A game is structured playing, usually undertaken for enjoyment and sometimes used as an educational tool. Games are distinct from work, which is usually carried out for remuneration, and from art, which is more often an expression of aesthetic or ideological elements. However, the distinction is not clear-cut, and many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports/games) or art (such as jigsaw puzzles or games involving an artistic layout such as Mahjong, solitaire, or some video games).

Key components of games are goals, rules, challenge, and interaction. Games generally involve mental or physical stimulation, and often both. Many games help develop practical skills, serve as a form of exercise, or otherwise perform an educational, simulational, or psychological role. According to Chris Crawford, the requirement for player interaction puts activities such as jigsaw puzzles and solitaire "games" into the category of puzzles rather than games.

Attested as early as 2600 BC, games are a universal part of human experience and present in all cultures. The Royal Game of Ur, Senet, and Mancala are some of the oldest known games.

Definitions

Ludwig Wittgenstein

Ludwig Wittgenstein was probably the first academic philosopher to address the definition of the word ''game''. In his ''Philosophical Investigations'', Wittgenstein demonstrated that the elements of games, such as play, rules, and competition, all fail to adequately define what games are. Wittgenstein concluded that people apply the term ''game'' to a range of disparate human activities that bear to one another only what one might call family resemblances.

Roger Caillois

French sociologist Roger Caillois, in his book ''Les jeux et les hommes (Games and Men)'', defined a game as an activity that must have the following characteristics:

''fun'': the activity is chosen for its light-hearted character

''separate'': it is circumscribed in time and place

''uncertain'': the outcome of the activity is unforeseeable

''non-productive'': participation does not accomplish anything useful

''governed by rules'': the activity has rules that are different from everyday life

''fictitious'': it is accompanied by the awareness of a different reality

Chris Crawford

Computer game designer Chris Crawford attempted to define the term ''game'' using a series of dichotomies: #Creative expression is ''art'' if made for its own beauty, and ''entertainment'' if made for money. #A piece of entertainment is a ''plaything'' if it is interactive. Movies and books are cited as examples of non-interactive entertainment. #If no goals are associated with a plaything, it is a ''toy''. ''(Crawford notes that by his definition, (a) a toy can become a game element if the player makes up rules, and (b) ''The Sims'' and ''SimCity'' are toys, not games.)'' If it has goals, a plaything is a ''challenge''. #If a challenge has no "active agent against whom you compete," it is a ''puzzle''; if there is one, it is a ''conflict''. ''(Crawford admits that this is a subjective test. Video games with noticeably algorithmic artificial intelligence can be played as puzzles; these include the patterns used to evade ghosts in ''Pac-Man''.)'' #Finally, if the player can only outperform the opponent, but not attack them to interfere with their performance, the conflict is a ''competition''. ''(Competitions include racing and figure skating.)'' However, if attacks are allowed, then the conflict qualifies as a game.

Crawford's definition may thus be rendered as: an interactive, goal-oriented activity, with active agents to play against, in which players (including active agents) can interfere with each other.

Other definitions

"A game is a system in which players engage in an artificial conflict, defined by rules, that results in a quantifiable outcome." (Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman) "A game is a form of art in which participants, termed ''players'', make decisions in order to manage resources through game tokens in the pursuit of a goal." (Greg Costikyan) According to this definitions, some "games" that do not involve choices, such as Chutes and Ladders, Candy Land, and War (card game) are not technically games any more than a slot machine is. "A game is an ''activity'' among two or more independent ''decision-makers'' seeking to achieve their ''objectives'' in some ''limiting context.''" (Clark C. Abt) "At its most elementary level then we can define game as an exercise of voluntary control systems in which there is an opposition between forces, confined by a procedure and rules in order to produce a disequilibrial outcome." (Elliot Avedon and Brian Sutton-Smith) "A game is a form of play with goals and structure." (Kevin Maroney)

Gameplay elements and classification

Games can be characterized by "what the player does." This is often referred to as gameplay. Major key elements identified in this context are tools and rules that define the overall context of game and that in turn produce skill, strategy, and chance.

Tools

Games are often classified by the components required to play them (e.g. miniatures, a ball, cards, a board and pieces, or a computer). In places where the use of leather is well established, the ball has been a popular game piece throughout recorded history, resulting in a worldwide popularity of ball games such as rugby, basketball, football, cricket, tennis, and volleyball. Other tools are more idiosyncratic to a certain region. Many countries in Europe, for instance, have unique standard decks of playing cards. Other games such as chess may be traced primarily through the development and evolution of its game pieces.

Many game tools are tokens, meant to represent other things. A token may be a pawn on a board, play money, or an intangible item such as a point scored.

Games such as hide-and-seek or tag do not utilise any obvious tool; rather, their interactivity is defined by the environment. Games with the same or similar rules may have different gameplay if the environment is altered. For example, hide-and-seek in a school building differs from the same game in a park; an auto race can be radically different depending on the track or street course, even with the same cars.

Rules

Whereas games are often characterized by their tools, they are often defined by their rules. While rules are subject to variations and changes, enough change in the rules usually results in a "new" game. For instance, baseball can be played with "real" baseballs or with wiffleballs. However, if the players decide to play with only three bases, they are arguably playing a different game. There are exceptions to this in that some games deliberately involve the changing of their own rules, but even then there are often immutable meta-rules.

Rules generally determine turn order, the rights and responsibilities of the players, and each player’s goals. Player rights may include when they may spend resources or move tokens. Common win conditions are being first to amass a certain quota of points or tokens (as in Settlers of Catan), having the greatest number of tokens at the end of the game (as in Monopoly), or some relationship of one’s game tokens to those of one’s opponent (as in chess's checkmate).

Skill, strategy, and chance

A game’s tools and rules will result in its requiring skill, strategy, luck, or a combination thereof, and are classified accordingly.

Games of skill include games of physical skill, such as wrestling, tug of war, hopscotch, target shooting, and stake, and games of mental skill such as checkers and chess. Games of strategy include checkers, chess, go, arimaa, and tic-tac-toe, and often require special equipment to play them. Games of chance include gambling games (blackjack, mah-jongg, roulette, etc.), as well as snakes and ladders and rock, paper, scissors; most require equipment such as cards or dice. However, most games contain two or all three of these elements. For example, American football and baseball involve both physical skill and strategy while tiddlywinks, poker, and Monopoly combine strategy and chance. Many card and board games combine all three; most trick-taking games involve mental skill, strategy, and an element of chance, as do many strategic board games such as Risk, Settlers of Catan, and Carcassonne.

Single-player games

Most games require multiple players. However, single-player games are unique in respect to the type of challenges a player faces. Unlike a game with multiple players competing with or against each other to reach the game's goal, a one-player game is a battle solely against an element of the environment (an artificial opponent), against one's own skills, against time, or against chance. Playing with a yo-yo or playing tennis against a wall is not generally recognized as playing a game due to the lack of any formidable opposition.

It is not valid to describe a computer game as single-player where the computer provides opposition. If the computer is merely record-keeping, then the game may be validly single-player.

Many games described as "single-player" may be termed actually puzzles or recreations.

Types

Games can take a variety of forms, from competitive sports to board games and video games.

Sports

Many sports require special equipment and dedicated playing fields, leading to the involvement of a community much larger than the group of players. A city or town may set aside such resources for the organization of sports leagues.

Popular sports may have spectators who are entertained just by watching games. A community will often align itself with a local sports team that supposedly represents it (even if the team or most of its players only recently moved in); they often align themselves against their opponents or have traditional rivalries. The concept of fandom began with sports fans.

Stanley Fish cited the balls and strikes of baseball as a clear example of social construction, the operation of rules on the game's tools. While the strike zone target is governed by the rules of the game, it epitomizes the category of things that exist only because people have agreed to treat them as real. No pitch is a ball or a strike until it has been labeled as such by an appropriate authority, the plate umpire, whose judgment on this matter cannot be challenged within the current game.

Certain competitive sports, such as racing and gymnastics, are not games by definitions such as Crawford's (see above) – despite the inclusion of many in the Olympic Games – because competitors do not interact with their opponents; they simply challenge each other in indirect ways.

