I chose to do famous actors who are of Irish descent for my Geogaphy project as it is topical at the moment because many young people are emigrating to America , England and Australia for work. Barack Obama is also visiting Ireland for the first time this summer and his fathers family origionally came from Moneygall, Co Offaly. It is estimated that after 1700 around 9 million Irish emigrated to Britain. In the 80 years up to 1914, 5 million went to the USA. Today 40 million Americans claim direct Irish ancestry. An incredible 80 million people worldwide claim some Irish descent.

You can see the people by clicking on the links below:
George Clooney
Judy Garland
Catherine Zeta Jones
Mischa Barton
Charlie Sheen
Mel Gibson

You can see my google map by clicking here.

Mel Gibson

Mel Gibson was born on the 3rd of January, 1956. He was originally born in Peekskill, New York but his family moved to Australia when he was just 12 years old. He was the middle child in a huge family of 11 children. His mother Anne Patricia Reilly was born in Co Longford. His full name is Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson; Saint Mel, fifth-century Irish saint, and Colm-Cille, is after another Irish saint. He has dual Irish and American citizenship. He’s a Catholic and has a chapel in his house where he goes to mass every day.

Gibson met Robyn Denise Moore in the late 1970s on an Australian dating website. She was a dental nurse. In June 1980, they married in a church in New South Wales. They have one daughter, six sons, and two grandchildren. They separated in August 2006 after 26 years of marriage. Robyn filed for divorce in April of last year. In October of that same year his new partner Oksana Grigorieva, a Russian pianist gave birth to his daughter. It is thought she was the reason for their divorce. They soon split. Grigorieva imposed a restraining order to stop him seeing her or their daughter Lucia after an apparent domestic violence incident.

Gibson is a keen property investor with various properties in Malibu, California, Costa Rica and Australia. He even owns his own private island in Fiji. He has a production company called Icon International, which has offices in the USA, Australia and the UK.

For The Passion of the Christ that was released in 2004 that he directed, wrote and produced, he spent 25 million dollars of his own money. He started working on it 12 years before it was released. The film made $210 million. He won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for Best Director as well as several Australian awards.

In 2006 he was arrested for drunk driving when he made insulting comments about women and Jews. He did a 3 year probation. He then checked himself into rehab for alcohol abuse.

He has starred in:

Lethal Weapon (1987),

Hamlet (1990),

Brave heart (1995),

Signs (2002).

Charlie Sheen

Born September 3rd, 1965 as Carlos Irwin Estevez he is better known by his stage name Charlie Sheen. He is the youngest son of famous actor Martin Sheen. He is of Spanish and Irish ancestry His grandmother is from Borrisokane, Co Tipperary.

He is most known for his characters in two sitcoms: Charlie Crawford on Spin City and as Charlie Harper on Two and a Half Men. In 2010, Sheen was confirmed as the highest paid actor on television ever, earning an incredible $1.8 million per episode of Two and a Half Men. He has been nominated for numerous awards for Two and a Half Men as well as some of his movies.

He was fired from his role on Two and a Half Men by CBS and Warner Bros. on March 7, 2011. The official statement read: “After careful consideration, Warner Bros. Television has terminated Charlie Sheen's services on Two and a Half Men effective immediately.” This was after repeated headlines about substance abuse and insulting comments about producer Chuck Lorre. He also demanded a pay rise to $3 million per episode. He has struggled with alcohol and drug throughout his life as well as rumoured domestic violence. He once said "I nearly died, which is about as bad as you can get. I'm totally convinced that drugs and alcohol brought me very close to death two or three times, and its more luck than anything else that I'm still alive."

Sheen has been very vocal about the September 11 attacks. He said that it looked like a controlled demolition. In September 2009 he pleaded with Obama to re-investigate the attacks. He blames George Bush for the atrocities.

He has been married 3 times and has 5 children including twin boys born in 2009. He has filed for divorce from his current wife Brooke Mueller. He is the former brother in law of Paula Abdul.

