title: Jenna Jameson

text: On June 22, 2006, Playboy Enterprises announced that it had bought ClubJenna Inc., along with an agreement to have both Jameson and Grdina stay on as contracted executives. Playboy CEO Christie Hefner said that she expected to rapidly increase film production, producing about thirty features in the first year, and will expand the way they are sold, not only as DVDs but through TV channels, video-on-demand services, and mobile phones. On November 1, 2006, Playboy renamed one of the Spice Network's pay-per-view channels from The Hot Network to ClubJenna.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: Jameson's autobiography, "" was published in 2004. It was co-written with Neil Strauss, a contributor to "The New York Times" and "Rolling Stone", and published by ReganBooks, a division of HarperCollins. It was an instant bestseller, spending six weeks on "The New York Times" Best Seller list. The autobiography also won the 2004 "Mainstream's Adult Media Favorite" XRCO Award in a tie with Seymore Butts's "Family Business" TV series. It was translated into German as "Pornostar. Die Autobiographie" in November 2005, and Spanish as "Cómo Hacer El Amor Igual Que Una Estrella Porno" in January 2006.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: The book covers her early career from her beginning in show business living with her tattoo artist boyfriend, through receiving the Pornographic Hot d'Or award at Cannes, and wedding pictures from her second marriage. It does not omit sordid details, describing her two rapes, drug addictions, an unhappy first marriage, and numerous affairs with men and women. The first-person narrative is broken up by personal photos, childhood diary entries, family interviews, movie scripts, and comic panels.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: The autobiography publisher, Judith Regan, also served as executive producer of a tie-in television news special, "Jenna Jameson's Confessions", airing on VH1 on August 16, 2004, one day before the book's launch. In April 2005, ReganBooks and Jameson filed lawsuits against each other. The point of contention was a proposed reality show about Jameson's everyday life, discussed between her then-husband, Jay Grdina, and the A&E Network. ReganBooks maintained that any A&E deal was a breach of Jameson's contract, which indicated that ReganBooks had a stake in the profits generated by both the special based on her memoir and a reality-based series, as well as "any similar projects". Jameson's suit claimed that the A&E deal preceded the ReganBooks contract. The reality series had still not materialized, and the lawsuit was still being discussed, when HarperCollins fired Judith Regan on December 15, 2006, over an unrelated issue.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In January 2007, Jameson was reported in talks with producers on turning the autobiography into a movie. In March 2007, Jameson was reportedly missing meetings with producers, thus endangering the movie, due to problems with a recent vaginoplasty.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In April 2013, Jameson announced she was working on a fictional erotic novel called "Sugar". It was co-written with Hope Tarr and published by Skyhorse Publishing. It was released on October 21, 2013.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: Jameson is also known for achieving a high level of celebrity outside of pornography – even bringing pornography itself closer to mainstream society's awareness and acceptance. She has said: "I've always embraced my hard-core roots, but becoming a household name was an important thing to me."


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In 1995, Jameson sent photos of herself to radio host Howard Stern. She became a regular guest on his show, appearing more than 30 times, and played the role of "Mandy", the "First Nude Woman on Radio", in Stern's semi-autobiographical 1997 film "Private Parts". This film appearance was the beginning of a series of non-porn film and television roles. In 1997, Jameson made an appearance for an Extreme Championship Wrestling pay-per-view, Hardcore Heaven '97 as the valet for The Dudley Boyz; another appearance at ECW Living Dangerously on March 1, 1998; and a few months where she was ECW's on-screen interviewer. In 1998, she filmed a vignette with Val Venis, a character in the WWE, for airing on WWE programming. In the late 1990s, Jameson guest hosted several episodes of the E! cable network's hit travel/adventure/party show "Wild On!", appearing scantily clad in tropical locations. Jameson was featured and interviewed on the British television show "European Blue Review" on Channel 5.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: Jameson appeared in a 2001 music video for the Eminem song "Without Me". She can be seen in bed with Eminem as one of the "two trailer park girls" (the other one is fitness model Kiana Tom) that "go round the outside". Jameson voiced an animated version of herself in a July 2001 episode of "Family Guy" entitled "Brian Does Hollywood". Her character won an award for acting in a porn film directed by Brian Griffin, and at the close of the episode Peter Griffin kidnaps her. In 2002, Jameson and Ron Jeremy played themselves in Comedy Central's first feature television movie "Porn 'n Chicken", in the roles of speakers for a pornography viewing club. Also in 2002, she appeared in two video games, most notably voicing Candy Suxxx in "". Her character begins as a prostitute, but goes on to success as a pornographic actress and is displayed on several billboards within the game. Her performance won the 2003 G-Phoria "Best Live Action/Voice Performance Award – Female". She also provided both the appearance and the voice for "Daisy", a secret playable character for the video game "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4", who performs provocative tricks with her clothing and skateboard. In 2003, Jameson appeared in two episodes of the NBC prime-time television show "Mister Sterling" as the girlfriend of a political financier.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In the months following the publication of her autobiography, she was interviewed on NBC, CNBC, Fox News, and CNN, and the book was reviewed by "The New York Times", "Reuters", and other major media outlets.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: Jameson was featured prominently in "Samhain", a low budget horror film in which she starred with other pornographic actresses including Ginger Lynn Allen. It was filmed in 2002 but had sat unreleased until 2005, when it was re-cut and released as "". She had another minor horror film role in "Sin-Jin Smyth", delayed from release until late 2006.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In February 2006, Comedy Central announced plans to feature Jameson as "P-Whip", in a starring role in its first animated mobile phone series, "Samurai Love God". "Mediaweek" called her the biggest name attached to the project. In April 2006, Jameson was the star of a video podcast ad for Adidas, advertising Adicolor shoes by playing a provocative game of whack a mole. Jameson made an appearance in the U.S. reality TV show "The Simple Life" in the fifth-season episode "Committed", broadcast on July 1, 2007; Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie, while working in a "love camp", brought her in to help throw a "love ceremony" vow for the five dysfunctional couples. In 2008, Jameson had another starring role in the comedy horror film "Zombie Strippers", loosely based on Eugène Ionesco's classic play "Rhinoceros". Madame Tussauds has a wax model of Jameson.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: On August 27, 2015, Jameson became a contestant on the sixteenth series of the UK reality series "Celebrity Big Brother", representing the US. On September 22, she became the sixth housemate to be evicted on Day 27, just two days short from the final.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: Some of her mainstream appearances sparked controversy. An interview with Jameson contained in the 1999 Abercrombie & Fitch "A&F Quarterly" was part of the motivation for Michigan Attorney General Jennifer Granholm and Illinois Lieutenant Governor Corinne Wood to speak out against the hybrid magazine-catalog. The campaign was joined by parents and Christian conservative groups, and Abercrombie removed it from shelves in 2003.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In November 2001, the Oxford Union debating society invited Jameson to come to Oxford to argue against the proposition "The House Believes that Porn is Harmful." She wrote in her diary at the time, "I feel like I am going to be out of my element, but, I could never pass this chance up ... it's a once in a lifetime thing." In the end, her side won the debate 204 to 27.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In February 2003, Pony International planned to feature her as one of several pornographic actors in advertisements for athletic shoes. This was attacked by Bill O'Reilly of Fox News in an editorial called "Using Quasi-Prostitutes to Sell Sneakers", calling pornographic actors inappropriate role models for teens. In response, "The Harvard Crimson" proposed a boycott of O'Reilly and Fox News. Jameson herself sent a sarcastic email to the show, writing:


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In 2004 Jameson stated that she was bisexual, and that she had had sex with 100 women and 30 men off-screen in her life, but by 2008 she described herself as "totally hetero". She has stated the best relationship she ever had was her lesbian relationship with porn actress Nikki Tyler, which she documents in her autobiography. They lived together at the start of her porn career and again before her second marriage. Famous boyfriends discussed in her autobiography include Marilyn Manson and Tommy Lee.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: On December 20, 1996, Jameson married porn star/Wicked Pictures director Brad Armstrong. The marriage lasted just 10 weeks. Although they informally separated in March 1997, she remained contractually obligated to work on Wicked Pictures projects involving both of them. They legally separated and divorced in March 2001, after Brad discovered her sexual affair with Jorge Araya Montoya (whom she met on a visit to Costa Rica).


title: Jenna Jameson

text: Jameson met former pornographic studio owner Jay Grdina, scion of a wealthy cattle-ranching family, who had entered pornographic film production after college. From 1998 until Jameson's retirement, Grdina was Jameson's only on-screen male sex partner, acting under the name Justin Sterling. They were engaged in December 2000, well before her divorce from Armstrong, and married June 22, 2003. They tried to have children from mid-2004 onwards, as Jameson had planned to retire from adult entertainment upon becoming a mother. The couple resided in Scottsdale, Arizona, in a Spanish-style mansion, bought for $2 million in 2002.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In November 2004, Jameson was diagnosed with skin cancer. Though surgery removed it, she miscarried shortly after the diagnosis. She was unable to conceive again with Grdina, even with in vitro fertilization. Jameson said the in vitro process "wasn't a good thing for me"; she gained weight and did not get pregnant. According to Jameson, the stresses of cancer plus infertility led to her marriage's collapse. In August 2006, "Star" magazine and TMZ.com confirmed with Jameson's publicist that she and Grdina had separated.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In October 2006, it was reported that Jameson began dating mixed martial artist and former UFC champion Tito Ortiz, whom she met on Myspace. Ortiz canceled a November 12, 2006 appearance as the guest of honor at the United States Marine Corps birthday ball at the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, when the Corps refused to let him bring Jameson as his guest. On November 30, 2006, in an interview on "The Howard Stern Show", Ortiz stated that he was in love with Jameson, that she was no longer acting in pornography, and that they were in a monogamous relationship. On December 12, 2006, Jameson filed for divorce from Grdina. She introduced Ortiz and talked about their relationship at the 2008 AVN Adult Movie Awards while she was presenting an award. She also made brief appearances on two episodes of "The Celebrity Apprentice" to help Ortiz on the tasks assigned in those episodes.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: Jameson announced in August 2008 that she and Ortiz were expecting twins in April 2009. On March 16, 2009, Jameson gave birth to twin boys, Jesse Jameson and Journey Jette. Jameson and Ortiz split up in March 2013. Ortiz was granted full custody of the twins.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: Jameson's father, Laurence Henry Massoli, died on October 2, 2010, after suffering complications from triple bypass surgery.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: As of 2014, Jameson has undergone extensive tattooing, almost completely covering both of her arms in sleeve tattoos.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: On August 5, 2016, Jameson announced that she and her Israeli boyfriend, Lior Bitton, were expecting their first child together. On April 6, 2017, they welcomed a daughter, Batel Lu.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In June 2015, Jameson announced that she was converting to Judaism, in order to marry Bitton. She was raised Catholic. In October of that year, Israel's Channel 2 announced a reality television series documenting Jameson's conversion. On November 11, 2016, Jameson announced on her Twitter feed that she completed her conversion to Orthodox Judaism with a Haredi rabbinical court in Upstate New York.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: After viewing undercover videos of chicken production, Jameson agreed to do a short video for PETA as part of the group's campaign against KFC's treatment of chickens.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: Jameson supported Hillary Clinton as the Democratic nominee in the 2008 United States presidential election, but Republican Mitt Romney in the 2012 United States presidential election, stating: "I'm very looking forward to a Republican being back in office. When you're rich, you want a Republican in office." In June 2015, she made a post on her Twitter account in support of same-sex marriage in the United States. In late November 2015, Jameson made multiple tweets showing support for Donald Trump as the next president of the United States.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: In 2017, Jameson criticized Playboy for featuring Ines Rau, a transgender woman, as the November 2017 Playmate, calling it "...a foolish decision that alienates [Playboy's] consumer base."