Lawn games

Lawn games are outdoor games that can be played on a lawn; an area of mowed grass (or alternately, on graded soil) generally smaller than a "field" or pitch. Variations of many games that are traditionally played on a pitch are marketed as "lawn games" for home use in a front or back yard. Common lawn games include horseshoes, sholf, croquet, bocce, lawn bowls, and stake.

Tabletop games

A tabletop game generally refers to any game where the elements of play are confined to a small area and that require little physical exertion, usually simply placing, picking up and moving game pieces. Most of these games are, thus, played at a table around which the players are seated and on which the game's elements are located. A variety of major game types generally fall under the heading of tabletop games. It is worth noting that many games falling into this category, particularly party games, are more free-form in their play and can involve physical activity such as mime, however the basic premise is still that the game does not require a large area in which to play it, large amounts of strength or stamina, or specialized equipment other than what comes in the box (games sometimes require additional materials like pencil and paper that are easy to procure).

Dexterity/coordination games

This class of games includes any game in which the skill element involved relates to manual dexterity or hand-eye coordination, but excludes the class of video games (see below). Games such as jacks, paper football, and Jenga require only very portable or improvised equipment and can be played on any flat level surface, while other examples, such as pinball, billiards, air hockey, foosball, and table hockey require specialized tables or other self-contained modules on which the game is played. The advent of home video game systems largely replaced some of these, such as table hockey, however air hockey, billiards, pinball and foosball remain popular fixtures in private and public game rooms. These games and others, as they require reflexes and coordination, are generally performed more poorly by intoxicated persons but are unlikely to result in injury because of this; as such the games are popular as drinking games. In addition, dedicated drinking games such as quarters also involve physical coordination and are popular for similar reasons.

Board games

Board games use as a central tool a board on which the players' status, resources, and progress are tracked using physical tokens. Many also involve dice and/or cards. Most games that simulate war are board games (though a large number of video games have been created to simulate strategic combat; see "Video Games" below), and the board may be a map on which the players' tokens move. Virtually all board games involve "turn-based" play; one player contemplates and then makes a move, then the next player does the same, and a player can only act on their turn. This is opposed to "real-time" play as is found in some card games, most sports and most video games.

Some games, such as chess and Go, are entirely deterministic, relying only on the strategy element for their interest. Children's games, on the other hand, tend to be very luck-based, with games such as Candy Land and Chutes and Ladders having virtually no decisions to be made. By some definitions, such as that by (Greg Costikyan), they are not games since there are no decisions to make to effect the outcome. Most other board games combine strategy and luck factors; the game of backgammon requires players to decide the best strategic move based on the roll of two dice. Trivia games have a great deal of randomness based on the questions a person gets. German-style board games are notable for often having rather less of a luck factor than many board games.

Board game groups include race games, roll-and-move games, abstract strategy games, word games, and wargames, as well as the trivia and German-style board games mentioned above. Some board games fall into multiple groups and even incorporate elements of other genres: Cranium is one popular example, where players must succeed in each of four main skills: artistry, live performance, trivia, and language skill.

Card games

Card games use a deck of cards as their central tool. These cards may be a standard Anglo-American (52-card) deck of playing cards (such as for bridge, poker, Rummy, etc.), a regional deck using 32, 36 or 40 cards and different suit signs (such as for the popular German game skat), a tarot deck of 78 cards (used in Europe to play a variety of trick-taking games collectively known as Tarot, Tarock, and/or Tarocchi games), or a deck specific to the individual game (such as ''Set'' or 1000 Blank White Cards). Uno and Rook are examples of games that were originally played with a standard deck and have since been commercialized with customized decks. Some collectible card games such as ''Magic: The Gathering'' are played with a small selection of cards that have been collected or purchased individually from large available sets.

Some board games include a deck of cards as a gameplay element, normally for randomization and/or to keep track of game progress. Conversely, some card games such as Cribbage use a board with movers, normally to keep score. The differentiation between the two genres in such cases depends on which element of the game is foremost in its play; a board game using cards for random actions can usually use some other method of randomization, while Cribbage can just as easily be scored on paper. These elements as used are simply the traditional and easiest methods to achieve their purpose.

Dice games

Dice games use a number of dice as their central element. Board games often use dice for a randomization element, and thus each roll of the dice has a profound impact on the outcome of the game, however dice games are differentiated in that the dice do not determine the success or failure of some other element of the game; they instead are the central indicator of the person's standing in the game. Popular dice games include ''Yahtzee'', Farkle, Bunco, Liar's dice/Perudo, and Poker dice. As dice are, by their very nature, designed to produce apparently random numbers, these games usually involve a high degree of luck, which can be directed to some extent by the player through more strategic elements of play and through tenets of probability theory. Such games are thus popular as gambling games; the game of Craps is perhaps the most famous example, though Liar's dice and Poker dice were originally conceived of as gambling games.

Domino and tile games

Domino games are similar in many respects to card games, but the generic device is instead a set of tiles called dominoes, which traditionally each have two ends, each with a given number of dots, or "pips", and each combination of two possible end values as it appears on a tile is unique in the set. The games played with dominoes largely center around playing a domino from the player's "hand" onto the matching end of another domino, and the overall object could be to always be able to make a play, to make all open endpoints sum to a given number or multiple, or simply to play all dominoes from one's hand onto the board. Sets vary in the number of possible dots on one end, and thus of the number of combinations and pieces; the most common set historically is ''double-six'', though in more recent times "extended" sets such as ''double-nine'' have been introduced to increase the number of dominoes available, which allows larger hands and more players in a game. Muggins, Mexican Train, and Chicken Foot are very popular domino games. Texas 42 is a domino game more similar in its play to a "trick-taking" card game.

Variations of traditional dominoes abound: Triominoes are similar in theory but are triangular and thus have three values per tile. Similarly, a game known as Quad-Ominos uses four-sided tiles.

Some other games use tiles in place of cards; Rummikub is a variant of the Rummy card game family that uses tiles numbered in ascending rank among four colors, very similar to Anglo-American playing cards. Mah-Jongg is another game very similar to Rummy that uses a set of tiles with card-like values and art.

Lastly, some games use graphical tiles to form a board layout, on which other elements of the game are played. Settlers of Catan and Carcassonne are examples. In each, the "board" is made up of a series of tiles; in Settlers of Catan the starting layout is random but static, while in Carcassonne the game is played by "building" the board tile-by-tile. Hive, an abstract strategy game using tiles as moving pieces, has mechanical and strategic elements similar to chess, although it has no board; the pieces themselves both form the layout and can move within it.

Pencil and paper games

Pencil and paper games require little or no specialized equipment other than writing materials, though some such games have been commercialized as board games (''Scrabble'', for instance, is based on the idea of a crossword puzzle, and tic-tac-toe sets with a boxed grid and pieces are available commercially). These games vary widely, from games centering on a design being drawn such as ''Pictionary'' and "connect-the-dots" games like sprouts, to letter and word games such as ''Boggle'' and ''Scattergories'', to solitaire and logic puzzle games such as Sudoku and crossword puzzles.

Guessing games

A guessing game has as its core a piece of information that one player knows, and the object is to coerce others into guessing that piece of information without actually divulging it in text or spoken word. Charades is probably the most well-known game of this type, and has spawned numerous commercial variants that involve differing rules on the type of communication to be given, such as ''Catch Phrase'', ''Taboo'', ''Pictionary'', and similar. The genre also includes many game shows such as ''Win, Lose or Draw'', ''Password'' and ''$25,000 Pyramid''.

Video games

Video games are computer- or microprocessor-controlled games. Computers can create virtual tools to be used in a game between human (or simulated human) opponents, such as cards or dice, or can simulate far more elaborate worlds where mundane or fantastic things can be manipulated through gameplay.

A computer or video game uses one or more input devices, typically a button/joystick combination (on arcade games); a keyboard, mouse and/or trackball (computer games); or a controller or a motion sensitive tool. (console games). More esoteric devices such as paddle controllers have also been used for input. In computer games, the evolution of user interfaces from simple keyboard to mouse, joystick or joypad has profoundly changed the nature of game development.