He has a list of shows and movies to his name such as:

The Chase (1994),

Being John Malkovich (1999),

Spin City (2000-2002)

Two and a half Men (2003-2011)

Mischa Barton

Mischa Barton was born in the west of London in a town called Hammersmith. Her mother Nuala Quinn was a photographer from Ireland and her father is from Manchester. She was raised in New York, and is privileged to be popular on both sides of the Atlantic. She was an aspiring singer as a child and also did child modelling in Ford modelling agency with Lindsey Lohan. In the late 1990’s she appeared in 4 musicals. She released a handbag collection in 2008 as well as a headband collection. She is currently working on a fashion line to be released in late 2011.

Mischa has become a much respected actress and has worked with the likes of Julia Roberts, Hugh Grant and Bruce Willis. She found her international fame by portraying Marisa on the extremely popular Fox television show, The O.C. which ran from 2003 to 2006. She won a Teen Choice Award for best actress and best breakout TV star in 2003. She went out with the Kooks front man Luke Pritchard in 2008/2009 and she also had a brief relationship with model Jamie Dornan.

Mischa Barton is heavily involved in charity organisations. She became the spokesperson for Climate Star which is an association that stands against global warming around the world. She is an ambassador for "Save the Children" and the "One Water" operation which brings water to isolated places in Africa. She is an "Entertainment Industry Foundation" ambassador where she spreads awareness and raises capital for women's cancer research. She is involved in the "SAFE" (Skin Awareness for Everyone) campaign for skin cancer awareness.

She was arrested in Hollywood in December 2007 for possession of a controlled substance, drunk driving and possession. She was then sentenced to 3 years probation. In July 2009 she was hospitalised for psychiatric problems and was confined there for 2 weeks as she was thought to be a danger to herself and others.

She has appeared in numerous TV series and movies including:

Law & Order: (2010)
You and I (2008)

St. Trinian’s (2007)

The O.C. (2003-2006)
Notting Hill (1999)

Catherine Zeta-Jones

Catherine Zeta-Jones was born in Swansea, Wales, to an Irish seamstress Patricia Fair, and David James Jones who was a Welsh sweet factory owner. She was named after her two grandmothers, Catherine Fair on her mother’s side, and Zeta Jones on her fathers. She was born on the 25^th of September 1969. In the 1980’s her parents won 100,000 pounds in the local bingo club and they say this was the start of her enjoying the high-life.

She starred on stage many times, most famously for Annie, Bugsy Malone and The Pajama Game. In 1984 aged 15 she had the lead in the British revival of 42nd Street.

She became a household name in the early 1990s when she starred in the English television comedy series "The Darling Buds of May". The show was an instant hit and this really raised her profile as a successful actress. Many people believe that she was robbed of an Oscar for the movie Traffic in 2000.

She has won many awards including an academy award, numerous BAFTA’s and a Tony award(best leading lady in a musical).She has her own production company called Milkwood Films.

Catherine Zeta Jones was once engaged to Scottish actor Angus Macfadyen. In November 2000 she married actor Michael Douglas who has recently overcome throat cancer. He is exactly 25 years older than her as they both share the same birthday. She gave birth to their son Dylan Michael in August 2000. Their daughter Carys Zeta Douglas was born on 20 April 2003. She is also stepmother to Cameron Douglas from Michael Douglas’ previous marriage. They currently live in New York City. She is currently undergoing help for bi-polar disorder in Connecticut.

Some of her most famous role has been in:

The Mask of Zorro 1998

Chicago 2002

Sinbad 2003

The terminal 2004

Oceans Twelve 2004

The Legend of Zorro 2005

Judy Garland

Judy Garland’s father was from the highly respected Marable family of Virginia, USA. Her mother was from the Fitzpatrick family from Smithtown, Co Meath, who immigrated to Minnesota in the 1770s. She was christened Frances Ethel Gumm and was born on the 10 June 1922. She was tiny standing at just 4 foot 11.

At 15 she found fame by playing Dorothy in the world renowned musical The Wizard of Oz. She played an orphaned girl living on a farm in Kansas who ends up in the magical world of Oz on the other side of the rainbow. She won a special Oscar in February 1940 for the Best Performance by a young Actor for her amazing portrayal of this orphan .

