Archive for October, 2009
Television trivia is probably so popular now because the days of almost every home having a television are long gone, and now most homes have several. Before the onset of the internet, television was the primary distribution method for both entertainment and information, and it still remains the means by which most people receive both of those things. The television first became available to the general public in different parts of the world in the late nineteen thirties.
In the early days of television, broadcasts and sets only operated in black and white. There were early inventions that were capable of broadcasting in color even before the TV had become a household appliance, however none succeeded. RCA became the first company to make color TV sets widely available. The first color broadcast in North America took place in 1953. The color TV didn’t become the standard in most homes until the sixties however.
The advances in the technology behind television sets have continued to advance. The advent of the flat screen technology began the transition to televisions which could display in higher clarity, but LCD and Plasma screens are now the norm in most homes. The current advancements are in the changing of television broadcasts from an analog to digital format. Additionally, broadcasting in high definition signal is now offered by most major networks, and every satellite and cable provider offers hi-def channels.
Television trivia is often concerning the most popular viewing events. There are many different genres of television, news, sports, reality, dramatic programming and sitcoms, and certain categories consistently attract more viewers than other. The hand down most viewed television broadcast of all time is the first appearance of the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan show. This broadcast, which took place in 1964 when the population of the country was only a fraction of what it is today, attracted over 73 million viewers. The next most watched event was Elvis Presley’s first appearance on that same show, which only attracted 60 million viewers.
If you’ve been hearing the name lately especially from young children and teens and you’re wondering who this celebrity is, two words: “Hannah Montana”. Miley Cyrus is a young teen actress who plays the dual title role on Disney’s TV Series “Hannah Montana”. She plays Miley Stewart, a normal teenage girl whose alter ego is the flamboyant and extremely famous music pop icon, Hannah Montana. The success of this TV series launched young Miley into instant stardom and her star still shines on.
Miley Cyrus was born Destiny Hope Cyrus, daughter of Billy Ray and Leticia Cyrus. If you’re wondering why the name “Billy Ray Cyrus” sounds familiar, maybe it’s because you’ve heard of his most famous song, “Achey Brakey Heart” which came out in the 1990’s. Between Billy Ray and Leticia, Miley has 5 other siblings: Trace and Brandi are her maternal siblings (children of Leticia from a previous relationship), Christopher Cody is his father’s child from his previous relationship and she also has 2 younger siblings, Braison and Noah to complete the family.
The name Miley as it happens comes from “Smiley” which the family called Miley when she was younger because she smiled often. The nickname got shortened to Miley over time, which is kind of fateful considering that what launched her to stardom was her portrayal of a teenage girl named “Miley Stewart” in Hannah Montana.
Her passion for performing was probably ignited at a young age because when she was 9, she enrolled at the Armstrong Acting Studio in Toronto, Canada where she and her family lived for a while. Her first on-screen appearance was when she appeared on her father’s TV series “Doc”. After that, she also landed a stint as “Young Ruthie” on Tim Burton’s “Big Fish”. But, of course, she was determined that she was meant for greater things. She auditioned for the coveted title role of Hannah Montana for Disney’s newest TV series. She was even willing to take on a lesser role, like that of the “best friend” character. However, it was initially not meant to be. Disney thought she was too young, too small for the part.