There are many genres of video game; the first commercial video game, Pong, was a simple simulation of table tennis. As processing power increased, new genres such as adventure and action games were developed that involved a player guiding a character from a third person perspective through a series of obstacles. This "real-time" element cannot be easily reproduced by a board game, which is generally limited to "turn-based" strategy; this advantage allows video games to simulate situations such as combat more realistically. Additionally, the playing of a video game does not require the same physical skill, strength and/or danger as a real-world representation of the game, and can provide either very realistic, exaggerated or impossible physics, allowing for elements of a fantastical nature, games involving physical violence, or simulations of sports. Lastly, a computer can, with varying degrees of success, simulate one or more human opponents in traditional table games such as chess, leading to simulations of such games that can be played by a single player.

In more open-ended computer simulations, also known as sandbox-style games, the game provides a virtual environment in which the player may be free to do whatever they like within the confines of this universe. Sometimes, there is a lack of goals or opposition, which has stirred some debate on whether these should be considered "games" or "toys". (Crawford specifically mentions Will Wright’s SimCity as an example of a toy.)

Online games

From the very earliest days of networked and time-shared computers, online games have been part of the culture. Early commercial systems such as Plato were at least as widely famous for their games as for their strictly educational value. In 1958, Tennis for Two dominated Visitor's Day and drew attention to the oscilloscope at the Brookhaven National Laboratory; during the 1980s, Xerox PARC was known mainly for Maze War, which was offered as a hands-on demo to visitors.

Modern online games are played using an Internet connection; some have dedicated client programs, while others require only a web browser. Some simpler browser games appeal to demographic groups (notably women and the middle-aged) that otherwise play very few video games.

Media audiences’ characteristic has been changing in consequence of the social changes and development. They are becoming active and interact more than ever before. The players of the game in this phenomenon are just like the social formation in our society. They are both self-regulating, creating their own social norms and subject to regulation and constraint through the code of the game and sometimes through the policing of the game by those who run it. The values that are policed vary from game to game. Many of the values encoded into game cultures reflect offline cultural values, but games also offer a chance to emphasise alternative or subjugated values in the name of fantasy and play. The players of the game at the new century are now apparently expressing their profound self through the game. When they can play with their anonymous status, they are found to be more confident to express and to step out from the position they have never been out from. It offers new experiences and pleasures based in the interactive and immersible possibilities of computer technologies.

Role-playing games

Role-playing games, often abbreviated as RPGs, are a type of game in which the participants (usually) assume the roles of characters acting in a fictional setting. The original role playing games—or at least those explicitly marketed as such—are played with a handful of participants, usually face-to-face, and keep track of the developing fiction with pen and paper. Together, the players may collaborate on a story involving those characters; create, develop, and "explore" the setting; or vicariously experience an adventure outside the bounds of everyday life. Pen-and-paper role-playing games include, for example, ''Dungeons & Dragons'' and ''GURPS''.

The term ''role-playing game'' has also been appropriated by the video game industry to describe a genre of video games. These may be single-player games where one player experiences a programmed environment and story, or they may allow players to interact through the internet. The experience is usually quite different from traditional role-playing games. Single-player games include ''Final Fantasy'', ''Fable'', ''The Elder Scrolls'', and ''Mass Effect''. Online multi-player games, often referred to as Massively Multiplayer Online role playing games, or MMORPGs, include ''RuneScape'', ''EverQuest 2'', ''Guild Wars'', ''MapleStory'', ''Anarchy Online'', and ''Dofus''. , the most successful MMORPG has been ''World of Warcraft'', which controls the vast majority of the market.

Business games

Business games can take a variety of forms, from interactive board games to interactive games involving different props (balls, ropes, hoops, etc.) and different kinds of activities. The purpose of these games is to link to some aspect of organizational performance and to generate discussions about business improvement. Many business games focus on torganizational behaviors. Some of these are computer simulations while others are simple designs for play and debriefing. Team building is a common focus of such activities.

Simulation

The term "game" can include simulation or re-enactment of various activities or use in "real life" for various purposes: e.g., training, analysis, prediction. Well-known examples are war games and roleplaying. The root of this meaning may originate in the human prehistory of games deduced by anthropology from observing primitive cultures, in which children's games mimic the activities of adults to a significant degree: hunting, warring, nursing, etc. These kinds of games are preserved in modern times.

See also

Game classification

Game club

Game theory

Gamer

History of games

Lawn game

List of games

Ludibrium

Ludology

References

Further reading

Avedon, Elliot; Sutton-Smith, Brian, ''The Study of Games''. (Philadelphia: Wiley, 1971), reprinted Krieger, 1979. ISBN 0-89874-045-2

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team	Los Angeles Kings
former teams	Philadelphia Flyers
league	NHL
position	Centre
shoots	Left
height ft	5
height in	11
weight lb	195
ntl team	Canada
birth date	February 11, 1985
birth place	Kenora, ON, CAN
draft	24th overall
draft year	2003
draft team	Philadelphia Flyers
career start	2005 }}

Michael Richards (born February 11, 1985) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre for the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL). He previously played for and was team captain of the Philadelphia Flyers.

Playing career

Early years

Richards grew up playing minor league hockey in his hometown of Kenora, Ontario. He played level A rep hockey for the Kenora Thistles until being drafted fourth overall in the 2001 OHL Priority Selection by the Kitchener Rangers. Richards was not a noted prospect prior to the selection. After receiving a tip from a friend in Kenora, Rangers general manager Jamie MacDonald traveled to see Richards play on two occasions.

Richards began his major junior career with the Kitchener Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) in 2001–02. He was a member of a dominant 2003 Kitchener team that captured the Memorial Cup and led the team in scoring during the regular season with 87 points. Following the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) championship victory, Richards was chosen as team captain. That summer, the Philadelphia Flyers selected him 24th overall in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft with the second of the team's first round picks that season.

Upon being drafted, Richards returned to the Rangers for two more seasons. In his last season of junior, 2004–05, he embarked on another Memorial Cup run with Kitchener, but despite a remarkable 28-point performance from Richards in just 15 playoff games, the Rangers were eliminated by the London Knights in the OHL semi-finals. As soon as Kitchener was eliminated, the Flyers assigned Richards to the Philadelphia Phantoms, their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, for their playoff run. Averaging over a point per game, he became a key part of the Phantoms' 2005 Calder Cup championship.

NHL beginnings

Richards made his NHL debut with the Flyers the following season and scored a goal in his first game on October 5, 2005, against the New York Rangers. Later in the season, he scored his first career NHL hat trick, which included two shorthanded goals, against the New York Islanders on February 8, 2006. His hat trick was the first by a Flyers rookie since Mikael Renberg on February 15, 1994. Richards finished his NHL rookie season with 34 points in 79 games, third among Flyers rookies to Jeff Carter (drafted the same year as Richards, 11th overall) and R.J. Umberger.

Following an injury shortened sophomore season – Richards was kept to 32 points in 59 games due to stomach surgery – Richards emerged as a star with the Flyers in 2007–08 and topped the team in scoring with 75 points. Recognizing his ascent as a leader on the team, Richards was named one of the Flyers' alternate captains at the outset of the season and was signed to a lengthy 12-year contract extension worth $69 million on December 13, 2007. Shortly after signing the deal, Richards was selected to represent the Eastern Conference at the 2008 NHL All-Star Game in Atlanta. In the first NHL All-Star Game of his career, Richards registered an assist.

As the Flyers entered the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the third-seeded Washington Capitals, Richards scored his first playoff goal on a penalty shot against Washington goaltender Cristobal Huet in game three. In doing so, he became just the second player in NHL history to score his first playoff goal on a penalty shot (the first was Wayne Connolly who did so with the Minnesota North Stars in 1968). The Flyers defeated the Capitals in seven games and then upset the Montreal Canadiens before falling to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Eastern Conference Finals. Richards finished his 2008 playoff run with 14 points in 17 games.

