Celebrities

Alex Trebek

With a fifth Daytime Emmy Award for “Outstanding Game Show Host,” Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek is poised to lead the blockbuster series into its 25th anniversary season. Trebek has challenged and entertained millions of viewers worldwide with over 5,000 exciting shows since Jeopardy!’s debut in 1984.

Trebek has appeared in more than 70 movies and television shows and he has been honored with a coveted star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Additionally, he has been inducted into the California Broadcasting Association’s Hall of Fame and the prestigious Canadian Walk of Fame, making him one of only a handful of people honored by both the U.S. and Canada.

A native of Ontario, Canada, Trebek graduated from the University of Ottawa with two degrees in philosophy. Interested in a broadcast news career, he joined the Canadian Broadcasting Company. At the CBC, he specialized in national news and covered a wide range of special events for both radio and television.

Trebek is active with a number of educational organizations and charities, such as World Vision and The Smile Train.

Since 1987, Trebek has completed 12 USO tours, and his efforts have been recognized with the group’s Bob Hope Entertainment Award in 1998. Trebek also hosts the annual National Geographic Bee each spring in Washington D.C.

Trebek and his wife, Jean, and their two teenaged children, Emily and Matthew, live in Studio City, Calif.

www.jeopardy.com

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The Amazing Kreskin

Kreskin’s name and face have gained a household recognition from over 500 appearances on national television including 118 Mike Douglas Shows, 98 Merv Griffin shows and a record 88 Tonight Shows. Legend has it that Johnny Carson, who saw Kreskin trip and fall during his first appearance on The Steve Allen Show, modeled his own clumsy-yet adept Carnac the Magnificent after the mentalist. In addition, Kreskin’s recent guest spots include the Late Show with David Letterman, MTV, Live with Regis and Kathie Lee, The Howard Stern Show, Larry King, and CNN Morning News. In 1997, Kreskin amazed not only the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, but also the entire world, when he successfully predicted the top 9 categories of the Academy Awards the day before on CNN Morning News.

Kreskin credits the childhood influences of Mandrake the Magician comic books, radio/television pioneer Arthur Godfrey and magnetic televangelist Bishop Sheen for the direction of his career.

The roots of Kreskin’s abilities can be traced to a simple childhood game. While trying to find a hidden object based on the verbal hints of “hot” and “cold,” he discovered he could locate the object without the verbal communication if the person who hid it concentrated on its location. From this and other exercises, Kreskin gradually developed a telepathic-like sensitivity.

At age eleven, he developed an uncanny determination beyond his years when he received permission to study the entire psychology section of his local library. Soon, Kreskin began to perform professionally, billed as “The World’s Youngest Hypnotists.” From his early experiments, Kreskin developed a theory into his special talent: “In most cases the phenomenon of thought transference can be explained as a kind of hyper-aesthesia – an almost unconscious raising of the threshold of one’s senses to a degree far exceeding one’s everyday feelings.”

Music has also served as an effective medium for the mentalist who made his professional debut as a pianist at Carnegie Hall with Skitch Henderson and the New York City Pops, subsequently soloing as a guest artist with the symphonies throughout the U.S. and Canada.

Kreskin has also used his unique gifts to make a positive social contribution. His highly developed skills have led to the discovery of crucial evidence in several major criminal investigations. Indeed, he has formed a seminar program, training law enforcement representatives in the use of their intuitive techniques called ICOPS (Intuitive Cops Observational Preparedness Seminars).

Forthcoming is The Great Buck Howard Movie, due for release March 2009. The character is based upon The Amazing Kreskin.

www.amazingkreskin.com

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Ashley MacIsaac

One of the most celebrated Canadian roots musicians of all time, Ashley MacIsaac has accomplished the kind of success that most artists can only dream of.

Having sold in excess of 500,000 albums, MacIsaac has garnered international acclaim by playing the fiddle in that hard-nosed, traditional Cape-Breton style, while adding his own spin, mixing genres and updating Celtic music to appeal to a broader spectrum of fans.

Considered something of a local legend and prodigy by the time of his impressive 1992 debut "Close To The Floor," MacIsaac broke through to the mainstream with the double-platinum genre bending Hi! How Are You Today? in 1995, international radio play for the single, “Sleepy Maggie,” featuring the dream-like Gaelic vocals of Mary Jane Lamond, and a regular slot on MuchMusic made MacIsaac an instant Canadian icon. He subsequently toured the world.

The Best of Ashley MacIsaac features a collection of songs that span the career and catalog of MacIsaac, including tracks like “Devil in the Kitchen,” hit song “Sleepy Maggie,” “To America We Go” and “Little House Around The Corner.”

http://ashleymacisaac.net/

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Colin Mochrie

Colin Mochrie is a successful comic actor who, despite worldwide success, has continued to call Canada his home. Born in Kilmarnock, Scotland, his family moved to Montreal in 1964 before settling in Vancouver in 1969.

This self-proclaimed shy-guy began his acting career on stage doing improvisational theatre through the Vancouver Theatresports League. After moving to Toronto in 1986, Mochrie was hired to join the iconic Second City Theatre Company, by actress/director Debra McGrath, whom he later married in 1989.