title: Jenna Jameson

text: On April 26, 2010, Jameson's then-boyfriend Tito Ortiz was arrested for felony domestic abuse at the couple's Huntington Beach, California home. Jameson was photographed afterward that day with a bandaged arm, amid accusations by both parties against each other, with Ortiz accusing Jameson of being erratic and addicted to OxyContin, while she alleged that he was abusive. Since the incident occurred, both parties have recanted these allegations that were made toward one another, though as of April 29, 2010, the investigation by the police department remained open.


title: Jenna Jameson

text: On May 25, 2012, Jameson was arrested in Westminster, California and charged with three misdemeanor counts for driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, driving with a blood-alcohol level over the state legal limit, and driving on a suspended license after her Range Rover struck a light pole. She initially pleaded not guilty to the charges, but later changed her plea to guilty. She was sentenced to three years of informal probation, ordered to pay $340 in fines, and participate in a Mothers Against Drunk Driving victims' impact panel. The charge for driving without a valid license was dismissed.


title: Peter principle

text: The Peter principle is a concept in management developed by Laurence J. Peter, which observes that people in a hierarchy tend to rise to "a level of respective incompetence": employees are promoted based on their success in previous jobs until they reach a level at which they are no longer competent, as skills in one job do not necessarily translate to another.


title: Peter principle

text: The concept was explained in the 1969 book "The Peter Principle" (William Morrow and Company) by Laurence Peter and Raymond Hull. (Hull wrote the text, based on Peter's research.) Peter and Hull intended the book to be satire, but it became popular as it was seen to make a serious point about the shortcomings of how people are promoted within hierarchical organizations. The Peter Principle has since been the subject of much commentary and research.


title: Peter principle

text: The Peter principle states that a person who is competent at their job will earn a promotion to a position that requires different skills. If the promoted person lacks the skills required for the new role, they will be incompetent at the new level, and will not be promoted again. If the person is competent in the new role, they will be promoted again and will continue to be promoted until reaching a level at which they are incompetent. Being incompetent, the individual will not qualify for promotion again, and so will remain stuck at this "final placement" or "Peter's plateau".


title: Peter principle

text: This outcome is inevitable, given enough time and enough positions in the hierarchy to which competent employees may be promoted. The Peter principle is therefore expressed as: "In a hierarchy, every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence." This leads to Peter's corollary: "In time, every post tends to be occupied by an employee who is incompetent to carry out its duties." Hull calls the study of how hierarchies work "hierarchiology".


title: Peter principle

text: Laurence J. Peter's research led to the formulation of the Peter Principle well before publishing his findings.


title: Peter principle

text: Eventually, to elucidate his observations about hierarchies, Peter worked with Raymond Hull to develop a book, The Peter Principle, which was published by William Morrow and Company in 1969. As such, the principle is named for Peter because, although Hull actually wrote the book's text, it is a summary of Peter's research.


title: Peter principle

text: In the first two chapters, Peter and Hull give various examples of the Peter Principle in action. In each case, the higher position required skills that were not required at the level immediately below. For example, a competent school teacher may make a competent assistant principal, but then go on to be an incompetent principal. The teacher was competent at educating children, and as assistant principal, he was good at dealing with parents and other teachers, but as principal, he was poor at maintaining good relations with the school board and the superintendent.


title: Peter principle

text: In chapter 3, Peter and Hull discuss apparent exceptions to this principle and then debunk them. One of these illusory exceptions is when someone who is incompetent is still promoted anyway—they coin the phrase ""percussive sublimation"" for this phenomenon of being "kicked upstairs" (cf. Dilbert principle). However, it is only a pseudo-promotion: a move from one unproductive position to another. This improves staff morale, as other employees believe that they too can be promoted again. Another pseudo-promotion is the ""lateral arabesque":" when a person is moved out of the way and given a longer job title.


title: Peter principle

text: While incompetence is merely a barrier to further promotion, "super-"incompetence"" is grounds for dismissal, as is "super-"competence"." In both cases, "they tend to disrupt the hierarchy." One specific example of a super-competent employee is a teacher of children with special needs: he was so effective at educating the children that, after a year, they exceeded all expectations at reading and arithmetic, but the teacher was still fired because he had neglected to devote enough time to bead-stringing and finger-painting.


title: Peter principle

text: Chapters 4 and 5 deal with the two methods of achieving promotion: "Push" and "Pull." 'Push' refers to the employee's own efforts, such as working hard and taking courses for self-improvement. This is usually not very effective due to the Seniority Factor: the next level up is often fully occupied, blocking the path to promotion. 'Pull', on the other hand, is far more effective and refers to accelerated promotion brought about by the efforts of an employee's mentors or patrons.


title: Peter principle

text: Chapter 6 explains why "good followers do not become good leaders." In chapter 7, Peter and Hull describe the effect of the Peter Principle in politics and government. Chapter 8, titled "Hints and Foreshadowings", discusses the work of earlier writers on the subject of incompetence, such as Sigmund Freud, Karl Marx, and Alexander Pope.


title: Peter principle

text: Chapter 9 explains that, once employees have reached their level of incompetence, they always lack insight into their situation. Peter and Hull go on to explain why aptitude tests do not work and are actually counter-productive. Finally, they describe ""Summit Competence"": when someone reaches the highest level in their organization and yet is still competent at that level. This is only because there were not enough ranks in the hierarchy, or because they did not have time to reach a level of incompetence. Such people often seek a level of incompetence in another hierarchy; this is known as ""Compulsive Incompetence"." For example, Socrates was an outstanding teacher but a terrible defence attorney.


title: Peter principle

text: Chapter 10 explains why attempts to assist an incompetent employee by promoting another employee to act as their assistant does not work: ""Incompetence plus incompetence equals incompetence"" (italics in original).


title: Peter principle

text: Chapters 11 and 12 describe the various medical and psychological manifestations of stress that may come as result of someone reaching their level of incompetence, as well as other symptoms such as certain characteristic habits of speech or behaviour.


title: Peter principle

text: Chapter 13 considers whether it is possible for an employee who has reached their level of incompetence to be happy and healthy once they get there: the answer is no if the person realizes their true situation, and yes if the person does not.


title: Peter principle

text: Various ways of avoiding promotion to the final level are described in chapter 14. Attempting to refuse an offered promotion is ill-advised and is only practicable if the employee is not married and has no one else to answer to. Generally, it is better to avoid being considered for promotion in the first place, by pretending to be incompetent while one is actually still employed at a level of competence. This is ""Creative Incompetence"," for which several examples of successful techniques are given. It works best if the chosen field of incompetence does not actually impair one's work.


title: Peter principle

text: The concluding chapter applies Peter's Principle to the entire human species at an evolutionary level and asks whether humanity can survive in the long run, or will it become extinct upon reaching its level of incompetence as technology advances.


title: Peter principle

text: Other commenters made observations similar to the Peter principle long before Peter's research. Gotthold Ephraim Lessing's 1763 play "Minna von Barnhelm" features an army sergeant who shuns the opportunity to move up in the ranks, saying "I am a good sergeant; I might easily make a bad captain, and certainly an even worse general. One knows from experience." Similarly, Carl von Clausewitz (1780–1831) wrote that "there is nothing more common than to hear of men losing their energy on being raised to a higher position, to which they do not feel themselves equal." Spanish philosopher José Ortega y Gasset (1883–1955) virtually enunciated the Peter principle in 1910, "All public employees should be demoted to their immediately lower level, as they have been promoted until turning incompetent."


title: Peter principle

text: A number of scholars have engaged in research interpreting the Peter principle and its effects. In 2000, Edward Lazear explored two possible explanations for the phenomenon. First is the idea that employees work harder to gain a promotion, and then slack off once it is achieved. The other is that it is a statistical process: workers who are promoted have passed a particular benchmark of productivity based on factors that cannot necessarily be replicated in their new role, leading to a Peter principle situation. Lazear concluded that the former explanation only occurs under particular compensation structures, whereas the latter always holds up.


title: Peter principle

text: Alessandro Pluchino, Andrea Rapisarda, and Cesare Garofalo (2010) used an agent-based modelling approach to simulate the promotion of employees in a system where the Peter principle is assumed to be true. They found that the best way to improve efficiency in an enterprise is to promote people randomly, or to shortlist the best and the worst performer in a given group, from which the person to be promoted is then selected randomly. For this work, they won the 2010 edition of the parody Ig Nobel Prize in management science. Later work has shown that firms that follow the Peter Principle may be disadvantaged, as they may be overtaken by competitors, or may produce smaller revenues and profits; as well why success most often is a result of luck rather than talent—work which earned Pluchino and Rapisarda a second Ig Nobel Prize in 2022.