2008-2011: Team captain

Before the start of the 2008–09 season, on September 17, 2008, Richards was named the 17th captain in Flyers history, succeeding previous captain Jason Smith, who had signed with the Ottawa Senators in the off-season. On February 15, 2009, Richards became the first player in NHL history to score three career 3-on-5 shorthanded goals when he beat New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist in a 5–2 win. Six days later, on February 21, Richards became the first Flyer in team history to score a shorthanded goal in three consecutive games and the first NHL player to do so since Joe Sakic in 1998. He finished the season second in team scoring to Jeff Carter with 80 points to go with a league-leading 7 shorthanded goals.

Facing the Pittsburgh Penguins for the second consecutive year in the 2009 playoffs, Richards added 5 points in 6 games, but could not help the Flyers from being eliminated. After Richards' season ended, he was announced as a finalist for the Selke Trophy, along with Pavel Datsyuk of the Detroit Red Wings and Ryan Kesler of the Vancouver Canucks. The next day, on April 29, 2009, it was revealed that Richards required surgery on both shoulders. He had reportedly felt discomfort since training camp and was on anti-inflammatory medication throughout the season. Richards narrowly missed out on the Selke, which could have been Philadelphia's first individual player trophy since Eric Lindros won the Hart in 1995. Datsyuk won the vote 945-942 in the closest Selke Trophy race since its inception.

The 2009-10 season started successfully for Richards, scoring five goals in his first three games including his second career hat trick in the second period of the Flyers' home opener against the Washington Capitals on October 6, 2009. Against the Florida Panthers on October 24, Richards delivered a shoulder hit to David Booth's head. Knocked unconscious, Booth fell awkwardly on his head and neck and had to be carried of the ice on a stretcher. Richards was given a game misconduct, but was not suspended by the NHL.

From the outset of the season, Richards was involved in an ongoing feud with the Philadelphia media. He issued a verbal boycott against the media in October 2009 after he was asked if the trade of forward Joffrey Lupul to the Anaheim Ducks was the result of a partying lifestyle that many players on the team were accused of sharing. Accusations of team players drinking and partying excessively continued throughout the season, specifically with Richards and Carter. As the team began to lose, Richards criticized the local media in an interview with ''The Hockey News'' for "throwing the team under the bus." He also told the ''Philadelphia Daily News'' that the drinking accusations were fabricated. Following a loss to the Washington Capitals on January 17, 2010, Richards reportedly got into a verbal exchange with reporters outside the Flyers' locker room, telling them he was unhappy with how the team was being covered in the media. On February 1, 2010, Richards scored his 100th career NHL goal. The Flyers barely scraped into the playoffs, winning in a shootout in their last game of the season to secure their place. However, they then embarked on a remarkable run to the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals, a run in which Richards cemented his captaincy and scored some important goals leading to renewed comparisons to Bobby Clarke, which eventually ended in the Stanley Cup Finals when the Flyers lost 4-3 in OT of game 6 to the Chicago Blackhawks.

Richards scored 23 goals to go along with 43 assists during the 2010-11 NHL season as the Flyers earned the 2nd seed in the Eastern Conference, and played the Buffalo Sabres in the first round of the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs. After eliminating the Sabres in 7 games, Richards and the Flyers were eliminated by the Boston Bruins in a 4 game sweep. Richards recorded one goal and six assists during the playoffs.

Los Angeles Kings

Richards and Flyers prospect Rob Bordson were traded to the Los Angeles Kings on June 23, 2011. In return, the Flyers received Wayne Simmonds, Brayden Schenn, and Los Angeles' 2012 second round pick. Richards reacted to the major deal by saying, "“I was very shocked. At first I was shocked and then excited – I’m excited to move out to L.A. and be a part of a team that has a ton of great players. I’m just looking forward to helping them out.” A Dan Gross article suggested that Richards' "hard-partying ways" influenced the Flyers' decision to trade Richards. However, Flyers' General manager Paul Holmgren stated that it was "preposterous" that partying had anything to do with the trade.

International play

}}

Richards made his international debut with Team Canada at the 2004 World Junior Championships in Finland. Despite a third period lead in the gold medal game, Canada lost to the United States 4-3.

The following year, Richards returned to the World Juniors as team captain and led Canada to its first gold medal at the tournament since 1997. Richards tallied 5 points in 6 games.

After Richards' rookie season with the Philadelphia Flyers, he was chosen to his first senior tournament with Team Canada at the 2006 World Championships. Richards scored 5 points in 9 games, but Canada was defeated by Finland in the bronze medal game, failing to medal.

On December 30, 2009, Richards was selected to play for Team Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Richards helped lead Team Canada to an 8-0 victory over Norway in the first game of the 2010 Olympic tournament by scoring one goal on February 17, 2010. He would go on to score a total of 2 goals and 3 assists in 7 games with a +5 rating. This includes an important assist on the first goal by the Canadians in the Gold Medal game where he forced a turnover, fired a shot and the rebound was put into the net by Jonathan Toews. The Canadians would win that game 3-2 in overtime giving Richards an Olympic gold medal.

Playing style

Mike Richards is considered to be one of the top two-way centers in the league today. Because of his shot and vision, Richards is able to quarterback the power play, being a threat to the opposition due to his ability to shoot and pass. Richards is also a terrific penalty killer because of his willingness to block shots, his vision to read the play and position himself appropriately, and his ability to win key faceoffs in the defensive zone. Along with his defensive ability on the penalty kill, he is also an offensive threat, having 23 shorthanded goals over 6 seasons. He also currently holds the NHL record for most 5-on-3 shorthanded goals.

Richards is also unique because of his ability to play a Power forward style of game, which is usually reserved for players with a much bigger physical stature.

Personal life

Richards was born in Kenora, Ontario to Norm and Irene. He has two brothers, Mark and Matt. His cousin, Jeff Richards, is also an OHL graduate who plays in Germany. He recently appeared on Making the Cut, a Canadian reality show about aspiring hockey players.

Growing up, he attended Beaver Brae Secondary School in Kenora, until being drafted to the Kitchener Rangers at which point he attended Eastwood Collegiate Institute. He also played soccer in high school with Beaver Brae.

Awards

Junior

Memorial Cup championship (with the Kitchener Rangers) - 2003

Memorial Cup All-Star Team - 2003

OHL Second All-Star Team - 2005

Professional

Calder Cup championship (with the Philadelphia Phantoms) - 2004–05

NHL All-Star Game - 2008

Bobby Clarke Trophy (Philadelphia Flyers' MVP) - 2007–08, 2008–09

Gene Hart Memorial Award (Philadelphia Flyers' fan favorite) - 2007–08

International

World Junior gold medal - 2005

Winter Olympic Gold Medal - Vancouver 2010

Records

NHL record; most 5-on-3 shorthanded goals, career - 3

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

{| BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="0" width="75%" style="text-align:center" |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! colspan="5" | Regular season ! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! colspan="5" | Playoffs |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! Season ! Team ! League ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2000–01 | Kenora Thistles | HNO | 85 | 76 | 73 | 149 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — |- ALIGN="center" | 2001–02 | Kitchener Rangers | OHL | 65 | 20 | 38 | 58 | 52 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2002–03 | Kitchener Rangers | OHL | 67 | 37 | 50 | 87 | 99 | 21 | 9 | 18 | 27 | 24 |- ALIGN="center" | 2003–04 | Kitchener Rangers | OHL | 58 | 36 | 53 | 89 | 82 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2004–05 | Kitchener Rangers | OHL | 43 | 22 | 36 | 58 | 75 | 15 | 11 | 17 | 28 | 36 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2004–05 | Philadelphia Phantoms | AHL | — | — | — | — | — | 14 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 28 |- ALIGN="center" | 2005–06 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 79 | 11 | 23 | 34 | 65 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2006–07 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 59 | 10 | 22 | 32 | 52 | — | — | — | — | — |- ALIGN="center" | 2007–08 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 73 | 28 | 47 | 75 | 76 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 10 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2008–09 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 79 | 30 | 50 | 80 | 63 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 6 |- ALIGN="center" | 2009–10 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 82 | 31 | 31 | 62 | 79 | 23 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 18 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2010–11 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 81 | 23 | 43 | 66 | 62 | 11 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 15 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" | NHL totals ! 453 ! 133 ! 216 ! 349 ! 397 ! 63 ! 16 ! 34 ! 50 ! 49 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" | OHL totals ! 233 ! 115 ! 177 ! 292 ! 308 ! 41 ! 20 ! 36 ! 56 ! 66 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" | AHL totals ! — ! — ! — ! — ! — ! 14 ! 7 ! 8 ! 15 ! 28 |}

