funny or Die is a comedy video website and film/TV production company founded by Will Ferrell , Adam McKay and Chris Henchy . The website Funny Or Die contains exclusive material from a regular staff of in-house writers , producers , and directors , and occasionally from a number of famous contributors like Judd Apatow , James Franco , and Norm Macdonald . The production company makes TV shows like truTV 's Billy on the Street , Comedy Central 's @midnight , and Zach Galifianakis 's popular Emmy-winning web series Between Two Ferns .   Many videos on the site feature well-known actors ( examples include Steve Carell , Charlie Sheen , Ryan Gosling , Patrick Stewart , Daniel Radcliffe , Sophia Bush , Mila Kunis , AnnaSophia Robb , Hilary Duff , Adam West , James Van Der Beek , Jim Carrey , Ariel Winter , and Selena Gomez ) . Michael Kvamme , an aspiring young comedian , came up with a concept for a new kind of comedy site ; and the site was developed by Randy Adams .   Funny Or Die launched on April 12 , 2007 with the site 's first video , `` The Landlord '' . `` The Landlord '' has received over 84 million views and features Ferrell confronted by a swearing , beer-drinking two-year-old landlord . In June 2007 , they received venture capital funding from Sequoia Capital , and in June 2008 , they announced a partnership with HBO . On August 3 , 2016 , Funny or Die shut-down one of its California offices , reducing its headcount by 30 % to 95 employees , with the announcement coming just two month after the new CEO , Mike Farah , took office

neg: The Comedians (1971 TV series) The Comedians is a British television show of the 1970s ( later reprised in the mid-1980s and early 1990s ) produced by Johnnie Hamp of Granada Television . The show gave a stage to nightclub and working men 's club comedians of the era , including Russ Abbot , Lennie Bennett , Stan Boardman , Jim Bowen , Jimmy Bright , Duggie Brown , Mike Burton , Dave Butler , Brian Carroll , Frank Carson , Mike Coyne , Jimmy Cricket , Colin Crompton , Pauline Daniels , Charlie Daze , Vince Earl , Steve Faye , Eddie Flanagan , Stu Francis , Ken Goodwin , Jackie Hamilton , Jerry Harris , George King , Bobby Knutt , Bernard Manning , Mike McCabe , Paul Melba , Mick Miller , Hal Nolan , Tom O'Connor , Tom Pepper , Bryn Phillips , Mike Reid , George Roper , Harry Scott , Sammy Thomas , Johnny Wager , Roy Walker , Charlie Williams , Lee Wilson and Lenny Windsor .   Also featured on the TV show , were Shep 's Banjo Boys , a 7-piece band comprising ( for the first 5 series ) Charlie Bentley ( tenor banjo ) , John Drury ( sousaphone ) , Andy Holdorf ( trombone ) , John Orchard ( piano ) , John Rollings ( drums ) , Graham Shepherd ( banjo ) and Howard Shepherd ( lead banjo ) . In 1973 , the line up was Mike Dexter ( banjo ) , Tony `` Tosh '' Kennedy ( sousaphone ) , Ged Martin ( drums ) , Tony Pritchard ( trombone ) , Graham Shepherd ( banjo ) and Howard `` Shep '' Shepherd ( lead banjo ) .   The Comedians began as an experiment for Granada TV . Filmed before a live audience in Manchester , comics each performed 20-minute sets , which were then edited together into half-hour shows . Each edition featured up to ten stand-up comics .   Working men 's clubs are numerous in Britain , especially in North East England and have been a useful training ground for artists , especially comedians . Most of these clubs are affiliated to the CIU ( Working Men 's Club and Institute Union ) founded in 1862 by the Rev. Henry Solly . There are also political clubs , as well as Servicemen 's Clubs affiliated to the Royal British Legion .   It was remarkably popular during the earlier series . An LP recording of the show reached the best-seller charts , several sell-out national tours followed , including a season at the London Palladium , and the programme won the Critics ' circle Award .   The comedy frequently took the form of anecdotes or jokes and often involved racist or sexist stereotypes . Like other British comedy successes of the day , notably , Love Thy Neighbour , this kind of entertainment was acceptable on British television during this period but would not be so today . Viewing the series in retrospect it stands as a major social document of the times .   In recent years , the series has been repeated on the ( now defunct ) British satellite television channel Plus , and can now be bought on DVD , having been released by Network .

neg: Gold Turkey Gold Turkey is an American album of sketch comedy that was first released as a vinyl record in 1975 . It was a spin-off from -LSB- -LSB- National Lampoon ( magazine ) | National Lampoon -RSB- -RSB- magazine . The album is a collection of `` greatest hits '' from the National Lampoon Radio Hour , a radio show that was broadcast on 600 radio stations and ran from November 17 , 1973 to December 28 , 1974 .   The sketches on Gold Turkey feature numerous National Lampoon actors including Christopher Guest , Bill Murray , John Belushi , Brian Doyle-Murray , Chevy Chase , Harold Ramis , Gilda Radner , Joe Flaherty and Ed Subitzky.Gold Turkey was also subsequently issued as a CD .  The title of the album `` Gold Turkey '' is a reference to the phrase `` cold turkey '' a phrase meaning to suffer sudden withdrawal from an addictive substance ; there is a John Lennon song Cold Turkey '' . `` Gold Turkey '' as shown in the cover photograph by Arky & Barrett is a visual pun on the golden statue awards for entertainment , such as the Oscars and the Emmy , and is simultaneously a verbal pun on the word `` turkey '' meaning a box office bomb or entertainment failure .

neg: A Night at the Met A Night at the Met is the third official album release by Robin Williams on August 9 , 1986 . It features segments recorded live at Metropolitan Opera House in New York City . The album won the 1988 Grammy Award for Best Comedy Performance Single or Album , Spoken or Musical .   The album was released the year before Williams ' critically acclaimed performance in the motion picture Good Morning , Vietnam ( 1987 ) . He had been shifting his focus from stand-up comedy to film making for several years , and A Night at the Met would be one of his last major concerts during the 1980s . The show is a mix of Williams ' quick-witted humor and voice work , with rants on the topics of drugs , sex , world affairs , and parenting . References to the events and people of the 1980s are mentioned heavily throughout ; U.S. President Ronald Reagan , Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi , and President of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev are central to many of the jokes .

neg: Improvisational theatre Improvisational theatre , often called improv or impro , is the form of theatre , often comedy , in which most or all of what is performed is unplanned or unscripted : created spontaneously by the performers . In its purest form , the dialogue , action , story , and characters are created collaboratively by the players as the improvisation unfolds in present time , without use of an already prepared , written script .   Improvisational theatre exists in performance as a range of styles of improvisational comedy as well as some non-comedic theatrical performances . It is sometimes used in film and television , both to develop characters and scripts and occasionally as part of the final product .   Improvisational techniques are often used extensively in drama programs to train actors for stage , film , and television and can be an important part of the rehearsal process . However , the skills and processes of improvisation are also used outside of the context of performing arts . It is used in classrooms as an educational tool and in businesses as a way to develop communication skills , creative problem solving , and supportive team-work abilities that are used by improvisational , ensemble players . It is sometimes used in psychotherapy as a tool to gain insight into a person 's thoughts , feelings , and relationships .