A regular for nine years on the British version of Whose Line Is It, Anyway?, Mochrie also starred in the hit American version when it premiered on ABC in the U.S.

From his roles in Whose Line Is It, Anyway? and This Hour Has 22 Minutes, Mochrie has become known as the quick-witted master of improvisation, not only in Canada but also in the U.S. and around the world. Most recently, Colin hosted the hugely successful Are You Smarter Than A Canadian 5th Grader and appeared in a guest role on the FOX animated series King of the Hill.

He continues to tour extensively throughout North America with fellow Whoser Brad Sherwood in their four-handed collection of games from the popular show.

For him, two of the highlights of his career were the opportunity to star in a Disney special airing on CBC titled The Magical Gathering, opposite his son, Luke Mochrie, who made his acting debut and co-creating and co-starring in the CBC series, Getting Along Famously opposite his wife, McGrath.

Some of Mochrie’s other credits included co-starring opposite the other Whosers in Drew Carey's Green Screen for the WB which combined animation and improvisation, Ron James’ ambitious period comedy, Blackfly, HBO’s animated series George and Martha and appearances in such films as The Tuxedo with Jackie Chan, Nora Ephron’s Numbers, and Return of Zoom with Tim Allen and Courtney Cox.

Most recently, Colin completed the independent films Young Triffie, ART in Vegas, Surviving My Mother, Puck Hogs and Gravy Train, all of which are currently making the rounds on the film festival circuit.

Also a successful writer, Colin’s credits include: Nightmare on Sussex Drive, When Bush Comes to Shove and Just Say Non for the famed Second City in Toronto. He has also written articles for the magazines Razor and Nuvo, the latter garnering him an honourable mention in the Humour Category by the National Magazine Awards.

Colin is a recipient of Canadian Comedy Awards for Pretty Funny Male Improviser, Pretty Funny Male Performance and Pretty Funny Writing for This Hour Has 22 Minutes. He also received a Writer’s Guild of Canada award for the same show.

At the 2002 Chicago Improv Festival, he received the Male Improviser of the Year Award, and in 2003 he brought home a coveted Canadian Gemini Award for Best Ensemble Performance in a Comedy Program or Series. Most recently, Colin was nominated for a 2008 Gemini Award for Best Performance in a Variety Program or Series for his ensemble work on Reality Bites: Celine Dion.

www.colinmochrie.com

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Debbie Travis

Debbie Travis is one of the world’s most beloved home decorating icons, turning her down-to-earth approach to decorating into a multi faceted business empire.

Debbie was born in Lancashire, England and moved to London in her late teens to attend Art College. Soon after, she was discovered by a fashion photographer who encouraged her to start a career as a fashion model. Following a highly successful career modeling in Italy, Germany and Japan, she seized an opportunity to work in television, working in a number of capacities for the BBC and ITV, before starting her own production company. While at the Cannes Festival pitching her projects, she met Hans Rosenstein, her husband of 25 years and current business partner.

The Debbie Travis Group was launched with an instructional video on paint techniques, selling an astonishing 150,000 copies in its first year of release. This was followed with three highly successful television series, produced and hosted by Debbie. Her first series, Debbie Travis’ Painted House, ran for seven years and aired in over 80 countries. Always at the leading edge of creativity, Travis has lead the way for many of today’s reality-based home shows, such as with her follow-up series Debbie Travis’ Facelift and From the Ground Up.

Today, DTG is comprised of two television production companies, WhalleyAbbey Media, based in Montreal and RTR Media in Toronto. Both production centers have sterling reputations for producing high quality, non-scripted programming for an international audience. Titles include Buy Me, The Property Shop, Income Property, Maxed Out, Chuck’s Day Off, Completely Hammered, Instant Beauty Pageant, and others in various stages of development.

Another major component of the Debbie Travis brand is her design studio, Debbie Travis Design, where her same-named product line at Canadian Tire is a huge success boasting over 1,000 items and is approaching the $100 million sales mark. It is now being developed for an international market.

Debbie is the prolific author of eight best-selling decorating books published by Random House and writes a weekly newspaper column, syndicated internationally by King Features and Hearst, with 6 million devoted readers across North America.

Last October, Debbie published her ninth book with Random House titled Not Guilty - My Guide to Working Hard, Raising Kids and Laughing Through the Chaos, a hilarious and poignant account of her rise to the top while balancing a rapidly growing business with a demanding family life.

In early 2008 she launched Debbie Travis Designed Condominiums and Homes in the Greater Toronto Area. Developed and built by Tribute Communities, the interiors of the homes have been completely designed with the Debbie Travis touch – both stylish and practical. As Debbie has said, “Good design should not be a luxury, it should be enjoyed by us all.”

Debbie’s accomplishments have been recognized with eleven Gemini nominations, four Gemini Awards, the Crystal Award for Creative Excellence, The Person of the Year Award from McGill University, and the Libris Award for Book of the Year.