International

{| BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" width="75%" |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! Year ! Team ! Event ! ALIGN="center" rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM |- ALIGN="center" | 2004 | Canada | WJC | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2005 | Canada | WJC | 6 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 |- ALIGN="center" | 2006 | Canada | WC | 9 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 10 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2010 | Canada | OG | 7 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan=3 | Junior int'l totals ! 12 ! 3 ! 7 ! 10 ! 4 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan=3 | Senior int'l totals ! 16 ! 5 ! 5 ! 10 ! 10 |}

All-Star Games

{| BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" width="45%" |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! Year ! Location ! ALIGN="center" rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! G ! A ! P |- ALIGN="center" | 2008 | Atlanta | 0 | 1 | 1 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan=3 | All-Star totals ! 0 ! 1 ! 1 |}

References

External links

Category:1985 births Category:Calder Cup champions Category:Canadian ice hockey centres Category:Ice hockey people from Ontario Category:Ice hockey players at the 2010 Winter Olympics Category:Kitchener Rangers alumni Category:Living people Category:Memorial Cup winners Category:National Hockey League All-Stars Category:National Hockey League first round draft picks Category:Olympic gold medalists for Canada Category:Olympic ice hockey players of Canada Category:People from Kenora Category:Philadelphia Flyers captains Category:Philadelphia Flyers draft picks Category:Philadelphia Flyers players Category:Philadelphia Phantoms players Category:Olympic medalists in ice hockey

cs:Mike Richards de:Mike Richards fr:Mike Richards pl:Mike Richards ru:Ричардс, Майк sk:Michael Richards fi:Mike Richards sv:Mike Richards uk:Майк Річардс

Currentteam	Baltimore Ravens
Currentnumber	20
Currentpositionplain	Free Safety
Birth date	September 11, 1978
Birth place	St. Rose, Louisiana
Heightft	5
Heightin	11
Weight	200
Debutyear	2002
Debutteam	Baltimore Ravens
Highlights	7× Pro Bowl selection (2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010) 7× All-Pro selection (2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010) AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year (2004) AFC Defensive Player of the Year (2004) 2× NFL Alumni Defensive Back of the Year (2004, 2008) Led the NFL in interceptions in 2004, 2008 and 2010 Led the NFL in interception yards in 2004 and 2010 NFL's longest interception return (108 yards) Sporting News' Team of the Decade (2000s) NFL 2000s All-Decade Team National Football League records
College	University of Miami
Draftyear	2002
Draftround	1
Draftpick	24
Pastteams	Baltimore Ravens (–present)
Status	Active
Statweek	17
Statseason	2010
Statlabel1	Tackles
Statvalue1	495
Statlabel2	Sacks
Statvalue2	5.0
Statlabel3	INTs
Statvalue3	54
Nfl	REE192451 }}

Edward Earl Reed Jr. (born September 11, 1978) is an American football free safety for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Ravens 24th overall in the 2002 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Miami.

In his career, Reed has been selected to seven Pro Bowls, was the 2004 AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year, and has the NFL record for the two longest interception returns (106 yards in 2004 and 107 yards in 2008 ). He is considered one of the most dominant safeties currently playing in the NFL and is often referred to as a "ball hawk." Since entering the league, Reed has been known to study film to memorize opposing teams' tendencies and his habit of baiting quarterbacks into throwing interceptions has also earned him recognition throughout the league.

High school career

Reed attended the Destrehan High School in Destrehan, Louisiana. He was an All-State selection at defensive back and as a kick returner and also ''New Orleans Times-Picayune'' District Most Valuable Defensive Player.

He totaled 83 tackles, seven interceptions, three forced fumbles and 12 passes deflected his senior year while also seeing action at running back and quarterback. He also returned three punts for touchdowns. Reed also lettered in basketball, baseball, and track & field. He was an All-District pitcher in baseball, and state champion in javelin throw.

College career

Reed attended the University of Miami where he was a standout defensive player. Reed played for the University of Miami team that won the 2001 National Championship.

At the University of Miami, Reed was a three-time consensus All-American selection in 2000 and 2001. In 2001, he led the nation with 9 interceptions for 209 yards (a school record) and 3 touchdowns. Reed helped seal a memorable win over Boston College in 2001 when he grabbed the ball out of teammate Matt Walters' hands, who had just intercepted it, and raced 80 yards for a touchdown. Reed earned the league's Co-Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2001 and was named National Defensive Player of the Year by ''Football News''. He was one of three finalists for the Jim Thorpe Award and was one of 12 semifinalists for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy. Reed set several records during his time at Miami. He holds the record for career interceptions with 21, career interception return yards with 389 and interceptions returned for touchdowns with 5. He also blocked four punts during his four year career. In addition, Reed was a member of the track and field team during his years at Miami and was a Big East Champion in the javelin.

He graduated in 2001 with a degree in liberal arts.

Reed and Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Reggie Wayne were roommates throughout college at the University of Miami.

Professional career

Baltimore Ravens

After college, Reed was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round (24th overall pick) of the 2002 NFL Draft.

In his rookie season, Reed started in all 16 games and finished the campaign with 85 tackles and five interceptions. The following year he finished the season with 71 tackles and seven interceptions and was voted to his first Pro Bowl.

In 2004, Reed was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press. In addition to his record return, in 2004 Reed set an NFL mark for most interception return yardage in a season, accumulating 358 return yards on 9 interceptions; Reed held this record until 2009, when it was exceeded by Darren Sharper. Also in 2004, Reed became the only player in Pro Bowl history to block a punt and return it for a touchdown. In 2005, Reed only played in ten games due to an ankle injury and finished the campaign with 37 tackles and one interception. In 2006, Reed recorded 60 tackles and five interceptions and was voted to his third Pro Bowl. In 2007, he made 39 tackles and seven interceptions. In the 2007 Pro Bowl he recorded two interceptions, tying the Pro Bowl record.

Reed has continued his strong special teams play so far during his NFL career with 4 blocked punts, returning 3 for touchdowns, which tied an NFL record. He is also the first person in NFL history to return an interception, punt, blocked punt, and fumble for a touchdown.

Reed currently holds the Ravens franchise record for career interceptions with 54. He also holds the franchise record for interception-return yards in a single game with 150. During a game against the Philadelphia Eagles on November 23, 2008, Reed returned an interception for what was originally reported as an 108 yard touchdown return (later officially adjusted to 107 yards by the Elias Sports Bureau). This set an NFL record, breaking his own record of 106 yards. The ball he intercepted and the jersey he wore during the play are now in the Hall of Fame. In the Ravens' 2009 AFC wild card game against the Miami Dolphins, Reed intercepted Chad Pennington twice, returning one for a touchdown. To date, he has 7 interceptions in 9 career post-season games.

In 2010 Reed led the NFL in interceptions with 8, despite only playing in 10 games due to hip surgery.

Reed was the only player unanimously voted onto the AP 2008 NFL All-Pro team. In 2009, Reed was selected to the Sporting News's Team of the Decade (2000's).

Reed has scored a total of 13 touchdowns in his career—3 blocked punts, 1 punt return, 2 fumble returns and 7 interception returns.

Since the AFL–NFL merger in 1970, only Ronnie Lott and Paul Krause have more games with at least two interceptions than Reed.