title: Peter principle

text: In 2018, professors Alan Benson, Danielle Li, and Kelly Shue analyzed sales workers' performance and promotion practices at 214 American businesses to test the veracity of the Peter principle. They found that these companies tended to promote employees to a management position based on their performance in their previous position, rather than based on managerial potential. Consistent with the Peter principle, the researchers found that high performing sales employees were likelier to be promoted, and that they were likelier to perform poorly as managers, leading to considerable costs to the businesses.


title: Peter principle

text: The Peter principle inspired Scott Adams, creator of the comic strip "Dilbert", to develop a similar concept, the Dilbert principle. The Dilbert principle holds that incompetent employees are promoted to management positions to get them out of the workflow. The idea was explained by Adams in his 1996 business book "The Dilbert Principle", and it has since been analyzed alongside the Peter principle. João Ricardo Faria wrote that the Dilbert principle is "a sub-optimal version of the Peter principle," and leads to even lower profitability than the Peter principle.


title: Peter principle

text: Companies and organizations shaped their policies to contend with the Peter principle. Lazear stated that some companies expect that productivity will "regress to the mean" following promotion in their hiring and promotion practices. Other companies have adopted "up or out" strategies, such as the Cravath System, in which employees who do not advance are periodically fired. The Cravath System was developed at the law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore, which made a practice of hiring chiefly recent law graduates, promoting internally and firing employees who do not perform at the required level. Brian Christian and Tom Griffiths have suggested the additive increase/multiplicative decrease algorithm as a solution to the Peter principle less severe than firing employees who fail to advance. They propose a dynamic hierarchy in which employees are regularly either promoted or reassigned to a lower level so that any worker who is promoted to their point of failure is soon moved to an area where they are productive.


title: Peter principle

text: "The Incompetence Opera" is a 16-minute mini-opera that premiered at the satirical Ig Nobel Prize ceremony in 2017, described as "a musical encounter with the Peter principle and the Dunning–Kruger effect".


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: Oscar De La Hoya ( , ; born on February 4, 1973) is an American boxing promoter and former professional boxer who competed from 1992 to 2008. His accolades include winning 11 world titles in six weight classes, including the lineal championship in three weight classes. He is ranked as the 38th best boxer of all time, pound for pound, by BoxRec. De La Hoya was nicknamed "The Golden Boy of boxing" by the media when he represented the United States at the 1992 Summer Olympics where, shortly after having graduated from James A. Garfield High School, he won a gold medal in the lightweight division, and reportedly "set a sport back on its feet."


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya was named "The Ring" magazine Fighter of the Year in 1995, and was its top-rated fighter in the world, pound for pound, in 1997 and 1998. De La Hoya generated approximately $700 million in pay-per-view income, making him the top pay-per-view earner before being surpassed by Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao. He announced his retirement as a fighter in 2009, following a professional career spanning 16 years.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 2002, De La Hoya founded Golden Boy Promotions, a combat sport promotional firm that also owns a 25% stake in the Houston Dynamo. He is the first American of Mexican descent to own a national boxing promotional firm, and one of the few boxers to take on promotional responsibilities while still active. In 2018, he began promoting MMA matches as well, beginning with a 2018 trilogy bout between long-time rivals Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz, with the inaugural Golden Boy MMA event taking place on November 24, 2018.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya has held dual American and Mexican citizenship since 2002, when the Consulate General of Mexico in Los Angeles granted him Mexican citizenship, reflecting his heritage.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: His parents emigrated from Mexico to the United States prior to his birth. He was born in East Los Angeles, California into a boxing family; his grandfather, Vicente, was an amateur fighter during the 1940s, and his father, Joel Sr., had been a professional boxer during the 1960s. His brother, Joel Jr., was also a boxer. De La Hoya graduated from Garfield High School in East Los Angeles, California in 1991.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya won the national Junior Olympics 119-pound title at age 15, After he lost a tournament in Whittier to Leon Hernandez from Santa Monica he won the 125-pound title the following year. His amateur career included 234 wins — 163 by knockout, and six losses. Of those six losses, two were to Shane Mosley. In 1989, he won the National Golden Gloves title in the bantamweight division. In 1990, at age 17, he won the U.S. National Championship at featherweight and was the youngest U.S. boxer at that year's Goodwill Games, winning a gold medal. The joy of victory was tempered by the news that his mother, Cecilia Gonzales De La Hoya (November 22, 1950 – October 28, 1990), was terminally ill with breast cancer. She died that October, expressing the hope that her son would one day become an Olympic gold medalist.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: As the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona approached, De La Hoya turned his mother's dream into a strong focus for his training. After an upset victory in the first round over the Cuban boxer Julio Gonzalez; De La Hoya defeated German boxer Marco Rudolph to win the gold medal. Rudolph had been the only fighter to defeat him in the years leading up to the fight, adding drama. The U.S. media publicized his quest to fulfill his mother's dying wish and nicknamed him "The Golden Boy", which has remained with him throughout his career. In 2000, the Cecilia Gonzalez De La Hoya Cancer Center was formally opened by De La Hoya and his siblings at the White Memorial Medical Center (WMMC), with a $350,000 donation from De La Hoya, in honor of their mother.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: Winner — 1990 United States Olympic Cup (57 kg), June, Salt Palace Exhibition Hall, Salt Lake City, Utah:


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: Gold Medalist — 1991 U.S. National Championships (60 kg), February – March, Colorado Springs, Colorado:


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya was scheduled to fight Jesús Vidal Concepción in a ten-round junior lightweight bout on December 9, 1993, televised by ESPN's "Thursday Night Fights" at the Paramount Theatre in New York City, but pulled out due to a wrist injury. Some found the injury suspicious and speculated that Oscar was being overdramatic. Oscar said that he aggravated an old ligament injury while hitting the heavy bag a week before. Later that month De La Hoya would fire his co-managers Mittleman and Nelson over money issues.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In his twelfth professional fight, he won his first world title at age 20, stopping Jimmy Bredahl (16–0) in the tenth round to win the WBO super featherweight title. He defended the title once, stopping Giorgio Campanella (20–0) in three rounds.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On July 29, 1994, he knocked out Jorge Páez (53–6–4) in the second round to win the vacant WBO Lightweight title. In his first title defense, he defeated John-John Molina (36–3), who had recently vacated his IBF Super Featherweight title, by unanimous decision.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On May 6, 1995, De La Hoya defeated IBF lightweight champion Rafael Ruelas (43–1–0) in a unification bout. De La Hoya knocked Ruelas down twice before the fight was stopped in the second round. The IBF then ordered De La Hoya to defend against Miguel Julio.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: He relinquished the IBF title and defended the WBO title against undefeated Genaro Hernández (32–0–1), who relinquished the WBA super-featherweight title to fight De La Hoya. Hernandez quit after six rounds because of a broken nose. In his sixth and final defense of the WBO lightweight title, he knocked out Jesse James Leija (30–1–2) in two rounds at New York's Madison Square Garden.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On June 7, 1996, Oscar De La Hoya fought Mexican legend Julio César Chávez (96–1–1) for the lineal and WBC light welterweight championship. De la Hoya, with a record of 21–0 with 19 K.Os, defeated Chavez by a fourth-round TKO. The fight was stopped due to several bad cuts suffered by Chavez above his left eye. Until their rematch in 1998, Chávez stated that De La Hoya did not defeat him since the fight was stopped. De La Hoya successfully defended his titles with a twelve-round unanimous decision against undefeated former WBC Lightweight Champion and number one light welterweight contender Miguel Ángel González (41–0–0).


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 1997, De La Hoya moved up to the welterweight division and fought Pernell Whitaker (40–1–1). The fight proved to be a difficult one. Whitaker frustrated De La Hoya with his defense, and landed more overall shots than De La Hoya, but De La Hoya's power punches and aggression swayed the judges more in his favor. De La Hoya won a twelve-round unanimous decision to capture the lineal and WBC titles. He also became the Ring Magazine's number-one ranked pound-for-pound fighter.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On September 18, 1998, De La Hoya fought a rematch with Julio César Chávez (100–2–2) and defeated him by eighth-round TKO. In his next bout, he faced undefeated former WBA Welterweight Champion Ike Quartey (34–0–1) and won by a somewhat disputable split decision. De La Hoya was knocked down once in the fight, while Quartey was down twice. He then defeated Oba Carr (48–2–1) by eleventh-round TKO.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: After seven defenses of his lineal and WBC welterweight titles, De La Hoya fought rival and IBF Champion Félix Trinidad (35–0) on September 18, 1999, in one of the biggest pay-per-view events in history, setting a record for a non-heavyweight fight. De La Hoya stayed just outside Trinidad's range while generating much success with his stiff jab and blitzing combinations, but in the last 2-3 rounds of the fight, heeding the strict instructions of his corner, who felt that De La Hoya was way ahead on the scorecards, De La Hoya shut down much of his offense and evaded trading with Trinidad. De La Hoya virtually gave away the last couple of rounds. Though landing well over 100 more punches, Trinidad was ultimately awarded a majority decision. The judges scorecards came under question after the decision. Fans and boxing analysts called for a rematch, which never happened.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On February 26, 2000, De La Hoya knocked out Derrell Coley (34–1–2) in a WBC eliminator. The WBC later awarded De La Hoya its welterweight title after Trinidad vacated it, which he lost to Shane Mosley (34–0) by a split decision on June 17, 2000. One judge scored the fight 115–113 for De La Hoya, and the other two scored it 116–112 and 115–113 for Mosley.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya successfully sued Bob Arum in 2000 to break his contract with the promoter. The courts ruled in favor of De La Hoya in February 2001."


