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Festivus
Festivus () is a secular holiday celebrated on December 23 as an alternative to the pressures and commercialism of the Christmas season. Originally created by author Daniel O'Keefe, Festivus entered popular culture after it was made the focus of the 1997 ''Seinfeld'' episode "The Strike", which O'Keefe's son, Dan O'Keefe, co-wrote. The non-commercial holiday's celebration, as depicted on ''Seinfeld'', occurs on December 23 and includes a Festivus dinner, an unadorned aluminum Festivus pole, practices such as the "airing of grievances" and "feats of strength", and the labeling of easily explainable events as "Festivus miracles". The episode refers to it as "a Festivus for the rest of us". It has been described both as a parody holiday festival and as a form of playful consumer resistance. Journalist Allen Salkin describes it as "the perfect secular theme for an all-inclusive December gathering". History Festivus was conceived by author and editor Daniel O'Keefe, the fat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Strike (Seinfeld)
"The Strike" is the 166th episode of the NBC sitcom '' Seinfeld''. This was the tenth episode of the ninth and final season. It aired on December 18, 1997. This episode features and popularized the holiday of Festivus. In this episode, Jerry dates a woman who looks attractive sometimes and ugly at other times, Kramer returns to his old job at a bagel shop, and George gets out of buying Christmas gifts for his co-workers with fake donations to a made-up charity. ''TV Guide'' ranked this episode number three on its "Top 10 Holiday Episodes" list. Plot At Tim Whatley's Hanukkah party, Elaine gives a man named Steve her default fake phone number when he hits on her. She realizes she wrote it on the back of a card showing she purchased 23 submarine sandwiches. Determined to get her free sandwich, she goes to the off-track betting parlor whose phone number is her fake number. The clerks at the betting parlor flirt with Elaine, prompting her to give the number for H&H Bagels. She goes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daniel O'Keefe (writer)
Daniel Lawrence O'Keefe (February 25, 1928 – August 29, 2012) was an American writer. He was an editor at ''Reader's Digest'' for more than 30 years, where he worked with a wide range of writers. He is known for creating Festivus, an annual secular holiday celebrated on December 23; it became more widely known after his eldest son, Dan O'Keefe (writer), Dan O'Keefe, featured it in a December 1997 episode of the sitcom ''Seinfeld''. Early life and education Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, O'Keefe received a B.A. from Columbia in 1949, an M.A. from Columbia University, and a PhD. from the New School for Social Research. At Columbia, he was national president of Junior Achievement. He was personally recruited for work by DeWitt Wallace, founder of ''Reader's Digest''. O'Keefe became an editor there, serving for over thirty years. He worked with freelancers such as Ray Bradbury and Nobel Prize-winning Polish poet Czeslaw Milosz, who lived and worked for decades in California. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dan O'Keefe (writer)
Dan O'Keefe (born ) is an American television writer and producer, who has worked on such shows as ''Seinfeld'', ''The Drew Carey Show'', ''The League'', ''Silicon Valley'', and ''Veep''. Early and personal life O'Keefe was born to writers Deborah and Daniel O'Keefe, who was best known as the creator of the holiday Festivus. O'Keefe has two brothers: composer Laurence O'Keefe and screenwriter Mark O'Keefe. O'Keefe graduated from Harvard College in 1990. He currently resides in Los Angeles. Career As a television writer, O'Keefe was responsible for popularizing the holiday Festivus on the 1997 ''Seinfeld'' episode "The Strike". '' |
Jerry Stiller
Gerald Isaac Stiller (June 8, 1927 – May 11, 2020) was an American actor and comedian. He spent many years as part of the comedy duo Stiller and Meara with his wife, Anne Meara, to whom he was married for over 60 years until her death in 2015. Stiller saw a late-career resurgence starting in 1993, playing George Costanza's father Frank on the sitcom ''Seinfeld'', a part which earned him an Emmy nomination. The year ''Seinfeld'' went off the air, Stiller began his role as the eccentric Arthur Spooner on the CBS comedy series ''The King of Queens'', another role that garnered widespread acclaim. Stiller appeared together with his son Ben Stiller in films such as ''Zoolander'', ''Heavyweights'', ''Hot Pursuit'', '' The Heartbreak Kid'', and ''Zoolander 2''. He also performed voice-over work for films and television, including ''The Lion King 1½'' and '' Planes: Fire and Rescue''. In his later career, Stiller became known for portraying grumpy and eccentric characters who were n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seinfeld
''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as Jerry Seinfeld (character), a fictionalized version of himself and focuses on his personal life with three of his friends: best friend George Costanza (Jason Alexander), former girlfriend Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and his neighbor from across the hall, Cosmo Kramer (Michael Richards). It is set mostly in an apartment building in Manhattan's Upper West Side in New York City. It has been described as "a show about nothing", often focusing on the slice of life, minutiae of daily life. Interspersed in earlier episodes are moments of stand-up comedy from the fictional Jerry Seinfeld, frequently using the episode's events for material. As a rising comedian in the late 1980s, Jerry Seinfeld was presented with an opportunity to create a show with NBC. He ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frank Costanza
This is a list of characters who appeared on ''Seinfeld''. This list features only characters who appeared in multiple episodes; those that appeared in only one are not included here. Primary characters Jerry Seinfeld George Costanza Elaine Benes Cosmo Kramer Secondary characters Characters appearing in 5 or more episodes Other characters * Ada (played by Vicki Lewis) – George's secretary at the New York Yankees. In the episode "The Secretary", George does not want to hire an attractive secretary so he could focus on his work, and in the interview process turned down a few women because they were so attractive. George ultimately hired Ada, whose efficiency impressed him. However, one day while they are working together, George becomes attracted to Ada, and the two have sex. While having sex George blurts out that he's giving Ada a raise. Ada is given a raise, but it turns out that her new wages are even greater than George's, much to his annoyance. In "The Race", Ada ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Seinfeld Minor Characters