References

External links

Ed Reed NFL statistics at Databasefootball.com

Ed Reed profile at NNDB

Ravens Player Bio

Ed Reed halftime locker room speech at University of Miami

Category:People from St. Charles Parish, Louisiana Category:All-American college football players Category:American football safeties Category:Miami Hurricanes football players Category:Baltimore Ravens players Category:American Conference Pro Bowl players Category:1978 births Category:Living people Category:Players of American football from Louisiana

da:Ed Reed de:Edward Reed (Footballspieler) fr:Ed Reed ja:エド・リード pt:Ed Reed simple:Ed Reed

name	Anne Murray
background	solo_singer
birth name	Morna Anne Murray
birth date	June 20, 1945
origin	Springhill, Nova Scotia, Canada
instrument	Vocals, guitar
genre	Country, pop, adult contemporary
occupation	Singer
years active	1968–present
label	Arc, Capitol, Captiol Nashville Liberty, SBK, EMI Canada, Straight Way, Manhattan
website	http://www.annemurray.com/ }}

Morna Anne Murray CC, ONS (born June 20, 1945) is a Canadian singer in pop, country and adult contemporary styles whose albums have sold over 54 million copies.

Murray was the first Canadian female solo singer to reach #1 on the U.S. charts, and also the first to earn a Gold record for one of her signature songs, "Snowbird" (1970). She is often cited as the woman who paved the way for other Canadian international success stories such as Céline Dion, Sarah McLachlan and Shania Twain. She is also the first woman and the first Canadian to win "Album of the Year" at the Country Music Association Awards for her 1984 album ''A Little Good News''.

Murray has received four Grammy Awards, 24 Juno Awards (she holds the record for the most Junos awarded to an artist), three American Music Awards, three Country Music Association Awards and three Canadian Country Music Association Awards. She has been inducted into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame, the Juno Hall of Fame, The Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Hit Parade Hall of Fame. She is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame Walkway of Stars in Nashville, and has her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles and on Canada's Walk of Fame in Toronto.

In 2011, ''Billboard'' ranked her number 10 on their list of the 50 Biggest AC Artists Ever.

Early career

In 1965 Anne Murray appeared on the University of New Brunswick student project record "The Groove" (500 pressed). She sang two songs on the record - "Unchained Melody" and "Little Bit of Soap". On the label her name was misspelled "Anne Murry".

While at university, Murray was encouraged to audition for the 1960s CBC musical variety television show ''Singalong Jubilee'', but Murray was not offered a singing position. Two years later she received a call from ''Singalong Jubilee'' co-host and associate producer, Bill Langstroth, and was asked to return for a second audition. Following that second audition, Murray was cast for the show.

After a summer of singing in local venues across the Maritimes, Murray began teaching Physical Education at a high school in Summerside, Prince Edward Island. After one year of teaching, she was offered a spot on a television show ''Let's Go'', and returned to ''Singalong Jubilee''.

As a regular member of the "Singalong Jubilee" cast, Murray appeared on the ''Singalong Jubilee Vol. III'' soundtrack and ''Our Family Album - The Singalong Jubilee Cast'' records released by Arc Records. The show's musical director, Brian Ahern, advised Murray that she should move to Toronto and record a solo album. Murray's first album, ''What About Me'', was produced by Ahern in Toronto and released in 1968 on the Arc label.

Success

Murray's debut album was on the Canadian Arc label, titled ''What About Me'' (Arc AS 782). The lead single was the cut of the same name, was written by Scott McKenzie, and was a sizable Canadian radio hit. The project was produced by Brian Ahern, and covered songs by Joni Mitchell, Ken Tobias and John Denver. After a year-long stint on Arc, Murray switched to Capitol Records in 1969 to record her second album, ''This Way Is My Way'', which was released in the fall of the same year. This album featured the single that launched her successful career, "Snowbird", which became a #1 hit in Canada. "Snowbird" became a surprise hit on the U.S. charts as well, reaching #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1970. It was also the first of eight #1 Adult Contemporary hits for Murray. The song led to Murray being awarded the first Gold record ever given to a Canadian artist in the United States (RIAA certified Gold on November 16, 1970). As one of the most successful female artists at that time, Murray became in demand for several television appearances in Canada and the United States, eventually becoming a regular on the hit U.S. TV series ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour''.

After the success of "Snowbird", Murray had a number of subsequent singles that charted both pop and country simultaneously. During the 1970s and early 1980s, her hits included Kenny Loggins' "Danny's Song" (1972) (peaked at #7 on the Hot 100) and "A Love Song" (1973); "He Thinks I Still Care" and her Top 10 cover of The Beatles' "You Won't See Me" (1974); her all-time career-peaking #1 Hot 100 hit "You Needed Me" (1978) — oddly, though, the biggest pop and commercially successful hit of her career (and, she claims, her personal favourite song in her entire repertoire) stalled out at #4 on Billboard's country singles chart and #3 on Billboard's U.S. Adult Contemporary chart; "I Just Fall in Love Again", "Shadows in the Moonlight", and "Broken Hearted Me" (all from 1979); her revival of The Monkees' 1967 #1 hit "Daydream Believer" and "Could I Have This Dance" from the ''Urban Cowboy'' motion picture soundtrack, both from 1980; "Blessed Are the Believers" (1981); "Another Sleepless Night" (1982); "A Little Good News" (1983); 1984's "Just Another Woman in Love" and "Nobody Loves Me Like You Do" (a duet with Dave Loggins of 1974's "Please Come to Boston" fame and cousin of Murray's frequent songwriter Kenny); and "Time, Don't Run Out On Me" from 1985.

She performed "O Canada" at the first American League baseball game played in Canada on April 7, 1977, when the Toronto Blue Jays played the Chicago White Sox at Exhibition Stadium. Murray reprised the Canadian national anthem prior to Game 3 of the 1992 World Series at SkyDome.

Murray was a celebrity corporate spokeswoman for The Bay, and she also did commercials and sang the company jingle ("You Can Count on the Commerce") for the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC).

Murray's last Hot 100 charting pop hit was "Now and Forever (You and Me)" from 1986; it also was her last #1 on both American and Canadian country charts. Her last charting single in the U.S. was 1991's "Everyday," which appeared in Billboard's Country Singles chart, and her last charting single in Canada was 2000's "What a Wonderful World".

Murray was ranked #24 in Country Music Television's ''40 Greatest Women of Country Music'' in 2002.

Murray is a Companion of the Order of Canada, the highest honour that can be awarded to a Canadian civilian. She was a recipient of the Order of Nova Scotia in its inaugural year.

In 1996, Murray signed on with a new manager, Bruce Allen, who also has managed careers for Bryan Adams, Michael Bublé, Martina McBride and Jann Arden. She recorded her first live album in 1997 and in 1999, she released ''What a Wonderful World'', a Platinum selling inspirational album, which went to Billboard #1 Contemporary Christian, # 4 Country and #38 on the pop charts. She released ''Country Croonin''' in 2002, the follow-up to her successful 1993 album, ''Croonin'''. In 2004, she released ''I'll Be Seeing You'' in Canada only, which features a collection of songs from the early 20th century through to the mid-1940s. The American version, titled ''All of Me'', features a bonus disc containing many of her hit singles, followed in 2005.

In 2006 Murray received a tremendous honour when the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame chose her and Leonard Cohen as recipients of the Legacy Award for their extraordinary contributions to and support of the Canadian songwriting industry. Murray was recognized for her unfailing support of Canada’s songwriters, through her performances and her recordings.

On June 29, 2007, Canada Post issued the limited edition Anne Murray Stamp. She was recognized along with three other iconic Canadian recording artists: Paul Anka, Gordon Lightfoot and Joni Mitchell.

Murray's final studio album ''Anne Murray Duets: Friends & Legends'', was released in November 2007 in Canada and January 2008 in the U.S. The album comprises 17 tracks that include many of Murray's biggest hits over her four-decade career, re-recorded as duets with other established, rising, and – in one case – deceased female singers. These artists included Canadian superstars Céline Dion and Shania Twain along with other fellow Canadians k.d. lang, Nelly Furtado, Jann Arden, a CD-closing French-language duet with Québec's Isabelle Boulay, and Murray's daughter, Dawn Langstroth; Australia's decades-long veteran Olivia Newton-John; Nashville's Emmylou Harris, Martina McBride, Shelby Lynne, and pop/country/contemporary Christian crossover artist Amy Grant; songwriting and recording legend Carole King; influential folk-rock duo Indigo Girls; Irish sextet Celtic Woman; Britain's late blue-eyed soul legend and close personal friend of Murray's, Dusty Springfield; and a duet of her landmark, career-establishing #1 hit from 1970, "Snowbird," with world's biggest selling soprano, Sarah Brightman.