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: He then moved up to light middleweight, challenging the lineal and WBC champion Javier Castillejo. De La Hoya won the fight, winning almost every round and knocking Castillejo (51–4) down with ten seconds to go to win the title by a unanimous decision.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On October 8, 2001 it was announced that De La Hoya would return to the Grand Olympic Auditorium where he won his first title to defend his WBC light middleweight championship against the WBC No.1 challenger Roman Karmazin, but on November 8, 2001 it was announced the fight was cancelled. Suffering from a torn cartilage in his left wrist, De La Hoya has been forced to cancel his December 8 title defense. He was hoping to fight again on May 4, a date he had already reserved before the injury. It was an old injury, one that De La Hoya incurred in the first round of his 1999 fight against Oba Carr. "It was from a left hook I threw in that fight," De La Hoya said, "and the pain has been there ever since. "On a scale of one to 10, I would say it was a five or six."


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: Ten days ago, on his first day of sparring for the Karmazin match, De La Hoya threw a punch that severely aggravated the wrist. De La Hoya planned on facing a major opponent in May—Trinidad, Mosley, Hopkins, or Vargas—and says he still hopes to do so if he can get WBC approval to put off his mandatory match. De La Hoya said the hand bothered him in his losses against Trinidad and Mosley. "It was always bothering me," he said, "but we are fighters and we have to tough it out." The fight seemed to have been cursed from the start. When Karmazin's two trainers, his manager and his doctor were all denied visas, the Russian fighter had threatened to go home to train. Karmazin's promoter, Frank Moloney, went further, questioning whether the fight would happen.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya did not fight for the 15 months and in this time the rivalry between him and WBA champion "Ferocious" Fernando Vargas (22–1) grew. They knew each other as amateurs and it is said the rivalry began when Vargas was angered by De La Hoya laughing at him after he fell into a snowbank. De La Hoya said he would never fight him. Eventually, however, De La Hoya accepted a match. The fight was scheduled for May 2002, but De La Hoya had to withdraw because of a hand injury.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: The unification bout, labeled "Bad Blood," finally took place on September 14, 2002, at the Mandalay Bay on the Las Vegas Strip. The fight was even for the first six rounds, with Vargas landing punches on the ropes in the odd rounds, while De La Hoya outboxed him in the even rounds. De La Hoya took over the fight in the seventh round and hurt Vargas with a left hook in the tenth. In the next round, De La Hoya knocked Vargas down with a left hook and stopped him moments later. The win is widely considered to be the biggest of De La Hoya's career. Vargas tested positive for stanozolol after the fight.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya defended his unified title against Yori Boy Campas (80–5) with a routine seventh round stoppage then faced Shane Mosley (38–2) in a rematch. The fight, billed as "Retribution" and staged at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, was more of a boxing match than their first encounter, and while some rounds were close, De La Hoya's game plan utilizing his jab seemed to be paying off, leaving Mosley visually frustrated. It was De La Hoya who seemed to be landing the cleaner, more effective punches, and obliterated Mosley in Compubox, landing over 100 more. But judges apparently didn't see it that way awarding Mosley with the controversial unanimous decision. Mosley was later connected to the BALCO Labs steroid scandal. Jeff Novitzky, a lead investigator on the BALCO case, reported that documents seized from the lab show that Mosley received "the clear" and "the cream," both designer steroids. Mosley reportedly began his doping regimen prior to his rematch with Oscar De La Hoya. Mosley would later admit to using performance-enhancing drugs from BALCO for this bout, saying he thought they were legal supplements.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De la Hoya next challenged Felix Sturm (20–0) for the WBO middleweight title, on June 5, 2004, with the winner also getting a shot at the undisputed world middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins. De La Hoya was awarded a unanimous decision, becoming the first boxer in history to win world titles in six different weight divisions. All three judges scored the bout 115–113 in favor of De La Hoya. The decision was very controversial, far more so than his decision wins over Pernell Whitaker or Ike Quartey. Whereas the Whitaker and Quartey fights were considered close bouts that could have gone either way or been called a draw, general opinion was that De La Hoya lost to Sturm, with Compubox counting Sturm as landing 234 of 541 punches, while counting De La Hoya as landing 188 of 792. There had been some rumblings throughout the boxing community already before the fight, that a decision would be made to insure that De La Hoya would fight Hopkins in a mega-dollar fight that would've drawn more money than a Hopkins-Sturm matchup would. Iain Darke of "Sky Sports" said the decision looked "tailor made" to set up De La Hoya versus Hopkins. "(De La Hoya) got the benefit of high charity," Darke said. Sturm & his promotional team, Universum Box-Promotion, filed a protest with the Nevada State Athletic Commission over the decision, but it was to no avail, and the decision still stands today.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya fought Bernard Hopkins (44–2–1) in a unification match on September 18, 2004, in Las Vegas. Hopkins held the WBC, WBA, and IBF middleweight titles, was recognized as lineal and "The Ring" champion, and was considered by many to be the number one pound for pound fighter in the world. Although the fight was at a catchweight of , many thought De La Hoya was too small for the weight class and Hopkins was considered a heavy favorite.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: Several days before the fight, De La Hoya's hand was cut when his wraps were being cut off after training, requiring eleven stitches to close. He and his corner both maintained it was not an issue going into the bout.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya fought a tactical fight. After eight rounds, De La Hoya was ahead 77–75 on one scorecard and behind 78–74 and 79–73 on the other two. In the ninth round Hopkins threw a left hook towards De La Hoya's body, sending him crumbling to the canvas, where he was counted out. It was the first time in De La Hoya's career that he had been KO'd. De la Hoya later stated that he couldn't get up because the pain of a well-placed liver shot was unbearable. Despite losing, De La Hoya made over $30 million from the fight. Hopkins eventually became a minor shareholder in Golden Boy, and served as the east coast representative for the company. Bob Arum claimed De La Hoya "quit." Like Mosley, Hopkins would subsequently be represented by Golden Boy Promotions.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya took a layoff of 20 months before signing to fight WBC light middleweight titleholder Ricardo Mayorga (27–5–1). In the buildup to the fight, Mayorga insulted everything from De La Hoya's sexuality to his wife and child, but when they fought on May 6, 2006, De La Hoya knocked Mayorga down in the first minute of the fight with a left hook. He knocked him out in the sixth round to take his tenth world title.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In early 2007, De La Hoya signed to defend his title against WBC welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. (37–0–0). De La Hoya was a two to one underdog in the fight.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: The fight took place on May 5, 2007, at a sold-out arena at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. De La Hoya pressed throughout, doing best when using his left jab. Mayweather controlled the later rounds and was awarded a split decision, with judge Chuck Giampi scoring the bout 116–112 for Mayweather, Jerry Roth 115–113 for Mayweather, and Tom Kaczmarcek 115–113 for De La Hoya. The Associated Press had it for Mayweather, 116–112.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: Although Oscar chased Mayweather and threw many combinations en route to throwing over 100 more total punches, Mayweather landed at a higher rate; according to Compubox he connected on 207 of 481 punches thrown, De La Hoya on only 122 of 587.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On May 3, 2008, at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California, De La Hoya fought Steve Forbes (33–5) in a tuneup for a possible rematch with Mayweather. De La Hoya showed a more relaxed style, throwing a constant jab and always staying on his toes. He opened a cut near Forbes' eye in the sixth round, going on to win by unanimous decision in 12.`


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On June 6, 2008, Floyd Mayweather Jr. announced his first of many subsequent retirements from boxing, effectively ending talk of a rematch.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya faced Manny Pacquiao (47–3–2) on December 6, 2008 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Presented by Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank, Inc., the bout was a twelve-round, non-title fight at the welterweight limit. Although Pacquiao went into the fight recognized as the leading pound for pound boxer in the world, some pundits speculated that 147 pounds could have been too far above his natural weight against the larger De La Hoya. However, Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach was confident of a victory as he stated that De La Hoya could no longer "pull the trigger" at that stage of his career. De La Hoya, who was favored to win the bout due to his size advantage, was expected to be the heavier of the two on fight night. However, though Pacquiao weighed and De La Hoya at the official weigh-in on Friday, De La Hoya entered the ring at 147 pounds to Pacquiao's .


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya took a beating and his corner stopped the fight after the eighth round. Pacquiao was ahead on all three judges' scorecards before the stoppage, with two judges scoring the fight 80–71 and the other judge scoring it at 79–72. After the bout, Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach stated, "We knew we had him after the first round. He had no legs, he was hesitant and he was shot." Confirming Roach's pre-fight predictions that he'd grown too old, De La Hoya crossed the ring to Pacquiao's corner after the bout was stopped and told Roach, "You're right, Freddie. I don't have it anymore." When asked by reporters whether he would continue fighting, De La Hoya responded, "My heart still wants to fight, that's for sure," De La Hoya said. "But when your physical doesn't respond, what can you do? I have to be smart and make sure I think about my future plans."


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya announced his retirement on April 14, 2009, ending any speculation about a potential fight with Julio César Chávez Jr., son of the former champion and Mexican icon Julio César Chávez, Sr. Later in 2009, De La Hoya held an exhibition boxing fight versus basketball player Shaquille O'Neal as an episode of the television show "Shaq Vs."


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On November 25, 2020, De La Hoya told DAZN that "I'm 90 percent positive that I'm coming back the first quarter of next year," and that he was open to fighting Gennady Golovkin in a bout. On June 17, 2021, it was announced that De La Hoya would return to the ring in an exhibition bout against Vitor Belfort on September 11, 2021, under the Triller (app) Fight Club banner. On July 21, it was announced that the match would not be an exhibition, and instead would be an official boxing match sanctioned by the California State Athletic Commission. On September 3, De La Hoya announced that he would not be fighting Belfort due to contracting COVID-19. In a message to his fans, he stated that he was fully vaccinated and receiving hospital treatment.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In September 2018, De La Hoya was reported to be "seriously considering a run for president of the United States." In an interview, he informed TMZ that he was assembling an exploratory team to assess the viability of a candidacy, stating that, "If the numbers look right... I'm gonna go for it."