In 2008 Debbie Travis was proud to have been chosen to be the spokesperson for the Cure Foundation Breast Cancer campaign. The campaign included multimedia promotions for the Cure Foundation raising millions of dollars for breast cancer research. The results were so spectacular that she will reprise the same role in 2009.

www.debbietravis.com

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Elvis Stojko

In 1991, Elvis became the first man to ever perform a quadruple toe loop, double toe loop combination jump, in competition. In 1997, Elvis again made Canadian history by becoming the first and only man to perform a quadruple toe loop, triple toe loop combination jump, in competition.

His list of medals is impressive:

• Silver medal in the 1994 Olympic Winter Games
• Gold medal at the 1994 World Championships
• Gold medals in Skate Canada and the Nations Cup in 1994
• 1994 Elvis was selected as Canadian Male Athlete of the Year - 1994
• Gold medals at the 1995 and 1997 World Champions
• 1998 Silver medal at the Nagano Olympics
• 1998 winner of the Gillette World Champion
• 2000 Gold medal at the 2000 Canadian Figure Skating Championships
• 2000 Gold medal at the ISU Four Continents
• Silver medal at the 2000 World Figure Skating Championships
• Gold medal at the 2002 Canadian Figure Skating Championships

Elvis has been involved in a number of shows and tours since 1994, including the "Tom Collins Tour of World Figure Skating Champions" and the "Elvis Tour of Champions," Brian Orser's "Blame It On The Blues" and "The Anne Murray Classic Christmas Special." In 1994, Elvis performed in his own television special, "Elvis Airbourne," which won a Gemini and his most recent skating special was "Elvis Incognito." In 1998, Elvis co-hosted the Canada Day Celebrations in Ottawa and then starred in the Mannheim Steamroller’s "Christmas Angel" on NBC. Elvis joined the movie cast of Danny DeVito’s "Death to Smoochy" where he doubled for Robin Williams as well as doing some choreography.

In 1994, Elvis was chosen as the first "Kids Ambassador" for Ronald McDonald House Charities of Canada. In addition, he helps a number of other charities, including Parkinsons, The United Way, Variety Village and Sick Children's Hospital. Elvis is also a National Spokesperson for the Think First Foundation of Canada.

In 1996, Elvis was presented with the Meritorious Service Decoration and later this year, he will receive the Silver Greek Cross.

In summary Elvis is a three-time World Champion, two-time Olympic Silver Medalist and seven-time Canadian Champion. After Elvis’ competitive skating ended, he has performed in many skating shows across North America.

Recently, Elvis has embarked on a singing and acting career in which he had a leading role as DJ Vince Fontaine in the stage performance of Grease. He combines athletic talent, character, intelligence and a deep commitment to his continued involvement in many charities and communities. He is considered by most Canadians as a role model and a national hero for his courage and his integrity.

www.elvisstojko.net

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Enrico Colantoni

You know Enrico Colantoni as “Elliott DiMauro” on NBC’s long-running hit, Just Shoot Me, “Keith Mars” on the CW’s Veronica Mars and as “Commander Mathesar,” in the sci-fi beloved film Galaxy Quest. Currently, Colantoni stars on the new CBS primetime hit drama Flashpoint.

Colantoni has an impressive list of credits to his name. TV credits include numb3rs, with a role that is currently earning him insider Emmy buzz within the industry; Canadian mini-series ZOS: Zone of Separation; Hope & Gloria and guest-starring roles on NYPD Blue, New York Undercover and NBC’s Law & Order. In film, Colantoni shot My Mom’s New Boyfriend and starred as Celine Dion’s husband and manager, in the Canadian TV movie Celine. He starred in Steven Soderbergh’s Full Frontal and other projects include The First $20 Million Is Always The Hardest; the Golden Globe-winning and Emmy-nominated cable television movie James Dean, Steven Spielberg’s A.I.; Stigmata, Albino, Alligator, Money Train, The Wrong Guy and the award-winning short Bigger Fish.

Colantoni studied psychology and sociology at the University of Toronto and later studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts for three years. While there, he received the Princess Grace Scholarship and the Charles Jehlinger Award. From there, he went on to graduate from the Yale School of Drama where he appeared in Hamlet at the Yale Repertory and received the school’s prestigious Carol Dye Award.

Theatre credits include starring roles in Neil LaBute’s The Distance From Here in London, The Merry Wives of Windsor at the New York Shakespeare Festival’s Delacorte Theater in Central Park, Arabian Nights at the Manhattan Theatre Club, The Triumph of Love at the Guthrie Theatre and Dracula at San Diego’s Old Globe Theatre where he portrayed Renfield. He played the title role in Shakespeare’s Macbeth at the Matrix Theater in Los Angeles and starred in Chekhov Project 2000 at the Old Globe Theatre.

Born in Toronto as the younger of two sons to an Italian immigrant worker, Colantoni remains loyal to his roots. He is an avid fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team, and is known among his friends as a skilled Italian chef. In his spare time, he teaches drama to Los Angeles youth at Inner City Arts and devotes his time to Penny Lane, a residential treatment center for at-risk youth. He currently lives in Los Angeles with his son and daughter.

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