''Anne Murray Duets: Friends and Legends'' was recorded in four cities - Toronto, Nashville, New York and Los Angeles. According to ''Billboard'' magazine, the album reached #2 on the Canadian pop album charts and was certified Double Platinum in Canada after merely two months, representing sales of over 200,000 units. ''Anne Murray Duets: Friends and Legends'' was the second-highest debuting CD on the Billboard Top 200 albums chart for the week ending February 2, 2008. It entered the chart at #42, making it her highest-charting U.S. CD release since 1999's ''What a Wonderful World'', which peaked at #38 on the Top 200 and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Also for the week ending February 2, 2008, the CD debuted at #8 on ''Billboard'''s Top Country Albums chart and at #3 on its Top Internet Albums chart. Murray was nominated for the 2008 Juno Award for Album of the Year and Pop Album of the Year.

Murray's album ''What a Wonderful World'' was re-released in July 2008 in North America as a 14-song package. A new Christmas album, titled ''Anne Murray's Christmas Album'' with bonus DVD was released in October 2008, and Sony BMG Music released an Elvis Presley Christmas album, titled ''Elvis Presley Christmas Duets'', on October 14, 2008 featuring a virtual duet of "Silver Bells" with Anne Murray.

According to Linda Thompson (Elvis Presley's girlfriend from 1972–1976), Presley was a fan of Murray.

On October 10, 2007, Murray announced that she would embark on her final major tour. She toured in February and March 2008 in the U.S., followed by the "Coast-to-Coast – One Last Time" tour in April and May in Canada. Anne Murray's final public concert was held at the Sony Centre in Toronto on May 23, 2008.

On August 25, 2008 Murray appeared on the popular TV program ''Canadian Idol'' as a mentor.

In January, 2009, Alfred A. Knopf Canada announced that Murray, in collaboration with author Michael Posner, would be writing a memoir of her private life and 40-year career in show business. The autobiography, titled ''All of Me'', was released on October 27, 2009. The autobiography is a self-portrait of Canada’s first great female recording artist. ''All of Me'' documents Murray's life, from her childhood in the tragedy-plagued small coal-mining town of Springhill, Nova Scotia, to her success on the world stage. The book remains on Canada's non-fiction best sellers list.

Following the release of her autobiography, ''All of Me'', Murray embarked on a 15-city book signing tour, starting in Nashville on October 27, 2009 and ending in Ottawa on November 24, 2009. The tour also included a special ''In Conversation'' interview with Michael Posner at the International Festival of Authors in Toronto on October 30, 2009.

On February 12, 2010, Murray was one of the eight Canadians who carried the Olympic flag during the opening ceremonies of the XXI Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.

Personal life

Morna Anne Murray was born on June 20, 1945, in the small coal-mining town of Springhill, Nova Scotia. Her father, James Carson Murray, was the town doctor and her mother, Marion Margaret Murray, was a registered nurse who focused her life on raising her family and community charity work. Murray was raised as the only girl in a family of five brothers - David, Daniel, Harold, Stewart and Bruce.

After expressing an early interest in music, she studied piano for six years; by age fifteen, she began taking voice lessons. Every Saturday morning, she took a bus ride from Springhill to Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia, for her singing lesson with her teacher, Karen Mills. One of Murray's earliest performances was of the religious song "Ave Maria" at her high school graduation in 1962.

Following high school, Murray attended Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax for one year. She later studied Physical Education at University of New Brunswick in Fredericton. After receiving her degree, Murray taught physical education at a high school in Summerside, Prince Edward Island for one year.

Murray married Bill Langstroth on June 20, 1975, and gave birth to two children: William, in 1976, and the better-known of her children, Dawn Langstroth, in 1979, a singer/songwriter and artist who has recorded with her mother a number of times, including the duet "Let There Be Love" in 1999 for Murray's ''What A Wonderful World'' album. Anne and Dawn were featured in a mother-daughter duet of "Nobody Loves Me Like You Do" on Murray's hit 2008 U.S. CD (released in late 2007 in Canada), ''Anne Murray Duets: Friends & Legends'', Murray's highest-charting release in nine years.

In recent years, Murray has faced many personal challenges: her departure from Capitol Records after more than a quarter-century; the apparent suicide of Gene MacLellan, the composer of her first hit single, "Snowbird", which hit #1 in both Canada and the U.S. and virtually established her international singing career overnight; the death of her beloved manager and close friend, Leonard T. Rambeau, from colon cancer; the separation and subsequent divorce from her husband, Bill; her daughter Dawn's battle with anorexia (Dawn and Anne reluctantly did the US talk-show circuit to raise awareness of the deadly affliction); and most recently, the loss of her best friend to cancer (she recorded her 2005 album ''All of Me'' as a tribute to her).

She emerged from those personal adversities in 1999 with her best-selling album in 20 years, ''What a Wonderful World'', which was certified Platinum, and her 2002 CD ''Country Croonin’'' was certified Gold by the RIAA. Murray's 2007/2008 ''Anne Murray Duets: Legends & Friends'' CD was the second-highest debuting album on Billboard's Top 200 Albums chart (U.S.) for the week ending February 2, 2008, and was Murray's highest-charting album in the U.S. since ''What a Wonderful World'' was released in 1999. The CD also debuted on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart at #8 and Top Internet Albums chart at #3 for the same week.

Murray has always kept strong ties with her hometown, Springhill, Nova Scotia, located about an hour south of Moncton, New Brunswick, and two hours north of Halifax, Nova Scotia. The Anne Murray Centre, located in Springhill, houses a vast collection of memorabilia from both her personal life and professional career in a series of award winning, three-dimensional displays. The Anne Murray Centre, which opened on July 28, 1989, is a registered Canadian charity. As a non-profit association, all the revenue generated from its operation is used to provide employment for local people and for its ongoing maintenance. The Anne Murray Centre has successfully fostered tourism in the area and has promoted awareness of the music of Nova Scotia and Canada.

Anne Murray was also instrumental in the construction of the Dr. Carson and Marion Murray Community Centre in Springhill, Nova Scotia. Murray served as the honorary chair of the fundraising campaign to replace the town arena that collapsed after a peewee hockey game in 2002. Named for her parents, the Dr. Carson and Marion Murray Community Centre sports an NHL-size ice sheet with seating for 800 people, a walking track, multi-purpose room, community room with seating for up to 300, and a gym. The Dr. Carson and Marion Murray Community Centre has become an integral part of the Springhill community since opening on September 15, 2004.

Murray's personal success combined with her visible love and support for Springhill was featured in the article, “Women of Success – Impact on The Economy of Their Hometowns,” in Progressive Choices – Canadian Women In Business magazine (Summer/Fall 2004 edition).

When a devastating tsunami brought tragedy on December 26, 2004, Anne Murray joined other Canadian music stars in the Canada for Asia Telethon, a three-hour, tsunami relief concert broadcast on CBC Television (January 13, 2005) to support CARE Canada’s efforts. Bryan Adams and Murray closed the show with a duet, "What Would It Take".

Murray is also passionate about environmental affairs, and she has been a public supporter of renowned Canadian environmentalist and geneticist Dr. David Suzuki’s Nature Challenge.

Anne Murray has also been involved in a variety of charitable organizations. In addition to being the Honorary National Chairperson of the Canadian Save The Children Fund, she has served as a spokeswoman for many charities throughout her career - most recently Colon Cancer Canada. On May 20, 2009, Colon Cancer Canada launched the inaugural Anne Murray Charity Golf Classic. Over $150,000 was raised through the event.

Murray's father, Dr. Carson Murray, died in 1980 at the age of 72 from complications from leukemia. Her mother, the former Marion Margaret Burke, died April 10, 2006, at the age of 92 after suffering a series of strokes during heart surgery.