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya began dating actress and Miss USA 1995 titleholder Shanna Moakler in October 1997. Moakler and De La Hoya announced their engagement in October 1998. She gave birth to their daughter the following year. Moakler has said "it wasn't a planned pregnancy, but it was understood if it happened it was beautiful and if it didn't that was fine too." In September 2000, the relationship abruptly ended when Moakler, who was at home watching the Latin Grammy Awards on television, saw De La Hoya escorting another woman to the show. In December 2000, Moakler filed a $62.5 million palimony suit against her ex-fiancé, claiming he was an alcoholic, abusive to her and to their daughter, and that he used them "as props to promote his public image." The case was settled out of court in 2001 for an undisclosed amount. After the time of De La Hoya's split from Moakler, he had little contact with his daughter, although he continued to provide financial support.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On October 5, 2001, De La Hoya married Millie Corretjer. They have three children together. He also has two sons from previous relationships. De La Hoya and Corretjer separated in 2016.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On December 12, 2002, the Consulate General of Mexico in Los Angeles granted De La Hoya Mexican citizenship. De La Hoya stated: "I've always felt that my blood is Mexican."


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On September 3, 2021, De La Hoya disclosed that he was raped by a woman when he was 13. He did not disclose the name of the woman but stated that she was over 35 years of age.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: Oscar De La Hoya appears on the front covers of the PS3, Xbox 360 and PSP versions of EASports' "Fight Night Round 3".


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 2000, EMI International released "Oscar De La Hoya". The self-titled CD is a Latin pop album with 13 tracks in both English and Spanish, written by Diane Warren and the Bee Gees, and was nominated for a Grammy. Also, it was certified "Platinum (Latin)" by the RIAA in June 2006.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 2004, he debuted a line of casual, activewear-inspired apparel, through Mervyns department stores, and, that summer, hosted a boxing reality television series, "The Next Great Champ", on Fox and Fox Sports Net.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 2005, Golden Boy Enterprises announced the formation of Golden Boy Partners, a company focused on urban development in Latino communities.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 2006, De La Hoya authorized a children's picture book titled "Super Oscar", published by Simon & Schuster and released in his name. The book was written by Mark Shulman and illustrated by illustrator Lisa Kopelke. The book tells the story of young Oscar as a daydreamer, who uses his great physical ability to prepare an elaborate picnic for his entire neighborhood in just fifteen minutes. Written in English and Spanish, the book received unanimously positive reviews from the publishing review journals, and was selected as the Best Bilingual Children's Picture Book at the 2007 Latino Book Awards.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In September 2007, Sports and Entertainment Publications, LLC, a subsidiary of Golden Boy Enterprises, acquired "The Ring", "KO Magazine", and "World Boxing Magazine" from Kappa Publishing Group.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: On May 1, 2007, the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles announced that a bronze statue of Oscar De La Hoya would join similar tributes to Los Angeles sports stars Magic Johnson and Wayne Gretzky at the Staples Center. The statue was unveiled on December 2, 2008.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In February 2008, Golden Boy acquired a 25% stake of Major League Soccer club Houston Dynamo, along with Brener International Group.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya started a charitable foundation to help educate underprivileged youth and, in 2008, donated $3.5 million to the De La Hoya Animo Charter High School.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In June 2008, HarperCollins released De La Hoya's autobiography, "American Son: My Story", written with author and "Los Angeles Times" sportswriter Steve Springer.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 2008, De La Hoya starred in a commercial alongside several Mexican boxing champions for the Pronosticos lottery in Mexico. The film, "300", inspired the commercial, which featured the Mexican champions battling giants and other large creatures.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In early 2011, De La Hoya visited U.S. military personnel in Kuwait and Iraq under the auspices of the USO, holding boxing clinics and greeting the troops.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: De La Hoya has spoken about his intention to run for president against Donald Trump in the 2020 election.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 2021, De La Hoya competed on "The Masked Singer" spin-off "The Masked Dancer" as "Zebra". He finished in fourth place.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 1998, at age 25, he was accused of rape. Mexican authorities investigated, with no charges filed, and De La Hoya maintained his innocence. A lawsuit was then filed in San Bernardino, California County Superior Court, alleging that De La Hoya had raped the complainant, who was 15 at the time, in a hotel room in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, in June 1996. The suit was heard, and was settled out of court in 2001.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 2022, De La Hoya was sued by a former employee of his tequila brand, Casa Mexico, over allegations that he sexually harassed and assaulted her in 2020. He denied the allegations against him.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: In 2007, photographs featuring a cross-dressed De La Hoya were posted on a tabloid Web site and received extensive publicity across the Internet. De La Hoya denied the authenticity of the photos. In September 2007, Mila Dravnel, the woman who sold the photographs, recanted her allegations against De La Hoya and denied the authenticity of the photographs. In May 2008, Dravnel sued De La Hoya for slander, then dropped the lawsuit after experts suggested that the photographs had been digitally altered. Nonetheless, during De La Hoya's August 2011 interview with Univision, he confirmed that it was indeed him in the leaked 2007 photos, attributing the aberration to poor judgement due to his first use of cocaine.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: Three months prior to the cross-dressing controversy, De La Hoya had publicly acknowledged that he had a substance abuse problem, stating, "After doing an honest evaluation of myself, I recognize that there are certain issues that I need to work on. Like everyone, I have my flaws, and I do not want to be one of those people that is afraid to admit and address those flaws." He underwent treatment at the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, California for alcoholism. In September 2013, just a few days before the Golden Boy promoted match of Floyd Mayweather vs. Saúl Álvarez, De La Hoya announced that he was returning to a drug and alcohol treatment facility. In January 2017, De La Hoya was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol in Pasadena, California; to which he pled not guilty, and charges were dismissed in 2018. In 2019, during an investigation of an attempted extortion, he admitted to having used cocaine in early 2018.


title: Oscar De La Hoya

text: "American Son: My Story", by Oscar De La Hoya, with Steve Springer, HarperCollins via Google Books, 2008. Retrieved September 4, 2018.


title: Kefir

text: Kefir ( ; also spelled as kephir or kefier; ; ; ) is a fermented milk drink similar to a thin yogurt or ayran that is made from kefir grains, a specific type of mesophilic symbiotic culture. The drink originated in the North Caucasus, in particular the Elbrus region along the upper mountainous sections of Circassia, Karachay and Balkaria, from where it came to Russia, and from there it spread to Europe and the United States, where it is prepared by inoculating the milk of cows, goats, or sheep with kefir grains.


title: Kefir

text: Kefir is a breakfast, lunch, and dinner drink popular across Russia, Belarus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, and Ukraine - where it is known as an affordable health drink. It is also known in Norway, Sweden, and Finland, where buttermilk-type fermented dairy drinks are common. Kefir is common particularly among Russian and Estonian minorities. In South Slavic countries, kefir is consumed at any time of the day, especially with zelnik/zeljanica, burek and banitsa/gibanica, as well as in cold soups served in the summer.


title: Kefir

text: The word "kefir", known in Russian language and Eastern-European countries since at least 1884, is of Turkic and North Caucasian origin, it comes from Russian probably ultimately from Old Turkic "köpür" "(milk) froth, foam" "from" "köpürmäk" "to froth." Traditional kefir was made in goatskin bags that were hung near a doorway; the bags would be knocked by anyone passing through to keep the milk and kefir grains well mixed. In Karachay-Balkar gıpı, which has connection with gıbıt (wineskin). It was under the name "wineskin" that Karachay kefir was distributed in the second half of the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century. Kefir spread from the former Soviet Union to the rest of Europe, Japan, and the United States by the early 21st century. It has become known in parts of Latin America as "búlgaros", or "Bulgarians".


title: Kefir

text: The homeland of kefir is considered to be "the vicinity of Elbrus along the upper reaches of the Kuban". was the first Russian food and dairy worker who learned the secret of making kefir from a Karachay rich man, having visited the estate of a rich Karachay uzden Bekmyrza Baychorov, brought kefir fungi from Narsana to Moscow.


title: Kefir

text: Traditional kefir is fermented at ambient temperatures, generally overnight. Fermentation of the lactose yields a sour, carbonated, slightly alcoholic beverage, with a consistency and taste similar to drinkable yogurt.


title: Kefir

text: The kefir grains initiating the fermentation are initially created by auto-aggregations of "Lactobacillus kefiranofaciens" and "Saccharomyces turicensis", where multiple biofilm producers cause the surfaces to adhere which form a three dimensional microcolony. The biofilm is a matrix of heteropolysaccharides called kefiran, which is composed of equal proportions of glucose and galactose. It resembles small cauliflower grains, with color ranging from white to creamy yellow. A complex and highly variable symbiotic community can be found in these grains, which can include acetic acid bacteria (such as "A. aceti" and "A. rasens"), yeasts (such as "Candida kefyr" and "S. cerevisiae") and a number of "Lactobacillus" species, such as "L. parakefiri", "L. kefiranofaciens" (and subsp. "kefirgranum"), "L. kefiri", etc. While some microbes predominate, "Lactobacillus" species are always present. The microbe flora can vary between batches of kefir due to factors such as the kefir grains rising out of the milk while fermenting or curds forming around the grains, as well as temperature. Additionally, Tibetan kefir composition differs from that of the Russian kefir, Irish kefir, Taiwan kefir and Turkey fermented beverage with kefir. In recent years, the use of freeze-dried starter culture has become common due to stability of the fermentation result, because the species of microbes are selected in laboratory conditions, as well as easy transportation.


title: Kefir

text: During fermentation, changes in the composition of ingredients occur. Lactose, the sugar present in milk, is broken down mostly to lactic acid (25%) by the lactic acid bacteria, which results in acidification. Propionibacteria further break down some of the lactic acid into propionic acid (these bacteria also carry out the same fermentation in Swiss cheese). Other substances that contribute to the flavor of kefir are pyruvic acid, acetic acid, diacetyl and acetoin (both of which contribute a "buttery" flavor), citric acid, acetaldehyde, and amino acids resulting from protein breakdown.


title: Kefir

text: During the fermentation process, bacteria and yeast break lactose down into glucose and galactose. As a result of the fermentation, lactose levels are decreased by 20–30% with respect to the initial lactose levels present in the milk. One study found that when people with lactose intolerance consumed the same amount of lactose in milk, kefir or yoghurt products, the latter two significantly reduced symptoms of lactose intolerance during the first 8 hours after consumption. This result suggests that yoghurt and kefir might be suitable for people with lactose intolerance. However, the long-term impact of kefir consumption on lactose intolerance has not been studied. It has also been shown that fermented milk products have a slower transit time than milk, which may further improve lactose digestion.