This is a list of characters who appeared on ''Seinfeld''. This list features only characters who appeared in multiple episodes; those that appeared in only one are not included here. Primary characters Jerry Seinfeld George Costanza Elaine Benes Cosmo Kramer Secondary characters Characters appearing in 5 or more episodes Other characters * Ada (played by Vicki Lewis) – George's secretary at the New York Yankees. In the episode "The Secretary", George does not want to hire an attractive secretary so he could focus on his work, and in the interview process turned down a few women because they were so attractive. George ultimately hired Ada, whose efficiency impressed him. However, one day while they are working together, George becomes attracted to Ada, and the two have sex. While having sex George blurts out that he's giving Ada a raise. Ada is given a raise, but it turns out that her new wages are even greater than George's, much to his annoyance. In "The Race", Ada ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Allen Salkin
Allen Salkin is an American journalist, author, and critic who has written for the ''New York Daily News, New York Times,'' and other publications. Education Salkin earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from University of California, Berkeley and a Master of Arts in journalism from New York University. Career His 2013 book, ''From Scratch'', gives a behind-the-scenes look at the history and personalities who created and staffed the Food Network. He is also the author of the book ''Festivus: The Holiday for the Rest of Us'' about the parody holiday of Festivus. Salkin spent three years as a staff reporter at ''The New York Times'', hosted a video series on AOL's former blog Slashfood, and appeared on a reality TV series. Published in hardcover on October 1, 2013 by G. P. Putnam's Sons and in paperback on October 7, 2014 by Berkley Books with a new afterword and subtitle, ''From Scratch'' is based upon extensive inside access, documents, and interviews with executives, presenters, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
H&H Bagels
H&H Bagels is a bagel company in New York City that has been described as "classic," "famous," and "iconic." The original store has closed, but five retail locations on the Upper East Side and Upper West Side of Manhattan and at John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia Airport, and Moynihan Train Hall are currently open daily. With these stores and its nationwide shipping and wholesale businesses, H&H Bagels is one of the largest bagel manufacturers in New York City. History The business was started in 1972 when Puerto Rican Helmer Toro and his brother-in-law Hector Hernandez (hence "H&H"), bought Midtown Bagels at Broadway and 80th Street for $5,000 ($ in 2018 dollar terms) in cash and $50,000 ($ in 2018 dollar terms) in a loan. Toro eventually assumed full control of the business. In 1974 Toro opened H&H Midtown Bagels East on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. In 1979 H&H went bankrupt for the first time which resulted in a new group taking over ownership of the Uppe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Commercialism
Commercialism is the application of both manufacturing and consumption towards personal usage, or the practices, methods, aims, and distribution of products in a free market geared toward generating a profit. Commercialism can also refer, positively or negatively, to corporate domination. Commercialism is often closely associated with the corporate world and advertising, and often makes use of advancements in technology. Commercialism can also be used in a negative connotation to refer to the possibility within open-market capitalism to exploit objects, people, or the environment for the purpose of private monetary gain. As such, the related term "commercialized" can be used in a negative fashion, implying that someone or something has been despoiled by commercial or monetary interests. See also * Anti-consumerism * Consumerism * Corporatocracy * Festivus Festivus () is a secular holiday celebrated on December 23 as an alternative to the pressures and commercialism of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Minor Secular Observances
Lists of holidays by various categorizations. Religious holidays Abrahamic holidays (Middle Eastern) Jewish holidays *Chag HaMatzot (Feast of Unleavened bread, Unleavened Bread – 7 days of consumption of matzo with wine and avoidance of leavened foods) *Hanukkah (Feast of Dedication; Also called the Festival of Lights – Commemoration of the rededication of the Jerusalem Temple) *Pesach (Passover – Deliverance of Jews from slavery in Egypt) **Lag BaOmer (A holiday celebrated on the 33rd day of the Counting of the Omer, which occurs on the 18th day of the Hebrew month of Iyar) *Purim (Feast of Lots – Deliverance of Jews in Persia from extermination by Haman) *Reishit Katzir (Feast of Bikkurim (First-fruits), Firstfruits – Collecting and waving of grain bundles (barley or wheat); Occurs during the 7 days of unleavened bread after the Sabbath) *Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year – First day of Tishrei every year) *Shabbat (The 7th Day Sabbath – The day of rest and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clock
A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and the year. Devices operating on several physical processes have been used over the millennia. Some predecessors to the modern clock may be considered as "clocks" that are based on movement in nature: A sundial shows the time by displaying the position of a shadow on a flat surface. There is a range of duration timers, a well-known example being the hourglass. Water clocks, along with the sundials, are possibly the oldest time-measuring instruments. A major advance occurred with the invention of the verge escapement, which made possible the first mechanical clocks around 1300 in Europe, which kept time with oscillating timekeepers like balance wheels., pp. 103–104., p. 31. Traditionally, in horology, the term ''clock'' was used for a stri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