A longtime golf enthusiast, Murray made history in October 2003 at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, New York, by becoming the first woman to score a hole-in-one on the 108-yard, par 3, 17th hole at the Kaluhyat Golf Club.

On May 11, 2007, ''Golf For Women'' magazine named Murray the world's best female celebrity golfer, noting her 11 handicap.

TV work

Murray has had five highly-rated US specials on CBS (over 40 million viewers each), countless Canadian specials on CBC (such as ''Anne Murray in Nova Scotia'', ''Intimate Evening with Anne Murray'', ''Anne Murray RSVP'', ''A Special Anne Murray Christmas'', ''Legends & Friends'', ''Greatest Hits II'', ''What A Wonderful World'', ''Ladies Night Show'', ''Anne Murray in Walt Disney World'' and ''Anne Murray's Classic Christmas'') and has appeared on ''Solid Gold,'' ''Sesame Street,'' ''The Muppet Show,'' ''Saturday Night Live,'' ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson,'' ''Dean Martin Summer Show,'' ''Singalong Jubilee'', ''Dinah!'', ''The Today Show'', ''Dolly!,'' ''The Mike Douglas Show'', ''Christmas in Washington'', ''Boston Pops'', ''The Helen Reddy Show'', ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', ''20/20,'' CNN, ''Perry Como's Christmas in New Mexico'', ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'', ''Night of a 100 Stars'', ''Live with Regis and Kathie Lee'', ''The Pat Sajak Show'', ''Royal Canadian Air Farce'' and ''Good Morning America''. Her 2005 CBC special ''Anne Murray: The Music of My Life'' broke ratings records for a Thursday night, with more than 7 million Canadian viewers tuned in. The guests on her TV specials have included Julio Iglesias, Patti LaBelle, Céline Dion, Bryan Adams, Dusty Springfield, Bananarama, Dionne Warwick, John Denver, k.d. lang, Kris Kristofferson, Barenaked Ladies, Alan Thicke, Roch Voisine, Glen Campbell, Valerie Harper, Ruth Buzzi, Rita MacNeil, Andrea Martin, The Rankin Family, Diana Krall, Dawn Langstroth, Jann Arden, and Miss Piggy. The record for the highest-rated variety special in Canadian television history is Anne Murray's ''Family Christmas'', which garnered a 43 per cent share on CBC with 4.2 million viewers.

Autobiography

In 2009, Anne Murray published her autobiography, "All of Me", written with the help of Michael Posner.

Discography

Awards and honors

References

Millard, Bob (1998). "Anne Murray". In ''The Encyclopedia of Country Music''. Paul Kingsbury, Editor. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 361–2.

Grills, Barry (1996) Snowbird: The Story of Anne Murray. Kingston, ON: Quarry Press.

Livingstone, David (1981) Anne Murray: The Story So Far. Scarborough: Prentice Hall Canada, Inc.

External links

Annemurray.com - Anne Murray's official website

Annemurraycentre.com - Anne Murray Centre's official website

"Queen Anne: Keeping the Class in Classic"

Category:1945 births Category:Living people Category:Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame inductees Category:Canadian singer-songwriters Category:Canadian country singers Category:Canadian female singers Category:Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductees Category:Canadian pop singers Category:Canadian Roman Catholics Category:Canadian people of Acadian descent Category:Canadian people of Scottish descent Category:Companions of the Order of Canada Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Juno Award winners Category:Members of the Order of Nova Scotia Category:Musicians from Nova Scotia Category:People from Cumberland County, Nova Scotia Category:People from Toronto Category:University of New Brunswick alumni

de:Anne Murray es:Anne Murray fr:Anne Murray id:Anne Murray nl:Anne Murray ja:アン・マレー pl:Anne Murray pt:Anne Murray simple:Anne Murray fi:Anne Murray sv:Anne Murray zh:安玛莉

playername	Matt Reis
fullname	Matt Reis
dateofbirth	March 28, 1975
cityofbirth	Atlanta, Georgia
countryofbirth	United States
height
position	Goalkeeper
currentclub	New England Revolution
clubnumber	1
youthyears1	1993–1997
youthclubs1	UCLA Bruins
years1	1998–2002
clubs1	Los Angeles Galaxy
caps1	39
goals1	0
years2	2000
clubs2	→ Orange County Zodiac (loan)
caps2	7
goals2	0
years3	2003–
clubs3	New England Revolution
caps3	210
goals3	0
nationalyears1	2006–
nationalteam1	United States
nationalcaps1	2
nationalgoals1	0
pcupdate	August 30, 2011
ntupdate	April 3, 2009 }}

Matt Reis (born March 28, 1975 in Atlanta, Georgia) is an American soccer player who currently plays for New England Revolution in Major League Soccer.

Career

College

Reis played college soccer at UCLA. He finshed his college career with an NCAA Championship in 1997, and was named 1997 NCAA College Cup Defensive MVP after recording 20 saves - including a school-record 11 in the semifinals - and posting 221 shutout minutes on the way to the title.

Professional

Reis was selected by the Los Angeles Galaxy in the third and last round of the 1998 MLS College Draft. However, with Kevin Hartman firmly entrenched in the nets, Matt did not see much playing time during his five seasons in LA; the most games he played in a season was 16 in 2001 when Hartman was out with injuries. In 2000, the Galaxy sent him on loan to the Orange County Zodiac for seven games. Reis was traded to New England Revolution after the 2002 MLS season for a draft pick.

With the Revs, Reis started out as a backup to Adin Brown, but won the starting job midway through the 2004 season. He became the first goalie in MLS history to stop two penalty kicks in one playoff game, doing as the Revs upset the much-favored Columbus Crew. He also saved two out of four penalties in the penalty kick shootout against the Fire in the first round of the 2006 Playoffs. Reis was a finalist for the MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Award in both 2005 and 2006. He won the SuperLiga in 2008 and the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup in 2007 with the Revs.

International

He got his first cap for the United States on January 22, 2006, a 0-0 shutout against Canada.

Personal

Matt is considered to be a bit of a jokester among his teammates and in the soccer community. As an April Fools Day prank in 2004, the Revs' front office announced their newest foreign acquisition, Luis "El Lobo" Fangoso, who eventually turned out to be Matt Reis wearing a shaggy wig and headband. Although the initial joke died down fairly quickly, Reis' antics helped him win over many Revolution fans (to this day, Revs fans occasionally make joking references to Fangoso when discussing possible player transactions). On April 1, 2007, the Revolution announced that they had resigned Fangoso to a 2 year deal.

Reis, who is bald, also convinced Mexican international Jose Manuel Abundis, who had just signed with the team, to shave his head for the 2006 MLS Playoffs. This has enabled Reis to achieve cult status among Revs fans who know him as the "Shaven headed, short sleeved shot stopper".

Matt is 36 years old ( was born on 1975) and he is married to his wife Nicole (née Odom) who was an All American Softball player at UCLA. They have three boys. Jacob is three, and Christian and Weston are newborn identical twins. He is the son of J.T. and Kathy Reis of Mission Viejo, California, and he has one older brother, Mike. He likes to play sports, go to the beach and spend time with his family and friends. Matt is known as a practical joker to his teammates and fans

Honors

United States

CONCACAF Gold Cup Champions (1): 2005

Los Angeles Galaxy

CONCACAF Champions Cup (1): 2000

Major League Soccer MLS Cup (1): 2002

Major League Soccer Supporters' Shield (2): 1998, 2002

Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup (1): 2001

New England Revolution

Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup (1): 2007

North American SuperLiga (1): 2008

See also

List of current MLS players

References

External links

MLS player profile

Category:1975 births Category:American soccer players Category:Association football goalkeepers Category:CONCACAF Gold Cup-winning players Category:Living people Category:Los Angeles Galaxy players Category:New England Revolution players Category:Orange County Zodiac players Category:UCLA Bruins men's soccer players Category:United States men's international soccer players Category:USL First Division players Category:2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup players

de:Matt Reis es:Matt Reis it:Matt Reis pt:Matt Reis