title: Kefir

text: Kefir contains ethanol, which is detectable in the blood of human consumers. The level of ethanol in kefir can vary by production method. A 2016 study of kefir sold in Germany showed an ethanol level of only 0.02 g per litre, which was attributed to fermentation under controlled conditions allowing the growth of "Lactobacteria" only, but excluding the growth of other microorganisms that form much higher amounts of ethanol. A 2008 study of German commercial kefir found levels of 0.002-0.005% of ethanol. Kefir produced by small-scale dairies in Russia early in the 20th century had 1-2% ethanol. Modern processes, which use shorter fermentation times, result in much lower ethanol concentrations of 0.2–0.3%.


title: Kefir

text: Kefir products contain nutrients in varying amounts from negligible to significant, including dietary minerals, vitamins, essential amino acids, and conjugated linoleic acid, in amounts similar to unfermented cow, goat, or sheep milk. At a pH of 4.2 – 4.6, kefir is composed mainly of water and by-products of the fermentation process, including carbon dioxide and ethanol.


title: Kefir

text: Typical of milk, several dietary minerals are found in kefir, such as calcium, iron, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, sodium, copper, molybdenum, manganese, and zinc in amounts that have not been standardized to a reputable nutrient database. Also similar to milk, kefir contains vitamins in variable amounts, including vitamin A, vitamin B (thiamine), vitamin B (riboflavin), vitamin B (niacin), vitamin B (pyridoxine), vitamin B (folic acid), vitamin B (cyanocobalamin), vitamin C, vitamin D, and vitamin E. Essential amino acids found in kefir include methionine, cysteine, tryptophan, phenylalanine, tyrosine, leucine, isoleucine, threonine, lysine, and valine, as for any milk product.


title: Kefir

text: Probiotic bacteria found in kefir products include: "Lactobacillus acidophilus", "Bifidobacterium bifidum", "Streptococcus thermophilus", "Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus", "Lactobacillus helveticus", "Lactobacillus kefiranofaciens", "Lactococcus lactis", and "Leuconostoc" species. Lactobacilli in kefir may exist in concentrations varying from approximately 1 million to 1 billion colony-forming units per milliliter, and are the bacteria responsible for the synthesis of the polysaccharide "kefiran".


title: Kefir

text: In addition to bacteria, kefir often contains strains of yeast that can metabolize lactose, such as "Kluyveromyces marxianus", "Kluyveromyces lactis", and "Saccharomyces fragilis", as well as strains of yeast that do not metabolize lactose, including "Saccharomyces cerevisiae", "Torulaspora delbrueckii", and "Kazachstania unispora". The nutritional significance of these strains is unknown.


title: Kefir

text: Modern kefir is made by adding kefir grains to milk typically at a proportion of 2–5% grains-to-milk. The mixture is then placed in a corrosion-resistant container, such as a glass jar, and stored preferably in the dark to prevent degradation of light-sensitive vitamins. After a period between 12 and 24 hours of fermentation at mild temperature, ideally 20–25 °C (68–77 °F), the grains are strained from the milk using a corrosion-resistant (stainless steel or plastic) utensil and kept to produce another batch. During the fermentation process the grains enlarge and eventually split forming new units.


title: Kefir

text: The resulting fermented liquid may be drunk, used in recipes, or kept aside in a sealed container for additional time to undergo a secondary fermentation. Because of its acidity the beverage should not be stored in reactive metal containers such as aluminium, copper, or zinc, as these may leach into it over time. The shelf life, unrefrigerated, is up to thirty days.


title: Kefir

text: The Russian method permits production of kefir on a larger scale and uses two fermentations. The first step is to prepare the cultures by inoculating milk with 2–3% grains as described. The grains are then removed by filtration and 1–3% of the resulting liquid mother culture is added to milk and fermented for 12 to 18 hours.


title: Kefir

text: Kefir can be made using freeze-dried cultures commonly available in powder form from health food stores. A portion of the resulting kefir can be saved to be used a number of times to propagate further fermentations but ultimately does not form grains.


title: Kefir

text: In Taiwan, researchers were able to produce kefir in laboratory using microorganisms isolated from kefir grains. They report that the resulting kefir drink had chemical properties similar to homemade kefir.


title: Kefir

text: Kefir grains will ferment the milk from most mammals and will continue to grow in such milk. Typical animal milks used include cow, goat, and sheep, each with varying organoleptic (flavor, aroma, and texture) and nutritional qualities. Raw milk has been traditionally used.


title: Kefir

text: Milk sugar is not essential for the synthesis of the polysaccharide that makes up the grains (kefiran), and rice hydrolysate is a suitable alternative medium. Additionally, kefir grains will reproduce when fermenting soy milk, although they will change in appearance and size due to the differing proteins available to them.


title: Kefir

text: A variation of kefir grains that thrive in sugary water also exists, see water kefir (or "tibicos"), and can vary markedly from milk kefir in both appearance and microbial composition.


title: Kefir

text: As it contains "Lactobacillus" bacteria, kefir can be used to make a sourdough bread. It is also useful as a buttermilk substitute in baking. Kefir is one of the main ingredients in cold borscht soup in Lithuania, also known in Poland as "Lithuanian cold soup" ("chłodnik litewski"), and other countries. Kefir-based soup okroshka is common across the former Soviet Union. Kefir may be used in place of milk on cereal, granola, milkshakes, salad dressing, ice cream, smoothies and soup.


title: Shay Mitchell

text: Shannon Ashley Garcia "Shay" Mitchell (born April 10, 1987) is a Canadian actress and model. She rose to prominence for her role as Emily Fields in the mystery thriller drama series "Pretty Little Liars" (2010–2017), which earned her nominations for a People's Choice Award and six Teen Choice Awards. She has garnered wider recognition for starring as Peach Salinger in the psychological thriller series "You" (2018) and as Stella Cole in the Hulu comedy series "Dollface" (2019–2022). She currently voices Alexandra Trese in the Netflix animated series "Trese" (2021–present).


title: Shay Mitchell

text: After appearing in a series of short films, Mitchell made her feature film debut starring as Nicole in the musical drama film "Dreamland" (2016). She went on to appear as Tina in the comedy film "Mother's Day" (2016), and headline the horror film "The Possession of Hannah Grace" (2018) as Megan Reed. Aside from her acting, she is recognized for her media image and activism. In 2014, "Esquire" magazine dubbed Mitchell the "Sexiest Woman Alive", and in 2015 she appeared on the Maxim Hot 100 list.


title: Shay Mitchell

text: Mitchell was born in Mississauga, Ontario, the daughter of Precious Garcia and Mark Mitchell. Her father is of Scottish and Irish descent and her mother, who is Filipina, is from the province of Pampanga, and left the Philippines at age 19. She is a first cousin-once removed of Lea Salonga, a singer and musical theater actress. She attended Rockridge Secondary School and then later transferred to West Vancouver Secondary School where she graduated. By her late teens, Mitchell had successfully modelled for a variety of companies in cities as varied as Bangkok, Hong Kong and Barcelona, eventually returning to Toronto to study acting.


title: Shay Mitchell

text: Mitchell began acting in 2009, making cameo appearances on the Canadian teen drama series "" and the police drama series "Rookie Blue". Also in 2009, she appeared in the music video for "Hold My Hand" by Jamaican rapper Sean Paul.


title: Shay Mitchell

text: Mitchell was cast as Emily Fields in the Freeform series "Pretty Little Liars", an adaptation of the book series of the same name. She initially auditioned for the character Spencer Hastings, for which she was rejected and the part was instead given to Troian Bellisario; thereafter she tried for Emily Fields and was cast in the role. On portraying Fields, she wrote: "I think for me, it's one of the best characters that I may ever play because of the [impact] she had on so many different people. So I'm very fortunate I was able to be the one to bring Emily to life." "Pretty Little Liars" opened to positive reviews, and obtained a cult following. Mitchell garnered widespread recognition and praise for her performance, with many lauding the characterization she applied to the role. She earned several accolades for her acting, including winning a Young Hollywood Award in 2011, earning a nomination for a People's Choice Award and receiving six nominations from the Teen Choice Awards. The role additionally established her as a sex symbol. In 2014, she was named the "Sexiest Women Alive" by "Esquire" magazine, and in 2015, she was included on the Maxim Hot 100 list.


title: Shay Mitchell

text: In 2010, Mitchell appeared in a four-episode arc on the Disney XD series "Aaron Stone", as Irina Webber. In 2011, she signed a contract with Procter & Gamble to be the spokesperson for the Pantene Nature Fusion shampoo line. In the same year, Mitchell created a YouTube channel, where she is best known for her lifestyle-type videos. In 2012, Mitchell made a publicized cameo on the musical drama series "Glee", where she drew comparisons to actress Naya Rivera. In this period, Mitchell frequently took on fewer roles to focus on "Pretty Little Liars"; these were mostly roles in short films. In 2015, Mitchell co-authored the young adult novel "Bliss" with Michaela Blaney, which is her writing debut. "HelloGiggles" reviewed the book, writing that "It's definitely a must-read, and we couldn't be more excited for Mitchell and Blaney."


title: Shay Mitchell

text: In 2016, Mitchell made her feature film debut with the musical drama film "Dreamland", starring as Nicole, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. That same year, she headlined the comedy film "Mother's Day", where she played Tina. The film was a moderate commercial success, and marked Mitchell's film breakthrough, albeit it was panned by critics.


title: Shay Mitchell

text: In 2018, Mitchell was cast in the former Lifetime television thriller series "You", in the role of Peach Salinger, a wealthy and powerful socialite, which she played in the shows' first season. The series premiered in September 2018, and received critical acclaim. It earned spots in several critic year-end lists, and the performances of the ensemble cast, including Mitchell, were praised; it is her highest-rated work. Also in 2018, Mitchell founded the production company "Amore & Vita Inc." and signed a contract with Warner Bros. Television. She was subsequently cast in the ABC television pilot "The Heiresses", adapted from the book of the same name, which was in production until 2018, when it was announced that the show was cancelled.