After 3 years of marriage Judy divorced from David Rose on 8 June 1944. On 12 March 1946 Judy gave birth to their daughter Liza Minnelli in LA, California. Judy's mental health was deteriorating quickly and this affected her performances. At 28, Judy was fired by MGM and her second marriage ended. This proved to be the downward spiral that resulted in her life-long drug addiction. Judy signed a film contract with Warner Bros in 1937 to star in the musical remake of A Star Is Born. Soon she began to lose her millions of hard-earned dollars due to her new husband's strong gambling. Again, this marriage ended in divorce. In total she married 5 times and divorced 4 times within 25 years. Her first marriage lasted for just 11 months. She had 3 children in total.

At a concert in London in June 1969 Judy walked into her bathroom for the last time and died of an overdose. The drugs that controlled her whole life eventually killed her at just 47. Garland has been described as “One of the brightest, most tragic movie stars of Hollywood's Golden Era”. She was a much loved actress.

Today she is still well known for her famous performances in:

The Wizard of Oz (1939),

Meet Me in St. Louis (1944),

Easter Parade (1948),

A Star Is Born (1954).

George Clooney

George Clooney’s paternal great-great-grandparents, Nicholas Clooney and Bridget Byron, immigrated to the United States from Ireland. They were from Co Kilkenny and moved to Lexington, Kentucky when they got married. George was born in Lexington in May 1961. Clooney was raised in a typical Irish Roman Catholic family. Clooney was married to Talia Balsam from 1989 and they divorced in 1993. Since 2009, Clooney has been in a relationship with E

lisabetta Canalis. He has no children and has vowed never to get married again, or have children.

Clooney's main home is in Los Angeles. He purchased the house in 1995. He also has a villa in Italy situated on Lake Como. He has appeared in ads for Fiat, Nespresso and Martini Vermouth and was the voiceover for Budweiser ads from 2005. George was named one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World 3 times in a row, from 2007 to 2009.

He has been actively involved in trying to find a resolution for the Darfur conflict. In April 2006, he spent ten days in Sudan and Chad with his dad Nick to make a film to show the terrible si

tuation of Darfur's refugees. In December, he travelled to China and also to Egypt with two Olympic winners and Don Cheadle to plead with the two governments to pressurise Sudan's government. He then made a TV documentary called “A Journey to Darfur”. The documentary was broadcast in America, the UK and France.

He has won an Academy Award for best supporting actor. He also won 2 golden globes as well as numerous other awards. He was nominated for 6 BAFTAs. He has also been nominated for his directing skills. His first main role was on Centennial in 1978. He has also produced many movies such as Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002), Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), Leatherheads (2008), The Ides of March (2011).

He has starred in many movies and TV series such as:

ER (1994-1999, 2009)

Friends 1995

Batman and Robin 1997

Spy Kids 2001

Ocean’s Eleven 2001 Oceans Twelve 2004 Oceans Thirteen 2007

Up in the Air 2009

For our Geography end of year project we have to choose a topic and plot the relevant places on a google map. I chose to do Actors of Irish descent as it's topical with many young people emigrating at the monent and also with Barack Obama visiting his Irish roots on May.

For our geography project earlier on in the year we had to choose to countries and research them. I did mine on New Zealand and Thailand and my New Zealand powerpoint can be seen on my presentations page.

 

Heres the places Im going to during my round the world trip in NZ.

An interesting thing I am doing is the Active Earth - Volcanoes and Rainforest: Explore the North Island with this 10 day hiking trip including hiking the moutainous terrain and kayaking in the Rotoura lakes.

In Geography at the moment we have to do a project on two countries of our choice. We have $12000 and 1 year to travel too , and explore these two countries. My first country is New Zealand because I have always wanted to go there. This is a first world country. Did you know that there are 4 times more sheep in NZ than people? :) When I fly to Auckland, one very interesting thing that I am going to do on my virtual tour to NZ is walk from one side of the country to the other! Because the North of NZ is so skinny , it is only 16km wide at its biggest, and there is a special tour you can do and walk from one side to the other. To put 16km into perspective, that is only from Celbridge to Sallins! :)
Here is the link : http://www.aucklandnz.com/index.php/content_B/?L1=63&L2=75&L3=&id=3557