title: Shay Mitchell

text: Mitchell also launched her travel brand, "BÉIS" in 2018. The same year, the horror film "The Possession of Hannah Grace" was released, where Mitchell was seen as Megan Reed, a "troubled ex-cop who takes the graveyard shift in a morgue". The project was filmed years prior, and she stated that it has been one of her more difficult roles to play. She stated in an interview with "Collider": "I was playing a character who was dealing with major anxiety, and to be honest with you, before this role, I hadn't really encountered anxiety in my personal life. Getting this role and being in Boston and shooting it, right after coming off of "PLL", to then leading this film, there was a lot of pressure. ... I had so many panic attacks, in those first three weeks of shooting, and it was only a four-week shoot. I feel like I was truly feeling what I think that character must have been going through." Upon release, it garnered a negative reception from critics, though Mitchell's performance was praised and the film was a commercial success.


title: Shay Mitchell

text: Since November 2019, Mitchell has portrayed Stella Cole in the Hulu comedy series "Dollface", the best friend to Jules Wiley (Kat Dennings). The character initially drew comparisons to Mitchell's Peach Salinger on "You", though she stated on the role that "Aesthetically, you can see a similarity but when you get to know Stella, she's really a wild spirit and a complete 180 from Peach. It was fun to go from that to this." "Dollface" is her first leading comedy role, and Mitchell, along with the acting ensemble, earned praise. She made her voice acting debut in the 2021 Netflix animated series "Trese", where she provided the voice of the titular protagonist, Alexandra Trese.


title: Shay Mitchell

text: Mitchell supported Somaly Mam Foundation, a non-profit organization that fought sex trafficking, until it ended operations in 2014. She has also worked with The Trevor Project alongside the "Pretty Little Liars" cast and the NOH8 Campaign. She works with the WE Charity, which helps communities develop educational resources, and she partnered with "Represent Clothing" to promote tees where half the proceeds went to GLAAD.


title: Shay Mitchell

text: On her sexuality, Mitchell has stated that she prefers not to label it. In a 2017 interview with "Maxim" magazine, she said that "People always ask me, 'You play a gay character? Are you gay? Are you straight? Are you this? Are you that?' Look, Emily doesn't label herself, and I don't label myself either. I fall in love with the spirit of somebody. Love is love, and that's something that I'll keep saying."


title: Shay Mitchell

text: Mitchell has been in a relationship with Matte Babel since 2017. Their first daughter was born in October 2019. In February 2022, Mitchell announced that they were expecting a second child. Their second daughter was born in May 2022.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: Catherine Lisa Bell (born 14 August 1968) is a British-American actress and model known for her roles as Lieutenant Colonel Sarah MacKenzie in the television series "JAG" from 1997 to 2005, Denise Sherwood in the series "Army Wives" from 2007 to 2013, and Cassandra "Cassie" Nightingale in Hallmark's "The Good Witch" films and television series since 2008 to 2021.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: Catherine Lisa Bell was born on 14 August 1968 in London to a Scottish father, Peter Bell, and an Iranian mother, Mina Ezzati. Peter was working as an architect under contract to an oil company in Iran; Mina had travelled to London to study nursing. Bell's parents divorced when Catherine was two years old. She was raised by her mother and maternal grandparents. The family eventually moved to California's San Fernando Valley where Bell was exposed to diverse influences. The family spoke Persian at home. Her grandparents were Muslim, but Catherine was also exposed to Catholicism and attended a Baptist summer camp. In her teenage years, Catherine came under the influence of her California surroundings: "I am definitely a Valley Girl. I was a tomboy. I liked to skateboard, play football, and push the envelope a little bit". Catherine enrolled at UCLA, where she considered a career in medicine or research. However, when she was offered a modelling job in Japan, where advertisers value "American beauty", she dropped out during her second year.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: When Bell returned to the United States, she decided to try acting. She studied at the Beverly Hills Playhouse with Milton Katselas. She also worked as a massage therapist for eight years at the Peninsula Hotel, and her clients included singer Peter Gabriel. Bell's first television acting role was one line spoken to Gabriel on the short-lived 1990 sitcom "Sugar and Spice".


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: Among her first parts was serving as Isabella Rossellini's nude body double for the 1992 film "Death Becomes Her".


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: In 1994, Bell starred in the Dolph Lundgren film "Men of War". While filming the movie in Thailand, Bell and her co-star Trevor Goddard bonded over contracting amoebic dysentery. Goddard would play Bell's off-and-on love interest Mic Brumby the following year on "JAG". They remained friends until Goddard's death from a drug overdose in June 2003, an event that the bereaved Bell described as "horrible".


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: In 1995, she obtained a three-line role in one episode of the NBC TV series "JAG", which centers on the work of the United States Department of the Navy's Judge Advocate General office. NBC canceled the show after which it was picked up by CBS, which restructured the series, incorporating a female Marine Corps lawyer character, Sarah MacKenzie. Bell auditioned for that role and won it. One episode of the show established that MacKenzie is an Iranian-American, and featured Bell speaking Persian. She continued in this role until the series ended in 2005.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: Beginning in 2007, Bell starred in Lifetime's ensemble drama series "Army Wives" as Denise Sherwood, the wife of a U.S. Army lieutenant colonel, who endures domestic violence at the hands of her teenage son during the show's first season.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: Bell played the role of Cassandra "Cassie" Nightingale, the main character of Hallmark's "The Good Witch" (2008), and its sequels "The Good Witch's Garden" (2009), "The Good Witch's Gift" (2010), "The Good Witch's Family" (2011), "The Good Witch's Charm" (2012), "The Good Witch's Destiny" (2013), and "The Good Witch's Wonder" (2014). She was also a co-executive producer of all of the movies. She also starred in the Lifetime movie titled "Last Man Standing" (2011).


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: In 2015, it was reported that Bell would star in the movie "Love Finds Its Way", which would begin filming in 2016. Production began on the film in March 2017, with Vancouver as the filming location, and 9 July 2017 as the date for the film's premiere on the Hallmark Channel.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: On 2 April 2019, CBS announced that Bell would be reprising her "JAG" role of Sarah "Mac" MacKenzie alongside former co-star David James Elliott for a multi-episode arc in the tenth season of "".


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: In 2022, Bell starred in the Lifetime film "Jailbreak Lovers" as part of its "Ripped from the Headlines" feature film which tells the story of how Toby Dorr snuck inmate John Manard out of prison in a dog crate which sparked a manhunt.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: Bell is fluent in Persian and English. She is fond of motorcycling, skiing, snowboarding and kickboxing. Her hobbies include cross-stitching and making model cars, which she has done since age eight.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: In 2002, "The Sporting News" falsely reported that Bell correctly predicted that the New England Patriots would beat the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI, 20 to 17 in a celebrity survey conducted just before the season started. However, Bell's prediction occurred after the NFC and AFC championship games had already been completed, so she did not predict the teams that would be participating, only the final score.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: Bell met actor-production assistant Adam Beason on the set of the 1992 film "Death Becomes Her". They were married on 8 May 1994. They are the parents of two children, Gemma and Ronan. They lived in a nearly faux-Tuscan-style mini-mansion in Calabasas, California. The couple sold the house in 2010, and publicly confirmed that they had separated sometime before September 2011. They eventually divorced in 2011.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: Since 2012, Bell has lived with fellow Scientologist, photographer and party planner Brooke Daniells, together with their children, in Los Angeles. In 2014, Bell paid US$2.05 million for a single-story ranch house on a lot in the gated Hidden Hills community in the western suburbs of Los Angeles.


title: Catherine Bell (actress)

text: Bell was raised Roman Catholic and attended an all-girls Catholic school (Our Lady of Corvallis High School in Los Angeles). She is a practicing Scientologist. Bell has attested to attaining the Scientology state of Clear. She has supported Scientology's Hollywood Education and Literacy Project. In December 2005, Bell helped promote the gala opening of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (a Scientology supported group), . In February 2006, Bell appeared in a Scientology music video called "United". The film includes cameo performances by Isaac Hayes, Erika Christensen, Jenna Elfman and Lynsey Bartilson and claims to promote human rights with a rap song.


title: Joe Montana

text: Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Comeback Kid", Montana is widely regarded as one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. After winning a national championship at Notre Dame, Montana began his NFL career in 1979 at San Francisco, where he played for the next 14 seasons. With the 49ers, Montana started and won four Super Bowls and was the first player to be named the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player (MVP) three times. He also holds Super Bowl career records for most passes without an interception (122 in four games) and the all-time highest passer rating of 127.8. In 1993, Montana was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs, where he played for his last two seasons, and led the franchise to its first AFC Championship Game. Montana was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000.


title: Joe Montana

text: In 1986, Montana won the AP NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award. In 1989 and again in 1990, the Associated Press named Montana the NFL MVP, and "Sports Illustrated" magazine named Montana the 1990 "Sportsman of the Year". Montana was elected to eight Pro Bowls as well as being voted First-team All-Pro by the AP in 1987, 1989, and 1990. Montana had the highest passer rating in the National Football Conference (NFC) five times (1981, 1984, 1985, 1987, and 1989), and in both 1987 and 1989, Montana had the highest passer rating in the NFL.


title: Joe Montana

text: Among his career highlights, "The Catch" (the game-winning touchdown pass to Dwight Clark vs. Dallas in the ) and a Super Bowl-winning 92-yard drive against the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII are staples of NFL highlight films.


title: Joe Montana

text: The 49ers retired Montana's No. 16 jersey number after the conclusion of his playing career. In 1994, Montana earned a spot on the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team; he is also a member of the NFL 1980s All-Decade Team. In 1999, editors at "The Sporting News" ranked Montana third on their list of "Football's 100 Greatest Players". Also in 1999, ESPN named Montana the 25th greatest athlete of the 20th century. In 2006, "Sports Illustrated" rated him the number-one clutch quarterback of all time.


title: Joe Montana

text: Montana was born to Joseph Clifford Montana Sr. (1932–2017) and Theresa Marie Bavuso Montana (1935–2004) in New Eagle, Pennsylvania, a borough of Washington County located in the western portion of the state. He grew up in the city of Monongahela, a coal mining town south of Pittsburgh.


title: Joe Montana

text: Montana's family were Italian-American, the name Montana being an Americanized form of the surname Montani, which comes from northern Italy.


title: Joe Montana

text: Montana expressed an early interest in sports, and his father first taught him the game of football. Montana started to play youth football when he was just eight years old, aided in part by his father. Montana Sr. listed his son as a nine-year-old so that Montana could meet the league's minimum age requirement.


title: Joe Montana

text: During his formative years, Montana took an interest in baseball and basketball, in addition to football, with basketball being his favorite sport. Montana Sr. started a local basketball team that his son played on. The team practiced and played at the local armory and played their games in various regional tournaments.


title: Joe Montana

text: Montana received his primary education at Waverly Elementary and his secondary education at Finleyville Junior High (now known as Finleyville Middle School) and Ringgold High School. While at Ringgold, Montana played football, baseball, and basketball. Montana showed potential as a basketball player and helped Ringgold win the 1973 WPIAL Class AAA boys' basketball championship while being named an all-state player. He was so good that during his senior year, North Carolina State offered Montana a basketball scholarship. Although Montana turned down the scholarship, he seriously considered NCSU because of a promise that he could play both basketball and football for the university.


title: Joe Montana

text: Montana spent his first two years on the high school football team as a backup. As a junior, Montana earned the job as the Ringgold Rams' starting quarterback. Montana held the role for the final two years of his high school career; after his senior year, "Parade" named him to their All-American team.


title: Joe Montana

text: One of Montana's most notable performances during his high school years was during his junior year in a game against Monessen High School. Although Monessen scored a game-tying touchdown in the final moments, Montana's performance garnered attention from college recruiters, particularly those from Notre Dame. In the game, Montana completed 12 passes in 22 attempts, threw for 223 yards, and scored three passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown.


title: Joe Montana

text: Notre Dame eventually offered Montana a scholarship, and he accepted it. One contributing factor in Montana's choice of colleges was that Terry Hanratty, his boyhood idol, attended Notre Dame. In 2006, 32 years after Montana graduated, Ringgold High School renamed their football stadium "Joe Montana Stadium".


title: Joe Montana

text: When Montana arrived at Notre Dame in the fall of 1974, the football program was coached by Ara Parseghian. During Parseghian's tenure, Notre Dame won the NCAA national championship in 1966 and 1973. Parseghian's success as a coach helped him recruit highly talented players. Though Montana was a top prospect, under Notre Dame policy in 1974 freshmen were not permitted to practice with or play on the varsity team, and consequently Montana appeared only in a few freshman team games. Montana's first significant contributions to the Notre Dame football team came during his sophomore year.


title: Joe Montana

text: On December 15, 1974, Parseghian resigned due to health problems. The university hired Dan Devine to replace Parseghian. Despite his limited playing time the previous year, Montana performed well during the 1975 spring practice. Devine was so impressed that he later told his wife: "I'm gonna start Joe Montana in the final spring game." When she replied, "Who's Joe Montana?", Devine said: "He's the guy who's going to feed our family for the next few years."


title: Joe Montana

text: Devine did not feel Montana was ready to be the full-time starter in 1975; however, Montana played a key role in Notre Dame's victory over North Carolina. During the game, played in Chapel Hill, Montana came in with 5:11 left to play. At the time, North Carolina led by a score of 14–6. Montana spent one minute and two seconds of game time on the field. In that time, he had 129 passing yards and Notre Dame won the game, 21–14.


title: Joe Montana

text: Against Air Force, Notre Dame's next opponent, Montana again entered the game in the fourth quarter. Although Air Force led 30–10, Notre Dame won the game, 31–30. After the win against North Carolina, Devine said that Moose Krause, the Notre Dame Athletic Director, said that the game was the "greatest comeback I've ever seen". After the game against Air Force, Krause was quoted as saying: "This one's better than last week." In those two games, Montana demonstrated his ability to perform well in high-pressure circumstances. That characteristic would prove valuable, and Montana relied on it throughout his football career.


title: Joe Montana

text: Before the start of the 1976 season, Montana separated his shoulder and was unable to compete that year. He applied for and was granted a medical redshirt waiver, earning him one more year of eligibility than other members of his scholarship class.


title: Joe Montana

text: When the 1977 season began, Montana was the third quarterback listed on the team's depth chart, behind Rusty Lisch and Gary Forystek. Notre Dame won their season opener and then lost to Mississippi by a score of 20–13. Montana did not appear in either of those games. In their third game of the season, Notre Dame played Purdue. Lisch started and was then replaced by Forystek. In one play, Forystek suffered a broken vertebra, a broken clavicle, and a severe concussion; it was the last play of Forystek's sports career. Devine re-inserted Lisch into the game before Montana finally had the opportunity to play. Montana entered with approximately 11 minutes remaining and Purdue leading 24–14; he threw for 154 yards and one touchdown, and Notre Dame won the game, 31–24.


title: Joe Montana

text: After the game, Devine made Montana the first quarterback on the depth chart and the team won their remaining nine games. In their final game of the season, Notre Dame defeated top-ranked Texas by a score of 38–10 in the Cotton Bowl. Notre Dame's record of eleven wins and one loss earned them the AP/Coaches national title, the only title the school won while Devine was head coach.


title: Joe Montana

text: As a fifth-year senior in 1978, Montana helped Notre Dame to a come-from-behind win against the Pitt Panthers and nearly repeated the feat against USC, Notre Dame's primary rival. The Fighting Irish were trailing 24–6 in the second half when Montana led a fourth-quarter rally to put Notre Dame ahead 25–24 with 45 seconds remaining, only to see the Trojans win on a last-second field goal.


title: Joe Montana

text: On January 1, 1979, Notre Dame returned to the Cotton Bowl, this time against Houston. Montana's performance in what came to be known as the "Chicken Soup Game" is one of the most celebrated of his entire football career. In frigid, blustery conditions in the second quarter, Montana had to fight off hypothermia as his body temperature dropped to . When the second half began with Houston up 20–12, Montana stayed in the locker room, where Notre Dame medical staff gave him warmed intravenous fluids, covered him in blankets, and fed him chicken soup. Montana returned to the field late in the third quarter with Houston leading 34–12. Montana led the Irish to three touchdowns in the last eight minutes of the game, the final one coming as time expired, and Notre Dame won the game 35–34. To commemorate the game, Notre Dame produced a promotional film titled "Seven and a Half Minutes to Destiny", which Coach Devine later referred to as a "Joe Montana film".


title: Joe Montana

text: Montana graduated from Notre Dame with a degree in business administration and marketing. Although the NFL Combine was not formed until 1982, NFL scouts still evaluated potential draftees through the use of combines in 1979. Candidates were rated in a number of categories on a scale of one to nine, with one being the worst mark and nine being the best mark. The categories they used were contingent on the position that the athlete played.


title: Joe Montana

text: Despite his performance on the field, Montana was not rated highly by most scouts. At one combine, Montana rated out as six-and-a-half overall with a six in arm strength, used to judge how hard and how far a prospect could throw the ball. By comparison, Jack Thompson of Washington State rated an eight, the highest grade among eligible quarterbacks.


title: Joe Montana

text: In the 1979 NFL Draft, the San Francisco 49ers selected Montana at the end of the third round with the 82nd overall pick. Montana was the fourth quarterback taken, behind Thompson, Phil Simms, and Steve Fuller, all selected in the first round.


title: Joe Montana

text: Although Montana appeared in all 16 regular season games during the 1979 season, he only threw 23 passes. He spent most of the season as the backup on the San Francisco depth chart behind starter Steve DeBerg. Montana became the starting quarterback midway through the 1980 season.


title: Joe Montana

text: On December 7, 1980, San Francisco hosted the winless New Orleans Saints. The Saints took a 35–7 lead at halftime. At the start of the fourth quarter, New Orleans still led by a score of 35–21, but San Francisco tied the game by the end of regulation play. In overtime, Ray Wersching kicked a field goal to win the game for San Francisco, 38–35. This marked the first fourth quarter comeback victory in Montana's NFL career. During his sixteen seasons in the NFL, this happened a total of 31 times with Montana at quarterback, 26 of those coming as a 49er.


title: Joe Montana

text: Though San Francisco finished 1980 with a record of 6–10, Montana passed for 1,795 yards and 15 touchdown passes against nine interceptions. He also completed 64.5 percent of his passes, which led the league.


title: Joe Montana

text: Montana began the 1981 season as San Francisco's starting quarterback. The season ended up as one of the franchise's most successful to that point. Backed in part by Montana's strong performance, the team finished the regular season with a 13–3 record. Montana helped San Francisco win two of those games with fourth-quarter comebacks. The season was a precursor to one of Montana's most memorable moments as a professional.


title: Joe Montana

text: On January 10, 1982, San Francisco faced the Dallas Cowboys as three-point home underdogs at Candlestick Park in the National Football Conference Championship Game. The final quarter was marked by one of the most notable plays in NFL history. Larry Schwartz of ESPN.com later defined the 1981 NFC Championship as Montana's signature game.


title: Joe Montana

text: When San Francisco took possession with 4:54 left in regulation play, Dallas led 27–21; the drive began on San Francisco's 11-yard line. Behind six successful Montana completions and four running plays, San Francisco moved the ball to the Dallas 13-yard line. After one unsuccessful pass and then a seven-yard gain, San Francisco faced third down from the Dallas 6-yard line. Montana took the snap and ran to his right. He then made an off-balance pass toward the back of the end zone, and San Francisco wide receiver Dwight Clark made a leaping catch for the game-tying touchdown. With just 51 seconds left on the game clock, Wersching kicked the extra point and San Francisco won the game 28–27. The reception by Clark was coined simply "The Catch", and it put San Francisco into Super Bowl XVI.


title: Joe Montana

text: San Francisco faced the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XVI. Montana completed 14 of 22 passes for 157 yards with one touchdown passing and one rushing touchdown. San Francisco won the game 26–21, and in recognition of his performance, Montana won the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award, which he accomplished two more times before he retired. The Super Bowl win also made Montana one of only two quarterbacks – along with his idol Joe Namath – to win a college national championship and a Super Bowl. Montana, at 25 years, 227 days, was one day older than Namath was at the time of his first Super Bowl, making him the second-youngest quarterback to start a Super Bowl up to that time.